For all my readers (both of you) please check out my companion site, created by my longtime companion and dear dear friend Mike "Don" Jerome Cialini. He calls the site Number One Chief Rocka, and it is an excellent hip hop lyrics blog.
Mike tackles A Tribe Called Quest (one good verse, one bad), The GZA, Tim Dog, Gang Starr, Big L, Nas and more. Check it out and drop a comment.
Wednesday, October 11, 2006
Tuesday, October 10, 2006
Bo$$ - "Recipe of a Hoe"
Bo$$ used to scare the shit outta me. Bo$$ was an unlikely name for a female rapper, but she had the goods. She had a hard voice, decent lyrics and really good beats. (This video has a little hiss, but you can get the idea of it. Also, I'm printing the dirty version of the lyrics, which are so much dirtier than the video version.)
Bo$$ knew how to get the funk out of the West Coast sound at the time, right before it all turned into phony g-funk garbage. The video is little more than Bo$$ running around in a Carhart jacket, skullcap and black Loc's in the ghetto with a sepia-toned spotlight on her. But the song is nice. I love the "ya, ya gotta, ya-ya ya gotta, ya gotta let a hoe be a hoe!" chorus and the smooth bassline. They don't make 'em like this anymore.
[Note: the embedding was removed on this video, but you can find it by clicking HERE.]
Bo$$ knew how to get the funk out of the West Coast sound at the time, right before it all turned into phony g-funk garbage. The video is little more than Bo$$ running around in a Carhart jacket, skullcap and black Loc's in the ghetto with a sepia-toned spotlight on her. But the song is nice. I love the "ya, ya gotta, ya-ya ya gotta, ya gotta let a hoe be a hoe!" chorus and the smooth bassline. They don't make 'em like this anymore.
[Note: the embedding was removed on this video, but you can find it by clicking HERE.]
If yous a tramp 4ss n***a or no good n***a you get dissed quick!
But ain't no tellin ya know my personalities split
I could just gank you for
Your s**t without a warning
Or f**k it!
Shoot you now and get all this
S**t over with by the morning!
F**k yeah!
I'm feelin' on full too
S**t!
Another reason ya hoe cards pulled fool
I'm down with all this s**t you poppin'
Hell f**k Naw!
I don't wanna put a stoppin' to your hoe hoppin'
Cuz when ya' runnin the motha f**kin streets
In between the sheets every
Week screwin freak after freak
BO$$ is straight kickin' in the do' at ya crib
With enough time to kill a 40 O.Z. thats how I live!
Jackin' for cash and jewelry and all that s**t
Then off to the pawn shop to get another fat 4ss grip
And that's exactly how it is g!
On the real tip..tip...tip..
I know the f**kin' recipe!
Young Black Teenagers - "Tap the Bottle"
Oh boy. If these dudes didn't try so hard to act black, this song would have been easily as big a hit as "Jump Around."
Their name, after all, is Young Black Teenagers, and they are all very clearly caucasian. We all wanted to be black back then, babies. We just didn't call ourselves that. It is very uncomfortable to watch white guys with dreadlocks speak in urban dictions. However they do throw a black guy in for about two lines about 3.5 minutes in to show their cred.
This song could also be seen as a bit of a rip-off of "Jump Around" in several ways. Let's count them.
1) The intro where they are saying "Camron is in the house and uh..." etc is a direct rip off of the "The House of Pain is in effect ya'll..." intro of "Jump Around." Look it up.
2) It has lots of white people jumping around in a semi-rhythmic motion.
3) It has the same kind of screeching, squealing sound effect as House of Pain used with the Prince sample from "Gett Off." (Look THAT up too!)
Having said all that... it is a really kick-ass song, and really encapsulates the high-energy type of thing that was coming out in 1992. And it's not nearly as overplayed as "Jump Around" to be relegated to musical wallpaper when it comes on. I still get a genuine thrill out of hearing it.
Their name, after all, is Young Black Teenagers, and they are all very clearly caucasian. We all wanted to be black back then, babies. We just didn't call ourselves that. It is very uncomfortable to watch white guys with dreadlocks speak in urban dictions. However they do throw a black guy in for about two lines about 3.5 minutes in to show their cred.
This song could also be seen as a bit of a rip-off of "Jump Around" in several ways. Let's count them.
1) The intro where they are saying "Camron is in the house and uh..." etc is a direct rip off of the "The House of Pain is in effect ya'll..." intro of "Jump Around." Look it up.
2) It has lots of white people jumping around in a semi-rhythmic motion.
3) It has the same kind of screeching, squealing sound effect as House of Pain used with the Prince sample from "Gett Off." (Look THAT up too!)
Having said all that... it is a really kick-ass song, and really encapsulates the high-energy type of thing that was coming out in 1992. And it's not nearly as overplayed as "Jump Around" to be relegated to musical wallpaper when it comes on. I still get a genuine thrill out of hearing it.
Okay here I go Shorty tap the forty O smash
To a pass, if ya crash make a dash to the trash
Tap a cap, have alot and not alot not a little
Don't grade upon the label take a guzzle, don't dribble
I got the supercalafragileisticexpialadoucious
You're commin to close to this, I get ferocious
Coax this rhyme, smoke this rhyme hype
When we rock it up on the mic, we rock the mic right
Pass the funnel to the tunnel like it's busy till I'm dizzy
Never pass it to get fizzy cause the guard gets busy
Who is he?
Damn just pass the code decipher
When I hit the dress bottom buy a can of Red Stripe
D-Nice - "Call Me D-Nice"
Many years before Stuart Scott began calling every athlete who's name began with the letter "D" D-Nice, there was this guy, the real D-Nice. He was also known as the Human TR-808, which I can't figure out, because I don't remember him doing a beatbox even once. Of course, KRS-ONE continued calling himself "DJ KRS" for the longest time and I don't think I ever heard him cut up one record.
