Snowed In With Lyte Week, Day 2: Paper Thin

Cold, snowy nights like this are perfect for revisiting one of my flat-out favorite hip-hop songs of all time. MC Lyte's "Paper Thin" is the song I go back to whenever I'm feeling down on hip-hop... When I've heard one too many untalented assclowns kicking stupid freestyles or cutting terrible dance records, and I start to question the merits of the entire artform, I revisit this. The simple but hard-hitting beat with the single, perfect sample... Lyte's voice and flow when she rides the beat: rough but playful. The lyrics and subject matter: simple yet perfect songwriting.

And fittingly, this great rap song has been issued on a great 12" single. First up is the version we all know, the album version. As you probably remember, on the LP, as "Paper Thin" reaches what should be the end it loops the entire instrumental, including the back-up ad-lib vocals, and replays all the way through sans lyrics. All I have to say about that is: the 12" version does this, too. Also included is a proper, separated instrumental, and also an acapella version.

Then there's the remixes. What's good about them is that they both wisely keep many elements of the original track that really make it kick, but also change things up just enough to keep it fresh. The first mix by The Audio Two adds a chunky, old school piano break and another sample (from Big Daddy Kane's "Pimpin' Ain't Easy") played behind the hook. The drum track is also constantly being chopped on the turntables, giving it a faster, high energy feel while still keeping the same tempo as the original, so Lyte's vocals still ride it perfectly. Then, The Alliance's remix goes back to the original but adds some deeper percussion and some scratching (not sure if it's by King of Chill or DJ K Rock).

Finally, there's a non-album B-side called "Spare the Rod." This is a fun cut with a reggae-style beat that feels like it could've been lifted right off of Alliance's album. It's a posse cut, featuring everyone who contributed to the 12": The Alliance, Milk Dee and even the King of Chill busts a rhyme. The beat might not be impressive enough, the hook may be too silly and the rhymes too casually freestyled to catch mainstream attention, but I could just picture this being played on a classic Red Alert show back in '88.

Great single for a great song; 'nuff said.

Snowed In With Lyte Week, Day 1: Ride With Lytro

There's a big ol' snow storm kicking up outside, so it looks like I'll be spending a lot of time indoors... which makes it time for another "week!" So, I thought I'd start with her last (to date) single, because, well, just as whim. "Ride With Me" was the 2002 lead-in and only single from MC Lyte's seventh album, Da Underground Heat, Vol. 1 Hosted by Jamie Foxx. Yeah, all of that is part of the title. She also lists her name as "MC Lyte Is Lytro," so apparently she was going for kind of a long, convoluted mouthful theme.

After her second major label deal (she started on First Priority/ Atlantic, then moved to EastWest/Elektra) ended, MC Lyte announced she was putting her next album out independently. Which I guess is what she did, although this 12"'s label credits BMG Music, SGI/ CMM, Imusic, and Sunni Gyrl! Inc.; plus there's a logo us informing us she's now the "First Lady of the Def Squad" (what? when did that happen?)... There's more tiny little logos on this record than almost any I've ever seen; but, ok, I guess it still counts as independent.

So, yeah. This single, like the entirety of the rest of the album, was produced by two guys collectively known as Maad Phunk!. And you can basically sum up the album with a simple formula: MC Lyte(great) + Maad Phunk!(bad) + overload of painfully irritating skits = one mediocre CD. But thankfully, this single successfully manages to isolate the two best songs from that disc, making this a worthwhile pick-up, assuming you're getting it cheap.

"Ride With Me" was actually nominated for a Grammy, and features one the funkiest beats from the album. It's still full of generic sample-free keyboarding and cheesy pop-rap effects; but the piano loop and the drum track sound decent and make a passable sound bed for Lyte to spit over:

"Been a long time coming, but I'm running with the torch,
Race, got a lot a rats but I can't be caught, or bought,
'Cause I won't sell out. That's why me and the big dogs, we fell out.
Not with a major, but I'm still major league;
Crash ya dome with this hit then watch your nose bleed.
You want it, you can get it anytime;
'Cause I got many lines for niggas of any kind."

