September 25, 2006 @ 7:36 pm

Too $hort - Blow The Whistle (Jive)

Jeff Chang

right So on what may be his most accessible single in a long career, the Lil Jon–produced title track from his sixteenth album, he drops the math—300 months, 1,000 songs, 93 imitators—and name-checks his peers (8Ball & MJG, UGK) and followers (Dave Chappelle). If all that sounds a little defensive, $hort really shouldn’t be fretting. When he joins E-40, Mistah F.A.B., and Dolla Will over Droop-E’s ’80s minimal beat on “I Want Your Girl,” it’s as cool and easy flowing as his best work. And when Lil Jon continues working the crunk-hyphy connect—especially on “Burn Rubber, Part 2,” a nod to Oaktown’s rowdy sideshow culture—the former ATL transplant sounds utterly at home. Jazze Pha brings one stunna, “Sophisticated,” a love song in which $hort quits pimping in favor of an earnest serenade to a real woman: “Sophisticated, educated / That’s what I get from you.” But the rest of the album is saddled with Tim Hardaway–era G-Funk bricks, which weigh $hort down. His sudden humorlessness makes Too $hort sound a little desperate, and that’s no strategy for a mack. Do you want VIBE delivered to your home or office? CLICK HERE.

Article tags: 8Ball & MJG, Lil Jon, Too Short 

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