The Cellar Is Back Open, People!

Unlike my last post, I had absolutely nothing to do with this release, but I sure am excited for it!  No Sleep/ Gentleman's Relief Records long running Cellar Sounds series of rare and unreleased Nick Wiz productions is back, with the first new volume in over seven years.  Yeah, we recently had that mix CD, but now the series is really restarting, because to be clear, this is not another reissue or anything; Cellar Sounds Volume 6 is another 2-CD collection of 43 full, rare and unreleased tracks from 1992-2000 (with one 2010 bonus track I was quite happy about).

Let's run through the rarities before we get into the truly unreleased stuff.  The first one I clocked was that both sides of UG's 2000 "Do U Know" 12" from Bronx Science are on here.  We get some more tracks from the very hard to find Lyricist Lounge tapes, including two of the "Cypha Sessions" (it's actually a real treat to get these remastered now), two songs from Pudgee's Angel Dust EP, F.O.D.'s "No More" and "Frontline," Main One's collaborative singles "Main Event" "Droppin' Gramma" & "Bring the Drama" 12"s, Gauge's "Insane," and so on.  The biggest surprise was seeing Shabaam Sahdeeq's Rawkus singles on here, "Arabian Nights" and "Every Rhyme I Write," oh and Mad Skillz' "Nod Factor" remix, because those were relatively major releases.

But even if your collection is 100% thorough, and you dismiss all of those as duplicates (color me impressed), that still leaves 24 unreleased tracks by my count.  Some of these are remixes or "original versions" of released songs, like alternate mixes of N-Tyce's "Sure Ya Right" and Emskee's "Black Boys, Baseball Caps & Beepers."  There's an extended version of Pudgee's indie single "U Ain't Know" with DMX now with a verse by Hostile (his cousin, not to be confused with Hostyle of Screwball - whoops!) that was cut off the release version.  Then most of the rest are demos or songs recorded for unfinished projects, like a Moonie D (of FOD) solo joint or a fun promo song Madhouse recorded for the Wendy Williams Show.  Some of these demos are by guys who never came out, but Nick Wiz is a reliably consistent producer, so they're all tight.

A couple of my personal favorites was a particularly hardcore duet between UG and Main One called "Got Luv" and a hype cut called "Bring It" by the Native Assassins, who you should remember from previous Cellar Sounds.  What will surely be the biggest deal for many fans, and yes also one of my favorites, is an unreleased Rakim track, recorded his Seventh Seal album, but criminally left on the cutting room floor.  And that bonus track I mentioned?  Remember when The Cella Dwellas announced they were reuniting and recording with Nick Wiz again?  I guess nothing more ever came of that, sadly, but that one song is on here, and it's so great to finally have it in our collections.

And once again, Nick Wiz writes liner notes for every single song on the booklet.  This release is limited to 400 copies and is already out now.  GRR has also repressed the long out of print Ran Reed compilation, Nick Wiz Presents: Respect the Architect 1992-1998.  It has all the same tracks as the original 2012 release, so you've got another shot if you missed it the first time.  There's a double-LP on black or blue & orange vinyl coming soon; and the CD with the bonus track, which is out as of this writing.

The Lost Omniscenct Tapes

Alright, I'm psyched to be able to share with you guys another release I helped out on!  This is a brand new compilation of vintage, mostly never before heard songs by Omniscence on Gentleman's Relief Records called The Lost Tapes.  It's a limited edition (to 400 copies) CD, and if you're reading this, you can already order it now.  Update 11/22/24: And yes, a vinyl LP version is coming soon, too.

This collection is twenty tracks deep, nineteen of which were recorded between 1994 and 1998... although, strictly speaking, the first  and last are an intro and outro.  But the outro does feature Omni freestyling, and they were both produced in '95 with a smooth beat by Fanatic; so we'll count them as one song.  So that's eighteen songs from the 90s, and one self-produced track Omni recorded in 2002, where he was starting to test the waters for his comeback.  That song is called "Testin' the Waters."

The enclosed booklet has some great notes by Omniscence himself, where he helpfully explains that these songs are largely from three distinct eras.  The first are tracks originally recorded for Raw Factor, but the label rejected because they were literally too raw and not commercial enough.  Then you've got some tracks from '96 with a little harder edge ("I'd been scorned by the industry") he made for a 6th Boro compilation.  Then there are a few songs from '97-'98 that he recorded in NY as a demo he shopped around, but that otherwise went completely unheard.  And finally, there are a couple loosies, like two songs he recorded with Mixmasta D and that 2002 comeback track.

So what did I do?  I basically contributed one song.  If you've followed along with my Omniscence coverage, you might recall that I have an old Raw Factor promo EP with one song (called "Keep Giving Me Love") that had still never been released anywhere, despite the recovery and eventual release of the long lost Raw Factor album.  I now realize it must have been one of those tracks the label stupidly didn't want.  I described it in my initial post as one of the tightest tracks, and now you can finally hear it for yourselves.  In fact, you can hear two versions, because it turns out mine was a later release of a demo they already had called "The Flav's About To Drop," with the same raps and instrumental, but a completely different hook and some other subtle variations.  The Lost Tapes includes both.

There are a couple other points where you'll hear verses or elements repeat across songs here, because these were all unreleased tracks, so why not recycle something from them?  You know, the same situation as the Children of the Corn album Dust & Dope was able to release.  But it's pretty minimal.  This is a satisfyingly full and diverse album.  I said these were mostly unheard songs earlier because four of them were already featured on the 2015 Dope Folks EP Elektra Emancipation: No A&R and No R&B Niggas In the Studio, but this is their first time on CD at least.  And we have the original version of "This Year," a song that was titled "Dick Suck" on the Raw Factor album, with an entirely different instrumental.

