Answer Record Week 3, Day 1: Who Rules the World?

We start out Answer Record Week 3 with a bit of a two-parter: first a very famous one, followed by a rather obscure answer to the same record. Youtube version is here.

"Frohe Weihnachten," from Kurtis Blow!

When I wrote that article on "Christmas Rappin'" for HiLoBrow, and then backed that up with an extensive blog post talking about the record's history and dualistic format, you probably figured I'd told you all there is to know about Kurtis Blow's holiday classic. But no, there's more - a whole record more!  Yes, the man himself returned came back fifteen years later to update the song, now on Mascotte Music*. Ladies, gentlemen.... and lowlifes, it's "Christmas Rappin' '95!"

Yes, this is another 12" that Blow released in his German period, and this particular track is produced by Claude Schmidt and Christian Schneider. But it's worth pointing out right at the start that this isn't just some cheap, foreign remix of an old school hit scrapped together with a few old masters overseas. Kurtis Blow is here himself, providing all new vocals over this all new instrumental.

Now, they call this "'95" because it came out in 1995, but while they did update the old disco rap tune for slightly more modern times, it doesn't really sound like anything that would've come out in 1995.  Except for slightly more modern production style elements in the production, it sounds more like "Christmas Rappin' '85." It does have a very high BPM (surely the European influence), but otherwise it's still done with a lot of live instrumentation, which is definitely a good thing, because it doesn't betray the feel of the original at all. It's like a just a slightly newer disco band, fast and funky. It's got a piano solo right where the last one was, but it's a totally new one. There's new background vocals - something you may remember me highlighting as being pretty important to the song in my Herc Your Enthusiasm piece - it sounds like a much bigger crowd; it fits the new track. They almost sound too professional, like maybe they've been created by a sound studio; except later in the song he leads them in a shout and call response saying things like (just as in the original) "mucho macho," which could only have been brought to wax by Kurtis Blow.

And yeah, he does all of the original raps, the full song, but it's not the old acapella. He raps quicker for the new track; but you can tell they haven't just sped up his old vocals because he puts new stylizations on his lines (though he still pronounces "stereo" as "stere-ooh"), giving this some version some added flavor. But most exciting of all, since he's rapping faster, he gets to the end of the song quicker. So he makes up for that... by kicking an all new verse at the end! It's actually a fairly impressive showcase of skills, too; a fast rap with a lot of multiple short syllable rhymes. He's not saying much beyond "amateurs fear me just like adversaries" and such, but he comes off really well. He definitely shows the capability to pull off a more advanced style than he displayed on all his classics. Usually, you think of Kurtis Blow as having one of the most dated, almost silly flows by later standards; but apparently he could've held his own with the 90s generation of MCs just fine.

This 12" single presents us with three versions of the "Christmas Rappin' '95:" a concise three and a half minute edit, a longer six minute edit, and the complete nine and a half minute version. Really, there's no reason to mess the shorter edits on side A unless you're pressed for time; the full version is definitely the definitive version, not one of those drawn out "extended" mixes where they just let the beat ride for two minutes at a stretch.

This seems to have been completely overlooked - and somewhat understandably. A 1990s Kurtis Blow records, only released overseas, remaking an already beloved hit? You can't replace the original in peoples' hearts, right? Well, no; and I'm not suggesting you should replace the copy of "Rappin' Blow" in your crates for this... but this is a surprisingly good, catchy and genuinely enjoyable alternative. It's almost a waste that he put this much good music into this record, since it was never going to get a sliver of the recognition it deserved. He probably should've put that energy into an all-new record. But his mistake is no reason for us to miss out on it now. Track this one down and spin it one of these holidays when you find that the original is feeling, as Blow first put it, "played out."


*Mascotte Music is actually a French label, but Kurtis is working with the same German producers who made "Freak Rock 'Till the Break of Dawn" with him; and this was presumably also recorded in Germany.

Rappin' Vs. Christmas (and a special link)

Which is your favorite Kurtis Blow debut? "Christmas Rappin'" or "Rappin' Blow?" You might say, Werner, they're actually the same song, and sometimes you'd be right.  They are... except when they're not.

I've written a brand new post about "Rappin' Blow" for HiLoBrow's 'Herc Your Enthusiasm' series on disco-era hip-hop, which just went live here.  Check it out.  =)  And stick around for the rest of the series... 25 posts by 25 hip-hop writers, including Drew Huge of FatLace, Dallas Penn, Paul Devlin and so many more. The idea is that each piece is about a particular aspect of a classic, pre-'83 hip-hop record; i.e. not a post about "White Lines," but about the bassline for "White Lines," or a particular line of the song. So stick around for the whole series; it looks like fun to me, and I'm very interested to see what everybody else has come up with.  =)

And I thought I'd use the opportunity here to make a little intro and talk a bit more about "Rappin' Blow," because there's a lot of confusion about this song. You see, "Christmas Rappin' was originally released essentially as a novelty record. Rap was a fad and this was going to be a quick holiday cash-in. But when it was decided that Mercury was going to stick with Kurtis Blow as a roster artist, they decided to release it under a new title, not tied to the passing holiday, and so new pressings of the exact same eight minute and eleven second song were delivered to stores as "Rappin' Blow."  Little did they know that "Christmas Rappin'" would become one of Blow's biggest all-time hits that would continue to sell to this day, while "Rappin' Blow" became an obscure footnote.

So you say, okay, one song released under two titles. Simple enough, I get it. But, see, pop music has little room for the epically long disco songs of hip-hop's earliest years; and the song has been released in much shorter editions more often than not. And if you've heard the original, full-length version of the song ...which many people haven't, considering most albums release only half of the song with no mention of an extended full-length version you weren't getting in their package. But if you have, you know that Kurtis actually stops rapping about Christmas midway through the song. He's rapping all about Santa and the night before Christmas, then there's a break pause and he comes back and just kicks more traditional raps about himself.

So when record labels began cutting the song for 45s, compilations, etc; that made for an excellent chopping point. Most releases of "Christmas Rappin'" end with him saying, "merry Christmas, and to all a good night." On the full-length version, though, Adam White then comes on and asks Kurtis, "what did you say your name was?" And Kurtis begins to rap about coming from a planet named Harlem via a meteorite.

