For no particular reason, I'd like talk about the subject of introductions to rap albums for a quick minute. I don't know the historical reason for their prominence in the genre, but they are altogether very common, and can become integral to the listener's experience. If a rap intro is done well, one will never desire to skip it, likely it will get him or her excited for the music to drop. One of the greatest, and likely my favorite rap intro, is the "The Genesis" by Nas on "Illmatic":
A lot of this is based on the fact that the track is followed by one of the greatest rap songs of all time (N.Y. State of Mind); but I do think that there is something very special about the 1 minute and 46 second introduction itself. The rail car sound effect and vocal samples at the very beginning already hint at the album's themes of inner city life and struggle; with Nas' rapping in the distance acting as a display of the skills one is about to witness. Following that, a beat drops that gets the listener into a groove, and one finds himself bobbing his head immediately. Intentionally or not, Nas' conversing with his crew acts as a piece of the overall theme of ghetto loyalty, but regardless of how hard he may try to act here, the quality of his compatriots' voices and behavior is a clue to the fact that Nas was very young when the album was recorded (only 18).
The hectic nature of the conversation between Nas and his crew makes the introduction feel unscripted even if this wasn't the case. This allows it to avoid the goofy feel of the rap skit, a common form of rap introduction. A personal favorite rap intro along those lines is from Methodman and Redman's first "Blackout" LP titled "Special Joint (Intro)":
The song already prepares the user for the humorous, no boundaries, swaggering music and marijuana themed lyrics that they are about to hear.
Another humorous introduction, and one of two that got me thinking about rap introductions in general, is Busta Rhyme's "Part 2" on the album "When Disaster Strikes" [1998] (which I cannot find on youtube, unfortunately). Busta seemingly adlibs a spoken intro about the coming armageddon at the turn of the millennium in the form of his crew (the Flipmode Squad). He warns everyone to "stack their paper" and prepare for the end times. This is followed by the drop of an intense electronic rhythm and a shorter song.
A more serious rap intro that comes to mind is Goodie Mob's "The Experience" from the album "Still Standing":
For their second album, Goodie Mob, under the pressure of the rap community, cut back on the consciousness of their lyrics a bit and allowed themselves to record a few party oriented and gun boasting numbers. Besides being a powerful critique of the use of the word "nigger" and identity problems within the black community, the first song on the album also acts as a disclaimer to this change. Cee Lo raps, "You don't want to hear the truth/So I'ma lie to ya/Make it sound fly to ya".
The second rap intro that brought this subject to mind is the most recent of my examples; Petey Pablo's "Still Writing In My Diary: 2nd Entry" (2004) opens with a track titled "Part 2" (which also cannot be found on youtube). The first sounds of the album are a recording of a man giving credit to Pablo's character in a humble fashion ("I'm very proud to say I even know the young fella'"). This is set to a simple violin rhythm. Then the music cuts and Pablo himself says "My momma said, 'Can you give her three dollar for a five dollar book of food stamps so she can get her some cigarettes.' [laughter]". Immediately the crunk beat drops and Pablo goes into one of the LP's best songs (also part of the same intro track). This song is a boast about his skills and his return for the second album, as well as southern pride, and a thanks for the support that has been provided by his fans.
As with the other albums, Petey Pablo's introduction sets the mood, prepares the listener for the type of music they are about to be subjected to, and provides an index to some of the themes and subject matters that will be featured for the remainder of the recording. In Goodie Mob's case, the introduction to "Still Standing" is arguably the best song on the album. Regardless of their common brevity, a rap introduction can function as a vital part of understanding a whole LP taken as a cohesive work of art.
Wednesday, August 11, 2010
Safi Abdullah - Another One Gone (1979)
Artist: Safi Abdullah
Album: Another One Gone
Label: Shanachie
Genre: Reggae: World Fusion
Release Date: 1979
Mood: Afrocentric, Fiery, Spiritual, Marching
Rating: *****
This post is less a review than an internet source for information on a forgotten artist and a superb album. To quote the biography as provided by Shanachie in the inner sleeve:
"The music of Safi Abdullah is at once a progressive bridge to the entire pan-African music universe and also strongly rooted in musical tradition. His unique blend of reggae, soca, African music and funk reflects his own wide-ranging experience as a citizen of the world.
Safi Abdullah was born Stuart Bennett in Jamaica. He started playing drums as a youth in Maypen, later joining respected bandleader Lyn Taitt in his Comets band. A stint as resident session drummer at Coxsone Dodd's Studio One put him at the heart of the exploding Jamaican music scene as it generated such new styles as ska, rocksteady and ultimately reggae; working on recordings by the Wailers, Heptones, Alton Ellis and other soon-to-be legendary stars afforded an extraordinary opportunity to develop as a musician. Freelance work with other producers such as Lee "Scratch" Perry, Bunny Lee, and Prince Buster led to work with Tommy McCook and The Skatalites through the mid-sixties. Safi then formed a band with such top musicians as Larry McDonald, Keith Sterling, Boris Gardner and Willie Lindo with whom he performed until 1968 when he traveled to the United States to work with Eartha Kitt.
