Common-Be: Original Samples

I know some of you all are saying, “Damn Kevin, another sample set?” What can I say… I love to dig! I know there are quite a few new albums out that I’ve probably been sleeping on that deserve a review, but I don’t enjoy reviewing as much as I do diggin’. So, I’ve been working on this one for quite some time. You may remember my original post showcasing the samples of Common’s Be back when I only posted snippets of the original songs. Well, I promised I would go back and make official sample sets out of all those and this one seemed to be the most requested. The problem was a few of the songs were a little difficult to come by in their full form. But finally, here it is… search no more!

Released on May 24, 2005, Common went back to his roots when he recorded Be. After the negative criticism he received over Electric Circus, Common decided to take a simpler approach to his next album. He enlisted super-producer Kanye West to produce the entire album. All songs were produced by Kanye, with the exception of two outstanding tracks from the late J Dilla. The formula worked — Be spawned three hit singles (”The Corner”, “Go!”, and “Testify”) and the album itself went to #2 on Billboard.

Common said in a 2005 interview with sixshot.com: “I named it Be to be who you are man and be able to be in the moment and not try too hard. Be is another way of saying just do without trying hard, like I said natural and be true to the core of who you are and this album I wanted to just be and not just go and exist as just an artist not worried about the past.”


“Mother Nature” by Albert Jones
Sampled in “Be Intro”
Produced by Kanye West
“What It Is” by The Temptations
Sampled in “The Corner”
Produced by Kanye West
“You Make The Sun Shine” by The Temprees
Sampled in “The Corner”
Produced by Kanye West
“Old Smokey” by Linda Lewis
Sampled in “Go!”
Produced by Kanye West
“Faithful To The End” by DJ Rogers
Sampled in “Faithful”
Produced by Kanye West
“Innocent Til Proven Guilty” by Honey Cone
Sampled in “Testify”
Produced by Kanye West
“God Is Love” by Marvin Gaye
Sampled in “Love Is…”
Produced by J Dilla
“Since I Found My Baby” by Cornelius Jones & Sister Rose
Sampled in “Chi-City”
Produced by Kanye West
“Never Had It So Good” by The Chi-Lites
Sampled in “The Food
Produced by Kanye West
“Nothing Can Change This Love” by Sam Cooke
Sampled in “The Food”
Produced by Kanye West
“Sweet Children” by Caesar Frazier
Sampled in “Real People” & “Be Intro”
Produced by Kanye West
“Ghetto Child” by Ahmad Jamal
Sampled in “They Say”
Produced by Kanye West
“Share What You Got, Keep What You Need” by The Modulations
Sampled in “It’s Your World”
Produced by J Dilla