Granted, it sounds a bit silly when she mentions "haters" and asks us to "get crunk" on the hook; but there's still no denying the evidence that there's a skilled MC on the mic.

But the B-side, "God Said Lyte" is even better. It's got a little funk guitar, which, yes, still has that "we're not paying to clear any samples" tin sound... but it's played low, and the rest of the track is just a basic drum track beat with hand claps that'll actually have you nodding your head. It's the kind of track that could only work with a nice MC who really knows how to ride the rhythm, and fortunately, Lyte is up to the challenge, coming with a tighter delivery and better lyrics. It even has a genuinely infectious hook that goes, "I'm rhymin' and designin', also creatin'/ The dope, def rhyme that is always bein' taken/ By a sucker MC that wants to be like me/ No trait of originality/ Don't ever second guess me/ And if you're wonderin' who could the best be/ The hip-hop maniac, uptown brainiac/ In full effect, MC Lyte is back." Honestly, the A-side is okay - but this song deserves checking out.

This 12" also gets some extra value out of being nice & loaded with clean, dirty, instrumental and acappella versions for both songs (Acappellas? Quick, somebody put Lyte's vocals over some soulful Showbiz or Pete Rock tracks!). I recommend any Lyte fan picking up the 12" for the B-side... and you may give the A-side a few spins, too, if you're feeling forgiving. So get the 12" and pass on the album - there's a reason they didn't bother to press that up on wax.

Newcleus: The Twixt Generation

Of course, you all know who Newcleus are, and remember their classic jams: "The Wikki Wikki Song," "Jam On It," "Computer Age," etc. And you probably have at least heard of Newcleus: The Next Generation, who came out with an album and a bunch of singles in the 90's - it was mostly new members, but a couple of the kids from the original line-up were in that one. But there was a short-lived iteration of Newcleus in between these two formations. It featured some original members, and some new members who didn't stick around to be part of the "Next Generation." This version of the group never released any albums, but they did put out a couple 12" singles on Super Power Records in the late 80's.

This is one of those in-between-stage Newcleus joints, and it's actually pretty good. They retain more of the lively, old school vibe of the original line-up, but still steer themselves more in the raw hip-hop direction of The Next Generation. ...You know, as opposed to that pop 80's sing-songy style the original crew had started drifting into with songs like "Why."

I can't say I expected to enjoy this 12" when I put it on my turntables for the first time, so it was really a nice surprise. The song is called "Huxtable House Party," an ode to the The Huxtable dance, and it came out in 1987. Huxtable, for those of you too young to remember, is the family name of the characters from The Cosby Show. Though for some reason they deny the connection: "no, we're not talking about TV; it's not Theodore and Rudy." What is it, then, if not a Cosby Show reference? Of course it's a Cosby Show reference!

The Newcleus kids (Kid Fresh and Lil'-O-Me) are still on-hand, filling pretty much the same role they did on the original hits, ad-libbing with their vocoder voices... even at one point doing a little "wikki wikki wikki." A new member takes the place of Cozmo or Chilly as the traditional, lead MC and does a pretty good job of emulating the style and the effect of his predecessors. His voice doesn't hit quite as hard or deep, but he's still holds his own on the track just fine. There's also a brief bit of singing on the chorus, which really only goes to show how "Huxtable House Party" is just all about being a light, catchy song over funky beats in the style of their greatest hits. It's not exactly 100% as good as "Jam On It;" but if you like Newcleus, you'll certainly like this as well.

The 12" has four versions: the main version, and the "Dub," "Edit" and "Bonus" mixes, all of which are pretty self-explanitory. The "Edit" is just a 4 minute version of the original six minute version, the "Dub" is a brief (2:23) instrumental, and the "Bonus" just fills out the rest of the record with bonus beats.

Before I go, I have to tell you guys about this. Newcleus has now entered into a fourth generation. The quartet of Cozmo D, Chilly B, Al T. McLaren and Lady E now make up the group, and they have a great official website over at JamOnProductions.com. Yeah, they have a myspace, too. They're working on a new album called Return To Earth. Apparently, they experienced some delays (there's an excellent blog post all about it here), but they now site March 24th as their release date. it will be CD, mp3 "and we will do vinyl as well if there is a demand." Well, I'm keen to hear it.