Anyway, D-Nice was one of the earlier members of Boogie Down Productions, and by most accounts, he got DJ Scott La Rock killed (despite what others may think). D-Nice was a relatively good lyricist, though he fell into that kind of tried-and-true BDP mold: always trying to be conscious, always having KRS-ONE's back, etc.
One of my favorite memories of this album goes like this: I'm listening to this album with my boy Mike Cialini, and there is a song called "The TR-808 is Coming" and as was KRS's custom, he would always tell you what year that song in question was fresh for. The album came out in 1990, so KRS says the song is "fresh for 1990, and also fresh for nineteen ninety one and two." Flash forward a couple years to 1993; Cialini and I are inexplicably listening to this album and that song comes on. He says "fresh for nineteen ninety one and two" and I say to Mike, "Man, he's right this song sucks now. I remember thinking it was good last year."
I guess you had to be there.
Anyway, D-Nice was one of the earlier members of Boogie Down Productions, and by most accounts, he got DJ Scott La Rock killed (despite what others may think). D-Nice was a relatively good lyricist, though he fell into that kind of tried-and-true BDP mold: always trying to be conscious, always having KRS-ONE's back, etc.
One of my favorite memories of this album goes like this: I'm listening to this album with my boy Mike Cialini, and there is a song called "The TR-808 is Coming" and as was KRS's custom, he would always tell you what year that song in question was fresh for. The album came out in 1990, so KRS says the song is "fresh for 1990, and also fresh for nineteen ninety one and two." Flash forward a couple years to 1993; Cialini and I are inexplicably listening to this album and that song comes on. He says "fresh for nineteen ninety one and two" and I say to Mike, "Man, he's right this song sucks now. I remember thinking it was good last year."
I guess you had to be there.
I start to think, a very big conscious all around me
Who will be the sucker MC to try to doubt me
Is it you, or you, or you, or you, or him
But I'm like a tree and every lyric is a limb
You throw it on the turntable, very unstable
But you gamble because you need that example
There's a 1000 MC's on the planet earth now
What is the word you say to get hers
Some like to explain, some talk educated
Some like McBoo, he's X-rated
I like to think of myself as a pure rebel
A radical thinker on a musical level
'Cause suckers wanna stop me and girls wanna kiss
Wherever I go, yo, it seems I can't be dis
'Cause my name is D-Nice but all the girls call me Derek
It ran through my crew so I guess I've inherit
The job of explaining and also retaining
The fact D-Nice is remaining
Not a king nor a prince but as a teacher
Wit dopies like this, I know I'm gonna reach ya
So now I don't think you should all despise
This fact D-Nice is on a rise
Straight to the top like a bubble of water
It's a slaughter so I think you oughta
Think realistically, not egotistically
It's suicide if you even think of dissing me
'Cause if you try, I'm a make you wait
To learn the reason I'm the 808, but just call me D-Nice
Friday, October 06, 2006
Wu-Tang Forever: Director's Cut
Okay, so I am attaching this video for "Triumph" by the Wu-Tang Clan here as an excuse for the rest of this blog. It's strictly an excuse. I will make no comment of the overblown dramatics of the silly "Killer Beez" story line or the cheapo Brett Ratner direction and graphics. That's not why I'm here.
First, a little background.
Many of us remember the summer of 1997. I think it was July. Third Eye Blind was teaching us all how to smile again. Men in Black was taking the nation by storm. I was between my junior and senior years in college, painting dorms and just kicking ass in general.
The most anticipated albums of that summer in William H. Shannon's world were Wu-Tang Forever by the Wu-Tang Clan and For the People by the Boot Camp Clik. I would have to say that both were disappointments. I only listened to For the People once straight through because I thought it was that much of a piece of crap. The Wu album was also not very good, but with an asterisk.
*The album would have been good if they could have cut it in half.
I know I sound like a bit of a hypocrite here, because I was just bitching about how Nas's first album was too short, and now here I am blaming the Wu for packing two full discs worth of music. But let's face it, the album is mediocre because it has too much music on it. The album is so jam-packed with dead weight that I could barely listen to it without wearing out the "next track" button on my CD player.
So I did something that may have never been done in the history of modern home recording: I made my own version of Wu-Tang Forever. I did this by burning my own single-disc copy of the album, and eliminating all the bad songs on it.
For example, you will find no record of the very first track, "Wu-Revolution," on the director's cut of Wu-Tang Forever. Nor will you find awful songs like "Black Shampoo" or "For Heaven's Sake."
In fact, here is the track list:
Notice, from the first disc, I have removed "Wu-Revolution" and "For Heaven's Sake," only two tracks, finally confirming for the world that the first disc of this album was far superior. From the second disc, the cutting was much more ruthless. I removed "Intro," "Impossible," "Little Ghetto Boys," "The MGM," "Dog Sh*t," "Black Shampoo," "Second Coming" and "The Closing." What a crappy second disc.
I still claim that if the Wu had simply gone with this track listing on a single disc rather than the one they came up with, Wu-Tang Forever would be considered an outstanding album. Certainly not as good as their first, but close. It's a solid album all around, just with too much filler. The album never gathers any momentum because of some seriously mediocre songs.
If the Wu or any other rap group would like a little A&R help, go ahead and give me a holler. I mean after all, Wu-Tang, who's your A&R? A mountain climber who plays an electric guitar? But he don't know the meaning of "dope" when he's looking for a suit-and-tie rap that's cleaner than a bar of soap.
[By the way, fellas. I am really enjoying the comments on this blog lately. Keep them coming. It will definitely inspire me to post more often.]
First, a little background.
