David Banner - The Greatest Story Ever Told Review

Posted by Byron Lee on 07.24.2008

An internal struggle rages on

His Story

The David Banner story is one of hustle, frustration, and duality.

Banner's tenacity and faith were formed through his upbringing. He was born Levell Crump in Jackson, Mississippi to Carolyn and Zeno Crump, a strict, devoutly Christian couple. By the time he was in fifth grade, he was blasting the sounds of rap pioneers such as Stetsasonic, Mantronix, Rock Master Scott and KRS-One, while becoming quite the parking lot battle-rapper. He would later acquire a drum machine and add production to his arsenal of skills.

After his high school graduation, Crump spontaneously came onstage and starting rapping. The group that was performing at the time, Kamikaze and DJ Finga Print, were taken aback, but admired Crump's skill. The duo accepted Crump and formed the trio Crooked Lettaz, with Crump adopting the stage moniker David Banner, the human alter-ego of The Incredible Hulk.

While his mind was on music, Banner heeded his mother's wishes and enrolled at her alma mater, Southern University in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, driving home on weekends to work with the group. He decided to run for the office of Student Government Association President and won. Said Banner, in a 2005 interview with XXL, "I learned that if we, as underprivileged people, don't invest in power, we'll never have power. If I would've never run for SGA president, I never would've got people who are like me to have any attention focused on them."

Banner completed his collegiate career with a Business degree and completed some classes in the University of Maryland Master of Education program, before dropping out to fully focus on music. Penalty Records released Crooked Lettaz' Grey Skies with Kamikaze and Banner being a duo, in 1999. The album, though critically acclaimed, flopped, due to poor promotion. The group was moved to Tommy Boy, where they were eventually dropped.

Banner maintains that Penalty Records only released Grey Skies because he came to the label's New York offices, every day, until they did so. The experience of striking out on his own to insure success made him come to a quick conclusion regarding his professional future: he would have to split from the group. "Stuff wasn't moving fast enough," he said to XXL, "I was homeless in New York. I couldn't be homeless with two people. ... Me moving alone, I was able to sneak in studios, follow people, stalk people until they got on my album."

Banner started his own label, b.i.G.f.a.c.e. (Believe in God for All Comes Eventually), and recorded his first solo album, Them Firewater Boyz, Vol. 1, in 2000. He was able to sell the album throughout the country and throughout the world through a website, while also laying down tracks for southern stars such as Trick Daddy and Lil' Flip. His prolific output was noticed by former Loud Records executive Steve Rifkind, who signed Banner to a $10 million deal with SRC/Universal, with the majority of the sum going towards advertising and video production for the promotion of 5 albums.

Banner has yet to reach the success he, or the label, had hoped for. Even though "Like A Pimp" (Banner's bouncing collaboration with Lil' Flip) was a major hit, the album that spawned it, 2003's Mississippi The Album, and its quickly-released follow-up, MTA2:Baptized in Dirty Water failed to connect, commercially.

To remedy this matter, Banner catered to every conceivable demographic, while boasting an excessive amount of guest appearances, on 2005's Certified. (Especially noteworthy was the minimalist single "Play," which seemed to owe a great debt to the Ying Yang Twins' smash "Wait.") In addition to the hard-sell approach, Banner also changed his look. He started wearing suits, which was a well-intentioned, but ultimately awkward, statement on the diversity found in both southern culture and the black community. In spite of this effort, Banner once again found himself without the brass ring. Certified earned lackluster sales.

Between albums, Banner made forays into acting, appearing in films such as This Christmas and Black Snake Moan. He also took several months off to help those affected by Hurricane Katrina. Furthermore, he dedicated himself to slimming down, looking svelte in the video for "Get Like Me."

The Album
On July 15, 2008, SRC/Universal Motown released The Greatest Story Ever Told, the fourth major-label album from David Banner.



