Thursday, December 31, 2009
Wednesday, December 30, 2009
Tuesday, December 29, 2009
Monday, December 28, 2009
Sunday, December 27, 2009
LL Cool J Revisited
Nice slice of nostalgia here - a classic interview with LL Cool J from way back...
Saturday, December 26, 2009
Friday, December 25, 2009
Thursday, December 24, 2009
Wednesday, December 23, 2009
Tuesday, December 22, 2009
House Classics
House remake of the classic Ronnie Laws track from 1976(Side Effect also did their own version around the same time). Nice production as always from the Masters at Work camp.
Monday, December 21, 2009
Sunday, December 20, 2009
Friday, December 18, 2009
Thursday, December 17, 2009
Wednesday, December 16, 2009
Tuesday, December 15, 2009
Greg Nice & Smooth Bee-Dope On A Rope
Released in 1988, this single by Nice & Smooth was the beginning of a successful career for this talented golden era rap duo.
Guilty Pleasures
"Guilty Pleasures" returns with a slice of gooey Italian dance fromage. "Ride On Time", released in 1989, was a shameless sample heavy romp which creeped its way up the charts to number 1 in the UK and high dance chart status in North America as well. Much like Milli Vanilli, the group chose a model to be the face of the group, while the actual vocals were sampled bits of "Love Sensation" by Loleatta Holloway - a huge disco hit in 1980. While this Velveeta smooth dance trio made people groove in the late 80's, there longevity was short lived. Cheesy, yes, but a trip down dance nostalgia lane nontheless. Enjoy this extended version off the 12" single!
Monday, December 14, 2009
House Classics
This track holds so many memories for me. A classic house jam pioneered by everyone from Frankie Knuckles to Merlin Bobb. An infectious groove that refuses to end and that memorable piano line make this one a perennial favourite. House heads enjoy...
Sunday, December 13, 2009
Friday, December 11, 2009
80 Blocks To Tiffany's Documentary
I was reading about this documentary in the latest issue of Wax Poetics and was pleasantly surprised to see someone had posted it on youtube. I have one thing to say about this video - MUST SEE. It is a riveting look into gang culture and street life in New York in the late 70's. Very little video footage exists on this topic, especially of this calibre, so take an hour out of your day to check out one of the best low budget documentaries ever made...
Thursday, December 10, 2009
Dr.J Christmas Rap Mix
Dr.J Christmas Rap MixTracklisting:
Christmas In Hollis-Run DMC
Let The Jingle Bells Rock-Sweet Tee
Chillin' With Santa Claus-Derek B
Christmas Bells-Hard Call Xmas
2 Live Crew Christmas-2 Live Crew
Santa's Beat Box-Cutmaster DC
The Night Before Christmas-Cutmaster DC
Coldcut's Christmas Break-Coldcut
Santa's Rap-Treacherous Three
Christmas Rappin'-Kurtis Blow
Ghetto Santa-Spyder D
Charlie Brown Christmas Outro
Merry Christmas All!!
Wednesday, December 9, 2009
Tuesday, December 8, 2009
Monday, December 7, 2009
Harvey Scales-Rock Your Body
A little slice of disco heaven off the Casablanca label - 1979. Don't forget to zip up your nylon suit prior to lift off...
Sunday, December 6, 2009
Saturday, December 5, 2009
Friday, December 4, 2009
Album Review-Grandmaster Flash "They Said It Couldn't Be Done"
I was browsing my inbox today and realized I had forgotten to post this record review done by a close friend of mine from elementary school. He mentioned he had done a review, but didn't tell me what album he would be reviewing. Much to my delight it turns out he covered the single most important album in my collection. The very first piece of wax I ever purchased as a young and naive teenager, hungry for new sounds and yearning for a piece of the relatively new rap sound. I can't begin to describe the impact this LP has had on my development as a DJ, and the numerous stories that accompany it. One of my fondest memories is having this LP signed by Grandmaster Flash himself back in 1999, when he made a rare Canadian appearance at a party. 2 years ago I ended up interviewing Flash for my radio program and picking his brain about the impact of digital deejaying in today's clubland. Needless to say, this album started the ball rolling for me as a young kid and the ball hasn't stopped yet! Thanks Shwinkle for the entertaining read and trip down memory lane...