Many of us remember the summer of 1997. I think it was July. Third Eye Blind was teaching us all how to smile again. Men in Black was taking the nation by storm. I was between my junior and senior years in college, painting dorms and just kicking ass in general.
The most anticipated albums of that summer in William H. Shannon's world were Wu-Tang Forever by the Wu-Tang Clan and For the People by the Boot Camp Clik. I would have to say that both were disappointments. I only listened to For the People once straight through because I thought it was that much of a piece of crap. The Wu album was also not very good, but with an asterisk.
*The album would have been good if they could have cut it in half.
I know I sound like a bit of a hypocrite here, because I was just bitching about how Nas's first album was too short, and now here I am blaming the Wu for packing two full discs worth of music. But let's face it, the album is mediocre because it has too much music on it. The album is so jam-packed with dead weight that I could barely listen to it without wearing out the "next track" button on my CD player.
So I did something that may have never been done in the history of modern home recording: I made my own version of Wu-Tang Forever. I did this by burning my own single-disc copy of the album, and eliminating all the bad songs on it.
For example, you will find no record of the very first track, "Wu-Revolution," on the director's cut of Wu-Tang Forever. Nor will you find awful songs like "Black Shampoo" or "For Heaven's Sake."
In fact, here is the track list:
- Reunited
- Cash Still Rules/Scary Hours (Still Don't Nothin Move But the Money)
- Visionz
- As High As Wu-Tang Get
- Severe Punishment
- Older Gods
- Maria
- A Better Tomorrow
- It's Yourz
- The City
- The Projects
- Bells of War
- Duck Seazon
- Triumph
- Deadly Melody
- Hellz Wind Staff
- Heaterz
Notice, from the first disc, I have removed "Wu-Revolution" and "For Heaven's Sake," only two tracks, finally confirming for the world that the first disc of this album was far superior. From the second disc, the cutting was much more ruthless. I removed "Intro," "Impossible," "Little Ghetto Boys," "The MGM," "Dog Sh*t," "Black Shampoo," "Second Coming" and "The Closing." What a crappy second disc.
I still claim that if the Wu had simply gone with this track listing on a single disc rather than the one they came up with, Wu-Tang Forever would be considered an outstanding album. Certainly not as good as their first, but close. It's a solid album all around, just with too much filler. The album never gathers any momentum because of some seriously mediocre songs.
If the Wu or any other rap group would like a little A&R help, go ahead and give me a holler. I mean after all, Wu-Tang, who's your A&R? A mountain climber who plays an electric guitar? But he don't know the meaning of "dope" when he's looking for a suit-and-tie rap that's cleaner than a bar of soap.
[By the way, fellas. I am really enjoying the comments on this blog lately. Keep them coming. It will definitely inspire me to post more often.]
Luke - "Cowards in Compton" (feat. Clayvosie and JT Money)
You asked for it, you got it.
Okay, so it's not that great a song, and Luke doesn't perform anything that could be considered a "rap" on it. (He's more like the narrator.) But for sheer chutzpah, this song had it back in the day. Back when few people were ready to mess with Death Row Records. But when the feud between Dr. Dre and Luke (aka Luther Campbell, formerly Luke Skywalker of 2 Live Crew) came out on Dre's 1992 album The Chronic, Luke had to respond.
Essentially, Luke uses this song to call out Dre and Snoop for being gangsters, when in actuality, Dre had been part of the electro-soul group World Class Wreckin' Cru, where he would routinely wear makeup and shiny outfits.
The video does a pretty good job making fun of Dre's two signature videos of this time period -- "Dre Day" and "Nuthin' But a G Thang."
The lyrics are actually pretty good, but the beat is typical Miami gangster stuff.
Okay, so it's not that great a song, and Luke doesn't perform anything that could be considered a "rap" on it. (He's more like the narrator.) But for sheer chutzpah, this song had it back in the day. Back when few people were ready to mess with Death Row Records. But when the feud between Dr. Dre and Luke (aka Luther Campbell, formerly Luke Skywalker of 2 Live Crew) came out on Dre's 1992 album The Chronic, Luke had to respond.
Essentially, Luke uses this song to call out Dre and Snoop for being gangsters, when in actuality, Dre had been part of the electro-soul group World Class Wreckin' Cru, where he would routinely wear makeup and shiny outfits.
The video does a pretty good job making fun of Dre's two signature videos of this time period -- "Dre Day" and "Nuthin' But a G Thang."
The lyrics are actually pretty good, but the beat is typical Miami gangster stuff.
[Clayvosie]
It's about time for me to tear the roof off the mother
I grab the gat to make you punks run for cover
You can fool a groupie, but you can't fool a gangsta
1985, you used to be a prankster
Down with Lonzo and the Wreckin' Cru
Turnin' off the lights and dressin' like women too
Everybody on Death Row must be a joke
I put a level to the chair and watch you punks smoke
Real gangstas don't follow punks down here
I guess your boy Snoopie Dogg must be a queer
So who the hell you gonna blast here in Miami?
Step to me and I'll kill your whol' family
And I do mean hoe', you think I'm playin', son?
I got my glock to your head, now where you gonna run?
Before you diss my homie Luke, you better think twice
I'll pull a trigger, punk, and turn off your life
Nasty Nas - "Halftime"
Some of you who were listening to rap music in 1994 remember when the Source gave a five mic review to Nas's Illmatic album. And this was back when "Five Mics" actually meant something at the Source. Unlike now...(Li'l Kim's "The Naked Truth"???? Are you kidding me???)
Anyway, Illmatic actually is a great album, even though it's only 10 tracks long and the first track is an intro. But one of the tracks on the album is from 1992, when Nasir Jones was known as "Nasty Nas." He had previously dropped a couple verses on posse cuts like Main Source's "Live at the BBQ" and MC Serch's "Back to the Grill." But this song is the one that got my attention.
