''And Now the Legacy Begins'' is the debut album by Canadian

hip hop Hip-hop or hip hop (originally disco rap) is a popular music genre that emerged in the early 1970s from the African-American community of New York City. The style is characterized by its synthesis of a wide range of musical techniques. Hip- ...

duo Dream Warriors. It was released on April 23, 1991, by

4th & B'way Records 4th & B'way Records (pronounced and spelled out completely as Fourth and Broadway Records in the UK) is a US-based subsidiary of Island Records that specialised in street-oriented music such as hip hop. Established in 1984, it was the flagship ...

, with an international release through

Island Records Island Records is a multinational record label owned by Universal Music Group. It was founded in Jamaica by Chris Blackwell, Graeme Goodall, and Leslie Kong in 1959, and was eventually sold to PolyGram in 1989. Island and A&M Records, another ...

. ''And Now the Legacy Begins'' is regarded as one of the finest

alternative hip hop Alternative hip-hop (also known as alternative rap and experimental hip-hop) is a subgenre of hip-hop music that encompasses a wide range of styles that are not typically identified as mainstream. AllMusic defines it as comprising "hip-hop group ...

records of the golden era (1985–1995). Dream Warriors > OverviewAllMusic. Accessed on January 20, 2010.

Singles

"My Definition of a Boombastic Jazz Style", the album's most successful single, sampled

Quincy Jones Quincy Delight Jones Jr. (March 14, 1933 – November 3, 2024) was an American record producer, composer, arranger, conductor, trumpeter, and bandleader. Over the course of his seven-decade career, he received List of awards and nominations re ...

' "

Soul Bossa Nova "Soul Bossa Nova" is a popular instrumental, composed and first performed by American musician Quincy Jones. It appeared on his 1962 ''Big Band Bossa Nova (Quincy Jones album), Big Band Bossa Nova'' album on Mercury Records. Jones said that it ...

" — which was known to Canadian audiences as the theme tune to the game show ''

Definition A definition is a statement of the meaning of a term (a word, phrase, or other set of symbols). Definitions can be classified into two large categories: intensional definitions (which try to give the sense of a term), and extensional definitio ...

'' at the time of its release. The song was a hit in both Canada and

Europe Europe is a continent located entirely in the Northern Hemisphere and mostly in the Eastern Hemisphere. It is bordered by the Arctic Ocean to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the west, the Mediterranean Sea to the south, and Asia to the east ...

, winning a

Juno Award The Juno Awards (stylized as JUNOS), or simply known as the Junos, are awards presented by Canadian Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences, the Canadian Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences to recognize outstanding achievements in Canada's mu ...

for Rap Recording of the Year in 1992. The single sold 300,000 copies worldwide. "Wash Your Face in My Sink" and "Ludi" were also notable singles.

Reception

Spin Spin or spinning most often refers to: * Spin (physics) or particle spin, a fundamental property of elementary particles * Spin quantum number, a number which defines the value of a particle's spin * Spinning (textiles), the creation of yarn or thr ...

'' highly recommended the album, praising its "stunning, almost seamless sample-driven tracks."

Robert Christgau Robert Thomas Christgau ( ; born April 18, 1942) is an American music journalist and essayist. Among the most influential music critics, he began his career in the late 1960s as one of the earliest professional rock critics and later became a ...

of ''

The Village Voice ''The Village Voice'' is an American news and culture publication based in Greenwich Village, New York City, known for being the country's first Alternative newspaper, alternative newsweekly. Founded in 1955 by Dan Wolf (publisher), Dan Wolf, ...

'' gave the album an honorable mention and quipped that it was "West Indian daisy age from boogie-down

Toronto Toronto ( , locally pronounced or ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, most populous city in Canada. It is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Ontario. With a p ...

", choosing the tracks "Ludi" and "My Definition of a Boombastic Jazz Style" as highlights. The ''

Edmonton Journal The ''Edmonton Journal'' is a daily newspaper published in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. It is part of the Postmedia Network. History The ''Journal'' was founded in 1903 by three local businessmen — John Macpherson, Arthur Moore and J.W. Cunn ...

'' stated: "Drawing on their own roots and the music of Chinese, Spanish and Italian friends they grew up with, they've produced an original sound that capsulizes the ebb and flow of '90s dance music." Ned Raggett 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 ...

noted that "the duo plays around with any number of inspired samples and grooves, from jazz to harder-edged beats, with style and skill." It peaked at No. 18 on the

UK Albums Chart The Official Albums Chart is the United Kingdom's industry-recognised national record chart for album, albums. Entries are ranked by sales and audio streaming. It was published for the first time on 22 July 1956 and is compiled every week by the O ...

and No. 34 in Canada, where it received

gold Gold is a chemical element; it has chemical symbol Au (from Latin ) and atomic number 79. In its pure form, it is a brightness, bright, slightly orange-yellow, dense, soft, malleable, and ductile metal. Chemically, gold is a transition metal ...

certification. Over 800,000 copies were sold worldwide. In 2013, the album made ''

Ballast Ballast is dense material used as a weight to provide stability to a vehicle or structure. Ballast, other than cargo, may be placed in a vehicle, often a ship or the gondola of a balloon or airship, to provide stability. A compartment within ...

''s list of the top 50 Canadian albums of all time. In 2018, the album won the

Polaris Heritage Prize The Polaris Music Prize is a music award annually given to the best full-length Canadian album based on artistic merit, regardless of genre, sales, or record label. The award was established in 2006 with a $20,000 cash prize. The prize was inc ...

