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| Be | 
 enlarge | Artist: Common
Label: Geffen Records
Category: Music
List Price: $13.98
Buy Used: $3.10
You Save: $10.88 (78%)
New (46) Used (32) Collectible (1) from $3.10
Avg. Customer Rating:  139 reviews
Sales Rank: 18973
Format: Explicit Lyrics
Media: Audio CD
Discs: 1
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.2
Dimensions (in): 5.7 x 4.9 x 0.4
MPN: 000467002
UPC: 602498818626
EAN: 0602498818626
ASIN: B0009IFEJ0
Release Date: May 24, 2005
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
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| Tracks:
| • | Be (Intro) | | • | The Corner | | • | Go! | | • | Faithful | | • | Testify | | • | Love Is... | | • | Chi-City | | • | The Food | | • | Real People | | • | They Say | | • | It's Your World |
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| Editorial Reviews:
Amazon.com
Though heralded as an instant hip-hop classic by some, Common's Be doesn't quite live up to the hype, though it is still has several strengths going for it. Compared to the esoteric themes and production of his last album, Electric Circus, Be is far more grounded in street-level beats and rhymes, especially on songs like "The Corner" and "Real People"--Common's odes to personality and places 'round the way. At only 11 songs, this is a very compact album, both a blessing and curse by keeping the pacing brisk but it also amplifies weaknesses like the syrupy crossover attempt, "Go," or overly sentimental "Love Is." Production by Kanye West and Jay Dee is uniformly strong and it lends a consistency that is essential for such a relatively short album. It is worth noting that Common and Kanye's chemistry is especially well matched. -- Oliver Wang
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| Customer Reviews: Read 134 more reviews...
 Common definitely shows what a hip hop classic should "Be". June 19, 2005
44 out of 48 found this review helpful
Common Sense has been around for awhile. He has always been known for having good rap lyrics and for having pretty good CDs. I was first introduced to Common on a track entitled "Take It EZ". This track was pretty good and although I had heard the CD, I never purchased "Can I Borrow A Dollar?" Common's next CD, "Resurrection", was also pretty good. "I Used To Love H.E.R." gave Common new found respect and he also bumped heads with the infamous Ice Cube. The title track was also a good track as well. From there, Common would release, "One Day It Will All Make Sense" and once I heard the track with him and Lauryn Hill, "Retrospect For Life", I then decided that it was time to purchase a Common CD. The CD was pretty good and I liked Common's versatility with his lyrics as well as a track with him and Erykah Badu entitled "All Night Long". His next CD, "Like Water For Chocolate" spawned "The 6th Sense" produced by the great DJ Premier and his best commercial song to date, "The Light" featuring Bilal.
At this time, Common was dating neo soul singer Erykah Badu and this would influence him on his next CD, "Electric Circus". This CD was unlike any other CD that Comon had released to date. The vibe seemed to be real mellow and you could tell that Common was "in love". However, I also thought that Common just wanted to try something different. Rappers seem to be afraid to step outside of their box for some reason. Although, Common had a hit with Mary J. Blige entitled "Come Close", many Common fans thought that he had lost his "fire" when it came to his lyrics and his overall style.
I have to admit that I had doubts but I knew that Common was just one moment away of proving me wrong and all of the nonbelievers wrong as well. That moment would come on Kanye West's "College Dropout" CD. Ladies and gentleman, if you have not heard this verse please go buy Kanye's CD IMMEDIATELY!
Common spits nothing but flames on a song with him, Talib Kweli and Kanye entitled "Get 'Em High". My nonbelieving ended at that moment. Then at the end of a Dave Chappelle episode on Season 2, Common and Kanye performed a song that I would later find out was called "The Food" and Common ripped that track as well. I knew after those 2 moments was that the Common that I had known all of this time was still here. Once I found out that Common had signed to Kanye West's label, GOOD Music, (Getting Out Our Dreams), I knew that Common was here to stay and that his best music was yet to come.