It has a hot bassline, that awesome horn riff and that unusual wailing voice. The video isn't much, but the lyrics are great; tight but versatile. I love the flow on this song. The multi-syllabic rhyme scheme was still in its early stages and this song showcases it beautifully, damn-near making every word rhyme in multiple sentences. I was a little disappointed when I heard he was changing his name to just "Nas," especially since so many people out of the loop pronounced it "Nass." Of course those same people would have said "Nasty Nass" anyway so what do I care. This song was the first glimpse of what Nas would have to offer as a solo artist, and not just a mic-for-hire.
Anyway, Illmatic actually is a great album, even though it's only 10 tracks long and the first track is an intro. But one of the tracks on the album is from 1992, when Nasir Jones was known as "Nasty Nas." He had previously dropped a couple verses on posse cuts like Main Source's "Live at the BBQ" and MC Serch's "Back to the Grill." But this song is the one that got my attention.
It has a hot bassline, that awesome horn riff and that unusual wailing voice. The video isn't much, but the lyrics are great; tight but versatile. I love the flow on this song. The multi-syllabic rhyme scheme was still in its early stages and this song showcases it beautifully, damn-near making every word rhyme in multiple sentences. I was a little disappointed when I heard he was changing his name to just "Nas," especially since so many people out of the loop pronounced it "Nass." Of course those same people would have said "Nasty Nass" anyway so what do I care. This song was the first glimpse of what Nas would have to offer as a solo artist, and not just a mic-for-hire.
I got it going on, even flip 'em on this song
Every afternoon, I kick half the tune
And in the darkness, I'm heartless like when the narcs hit
Word to Marcus Garvey or heartless Sparkton
Cuz when I blast the herb, that's my word
I be slaying them fast, doing this, that and third
But chill, past the entree and let's lay
I bag bitches up at John Jay and hit a mantinee
Putting hits on 5-0
Cuz when it's my time to go, I wait for God wit the fo-fo
And biters can't come near
And yo, go to hell to the foul cop who shot Garcia
I won't plant seeds, don't need an extra mouth I can't feed
That's extra Phillie change, more cash for that weed
This goes out to Manhatten, the island of Staten
Brooklyn, Queens is living fat and
The Boogie Down, nuff props, enough clout
Ill Will, rest in peace, yo, I'm out
Thursday, August 24, 2006
Groove B. Chill - "Hip Hop Music"
This was a fun little ditty from the short-lived Groove B. Chill. It's a pretty catchy song with a well-known beat. The cutesy video was clearly made for white people, with its pan-ethnic cast, little kids trying to dance with an old lady, and the fact that they got their hip hop essence out of a Cross Colours catalog.
The song, and group for that matter, are notable for featuring character actor Daryl "Chill" Mitchell, who you may remember as wheelchair-bound Eli on the TV show "Ed," or the black guy in "Galaxy Quest," or the newbie in "Sgt. Bilko." (Trivia: he played a character named Chill both on "The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air" and in the first two House Party movies.)
This also points to the very likely fact that the other two members of the group are named "Groove" and "B".
Hip Hop Music - Groove B. Chill
The song, and group for that matter, are notable for featuring character actor Daryl "Chill" Mitchell, who you may remember as wheelchair-bound Eli on the TV show "Ed," or the black guy in "Galaxy Quest," or the newbie in "Sgt. Bilko." (Trivia: he played a character named Chill both on "The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air" and in the first two House Party movies.)
This also points to the very likely fact that the other two members of the group are named "Groove" and "B".
Hip Hop Music - Groove B. Chill
Who said rap ain't music? Please tell me how
Elvis Presley ain't do nothin' that we ain't doin' now
Sellin' records by the millions, girls gettin' laid
We must be doin' somethin' brother, because bills gettin paid
(You mean rap is sellin'?) Nah rap done sold
We been overcame but you just wasn't... told.
Chi Ali - "Age Ain't Nothin But a #"
This one's for you Toddy.
First of all, who the f**k does Chi Ali think he is making all sorts of demands on women, saying they have to be older and more mature. Chi Ali is like 12 years old, and not even handsome. Are girls really climbing all over themselves to get with him?
Not to mention the fact that he's telling these girls they have to grow up and be more mature, but he's still making songs about lemonade and videos with cartoon coyotes chasing after him.
Get a clue Chi Ali. Just because Dres from Black Sheep is your brother, don't think you have his "skillz."
BUT I'LL BET YOU DIDN'T KNOW THIS:
Chi-Ali is currently serving a 14-year prison sentence in Elmira Correctional facility over the murder of his ex-girlfriend's brother in 2000. The dispute was over $300 and some CDs!!!! And his real name is Chi-Ali Griffith! He was actually profiled on America's Most Wanted.
And to the cops of Fulton County (GA), he was known as a fugitive!
First of all, who the f**k does Chi Ali think he is making all sorts of demands on women, saying they have to be older and more mature. Chi Ali is like 12 years old, and not even handsome. Are girls really climbing all over themselves to get with him?
Not to mention the fact that he's telling these girls they have to grow up and be more mature, but he's still making songs about lemonade and videos with cartoon coyotes chasing after him.
Get a clue Chi Ali. Just because Dres from Black Sheep is your brother, don't think you have his "skillz."
BUT I'LL BET YOU DIDN'T KNOW THIS:
Chi-Ali is currently serving a 14-year prison sentence in Elmira Correctional facility over the murder of his ex-girlfriend's brother in 2000. The dispute was over $300 and some CDs!!!! And his real name is Chi-Ali Griffith! He was actually profiled on America's Most Wanted.
And to the cops of Fulton County (GA), he was known as a fugitive!