Now, since they're almost like two separate songs - albeit with identical instrumentation - that second half has often since been released as its own song, known as "Rappin' Blow (Part 2)." And I'm not just talking about cheap, generic "Rap's Greatest Hits" compilations  (although... those, too).  The second half of the song, "Part 2" was even included on Kurtis Blow's original full-length LP, which never featured "Christmas Rappin'" (because of that perceived novelty factor of the holiday subject matter).  So while hardcore fans and DJs who would've been inclined to pick up the original 12"s would know "Rappin" Blow" as a simple retitling; most people around the world grew up with "Christmas Rappin'" and "Rappin' Blow" as two separate, shorter songs - one a non-Christmas-themed sequel to the other. And yes, both short versions have also been released as singles, with different picture covers, etc. And there are even other 12" singles of it where Mercury simply calls it "Rappin'," with yet another unique cover. So while the original "Rappin' Blow" 12"s were forthcoming, saying "Previously released as Christmas Rappin'" right on the label... it starts to look like some of the confusion became a deliberate ploy to sell people the same song more than once.

But what the heck, how mad can you be at a Christmas rap song that rhymes "Rolly polly" with "Holy moley?" So now that you've read this drier piece... have a look at my more fun, light-heated post on a certain aspect of this record for HiLoBrow.  And have a merry August!

The Beverly Hills Raps

(Youtube version is here.)

Kurtis Blow Meets 2XL

(Youtube version is here.)

The Real Sun City Show Is On the Second Stage

Remember "Sun City?"  Okay... well, remember "We Are the World?"  "Sun City" was one of those records that came on the heels of "We Are the World," with major artists of all musical genres coming together to make a joint record for a good cause.  In the case of "Sun City," it was about ending apartheid.  There were lots of big names, including Bob Dylan, Pat Benatar, Miles Davis, Lou Reed, Herbie Hancock, Hall & Oates, George Clinton, Bonnie Raitt, etc etc. But what made "Sun City" of a lot more interest to us here at Werner's is that it featured rappers!  Melle Mel, Run DMC, Kurtis Blow, Afrika Bambaataa and DJ Cheese providing some cuts - now we're talking! And it's a lot more hip-hop with big 80's beats and producers like Keith LeBlanc.

But, still... how good is a song that features Kurtis Blow and Bonnie Raitt on the same track really going to be?  As you can imagine, the rappers had their parts, essentially drifting in a sea of sappy pop music. So, you know, it's interesting, but we heads will really want to stick with "Self Destruction" and "Close the Crack House" to get our enormously collaborative, charitable kicks.

But "Sun City" wasn't just a single - even though that's all anybody remembers - it was a whole album.  And while most of it is more of the same except a lot more underwhelming, there was a highlight. In a show of "we're just beginning to wrap our heads around the concept of political correctness in 1985," the producers of the Sun City album decided to take all of the black artists, and give them a solo song of their own. They didn't separate them by genre - the jazz, the rap, the reggae, is still all mushed together... but it's a lot more cohesive and less blandly poppy than the title track.  Finally, we didn't have Kurtis passing the mic to Bonnie.

Despite being multi-genre'd, this isn't just more cohesive, but more hip-hop.  Each MC gets a lot more time to flesh out verses, as opposed to quickly saying a short soundbite in unison with another rapper, so you can't even make out their individual voices and then clearing the stage, and this time around we get extra rappers.  Scorpio is here and holy shit, it's The Fat Boys! ...Actually, if you listen to "Sun City" real close[what? so I have a little extra free time] you can hear a super brief sound clearly made by The Fat Boys right before Run DMC's second appearance.  I'd bet you dollars to doughnuts that The Fat Boys were originally a part of this song and then cut out, perhaps because they were considered too much of a silly novelty act for the song?  Or because their manager wanted too much money?  Anyway, they're here on "Let Me See Your I.D."  Unlike this "Sun City," which I'd only recommend to completists who have to have everything guys like Melle Mel laid their voices to, this song's actually worth your time.

Still... it's not perfect. Mostly because Gil Scott Heron has about half the vocal time on this song. Pretty much between every rap verse he comes on and does a spoken word bit... not even really spoken word like Saul Williams, but like, just self-indulgent structureless rambling. It's boring, sucks the life out of the song, and it even gets kind of insipid, "you ask somebody, 'where is the third world,' they go, 'oh yeah yeah, I know! it's a disco, Go up about three blocks and take a left.' Or they might tell you the third world is a new health food restaurant. I know the first time I heard somebody talkin' about there was trouble in the middle east, i thought they were talkin' about Pittsburgh."  And that's it, then the hook comes in. But, still, here we a big, full verse by Mel, DJ Cheese providing cuts while Buff Love does a big human beatbox solo and Miles Davis blows his trumpet, Duke Bootee flexes a nice post-"Message" rhyme, Kurtis Blow, well... he was kinda off in his own world in 1985, it's pretty corny... but still, it's mostly good stuff.

Still, wouldn't it be great if there was a version that stripped away Heron's B.S.?  And, okay, now you might be thinking, "Slow your roll, dude. You're talking about Gil Scott Heron like he's Marky Mark or something."  I know, I know.  I'm not disparaging his legacy and classics like "The Revolution Will Not Be Televised" or "Winter In America." Granted, as a purely hip-hop head, I spin Kane and Rakim instead of Heron for my musical enjoyment; but when I listen to "Revolution," I feel it, I get it.  It's really fucking good. But his contribution here is nowhere on that level. Here he's jamming up the song like rush hour traffic.

But hey! There's actually a 12" that solves everything! Yes, "Let Me See Your I.D." was also released as a single. The A-side is just the album version, and there's also a Beat and Scratch mix on the flip. But the important part here is the Street Mix. Instrumentally, it's a bit more stripped down, which is mostly an improvement, though I do wind up missing a few nice instrumental bits from the original (Miles!). But the important thing is that they take out all the talky filler and give you just a flat out, 100% rap song. See, the important thing is now we finally have a song we can listen to in regular rotation. It's no longer a case of "well, if you sift through all the other stuff, there are some nice hip-hop nuggets that can be unearthed." This is a really good fucking hip-hop record!  This changes it from something interesting for historians to a dope song for any fan of old school rap.