It was the spring of 1986 and my good friend Dr. J (at the time 13 years old) returned from a trip to Calgary, Alberta with a new album under his arm. Up to this point in my relationship with Dr. J, he had largely been into new wave artists such as Tears For Fears and more established artists such as Gino Vannelli who had adopted a new wave style in the early 1980’s.
So, what was this bizarre album cover that he now presented me with? “Grandmaster Flash”? Never heard of them. One look at the cover – even in the mid-1980’s – had my juvenile mind giggling with delight. This album must be really bad; cheesy at best. Was this some kind of twisted Village People tribute?
At this point in my life, like many young teens in the 80’s, I was a closet metal head. Kiss, Van Halen, Motley Crue, ZZ Top, and numerous other rock gods were my heroes. Rap? Hip hop? The New York scene? What were these things? Dr. J was knowledgeable as he had been listening to taped radio broadcasts from New York for quite some time. I was a total neophyte and was biased beyond belief. Black music? Michael Jackson, maybe. Grandmaster Flash – again, I assumed that this album must be utter trash.
Dr. J insisted that I should have a listen. Nah, not interested. But, I certainly did enjoy laughing at the album cover. Again, who were these goofballs?
In early 1987, about a year later, I agreed to expand my horizons and give this record a spin. What was the worst that could happen? Useless, vile, rancid grease being released onto my turntable’s needle? Not likely. Besides, this album was released on Electra Records – the same label that Motley was on; how bad could it be? So, Dr. J lent me his precious album and I took it home and recorded it onto a cassette. I was blown away…
Wow! What a classic piece of material this album turned out to be. This was Grandmaster Flash’s first real “commercial” recording issued after the break up of the original “Furious Five” line up. Flash had added new members (Lavon, Shame, Larry Love, and Mr. Broadway) to replace the departed Melle Mel, Cowboy, and Scorpio who had formed their own group “Grandmaster Melle Mel and the Furious Five”. At the time I did not make the connection that this was the same Melle Mel who had a track called “Vice” on the Miami Vice soundtrack that was hot at the time.
I listened to that cassette recording of mine over and over again and continue to do so until this day. Numerous tracks have become a part of my personal history with Dr. J:
“Girls Love the Way He Spins” – What the hell was this about? I had never heard of New York urban DJ’s spinning records like this. My first exposure.
“Rock the House” – Okay, this sounded good. Some metal guitar. Cheesy but awesome.
“Jailbait” – ‘You’ve been sentenced to life in prison for corrupting the morals of a minor…’ Hmmm… that kind of gets one’s attention!
“Sign of the Times” – “He bought a coke and he forgot the glass!” No Dr. J – those lyrics are incorrect. “He bought the kind of coke that you don’t drink out of a glass!” Makes more sense, no?
“Larry’s Dance Theme” – This has got to get you jumpin…
“Paradise” – Mellow, mid-tempo 80’s new wave love song. Yeah, we laughed at it at the time but a great way to end this album.
This album is a bit hard to track down now but if you can find it and you’re into early rap from the mid-80’s you can’t go wrong with this. Flash may have made other albums that are more true to hardcore hip hop and that are more ‘classic’ in the true sense of the word but this is a consistently good romp through the sound of the mid-80’s.
Thanks Dr. J for making me aware of this masterpiece and opening up my world to a new form of music!
Bobby Kondors-The Poem
Deep house classic from Bobby Kondors circa 1990. One of those great house tracks that simply refuses to die...
Thursday, December 3, 2009
House Classics
Top shelf house classic off the Deconstruction label - 1993. First heard this one on a Frankie Knuckles mixtape back in the day...
Wednesday, December 2, 2009
Tuesday, December 1, 2009
Sade-Sweetest Taboo(Extended Mix)
This certainly isn't a rare or hard to find record, but it is a quality record. Sade has the voice of an angel and to this day she remains one of my all time favourite female vocalists. I have presented here a 12" rip of one of her bests tracks, presented in its extended version. Those of you who want a real treat need to check out her live DVD from the "Lover's Rock" album. I still get goosebumps everytime I watch it.
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