I’ve been asked many times what my favorite song is and it’s too hard of a question to answer. But I always give it that ole college try and try to pick my top track of all time. But then I’ll go back to the person who asked and annoy them with questions like… “Are we talking all genres? Can we break it down to sub-genres? Can I break rap and hip hop out into 2 categories so I can give you a song with each?” Then they realize that I have some problems and an easy question and answer for them is a long tedious process in my mind for me. And let’s be real, I’ll never be able to answer that question in my lifetime. Different songs hit me at different times so what resonates today might not stick with me 3 years for now. But there are a few songs that stand the test of time in my tape deck and one of them is the Digable Planets track “Pacifics” off of their debut album, Reachin’ (A New Refutation Of Time And Space). Let’s start with the instrumental of the track so you can catch the vibe.
This has to be a top 5 bassline of all time right? And then those drums kick in and you can’t help get nod your head… The beat drops off at times and drops back in. Then you got this weird sound coming in and out followed by some horns for the bridge which breaks up the track beautifully. This beat alone is a thing of beauty. Now before we get to the track, I’m going to take you back to pick up the vibe of Digable Planets back in 1993. The jazz rap fusion was starting to become a sub-genre of hip hop through tracks like Gang Starr’s “Jazz Thing” in 1990, “Jazz (We’ve Got)” from A Tribe Called Quest in 1991, and Pete Rock & CL Smooth’s “T.R.O.Y” in 1992. It was US3’s “Cantaloop (Flip Fantasia)” which I believe was the first to crossover and get new listeners over to hip hop who misunderstood it from the beginning. While “Cantaloop (Flip Fantasia)” didn’t resonate with me, I recognized how original and different it was at the time and could appreciate it for that.
This track dropped in 1993 which I feel was the pivotal year for the genre that lives today. 1993 also had jazz inspired hip hop albums from Guru, Freestyle Fellowship, ATCQ, De La Soul, The Roots, and Souls of Mischief. I know I’m forgetting others who dropped in ‘93 but look at that list. Does it get any more innovative than those artists? But it was the debut album from Digable Planets that hit me hardest. While there were great jazzy hip hop singles that dropped in the early 90’s, I felt like it was Digable who truly captured the essence of what a jazz rap album could be. Seeing Digable getting radio play and love on the TV airwaves was so dope. It was so far removed from the gangsta rap genre that was so big in ‘92 and ‘93 with the Death Row movement. Shout out to In Living Color for always give young aspiring hip hop artists a platform to get exposed to a wider audience. Check the video to see if you can find a young J-Lo getting down to Digable.
While “Rebirth of Slick” will forever be the track that gets the most mentions and streams for the Digable Planets, it was “Pacifics” that I thought was the best track on the album. And to think that Digable’s debut album dropped 30 years ago yesterday was crazy. But listen to “Pacifics” and tell me it doesn’t hold up today. I personally think it has aged better than “Rebirth of Slick” and while some might call that a hot take, I’m standing by it. And that whole question about what is your favorite track of all time? For me, “Pacifics” will forever be in the discussion. Here’s the track from the album as well as a live recording of it. Shout out to Digable Planets who were from another planet and pushing the boundaries of hip hop to allow it to become what it is today.