Now some people can argue that "Resurrection" is better but in my opinion "Be" is the best CD that Common has released to date. The buzz was started early on this CD with the first single, "The Corner". Kanye is featured on the chorus with The Last Poets and Common tells you about the streets of Chitown and the streets in general over 3 quality verses. On the next single, "GO!", Common, Kanye West and John Mayer, YES John Mayer, collaborated on this track after they had seen the movie Ray. The final product has Common going through a slew of what we will just call "Fantasies". Common is very clever with his lyrics and wordplay and "GO!" ends up being a brilliant choice as a second single. On "Faithful", common goes back to his "Electric Circus" side but he is breaking down plenty of points of views at the same time as he wonders if he would treat women differently if God was to be known as a woman instead of a man. After hearing this song a couple of times, you may even change your train of thought about women in general. "Faithful" also contains John Legend and Bilal on the voclas as well. "Testify" is definitely one of the best songs on this CD as Common takes you through a brilliant tale of deception about a case. This woman that is distraught over her man being charged with serious crime deceives everyone about her actions and as Common ends the track youeventually find out that she is the one that actually committed the crime, AKA the Queenpin as Common calls her. "Love Is" will remind alot of people of "Come Close" without Mary J Blige actually being on the song. The track is still brilliant as Common still isn't afraid to express his sensitive side eventhough Ms. Badu is now out of the picture. "Chi City" demonstrates how Common is still one of the best lyricists in the game as he rips the Kanye beat to shreds. DJ A- Trak and DJ Dummy deserve an A+ for the scratches on the track as well. "They Say" features Kanye and John Legend on the track as the three collaborate well together. This song seems as if this will be the next single if there is a 3rd single on "Be". "Real People" and "It's Your World" have Common tackling alot of issuses and he has you thinking about what he is saying at the same time.
There is nothing negative that I can say about this CD at all. Common could have had more than 11 songs on this CD, that is true but if he would have had 15 tracks on this CD and 4 of them weren't good like many artists do today then it's just like having 11 quality tracks. Now Common could have included the slammin' "The Corner (Remix)" with Mos Def & Scarface but that's another story. Simply put this is Common at his best. If you do not have "Be" in your music collection, it will be hard for me to call you a real fan of rap and hip hop music in general. You can also catch Common on Kanye West's "Jesus Walks (Remix)" with Mase and on a nice track with Kanye and Malik Yusef entitled "Would You Like To Ride" which cleverly uses a nice A Tribe Called Quest sample.
James' Top 5
THIS IS A REAL HARD TOP 5 SONGS TO PICK BUT I WILL TRY:
1) The Corner
2) Testify
3) GO!
4) Chi City
5) The Food or Real People
 Don't call it a comeback.... June 3, 2005
20 out of 21 found this review helpful
Wow, Common's "Be" is such a monumental comeback after "Electric Circus". For as much as "Electric Circus" sucked, that's how good "Be" is. This is truly a four or five star album.
This is Common back at what he does best. Dusty, authentic, scratchy, old 70's R&B/Jazz samples with straight-ahead rapping. Tremendous production from Kanye West gives us some of the best beats heard on a newer hip hop album.
This has a great atmosphere to it, a tight compact theme. This is taking hip hop back a few years, but that's fine because there hasn't been a whole lot of outstanding hip hop in the last few years. This one sounds like it'll age nicely. Highly recommended.