Overall, Omni fans should be delighted.  Lots of lost music has been uncovered, and this isn't a case of the final, weakest scraps.  They might be the final ones, but they're as strong as any previous Omniscence record.  Most of the production's by Fanatic, and there are a handful of guest spots by the usual suspects.  Some of these songs could make the 'Greatest Hits.'

And if you missed it the first go around, GRR is also repressing Omni's long out of print God Hour album from 2014.  Now, if you'll recall that started out as an EP of brand new (at the time) Omniscence music flushed out to an LP by the inclusion of remixes for every single song.  And the CD version expanded it to 22 songs by also including his 2012 "Raw Factor 2.0" single and his 2013 Sharp Objects EP, in a big 2-disc set.  Well, this 2024 reissue is now a single CD, but it still includes all 22 songs from across the three releases.  It's also a limited edition (to 250 copies) and available as of this writing (in fact, I think you can get both releases cheaper as a bundle), but it's not a perfect one-to-one.

The original release was a 2-disc set in a digipack.  This new one is a single disc in a jewel case.  It still has all 22 tracks from the three releases; but it's missing the four uncredited bonus tracks: additional remixes of "Raw Factor 2.0," "Ease My Mind," "Letter To the Better" and "Welcome" that had mostly been cassette exclusives prior to that.  You still get two versions of every song from all three releases on one disc, so it's pretty packed and more than enough for most fans, I'm sure.  But serious collectors should be aware that the original's a little preferable.  ...And serious serious collectors will have those bonus remixes on their initial releases anyway, so I guess it's a pretty niche distinction.  But still.  Just so ya know.

Zombie Killers' Delight

(A couple of anti-zombie novelty records for the holiday, and a tangent on Rappin' Duke.  Happy Halloween!  Youtube version is here.)

Questionable Lyrics #6: When MCs Talk E.F. Hutton, Do People Listen?

It all started in 1984, when Grandmaster Melle Mel and the Furious Five released "The Truth" on their Sugarhill Records album Work Party.  Before they start rapping, and even before the music kicks in, they declare in unison, "rap is our way of life; that's why we do what we like.  Born to rock the mic like E. F. Hutton, so don't say nothin'.  Just listen!"  It's the type of line to leave younger listeners puzzling, "who the hell is E.F. Hutton?"  But old school heads will remember the reference.

E.F. Hutton was an old stock brokerage firm founded in the early 1900s by the Hutton brothers, Edward and Franklyn.  It became most famous thanks to a series of ubiquitous television commercials in the 70s and 80s that all followed the same basic premise.  Two business people are walking in a crowded - airport, park, elevator, etc - discussing vague business dealings amid the constant murmur of bustling people.  One of them will say, "well, my broker's E.F. Hutton, and E.F. Hutton says..." and everyone around them suddenly falls silent.  Then a narrator comes on and says, "when E.F. Hutton talks, people listen."  The end.  They'd tart setting it in more absurd situations, like swimming pools, garden parties or little children in a classroom, because it had become such a thing in pop culture.  As a kid, everybody in the schoolyard would quote that line, and it mostly just left us wondering "who the hell is E.F. Hutton?"

Well, the 80s also saw E.F. Hutton run an early check kiting scam (something made popular again with the recent "Chase glitch"), a major mafia money laundering scheme, and go broke during the stock market crash, eventually dissolving in the early 90s.  But we just knew the commercials.  Not just in the playground, but in Hip-Hop, where it took off as a major, recurring punchline.  It's not witty; everybody was just basically repeating a popular commercial tagline line in reference to themselves.  It wasn't generally punny or making any kind of statement about crooked financial institutions.  You wouldn't even accuse anyone of biting anyone else, because it was so basic and even kinda dumb, though of course everyone used it their own way.

Let's dive into all the instances!


"When my voice gets cuttin', everybody listens up like I'm E.F. Hutton."

Also in 1984, over on the west coast, the Triple Threat Three had already turned it into a more traditional punchline for their record "Scratch Motion."


"You know what I notice all of a sudden? When I speak people diss E.F. Hutton."

Then, in 1985, Kool Doobie of Whistle made it more famous by spitting it on a much more popular record, their debut classic "(Nothin' Serious) Just Buggin'." [And yes, I did come up with this post idea when quoting that record in my last article about P-Man.]


"I'm like E.F. Hutton, E.F. Hutton, E.F. Hutton when I start to talk; 'cause everybody listens.  If they don't, then walk."

That same year, obscure Connecticut rapper Terrible T tripled it up it on his surprisingly catchy record "He's Terrible," where he employed similar commercial slogans like, "I'm finger lickin' good like Kentucky Fried Chicken."


"Like E.F. Hutton, when I talk, people listen."

The great Grandmaster Caz used the line sometime in '86-'87.  We don't know for sure because "Good, Fresh, Down, Time" wasn't released until the 2006 Tuff City Ol' Skool Flava compilation.


"I'm Hip-Hop's E.F. Hutton, 'cause all the people listen."

In 1989, the not as great MC Twist used it on his album track "B-L-N-T" (which stands for "better luck next time").


"You talk shit, I get like E.F. Hutton: BLAOW!!  Oh, y'all sure got quiet all of a sudden."

And the trend continued on into the 90s.  On Greek's 1993 posse cut "Rhyme for Ya Life," K-Rino got finally started getting a little more clever with it.