Walking down the street and I saw this honey
She was dipped, the opposite of bummy
I stepped to her, I said "Yo you look swell"
Give me your number, you have a man, I won't tell
It really don't matter cause to me it means nothing
Next time I'm feeling rough, I'll just snuff him
Anyway, how old are you G?
13, I'm Audi
The girl said, "Hold up, who you think you are?"
I said, "I'm Chi-Ali, a superstar"
She said, "I may be young but don't be mislead
With this dope body you'll choose me instead"
I said, "Don't get me wrong, your body may be ready
But come back in three years when your mind is more steady
I'm not trying to diss you, I'm just trying to blow up"
But do me a favor, hon, and grow up
Wu-Tang Clan - "M.E.T.H.O.D. Man"
By popular demand...
Say what you will about the Wu. In fact, I will say something: their first album is one of the top five hip hop albums ever created. After that they put out various product from excellent, like Liquid Swords and ...Cuban Linx..., all the way down to piss-poor, like Bobby Digital and Heavy Mental. I have always said Wu-Tang Forever would have been a classic album if they had gotten rid of the dead weight like the first track and "Black Shampoo" and only put the one album's worth of outstanding songs on there. In fact, I may just create my own Wu-Tang Forever single-album using the power of CD burning technology.
Anyway, where was I? Oh yes. Say what you will about the Wu-Tang Clan, but they are essentially marketing geniuses. Or were at one time. They branded themselves with the awesome "W" logo that my boy Don C has proudly tattooed on his arm. (In fact, can we get a pic of that, Mikey?) The used to have the perfect knack for releasing their solo albums: just when you were getting sick of the last one, they would crank out the next one. They did it like that for about 3 years.
But this song is exactly why they are genius, for two reasons. One, they get the most marketable of their MCs (yes, that includes ODB) and have him put out a very catchy, but dirty rap song. Dirty meaning grimy. But the real genius is the prelude to the song. Since the Wu was trying to pimp out their brand, they had to have a hook, and their hook was that they had 8 MCs, all (well most) talented, and they had this mystique about them. But since this was the single, it would be the most played of their songs at first. So what do they do? They run down all 8 members of the Clan right off the bat, so you know exactly who you're dealing with.
Anyone who knows this song knows the timeless intro of "From the slums of Shaolin, Wu-Tang Clan strikes again, the RZA, the GZA, Old Dirty Bastard, Inspektah Deck, Raekwon the Chef, U-God, Ghostface Killah and the Method Man..." And usually when any of us recite the eight members of the Clan, we do it in that order. Genius. (And I don't mean GZA.)
Say what you will about the Wu. In fact, I will say something: their first album is one of the top five hip hop albums ever created. After that they put out various product from excellent, like Liquid Swords and ...Cuban Linx..., all the way down to piss-poor, like Bobby Digital and Heavy Mental. I have always said Wu-Tang Forever would have been a classic album if they had gotten rid of the dead weight like the first track and "Black Shampoo" and only put the one album's worth of outstanding songs on there. In fact, I may just create my own Wu-Tang Forever single-album using the power of CD burning technology.
Anyway, where was I? Oh yes. Say what you will about the Wu-Tang Clan, but they are essentially marketing geniuses. Or were at one time. They branded themselves with the awesome "W" logo that my boy Don C has proudly tattooed on his arm. (In fact, can we get a pic of that, Mikey?) The used to have the perfect knack for releasing their solo albums: just when you were getting sick of the last one, they would crank out the next one. They did it like that for about 3 years.
But this song is exactly why they are genius, for two reasons. One, they get the most marketable of their MCs (yes, that includes ODB) and have him put out a very catchy, but dirty rap song. Dirty meaning grimy. But the real genius is the prelude to the song. Since the Wu was trying to pimp out their brand, they had to have a hook, and their hook was that they had 8 MCs, all (well most) talented, and they had this mystique about them. But since this was the single, it would be the most played of their songs at first. So what do they do? They run down all 8 members of the Clan right off the bat, so you know exactly who you're dealing with.
Anyone who knows this song knows the timeless intro of "From the slums of Shaolin, Wu-Tang Clan strikes again, the RZA, the GZA, Old Dirty Bastard, Inspektah Deck, Raekwon the Chef, U-God, Ghostface Killah and the Method Man..." And usually when any of us recite the eight members of the Clan, we do it in that order. Genius. (And I don't mean GZA.)
Clip is loaded when I click bang dang
A Wu-Tang slug hits your brain
J-U-M-P jump and I thump
Make girls rumps like pump and Humpty Hump
Wow, the Shaolin style is all in me
Child, the whole damn isle is callin me
P-A-N-T-Y-R-A-I-D-E-R mad raw I don't cry
Meaning no one can burn or toss and turn me
Ooh I be the super sperm
Chim chimmeny chim chim cherie
Freak a flow and flow fancy free
Now how many licks does it take
For me to hit the Tootsie Roll center of a break
Peep and don't sleep the crews mad deep Wu-Tang
Fadin motherf**kers like bleach
So to each and every crew
You're clear like glass I can see right through
You're whole damn posse be catchin em all cause you vic'd
and ya didnt have friends to begin with
Thursday, August 03, 2006
Goodie Mob - "Soul Food"
Before Cee-Lo was in Gnarls Barkley, most of us remember him from the Goodie Mob, along with Big-Gipp, T-Mo and Khujo. Goodie Mob, incidentally, had one of the coolest acronyms in rap: "The GOOD DIE Mostly Over Bulls--t." And what was cool about these guys was not only their crazy pre-Dirty South look, but their rapid fire delivery and overlapping lyrics.
In this video they are all working in a fast food joint, getting hassled by customers and the boss. And they are bad employees! There is something about all their faces I just love. And I like that when they leave their corporate job, they hang out at a diner in the middle of the night eating food that you have to sing-song to talk about. Corn-BREAAAAD, CHIT-liiiiins, Collard GREEENS, etc.