 this is a rehashed and cheap attempt for the masses. June 3, 2005
14 out of 29 found this review helpful
for those of us who listened to common when he released ressurection, we witnessed him take full advantage of his skills and his abilities over a plush backdrop of nice sounds and styles. unfortunately, he is unable to develop anything in the mediocre if not weak album, be, that he has not already done better in his back catalogue. It seems like there is such a void for a "concious" figure in hip-hop, to balance out the extreme mysogynistic and overmasculine qualities of people such as fifty cent, people are so desperate for something that is thought provoking and intelligent, but at the same time they are too lazy to venture into the realm of artists who arent on major labels or in music videos that get rotation. we have seen it almost work with mos def, we have seen it fail miserably with talib kweli,and now apparently the masses are swooning for it in the form of common sense, which is really just a rehashed watered-down style from 94 that is being reintroduced to a whole generation that never heard the beauty of "i used to love her" or "ressurection". None of his flows on this album are any different form anything he has done before, in fact they're quite substandard by his own standards. he kicks the standard simple phrasing and style we're used to on garbage albums like "lwfc" and the half-decent "odiwams", with the exception of his flow on the lead single, "the corners" which i actually thought was okay. He seems to have some sort of false sincerity in his voice, like he believes what he says, but he really doesnt have the conviction to do much for it, other than plead or whine. His voices doesn't compliment the beats that kanye has lifted from soul singers, and kanye didnt really do anything original with the production, he just looped some old soul samples,(anybody can do that) the same successful formula hes been milking since the blueprint, another so called "classic" album. People are so thirsty for something good that they will call anything that is reminsicent of a certian era in the midnineties and call it a classic. so we have people who are creating this false sense of"we have to bring it back" or thios mentality that the hip-hop today is not as good as the hip-hop of yesteryears. The turth is, when common took chances with his music on "ec" people hated on it for the same reasons that hiphop is in limbo these days, we live in the era where people are afraid to take chances and be themselves and be daring, everyone is so insecure with letting their record sales define their skill level, and they wont even swallow what youre selling unless you can market it with something that is "hot" and "tested" and formuliac like kanye production which has crossed over and is now in style. this album sucks, and noone will remember it in five years, but heads will still bump ressurection in ten. as far as being a so-called concious artist, why does common insist on dissing people who date outside their race? sounds like the viewpoint of a closeminded bigot, if not a racist!
"Black men walking wit white girls on they arms
I be mad at em as if I know they moms"
its like common has refused to embrace his "ec" style which seemed more about progressive thought and expirimention and more in tune with where hip-hop is going if it is allowed to be itself, and decided that if he was going to appeal to the "streets" he would have to dumb down his views or his image. i'm tired of people thinking that soemthing is more "real" or "authentic" or "credible" if it caters to the "streets". common need to not look bakc to his old catalogue in hope sof recreating an old sound, but needs to have the gusto to do something unique. if this is what passes fo ra classic album then people are just plain lost.
"Heard The Corner now they say that n*ggas back" February 15, 2006
6 out of 6 found this review helpful
I could not think of any words that better describe this album. A lot of people were disappointed with Electric Circus, and Common really came back strong with this effort. As much as I think Kanye West is conceited and overrated when it comes to rapping, you cannot deny that he is one of the best producers in the game right now. It seems like his production style would get old, but it never really does, and he puts forth some of his best efforts on this album.
1) Be (Intro) - I know this might sound crazy, but this beat is one of my favorite beats that I have ever heard. Kanye's production here is absolutely awesome. There is probably no better way to start off an album, the instrumental alone is classic, but Common's lyrics on top of it make this track amazing. A great way to kick off the album.
2) The Corner - The intro leads in very nicely to the first single, and again, another sick beat laid by Kanye. Here though, Com's lyrics outshine the beat, especially the first verse.
3) Go! - This one features John Mayer, a somewhat odd combination, but his vocals are very minimal and only on the hook. I like this song but my only problem with it is that much of the track is the hook being repeated again and again. Another verse by Common would have made this track better.
4) Faithful - Kanye goes back to the well here with the high-pitched vocal samples and Common explores the question of whether God is a male or female. John Legend and Bilal appear at the end and absolutely kill their background vocal part, a nice way to finish off this track.
5) Testify - Again Kanye comes with a nice beat, but this one is all about Common. He tells the story of a murder trial that has quite an interesting turn of events at the end. This is a great showcase of Com's storytelling abilities.
6) Love Is... - As the title suggests, this one is about love. It seems like it's getting repetitive, but the beat and lyrics here are both nice as well.
7) Chi-City - This is one of the standout tracks on the album to me. The beat is a bit different than most of the prior beats, a bit more rugged, and Common drops absolutely great lyrics here. This takes it back to the days of Can I Borrow A Dollar? and Resurrection, some classic Common right here.
8) The Food (Live from Chappelle's Show) - At first I thought that a live version wouldn't be as good as a studio version, but I was proved wrong. Kanye laces a nice beat and Common complements it with some nice lyrics. My only complaint here is Kanye on the hook gets a little annoying after a while.
9) Real People - This is a rather odd beat, the best comparison I can make is that it reminds me of some 80's TV show theme song. That sounds corny, but I like this beat as well. The beat isn't the story here though, Com's verses are. He drops some great lyrics and this is really a showcase of Common at his lyrical best.