"It's goin' through me, got me struttin'. When E.F. Hutton talks, everybody listens."

One of the ones people probably remember most is Mystikal closing out his breakout 1995 single "Mind of Mystikal" with this last line, though he kind of just lays it down as a random non-sequitur.


"Like E.F. Hutton, when I talk, niggas listen."

And other big names were using it to.  On Mase's "Will They Die 4 You?," Lil Kim says it, even though by 1997 E.F. Hutton had pretty much ceased to exist.  What did that matter?  It was just clutter floating around in our collective subconscious.


"Like E.F. Hutton, don't say nothin'."

"Colonel nigga becoming the ghetto E.F. Hutton: holler 'UGHH' and every fuckin' soldier start stuntin'."

In 1998, Keith Murray used it on the Def Squad single "Ride Wit Us," as well as Silkk the Shocker on "I'm a Soldier."  See if you can guess which is which.


"40 talk like E.F. Hutton. Shhh, people listen."

And on into the 2000s, E-40 said it on 2002's "Mustard & Mayonnaise."


"I'm in the hood where the guns is nothin', and niggas don't say shit, like E.F. Hutton."

And Cappadonna brought it up on his 2003 posse cut "We Got This."


The Beastie Boys finally put it to bed on their 2004 album To the 5 Boroughs, specifically with the song "Rhyme the Rhyme Well," where they conclude the song with a big celebration of the throwback reference.  Mike D ends his last verse with the line, "now push the pause button, then start duckin'. Shh, you heard me like I'm E.F. Hutton."  Then, as Mix Master Mike cuts loose with a copy of "Public Enemy No. 1," they start repeating, "E.F. Shhh, Hutton!  Shhh, Hutton!  Shhh, Hutton!  Shhh, Hutton!"  Could the shush be a nod to E-40's record?  Maybe, but I'm more confident saying that the larger point of the E.F. Hutton routine was to embrace the endearing hoakiness of the random, and very old school recurring reference in our genre.  and maybe it was an intentional move to quash it, since they did make it hard for MCs to use it again after this, at least unironically; and I can't think of anyone saying it on a record since.

Meanwhile, the more business savvy or socially conscious amongst us will be interested to hear that E.F. Hutton came back in the 2010s.  Well, it quickly went into massive debt and closed down again.  But then it was resurrected a second time in the 2020s.  And now they've been uncovered as the company financially underwriting Donald Trump's Truth Social, and the new CEO has already been ousted for defrauding millions of dollars.  Good times!

Giving The P-Man His Props

For those that don't know, P-Man was sort of the third member of Young and Restless.  Like, if you looked at the back of their album, he seemed to be their DJ/ producer; though the conventional wisdom is that he was really just the money man, managing and financing the group while somebody else did all the music.  And he may not even really have been much of a money man if you heard what Dr. Ace and Prince P. said when they fired him after he got sent away for drug trafficking before their second album.  Well, that's all as may be, but P-Man was an actual DJ and he definitely did the music for his 1987 solo 12" from Bound Sound Records called "Rock it Baby."  And it's dope.

No, P-Man does not rap on this.  This is a DJ joint, in the tradition of "Touch of Jazz," "DJ Premier In Deep Concentration" and those other all-too rare songs where the DJ got to shine and his turntables were given the lead track rather than a rapper's vocals.  Admittedly, the scratching might sound a little rudimentary today compared to later examples guys like Magic Mike or DJ Aladdin would come up with just a year or two later.  This is more akin to, say, N.Y.C. Cutter (Marley Marl)'s "DJ Cuttin."  But that was an important record in its day.

One element that immediately makes "Rock It Baby" stand out is that it loops the same famous riff from Rick James' "Super Freak" years before MC Hammer's "U Can’t Touch This" blew it up.  The P-Man came first!  But this record doesn't rely as heavily on it, frequently flipping the script and changing the root samples and drum machine effects its instrumental is based on.  And then of course he's cutting up various soundbites like Kool Doobie saying "perpetrators praise me" from the Whistle classic "(Nothing Serious) Just Buggin'" on top of that.  Again, a lot of the scratches are fairly old school and basic, but if you pay attention, he lays in some trickier, more forward looking tricks in there, like some scribbles.

Oh, and it's worth noting that there are two versions, the Scratch Mix and The Other Mix.  Both actually feature full scratching and stuff; it's not like one is just a dub mix or something.  In fact, you might not notice the difference on a first, casual listen.  But they are different lengths with different edits throughout.  I guess you could say The Other Mix is an extended mix, lasting approximately two minutes longer and letting more of the beats ride unencumbered for a while.  As such, I'd say the Scratch Mix is the tighter and more energetic of the two, and it has a couple additional keyboard samples (it sounds like he's mixing in "Saturday Love" maybe, but it's hard to tell because he's juggling it so much), but The Other Mix is nice for when you want to just vibe out to a longer-lasting experience.

P-Man did return to music when he was released from prison sometime around 1993, including a group called If Looks Could Kill with his then wife, and the Polo Boyz/ Dynaztee.  He later changed his name to Sam Silvasteen and got into publishing Hip-Hop mags and websites, before he was tragically killed in 2009.  So his image has almost always been about his management, his various businesses (on both sides of the law), his beef with Rick Ross, etc.  But it's worth remembering he had this fresh little record with his own music to his name, too.

