Skits, Interludes, Intro & Outro-what do we think?

Okay, so everyone does it, from rappers to rockers. When you're a few tracks short of an album (no ridiculous pun intended) you decide to go into the studio with a few friends and record a "skit". Most of the time they turn out pretty badly (see Rob Quarter's (skit) from Ludacris's Chicken 'N Beer) but alot of the time the end up being the song of the album. Hell, Kool Moe Dee even made an album called Interlude

I'd just like to take the time and do a little salute to these bastions of foolishness that seem to be a regular feature of so many albums today. Look back twenty years and the idea of a "filler" didn't even exist. So skits & interludes-well, the difference is simple. A skit is a random comedic filler that tends to be on a hip-hop or rap album, such as Rob Quarter's above. And an interlude? Well thats a break in the rest of the album. You know the Justin Timberlake tune What Goes Around/Comes Around? Well, despite it being a Billboard Top 100 song, its an interlude. And don't ask me why, your guess is as good as mine...

Jay-Z seems to be rather adept at producing decent interludes (see The Black Album). The various interludes on this album stand the test-they're actually worth listening to. I'll post one or two for you to check out.

What about the ubiquitous intro and outro? Again, a bit of a filler. In fact, in my view, only one decent outro has ever been produced, by the almighty Fugees from the true classic The Score. It deals with a modern interpretation of the crucifixition of Christ. Deep, I know. I'll post that for your listening pleasure.

And intros? Well, again I'm kinda stuck. Although according to my iTunes, I have 39 songs to choose from. Pheww. And still I dunno which I would consider as worthwhile. Whilst I would like to come back to Jay-Z (the Intro from American Gangster) or Common (Be, the intro from his classic album Be), I gotta go to the Philadelphia-based hip hop collective The Roots. The Intro from The Tipping Point, "Star/Pointro" (featuring Waduud Ahmad) is the clear winner. In fact, for me it is without a doubt the standout track of the excellent album.

Well, at least I managed to convince myselft that all these interludes etc aren't that pointless-progess...Maybe an Interlude/Intro/Outro mixtape? Hold on, not even I would listen to that.

The Roots-Star/Pointro ft. Waduud Ahmad

Jay-Z-Interlude

The Fugees-Manifest/Outro