Jury Award in the 1986-1995 category.

Track listing

Samples

*"My Definition of a Boombastic Jazz Style" – Contains a sample of "

" by

*"Follow Me Not" - Contains a sample of "Pressure Gauge" by

Brother Jack McDuff Eugene McDuffy (September 17, 1926 – January 23, 2001), known professionally as "Brother" Jack McDuff or "Captain" Jack McDuff, was an American jazz organist and organ trio bandleader. He was most prominent during the hard bop and soul jazz era ...

*"Ludi" – Contains a sample of "My Conversation" by

Slim Smith Slim Smith (born Keith Smith; 1948 in Kingston, Jamaica – 1972) was a ska, rocksteady and reggae singer. In their book ''Reggae: The Rough Guide'' (1997), Steve Barrow and Peter Dalton described Smith as "the greatest vocalist to emerge ...

& the Uniques *"U Never Know a Good Thing Till You Lose It" – Contains samples of "Sing a Happy Song" by

War War is an armed conflict between the armed forces of states, or between governmental forces and armed groups that are organized under a certain command structure and have the capacity to sustain military operations, or between such organi ...

and "Wild and Loose" and " The Walk" by the Time *"And Now the Legacy Begins" – Contains samples of "Shine Your Light" by the Graingers and "

Genius of Love "Genius of Love" is a song by American new wave band Tom Tom Club, released in September 1981 by Sire and Warner Bros. as the second single from their eponymous debut studio album (1981). The song is written by Adrian Belew, Chris Frantz, Ste ...

" by

Tom Tom Club Tom Tom Club is an American new wave band founded in 1981 by husband-and-wife team Chris Frantz and Tina Weymouth as a side project from Talking Heads. Their best known songs include the UK top 10 hit " Wordy Rappinghood" and the US top 40 hi ...

*"Tune from the Mission Channel" – Contains samples of "Oh Honey" by

Delegation Delegation is the process of distributing and entrusting work to another person.Schermerhorn, J., Davidson, P., Poole, D., Woods, P., Simon, A., & McBarron, E. (2017). ''Management'' (6th ed., pp. 282–286). Brisbane: John Wiley & Sons Australia. ...

, "Kissing My Love" by

Bill Withers William Harrison Withers Jr. (July 4, 1938 – March 30, 2020) was an American singer and songwriter. He is known for having several hits over a career spanning 18 years, including "Ain't No Sunshine" (1971), "Grandma's Hands" (1971), "Use Me ( ...

and "Say It Loud, I'm Black and I'm Proud" by

James Brown James Joseph Brown (May 3, 1933 – December 25, 2006) was an American singer, songwriter, dancer, musician, and record producer. The central progenitor of funk music and a major figure of 20th-century music, he is referred to by Honorific nick ...

*"Wash Your Face in My Sink" – Contains a sample of "Hang On Sloopy" by

Count Basie William James "Count" Basie (; August 21, 1904 – April 26, 1984) was an American jazz pianist, organist, bandleader, and composer. In 1935, he formed the Count Basie Orchestra, and in 1936 took them to Chicago for a long engagement and the ...

*"Face in the Basin" – Contains samples of "

Think (About It) "Think (About It)" is a funk song recorded by Lyn Collins and released as a single on James Brown's People Records in 1972. The recording was produced by Brown (who also wrote the song) and features instrumental backing from his band The J.B.' ...

" by

Lyn Collins Gloria Lavern Collins (June 12, 1948 – March 13, 2005), better known as Lyn Collins, was an American soul singer best known for working with James Brown in the 1970s and for the influential 1972 funk single, "Think (About It)". A favorite ...

and "Funky Stuff" by

Kool & the Gang Kool & the Gang is an American Rhythm and blues, R&B, soul music, soul, and funk band formed in Jersey City, New Jersey, in 1964. Its founding members include brothers Robert "Kool" Bell and Ronald Bell (musician), Ronald Bell (also known as " ...

*"Twelve Sided Dice" – Contains samples of "Riding High" by

Faze-O Faze-O was a late 1970s funk group based in Dayton, Ohio and produced by Clarence Satchell of the Ohio Players, for whom it was the front band during many live performances. Their 1977 song "Riding High" has been sampled by hip hop artists. H ...

and "Here I Go Again" by

Whitesnake Whitesnake are an English Rock music, rock band formed in London in 1978. The group were originally put together as the backing band for singer David Coverdale, who had recently left Deep Purple. Though the band quickly developed into their ow ...

*"Answer for the Owl" – Contains a sample of "Just Kissed My Baby" by

the Meters The Meters (later The Funky Meters) are an American funk band formed in 1965 in New Orleans by Zigaboo Modeliste (drums), George Porter Jr. (bass), Leo Nocentelli (guitar) and Art Neville (keyboards). The band performed and recorded their o ...

Chart positions

Accolades

(*) signifies unordered lists

Personnel

Adapted credits from the liner notes of ''And Now the Legacy Begins''. *Pete Ashworth – Photography *Dream Warriors – Producer, Mixing *Krush – Producer *Maximum 60 – Producer, Engineer, Mixing * Ron Nelson – Producer, Engineer *Split Personality – Producer, Mixing *Swifty – Artwork *Wrighty – Artwork

References

{{Authority control Dream Warriors albums 1991 debut albums 4th & B'way Records albums Island Records albums