SONG OF THE DAY: MARCH 3, 2010

Came across this song today by B.o.B called "Put Me On." With his cadence and voice, he sounds a bit like Phife from A Tribe Called Quest on this particular song. I checked his MySpace page, and he does have more to him than just trying to fit in with a backpack crowd. "Put Me On" certainly appealed to me the most, however.

-Familiar sample - check (definitely paying homage to ATCQ without overly biting)
-Sing-songy hook - check
-Radio friendly - check. (When was the last time you heard a hip hop song that didn't have to be majorly altered or have suggestive lyrics littered throughout?)

If you like the song, you can also vote for the video on mtvU's The Freshmen.

VINTAGE (UNRELEASED) BEASTIE BOYS

The Beastie Boys are a band that is hard to say they're one thing or another. They're one of the few bands who combined rock and rap with respectable results. It didn't hurt that they got better as a band the longer they recorded.

It's a pretty safe bet that this one didn't get released because of the Beatles sample, however minimal it may be, which is unfortunate because I think it's a pretty catchy tune even if I wouldn't rank it as one of their top 20 songs. “I'm Down” makes me wanna go buy some Filas and '80s sunglasses and reminisce back to when MTV was actually worth a shit.

SHAOLIN VS LIVERPOOL

Here's what you get when you cross the slums of Shaolin with the Liverpool lads. Makes for an interesting mix, if nothing else.

HEY WAIT, WASN'T THAT... ???

Young MC: Got More Rhymes
From Stone Cold Rhymin' (Delicious Vinyl, 1989)

While out on New Year's Eve to go see “Up In The Air,” I caught a quick glance of none other than crate digger/DJ extraordinaire Cut Chemist (on the right in the picture above) handling DJ duties in a scene with Marvin Young aka Young MC. If you blinked you missed him (Cut Chemist).

While Young MC performed his frat party/wedding dance floor favorite “Bust A Move” in the film, I was always more fond of a couple of other songs from Stone Cold Rhymin', including the b-side to “Bust A Move” - “Got More Rhymes” featuring the Ben E. King flip. While the beat isn't a whole lot more than a loop of the super smooth, cool guy instrumental backing of the King classic, it plays well with the MC's confident bravado.

If it wasn't for the runaway success of “Bust A Move” and to a lesser extent its follow-up “Principal's Office,” the rest of the album might be more appreciated. While some of the production does sound quite dated (like the lead track with that awful “ooh, uh huh” female singing and synth), it still bumps and the lyrics and their delivery were at the top of the late 80s and early 90s hip hop. You won't mistake Young MC for Rakim or Big Daddy Kane, but he holds his own. Then again, we don't live in times where pop-rap from that period is considered much more than a novelty. If you give it a chance, though, it just may surprise you.

A GIFTED GAB GROWS HIS SOUND

Gift Of Gab: Dreamin (featuring Del and Brother Ali)
From Escape 2 Mars (Cornerstone RAS, 2009)

In his latest effort alluding to interstellar travel, Gift Of Gab brings his seasoned flow back to end the naughts. To keep it Cali, Gab enlists the help of DNAEBEATS as well as Del The Funky Homosapien, Brother Ali, and some of his Quannum cohorts.

From the bouncy “In Las Vegas” to the soulful “Dreamin” to the eclectic “Electric Waterfalls,” the album covers a lot of ground sonically. “Dreamin” has a nice muted trumpet behind layers of piano, strings, and handclap snares with a haunting vocal sample that then leads into live vocals to finish the hook, a trick you don't often hear pulled off, especially so successfully.

The latin percussion of “El Gifto Magnifico” brings added life to an already vivacious Gab. A club friendly hook keeps the party going on the track before yielding to a guitar-led and more subdued vocal approach on “Lightyears.”

Although the album falls flat in the middle, it rebounds nicely with his spitfire flow over a skitterish beat on “Rhyme Travel.” Clearly, as an MC his skills have not diminished. While it's hard to fault him for trying to grow his sound from past albums with Chief Xcel as the duo Blackalicious, it's the production as a whole that keeps “Escape 2 Mars” grounded on Earth.

Side Note: Over at his official site's store, you can also find the track “El Gifto Magnifico” free for download and can also sample through the rest of the album. The full intro can be heard in this web commercial promoting the album, where at the end you'll find another little gift.

IT'S FANTASTIC

Jaylib: The Red
From Dillanthology 3 (Strut, 2009)

Many critics and hip hop fans agree that J. Dilla was a creative beat (and musical) genius. Whether it was for other artists such as The Pharcyde, Busta Rhymes, Janet Jackson, Slum Village, or A Tribe Called Quest (all of which are highlighted in the first 2 volumes of this trilogy) or for himself in his solo career (highlighted in this third and final installment), his productions embodied what hip hop and soulful music was and could be.

It’s a testament to the peer respect within the industry that Dilla had that BBE commissioned him to be their first artist in a Beat Generation hip hop series. That release, Welcome 2 Detroit, finds its way into nearly 1/5 of Dillanthology 3’s cuts. The minimalistic, bass-heavy funk of “Pause” features duo Frank N Dank trading rhymes back and forth. Unfortunately Dilla’s re-edit of the Donald Byrd classic, Think Twice didn’t make the album.

However, “The Red,” an absolute smash mouth banger from the Jaylib album, his collaboration with Madlib, still has concussed people in line at the local MedCheck. With its insane vocal chopped samples that become almost an instrument of their own and the synthy bass that pounds throughout, Madlib spars with his alterego Quasimoto before the beat slows down. Conversely, at this point Dilla wasn’t slowing down his production out; he was hitting an even higher creative peak including the concept “Donuts” album, whose opener also opens this new collection.

Sadly, he would not see the release of several albums of material before succumbing to lupus, including the aforementioned “Donuts.” This collection, along with the other 2 Dillanthology releases, reminds of the genius that was and of a legend who won’t soon be forgotten.

RIP Mr. Magic

A bit late on this, but Mr. Magic, a hip hop pioneer who helped bring rap music to mainstream radio died on October 2nd. This NY Times article sums up his contributions nicely.