Can I give a Soul Drop? I need to start doing this on the regular cause I always seem to be circling back to the funky business and throwing tracks around to people. Hip hop blog nothin… Anyway, I’ve been doing a lot of driving lately and the soul playlist gets a lot of love. Here’s some jammies for your soul holes.
Mavis Stapes - A Piece Of The Action
I gotta give it up to 4 Brother Beats for this one. I hadn’t heard this Mavis Staples albums before, but am always checkin in over there. So I grab it on a whim, and cot damn. I gotta say this album quick became a favorite. I can’t even say what the appeal is, it’s just solid and soulful throughout. The title cut is my jam. Shout out to 4 Brothers for doing their thing. “delicious, delicious, delicious”.
Curtis Mayfield - Trippin Out
It’s Curtis, what can I say. This one came on this morning when i was out and about and I was actually amazed i hadn’t written abotu this cut. This is one I carry in my crates almost all the time. Ski flipped this for Camp Lo’sBlack Nostalgic it was a prefect mach (sorry for the sample spottin, but both cuts are favs). Their swag fit it to a T. Curtis is unfuckwitable.
Ohmega Watts - Groovin On Sunshine
OK, it’s not “soul” in the classic sense, but ti thinks it’s worth trying to give shine to some other OTHER soulful cats. I played the hell of that first Ohmega Watts album when it came out. It really hyped me up on hip hop production again to hear some raw funky shit like this come out. Not gonna lie, I still play it all the time. I haven’t really chimed in on his newer album, but sit tight Watts I’ll get to ya.
Marlena Shaw - California Soul (Diplo Remix)
I cannot front, my man Unite hipped me to this jammy. Normally, I’m not too much of a Diplo fan either (NO HATE-O), and the throwback remixes are a bit hit and miss at times but Diplo came correct. Let alone jumping on a soul classic, that was ballsy. This remix adds the bump for sure. Not mad.
I may be a few days late on the blog-o-sphere… but it’s worth it. Now, I’ve had my ups and down with them Sa-Ra cats, but i gotta raise one up for this shit. Hate on Mr. West and 3000 all you want but this is FIYAH. Video is killin it too.
This is going to sound ridiculous, but I actually wrote this post a few weeks ago. For some reason I thought I posted it. Apparently I didn’t. Yeah, that’s how these last few weeks have been for me! On with with it… here’s some new ish.
Dwele - Open Your Eyes
OK, this is kinda of a strange. Dwele covering Bobby Caldwell’sOpen Your Eyes, which people bug out on due to Common’sThe Light. Funny how things come full circle like that. Anyway, Dwele is the dude so I’m not mad. His new album (dropping very soon - or likely by now) is pretty solid if you got love for neo-soul and the Detroit bump. There’s also a strange Dilla homage on there.
Giant Panda - Cinemax
The boys Giant Panda are back with a new album on Tres. I’ve given it a few listens and haven’t yet really absorbed it, but Cinemax is definitely a jam. Now I’m not going to go as far as to say the album ain’t hitting me right just yet, but let’s just say I ain’t warmed up to it yet. Their last effort was a new classic in my humble opinion.
Atmosphere - Shoulda Known
OK this isn’t THAT new but I wasn’t really checking for it. What the fuck is up with this beat? Ant done flipped his shit up. After the last album they gave away a little while back - I fully expected to hear more Atmosphere to be on the throwback style. I gotta say, this beat is kinda hot and not what I expected from them. Slug, those lyrics about drugs and girls are gettin a little old homie - but I’ll let it slide for this one.
Vast Aire - The Crush
I played the shit out of the Cannibal Ox album when it came out. There were a few things I learn from all that listening; one - El-P is actually a pretty dope producer and two, Vast Aire is a crazy nice MC. That album made me respect El-P. Anyway, I’m feelin this cut - though heard it possibly didn’t make the album.
Hustle Simmons - The Rundown ft. 84 & Fel Sweetenberg
A lot of buzz about these cats right now. Seriously, they had me at the horn stabs. Been playing this a lot lately though, and am excited to hear the album. Dig it.
EDITOR NOTE: Yo, if you can’t figure out how to download these file, click the titles.
EDITOR NOTE 2: Dwele’sOpen Your Eyes was actually first released on the Detroit Soul compilation a while back. Thanks to my discriminating readers. I did however discover it was pruduced by the The Platinum Pied Pipers.
I guess I should start this by noting that I get geeked over American regional club and rap music, (honestly, Europe ain’t got shit on us in this realm.) With the advent of continually cheaper ways to create and record music since the invention of the synthesizer and home studio equipment, regional music has developed qualities that are immediate, visceral and as varied as the regions from which they emerge.
Yet, one common thread unites all regions when it comes to dance music (both the good and the bad) is that nobody wants to dance feeling sad. This shit is for the house party/street jam/bar/whip-on-the-way-to-the-club/blastin’ out the speakers at the club, and I’m not in here to expand my mind—I’m tryin’ to get faded and holler at a breezy… you get the point. Dance music in particular has the ability to be both homogenous-in-a-bad-way across regions, yet successful in its own area. Therein lies the source of my fascination with regional dance music—the subtleties that make it entirely unique. I believe that dance music made specifically for the club environment operates within very narrow confines, (see: house, trance, etc.) and therefore, the ability to infuse a strong sense of regional identity through unique traits is what sets good dance music apart from the run-of-the-mill.