Today Is My Lucky Day

...My Lucky Day 12" that is. ;) I've had a flood of e-mails (if two constitute a flood, which I like to think they can) asking me about the "Ninja Tune" Buck 65 12" I mentioned in my "Wicked and Weird" post back in September. Part of that's my fault for spreading a little misinformation; it's not actually on Ninja Tune Records; so I apologize for adding any confusion.

So, no, it's not on Ninja Tune... it's actually on Tag: catalog #TAG001. Tag? Yes, as in "Tag: Body Spray for Men." It's a promotional 12" for men's body spray.

The A-side is by Airborn Audio, who appear "under license from Ninja Tune," which is what I saw on the label scan that made me think the label actually was NT. But now I own it and know better. Their song, "Inside the Globe" is taken from their album Good Fortune; and it was also released on 12" as the b-side to "Bright Lights." I can't say I ever heard Airborn Audio before (Ninja Tune as a label is usually more of a warning than a recommendation in my book), but this is actually not bad. Very backpacky lyrical. The instrumental is also included, as it was on the "Bright Lights" 12".

And the b-side, of course, is "Wicked and Weird" by Buck 65. As I covered in my previous post, the song had already been released as a 12" single, but unlike Airborn Audio's case, that 12" didn't include the instrumental version. So that makes the instrumental an exclusive to this 12".

So basically if this 12" is worthwhile or not basically boils down to whether you care about owning instrumentals on vinyl. It's also not a bad 12" to own on its own merits: one good song, one great song, and it comes in a cute, little sticker cover. But the other "Wicked and Weird" 12" features a remix and another Buck 65 song only available on the original single, so this can only be an "in addition to" rather than an "instead of." If you're lucky, though; you can pick this one up cheap like me (get it? "lucky?" eh? Eh?).

Louie, Louie (The Raps) 3

^^I don't know why YT is compressing my widescreen video into a fullscreen ratio, but whadevuh.

InstaRapFlix 17: Grind: Hip Hop 101

I confess. I picked this one solely because it's short. Grind: Hip Hop 101 (Netflix rating: 1.5 stars) has no reviews on reviews/comments on Netflix, and the cover isn't terribly forthcoming, except that it's some kind of guide to hip-hop business; but it clocks in at under an hour, so I figured "let's find out." Plus, apparently, it's the ultimate!

Well, the first 14 of this film's 56 minutes turns out to be a trailer reel of other hip-hop oriented DVDs available from this company. I guess that's your first hip-hop business lesson right there! Always be selling.

Then, after those 14 minutes, guess what? The exact same trailer REPEATS, playing 100% identically, for the next 14 minutes! Seriously, no shit. We're literally halfway through the movie, and it hasn't started yet!

So, finally, the actual film starts, with no opening credits or anything (just as well, we're down to only 28 minutes of movie!); just a series of quick sound-bites with various promotors recorded at parties (some probably drunk, the rest definitely drunk), saying a few sentences about hip-hop business. There's a huge banner constantly across the bottom third of the screen reminding us of the title of the film (GRIND) and the name of who they're talking to. And they drop nuggets like, "If you're not with me... then... I guess you must be against me!" Just to give you a real sense of this movie, I'll give you a complete transcript of one, from a guy calling himself Phil Gates*:

"Basically, the core of DJs is an organization of DJs. You know, uhm, Tony came up with the idea, basically, you know, as we build. When I got into it, it was like July of last year or so, and me and Tony just was buildin'. We kept talking and talking and talking. We got the same type of views, you know? We got these DJs that, you know, somehow or another, it became with black people where it's all about money. No matter what you do to me or what I do to you, if... if it's in the course of tryin' to get money, it's ok. If I stab you in the back, to get to you as a camera person or something? As long as it's to get money, everybody looks at it like it's cool. You know what I'm saying? Back in the day, shitting on somebody or fucking with somebody was not cool. You know what I'm saying?"

