“We were like virgins,” says Ali Shaheed Muhammed, referring to the time of People’s Instinctive Travels & the Paths of Rhythm and the experience of making the album for himself and fellow A Tribe Called Quest bandmates Q-Tip, Phife Dawg, and Jarobi. “If you could capture and pull out the chemical make up of your dreams coming true—it’s happening and at the same time you’re a teenager—if you could extract that, it would be euphoric for all ages and all time periods. And I think that was what was in that album, because we were living our dreams.”

It was on April 17, back in 1990, that A Tribe Called Quest released their truly unique debut People’s Instinctive Travels & the Paths of Rhythm on Jive Records. Full of playful humor, abstract musings, teenage tales, social commentary, and distinctive production, the album channels and touches in on a spectrum of sentiments and feeling. From such odes to adolescence as “Bonita Applebum” and “I Left My Wallet in El Segundo” (possibly the best hip-hop music video?) to the philosophical leanings of tracks like “Push It Along” and “Footprints,” and the conscious themes of “Description of a Fool” and “Luck of Lucien,” Tribe were undeniably youthful old souls.

The remarkably experimental album (just dig the dawn-of-the-universe-esque intro) kicked off what was to become one of the most inspiring and influential careers in hip-hop. So many musicians and fans cite A Tribe Called Quest as their very favorite group that it is hard to imagine what the musical landscape might look like without their contribution.

To mark the twentieth anniversary of People’s Instinctive Travels & the Paths of Rhythm, our buddy Chris Read has put together a sweet mixtape for Wax Poetics and WhoSampled. Delving into the album’s DNA, the mix includes original sample material from the likes of Roy Ayers, Lou Reed, Carly Simon, the Isley Brothers, Earth, Wind & Fire, and RAMP, all to celebrate the genius of such a special record.

Tracklist:

1. A Tribe Called Quest – Can I Kick It? (Extended Boilerhouse Mix) (Extract).
2. A Tribe Called Quest – If The Papes Come (Loop)
3. Chris Read – Theme #3 (Scratchapella)
4. Jimi Hendrix – EXP (sampled in “If the Papes Come”)
5. Eugene McDaniels – Jagger The Dagger (sampled in “Push It Along” and others)
6. Ali Shaheed Muhammad interview for Wax Poetics
7. Junior Mance – Thank You Falletin Me Be Mice Elf Agin (sampled in “Push It Along”)
8. Grover Washington Junior – Loran’s Dance (sampled in “Push It Along”)
9. A Tribe Called Quest – Push It Along
10. A Tribe Called Quest – Bonita Applebum (Why? Version)
11. Carly Simon – Why (Extended Version) (sampled in “Bonita Applebum (Why? Version)”)
12. Little Feat – Fool Yourself (sampled in “Bonita Applebum (Album Version)”)
13. Isley Brothers – Between The Sheets (sampled in “Bonita Applebum (Hootie Mix)”)
14. A Tribe Called Quest – Bonita Applebum (Hootie Mix)
15. RAMP – Daylight (sampled in “Bonita Applebum (Album Version)”)
16. A Tribe Called Quest – Bonita Applebum (Album Version)
17. Funkadelic – Nappy Dug Out (sampled in “Ham & Eggs”)
18. A Tribe Called Quest – Ham & Eggs
19. Lou Reed – Walk On The Wild Side (sampled in “Can I Kick It?”)
20. A Tribe Called Quest – Can I Kick It? (Extended Boilerhouse Mix)
21. Lonnie Smith – Spinning Wheel (sampled in “Can I Kick It?”)
22. Chambers Brothers – Funky (sampled in “I Left My Wallet in El Segundo”)
23. A Tribe Called Quest – I Left My Wallet In El Segundo
24. A Tribe Called Quest – Footprints
25. Stevie Wonder – Sir Duke (sampled in “Footprints”)
26. The Cannonball Adderley Quintet feat Jesse Jackson – Walk Tall (sampled in “Footprints”)
27. Donald Byrd – Think Twice (sampled in “Footprints”)
28. Sly & The Family Stone – Remember Who You Are (sampled in “After Hours”)
29. A Tribe Called Quest – After Hours
30. Billy Brooks – Forty Days (sampled in “Luck of Lucien”)
31. A Tribe Called Quest – Luck of Lucien
32. A Tribe Called Quest – Rhythm (Devoted to the Art of Moving Butts)
33. Earth Wind & Fire – Brazilian Rhyme (Beijo Interlude) (sampled in “Mr. Muhammad”)
34. A Tribe Called Quest – Mr. Muhammad
35. A Tribe Called Quest – Description of a Fool
36. Roy Ayers Ubiquity – Running Away (sampled in “Description of a Fool”)
37. Billy Baron and his Smokin Challengers – Communication Is Where It’s At (sampled in “Public Enemy”)
39. A Tribe Called Quest – Public Enemy
40. Reuben Wilson – Inner City Blues (sampled in “Youthful Expression”)
41. A Tribe Called Quest – Youthful Expression
42. Slave – Son of Slide (sampled in “Go Ahead in the Rain”)
42. A Tribe Called Quest – Go Ahead in the Rain
43. A Tribe Called Quest – Ham & Eggs (Outro)

A Tribe Called Quest - People’s Instinctive Travels & the Paths of Rhythm

Track list and more info at Wax Poetics:

http://www.waxpoetics.com/music/mixtape/a-tribe-called-quest-peoples-instinctive-travels-the-paths-of-rhythm-25th-anniversary-mixtape/


A Tribe Called Quest - People’s Instinctive Travels & the Paths of Rhythm

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