In this video they are all working in a fast food joint, getting hassled by customers and the boss. And they are bad employees! There is something about all their faces I just love. And I like that when they leave their corporate job, they hang out at a diner in the middle of the night eating food that you have to sing-song to talk about. Corn-BREAAAAD, CHIT-liiiiins, Collard GREEENS, etc.
Sunday morning where you reating at?
I'm on 1365 Wichita Drive
Ole' burd working the stove ride
Churches dripping chicken in yesterday's grease
Didn't go together with this quart of Mickey's
Last night hanging over from a good time
yeah beef is cheaper but
It's pumped with "red dye" between two pieces of bread
Shawty look good with dem hairy legs
Wish I could cut her up but, ma stomach come before sex
A house full of hoes now what's the ingredient
Spaghetty plus her monthly flow
The Scratch Story with Jessica Jason (feat. Whiz Kid and Jazzy Jay)
This is some kind of PSA from 1981, and it's almost 7 minutes long.
Jazzy Jay is one of the great old school DJ's, and here he shows some ingenue how the black guys scratch records. It's like DJing 101. Jazzy Jay wasn't going to use up his good stuff here, but it's pretty cool anyway. It's almost like a commercial for old school rap.
What's amazing is that when this video came out, hip hop was essentially 6 years old or so. That puts some s--t in perspective. I do love the way this chick calls it "scratch music." And also notice how Jazzy Jay moves right in on Jessica as soon as Whiz Kid has his hands busy. And Jessica does a nice job of whitely nodding her head as if she has any idea what's going on.
Jazzy Jay is one of the great old school DJ's, and here he shows some ingenue how the black guys scratch records. It's like DJing 101. Jazzy Jay wasn't going to use up his good stuff here, but it's pretty cool anyway. It's almost like a commercial for old school rap.
What's amazing is that when this video came out, hip hop was essentially 6 years old or so. That puts some s--t in perspective. I do love the way this chick calls it "scratch music." And also notice how Jazzy Jay moves right in on Jessica as soon as Whiz Kid has his hands busy. And Jessica does a nice job of whitely nodding her head as if she has any idea what's going on.
RZA and Ol' Dirty Bastard at a Talent Show
By demand...
This pretty much tells you everything you need to know about the Wu. This is a very slim Ol' Dirty Bastard and the RZA performing at some kind of talent show. Basically Dirt McGirt and Zig-Zag-Zig-Allah just bullshit for about a minute fifteen. What is remarkable is that they yell at the soundman to turn the music down, and then speak nothing but pure nonsense for about a minute. Then RZA starts talking about "d--k hardening" and "p---y wetting" and then someone comes out and tells him to keep it clean.
Then RZA starts to bust a very weak freestyle about getting a hummer from some chick, while some random dude in a 1987-era Chess King shirt walks behind him at about 1:45. Seriously, if this was the first you had seen of the RZA, you would never have known they would have ruled hip hop for about a half-decade. Kind of amazing really.
This pretty much tells you everything you need to know about the Wu. This is a very slim Ol' Dirty Bastard and the RZA performing at some kind of talent show. Basically Dirt McGirt and Zig-Zag-Zig-Allah just bullshit for about a minute fifteen. What is remarkable is that they yell at the soundman to turn the music down, and then speak nothing but pure nonsense for about a minute. Then RZA starts talking about "d--k hardening" and "p---y wetting" and then someone comes out and tells him to keep it clean.
Then RZA starts to bust a very weak freestyle about getting a hummer from some chick, while some random dude in a 1987-era Chess King shirt walks behind him at about 1:45. Seriously, if this was the first you had seen of the RZA, you would never have known they would have ruled hip hop for about a half-decade. Kind of amazing really.
Tuesday, July 25, 2006
Bigg Jus - "Silver Back Mountain King"
Okay this song is clearly not from the Golden Age, given its references to 9/11 and other such things. But it is a sick, sick song and one of the coolest and most messed-up videos I have ever seen.
Anyone who always saw Bigg Jus as second fiddle to El-Producto when the two of them were in Company Flow together can just forget it. This song is as perfect a beat and lyric as El-P has ever come up with on his own. The video itself is like some kind of modern art, incredibly macabre, yet utterly compelling, with images of American history and the violence attached to it. It's one of the most breathtaking hip hop videos I've ever seen and I hope assholes like Hype Williams will watch it and feel stupid about that bullshit they have turned hip-hop videos into.
Anyone who always saw Bigg Jus as second fiddle to El-Producto when the two of them were in Company Flow together can just forget it. This song is as perfect a beat and lyric as El-P has ever come up with on his own. The video itself is like some kind of modern art, incredibly macabre, yet utterly compelling, with images of American history and the violence attached to it. It's one of the most breathtaking hip hop videos I've ever seen and I hope assholes like Hype Williams will watch it and feel stupid about that bullshit they have turned hip-hop videos into.
Your lust for legitimacy will put you in that chair
With real disabilities
Receive a useless martyr
Don't forsake a sacrificial starter
Repenting from deliverance
Coming with nothing but belligerence, hittin' irate
Tribulation'll be a wand to destroy this holiday
You obnoxious little fruitcake
I'm unequivocally meticulously vindictive with vengeance
Feel the ramification torturous imagination
Forever endless
I write raps, with a bloody axe
Read you the riot act
Dark days ahead, light a match.
Tommy Seebach - "Apache"
"Apache" is one of the hottest old school hip hop beats of all time, rocked by the likes of Sugar Hill Gang and the Incredible Bongo Band. It's a classic for all-time.