That's his whole segment (though they do come back to him later for more). Now, it's not that what the people interviewed are saying is stupid (only sometimes! haha); just that all these people are clearly put on the spot, and for the most part don't have anything to say. So they brag about their gold watch or say "hip-hop is grown into TV commercials," and then we cut away to the next guy. Some of them just say who they are and that you're watching Grind: Hip Hop 101 and that's it; they're done. Do Or Die appear just to plug their upcoming album. And, also because everybody's just being filmed on the spot at random events, it can be hard make out what they're saying, because of loud music and talking all around them.

There are a few known artists included, like David Banner, Juelz Santana and of course Juvenile, who's named on the box. But Juvenile is featured for less than a minute, and cut-off mid-sentence! Believe me, if you're getting this DVD to see any of the artists interviewed, you're gonna be disappointed.

In fact, really, I can't imagine anyone not being disappointed with this DVD. The only business lesson to take from this DVD is: you just got ripped off! Try not to get ripped off again. So, whether you wind up picking up any of the many DVDs they advertise in their 28-minute opening will show whether you learned your lesson or not.


*After some post-viewing net surfing around, I see there're a couple guys on the internet calling themselves Phil Gates, including one at PhilGates.com and one at PhilGates.net. This guy in the movie doesn't appear to be any of those guys, however.

The Chubbsta in '09, Worrrrd Up!

Normally, when I get promo mp3s in my email box, I delete 'em with the rest of the spam. But when it's Chubb Rock, I gotta answer the call...


"Back In" is the first mp3 from an upcoming collaborative album by Chubb Rock and Wordsmith (a British MC, not to be confused with Wordsworth). It's a cool, subtle beat produced by regular Wordsmith collaborator Strada, and features a hook and background by a female vocalist named Kimia Collins. Apparently it's leading up to a mixtape first, called A Crack In the Bridge; and it will ultimately culminate in a proper album titled, Bridging the Gap (referring to the gap between the old and new school), due out second quarter of 2009. I'm sold already; now hurry up and put the album out. ;)

Oh, and here's the link to the mp3.
(I'd be sure and download it, too. Chubb Rock has a pretty poor batting average when it comes to following through with promised albums these days.)

Loosey's Secret Duet

"Loosey's Rap" is an okay 80's pop song by Rick James featuring guest verses by Roxanne Shanté. It's got some funky bass guitar and it's kinda fun, but nothing to get excited about. You'll dig it if someone plays it on the radio or a mixtape, but it's not surprising that there's tons of copies of this for sale all over pretty cheap, and you couldn't be blamed for passing it up. ...Except it turns out you'd be missing out on a really cool, completely over-looked B-side.

Before we get to that, though, let's quickly run down what else is on this 12". There's the main version, titled "Rix Mix," plus the instrumental. And then there's a Marley Marl remix, which is just a slight improvement over the original version, with a surprisingly classical R&B-style breakdown, a strange loop of a vocal sample of (I think) Eddie Murphy, and a cool little piano solo at the end. And there's a house mix (called "Loosey's House of Trix Mix"), which I think even house music fans would pass over pretty quickly.

Right. So now that that's out of the way, it's time to point out that there's one more mix on the B-side, called the "New Rap Version." So, why should you care about this version so much more than the others? Well, how about if we started by taking Rick James off the record? Then we replace him with Big Daddy Kane. We also throw out the whole premise of the song (singing about some sexy girl name Loosey - she's "loose," get it? Nyuck, nyuck), and just have Kane and Shanté trading braggadocio, freestyle verses back and forth over Marley's stripped-down beat (with recurring reprisals of that crazy Eddie Murphy sample). Suddenly, you've got a classic, 1988 Juice Crew track that could've come right off In Control vol. 1!

Now, you have to pay close attention to what edition of this single you're getting. There are several different 12"'s of this single, and not all of them feature the "New Rap Version" - so be careful! I should also point out that the cover and label credit Big Daddy Kane as being on the house mix, too; but that's pretty misleading. There are just short vocal samples of him and Shanté used in the instrumental. ...Like I said, pass on the house mix.

Louie, Louie (The Raps) 2.5

Louie, Louie (The Raps)

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