Seriously, if you like stuff from 1985, get this 12"; you'll definitely be happy. And it even comes in a picture cover because it had a budget.  :)

Marley Marl Meets Kurtis Blow

In 1988, Marley Marl made history with by assembling one of the greatest collective of hip-hop artists ever, The Juice Crew, and releasing perhaps the most legendary posse cut of all time, "The Symphony" off his debut album. And on practically the complete opposite end of the hip-hop spectrum, that same year, Kurtis Blow put out his eighth and final album, Back By Popular Demand. But for a brief moment, those diverse paths crossed, as the lead single and title cut of Blow's album featured none other than Marley Marl.

To be clear, Marley didn't produce this "Back By Popular Demand;" it was co-produced by Blow and Van Gibbs and Eddison Electrik, with "Music By" credit going to Kurtis himself. Also, interestingly, big-shot producer Salaam Remi gets "Concept By" credit ...which is odd because "hey, I'm back" isn't really the sort of clever or complicated concept you'd think you'd need to bring in another guy to come up with. I'm sure it has more to do with the fact that Salaam is Van Gibbs' son.

Now, let's talk about the production for a minute. Like many, many hip-hop records, this one is based on a slamming James Brown sample, specifically "Give It Up Or Turn It Loose." But where a lot of hip-hop tracks will base their entire on instrumental on that record ("Give It Up" is a cornucopia of fantastic samples), Blow and co. (heh) just take their drums from the breakdown at the end of the song. And making that loop seems to be the majority of the work Electrik, Gibbs and Blow really did here.

The bulk of the rest of the music, certainly the stuff that really stands out here, is the "Scratch Production," done by none other than our man Marley Marl. The hook is all vocal samples being cut up: "Kuh-Kuh-Kuh-Kurtis Bluh-Bluh-Bluh-Blow!" mixed with a little "Al-Naaflysh" and a few brief distorted samples taken right out of the Marley catalog. It's certainly possible that any of the other producers added the "Back! By popular demand!" vocal sample or something, but it's sure got that classic Marley Marl sound. One really cool element is that the song has looped crowd cheers throughout... you know, like those early Run-DMC records where they're faking like the song was recorded live? But then at the end, the crowd sounds get cut up, and it sounds fresh!

Unfortunately, Blow the MC isn't up to the track. Gibbs and Blow share credit for the lyrics (the album just says "Written by: K. Blow/V. Gibbs/E. Sainsbury," but the 12" specifies credit to those two for the lyrics. It's a bit mind boggling that it took two men to come up with such simplistic, corny stuff as, "I know you missed me, so don't diss me; be down with the history... of rap! So let your fingers snap. Or whatever makes you move... to the groove," or one-liners like, "I'm sure to deliver... like US mail!" And before you say, "oh, it was the 80's, all raps were corny," bear in mind, not only was Marley bringing Kane, Tragedy, Master Ace and G Rap at the same time as this; but this was cornball even for the oldest of old school. Caz, Kool Moe Dee and Melle Mel wouldn't ever have spit silliness like that; and even Blow himself was capable of much smoother rhymes on earlier stuff like "Rappin' Blow." I really don't know what Blow was thinking putting those bars over this track; it's like he wanted to be written off as hopelessly old school. And that wish that came true with this album's reception.

So, this 12" has the 12" Version, which seems to be exactly the same as the album version, and the 7" version, which is just a shorter edit. But there are some more interesting mixes on the B-side.

If you read the credits of the album, you'll see a "Trumpet Solo" credited to Marc Leford on this song. I was quite baffled by this as a kid, because there is no trumpet or anything resembling a trumpet anywhere to be heard. But they must be crediting the work recorded exclusively for this 12", because here there are two instrumental mixes called "Black[as opposed to Back] By Popular Demand," the first of which is the Trumpet Mix. While there is absolutely zero trumpet on the 12"/album version, there is a ton here. Blow's entire vocal track has been replaced by a trumpet. Then there's also an Organ Version, where his vocals are replaced by a plectrum banjo. ...I'm just kidding, it was replaced by an organ, of course. Nobody is given credit for an "Organ Solo," so I'm guessing it was played by Blow or Electrik, who share that "Music By" credit.

By the way, this isn't the only work Marley did for Blow. Also on the Back By Popular Demand album, Marley is credited with "Keyboard/Horn Arrangements" on the light-hearted tune, "Love Don't Love Nobody." It's also the only other song on the album also produced by Gibbs and Electrik (Blow produced most of the LP by himself). But unlike "Back By Popular Demand," you would never recognize "Love" as Marley's work if you didn't read the liner notes. In fact, the soft keyboard tones sound a lot like the stuff Blow put on a ton of records he produced back in the early 80s.

So, to wrap things up, this single is like the whole album. Sure, on one level it's wack and easy to dismiss. But it's all strangely endearing and catchy. And it's certainly got a unique mixture of musical sounds that nobody else was brave or goofy enough to match. This is a time capsule not only of the wild, unrepeatable 80s, but a brief period when rap albums were starting to get big budgets and no idea what to do with them. I mean, seriously, where was the Organ Mix of "Back By Popular Demand" supposed to play, exactly? And some of the stuff on the album ("Blue Iguana," anybody?) is even weirder. And, hey, it comes in an awesome picture cover! What's not to like?

Legends of Hip Hop

"LEGENDS OF HIP HOP describes a project that includes more than 35 hiphop legends from the first hour veterans to the recent stars. It includes names like Bambaataa, Melle Mel, Grandmaster Flash, Kurtis Blow, Ice-T... just to mention a few. The album was based on an idea to connect rap and hiphop greats from both the old and new skool[sic.] scene into one big project. The highlight of the album is the track 'The Fifth Element' which is performmed[sic.] by 34 hiphop legends."

That's the introduction to an album that I can't believe has somehow managed to be pretty much never written about. Legends of Hip Hop came out in 2002 on Absolut Records. Yes, like the vodka. A full-length album that features all original (well, almost... more on that later) material by such great big names in hip-hop that somehow managed to fly completely under the radar? How? Why?

