Biography
Though not pioneers in blending jazz with hip-hop, Digable Planets captured the relaxed essence of jazz enthusiasts more convincingly than any prior or later act. The trio issued their debut album, Reachin' (A New Refutation of Time and Space), in 1993 as a relaxed collection built around samples drawn from Art Blakey, Sonny Rollins, and Curtis Mayfield, while the track "Rebirth of Slick (Cool Like Dat)" climbed to a Top 20 pop position. After receiving a Grammy for Best New Duo or Group and completing an expansive tour supported by additional live musicians, the Planets delivered a stronger effort in late 1994. Blowout Comb sustained their jazz-rap approach yet expanded it by incorporating the classic street aesthetic as well.
The group came together in the early '90s after Butterfly, born Ishmael Butler in Brooklyn, NY, encountered Ladybug, born Mary Ann Vieira in Silver Springs, MD, during college studies in Massachusetts. The pair later joined forces with Doodlebug, born Craig Irving in Philadelphia, PA, in Washington, D.C., and started recording sessions. Their initial release, "Rebirth of Slick (Cool Like Dat)" on the Pendulum subsidiary of Warner, reached the R&B Top Ten, and the full-length Reachin' (A New Refutation of Time and Space) achieved both critical praise and strong sales. The subsequent tour projected a relaxed atmosphere closer to a jazz performance than a typical hip-hop event, although reviewers faulted the live players for merely replicating the album's samples. The trio addressed this shortcoming through the late-1994 arrival of Blowout Comb, which proved more robust than its predecessor by relying on fewer samples and featuring several solos. Lacking a major single, however, the album fell short commercially compared with Reachin'.
Following Blowout Comb, Digable Planets effectively disbanded amid the familiar issue of creative differences. Each member pursued separate musical work, yet despite repeated assurances that new material would surface, nearly ten years elapsed before projects emerged under Butterfly's Cherrywine, Ladybug's revised name Ladybug Mecca, and Doodlebug's Cee Knowledge. Just weeks before the tenth anniversary of Blowout Comb, the three declared their reunion to begin work on a third Digable Planets album. In the interim, the compilation Beyond the Spectrum: The Creamy Spy Chronicles sustained listener interest until the new recordings appeared.
The group came together in the early '90s after Butterfly, born Ishmael Butler in Brooklyn, NY, encountered Ladybug, born Mary Ann Vieira in Silver Springs, MD, during college studies in Massachusetts. The pair later joined forces with Doodlebug, born Craig Irving in Philadelphia, PA, in Washington, D.C., and started recording sessions. Their initial release, "Rebirth of Slick (Cool Like Dat)" on the Pendulum subsidiary of Warner, reached the R&B Top Ten, and the full-length Reachin' (A New Refutation of Time and Space) achieved both critical praise and strong sales. The subsequent tour projected a relaxed atmosphere closer to a jazz performance than a typical hip-hop event, although reviewers faulted the live players for merely replicating the album's samples. The trio addressed this shortcoming through the late-1994 arrival of Blowout Comb, which proved more robust than its predecessor by relying on fewer samples and featuring several solos. Lacking a major single, however, the album fell short commercially compared with Reachin'.
Following Blowout Comb, Digable Planets effectively disbanded amid the familiar issue of creative differences. Each member pursued separate musical work, yet despite repeated assurances that new material would surface, nearly ten years elapsed before projects emerged under Butterfly's Cherrywine, Ladybug's revised name Ladybug Mecca, and Doodlebug's Cee Knowledge. Just weeks before the tenth anniversary of Blowout Comb, the three declared their reunion to begin work on a third Digable Planets album. In the interim, the compilation Beyond the Spectrum: The Creamy Spy Chronicles sustained listener interest until the new recordings appeared.
Albums
