"Sandinista!" seems the closest antecedent in terms of an overwhelming creative purge, but I think the Clash did it during some sort of creative peak, whereas I think (for better or for worse) OutKast still have a lot of room left to improve. Ergo, whenever my iPod randomly spits me a track from "Sandinista! or "Speakerboxxx/The Love Below," I'm more likely to relish the former and skip the latter. Now, if anything on the OutKast disc(s) were as good as "The Whole World," things could be different, but I guess we'll have to wait for that.
Or will we?
(PS For the record, "Sandinista!" runs about ten minutes shorter than the OutKast set.)
― Josh in Chicago, Thursday, 30 October 2003 14:36 (twenty-two years ago)
Of course, "Police on My Back" is actually an Eddy Grant song, right? (Unless I'm wrong.) Maybe Outkast should've covered "Electric Avenue" or "Romancing the Stone" on "Black Skinned Blue Eyed Boys" or "Baby Come Back" or whatever. Anyway, some possibly relevant posts from another thread earlier this month, for whatever it;s worth:
According to Christgau's '80s Consumer Guide book, the Clash actually put out a one-album radio promo sampler from *Sandinista!* at the time, called *Sandinista Now*! Which Outkast should definitely take note of, seeing how they already stole another of *Sandinista!* ideas by having a little kid sing a new version of one of their earlier songs. ("The Whole World"; with the Clash I think it was "Career Opportunities," but maybe my memory's bad. Another similarity is that *Sandinista!* has no songs as good as "Career Oppourtunities," and *Speakerboxx/The Love Below* apparently has none as good as "The Whole World," but never mind.) Anyway, I totally agree with Scott -- EPs are better than double CDs any day of the week.
-- chuck (cedd...), October 15th, 2003.
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black market clash e.p.-vs-sandinista
-- scott seward (skotro...), October 15th, 2003.
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Yeah -- *Speakerboxx/The Love Below* is quite possibly Outkast's most INCONSISTENT album ever (and I also agree with the frequently correct Scott, by the way, that *Stankonia* wasn't all that playable from beginning to end its own damn self). AND the new album's best songs may well be the worst best songs Outkast has ever put on an album. Some masterpiece, huh?
-- chuck (cedd...), October 15th, 2003.
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Actually, though, I forget how consistent or high-reaching their pre-"Rosa Parks" albums were, so I'm still just sort of speculating.
The Clash, by the way, were one of those rare and valuable artists whose every album was worse than the one before; i.e. The Clash > Give Em Enough Rope > London Calling > Black Market Clash > Sandinista > Combat Rock > Cut the Crap > Whatever Crap They Did After Cut the Crap Assuming They Did Any. (I believe you can do the same thing with Patti Smith, or at least her first five albums.)
-- chuck (cedd...), October 15th, 2003.
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On the other hand, Chris, if yr point about the new Outkast album is that people seem to be respecting its ambition as such, and therefore cutting its indulgences slack (just like they did with Sandinista, and probably countless other big pazz and jop albums -- and I'm not saying they should or shouldn't be doing this, by the way), I guess I agree with you. Which might mean I'm contradicting myself, who knows.
-- chuck (cedd...), October 15th, 2003.
― chuck, Thursday, 30 October 2003 19:21 (twenty-two years ago)