Those that have worked with the Godfather describe him as “eccentric”, and this bugged-out article that Max Glazer put together for On The Go magazine around nine years ago. A couple of tracks to go along with it – “Hazardous” from his 1991 album showcases Don rocking three different techniques on one song, while “Piece of the Action” demonstrates his more recent style over a buttery Betty Davis loop. While some seem to favor his early album and his demos, tracks like “Action” and “Seeds of Hate” are some of his finest as far as I’m concerned.

Godfather Don - Hazardous [Hazardous, Select, 1991]

Godfather Don - Piece of the Action [twelve inch single, Hydra, 1997]

It’s finally happened – after the Salute To Weed Carriers blog was relaunched and briefly blew the fuck up with the First Annual Weed Carrier Awards, I thought the whole movement had pretty much jumped the shark. But as it turns out, after pitching the idea of WC article to Modern Fix magazine a couple of months ago they decided to run my piece in the new issue (#53). If you want a copy, you can pick it up in most spots in California and Minnesota, as well as Boston, Portland, Seattle, Phoenix, New York and Las Vegas.

I might have to do a new post over at the WC site to celebrate….

Since this has been mentioned a number of times in response to Kool Kim‘s article about the BDP / PM Dawn incident, it seemed only right to post what KRS had to say about the incident, plus his static with several other groups. Here’s the classic interview that he did in the April 1992 issue of The Source magazine, conducted by the founding editor Jon Shecter:
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Here’s an early Q&A with Preme that ran in The Source back in July 1991. Guess he never sent that D.U. remix, huh?

Mobb Deep - Cop Hell [white label]

In terms of vocab, concepts, flow and style, Chill Rob G was the top dog in the Flavor Unit wolf pack. His first record remains as one of the finest selections in the impressive Wild Pitch catalog, as all three songs hit equally hard. “Chillin” didn’t end up making the album, but provides a perfect example of Rob’s technique, as he informs us that “it’s hard to find a rapper with my dedication/intelect, sense of humor – plus imagination” while “jumping from one subject to the next” in a superb display of lyrical prowess that manages to combine a stream-of-consciousness feel while still keeping it in the pocket over a rolling break. (more…)

Adding on the Louie Louie article from the other day, here’s an old interview from The Source.

I should also mention my post on Funkmaster Wizard Wiz over at Oh Word for their Crack Week.

This really takes me back…this piece dropped just before Pete began his reign as the most in-demand producer/remixer of the moment, not to mention the impact of the Mecca & The Soul Brother LP. I wonder what happened to that D-Nice, Heavy D and Ice Cube posse cut that he mentions? (more…)

Remember this post about Freddie Foxxx and Ultramagnetic? I finally dug-up the Source article about the First¹ Annual Rappers Boxing Match. (more…)

1. 1. Sadly, it was also the last.[back]

I have to admit that I was shocked to read a few comments in my last post that a few people feel that Return of The Funky Man isn’t that great of an album. This is complete madness. As great as Funky Technician was, Finesse’s second album is my shit. This may be partly because when it came out I was temporarily without a turnatable and went through a period of buying tapes, but that cassette stayed in my Sony for years.

Here’s ten reasons why this album is awesome:

1. It features numerous appearences from the legendary Grandpa Finesse.

2. Much like Mecca and the Soul Brother, almost every song on Return… is at least four minutes long, making for about 70 minutes of classic D.I.T.C. beats.

3. The tape has an exclusive Showbiz produced song called “Hands In The Air, Mouth Is Shut”, which is fuckin’ dope.

4. The two tracks featuring Percee-P are two of the greatest displays of raw lyrics ever put down on record.

5. It’s the first and last time we’ll ever hear from Shell Rumble and the original Harry-O.
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If you’re a true rap magazine junkie then you’ve no doubt got some old issues of Hip Hop Connection stashed somewhere. This rag has been doing it’s thing since 1988 over in not-so-sunny England, and while it’s always had it’s fair share of crap articles over the years, it was also the only place you could find decent interviews with people like Tragedy, Lakim Shabazz and Hard Knocks. The review pages are a different matter all together, guilty of panning awsome albums like Straight Outta Compton and Lord Finesse‘s Return of the Funky Man, which they complained was “too basic” (and rated as one star out of five if I remeber correctly), while some bullshit like the Dream Warriors received top marks.

This short interview, which ran as a triple feature on Rhyme Syndicate artists (anyone remember Hen-G and Evil-E’s awful Brothers LP?) seems to do it’s best to paint Finesse as some kind of skirt-chasing party animal, even going as far as to include snide remarks from the editor!?

Without a shadow of a doubt, the most disturbing development in the rap world in
recent times is the whole concept of “haters”. It’s one thing to stick up for shit that you like, but the whole thing has gotten twisted to absurd proportions. According to some misinformed folks, you should NEVER EVER criticize any rap artist for the following reasons:

1. Don’t get mad that another man is getting paid.

Why not get pissed when some jerky is stacking cheese because music fans have been fooled into spending their hard-earned on some trash CD? (more…)

Sorry to confuse any UK rap fans, but the Parker Lewis I’m referring to isn’t in fact the British MC/producer who provided the beat for the first song on Fishscale (Lewis Parker), but the name of the lead character from that TV show that tried to recreate the whole Ferris Buellers Day Off vibe. In what must have been a slow news month at The Source, Matty C reported that the star of Parker Lewis Can’t Lose shocked the crowd at Ed Lover‘s birthday party with some “impressive” mic skills. All I’ve got to say is that Corky Nemic has to one of the whitest names ever. (more…)

All of you production equipment nerds are gonna have a field day on this one, as the RZA drops science about analog vs. digital, samplers he’s messed with, mixing techniques and the whole nine. It’s incredible how influential his sound has been to today’s producers – don’t forget that only a couple of people were speeding-up soul vocals back then.

Wu-Related Extra Reading: While record reviews are a dime-a-dozen these days, live show reviews are usually good value. Joey from Straight Bangin’ has been on a winning streak with his show recaps, and these two maintain his high standard:

Wu Tang: Getting The Band Back Together

What The Fuck Is A Papoose?

Bol also delivered when he recounted a rare St. Louis appearence from Tony Starks.

And for those of you who can’t get enough Ghostface news, eskay threw up the official Fishscale tracklisting.

Also, you can catch the new J-Love‘s Ghostface: Hidden Darts Pt. 3, which features more of J’s dope remixes and exclusives, over at The Smoking Section.

Another Vibe throwback. Too many quotables to mention on this one…especially Rae’s reaction to that Miami shit!

Truth be told, Vibe magazine pretty much sucked from Issue 0 (yes, they actually put that out). It wasn’t just the numerous pictures of half-naked dudes that made me think that something wasn’t quite right about this Quincy Jones project, most of the reviews and articles were horrible as well. There were some exceptions though, and thanks to regular columns from Bonz Malone, Bobbito and the Rap Bandit (guess The Source didn’t need him anymore once Star and Buck jumped on board), the mag was at least worth a five minute read at the newsagents. (more…)