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Amethyst Rock Star | 
 enlarge | Artist: Saul Williams
Label: Sony
Category: Music
This item is no longer available
Rating:  10 reviews
Sales Rank: 588550
Format: Explicit Lyrics
Media: Audio CD
Discs: 1
UPC: 074646975022
EAN: 0074646975022
ASIN: B00005EBIP
Release Date: January 1, 2002
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| Tracks:
| • | La La La | | • | Penny for a Thought | | • | Robeson | | • | Tao of Now | | • | Fearless | | • | Untimely Meditations | | • | Om Nia Merican | | • | 1987 | | • | Coded Language | | • | Our Father - Saul Williams, Williams, Rev. Saul | | • | Wine |
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| Editorial Reviews:
Amazon.com's Best of 2001
The sheer force of Saul Williams's words puts to shame what most rappers dare to call poetry. It's hard to tell if rap fans will like Williams because while this slam poet is clearly a product of the hip-hop generation, his music is very uneasy listening. Imagine the brutal auditory assault that KRS-One can bring combusted with the imagination of Samuel Delany and political acumen of Amiri Baraka and you get a loose vision of what Williams is capable of. But to truly appreciate him, metaphoric platitudes fall short--simply witness his art. Amethyst Rockstar arms Williams with an electrified backing band capable of pumping out beats as frenetic as the poet's words, including a well-matched duet with DJ Krust on "Coded Language." Cuts like "Om Ni Merican" and "Penny for a Thought" leave lacerations in their wake as Williams pushes the limit of wordplay with cosmos-inspired allegories and machine-gunned verses. His big ideas may be too much for some to take in--clearly, Williams isn't aiming to appeal to the lowest common denominator--but channel surf across the 11 songs on Rockstar and each one has the potential to blow your mind. --Oliver Wang
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| Customer Reviews:
 Not what he is capable of August 23, 2001
cassdog (Gainesville, Fl USA)
1 out of 3 found this review helpful
I have seen Saul Williams play live twice. Both shows rocked and were funky, trippy and mind-expanding. The use of the viola/violin at the shows provided the emotional thrust and the grooves were just funky. This album portrays little of that. Firstly, I don't understand why he decided to sing for this one. The songs just seem too hard rock and annoying, rather than funky filled trippiness, with mind-expanding lyrics. Some of the tracks are alright don't get me wrong, and the lyrical content is top-notch above anyone else. I enjoy his poetry a great deal, and I actually imitate him slightly in my poetry, but musically it didn't come through. I look forward to what comes out next, though.
 Saul Williams is the greatest...besides Kool Keith... August 12, 2001
Jared S Rose (Fort Worth, TX United States)
0 out of 1 found this review helpful
To the guy below me that said "enough about saturn..."-Saturn is the name of his daughter dummy. If you are a fan of life, or you aren't a fan of life, get this album. Get his books, get his movies. Your work is nice. J
sorry but i'm not impressed July 4, 2001
Leo! (NY)
6 out of 9 found this review helpful
ok most definitely, this cd is...okay. good even. saul williams is heavy on the mind and i respect him immensely as both a poet and a literary revolutionary. his gift for language and his vocal tone is impressive. i do have some major gripes though. for one, this album is chock-full of recycled saul williams poetry. as talented as he is he should have at least written more new material "Penny For A Thought" is strong both sonically and lyrically(and is a case in-point for a track with no re-used poetry), and i have appreciation for sarcasm in music, but i do have a problem with his line about Mumia Abu-Jamal's freedom and wonder what exactly he was meaning to say by that. i'll let that slide. the problems don't end there. for one: Saul, as a poet you are way ahead of the norm but PLEASE DO NOT SING! I IMPLORE YOU DO NOT SING! i mean, its as if he's attempting to do Jimi justice but it comes out painfully bad. anyone catch his performance on the chris rock show? absolutely shameful. again, DON'T SING. sometimes the music here leans a little to the Rage-ish side of the rock-rap spectrum, and when it does it becomes horribly primitive. the beats are usually solid but the music here needs a lot of work. personally, i would have loved to have found his excellent "Elohim" track on this, or maybe "Twice The First Time." having said that i don't understand why he'd leave those two experimentalist hip-hop treasures off of this album and yet leave on the old poetry put to music with different pacing. Saul has got plenty of skill, heart, and soul, and i do think he has the potential for releasing an impressive album, but sorry folks, this one is not it.P.S. Saul, enough about saturn and the sun already...sorry had to say it.
honestly this brotha got it July 3, 2001
Hosanna Or (southern cali)
0 out of 1 found this review helpful
i'm a big spokenn word fan and saul williams is the spoke person for this generation of poets. his insights and oversights are real and express the depth of what many view as urban poetry...they forget that the soul of man does not lie in his mansion but in the man himself. saul williams is a nice change to the mediocre and he is really bringing spoken word into the the public eye (an eye that is usually blind). if you diggin all this yo ya all need to peep this cat out he is mad ill....to the fullest extent of the word.
A new twist to the everyday hip hop and it's about time June 30, 2001
MistressTemptation (Shaker Heights, Ohio United States)
0 out of 1 found this review helpful
No dout Saul Williams is the man for the job of bringing the truth to light. In his books he talk to us about Amythest Rocks, Ohm, Wind's Song to his last book which included a Cd of his readings. Saul Williams is living proof of Kahlil Gibran's quote " i am a poet who composes what the world prose's and prose's what the world composes " . This Cd is the beggining of a long line of Saul making his own unique style that is hard to follow but easily respected. No dout this Cd is a work of art.
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