A pleasant coincidence. My ‘on the loop’ for this week was without a doubt Erykah Badu’s ‘Think Twice.` Her fantastic cover of Donald Byrd’s ‘Think Twice’ (1974) jazz-funk classic is an absolute joy.
Hearing it on shuffle spotify earlier in the week brought me back home to London, 2017; where I often played her on the loop. To my delight the week ended with ‘Think Twice’ appearing in my YouTube notifications from Badu’s channel.
‘Think Twice’ was released in her 2003 Worldwide Underground album, after gaining major successes in her previous albums, Baduizm (1997) and Mama’s Gun (2000). Recorded at the height of her writers block period, the album is almost a pause. A gratitude and hommage to Hip Hop and her tribe, reminsising on good times. The songs included: Love of my Life (An Ode to Hip Hop), Back in the Day, I want you and Bump it. This album is lighthearted, fun and free with a strong sense of a collective. After the raw and authentic lyrics of both Baduizm and Mama’s Gun, that inspired listeners, it was just what we needed. Permission if you like.
Vocals on the track were both Erykah Badu and Roy Hargrove, bringing the soul, harmony and the joyful light. With Hargrove also on Trumpet, James Poyser on keyboards and Braylon “Brother B.” Lacy on bass.
The track starts with the iconic:
Maybe we oughta think twice
Before we start something nice
No need to sacrifice the spice in our lives...oh
Your love is like fire & ice
With the bridge on a mesmerising repeat:I really love you
You know I do
I really love you
The instrumental vocal break with the trumpet, was the perfect pause.
You know I love you, baby
You know I do
You know I love you, baby
You know I do
You know it's true
And that soothingly sober afterthought, singing:Think twice
Think twice
With every innocent declaration of a “you know I love you, baby, you know I do”, came the “think twice.”
The Jazz and Neo-Soul influence and the sounds of a crowd as they clap and feel fits perfectly with the album, for it remains a tribute to her tribe. A small crowd at that. As Badu (re)connects, her soulful version of Byrd’s ‘Think Twice’ reminds us to do just that.
Zara Tewolde-Berhan 