Arriving in America in 1968 plunged Safi Abdullah into an intense revolutionary political climate. He was drafted into the U.S. Army and saw action in Vietnam from 1969 through 1971. After discharge, work with such top American r 'n' b groups as the Moments and Archie Bell and the Drells yielded an inside look at the American pop scene. Moving to Montreal, he formed a band with his former mentor, Lyn Taitt before moving back to the U.S. for university studies. In 1979, Safi Abdullah recorded his first solo work, "Fatherless Children", an innovative mixture of soca, reggae and African rhythyms; an updated version appears on this album; it's trenchant. This experience social commentary seems ever more timely. His next recording "Afrika is Burning" fused afrobeat, reggae, soca, and disco in an angry anthem which happened to also be great dance music; it was an underground club hit in discos on both the West and East Coast, as well as in several European countries.
After touring Europe from 1981-1982, Safi traveled to Dakar, Senegal, where he enrolled in the University of Dakar and absorbed African culture firsthand. This experience led him to convert to Islam, taking the Muslim name Safi Allah Abdullah.
"Another One Gone" is an explosive tour of the pan-African musical universe using reggae as a base. Classic Jamaican rhythms are used and re-shaped, their affinity with African and other Caribbean rhythms revealed by clever interpolations. Always Safi Abdullah's singing is urgent, passionate, even anguished as he sings of the material and spiritual corruption which keeps humanity from a higher, more fulfilling existence."
That mini bio is a pretty great summary of the sound of this album, and there is little more to add to make a sufficient description. The first and second tracks ("Afrika is Burning" and "Another One Gone") are the strongest here, but Abdullah's song craft is consistently strong throughout. His lyrics are afrocentric, revolutionary, and on the very edge of any political spectrum. "Selfish Desires" is an analysis of the symbols on the U.S. dollar bill, featuring free masonry and other conspiracy-based readings. Other songs are more a reflection of Abdullah's faith than radical mind set, such as "Song for Jah". Bizarre genre clashes are abound, such as the instrumental "Requiem for Dolphy". Safi Abdullah dedication to the avant-garde jazz musician is intepreted as a 80's dancehall riddim overlayed with a low quality electric guitar solo and synth horn section. Despite sounding like a train wreck on paper; in the hands of Abdullah, it all sounds great.
- Afrika is Burning '89 *****!!
- Another One Gone *****!
- Fatherless Children *****
- Song for Jah *****
- Emmanuel Road ****
- War Dance ***
- Selfish Desires ***
- Requiem for Dolphy *****!
(non album version)
Mavado - Mr. Brooks... A Better Tomorrow (2009)
Artist: Mavado
Album: Mr. Brooks... A Better Tomorrow
Label: VP Records
Genre: Reggae: Dancehall
Release Date: Mar 2, 2009
Mood: Militant, Dark, Spiritual
RIYL: Busy Signal, Assassin
Rating: *****
An incredible dancehall album. Mavado polished his sound from his 2007 release, "Gangster for Life" and emerged with a collection of songs that showcase his talents wonderfully. Mavado's voice has a sonic quality that acts like a piece of a dub soundscape, moving through the music in a slow drawl that mirrors the darkness of the subject matter. For the entirety of the first eight tracks, Mavado calls upon Jah for protection from his enemies and the power to overcome them. The driving rhythms of contemporary dancehall act as Mavado's war drum. The best of these first songs is "On the Rock" in which Mavado employs a singjay style and backup chorus to call upon Jah's strength. A song that showcases the oddly successful fusion of Rastafari religion and violent themes is "So Special" in which the DJ toasts: "Jah knows/I'm so special, so special, so special, so special/That's why I'm strapped with a .45 special".
The subject matter changes with "Gangsters Don't Play" and "Real Killer" which are violent boasts of Mavado's street integrity. "Jailhouse" is an effective song about the conditions of the Jamaican jail system. "Don't Worry" is an assurance to Mavado's Gully followers that, in the event of his death, that retaliation will be swift. "Money Changer" and "Money" sound like counters to Gaza disses and go well together back to back. A couple of the songs reuse riddims from the "Gangster for Life" LP, but these versions are better than their predecessors. "In Di Car Back" is the only song that doesn't quite fit in overall, a boast about a sexual encounter, but it acts a nice reprieve towards the end of the album. The album closes with the culture chune "Overcome" a knock-out Big Ship production, similar to "On The Rock" and also extremely effective.
For seventeen straight tracks, Mavado fails to have a bad number. Regardless of their level of truth, the gangster themes here are more believable than almost any album I have ever heard, including hardcore rap's oeuvre. On top of it all, this album is one that gets better with every listen. Highly, highly, recommended, likely one of the greatest contemporary reggae or dancehall releases available.
- David's Psalm (intro) *****
- Every Situation ****
- On the Rock *****!!!
- So Blessed *****
- So Special ****
- Life of a G ****
- Welcome to the Armageddon (interlude) *****
- Gangster's Don't Play *****!