A Quick Nip Before the Show

"Sambuca" is a track from D's last album, Libra; but this is an all new Smoove Mix - that is to say, a remix by UK producer Smoove - for the vinyl single.  This isn't the first Smoove remix D's released on 7", following the "Labels" Smoove Mix in 2021.  The only other track they've done together is "Do It Now," the B-side to his "Lucky Number" single in 2022.  For whatever reason, he's become his exclusive 7" remix guy.

And like their last two collaborations, this one has a high energy, 70s vibe to it, almost like a foreign funk band recorded it live.  In my Libra review, I wrote that "'Sambuca' slows things down a little, but is still full of life, a light-hearted anthem for D's liqueur of choice."  It might've been a bit funny to say "slows things down," since it actually has a pretty high bpm; but it immediately followed "When It's Fast," and that whole side of the album was pretty hyper.  Anyway, this remix is basically the same speed, but this live party sound is quite distinct from the original, like a completely new song: a second ode to Sambuca, which just happens to have all the same lyrics.

The first two verses are about D preparing for a performance and stopping for two precious drinks first, "dashing through the town, clutching a wealth of wax and vinyl from many years gone by/ We arrive at the club about ten minutes shy/ Of the time to go on. What rhymes like 'bazooka?'/ You know what?  Just time for Sambuca!"  Finally, uh-oh, he's maybe a little too drunk to go on...  But sure enough, the show goes well, so to celebrate?  More Sambuca!  It ain't deep.  In 2Pac terms, "Sambuca" was an "I Get Around" moment, not a "Trapped;" and now Smoove's turned it into more of a full-blown "Doowhutchyalike."

The blaring horns are easily the first thing to grab your attention, but it's the groovy bassline that really locks you in.  To blow up the party element even further, Smoove adds a chorus of additional voices shouting out "SAMBUCA" on the hook.  More subtly, he also adds these little snippets of 90s R&B style vocalisms that sound really fresh.  The one drawback is just, in order to gain all of that, we have to lose Djar One's killer Premier-style scratch hooks from the original.  But that's alright; we still have the Libra version on the album, still perfectly viable.

So as you can see up top, this B-Line Records 7" comes in a sticker cover with a stamped label.  Oh, and the B-side is the instrumental; the vinyl is the only way to get that.  It's out now, and is apparently limited to just 100 copies, so if you're interested, act fast!  Because the only thing worse than FOMO is AMO (actually missing out).  I've been there plenty; it sucks.

After Before I Let Go

Okay, so the song I want to talk about on this particular 12" is a B-side; but there are other more legit releases.  This is Maze featuring Frankie Beverly's classic "Before I Let Go," specifically the rarer version featuring MCing by Woody Wood.  1980's "Before I Let Go" is already one of my favorite non-Hip-Hop songs, and it's the basis for the Hip-Hop classic "Do You Want To Rock" by The Funky Four Plus One (and the equally delightful but lesser known "When You're Standing On the Top" by The Super Three).  And of course that killer bassline has been sampled a million times, on such classics as K-Solo's "Your Moms In My Business" (which was kinda my gateway drug into the original record when I was a kid), Steady B's "Use Me" and Keith Murray's "The Rhyme."  Mary J Blige did a remake of this, Eric B did a rap remake of it on his widely ignored solo album and I actually just heard a Beyonce cover of "Before I Let Go" in a documentary about prison inmates a couple weeks ago.

I first heard the Woody Wood version on a mixtape and drove myself nuts in the early 90s trying to track it down.  Remember, that was pre-internet.  I bought a white label on Moo Records thinking I'd found it, but it turned out to be something else, which I'll get back to.  Anyway, I eventually picked up this 12" which has it.  It's a pretty random collection of funk/ dance songs from artists like KC and the Sunshine Band, and I'm kinda surprised they went with the Woody Wood version, as the original would've fit in better with everything else on this EP, but it is a pretty random release.  I'm not sure how legit it is; the label says it's from Japan.  I've since realized there's a more fitting 12" release of this track, paired with the other Maze rap remix, which is also from Japan, and is what I'd get now if I didn't already have this.

Anyway, the deal with this song is that it was made in 1989 for Maze's Greatest Hits album in 1989.  It features their biggest songs, as you'd expect, and also two new remixes, by The Bomb Squad themselves.  The other remix is interesting, but not nearly as compelling.  It's "Joy and Pain" (you know, the one Rob Base made his rap version of) with sped up dance drums, zippy synthesizer riffs and stuff... it sounds very Euro club.  The fun part is that they got Kurtis Blow to come on and add a new verse at the end; but the whole thing is kinda chintzy.

But it's surprising the Bomb Squad went so old school.  Yeah, 1989 is super old school now, kids, I get it.  But at that time, Kurtis Blow was already ancient history.  I guess the Squad wanted an old school vibe to blend with the sound of Maze's early hits.  And that's what makes their remix of "Before I Let Go" fly.

First of all, they barely change anything from the original.  Unlike "Joy and Pain," nobody's putting the 80s pop spin on it.  They just pretty much let Woody Wood get busy over the old record, disco DJ style.  Like, if you've ever heard the tapes of DJ Hollywood performing in the 70s, this sounds exactly like that.  And Woody Wood was more ancient history than Blow.

Woody basically had one record in 1979 called "Willie Rap."  It's a pretty blatant "Rapper's Delight" knock-off, but he has a cool voice, with a bit of a Jimmy Spicer-style delivery, and the track has a slightly different groove - I'd definitely recommend it for any fan of disco-era Hip-Hop.  Then, in 1985, he made a bit of a comeback as one half of the (212) N.Y.C. Crew, along with Greg Gi (pronounced Gee) for a 12" single called "We Likes It."  That's a fun one, too, with some fun back & forth and a Transformers sample.

