Common

The blending of Common's lyrical intensity and Kanye West's borderline blurry nostalgi-soul production has proved a musical masterstroke, delivering that rarest of things: a coherent hip-hop album. "The Corner" and "The Food" stand out, but more importantly Be is compact, considered and impressively controlled.

For years, Common has struggled with the mantle of Rapper You're Most Likely to Take
Home to Your Mama. He's so genuinely positive that when he rhymes about bitches, he's
sometimes actually referring to female dogs ("Reality's a bitch/And I heard that she bites").
When Common is on, he's a fearless MC who can rhyme about anything from abortion
(1997's "Retrospect for Life") to the sorry state of hip-hop (1994's "I Used to Love... More >

Few of the best moments belong to the main attraction, who's not as wise as they tell him he is ("It's Your World [Part 1 & 2]," "The Food [Live]"). (Grade - ***)