However, there is literally nothing -- NOTHING -- on planet Earth better than this video. The silliness quotient is off the f**king charts, with gay looking musicians, Indian dancers and lots of leaves. And the lead singer/keyboardist periodically yelling "APACHEEEEEE! AH-HA-HA-HA!" before having a dance-off with the three squaws in the video. And all set to a disco beat.
I don't think that anyone watching this will disagree with me that the highlight of the video is the 00:21 - 00:35 mark, where the keyboardist plays the ivories with the shit-eatingest grin I have ever witnessed.
(This is a serious stretch to include on this blog, but this video needs to be seen....by both my readers.)
However, there is literally nothing -- NOTHING -- on planet Earth better than this video. The silliness quotient is off the f**king charts, with gay looking musicians, Indian dancers and lots of leaves. And the lead singer/keyboardist periodically yelling "APACHEEEEEE! AH-HA-HA-HA!" before having a dance-off with the three squaws in the video. And all set to a disco beat.
I don't think that anyone watching this will disagree with me that the highlight of the video is the 00:21 - 00:35 mark, where the keyboardist plays the ivories with the shit-eatingest grin I have ever witnessed.
(This is a serious stretch to include on this blog, but this video needs to be seen....by both my readers.)
Monday, July 24, 2006
The Alkaholiks - "The Next Level" featuring Diamond D
I included this video on here for a couple of reasons. First of all, this is a very good song off a very good album. I believe Diamond D produced it and is in the video (fat guy with funny hat and sunglasses). And that Coast II Coast album is no joke.
BUT ...
The real reason I included it is because it somehow has both the greatest and worst line in any rap song in the long and storied history of rap. First, the best line, and it's actually the first line of the song. And goes like this:
And then it has the worst line I think I've ever heard in a rap song, and I don't even need to give you the whole verse, just the one line, courtesy of Diamond D:
Just humor me for a second here. First of all, why Peter Jennings? Is there no one else who puts together words? Does Peter Jennings have some sort of super word-structuring power that I never knew about? Probably not, so I can only assume that Diamond needed a name that rhymed with "Peggy Fleming" in the next line. Okay, so Jennings does the trick. But "I put words together"??? That's the best you could come up with? Diamond was never really a great rapper but he's better than that.
BUT ...
The real reason I included it is because it somehow has both the greatest and worst line in any rap song in the long and storied history of rap. First, the best line, and it's actually the first line of the song. And goes like this:
Who's the n***a everybody diss, cuz you can't bust this?But he says it like "Dick Butt-Kiss. It's so perfect. J-Ro was really something.
You got a bad name like Dick Butkus
And then it has the worst line I think I've ever heard in a rap song, and I don't even need to give you the whole verse, just the one line, courtesy of Diamond D:
I put words together like Peter Jennings
Just humor me for a second here. First of all, why Peter Jennings? Is there no one else who puts together words? Does Peter Jennings have some sort of super word-structuring power that I never knew about? Probably not, so I can only assume that Diamond needed a name that rhymed with "Peggy Fleming" in the next line. Okay, so Jennings does the trick. But "I put words together"??? That's the best you could come up with? Diamond was never really a great rapper but he's better than that.
For all my n***az in the places with blunts in they faces
Off the two turntables with the anvil cases
It's the L-I-K's that blaze and amaze that
[Gots to roll deep] in these crazy-ass days
But the Alkaholik rhymer, King Tee and Diamond D
Got the gats pointed at ya like we're to round three
Cause nineteen ninety-four is the year we overdo it
With the house party beats and flowin like fluid
Cause ain't nothin too but to do that s**t and print it
But it's all about the loot so every move is documented
And vented, by the man born for lyric kickin
Coolin out with your b***h eatin sweet and sour chicken
Das EFX - "They Want EFX"
I don't think it would be hyperbolic to say (and boys you can disagree with me if you like) that this song had a profound direct effect on hip-hop lyrical styles for about 2-3 years.
The lyrics themselves are essentially meaningless, a hodgepodge of various nursery rhymes, cartoon characters and children's games. But they are constructed in such a skillful way that it all makes a strange sort of logical sense. Hard to understand? Yes, but after repeated listenings I find myself still catching references I didn't catch the first time.
Also it has an awesome KRS-ONE vocal sample ("They want effects...") and the amazing "[Crack] Snap a neck for some live effects" sample from Erick Sermon.
But the way Das actually changed hip-hop was by popularizing the "diggidy-diggidy" style of rapping, where you could simply add a few syllables to a line by siggidy-saying whatever you wiggidy-want. Now, Das was very skillful, and this song was essentially the first of its kind, given that it was nonsense, but conceptual nonsense; there is a definite theme. And Das was smart by not overusing the "diggidy" style. Did they use it a lot? Well yes, but they rarely seemed too gratuitous. But after this song came out, everyone from Kris Kross to Ice Cube was adding a diggidy to their lyrics. It became annoying after a while, but for a brief period it was actually a lot of fun.
The lyrics themselves are essentially meaningless, a hodgepodge of various nursery rhymes, cartoon characters and children's games. But they are constructed in such a skillful way that it all makes a strange sort of logical sense. Hard to understand? Yes, but after repeated listenings I find myself still catching references I didn't catch the first time.
Also it has an awesome KRS-ONE vocal sample ("They want effects...") and the amazing "[Crack] Snap a neck for some live effects" sample from Erick Sermon.
But the way Das actually changed hip-hop was by popularizing the "diggidy-diggidy" style of rapping, where you could simply add a few syllables to a line by siggidy-saying whatever you wiggidy-want. Now, Das was very skillful, and this song was essentially the first of its kind, given that it was nonsense, but conceptual nonsense; there is a definite theme. And Das was smart by not overusing the "diggidy" style. Did they use it a lot? Well yes, but they rarely seemed too gratuitous. But after this song came out, everyone from Kris Kross to Ice Cube was adding a diggidy to their lyrics. It became annoying after a while, but for a brief period it was actually a lot of fun.