...And this is the point where I realized I already made a video about this record nine years ago.  Ha ha  Derp.  😜  Well, I guess I'll go ahead and share this anyway.  I've got a couple new, little details in here at least.  And now you can follow that link for a sound clip.

So I'll leave out the bit about how DJ Hollywood battled Woody Wood for biting his style and rhymes, since I talked about it in that video.  I will say, as much as I enjoyed this remix of "Before I Let Go," I do wish Woody did more proper rap verses and less "get the bone out your back, boy"-type call-outs.  again, I know they're going for an authentic "this is how it would've played in a 1981 club" vibe, but I also preferred it when Hollywood did more proper rap verses in his performances.

And since I'm out here being foolish, let me circle back to that Moo records 12" I said I'd get back to (watching the video, I mentioned this one in there, too lol).  I've owned it forever, but I was curious about it and looked it up on discogs, and apparently it's an uncredited DJ Gail Sky King edit?  That's interesting.  It really isn't much different from the standard album version everybody has, except at the very beginning they loop the break a little in a funky kind of way.  After the first fifteen seconds or so, though, they're just playing the same version everybody knows.  But at least that gives it a little bonus kick.

And after that, they also include a live version, which is surprisingly great.  I guess I should quickly clarify that the Maze album "Before I Let Go" was originally released on - Live In New Orleans - was a live album.  But the actual version of "Before I Let Go" they included on there was a studio recording.  That's the main one everyone has, and this is a different, actually live version, from their 1986 Live In Los Angeles album.  And it's more interesting than just a standard live performance with a little stadium echo and crowd noise.  They really have a lot of fun twisting and playing with the song throughout, giving you something that keeps pretty much all the same classic elements but turns it into something distinct and exciting if you're a long-time fan. 

They also throw Eddy Grant's "Time Warp" on the B-side, but I never really bother with that.  Maybe if I was actually DJing at an old school club.  And they add end with the instrumental, which discogs doesn't list; but I own the record, so trust me, it's om there.

And what was even more surprising than seeing that King did the edit on the Moo 12" is seeing that there is a 2024 repress?!  Who is behind that?  And why?  It's not like Moo Records is a legit, long-running label that's keeping their catalog in print.  This is like a weird white label one-off.  There was a 2002 reissue, too, which makes slightly more sense.  But surely if anybody was after a vinyl repress of "Before I Let Go," even a bootleg, they'd want the Capitol Records one with the picture cover and "Golden Time of Day?"  I mean, if people want it, hey why not?  But it just seems weird to me.  Oh well.

The Venomous Diss: Dishing It Up with Def Jam Blaster

I got to interview Def Jam Blaster for Dust & Dope twice: once for the NoDoz album, and again for last year's Lost & Found compilation album.  I recommend you check them both out, but you know, I'm biased.  And you know, those interviews are exclusive to those releases; I'm not gonna print 'em here.  But, while I had him on the line, I did ask him about Royal Flush and Raheem from The Geto Boys, who aren't on either of those aforementioned albums.  So the following didn't make it into those pieces.

And as a precursor, one thing we did talk about on the Lost & Found interview is the Billy D song "Bad To the Bone."  Billy D was one of the earliest MCs Blaster worked with, and on that song, he disses Raheem: "break out the shotgun 'cause I'ma destroy the Vigilante, 'cause I'm makin' it.  Raheem keeps on fakin' it.  'Cause you a duck, that's why you be hatin' it.  Rap title - Billy D's takin' it!"  He also disses OG Style on that one.  Again, we get into the whole story in the liner notes, but it's interesting they dropped a record dissing Raheem because Def Jam went on to produce his big diss track.

Well, you know what happened to me with Raheem?  Raheem had "Venom" on the first album, and the thing that I discovered with Venom was that it was a character name.  It wasn't really the actual DJ, who I became good friends with.  That was never his name.  Venom was a name Raheem came up with for just a guy named Sam.  I don't remember what his DJ name was; we always called him Venom.  But as we became friends, he told me, "you know, that's not really my name. That's a character name."

I'd heard Venom was Ready Red?

See, for Raheem's image, he felt that his DJ's name should be Venom no matter who that person may have been.  Because it's me on all the songs on the second album, at least the songs that I produced.  But he still says "Venom, my conductor," and it's me scratching while he's saying it.

Like Spinderella!

Yes, that's exactly what they did.  Like, "this is a very cool name, so whoever assumes that position gets that name."

And I wanted to ask you about Royal Flush's second album.  Were you considered like an official member, replacing Sergio Magnifico, or was that more like just some guest production work?

On Royal Flush, I think they just parted ways with Sergio way before they did the second album, so I don't think I ever even met him.  I didn't look at it so much as replacing him because I think he had been gone, but technically, I guess that was the case.

What was the line-up at that point?  Because in the Rap-A-Lot days, it was basically the two guys and Serg, but the back cover of 976-Dope shows like twenty people.

Well, that's the posse.  You know Hip-Hop, there's always the posse.  I think even the owner of the record label is in that photo.  There were just other people affiliated with Rap-A-Lot in the picture. The official group was the two of them.  I mean, you take the N.W.A and the Posse album, there's like eight people on there, but it's just Ice Cube and Ren or whatever rapping on those first albums.  That was just the thing.  The Scarface 12-inch?  There's eight or nine people on that cover with us.  You know, five of them had nothing to do with any of the music.  That was just a Hip-Hop thing at the time: take a cool group photo with whoever you want on there.

