Graduation [ENHANCED] [EXPLICIT LYRICS] [IMPORT]

Kanye West

Product Details

• Audio CD (September 11, 2007)
• Original Release Date: September 11, 2007
• Number of Discs: 1
• Format: Enhanced, Explicit Lyrics, Import
• Label: Def Jam Aus/Zoom
• ASIN: B000LSAIMQ
• Also Available in: Audio CD  |  Vinyl  |  MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 3.9 out of 5 stars See all reviews (296 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #472,840 in Music (See Bestsellers in Music)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com
Kanye West's third in a whimsical trilogy of "scholarly" albums, Graduation wears its predecessors' badges of success on its sleeve. Matriculation has its rewards, apparently, and it's time to take stock. Lyrically, there's plenty of self-congratulation to attend to, but the real fun comes in the collabs, and West chooses co-conspirators like a kid in a candy store--John Legend ("Good Life"), Coldplay's Chris Martin ("Homecoming"), Mos Def and the Section Quartet (both adorable choices for the foreboding "Drunk and Hot Girls")--and plucks samples with A-list braggadocio: Elton John, Steely Dan, Daft Punk, Can, Michael Jackson, Public Enemy. Nothing here quite captures the superlative symbiosis of West's past best beats (think "Gold Digger"), but the central motif remains: No one ever accused Kanye West of being too cool for school, and Graduation still knows how to party. True, Kanye West will happily whine about the pitfalls at the top of the heap, clear his throat and try to rhyme it with Barry Bonds, or diss fish in a barrel all day, but that can't stop a shameless good time, and Graduation maintains an unshakeable knack for producing it. --Jason Kirk --This text refers to the Audio CD edition.

Product Description
Graduation is the 3rd installment in the Kanye West series of ground breaking albums, targeting every school kid, from those that have dropped out (Debut Album, College Dropout), to those late registrants (sophmore album Late Registration), to those that have gone on and completed school (current album Graduation). Though technically this earmarks a junior year, West's approach to crafting this album was very much senior. Kanye teams up with veterans Daft Punk and Edwin Birdsong on "Stronger"- Graduation's forthcoming single; as well as enlisting a little help from current chart topper T-Pain on "Good Life". Chris Martin of Coldplay appears on a track called "HomeComing" as well. Kanye has continued to prove his understanding and appreciation for a wide array of music and musical influences. What makes GRADUATION so special? Like most Kanye titles, his fearlessness and blindness to inhibiting boundaries, coupled with his fan driven core competence is evidence that he knows exactly what people yearn for...great music, perspective, and a voice to be heard. --This text refers to the Audio CD edition.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

75 of 82 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A more conscious and mature effort., September 10, 2007

By	jazzy modes (Vancouver, Canada.) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Graduation (Audio CD)

Kanye West is thoughtful ("Everything I'm not, made me everything I am," he explains on "Everything I Am") and has a voice like honey and a breathtakingly broad musical palette.
On his third album, West wants that acceptance on a big piece of paper, rolled up in a ribbon and presented to him in front of the applauding world. To make sure that everyone had the date in their diary, he pulled the release forward to clash with his nemesis, 50 Cent. But why bother? If anyone was going to get the prize for coming top of the class right now, it would be West.
"Graduation" sums up the qualities that made West a star: smart sampling, funny pitched-up vocals, a new found maturity, sagacious rapping and a finely attuned ear for infectious beats and rhythms.
There are also a couple of new ingredients: steely, electro synths from Daft Punk on "Stronger" and Caribbean lilts on "Good Life".
He's even got rappers' favourite indie boy Chris Martin doing his best Gilbert O'Sullivan impression on "Homecoming".
Despite all this, something about "Graduation" feels a bit cold.
The goofy glamour of "Gold Digger" and "Touch the Sky" have been edged out by over-earnest, gratingly repetitive self-promotion and an underlying sense of isolation and paranoia. And for all his right-on credentials, "Drunk & Hot Girls" veers close to hip-hop's tired old misogyny.
Kanye West is a 'conscious' rapper whose album samples Steely Dan and kraut rock beards Can; who muses on the stress of success; and who likes speeded up chipmunk vocals.
"Graduation" will leave some fans cold (it's a pop album that takes hip hop further into mainstream dance culture).
The album has magnificent moments (the Daft Punk-sampling "Stronger", the wonderfully upbeat "Good Life") but is weighed down by navel-gazing and pales in comparison to "Late Registration" and "College Dropout".
And yet, the record is beguiling and addictive: you want to go back and listen again as all those shiny, unexpected layers reveal themselves.
"Graduation" might yet to turn out to be as important as West thinks it is.

59 of 64 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Kanye is a better producer then he is a lyricist. , September 11, 2007

By	Eric Chan "B-Boy Ninku" (Augusta, GA USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This review is from: Graduation (Audio CD)

After two amazing solid hip hop albums just recently released this year, Common's Finding Forever and Talib Kweli's Eardrum, (both in which had an appearance with Kanye) one could only look foward to the next big album. This album was Kanye's Graduation. Unfortunately, this album was a mixed bag for me. As a producer, Kanye is one of the greats and he undeniably will be one of the best for some time to come. As a lyricist, I was definitely disappointed. Kanye is still better then most, but for this album I felt he didn't bring his A game. After hearing Common's and Talib Kweli's albums, this one seem very lackluster in the lyrical department. Either way, this is easily one of the best hip hop albums this year surpassing 50's Curtis.

54 of 59 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars very disappointed, September 11, 2007

By	G. Palmieri - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This review is from: Graduation (Audio CD)

this album is by far kanyes worst. yes, the beats are amazing as usually but kanyes flow and lyrics are absolute garbage. stronger is a good song but is ruined by the fact that he is rapping about klondikes. there are very few good songs on this album and none of them are even close to being college dropout material. once again, i cannot emphasize enough how bad the lyrics are. kanye should stick to producing.