- Real Killer *****
- Chiney K ****
- Jailhouse *****
- Don't Worry ****
- Money Changer ****
- Money ****
- In di Car Back ****
- Which Gal ***
- Overcome *****!
Busy Signal - D.O.B. (2010)
Artist: Busy Signal
Album: D.O.B.
Label: VP Records
Genre: Reggae: Dancehall
Release Date: July 13, 2010
Mood: All over the map
RIYL: Assassin, Mavado, Bounty Killer
Rating: ***
This Busy Signal LP is a bit of a disappointment in comparison to its predecessor, the excellent "Loaded". "Loaded" was a cohesive collection of club numbers, militant riddims, and Busy's pension for culture lyrics; there was plenty of variety, yet it all worked well together. The same cannot be said here. Busy tries his hand at a latin dancehall number ("Busy Latino") which falls flat miserably and results in goofy sounding salsa. He also gives a go at the strange, longstanding tradition of opera dancehall on "Opera", which isn't a total loss (largely due to the high quality of Busy's lyrical craft on that track) but certainly isn't great and sounds miserable stuck in the middle of the rest of the album. The best tracks here stand at two entirely different ends of a spectrum of mood: militant anthems and lover's numbers. As singles the lovers songs "Sweet Love" and "One More Night" are actually quite great and something Busy hadn't done before to this level of success. The militant numbers "Money Tree" (in which Busy considers how the social changes he would make in Jamaica if he was infinitely rich) and Summn' A Guh Gwaan (another culture number featuring Bounty Killer) are both massive chunes and are the highlights of the album.
The two Stephen "Di Genius" McGregor (current reigning king of dancehall production) tracks ("How U Bad So" and "Hairdresser Shop") aren't bad, but surely Busy has had better cuts with Big Ship in the last few years. Also sorely missed on this album is any sign of the Jafrican riddim by Coppershot Productions, which Busy had two or three excellent versions on. And if Busy Signal was looking for genre variety certainly he could have replaced the awful "Busy Latino" with the excellent "Wooeii Gal Wooeeii" soca number featuring Trinidad and Tobago's Machel Montano. The Stagalag riddim (a reworking of the legendary Stalag riddim) does make an appearance here with Busy's cut "Hi Grade"; however, his version was far from the best on that compilation.
But, a fan accustomed to dancehall albums as carriers of three to four great singles and a few misses will find what they're looking for here in the stronger numbers. Definitely recommended for Busy Signal fans, but not a crucial release to pick up this year.
- How U Bad So ***
- Picante ****
- My Money (Money Tree) *****
- Yes Dawg ****
- Busy Latino *
- Gal Dem Song ***
- Sweet Love (Night Shift) *****
- Hi Grade ***
- Opera **
- One More Night *****
- Summn' A Guh Gwaan (feat. Bounty Killer) *****!
- Hair Dresser Shop ***
- Nuh Fraid ****
- Peace Reign **
- Nuh Boy Caan Buy Without (Acapella) [CD Bonus Track?] ***
Sunday, August 1, 2010
Romain Virgo - Self Titled (2010)
Artist: Romain Virgo
Album: Romain Virgo
Genre: Reggae: Lover's Rock, Neo-Roots
Release Date: Jun 8, 2010
Mood: Love Making, Sunshine
RIYL: Beres Hammond, Gyptian
Rating: ****
This is Romain Virgo's debut self titled album. Romain is an up-and-coming singer with an superb voice. The LP opens with two knock-out culture tunes, Mi Caan Sleep, with lyrics about youth violence in Jamaica, and Who Feels It Knows It (not to be confused with the Bob Marley song), an anthem for the lower working class Jamaicans. Romain seamlessly moves from heartfelt roots and culture numbers to excellent Lover's tunes with a skill rivaling Beres Hammond in his prime. In fact, most of the songs show little evidence of being a contemporary release, with only the slightest evidence of tastefully executed autotuning revealing their actual modern nature. The Lover's middle tracks, including "Taking You Home" and "Should I Call Her" are almost as excellent as the two openers. Unfortunately the album is very front heavy, although none of the later tracks are truly bad (with the somewhat cheesy lyrically "I'm Doing Good" closing off things on a sour note). A little better distribution of the stronger songs would make for a better listening experience, but that's a small complaint for a highly recommended LP. Romain's singjaying in an old school dancehall style on "Customer Care" (using the Duck Riddim I believe) and the Nyabinghi production of "Be Good" offer up a nice variety to the album on a whole. This is likely to be one of the best reggae albums of the year. Looking forward to seeing this young artist (he's only 20) continue into the future.
- Mi Caan Sleep *****!
- Who Feels it Knows It *****!
- Love Doctor ***
- Taking You Home *****
- As the Money Done ****
- Should I Call Her *****
- Wanna Go Home ****
- Dark Skin Girl ****
- Live Mi Life ****
- Customer Care ****
- No Money ***
- Murderer ***
- Be Careful ****
- I'm Doing Good **
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)