>the first two are two of my favorite albums of all time, the
>third is a good album, but it seems like lots of people like
>it A LOT more than I do.

In terms of albums, Mos is complicated to assess for me. The highest highs of BS are some of the best verses and performances of his career. But as an album, it's actually kind of weak for me. Of 13 tracks, I basically listen to 6 tracks when I put on the album: Astronomy, Def and Re:Def, KOS, Respiration, and Thieves. (I think I have a Black Star redux playlist somewhere that is exactly that.) Sometimes Brown Skin Lady still makes it in. It's not that the rest is terrible, but it hasn't aged well for me.

Of the three, Ecstatic is the only one I play from start to finish almost any time I put it on. BOBS is close though: I only skip Do It Now (and not all the time) and Rock N Roll (every time) regularly. Both albums are classics in my book, but as a total statement and piece of art, Ecstatic actually feels a bit more coherent and tightly knit to me, and I really really admire its concision.

All that being said, I'm holding out hope for more greatness from Mos. It took him 10 years to meet BOBS's level w/the Ecstatic, so I'll give him at least another three before counting him out. But maybe that's just my optimism/hope talking --- between BOBS and Ecstatic, he at least dropped some material that reminded us of why we loved him, and regularly delivered ridiculously good features... that's been missing now for at least a few years from him.

-thebigfunk

~ i could still snort you under the table ~