Well, the album was put together by Kurtis Blow, in association with his Legends of Hip Hip old school tours. Blow co-produced all the music on this album with two guys named Informer and DJ Buck. They utilize a lot of live instrumentation, too... the liner notes credit musicians for guitars, trumpets, sax, a couple of violins and a viola. So, how is it? What exactly do we have here?

Ok, let's start with the "highlight of the album" (according to the liner notes quoted above... I actually disagree), the mega-posse cut "The Fifth Element." 34 hip-hop legends. That's pretty impressive, right? And the actual list will probably impress you more: Melle Mel, Ice-T, Flava Flav, Cheeks, Special K, Bambaataa, Run, Smooth Approach, Sha-Rock, Doc Ice, Busy Bee, Whodini, Raheem, Reggie Reg, Grandmaster Caz, DLB, LA Sunshine, Grand Puba, Pete DJ Jones, Kurtis Blow, Hollywood, Eddie Cheeba, Big Daddy Kane, Dano, Ceelo (as in Goodie Mob, yeah), Waterbed Kev, Speech, Kidd Creole, Grand Wizard Theodore, Dota Rock, Rakim & DJ Kool Herc. That's not a bunch of nobodies peppered with a few names, that's an incredible assembly of an all-star line-up!

...But, wait. The song's only four minutes long. And it's got a recurring hook, which takes up almost 50% of the song. And, half those guys are DJs, how do they rap on this track?

Well, if you guessed that everybody is given about 6-8 words to perform, you'd be right! But you didn't guess that, did you? Because that would be so ridiculously wack, you ruled it out before the thought could even fully form in your mind, right? But it's what they did. Excited to hear a Rakim feature you never heard before? Wanna read the lyrics? Well, here ya go:

"Ya owe it to yourself; get your education."

...That was it. That was the entirety of his contribution. And his was longer than a lot of the others!

So, yeah. They call it the "highlight of the album." They even include two mixes on here, the original and "Beathoavenz RMX," which liberally samples some Beethoven. I call it a big, fat "who cares?"

But the rest of the album is much more interesting. Most (plus a few other dudes) of the artists featured on that silly posse cut turn up again on this album to perform all new songs. Most are collaborations you've never seen happen before and are pretty interesting. Raheem, Grandmaster Caz and Shinehead provide a song called "Be 4," Ice-T, Chilli Mac and Rakim perform "Game of Life," Reggie Reg, Skeeta Ranks, Jalil, Ecstasy and Doc Ice do "Shake Them Hips," etc. Here we actually get to hear these artists get a chance to do something!

Just for the record, the other artists who turn up on this album are: Thug Nation, Kurupt, Harry Balz (don't know who that is? He's the other half of One and One, who we last heard from on Next Plateau Records in 1997!), The Ying Yang Twins, Steph Lova, T.O.P., GQ, and Lovebug Starski.

So, how are these songs? Well, they're varied... there's some nice lyrical performances, a variety of concepts and a good mix of styles. The production team of Blow, Informer and Buck I'm sure doesn't have you at the edge of your seat, but they're at least attempting something creatively different that's still got a traditional hip-hop vibe. It's not a great album, but guys like Ice-T, Melle, Sha-Rock, Kane, and others do drop some head-nodding verses. Flava Flav provides an amusingly bugged hook to "Old School Ball," with a faux British accent. The live instrumentation helps keep things interesting and some songs have nice cuts, too. It's a mixed bag, certainly; but a lot of this is really better than you jaded vets would expect.

To add to that mixed bag feeling, though, we have to address why Eminem and Royce da 5'9's names are on the cover. Well, "Nuttin To Do" by Bad Meets Evil is on here. Yes, the song from their '98 12" in Game Recordings. Why? I dunno. More interestingly, though, is "Bad Meets Evil - New Shrooms Mix." Yeah, Blow and team actually do their own, exclusive remix of the song from the Slim Shady LP. It's, uh... yeah, it's pretty corny.

But except for those two tracks and one other - this album also features Justine Simmons' dance tune "Praise My DJ's" featuring Run that originally dropped in 2000 - this is all new, original material, reminiscent of the noteworthy Raiders Of the Lost Art compilation released in 1994.

Now, in addition to this album, there are three related releases you should probably know about:

1) A 12" release of "The Fifth Element," which includes the original version and the Beathoavenz Remix version that's featured on this disc, as well as four more remixes (specifically: Sleepwalker Remix, Efe & Leeroy Remix, Nasty Remix and the Double Remix). Interesting, but I never picked this up, because frankly changing the beat wouldn't fix what's wrong with this song.

2) Another, completely unrelated hip-hop compilation called Legends of Hip Hop, which is just a generic collection of songs by 2 Live Crew, Ice-T and The World Class Wreckin' Crew on a label called Blue Dolphin. They're entirely unrelated save for the coincidentally matching title, so you can go ahead and disregard it... just be careful if you're ordering online that you know which one you're getting.

3) A 2-disc version that was released in Europe. Disc 1 is essentially the same as the US version, except it's missing the Bad Meets Evil remix, and instead features the Sleepwalker Remix of "Fifth Element" (from the 12" above). The second disc is then just another generic compilation of pre-existing hip-hop songs, this time basically a greatest hits of rap, featuring stuff like "Express Yourself" by NWA and "Summertime" by DJ Jazzy Jeff and The Fresh Prince. Personally, I'd stick with the single-disc US version, since it has the exclusive Bad Meets Evil remix, and if you really want the "Fifth Element," remix you could get the 12".

So, yeah. It's not a great album, but it has some worthwhile material. And with all the talent involved, it deserves at least to be talked about.

Kurtis Blow's German Period part 2

Kurtis Blow's "Chillin' At the Spot" (see: this post on his previous venture outta Deutschland) wasn't actually his last record. He did one more 12" in Germany, "Freak Rock Till the Breakadawn" on ZYX Music, a prolific label that put out a lot of releases by a wide variety of artists over the years. There's no date listed anywhere on it, but by comparing the catalog numbers, this would've had to've come out in either 1994 or 1995. Interestingly, he also claims it's both years at different points in the song... so I'd assume it was started in '94, then finished and released in '95.

