Review: Big Boi – Sir Lucious Leftfoot: The Son Of Chico Dusty

It’s been a long wait for Big Boi’s Sir Lucious Left Foot: The Son of Chico Dusty. The last word from either member of Outkast was Idlewild in 2006. In the time since then, several songs meant for inclusion on Sir Lucious leaked, each building anticipation of a great album. Some of those songs, most notably “Royal Flush” featuring Raekwon and Big Boi’s Outkast partner Andre 3000, were cut from the final tracklist. The most miraculous thing about Sir Lucious Left Foot is that it never needs the excised songs; it’s a complete work. A goddamn masterpiece.

For the most part, Sir Lucious bumps hard with intricate beats. The quiet intro to the album only intensifies the effect when the thundering “Daddy Fat Sax” explodes out the gate. He starts the party by slaying the competition: “I write knockout songs / You spit punchlines for money. . . I’m on another planet, my nigga / And you just fly.” It’s just the beginning of 56 minutes of Big Boi straight killing it.

Despite this being his first album divorced completely from the Outkast umbrella, Big Boi doesn’t falter. His flow has always been as effortless as Rakim’s, but Rakim never covered the stylistic range Big Boi rocks here. Who else could go from the stomp of “Shutterbug” to the military swagger of “General Patton,” then follow that with the guitar-driven funk of “Tangerine” and the staccato loop of “You Ain’t No DJ”? Most of the sound is unified by its R&B roots: synthesizers and choruses sung with song pop hooks. It all goes down smoothly; Sir Lucious is a victory lap for Big Boi. The guy seems to know that 14 years into his career he’s got nothing left to prove.

It’s far from a one-man show, though; guests litter nearly every track, yet none overcome the main man’s presence. George Clinton hoarsely growls through “For Your Sorrows.” Janelle Monae adds a gorgeous chorus to “Be Still.” Out of the rappers, TI has yet another standout guest spot, in a summer that’s seemed full of them, on “Tangerine.”

In “Shine Blockas,” Boi raps, “We chose to lead , not follow / It’s a hard pill to swallow / Better get prescriptions filled ’cause there might not be tomorrow.” The line sums up everything right about the production on this album: forward-thinking music with a rapper confident enough to bring a string personality and skills worth listening to. Maybe his first album, the Speakerboxxx half of Outkast’s Speakerboxxx/The Love Below set, got overshadowed by Andre 3000′s eccentricity. But the best Outkast albums – Aquemini, Stankonia – were always about bringing you to a new world. For Sir Lucious Left Foot: The Son of Chico Dusty, Big Boi has created a compelling, infinitely re-listenable world on his own.

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Jere is not from Chicago. Nor is he from Parts Unknown. But he sure loves to hear things. Follow him on Twitter!

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