Countin' Endless Demos

 (Taking a look at the 1993 (1994?) C.E.B. demos. Youtube version is here.)

Stick Up Point

(Youtube version is here.)

Do the Fila and the PeeWee Dance

This is a great, early single from Steady B... back before he was Steady B, and instead had one of the most unfortunate rapper names this side of Shorty Shitstain, MC Boob. It's not his first single... he'd already released a couple 12"s as MC Boob. So he might've went with the name MC Boob here because this is sort of a tongue-in-cheek record. But Boob is a nickname he kept indefinitely (he even refers to himself as Boob on some CEB tracks), so I can't really say why he used that alias specifically for this. Maybe it was a Pop Art contract thing, since he released this on a separate label.

Anyway, the record is called "Do the Fila and the PeeWee Dance" and it dates all the way back to 1986 on Three Way Records, the label's only release. He later shortened the title to just "Do the Fila" (probably for legal reasons, but maybe also to make it more his own), but this is the O.G. 12" with the original full-length title. And if you hadn't already guessed, this was Steady's answer record to the surprise it, "Pee-Wee's Dance" by Joeski Love. That song was an ode to the goofy dance Pee Wee Herman used to do on his kids' show... but apparently, this dance is slightly different. In this song, Steady actually shares an account of how he met Joeski Love (not that I believe it's actually a true story) and they compared dances:

"He moved his hands
In the air like this,
Then I tried to do it
'Cause I couldn't resist.
I said, 'it ain't like that.'
And he said 'why?'
'Cause I'm doing this dance
Called the Fila!"

And by the various descriptions of the dance in the song ("then I bent my legs like I was 90 years old"), I think Steady is saying that "The Fila" is exactly the same dance as "The Pee Wee," except you call it "The Fila" if you're wearing Filas when you do it. At any rate, he wants us to know that he's the master of both, so you shouldn't fret about the distinction.

The music is credited to the mysterious J&S Productions. I assume that's just an alias for Lawrence Goodman, for reasons I'll get to later; but hey, who knows? On the surface, you might say it doesn't matter much anyway, because they're just jacking Joeski Love's beat. But this isn't strictly true. It does use that same, signature "ba bop bah-bah bah-bah bah buh, ba bop bah-bah bah-bah bah bop!" sample, plus that bugged out instrumentation on the breakdown, but the rest of the music is markedly different. The drums are much rawer and harder... The down beats are much deeper and have some really nice echo. honestly, I'm a big fan of the original, but to play them back-to-back makes Joeski's sound like something made with a toy tin drum set.

So with a much bigger bang to the instrumental, and a thematic shift from a kids' show to fly sneakers, this is definitely the version for the streets. There's nothing else on this 12" except the instrumental on the flip. What's interesting is that when Steady put out his first full-length, the self-titled Steady B, later the same year on Pop Art, this wasn't on there. But when the Jive Records later picked it up and gave it international distribution under the new title, Bring The Beat Back, they added this song. And on that album, all production credit goes to Lawrence Goodman (except the one Marley Marl track)... so that tells me J&S Productions was almost certainly an LG alias; and if it wasn't, then he wound up with the credit anyway. ;)

Mo' Lux

This is the debut single from Lux*, "Boom Box" b/w "Gangsta," that I mentioned in my last post. It came out in 1994 on Feature Recordings. Both tracks are produced by Steady B and "remixed and engineered" by DJ Miz.

The A-side also features Steady B on the mic. "Boom Box" - in the liner notes, it's given the longer and preferable title, "Boom Box Material" - only comes in one version (well, except for an instrumental)... it's clean, but it sounds like the MCs are censoring themselves as they perform. Anyway, although there's a decent amount of curses they have to drop out, it's not too distracting. The beat's ok. It's a little cheapish sounding, but it's basically just a hardcore track for the Lux and Steady to spit over, so it serves its purpose. "Boom Box (Material)" is a dope song designed to introduce the world to Lux, and Steady shows he's still got it as well.

"Gangsta" is the same as the version that later appeared on the EP. Interestingly, though, the credits are a bit different. The EP says it's co-written by Steady B, Mizery and Dame Dollaz (who's credited as asistant engineer on the single); but this release gives sole writing credit to Levi Scott Jr. (I assume that's Lux). This single also gives Steady B production credit for the track, which he doesn't get on the EP. The EP does say it's co-produced by someone named Wycked (I'd guess not the guy who produced for 2Pac and Thug Life, but hey, you never know), though, who gets no mention on the single.