You've got four mixes of the same song, and they start right out with the best, definitive version (IMHO, of course), the "Headbang Mixtension." Now "Headbang" might be overstating matters - but it does feature a liberal dose of electric rock guitaring. It's not quite as good as his earlier "Street Rock" (yeah, the one with Bob Dylan), but if you liked that song, you'll like this one, too. Kurtis Blow does a lot of quick, short rhyming wordplay and keeps up fine with a fast paced track. He's not quite the lyricist to make Kool G. Rap start looking for a new career, but he represents himself fairly well in what's clearly meant to showcase his "skills" to the new, 90's hip-hop audience: "Spit it/ Get wit it/ I let the rhyme flow/ Though/ I'm getting psycho/ On the micro/ I'm K. Blow/ For the nine-fo'/ The old school/ Super cool / Cat/ From way back/ The microphone maniac," etc. Sure, Kurtis Blow's always a little corny, but he's got a nice flow over a well-produced track - the guitars, a lot of scratching, fast drums with a catchy old school hook. You'll have to be a pretty surly, stick-in-the-mud Grumpy Gus not to enjoy this one.

The "88"th MXX" is kind of disappointing. It removes a lot of the guitars and stuff... I guess in an attempt to appeal to the narrow-minded purists who'd equate guitars with selling out pop music, but really all this leaves you with is what feels like an unfinished song. And the "Radio Edit," predictably, is just a shorter version of the main mix (that is to say: the "Headbang Mixtension"), tightened up for a radio set. It's fine for what it is (and with that version clocking in at over seven minutes, I can see why there'd be a call for this version), but if you like this song enough to put the 12" on your table at home, you'll surely want to stick with the full version.

But the "Guitar Mix" is the interesting one. It doesn't feature any extra guitar playing, as the name suggests... or feature just the guitars without the vocals or anything like that. No, this mix is essentially the same, instrumentally, as the "Headbang Mixtension." What's different is that Kurtis Blow has replaced himself with another, uncredited rapper! Kurtis Blow's voice is only heard on the hook in this mix. The new guy is ok... kind of generic (and no, he doesn't have a German accent) in a "studio musician" sounding kind of way, but he doesn't embarrass himself or anything. He's ok. Why Kurtis Blow would make a non-Kurtis Blow version, though, is beyond me. I'd really be interested to find out who this guy is... it sounds like he says at one point, "my name is Carl J and I'm twenty-five," but I'm not sure. And we may never find out, because as any US MC who's gone over there to record will tell you: "what happens in Germany, stays in Germany."

Tags: Kurtis Blow

Kurtis Blow's German Period

Here's one even some of you bigger Kurtis Blow fans probably missed: "Chillin' At the Spot" b/w "We the People." It came out on Public Attack, a division of Moonbase Records; a label out of Frankfurt, Germany in 1994.

1994 was a comeback year for Kurtis. He hadn't recorded or released any new material since his run ended with Mercury Records until '94. Then the Raiders of the Lost Art compilation came out, featuring a new Kurtis Blow song ("G-Party"). Mercury put out The Best of Kurtis Blow. And Kurtis Blow... went to Germany. There, he did a couple guest verses with German recording artists Techno Cop and Power Nation; and he made this 12".

It's an interesting 12". The first song comes in two versions: the radio and "Jeep" mixes (plus instrumentals for each), both produced by local producer Rudy Rude. Unlike, say, "The Boys From the Hill," this doesn't fit in perfectly with his classic material. It's definitely more contemporary (for '94, that is); and like "G-Party," this song also features a couple of essentially unknown guest rappers (they're uncredited except that the writing credits name a T. Washington and D. Wedington). They're not bad... but they certainly don't add anything better than what Kurtis Blow could do on the mic himself. And Blow is, after all, the selling point here. So I'm not sure why he seems to've felt the need to bring in younger cats to fill all his new music.

The beat has a lot of layers, including a really nice horn sample, some nice slow drums, snare, a guitar sting on the hook and a bassline that almost sounds like it was played on a xylophone. It's definitely attempting to fit in with the more relaxed, cool sounds of the time, by artists like Pete Rock & CL Smooth, and is reasonably effective. The beat and samples switch up for some of the verses which is cool, too.

"The Jeep Mix" is ok... a bit more stripped down with a cool vocal sample on the hook. But without the catchy horn sample, it's just not as compelling as the original.

The subject matter is simple and summed up entirely by the title. The hook features a couple girls (or one girl with an echo effect) softly singing the familiar line, "chillin' at the spot... with my homies after dark. Oh yeah..." A few of Kurtis' lines are corny (hey, at least try to look surprised); but for the most part his and the other MCs' rhymes are fine... just a simple, summer cool-out jam.

The B-side, "We the People" only has one mix (though there are instrumental and "Bassappella" mixes). Like I said, they songs don't sound like vintage Kurtis, but his style was always progressing (for good or ill), and just like Back By Popular Demand sounds different from "Rappin' Blow," it feels like this would naturally have been his sound had he never stopped recording. This song sounds a little less focused, and therefore less appealing, than the A-side, but it's ok. It features the same guest rappers, plus a reggae artist this time (presumably M. Breunig from the writing credits). The beat is listenable, with a cool drum track, the same "shaker" percussion that was used by Slick Rick and Dana Dane on songs like "Treat Her Like a Prostitute;" and simple and repetitive bassline that'll stay stuck in your head, and like the title suggests, the lyrics are on a political tip, very much along the lines of "The Message," which he even quotes at one point. I wouldn't mind hearing these lyrics with the delivery and instrumental of say "8 Million Stories" or "Street Rock." As it is, it's all too relaxed and "smooth" to really catch your interest.

If you're a serious Kurtis Blow fan, or just a general old school completist, you'll want to track this one down (woot! picture cover!)... it's certainly an interesting moment in Blow's career (after these 1994 German recordings; he wouldn't do anything until Nadanuf featured him on their remake of "The Breaks" several years later) and not bad for what it is. But if you don't fit into either of those categories, you can sleep peacefully at night having given this one a miss.

Tags: Kurtis Blow

Alright, Now I've Had Anuf

To compliment my new artist's discography page on my "main" site, I'm reviewing a single straight off of it. This is a 1994 retread of Kurtis Blow's classic "The Breaks" featuring the man himself, guesting with Reprise Records' start-up group Nadanuf.