10) They Say - This is another standout track. Kanye laces a crazy beat, I love the piano. Common spits two verses, Kanye spits one, and John Legend does the hook. Com's second verse in my opinion outshines all the rest. John Legend comes through as usual with a soulful, brilliant hook, and Kanye drops a verse that would sound better if he weren't spitting it on a track with Common, because Common is simply the better rapper. Overall though, a great track, one of the best on the album.
11) It's Your World Part 1 & 2 - The final track on the album brings the album to a close nicely. Not the best track on the album, but solid nonetheless. At the end Pops shows up as well which is always welcomed at the end of most of Common's albums.
Even though this album is only eleven tracks, it still will, in my opinion, go down as one of the best albums in quite some time. Too often now people substitute quality for quantity, but a short album can be great if you put the time and effort into each track, as obviously was the case here. Illmatic was arguably the greatest hip-hop album ever created, and it was only ten tracks. Be isn't quite in the class of Illmatic, but by modern standards, it could be considered as a great album. The replay value is very high, I am still listening to this the year after I bought it and I plan to be listening to it for a long time as well. We can only wish that all albums released nowadays could be given as much thought and effort as this. Common really created a gem here, and if you thought Common was over the hill after hearing Electric Circus, you were wrong. Like the man himself said, "Heard The Corner now they say that n*ggas back."
Modern Urban Griot May 29, 2006
6 out of 6 found this review helpful
Common - Be
I've recently just crossed the last genre boundary in my musical universe. I've become an unabashed and passionate hip hop head. After years of ignoring or actively hating the music, I'm just clicking with hip hop in a way I never have before. Perhaps it's living in Brooklyn, one of the great hip hop centers in the country, or working with young people and staying "relevant" but a music that I couldn't take for a long time is now one of my favorites. I like it all...underground, gansta, and mainstream. And of all the mainstream MCs Chicago's Common may be my favorite.
Common is often considered a "socially conscious" MC. Basically this means he's deep in the tradition of black urban griots typified by the Last Poets and Gil Scott Heron. Common's material is taken from the streets of South Side Chicago, Stoney Island Ave and Cottage Grove especially. But his view of black city life is deeper than most gansta rappers. Though there is crime and violence in Common's lyrics, these are transcended by themes of love, self-determination and deep honesty. Be represents a return by the MC to form and perhaps even his strongest CD to date. Be features productions by Kanye West and the late great Jay Dilla. Kanye in particular give his particular lush production to the CD. Kanye may indeed be the Phil Spector of Hip Hop and your response to his work may be tempered by your feeling about Spector's wall of sound. Kanye reaches for something similar, which smooths out the edges of this work. Still, it's impressive work and fits Common's updated 70s imagery well.
This CD is short but packed with powerful songs, stories and images. Highlights include the opening track, with a marvelous instrumental by Kanye that mixes funky seventies jazz and funk with a lyric that mix social commentary and spirituality. The Corner actually features members of the Last Poets in a poetic picture of life in a Bronxville corner. Faithful is an arresting track, which posits what might happen if God were female. The track becomes a beautiful commentary on sexual and spiritual fidelity. The Food is a track which was performed on Dave Chappelle's show and features both Common and Kanye. It takes the gansta perspective and turns it on it's head, showing the gansta as a family man trying to make it.
My favorite track in the final track, It's Your World. Common tells stories from the hood. His characters are failing, crack heads, unwed mothers, people for whom the "dream" of seeing California is as unattainable as going into space is for most of us. The track then continues with the voices of children talking about their dreams and then finishes with Common's father given some of the most beautiful and poetic advice I've heard on record. It never fails to move me, often making me weep. The contrast in the track between the world as it is and the world as it could be is deeply poignant.
Be is not quite a perfect album. A few tracks I think fall a little short of Common's poetic abilities. Go for instance is a catchy track, but doesn't say anything new or interesting about sex that hasn't been done by so many other MCs. Also, the album is very short, clocking in at only a little over forty minutes. But these are small complaints. This CD is one of the best of 2005 and a triumphant return to form by one of mainstream rap's most talented and insightful poets. This is the album to get if you think hip hop is boring, intellectually simpleminded or drivel. It's smooth and good to the ears and yet full of deep images. Common is the Gil Scott Heron of our time...high praise indeed.
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