Beats, Rhymes and Life

A Tribe Called Quest’s Beats, Rhymes and Life should now be regarded with far more enthusiasm than it enjoyed upon its 1996 release. True, it may not achieve the same sublime heights as Midnight Marauders or Low End Theory but its musical finesse — assisted quietly by J Dilla — more than honors the group’s track record while Q-Tip and Phife Dawg still sound hungry on the mic, even four albums in.