Nadanuf never took off - they put out their full-length (with contributions from Def Jef and Howie Tee) and one other single and then disappeared. The group consisted of two young girls from Cincinatti, Ohio: Skwert and Phor-One-One. See? The Cincinatti scene was being represented before Mr. Dibbs and Dose One. Anyway, these girls had a bit of a shtick where they always wore goggles, which they explained in an interview with Urban Network Magazine, "The goggles are kinda like a vibe. It's like our head gear or more like our armor to take on a crowd. Just like our bright clothes; if it's bright that's just Nadanuf. It has to be extra or it's just Nadanuf." Okay...

If they don't already, labels should have a position for the guy who comes up with their rappers' gimmicks' explanations. Not the designer or whoever who first comes up with the ideas like, "you girls shall always wear goggles," or "Y?N-Vee, you girls will always wear your pants below your thongs" (remember them? What marketing genius came up with that idea?). I'd just like to be the guy who comes up with the official explanations after the gimmick's been chosen. Like, "it's our vibe... headgear, armor..." that's weak sauce. See, if it was me, I'd give them something more along these lines: "See, there's all these forces in the world trying to control your perspective... our vision of the world. Corporations, government, the media, all trying to shape the way we perceive events, like, this 'you should want this product' or 'these people are guilty' even before the trial. So the goggles are our way of saying, 'hey. We're going to view the world the way we choose to see it. We're going to think and make decisions of how we choose to act based on our ideas and our unique perspectives.' No matter hwo much you try to change us, or control us, and make us see things the way you want us to see them, you can't ...'cause we got these goggles." That shit would've got the girls a full-page write-up in Rap Pages! But did they come to me? No. And now it's too late.

So, anyway, yeah. A remake of Kurtis Blow's "The Breaks" by up-and-coming major label unknowns sure doesn't qualify as a "must-have" in my book - not now and not in 1994 - but they went the extra distance by actually getting Blow on the track, so I picked up the cassingle for 99 cents when it came out. Now, in the same Urban Network Magazine interview, they talk about how that all came about, "Babyboy [producer Aaron "Babyboy" Griffin] just came up with the idea to re-do the song and at the time we were working with Def Jef because we had just finished recording 'Worldwide.' Def Jef said, 'I know Kurtis, he's just right around the corner. I can call him up.' Kurtis came by the next day. At first we were just going to ask him to do his original 'Clap ya hands everybody.' Then he asked could he do them all. So he re-did the whole song with us. Afterward we ran to 7-Eleven and got a disposable camera to get our pictures with Kurtis." It's not really bad, but the final verdict is obvious even before you hear it: there's no reason to play this song when you could just as easily play the superior original.

This is ok as an alternative, though - the music is essentially the same, but with more traditional verses by the girls. Then Kurtis Blow comes up with new "that's the breaks"-isms for the hook (it may possibly be your only chance to hear Kurtis Blow say "late night creep" as well, so think carefully before passing this one up). He actually has a lot of energy and sounds damn enthusiastic to be there, which makes this a pretty fun listening experience.

The B-side, "Many Emcees (Madd Drama)" is actually better than you'd think. The first MC (sorry, I've no idea which is Skwert and which is Phor) comes out with fast freestyle rhymes: "You musta thought we couldn't get down, you under estimate, you smell like shit now, we makin' hits now, we been down, we take you MCs to four thousand degrees, you others make me sneeze, like infect-u-ous disease. I tear you into pieces as I hit you with my thesis; I release the vocals that you smoke to," etc. She wasn't exactly going to be the Canibus-before-there-was-Canibus; but she holds her own on a posse cut. The secondMC, then, comes and steals the show with a surprisingly compelling, smoother verse. Finally, the third verse is shared by two guest MCs who aren't credited in the liner notes; but a little online searching tells me their names are Elmyzik and Manzini. They come out doing their best Onyx impression ...which is frankly a bit silly. Just try to remember: it's all in fun.

Today, Kurtis Blow is still performing (and preaching!). He's got a myspace, of course, and he's got a new mp3-only single with his new Christian rap crew, The Trinity, called "Just Do It." You can download it at b4entertainment.com. One of the other members of The Trinity has several mp3-only albums available there, too... a couple of which feature Kurtis, and one even features Bushwick Bill! Their next one, apparently come soon, is called "Crunk Wit It" b/w "Grace of God" with the Gospel Gangstaz. So look out for that. ...Unless you're like me and think it sounds terrible, in which case stay far away from it. You know which choice is for you, I'm sure.

(The Nadanuf girls don't seem to have any myspaces... goodness knows what happened to 'em.)

Tags: Kurtis Blow, Nadanuf

Lyrics? Somebody Want Lyrics?

Every so often I transcribe and submit lyrics to the Online Hip-Hop Lyrics Database... Here's a compilation of all the lyrics I can remember submitting (there are probably one or two others I forgot):

Artist: Man Parrish f/ Freeze Force
Album:  Boogie Down Bronx 12"
Song:   Boogie Down Bronx
Typed by: WVWalenrod@AOL.com

Cool Johnski from the Freeze Force Crew
I came here to say a def rhyme for you
About the Boogie Down Bronx, it's a one of a kind
It's the place to be; it's a state of mind
But the guys out here, they really are crookin'
They snatch gold chains when the cops ain't lookin'
But what can I say? It's the place to be
It's where I stay in reality
So listen close and you all will here
About the devestatin' body rocker of the year

Boogie Down Bronx, Boogie Down Bronx, Boogie
Boogie Down Bronx, Boogie Down Bronx, Boogie
Boogie Down Bronx, Boogie Down Bronx, Boogie Boogie
Boogie Down Bronx, Boogie Boogie, Boogie Boogie

One young man born to be an MC
The only one that rocks ya with a guarantee
Because I dress to impress, guaranteed to be a hit
I walk down the street, the girls are jumpin' on it
I got the ladies on my left, the beats on my right
The ladies follow me all through the night
'Cause I'm the one with the action, the king of satisfaction
You listen to my rhythm, there is a chain reaction
It goes on your back, it goes down your spine
And when it hits your head, it's gonna blow your mind
And if you're from the Bronx and you hear the sound
Come on, everybody, boogie down, boogie down