Are you in there?

No, I wouldn't have been in any of their photos with them.  I'm from Missouri City, which is a suburb of Houston, and they eventually bought a house in Missouri City.  So, anybody that came to Missouri City would know Crazy C and Def Jam Blaster.  These are the guys that make music, these are the guys DJing and everything, so you hook up with them.  And so that's how I kind of got introduced to them: they were out of Missouri City.  They're like, "Yeah, we heard about you, what do you have?"  And so that was how that happened.

But you know, at that point, I was more interested in doing the production.  As far as if a rap group approached me, I wanted to do the production; I didn't want to just DJ for them.  So that's how I ended up doing a couple of songs on the second album.  I was their DJ for a while, but I don't recall that we ever really did anything.  They just said that I was the DJ and gave me the Royal Flush medallion to wear, so it was official.  But I don't recall that we did anything as far as DJing any shows.  Just doing music together was the main thing.

I guess, had they done any shows during that era, then I would have DJed for them.  And, you know, you're dealing with... I mean, I just think the label probably didn't have a lot of pull, a lot of juice to make it do too much.  It's a dope album, but you know, the second Royal Flush album is not on Rap-A-Lot.  Rap-A-Lot had the juice.  They could have pushed whatever they wanted to push.  The second Royal Flush album was on Yo! Records or something, so I don't know too much about the label side of that.  But I just assumed they didn't really have the juice to push it as hard.

So that was '91, and in '92 you're back with Rap-A-Lot to be Venom on The Invincible...

Yeah, that title track is a diss record, partly against Royal Flush.  I didn’t know that when I was initially agreeing to do the work, so once I heard the lyrics, I had to call the guys up and say, "hey man, I’m neutral in all of this.  I’m just producing the record."  [Laughs]

And he's dissing OG Style on there, too, right?  But what was his issue with Royal Flush?

Yeah, it sounded like it was over a girl.  He was really just coming after Rick [Flush's King Ricardo, who he calls a "dick lickin', pussy suckin', dog breath MC... Rick get 'em up, 'cause I know you defend her. When I get 'em up, all niggas yell 'timber!' Snap of the neck to crack of the backbone. Impossible to step in the zone of the man they call invincible."].  And Raheem is so good, it was devastating at the time.

...And then we got into the production techniques he used for that track, and a connection it has to a NoDoz song, which is all in the CD booklets.  But yeah, I just thought this was an interesting bit of history that's never really been unveiled.  Fun Fact: Blaster is also the voice of "Finneas T. Farbottom of Channel Zero News" who announces that Raheem is back on the song's introduction.

All Night With the Sugarhill Gang

So I just saw the Sugarhill Gang last night!  I'm really not a concert guy; I've basically been to three shows before in my life: Partners In Kryme at Great Adventure, the SOHH show when we won an award (with performances by Naughty By Nature, The Arsonists, King Sun and others) and Dose One and Mr. Dibbs at the Chelsea Piers.  I'm just not one for spending all night standing in packed crowds to hear music in worse quality than I would at home on my record player.  But this was a free event, in my home town, when I wasn't doing anything else anyway, and the original Sugarhill Gang?  Even I'm not that much of a curmudgeon.

The main thing I was curious about was what the actual Sugarhill line-up would be.  Big Bank Hank, of course, is no longer with us.  RIP.  But there had been those years of drama where the group split, and Joey Robinson Jr. was touring using the group name, and Wonder Mike and Master Gee had to tour under a new name.  There had been a whole documentary about the legal battle called I Want My Name Back.  So, who was actually going to show up at my town event?  How many original members?  Was Kory O - the guy who joined the group when Master Gee quit in 1985, but stuck with them through the 90s - still down?  Was some new guy going to be calling himself Big Bank Hank, like how The Three Stooges got a replacement Curly?

On top of that, C+C Music Factory was going to be opening for them, which raises an almost identical set of questions.  I was never a C+C fan, but aren't they like another KLF situation, where C and C were two British guys who'd disbanded the group in the 90s or something?  And it was just the one temporarily affiliated rapper (in that case Wanda Dee, or in this case Freedom Williams) touring as them in recent years?  I'm not gonna look it up.  But who would we see now - maybe him and some dancers?  Speaking of the Arsonists, I would've been excited if one-time C+C MC Q-Unique showed up, but obviously I wasn't holding out a lot of hope for that.

Well, the plaza was packed, with a big crowd of all ages; and to give you a sense of where I'm from, they were playing Bon Jovi over the speakers as I walked in.  The show started late, but eventually our mayor came out and introduced a DJ... didn't catch his name, but he was from Long Island.  And he was pretty good.  I was happy to see him actually scratching and not just starting his Apple Playlist and then nodding his head behind a laptop.  But he made some weird choices, like playing the theme song to The Golden Girls, a Backstreet Boys song and even an Elmo (from Sesame Street) acapella.

Then C+C came out, and yes, it was Freedom Williams and a singer.  I don't think she was one of the originals from the actual records, but she was talented, and she rapped a little, too.  I'm not hugely familiar with their catalog, but I certainly recognized "Things That Make You Go Hmm" and "Gonna Make You Sweat."  Surprisingly, they got the biggest reaction when they did a cover of "Here Comes the Hot Stepper."  I don't think they did any of Freedom's solo stuff; I certainly would've recognized that George Michael "Freeeeedom" chorus if I'd heard it.

