Stakes Is High

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Stakes Is High
Stakes is High album cover.jpg
Studio album by
De La Soul
ReleasedJuly 2, 1996
GenreHip hop
Length68:19
Label
ProducerDe La Soul, Spearhead X, Skeff Anselm, O.Gee, Jay Dee
De La Soul chronology
Clear Lake Audiotorium
(1994) 		Stakes Is High
(1996) 		Art Official Intelligence: Mosaic Thump
(2000)
Singles from Stakes Is High
  1. "Stakes Is High"
    Released: June 17, 1996
  2. "Itzsoweezee (HOT)"
    Released: 1996
  3. "4 More"
    Released: 1997
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic4/5 stars[1]
Entertainment WeeklyB[2]
Muzik5/5[3]
NME6/10[4]
Rolling Stone2/5 stars[5]
The Rolling Stone Album Guide4/5 stars[6]
Spin6/10[7]
The Village VoiceB+[8]

Stakes Is High is De La Soul's fourth full-length album, released on July 2, 1996. The album marked a change in the group's sound and direction as it was their first release not to be produced in collaboration with Prince Paul. Stakes Is High was mainly produced by the group themselves with additional tracks provided by Jay Dee, DJ Ogee, Spearhead X and Skeff Anslem. It is considered to be the group's darkest and most serious album in terms of subject matter and production. It received mostly strong reviews but little commercial success.

History[]

Stakes Is High marked the first time the group did not collaborate with long-time producer Prince Paul on an album, as the group felt that the production that he turned in for the album didn't correctly match the album's mood.

After the album's release, the group toured extensively and remained rather quiet before returning in 2000 with the first installment in their "Art Official Intelligence" series, Mosaic Thump.

Stakes Is High dealt with many topics, including the state of hip-hop, the commercialization of the hip-hop culture, and criticism towards gangsta rap. This would cause great contempt with the late gangsta rapper 2Pac who would later retaliate on the song "Against All Odds" from his posthumous 1996 album The Don Killuminati: The 7 Day Theory (as well as the unreleased song "Watch Ya Mouth" recorded during the same sessions). Naughty By Nature also took serious offense to the record, creating a feud that only died down after about a decade and a half after Stakes Is High was released.

Stakes Is High helped introduce rapper Mos Def to a wider audience, on the cut "Big Brother Beat". Common also makes an appearance on "The Bizness".

Interludes[]

Like other De La Soul albums, Stakes Is High has a running theme, which in this case is the group's concern for the state of rap, as well as the current state of hip hop culture and how it is regarded in general. The following sound clips are featured:

  • The introduction track begins with various clips of interviews, the interviewees describing where they were when they first heard the influential rap album Criminal Minded.
  • At the end of track 9, "Long Island Degrees", a 'redneck' describes why he hates rap music ("There's no music in it. It's just niggers talking.")
  • At the end of track 10, "Betta Listen", there is a clip of Posdnuos and Maseo discussing an error in communication about a club.
  • At the end of track 15, "Pony Ride" — an excerpt from the documentary Crumb, in which Maxon Crumb discusses his struggle living on the streets, describing his periods of optimism and depression. While describing this situation, he remarks,"Stakes is high".
  • The beginning and end of track 16, "Stakes is High" feature sound clips of people playing dice. The O. J. Simpson trials are discussed by a man nearby.
  • The clip at the end of the final track, "Sunshine", closes the album with a young man saying "Yo, when I first heard 3 Feet High and Rising, I was" and then the clip is cut out in similar fashion to "Fight the Power" in Public Enemy's legendary album, Fear of a Black Planet. 3 Feet High and Rising being De La Soul's first release and a very influential hip-hop album, held in a similarly high regard as Criminal Minded, which is discussed at the beginning of the album.

Track listing[]

No.TitleProducer(s)Length
1."Intro"De La Soul2:35
2."Supa Emcees"De La Soul3:40
3."The Bizness" (featuring Common)De La Soul5:41
4."Wonce Again Long Island"De La Soul3:39
5."Dinninit"Spearhead X4:20
6."Brakes"De La Soul4:06
7."Dog Eat Dog"De La Soul3:40
8."Baby Baby Baby Baby Ooh Baby"De La Soul2:10
9."Long Island Degrees"De La Soul3:27
10."Betta Listen"De La Soul4:28
11."Itzsoweezee (HOT)"De La Soul*4:55
12."4 More" (featuring Zhané)O. Gee, De La Soul*4:18
13."Big Brother Beat" (featuring Mos Def)Skeff Anselm3:42
14."Down Syndrome"De La Soul3:28
15."Pony Ride" (featuring Truth Enola)De La Soul5:26
16."Stakes Is High"Jay Dee, De La Soul*5:30
17."Sunshine"De La Soul3:39

