Artist: Beanie Sigel
Album: The B. Coming
Label: Universal Music Group
Release Date: March 29th 2005
Main Site: http://www.rapcentral.co.uk/beanieSigelIndex.shtml
Track listing:
1. Feel It in the Air [CD-ROM Track] - Beanie Sigel
2. I Can't Go on This Way - Freeway, Beanie Sigel, Young Chris
3. One Shot Deal - Redman, Beanie Sigel
4. Gotta Have It - Peedi Peedi, Beanie Sigel, Twista
5. Don't Stop - Beanie Sigel, Snoop Dogg
6. Purple Rain - Bun B, Beanie Sigel
7. Oh Daddy - Beanie Sigel, Young Chris
8. Change - Melissa Jay, Rell, Beanie Sigel
9. Bread & Butter - Grand Puba, Sadat X, Beanie Sigel
10. Lord Have Mercy - Beanie Sigel
11. Flatline - Peedi Peedi, Beanie Sigel
12. Tales of a Hustler Pt. 2 - Oschino, Beanie Sigel, , Sparks
13. Look at Me Now - Beanie Sigel
14. It's On - Jay-Z, , Beanie Sigel
15. Wanted (On the Run) - Cam'ron, Beanie Sigel
RAPCENTRAL REVIEW:
Completed before having to serve charges in jail in relation to a weapons charge, Beanie Sigel completed The B. Coming, his third album. “The Truth”, Beanie’s first album was met with praise and went Gold (like this album would), but Beans sophomore album “The Reason” received a more mixed reaction (while still going Gold). This album is the result of Beanie’s impending jail sentence (and other legal woes), makes for a compelling look into the mind of Dwight Grant, but a flawed one.
The album’s opening track is the reason I purchased this album, “Feel It In The Air” is an under-rated classic track. Heavy D’s haunting beat and Melissa’s soulful hook are perfect. Beans flow is precise, tackling the troubles he’s got around and his imminent demise or capture. The sense of dread in the song is tense. “I Can’t Go On This Way” is a good track, Beanie’s flow is again exceptional. The beat (by Aqua) is pretty standard stuff and the guest spots by Freeway (good) and Young Chris (not so good) are generally okay. “Don’t Stop” is a stylish attempt at a chart hitting single. The Neptune’s beat is mediocre (ultra repetitive), Snoop and Beanie fail to show any chemistry and do not sound good at all together. “Oh Daddy” is a enjoyable track. With another guest spot, is a solid track, is your typical farce about the women. The albums second best track is the impressive “Wanted (On The Run)”, the Bon Jovi sample shockingly works and the beat is sweet (Neckbones has done a great job making it work) and Beanie and Cam‘ron work well together. “Tales of a Hustler, Pt. 2” is a raw track. Oschino and Sparks lend help on this and deliver good verses, Beanie is as good as ever.
This album suffers from one major problem. Too many guest appearances. I know Beanie was struggling against time before his jail bid, but 19 artists on 15 tracks is a lot and it takes away from Beanie’s raps. There are positives, but unfortunately the negatives out weigh them. There is a lot of filler tracks on this album, marred by uninterested production and half arsed guest appearances. It’s a shame because Beanie is a great rapper and deserves to be served by better material than this.
TOP TRACKS:
Feel It In The Air,
Oh Daddy,
Wanted (On The Run)
RAPCENTRAL OVERALL RATING:
2/5
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
ALL MUSIC GUIDE REVIEW
Facing incarceration on a federal gun charge, rapper Beanie Sigel got to work big time and quickly finished the album he had promised for years, The B.Coming. Rather than rushed, the album feels tense, like all these songs were attacking Beans and he was trying his damnedest to let them all through. It's a hectic, exhaustive listen, and on first encounter, cluttered.
The mastering of the album sounds like a mixtape: dense, tight, and maxed at times. It takes some getting used to since Beanie's lyrics are better and expectedly bleaker than ever, and could benefit from something more crisp -- so make sure you've got the headphones ready and told all your friends to beat it. You wouldn't listen to an audiobook with everybody hanging around, and with The B.Coming being a journal set to beats, you're best off going this one alone. One thing to know is that it's not a linear journal. Instead, it consists of fragments from here and there that deal very little with situations and more with mindsets. The Neptunes-produced "Don't Stop" spits bitter venom at those "softer than a Reebok classic," with Snoop playing a simple, supportive role, something Beanie's other guests -- and there are plenty -- could learn from. Twista and Peedi Peedi take the twitching party of "Gotta Have It" to a new level and Bun B. is a good hangout buddy for the spliff-puffing, sizzurp-sipping "Purple Rain," but when Beanie gets serious, you'll want Redman or whoever else out of the way.
Course, everybody wants to hear Beans and Jay-Z trade lines since Sigel and Jay go way back, and as "It's On" displays, the powerful chemistry is still there. The spiteful "Bread & Butter" ("So blind/I didn't see the Robin Givens in you"), the humble one minute, vicious the next "Lord Have Mercy," and the pensive "Look at Me Now" add to the pile of highlights. Those looking for a direct story of how Beanie earned three years in the clink will be somewhat disappointed, but these chunks of insight into the man's turmoil -- and the couple party tunes that go with them -- add up to one hell of an album. - David Jeffries, All Music Guide
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