Anyway, they played an introductory video before The Sugarhill Gang stepped on stage, with tributes from guys like Big Daddy Kane and Flavor Flav.  Then the answer to my big question was finally revealed: one original member.  It was Master Gee (that's him in the white t-shirt in the top photo), who told us Wonder Mike could no longer travel.  But he had two guys with him, including Hen Dogg, who basically did Hank's parts (in "Rapper's Delight," he spelled his own name, not Grandmaster Caz's).  He's the guy who stood in for Hank during the that split with the Robinsons and everything.  And the other guy is the one who's credited as a member on their Wikipedia and everything, The Ethiopian King, plus they had their own DJ, T-Dynasty.  They did their biggest hits, of course, including "8th Wonder," "The La La Song" and here's a little video I took of them doing "Apache:"

They closed out with a major rendition of "Rapper's Delight," of course, with the crowd rapping the "macaroni's soggy" verse ourselves.  But that was it for actual Sugarhill Gang songs.  Instead they a surprising amount of medley stuff, including the Furious Five's "The Message" (yes, they left in the "fag" lyric) & "White Lines," and a tribute to Prince.  Since Master Gee was the only original member, I thought it might've been a good opportunity to perform "Do It," but that didn't happen.  I have to say, though, Master Gee really went all out, getting off stage to rock with the audience, doing a James Brown impression and really giving 110%.

So yeah, that's what a Sugarhill Gang show is like in 2024.  Good times.

MF Grimm's American Hunger III, Volume 2

Well hey, here's a welcome surprise.  See, MF Grimm's American Hunger Rebirth Vol 2; Trials, Tribulations, Humiliation and Elevation is actually the third chapter in his series of American Hunger albums, following the original triple album in 2006, American Hunger Rebirth in 2017 and finally this one.  And it's like his fourteenth album overall, not even counting Monster Island.  It's surprising how deep this man's catalog is, especially when you consider that there was a life sentence mixed in there somewhere.  Anyway, this particular album was originally recorded and intended to be released in 2019; and I think there was maybe a brief digital version, or at least some of the songs were for sure sent out to the blogs and stuff individually at that time.  There was a limited 7" single ("Still My Love") and a very rare CD; it didn't even make discogs.  And it kind of looked like that was going to just fizzle out like that.  Grimm already moved on with album #15 in 2021; and this one would be a very deep cut for only the most hardcore fans.  But that's changing this summer, because the full LP is finally getting its proper, physical release on Vendetta Vinyl.

That said, part of the reason why it seemed like AHR2 might've been allowed to go overlooked at the time is because it wasn't exactly a whole new, original album.  These are remixes of tracks from the original American Hunger album.  So, to be clear, the "Still My Love" on here has the same vocals recorded in 2006 for the "Still My Love" on there, but with an entirely new instrumental.  This was also the case with 2017's American Hunger Rebirth, except that one was divided into three parts: one produced by Architect, one by Drasar Monumental, who also produced the Good Morning Vietnam EPs with Grimm, and one by DJ FDRZ.  Now, Vol 2 is entirely produced by Drasar.  Indeed, Vendetta Vinyl is his label.

This album takes "Fuck You," a tight track that was buried somewhere deep on disc 2, and turns it into a flag-planting opener.  Grimm starts out rapping about his credentials, which honestly he doesn't need to do anymore in 2024, but it's still a strong declaration: "MF Grimm Reaper, one of the best.  I battled DMX, spit with KRS.  Rocked with 2Pac, rolled with Death Row.  KMD, Kool G Rap, Freddie Foxxx know.  Lord Finesse, Tragedy, Nas, Large Pro, King Sun, deeper I could go."  You kinda forget just how diverse some of his experience has been, what with the ghost writing and the collaborations.  But yeah, even taking into account taking into account this was recorded in 2019, we didn't need to be sold on Grimm's bona fides.  In 2006?  Yeah, maybe we needed a little reminding back then.

Regardless, by the time he gets to, "disrespectful to my race; your career didn't get started, now erased.  Nigga climb through your window, tie 'em up, burn 'em, kill master, carve in chest: 'Nat Turner.' That nigga that roll with you?  He's a traitor.  House nigga, kill the miniskirt and bounce, nigga.  Manhattan murderer, you bitch nigga, I'm a vet.  I'ma body you before I let you disrespect?"  It's a vicious tone setter that really lays down the law.  The vocals are slowed down to make sure you don't miss a syllable, as Drasar breathes fresh life into a killer that you now realize didn't get the attention it deserved in '06.

You may remember that the original American Hunger album had three "American Hunger" tracks: "American Hunger (Breakfast)," "American Hunger (Lunch)" and "American Hunger (The Last Supper)."  Well, here we've got "American Hunger (?)."  Well, it's "Breakfast;" I don't know why they titled it like that this time around.  The original was produced by DJ Craig Rip, who I can't say I'm too familiar with, but he hooked up a good sample and added some brief but effective cuts for the hook.  I wouldn't throw out that baby with the bathwater.  But Drasar has concocted a richer, far less loopy track with crashing cymbals and live sounding drum riffs, really elevating the song to a more absorbing experience.

And it's not all dark.  "A Simple Rhyme" has a suitably light jazz ambiance; the opening almost sounds like the theme to a daytime talk show from the 80s.  The woodwinds and string samples on the original were interesting, but didn't really capture the spirit.  I mean, yeah, the point of the song is that it's "way beyond a simple rhyme."  But the harps and whatever else were going on in 2006, give it too much of a self-serious, almost religious quality.  Here, the instrumental provides an ironic undercutting that sell what Grimm's shooting for better, especially as the music is allowed to switch up and get deeper once Grimm's pulled you in with what he's saying.  Now the song's a journey, where before it honestly felt a little corny.