New Orleans, Louisiana is an industrial port town at the banks of the Mississippi River, (as if you didn’t know.). Like many port cities, New Orleans benefits from a constant influx of cultural influences. From Mardi Gras, jazz and blues to voodoo, New Orleans can make the goings on in Las Vegas look as innocent as a kindergarten playground. Gratifying, unique, troubled, unstable, transient, sexual, insecure: these are all descriptions of New Orleans as a city. These adjectives could easily be applied to Bounce music—the dance music of New Orleans.
In 1986, a seemingly ordinary 12” single by a group claiming Queens, New York as their home dropped on Profile Records. Drag Rap was the Showboys’ second single, and outside of being featured on a Mr. Magic Rap Attack compilation, didn’t achieve much notoriety.
Of course, that statement does not apply if you’ve ever spent any time in New Orleans hearing Bounce. Drag Rap (and to a lesser extent, Rock the Beat by Derek B) is literally the basis of an entire genre of rap music. Known locally in New Orleans as the “Triggerman” beat, Drag Rap’s wavering, Casio-induced melody, drum loops and vocoder-laden reprise are the basis for nearly every bounce track. I have yet to hear another regional dance music that shares this trait—one song acting as the primary basis for an entire genre.
During the late 1980’s and through the mid 1990’s artists such as DJ Jimi, UNLV, Mannie Fresh, DJ Jubilee and Juvenile (yes, Back That Azz Up Juvenile,) dominated the scene with songs based on Triggerman. Although all of the songs all shared a common origin, they were unique in their call-and-response chants, production and rhyme styling. The lyrics rarely made it out of the female-objectification arena, but it’s nothing worse than what was heard from Miami Bass artists of the same era, Chicago House music from the 1990’s, or today’s Baltimore dance tracks.
Bounce music became the bridge that enabled the city’s rappers to be heard outside of New Orleans. The list of New Orleans rappers that produced bounce tracks reads like today’s “who’s who” of southern club rap production: the aforementioned Mannie Fresh and Juvenile, B.G., B-32 (later known as Baby/Birdman), Lil’ Wayne and the Hot Boyz, Master P., Soulja Slim, and Mystikal were among the literally hundreds of artists producing tracks based upon a single song. Bounce music provided the catalyst for these artists to elevate themselves to larger careers and for the establishment of successful record labels that made their presence on a national scale, (notably Cash Money and No Limit)
However, the role that Bounce played was not static in its ability to catalyze careers, but its unique aesthetic also inspired artists throughout the southern United States for years to come. Recently, Beyoncé featured a very bounce-influenced song on her album Birthday, OutKast repeatedly evoke a bounce-like “Break!” chant to conclude every song on Stankonia and one of David Banner’s most successful singles, Like a Pimp is based on a screwed version of the Triggerman beat.
Today, Bounce music does not share the same ubiquity in New Orleans as it once did, but by no means is the movement dead. Artist like Gotti Boi Chris have stepped in where their predecessors left off, and their sound has evolved into a more complex, faster and strikingly more energetic version than the founders’ had envisioned. Although I would assert that Bounce music’s period of relevance has mostly passed, interest in the genre will continue as long as the newer artists keep cranking out the tracks.
Gotti Boi Chris-Cut it Up
(note: play this LOUD and if your girlfriend doesn’t dance to this, you should probably break up with her, it’s one of the most amped-up tracks I’ve ever heard. The air raid sirens at 1:35… holy crap.)
Here’s part 2 to the Memorial Day weekend jump off. Bang these in your box and step your party jams up. This here is the funk & soul installment to keep things moving. I will also affectionately refer to it as the “hot records I don’t have” post. So holler if you’re holdin!
The Lafayette Afro Rock Band - Hihache
Lordy, that’s the business. If this don’t make your shake your ass your shit is broke. Seriously. This has been comped to death but it’s still a classic. I’m not gonna lie, I don’t even have the Soul Makossa album. I’ve never wanted to pay what it goes for and I’ve never come across it in the wild. Shit, the Malik album goes for even more… regardless, this cut is a favorite of mine and this is a pretty crispy version.
Ronnie Keaton - Going Down For The Last Time
This is a record I’ve been looking for. Aside from that mean ass break on the front, this song holds it’s own regardless. This was on a Keb Darge comp a little while back and was also flipped by Madlib for Vast Aire’sLook Ma No Hands. The 45 on Konduko (Miami) doesn’t really ever turn up now that those cats shed light on it - believe me I’ve looked. Oh well, it probably never really did anyway but just means it’s gonna cost me more now. Pass one my way if you see it. Meanwhile… All your Ronnie Keaton records are belong to Keb!
Dyke & The Blazers - Stuff
Now that’s funky. A friend just laid a copy of the Funky Broadway comp on me recently so it was nice to get a full clean listen of a grip of Dyke & The Blazers stuff in one place. These cats were much more than just Funky Broadway. Leon Haywood actually played with these guys for a while as well (more on him later, cause he’s pretty bad ass in his own right). Thanks Andy.
Peter Reno - Silver Thrust
How about some funky flute for that ass! When I was traveling in Baltimore (and record shopping of course) i ran into Jason Willett who had a great story about hooking up with DeWolfe and licensing a grip of music from them to release a comp. I got this from him and it’s a cut I had never heard. There’s so much garbage library stuff out there it’s always a treat to hear the good stuff. I actually brought some tasty library joints home from NYC on that trip as well, they may wind up in a future post. No promises though.