Well Ill be darned, shiver me timbers, yo head for the hills
I picked a weeping willow, and a daffodil
So back up bucko or Ill pulverize McGruff
Cause this little piggy gets busy and stuff
Arrivederci, heavens to mercy, honky tonk I get swift
I caught a Snuffleufapus and smoked a boogaloo spliff
I got the nooks, the crannies, the nitty gritty fodey-doe
All aboard, cast away, hey wheres my boogaloo?
Ooooh Im steaming, a-go-ny
Why's everybody always picking on me?
They call me puddin tane, and raps my game
You ask me again and Ill t-tell you the same
cause Im the vulgar vegemintarian, so stick em up freeze
So no pork sausages, mom, please
A-blitz shoots the breeze, Twiddly-Dee shoots his lip
Crazy Drayzy shot the sheriff, yup and I shot the gift
And thats pret-ty sneak-y, sis oh yep
I got my socks off, my rocks off, my Nestle's cup of cocoa
Holly Hobby tried to slob me, tried to rob me silly stunt
Diggedy-dun dun dun dun dun, dun dun
Sadat X - "The Lump Lump"
What is more awesome than Sadat X? Trying to figure out what the f--k he's talking about. Don't get me wrong, I actually think Dotty-X was the best MC in all of Brand Nubian (and Lord Jamar was a very distant third) but I swear to the Big Man Upstairs I have no idea what he's talking about sometimes. He seems to have graduated to the Raekwon the Chef school of just throwing together a bunch of cool-sounding words and making them sound awesome.
I really am not quite sure what Sadat is trying to say here. He looks like he's trying to make a point about being faithful to your girlie-girl or that a bunch of dudes are trying to get with her, but I'm still really not sure. It's far to cerebral for me. But one thing from the video is for sure: Sadat X has sex with a lot of women. And the beat is pretty hot on this song.
I really am not quite sure what Sadat is trying to say here. He looks like he's trying to make a point about being faithful to your girlie-girl or that a bunch of dudes are trying to get with her, but I'm still really not sure. It's far to cerebral for me. But one thing from the video is for sure: Sadat X has sex with a lot of women. And the beat is pretty hot on this song.
Oh you got your own dough, from where I don't know
You hold degrees from two universities
Girl you're worth cheese in the nine-seis
Sadat owns apartment keys, is it Alize for Dolo
You got a mind on top of that spine plus the lump lump
Highly educated and highly motivated
Workin girl skirt tight love to hurt
What to exert, I break your next man's pocket
Smell of freak fragrant, unlike the vagrant
You can pay the rent always, and don't be gettin hallways
In the bed girlie and at work by nine
Put on the work force ridin on a iron horse
Bring it home to dad, the one piece cause I'm here
Workout baby doll and keep yo' career
No chiggedy, no diggedy, not you
Glad that I got you, when I did
Cause you was runnin wild with this out of style kid, no class
Light in the ass, white enough to pass
Shotproof glass for the midnight mass
Monday, July 17, 2006
Big L - "No Endz, No Skinz"
Okay, so this video is a little weak, especially considering what an awesome, catchy song it is. But I'm putting it out there for the God Toddy Scrills, since both he and I worship Big L in general, and this song in particular.
The song is peculiar in that Big L seems to lament the fact that you can't get a girl unless you have some cash, and it would be much less shallow to judge a guy based on his looks. Now, the late Mr. L was certainly no looker, but apparently he didn't have any cash either, and therefore had bad luck with women. This song comes from a different era, where it was okay to make fun of a woman for wanting to take all of a fella's money. You can't do that now, due to "political correctness" (thanks Hillary Clinton!), but curious that a girl can still oil herself up and shake her booty in any rap video today. Yikes.
The song is peculiar in that Big L seems to lament the fact that you can't get a girl unless you have some cash, and it would be much less shallow to judge a guy based on his looks. Now, the late Mr. L was certainly no looker, but apparently he didn't have any cash either, and therefore had bad luck with women. This song comes from a different era, where it was okay to make fun of a woman for wanting to take all of a fella's money. You can't do that now, due to "political correctness" (thanks Hillary Clinton!), but curious that a girl can still oil herself up and shake her booty in any rap video today. Yikes.
I tell it how it is cause im a goldfigga
And I hate a money hungry girl a.k.a. golddigger
It ain't even funny
Some girls dont even know me askin me can they get some money
I'm lookin nuthin like ya poppa
I wouldnt give a chick 10 cent to put cheese on a Whopper
They wanna know why im so fly
A girl ask me for a ring and i put one around her whole eye
Chicks used to diss but now they wanna kiss
Yo Showbiz, I'ma break it down like this
Sunday, July 16, 2006
Rough House Survivors - "Rough House"
Another one of those one-off, obscure groups that was totally indicative of their era (about 1992) but never did more than put out one album/hit song. This album was actually surprisingly strong. (No doubt most of you remember their other semi-hit, "Check Da Backpack".)
This song has a wicked organ riff, a very interesting reggae-infused chorus, and decent lyrics. And of course the video -- being about a bunch of Rough Guys -- takes place in the ghettos, with a lot of chain-link fences and run-down buildings. And it's in a strange sepia/black and white that uses a lot of zooming and strobing. Yeah, the video isn't that great, and the song doesn't really deviate from the main beat at all, but I liked it when it came out.
This song has a wicked organ riff, a very interesting reggae-infused chorus, and decent lyrics. And of course the video -- being about a bunch of Rough Guys -- takes place in the ghettos, with a lot of chain-link fences and run-down buildings. And it's in a strange sepia/black and white that uses a lot of zooming and strobing. Yeah, the video isn't that great, and the song doesn't really deviate from the main beat at all, but I liked it when it came out.
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