Honestly, beats for tracks like "Children of Abel" just felt kind of boring and skippable before.  The music is vibrant and flowing now.  I'm not a big guitar guy, but they work here.  And that's really the story with this whole LP.  American Hunger was always a good album, but clearly straining itself to stretch across three CDs.  A lot of it felt kinda forgettable, especially when the production didn't completely grab you.  That's what AHR2 does; it really makes you appreciate what Grimm was doing eighteen years ago.  And of course it's more selective than just dumping sixty songs on you.

It helps that the sound quality of AHR2 on wax is great, too.  It comes in a full color picture cover with artwork apparently by the same guy who designed MF Doom's mask.  This is an album I'd recommend not just to a Grimm completist but even to someone who usually doesn't bother with most of his albums.  You know, if your attitude is like, yeah, I know he's a good legacy MC, but life's too short to throw myself into his whole catalog.  That's fine.  Just cop this one; you don't need 'em all.  And I bet it'll make you want to track down Rebirth Vol 1.

Time To Get Busy With the Captain Cassanova

You may remember I contributed to a couple projects on Dust & Dope Recordings - wow, has it been three years ago already?  I was about to say "about a year ago" - produced by DJ Cassanova, specifically the lost, original and probably superior Papa Chuk album and The Project Crew LP.  Oh, and the Landlords Of the Morgue EP, but I still haven't managed to get my hands on a finished copy of that myself.  😕  Well, after those came another DJ Cassanova project that I didn't have anything to do with but is still really dope: The Producer Project: The Texas Tapes 1992-1995 on Chopped Herring Records.

If I had been involved, I probably would've suggested they tighten up that title a little.  But it does tell you everything you need to know.  It's a compilation of tracks that Cassanova produced from '92-'95, presumably restored from tape.  Most of these are demos by artists who never really came out, but two songs find Cas reuniting with Teddy Lee from the Project Crew.  He comes harder and a lot grimier for the 90s.  "It's On Like This" has him calling out bullshit on the hook and spitting, "impossible to break my neck tryin' to put your ass in check; I call up Michael Myers and Freddy and Jason 'cause them niggas be bassin'.  Chase them niggas down the street then decapitate 'em so they souls feel complete.  Money grip, I bust lips.  Dun dada, I got the gift."  Then "Bullseye" is based on Black Moon's line from "How Many MC's."

The only other artist that's apt to ring any bells on here is Verbal Seed of the Third Eye Militia.  At least, that's how they're billed on the label.  But more specifically, it's a solo track from Focus of Verbal Seed.  But actually, some of the best stuff here is from the guys you don't know.

The EP opens with some tight, tough jazz loops: deep bass strings, the screechy horns from Kool G Rap's "Truly Yours" and a little ragtime piano sample make a killer track for a rapper named Ex-Cel to kick some freestyle verses over.  At points, this song's nineties origins reveal their weaknesses, whether he's dropping "chiggity-check"s or lame punchlines like "pockets stay fatter than Rush Limbaugh," but for the most part he's flexing a pretty tight, smartly written flow.  And Cassanova's cuts seal the deal.  Thankfully, he's adding nice to cuts to every song on here.

Necessary Roughness live up to their name on "Nothing But a Microphone."  "Verse two about to drop, check out the way I wreck shop.  I beat the fuck out a nigga like an LA cop.  I don't stop 'cause I rock with the rough shit.  I kick the flavor that you know you can't fuck with."  Again, yeah all that "kick the flavor" stuff really dates it, but that's also part of the fun uncovering these lost records.  Anyway, it all sounds great over Cassanova's collection of dusty horn samples, including the ones Special Ed sampled on "Living Like a Star."

Things lighten up considerably when Trillogy spins a casual tale on "Nothing Better Than (20 Sack)" with his laid back vocals and heavy western drawl.  "Seven o'clock in the mornin', time to rise for school.  I can't sleep in, or my moms would act the fool.  Oh well, I might as well get to movin' around.  Put on my Karl Kani shoes and my Karl Kani suit that's brown.  Walk out into the day and smell the morning air.  Then I saw this shorty: light skin, green eyes and black hair.  Aw yeah, off I went, what's your name and hold up, though.  If sports were based on looks, girl, you would be a pro." I like Cassanova's catchy, smooth instrumental, and it's cool to to have it shake up the mood on this EP; but I'm glad there's only one song like it on here.  And they do get back to the hard stuff for the last track by Felony, "yes, you've entered the danger zone, the strangler's home, release ya from the chamber 'till my anger's gone.  Fuck what you represent; I'm heaven sent.  Niggas best repent or find that I be burnin' like incense.  Talk is cheap so I stalk and creep."  He's not the slickest MC, but it's a fun song.

So yeah, this EP's a good time.  And I checked.  As of this writing, it's still available on CH's site.  There's the 350 limited edition record, with 120 copies available on red and black mixed wax, and the remaining 230 on classic black, both in a sticker cover.  In fact, the red and black one is Chopped Herring's final colored release; they stopped their long tradition of pressing colored vinyl after that.  So it's kinda neat to have their last one.  [Edit: actually, looking at their latest announcements, they're back doing colored releases.  But they did announce at the time that this was their final one and they stopped for a while.]  Or there's the CD version, which includes two additional bonus tracks.  You can't go wrong.