Boogie Down Bronx, Boogie Down Bronx, Boogie
Boogie Down Bronx, Boogie Down Bronx, Boogie
Boogie Down Bronx, Boogie Down Bronx, Boogie Boogie
Boogie Down Bronx, Boogie Boogie, Boogie Boogie

My man Man Parrish and Cool Raul
Cooler than the water in a swimming pool
Like a R to the A, the U and the L
Pushing more power than a Duracell
And like the L to the A, the F and the Y
The hip-hop master that you can't deny
So check out the beat and listen to the sound
And if you're from the Bronx just boogie down

Boogie Down Bronx, Boogie Down Bronx, Boogie
Boogie Down Bronx, Boogie Down Bronx, Boogie
Boogie Down Bronx, Boogie Down Bronx, Boogie Boogie
Boogie Down Bronx, Boogie Boogie, Boogie Boogie

People all around walk around in the streets
They got the funky box with the Johnski beats
You here the sound, become a believer
Then go to the Bronx, hang out at The Fever
You take the D to 205th
Then go see me 'cause I got the gift
And I'm the cool MC with the vicious sounds
I'm not from the Bronx, but I still Boogie Down
F to the R, double E, Z, E
F to the O, the R, C, E
Yes, the Freeze Force and we never lost
At any cost 'cause I'm the boss
I'm the cash back, money keeper
Never broke, never cheaper
If you ask me for a dime
Give it to you any time
Keep cash money, but I'm no jerk
I can use it, don't abuse it, I can put it to work
Just to buy my clothes, all designer names
And if you wanna bite, you'll never look the same
Bill Blass, Calvin Klein, are some of mine
You'll never catch me on the welfare line

Boogie Down Bronx, Boogie Down Bronx, Boogie
Boogie Down Bronx, Boogie Down Bronx, Boogie
Boogie Down Bronx, Boogie Down Bronx, Boogie Boogie
Boogie Down Bronx, Boogie Boogie, Boogie Boogie

You've got the perfect beat, I hear you say
But you better listen close 'cause I'm here to state
That I rock so good, I rock so strong
I rock so well 'cause I last so long
I rock the mic with the greatest of ease
To all the all fine and the sweet and the young ladies
And when I say my rhymes, I know ya want to bite
That's not right or polite, so we have to fight
But I don't want to fight; I'd rather rhyme instead
'Cause my rhyme style's fresher than Wonder Bread
And all my brothers in the Bronx we got to rhyme
Catch all the ladies and blow their minds
And all the brothers and the sisters in the US of A
This hip-hop music is here to stay

Johnski boogies down to the Boogie Down Bronx
Freeze Force boogies down to the Boogie Down Bronx
Raul boogies down to the Boogie Down Bronx
Zulu Nation boogies down to the Boogie Down Bronx
Mayor Koch boogies down to the Boogie Down Bronx
? boogies down to the Boogie Down Bronx
Captain Mike boogies down to the Boogie Down Bronx
Two Sisters boogies down to the Boogie Down Bronx
? boogies down to the Boogie Down Bronx
Haunted House boogies down to the Boogie Down Bronx
? boogies down to the Boogie Down Bronx
? boogies down to the Boogie Down Bronx
Brooklyn boogies down to the Boogie Down Bronx
Queens boogies down to the Boogie Down Bronx
Staten Island boogies down to the Boogie Down Bronx
Manhattan boogies down to the Boogie Down Bronx

Boogie Down Bronx, Boogie Down Bronx, Boogie
Boogie Down Bronx, Boogie Down Bronx, Boogie
Boogie Down Bronx, Boogie Down Bronx, Boogie Boogie
Boogie Down Bronx, Boogie Boogie, Boogie Boogie

Boogie Down Bronx, Boogie Down Bronx, Boogie
Boogie Down Bronx, Boogie Down Bronx, Boogie
Boogie Down Bronx, Boogie Down Bronx, Boogie Boogie
Boogie Down Bronx, Boogie Boogie, Boogie Boogie

Boogie Down Bronx, Boogie Down Bronx, Boogie
Boogie Down Bronx, Boogie Down Bronx, Boogie
Boogie Down Bronx, Boogie Down Bronx, Boogie Boogie
Boogie Down Bronx, Boogie Boogie, Boogie Boogie

Boogie Down Bronx, Boogie Down Bronx, Boogie
Boogie Down Bronx, Boogie Down Bronx, Boogie
Boogie Down Bronx, Boogie Down Bronx, Boogie Boogie
Boogie Down Bronx, Boogie Boogie, Boogie Boogie

Boogie Down Bronx, Boogie Down Bronx, Boogie
Boogie Down Bronx, Boogie Down Bronx, Boogie
Boogie Down Bronx, Boogie Down Bronx, Boogie Boogie
Boogie Down Bronx, Boogie Boogie, Boogie Boogie

Artist: Surf MC's
Album:  Surf or Die
Song:   Surf or Die
Typed by: WVWalenrod@AOL.com

Oh, Surf!
Or die!
Surf!
Or die!
Surf!
Or die!
You've got to surf!
Or diiieee!
We were born in the year of our lord
With nothing on our backs but our funky surf boards
Miles at sea - that's where you'll find us
Hundred foot waves, not far behind us
Sharks on my right, sharks on my left
One false move, we knew it was death
That's when we heard a terrifying cry
"Hug wood, homeboy - you better surf or die!"
Surf!
Or die!
Surf!
Or die!
Radical!
You've got to surf!
Or die!
Homeboy!
Surf or die!
Surf or die!
We surfed as Magellan; we surfed as Columbus
We surf around the world, and we don't need a compass
We have no beginning
We have no end
If you're reincarnated, you'll surf with us again!
Surf!
Forget the other shit
The other shit's bunk!
We want the beach town surf
We walk on the beach, in the sand
with our boards in our hand
And If you don't know by now
Then you'll never understand!
Surf!
Surf!
R-r-radical!
Surf!
Radical!
Surf or die!
Or die!
Or die!
Now on the beach, Californ-I-A
Where another surfers born every single day
Zuma Jay board, the one I use to surf
We put on our wheels when we're rollin' on the dirt
We roll through the streets, we roll through the valleys
We roll through the hills, and we roll through the alleys
Once on water, now on land
If it can be ridden than the funky surfers can!
Surf!
Surf!
Or die!
Radical!
Surf!
Homeboy!
Or die!
You've got to surf!
Or die!
Or die!
Surf!
Or die!
Radical!
Surf!
Or die!
Radical!
Surf!
Or die!
Radical!
You've got to surf!
Or die!
Or die!
Surf!
Or die!
Surf or die!
Radical!
 