 • Co-producer

Additional credits[]

# Title Notes
1 "Intro"

Songwriters: K. Mercer, D. Jolicoeur, V. Mason

2 "Supa Emcees"

Songwriters: K. Mercer, D. Jolicoeur, V. Mason

3 "The Bizness"

Songwriters: K. Mercer, D. Jolicoeur, V. Mason, L. Lynn

4 "Wonce Again Long Island"

Songwriters: K. Mercer, D. Jolicoeur, V. Mason

5 "Dinninit"

Songwriters: K. Mercer, D. Jolicoeur, V. Mason, X. Hargrove, M. Jackson

6 "Brakes"

Songwriters: K. Mercer, D. Jolicoeur, V. Mason, R. Hodby, C. Jimenez, L. Mack

7 "Dog Eat Dog"

Songwriters: K. Mercer, D. Jolicoeur, V. Mason

8 "Baby Baby Baby Baby Ooh Baby"

Songwriters: K. Mercer, D. Jolicoeur, V. Mason
Additional Vocals: Jazzyfatnastees

9 "Long Island Degrees"

Songwriters: K. Mercer, D. Jolicoeur, V. Mason

10 "Betta Listen"

Songwriters: K. Mercer, D. Jolicoeur, V. Mason

11 "Itzsoweezee (HOT)"

Songwriters: K. Mercer, D. Jolicoeur, V. Mason

12 "4 More"

Songwriters: K. Mercer, D. Jolicoeur, V. Mason, G. Scott, N. Hall, M. Small, E. Matthew, D. Payne

13 "Big Brother Beat"

Songwriters: K. Mercer, D. Jolicoeur, V. Mason, D. Beze, S. Anselm

14 "Down Syndrome"

Songwriters: K. Mercer, D. Jolicoeur, V. Mason

15 "Pony Ride"

Songwriters: K. Mercer, D. Jolicoeur, V. Mason, S. Preston

16 "Stakes Is High"

Songwriters: K. Mercer, D. Jolicoeur, V. Mason, J. Yancey

17 "Sunshine"

Songwriters: K. Mercer, D. Jolicoeur, V. Mason, L. Richie, T. McClary

Charts[]

References[]

  1. ^ Thomas, Vincent. "Stakes Is High – De La Soul". AllMusic. Retrieved August 25, 2011.
  2. ^ Smith, Ethan (July 12, 1996). "Stakes Is High". Entertainment Weekly. New York. Retrieved June 13, 2012.
  3. ^ Ashon, Will (June 1996). "De La Soul: Stakes Is High (Tommy Boy)". Muzik. London (13): 131.
  4. ^ Cigarettes, Johnny (July 29, 1996). "De La Soul – Stakes Is High". NME. London. Archived from the original on October 10, 2000. Retrieved December 16, 2018.
  5. ^ Sprague, David (August 8, 1996). "Stakes Is High". Rolling Stone. New York. Retrieved June 13, 2012.
  6. ^ Caramanica, Jon (2004). "De La Soul". In Brackett, Nathan; Hoard, Christian (eds.). The New Rolling Stone Album Guide (4th ed.). Simon & Schuster. pp. 224–25. ISBN 0-7432-0169-8.
  7. ^ Salamon, Jeff (August 1996). "De La Soul: Stakes Is High". Spin. New York. 12 (5): 98–100. Retrieved December 16, 2018.
  8. ^ Christgau, Robert (July 23, 1996). "Consumer Guide". The Village Voice. New York. Retrieved December 16, 2018.
  9. ^ "Dutchcharts.nl – De La Soul – Stakes Is High" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved April 23, 2021.
  10. ^ "Offiziellecharts.de – De La Soul – Stakes Is High" (in German). GfK Entertainment Charts. Retrieved April 23, 2021.
  11. ^ "Charts.nz – De La Soul – Stakes Is High". Hung Medien. Retrieved April 23, 2021.
  12. ^ "Swedishcharts.com – De La Soul – Stakes Is High". Hung Medien. Retrieved April 23, 2021.
  13. ^ "Official Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved April 23, 2021.
  14. ^ "Official R&B Albums Chart Top 40". Official Charts Company. Retrieved April 23, 2021.
  15. ^ "De La Soul Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved April 23, 2021.
  16. ^ "De La Soul Chart History (Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved April 23, 2021.
  17. ^ "Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums – Year-End 1996". Billboard. Retrieved April 23, 2021.
Retrieved from ""