Anyway, whoever did what on it, "Gangsta"'s a dope song (in fact, it's the song I quoted in my The Man They Call Lux write-up). It starts out with a loop from The Godfather theme softly playing, which is then quickly overshadowed by a loud, banging track with some deep piano chords. The sample keeps playing in the background, though, filling in what few gaps the drums and Lux's vocals leave in the track.

The single features radio, street, instrumental and even acapella versions of "Gangsta," and the main and instrumental versions of "Boom Box." It's a dope 12" for anybody, and a must track-down for Lux fans fiending for more material.

*Just to clarify since some online listings get it wrong: the title of the EP was The Man They Call Lux, but the artist's name is just Lux.

Tags: Lux, Steady B, DJ Miz

No Brotherly Love Over Here

I first saw this one in Armand's Records in Philly on cassette around '95 or '96, in their clearance bin. At the time I didn't pick it up, and I've later regretted it and always wondered about it. I was beginning to question if I'd dreamt it (wouldn't be the first dope release that turned out only to exist in my subconscious); but I asked around at the Vinyl Exchange message boards and a couple people knew what I was talking about... turns out it's not even that hard to find; so pick it up if you're interested.

Steady B's "Bogardin'" came out on Feature Recording in 1994... For the record, that would make it post-CEB; and the last record he would release before being convicted of second degree murder and getting life without chance of parole. "Bogardin'" is probably Steady B at his hardcore grittiest. We're actually presented with the remix first, and on this version Steady is joined by Brom of Tainted Mindz (a pretty ill, underground Philly-based crew that released the singles "All In the Flip" and "Killidelphia"), who drops a quick verse. The production is simple but solid: a rumbling bassline, hard drum track, slow horn samples and a scratched in Method Man vocal sample for the hook. Steady drops lyrics like:

"Suckers tryin' to jump in my grave and get comfy;
But I bring the pain like the monthly,
And Bogard like Humphrey.
Lovely,
Suckers need to study,
Observe me;
I keep the tracks dirty,
Filthy;
Comin' out of Philly.
No brotherly love over here;
You get smacked by the nine milly."

Both the lyrics and instrumental are different on the original mix. The beat is switched up, though it's similar in tone... a little simpler without the horns; and the same sample is used for the hook. Unfortunately, only the radio edit is provided for this mix, with the curses covered up by an annoying electronic BRREHHPPP sound.

The B-side (Unfortunately also only presented in Radio Edit form) is a little different. "Let It Go" uses a very familiar loop (heard in Ahmad's "Back In the Day" amongst many others) to slow the pace and let Steady (who's voice still sounds harder than any of his past releases, though... almost like Kool Rock Ski here) introspect and reminisce about coming up in Philly. It's a fitting, albeit often painfully ironic, final song to commemorate a quality career:

"What happened to the good old days?
Can you tell me?
Passed on high school
When I knew they would've failed me.
Gotta blame it on the streets;
That's where they kicked it.
Now I gotta kick it,
'Cause I'm addicted.
...
I give ya what ya want,
'Cause them suckers can't give it.
Comin' with the real,
So don't get it twisted.
Time to throw on the timbos. When I wreck
Flava like this,
All I want is my 'spect.
Steady!
You know me from a long time ago,
When I used to kick the 'Bring the Beat Back'
type of flow.
But now it's '94, and I can still get it up;
And I'm the same nigga
That don't give a fuck.
And I got some brothers that feel the same way;
So you best strap on your vest
When you come to play.
Ok?
Damn!
Who said I wouldn't slam?
It musta been a pig with a heart made of ham.
So all props due to Hip-Hop...
For keepin' me out of the pen
With the use of a pen.
Because sometimes I get evil with my thoughts:
Picturin' me slumpin' judges in court.
I think I better let it go.
(Can't let it go.)
The streets is in my heart
Like a double K.O."

Oh yeah. I was googling around trying to find any info on this record (again, there's essentially none... which is partially why I chose to write about this one), but I did find a tiny scan (from a Japanese online record store) of the original cassingle picture cover I'd seen over 10 years ago:


So, the answer to "where is he now?" is of course an easy one: in a Pennsylvania State correctional institution, and he ain't comin' out (and before anybody says "free Steady B," you might be interested to learn that the Philadelphia police officer who responded to the bank's silent alarm, Lauretha Vaird - a single, African American mother of two children - was the first female Philadelphia Police officer slain in the line of duty). He does still have a myspace page, though, which is maintained by his brother, MB McGlone... there's a great story of how Steady B wrote "I'll Take Your Radio" on there, so definitely have a look.