 
 
Artist: Special Ed
Album:  Top Shelf 8/8/88 (Compilation)
Song:   This Mic
Typed by: WVWalenrod@AOL.com

I'm about to open up this mic and fix it
Simplistic
Linguistic
Technician
Fusion
With fision in a vision
Like I'm in a television
Via satellite
You wanna battle, right?
Yeah, press the channel
Refer to your manual
You rhyme semi-annual
I make fresh rhymes... daily
Never did my school work
So they tried to fail me
Never told me nothing about Hailey
Selassie
Call me Special Ed
'Cause they don't see what I see
Ultra-
Violet
Flight pilot
Keep your wallet
Give me your dedication
Druggy with your medication
Have ya waitin'
Out in the rain
For a train and a bus
I was made from dust
Lazarus
Style: hazardous
Church Ave., straight from Erasmus

I'm deep like the sea floor
I'll make you see four
When there's one
You be stunned
Didn't see me come, but yeah, I'm right here
Up in your ear like q-tips or wax
Either which one, relax
And keep still
Peep skill
As I get deep like a drill
In a molar
I roll like a stroller
Sold a
Whole lotta records in my life
I hop flights to rock mics
While you frontin' for the cars
Or maybe for the chicks
I walk right through
And I'm steppin' on ya kicks
Right to the mic
Front and center
Don't nothin' enter
This area is restricted
Too much heat, you need liquid
Caution:
It's scorchin'
You don't wanna go there
I got it locked down... I did a show there

You don't wanna get me mad
I'll put you in a bag
And tie it
Like Wyatt
Earp
You'll get hurt
I'm much worse
I touch first
I don't scream and curse
I just breath deep
And I put you to sleep
Like hypnosis
Givin' you fatal doses
Rap ulcers
I rhyme aggressive
Get the message?
I bring forces
You can't stop
Like a pack of wild horses
Comin' back
To they extensions
I'm the kid everybody mentions
When you say: classic
When you say: lyric
Originality, performance and spirit
I don't wanna hear it
Bring it and I'll put it on you
And make you wear it
Where the stage?
Clear it
Anybody come near it
Let 'em come
And leave you shinin'
Red rum
And then some
 
 
 
Artist: Buck 65
Album:  Vertex
Song:   The Centaur
Typed by: WVWalenrod@AOL.com

Most people are curious
Some wanna get dirt on
The Centaur; I'm famous
I walk around with no shirt on
The easiest way would be for you to lie face down
I'm a man
But I'm built like a horse from the waist down
People are afraid of me but act like they love me
Feast your eyes upon my nudity
I am Beauty AND the Beast
I have plenty to say
But nobody listens because my cockis so big
And the end of it glistens; so I'm famous for it
"Freaky" is what everyone's name is for it
Sure, it's larger than yours
I'm a CENTAUR for Chrissakes!
I like to eat rice cakes and listen to classical music
I'm told passion is my specialty
But really I'm old-fashioned
I'm quite well-built
As fas as physiques go
So people seem to think that I belong in a freak show
They wanna have pictures taken
Constantly assumin' that my sex drive
is three times that of a normal human
Askin' silly questions like I'm their personal mentor
All they care about is my big dick because I'm the centaur
The porno industry
Wants to pay me lots of money to appear in books and movie
'Cause they think I look funny
But I'm lookin' for true love
Not groupies and freaks
More than a huge cock - I have a complicated mind
I'm not the favorite kind of companion
For the average person
Sometimes things start well
But eventually worsen when sex becomes a problem
Or else they're unimpressed with the attention that you get
Bein' a centaur's love interest
You don't care about my next life
Just my ex-wife and the intimate details of our sex life
Most people are curious
Some wanna get dirt on
The Centaur; I'm famous
I walk around with no shirt on
The easiest way would be for you to lie face down
I'm a man
But I'm built like a horse from the waist down
 
 
 
Artist: Kurtis Blow
Album:  Deuce
Song:   Starlife
Typed by: WVWalenrod@AOL.com_

If you party hearty
If you make the scene
If you've got the jones
For a limousine
Forget your worries
And the wya things are
Spend a day in the life
Of a superstar!

Star life
Staarraarraarr life
Star life
Staarraarraarr life

On Monday morning, he checks the news
He's number one in rhythm and blues
From record to record he tops the sheet
And the other stars cannot compete
He hits the notes that are so high
The men just stare and the women cry
They come to see him from near and far
The man they made a superstar

The genuine owner of twenty cars
Spends all his days among the stars
And when he's got to cool out and chill
Got a brand new house at the top of the hill
One of a kind, not even two
Push button down with an open view
And every room's got a new TV
And every dog's got a pedigree

Livin' every day in the life of a star
Star life!
Livin' every day in the life of a star
Star life!
Huh!

He's got a mansion up in Beverly Hills
With a great big swimming pool
Got a townhouse back in old New York
Where he used to go to school
And some folks say
He's got his own chalet
If he wants to go and ski
And a house in France
For a little romance
Outside of gay Pari!
Ha ha, ha ha!

Star life
Staarraarraarr life
Star life
Staarraarraarr life

Star life
Staarraarraarr life
Star life
Staarraarraarr life

Wherever he goes, he sets the mood
With the fly, fly clothes and the fancy food
All over the town with the pretty girl
He makes the scene and he rocks the world
He's makin' money, maybe even the most
With the bass that's known from coast to coast
He gets the best; he gets it all
He's got fifty gold records up on the wall!

Tags: Surf MCs, Buck 65, Kurtis Blow, Man Parrish, Freeze Force Crew, Special Ed