It's been the best part of a decade since I first picked up Personal Journals and fell sway to Sage's way with a rhyme,so I consider myself a long term fan and write from that perspective. Despite his lyrical skills and flawless flow I've often thought that his solo albums are quite frustrating to listen to from beginning to end because they promise brilliance and genius with one track only to fall flat with hokiness or a misjudged experiment with live instruments(his take on Turn the Page on personal journals,or Jah didn't kill Johnny off of a healthy distrust, for example)and that his collaborative efforts with DJ Signify or as the Nonprophets really suited his style best, forcing him to play the role of mystical yet somehow straight talking MC for the duration.
I hesitated for too long buying this album... from beginning to end it delivers nothing but gold, as though Sage has found his true musical voice...little houdini, is classic story telling...Three sheets to the wind, rocks hard and from then on it's all the ups and downs of life until The best of times leaves you weeping at the close of the record. Recommended to all.