Review #10: The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill, Ms. Lauryn Hill
#10: The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill, Ms. Lauryn Hill
So far, in our journey down the list of RS’s 500 Greatest Albums of All Time, we’ve had four women: Joni Mitchell, Stevie Nicks & Christine McVie, and Ms. Lauryn Hill. Lauryn Hill is my favorite, though Stevie Nicks is a near second. 90s rap music just does it for me.
Two years ago I fell in love with the Fugees, then with Lauryn Hill, who started out as the Fugees’ coolest member. I fell in love with their debut Blunted on Reality and their only follow-up The Score (#134 on RS’s list). Then I discovered Miseducation and HER only follow-up, Hill’s MTV Unplugged album, which is just as grating and painful to listen to as Miseducation is catchy and joyful.
Anyway, Lauryn Hill is a genius and it was a relief to listen to something musical instead of something literary.
FAVORITE SONGS:
“Intro” — Wow, I only just got the shtick of the album! It’s her “miseducation” because the skits are all framed as elementary school classes about love, and when they call her name she’s absent! Ahhhhhh. I’m a professional Fake Music Fan.
“Lost Ones” — She calls herself “L-Boogie.” Need I say more? And all of the skits at the end of the songs are really sweet.
“Ex-Factor” — Did you know Drake samples this song in “Nice For What?” And did you know Lauryn Hill absolutely served him afterwards?
“To Zion” — With Santana!
“Doo-Wop” — This song is a blast, and I think that the music video is also worth linking. Lauryn Hill is twins!
“Superstar” — The most fun on the album to sing, I envy her harmonies.
“Every Ghetto, Every City” — The grooviest song.
“Nothing Even Matters (feat. D’Angelo)” — I only learned who D’Angelo was in December (ahem) but oof, he and Lauryn Hill sound like two angels crying over each other on this.
“Everything Is Everything” — How can Lauryn Hill sing such sappy lyrics and I can still jam along? If Joni Mitchell sang After winter will come spring … Let’s love ourselves and we can’t fail, I don’t know if I could handle it.
“Can’t Take My Eyes Off Of You” — A cover in the tradition of the Fugee’s excellent “Killing Me Softly” cover.
LEAST FAVORITE SONGS:
“When It Hurts So Bad” — You know, this song sounds a lot like “I Used to Love Him,” which is a song on this album I enjoy. But for some reason this one hurts my ears.
“The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill” — It pains me to say this, but eh — too slow. Although her voice is amazing here.
IS RS FULL OF IT?
Okay, I think it could be argued that this album is better than Blood On The Tracks, but I’ll also admit that I’m horribly biased. So we’ll call it a wash and move on.