The Songs 8.5
1. "So Long"
2. "G.S.E.T. Intro"
3. "Suicide Doors" (featuring UGK)
4 . "9mm/Speaker"
5 . "T.I. Speaks (Interlude)"
6. "Get Like Me" (featuring Chris Brown and Yung Joc)
7. "Shawty Say"
8. "A Girl"
9. "Syrup Sipping (Banner Beat Break)"
10. "Hold On"
11. "Cadillac On 22's (Part 2)"
12. "Uncle Swac (Interlude)"
13. "I Get By" (Featuring Carl Thomas)
14. "Freedom (Interlude)"
15 . "B.A.N. (The Love Song)"
16 . "F**k You H**s" (featuring Jim Jones)
17. "Marz (Banner Beat Break)"
18. "Ball With Me" (featuring Chamillionaire)
19. "K.O."
20. "Fly"
21. "Faith"
22. "Wealth (Banner Beat Break)"

Like the character with whom he shares his stage moniker, the music of David Banner has two sides, the spiritual and the sinister (When promoting the Grey Skies album, Banner referred to the CD as "A Bible in a Playboy cover."). Perhaps feeling the pressure to make good on the investment SRC has made in him, he has ditched the "everything-to-everyone" aesthetic of Certified, contained most of the high-profile guest appearances to a few tracks, and fully indulged his two sides to the fullest. The result is a highly schizophrenic album, where laments of the use of the N-word sit alongside songs that couldn't exist without it.

The mainstream-friendly portion of the album is highly effective. "Get Like Me" is a floss anthem that overcomes a solid, yet completely out-of-place appearance from Chris Brown and a generic third verse to be highly enjoyable. "Shawty Say," the next single, makes a hook out of some catchy lines from Lil' Wayne's "Lollipop" and puts a head-nodding track under it. The ominous "Suicide Doors" features a scene-stealing verse from the late Pimp C. "B.A.N. (The Love Song)" makes amusing/polarizing use of a vocal sample from The Boondocks to simultaneously call for community unity and decry snitching. "Ball With Me" finds producer Nitti's staccato synths and Banner's sing-along chorus bringing a uniquely festive mood to a "get money" song. "A Girl" is hilariously off-the-top in visceral content (It could be a hipster's rap parody, with no alterations.). The beat for the quiet storm rap of "Fly" really knocks, and the straight crunk of "F**k You H**s" and "K.O." (the former featuring Jim Jones, and the latter having a sick bass line on its bridge) are sure to start a fight at any club.

The most interesting of these tracks (although, admittedly, not the best of them) is "9mm/Speaker." Even though the song features Akon, Lil' Wayne, and Snoop Dogg, the song is most notable for Banner's verse, which, like the album on which it is found, was clearly written in an effort to balance commercial demands with artistic concerns. Banner speaks from the point of view of a vigilante, when he raps,

If I got nine slugs, nine bullets gon' fly
If I got a red beam, nine people gone die
Nine mamas gone cry, nine spirits in the sky
Nine preachers preaching nine sermons, telling nine lies
Cause each and every one of ya'll nine n****s wasn't s**t
I would have rather kept the nine rugers in the ruger clip
The index finger slipped, the nine let nine spit
I lick 'em all like eighteen t**s on nine chicks
I'm a suicide risk, nine slits on each wrist
If I die nine times, the next go-around's a b***h

Ironically, the album's only true missteps are two of the "conscious" songs. Banner's delivery on "Hold On," as heartfelt as it is, is overbearing, and "Cadillacs on 22s, Part 2" is corny and unnecessary. Thankfully, Banner finds his bearings on "I Get By," which skillfully uses a smooth Isaac Hayes sample (and an equally soothing Carl Thomas vocal hook) to undercut Banner's delivery. In direct contrast to "I Get By, " but no less effective, is the unaccompanied "Freedom," which finds Banner giving himself completely over to his political side.

The same people in 1608
Enslaved black people in the name of the crucifix
And gave us a Jesus with light blue eyes
Hell on earth, but heaven in the skies
While they eat their pie now
Native Americans got slaughtered
Their land passed out
I want to mash out
But I feel alone
African-American
But Africa,
She ain't our home
Man, listen
They look at us as cotton pickers
Might as well
Cause we love to call ourselves n****s

Banner hits his stride on "Faith," where he poetically and poignantly recalls his route to stardom over a triumphant stomp. He starts off the song talking about music, as if she was his girlfriend. As he rides with his companion to embark on his journey, she whispers in his ear,

No matter how long it takes
You can make it
Every myth about your home and your state
We can break it
And no matter what you do, let them
Boys know you smart.
Stand up for the poor and
Keep God in your heart

The track serves as an emphatic statement of artistic drive. "Wealth," an incredibly soulful instrumental track that serves as sort of a companion piece to "Faith," ends the album.

The 411: David Banner's The Greatest Story Ever Told is a jarringly schizophrenic, but satisfying listen. If you can get over the contradictions and enjoy each side for what it is, you should find plenty to enjoy.

Final Score:  8.5   [ Very Good ]