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"Bag Lady" was nominated for the 2001 Grammy Award for Best Female R&B Vocal Performance and for Best R&B Song.
"Didn't Cha Know" was nominated for the 2002 Grammy Award for Best R&B Song.
R&B diva Erykah Badu's long-awaited second studio release finds her incorporating pronounced jazz influences into her history-cognizant mixture of hip-hop and soul. Jazzy touches, from the vibes on "My Life" to the ballad "Orange Moon," with its languid upright bass and bop-schooled piano, abound. Jazz trumpeter extraodinaire Roy Hargrove was responsible for all the horn arrangements on MAMA'S GUN.
"Booty"'s Crusaders-style horns and loose, funky rhythm nod to mid '70s R&B, and the guitar lines on "Bag Lady" could have come off a vintage Marvin Gaye album. With its delicate acoustic guitar textures, lush background vocals, and '70s-style keyboards, "A.D. 2000" occupies a classy middle ground between Sade and HISSING OF SUMMER LAWNS-era Joni Mitchell. The album closes with the adventurous, suite-like "Green Eyes." The first section of the song finds Badu crooning in a '30s jazz-blues style over crackles that emulate a scratchy old 78. The second "movement" grows jazzier, led by flute and punctuated by acoustic bass lines and brush-strokes on the drums. The final section bears a more modern R&B feel, with syncopated rhythms and a carefully arranged horn section. Ultimately, Badu's self-description of an "analog girl in a digital world" proves highly apt on MAMA'S GUN.
Engineers include: Chris Bell, Russell Elevado, Tom Soares.
Personnel: Erykah Badu (vocals, background vocals); Emma Kummrow, Gregory Teperman, Charles Parker (violin); Peter Nocella (viola); Larry Gold (cello); Roy Hargrove (trumpet); Shaun Martin (keyboards); ?uestlove (drums); Leonard "Doc" Gibbs (percussion); Geno "Junebugg" Young, YahZarah (background vocals).
Audio Mixers: Russell Elevado; Tom Soares; Leslie Brathwaite.
Photographer: Don Thompson .
Personnel includes: Erykah Badu (vocals, acoustic guitar, whistle, synthesizer); Jef Le Johnson (acoustic & electric guitars); Dready (acoustic guitar, bass); Pino Palladino (electric guitar, bass); Russell Elevado (guitar); Igor Swzec, Emma Kummrow, Charles Parker, Gregory Teperman, Charles Kwas, Olga Konopelsky (violin); Davis Barnett, Peter Nocello (viola); Larry Gold (cello); D'Wayne Kerr (flute); Jacques "Pepe" Swarzbart (saxophone); Roy Hargrove (trumpet); Frank "Roots" Lacy (trombone); James Poyser (piano, Fender Rhodes piano, Clavinet, organ, ARP synthesizer, Mini-Moog synthesizer); Geno "Junebugg" Young (Fender Rhodes piano); Bilal Oliver (Fender Rhodes piano); R.C. Williams, Shaun "Fingers" Matin (keyboards); Roy Ayers (vibraphone).
Producers include: Erykah Badu, James Poyser, Jay Dee, Jah Born, Shaun Martin.
Rolling Stone (1/4/01, p.106) - Ranked #9 in Rolling Stone's Top 10 Albums of 2000 - "...She takes chances the way Stevie Wonder or Nina Simone did in their prime....she has taken her art to the next level..." Entertainment Weekly (11/24/00, p.81) - "...A '70s soul homage featuring live musicians and a smooth-funk sound that wouldn't be out of place on a CTI record....Badu has a nuanced voice that pokes through the bland surfaces..." - Rating: B- Uncut (2/01, p.79) - 3 stars out of 5 - "...Warm jazz textures, slinky beats, smoking grooves and hip hop lite. Badu's silky tones are as seductive as ever..." Muzik (2/01, p.79) - 5 out of 5 - "...The freshest, most inspirational set of new grooves on the planet..." CMJ (1/08/01, p.9) - Included in CMJ's "Best of the Year" for 2000. CMJ (12/11/00, p.4) - "...A sultry concoction of mild jazz and soft '70s marked by an all-around reverence for 'retro'....demonstrating her true artistry."
Badu is amazing Again I feel happy to have discovered this singer. She is the best soul singer in the whole world and she is making you travel around it in this album. Again. Submitted by Ingrid (Barcelona, Spain) Was This Review Helpful? YesNo
Badu's "Gun" does not miss This has to be one of the best cds that I have ever heard. There aren't many songwriters that can produce a cd that you can pop in the cd player and let play with no interruption. This cd is one of them. For the listeners that want to feel the strong funk or the tight lyrics of any song, just listen to this, and I promise you won't be disappointed. Submitted by a reviewer (Dallas, TX, USA) Was This Review Helpful? YesNo
Absolutely Stunning! Here is Erykah's best work by far. Only her Live album even begins to approach the sheer brilliance of this cd. Right away there are three defining songs here, "Orange Moon", "Time's A Wastin" and the off-the-chart "Green Eyes". "Green Eyes" is 10 minutes of sheer Badu induced heaven. She reminds me so much of young Chaka Khan it’s spooky. Everything about this album is pretty much as good as gets. There is a different version of "Bag Lady" here than what was originally on the radio and it works. Of course “Didn't Cha Know” is another favorite. There is no doubt in my mind that the sheer quality of this CD stands head and shoulders above nearly anything out there today. No R&B collection is complete without this CD.
Submitted by Marcusj_j (Aurora, IL, USA) Was This Review Helpful? YesNo
Absolutely Flawless Album!!! One of my all-time, most listened to albums PERIOD. Erykah badu knows how to feed the soul with music! Shout out to her production crew!!! Submitted by Yglaces (Vintage) Was This Review Helpful? YesNo
Mama's Gun Lick a shot atcha boi Not to be rediculous but this album puts me over the edge. At 22 there hasn't been a release in my lifetime that touches me the way this does. Erykah gives you nothing but the pure truth as she knows it and i don't think it was for any reason other than for her to hear it after it came out. what's better that that? this is how music always should've been made. thanks erykah. Submitted by a reviewer (buffalo, ny) Was This Review Helpful? YesNo
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