Badu out of order, brilliant on ‘Gun’

Spencer Patterson

Friday, March 25, 2005 | 8:43 a.m.

Don't bother trying to follow along to the liner notes or back-cover tracklisting while spinning Erykah Badu's second album, "Mama's Gun."

The neo-soul vocalist changed the song sequence "at the last minute," as she reveals in a hand-penned message on the disc itself.

Confusing as it might be not to have the songs match up to their apparent titles while listening, Badu was actually quite shrewd to rework the order before releasing "Mama's Gun" in November 2000.

The revised sequence, particularly the album's first half or so, makes for a terrifically flowing listening experience.

"Penitentiary Philosophy," for example, serves as an appropriately funky opener to "Mama's Gun." Kicking off with "Hey Sugah" and "Booty" -- the original order's starting point -- would have had a far more subdued effect.

Badu's decision to retool her sophomore CD so late in the process also reveals the seriousness with which she approached the project.

Where 1997 debut, "Badiuzm," arrived with little hype, turning the Dallas native into an instant star, "Mama's Gun" was among the most anticipated follow-ups in recent R&B history.

Badu met those expectations head-on, crafting the rare stylistically diverse album that works on a track-by-track basis and as a cohesive whole.

Highlights are numerous: the soulful and timeless "Didn't Cha Know" and "Cleva," the reggae-soaked "In Love With You" (a duet with Bob Marley's son Stephen) and the jazzy song-suite, "Green Eyes."

And then there's graceful ballad "Orange Moon." Ridiculous as they might be, frequent comparisons to the legendary Billie Holiday actually ring true on this tune, perhaps the finest in Badu's songbook.

Unfortunately, five years after "Mama's Gun," that catalog remains surprisingly spare. Badu has released just one additional studio effort, 2003's "Worldwide Underground" EP.

Some claim she's become reclusive. Others attribute the dearth of new material on Badu's devotion to her two young children.

Or maybe she's just perfecting her next tracklist.

Artist: Erykah Badu.

Title: "Mama's Gun."

Year of release: 2000 (Motown Records).

Tracklisting: "Penitentiary Philosophy," "Didn't Cha Know," "My Life," "... & on," "Cleva," "Hey Sugah," "Booty," "Kiss Me on My Mouth," "a.d. 2000," "Orange Moon," "In Love With You," "Bag Lady," "Time's a Wastin'," 'Green Eyes."