Needs More Cowbell

Last year Pharrell had a brainwave and at 4am called his buddy ?uestlove. He thought it would be dope if his debut solo album was reworked with a bit of Roots magic. So ?uestlove and long time collaborator James Poyser set to work adding the proverbial "cowbell" to the tracks, fifteen days later it was done and Pharrell was pleased with the results.

Unfortunately his record company was not as stoked and the album was shelved never to be released. Luckily for us the internet exists and the record was leaked in its entirety. The project was titled Pharrell & the Yessirs "Out of my Mind" and is available all over the place. Due to the lack of promotion this CD has flown under the radar a bit.

There are a few gems, my favourite being the funky fresh rework of the Kanye assisted "Number One". There is talk of an album of original songs being made. ?uestlove: "I believe he really wants to keep the same unit and do all new songs — and I welcome any challengers."

Pharrell & the Yessirs - Number One

Pharrell & the Yessirs - Out of my Mind (LP)