''Amethyst Rock Star'' is the debut solo studio album by

Saul Williams Saul Stacey Williams (born February 29, 1972) is an American rapper, singer, songwriter, musician, poet, writer, and actor. He is known for his blend of poetry and alternative hip hop, and for his lead roles in the 1998 independent film ''Slam ( ...

. It was released by American Recordings in 2001. It peaked at number 135 on the

French Albums Chart SNEP (, in English National Syndicate of Phonographic Publishing) is the inter-professional organisation that protects the interests of the French record industry. Originally known under the acronym SNICOP, the organisation was established in 1 ...

Critical reception

Steve Kurutz of

AllMusic AllMusic (previously known as All-Music Guide and AMG) is an American online database, online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on Musical artist, musicians and Mus ...

gave the album 1.5 stars out of 5, saying: "Some of the language is downright laughable (see the trite themes of 'Fearless' for example) in any context, and the rest is mediocre at best." Kitty Empire of ''

NME ''New Musical Express'' (''NME'') is a British music, film, gaming and culture website, bimonthly magazine, and brand. Founded as a newspaper in 1952, with the publication being referred to as a "Rock music, rock inkie", the ''NME'' would be ...

'' gave the album 3.5 stars out of 5, calling it "an ambitious collision of rock, hip-hop and spoken word, all united by a refusal to conform to the conventions of any of them."

Track listing

Personnel

Credits adapted from liner notes. Musicians *

– vocals, co–production, arrangement *

Rick Rubin Frederick Jay Rubin (, ; born March 10, 1963) is an American record producer. He is a co-founder of Def Jam Recordings, founder of American Recordings, and former co-president of Columbia Records. Rubin helped popularize hip hop by produci ...

– production * Musa Bailey – additional production (2), additional programming, turntables *

Krust Kirk Thompson (born 26 July 1968), better known by his stage name Krust, is an English drum and bass producer, DJ and co-owner of the Full Cycle record label. Beyond his roles in the music industry, Thompson is also responsible for two busines ...

– additional production (9) *

Esthero Esthero ( ; born Jenny-Bea Englishman on December 23, 1978 in Stratford, Ontario) is a Canadian singer-songwriter who lives in Los Angeles, California. The name ''Esthero'' refers both to the singer and formerly to the two-person team of herself ...

– vocals (4) *

Chad Smith Chad Smith (born October 25, 1961) is an American musician who is the drummer of the rock band the Red Hot Chili Peppers. Smith has played with the Chili Peppers since 1988, appearing on ten of the band's studio albums and becoming the band's lo ...

– drums (7) * Jerome Jordan – guitar, backing vocals * Maximina Juson – bass guitar * Maryam Blacksher – viola * Nioka Workman – cello * Kwame Brandt-Pierce – keyboards * Chris Eddleton – drums * Greg Gordon – recording *

Russell Elevado Russell Elevado (born 1966 in the Philippines) is a recording engineer and record producer based in New York City. Description Russell Elevado is a multi-Grammy award-winning record producer and recording engineer, born in the Philippines in 19 ...

– recording, mixing Technical personnel * Marcia Jones – visual art * Michael Crivello – visual art * Brandy Flower – graphic design * Michele Miller – photography * B+ – photography * Mei Lei – journals * Dorothy E. Wilcox – penpal * Lindsay Chase – coordination

Charts

References

External links

* * {{Authority control 2001 debut albums Saul Williams albums Albums produced by Rick Rubin American Recordings (record label) albums