Digable Planets' 'Reachin' (A New Refutation of Time & Space)'; Classic!, Dope, Regular, or Garbage?

First, you have Hip Hop. Then you have subgenres such as Jazz rap. I want to discuss Reachin’ (A New Refutation of Time & Space), the 1993-debut album by Digable Planets that contributed to the subgenre.

Released during a time when Gangster Rap had taken over the airwaves, our listening ears found pleasure in “Rebirth of Slick (Cool Like Dat)” — the album’s first single.

[Tune In To HipHop-Album-Debate, “The Podcast” Every Tuesday and Friday!]

The Art Blakey & the Messengers-sample topped the Hot Rap Singles. Also, it garnered attention regarding mainstream by peaking at the number 15 spot on US Billboard Hot 100. Critics considered this the culmination of Jazz rap.

With the exception of “Pacifics,” the vast majority of the album was jazz-infused. Butterfly, Doodlebug, and Ladybug Mecca used other ingredients to create the album as well such as black spirituality and afrocentric.

There were other singles on the album such as “Where I’m From” and “Nickel Bags.” However, they weren’t as big as the first one.

The album’s production was handled internally, with Butterfly at the helm.

Reachin’ (A New Refutation of Time & Space) reached the number 15 spot on the US Billboard 200 and number 5 on the US Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums. It was certified Gold.

Digable Planets may not have had the catalog compared to fellow Jazz rappers, A Tribe Called Quest. However, their debut positioned themselves to be equivalent — only if they would’ve capitalized off of it.