Underground: Jungle Brothers Done By The Forces Of Nature

Today on Underground we are going to talk about talk about an album that is considered to be one of the most influential album and groups of all time, the group is the Jungle Brothers, and the album is Done By The Forces Of Nature.

The album was released on November of 1989, and during this time the mainstream hip hop music is all over the place. Groups like EPMD and The Beastie Boys came out with landmark albums and new groups such as Gang Starr and De LA Soul, who are just starting and Queen Latifah making a huge splash with her first album; one has to be very original to stand out. This is Jungle Brother’s second album Done By The Forces Of Nature comes in, this album as a whole was a complete game changer, and a lot of people didn’t see it coming at all.

The album was produced by Kool DJ Red Alert and the Jungle Brothers; the album was very house influenced and used sampling from jazz, R&B, funk, and African music. The lyrics are brilliant and not like any album that came out during the same time, with lyrics and themes they talk about just as self-realization, social consciousness and stand up and be proud of where you come from. Another thing this album did so very well that no other record did at its time was to incorporate Afrocentric themes to the listeners. Take for example the song “Acknowledge Your Own History” the song talks about understanding one’s history, in this case from the group’s African roots and culture with lyrics such as :

“When I was young my mama told me stories

Of black peoples’ fight to bring us glory

I used to think these were stories to put me to sleep

But now I know mama’s talk wasn’t cheap

I know Afrika’s for Afrikans

And history’s the blood of every woman and man” – Jungle Brothers

Another song on this album is THE song for Black mothers and grandmothers and its “Black Woman.” This song is a love letter to all black women all over the world and the lyrics show:

“You are the Moon that I reach for

There’s no doubt in my mind that it’s you I adore

Sent from the Heavens and the skies above

Black Woman it’s you that I love” – Jungle Brothers

This album is regarded as one of the most influential and underrated classic albums that came out of Hip Hop golden age, and it shows, without this album, we wouldn’t have A Tribe Called Quest, De La Soul and many other groups who took this sound and lyricism and made it into their own.