Pitchfork

Talib Kweli getting sentimental over a Barry Manilow song? Yeah, that's exactly what would've made the Brooklyn rapper's 2007 album, Eardrum, just that extra bit better. If it helps any, Kweli's previously unreleased "Momma Can You Hear Me" features production from Kanye West, who falls back on one of his most recognizable moves by speeding up the sound of the schmaltzy strings, keyboard, and vocal from "Sweet Life", originally off of Manilow's 1973 debut Manilow I, and adds a mid-tempo beat with hissing hi-hat. It might also reassure you to know that a recent remix of Jay-Z's American Gangster track "Sweet" used the same Manilow cut at actual speed. Unfortunately, hearing all the conflict, the figurative language, and even just the viscerally joyful non-verbal utterances ("th- th- the life!") in Jay's song only underscores the contrast between it and the flatly literal, by-the-Hallmark-card drippiness of Kweli's verses.

All that said, it's a real shame the track didn't turn out to be better-- if only for the sake of West, who can no doubt appreciate what Kweli is feeling even if the execution isn't perfect. (As you probably already know, West lost his mother, the educator, author, and businesswoman Dr. Donda West, late last year, and back in 2005 he recorded "Hey Mama", from Late Registration, for her.) "Gotta take the time to say I love you while you're still alive," Kweli raps at one point. I'd write more, but sorry, guys, I think I'd better go call my mom.

MP3:> Talib Kweli: "Momma Can You Hear Me"
[previously unreleased; Eardrum is out now on Blacksmith Music/Warner Bros.]