Classic Dancehall Gems, part 3

Cutty Ranks - Who Say Me Dun (div share)

Beenie Man and Ms. Thing - Dude (div share)

Papa San - Coca Cola Shape (div share)

James Murphy: brilliant lyricist, amateur puppeteer, all-around genius.

Worst/Best

Oh hey. I didn't see you there! How are you? That's cool...what's that? My last Old School Friday has got you wanting more of that New Jack Swing (hate me) and you want to hear the worst/best song of the era, one that's been embedded deep in the very core of your being by so many high school dances? Sure!

click here for an old friend.

"It's like a long, sharp sword" did nothing to dissuade whatever nascent feelings of apprehension I had about losing my virginity as a teen.

Completely unrelatedly, I spotted this book at B&N today: "Snoop was born a three-pound cross-eyed crack baby in East Baltimore." It's like the saying goes — art imitates life, it just offers a scarier version involving a nail gun.

Ronnie, Bobby, Ricky, Mike, Ralph (and Johnny)

Last night while trying to fall asleep I was thinking about how awesome the New Kids On the Block "True Hollywood Story" was, and how I bet the New Edition one is pretty great too. Which also made me remember that NKOTB had a cartoon, and that I even watched it sometimes despite not even being into them (FINE, Donnie if I had to pick).

I haven't done Old School Friday in a long time, so here. If anyone's got an mp3 of "Sensitivity", gimme. And without having seen the "THS," I think Michael Bivins wins the Michael Nesmith Award for Most Successful Boy Bander. Bobby's lost too many dignity points.
This is one of my favorite down-low rumors, second only to Mike Piazza/Sam Champion. Smoke, fire, etc.

New Edition - Candy Girl

New Edition - If It Isn't Love

Bell Biv Devoe - Poison

Johnny Gill - Rub You the Right Way

Either Love Me Or Leave Me Alone

My alma mater was a bastion of all things P.C., womyn-centric, anti-hegemonic, vegan and gluten-free, the sort of place where leaving the cafeteria you'd have to step over the protesters dressed like Native Americans lying prostrate covered in fake blood and then wind your way through thirty girls and gay dudes doing free-movement improvisation on the lawn. Maybe we were burnt out on Naomi Wolf, or maybe college girls are college girls are college girls, but at night we'd all put our politics aside and drunkenly sing along to the most misogynistic lyrics hip hop has to offer. When I was 16, "Ain't No Fun" enraged me; today I absentmindedly mouth the words while I'm doing work. I'm essentially inured to the sexist aspect and all of its ramifications, which is why it's so weird that while listening to good ol' Brand Nubian the other day I found myself bristling at what Grand Puba was saying. He sits on a high horse in general, sure (see: "All for One" etc.), but how many songs do you really need taking women to task for sluttin it up?

Many, the answer is many songs. When Devin the Dude says "You can give me some head but keep your breakfast in bed/ I'd rather spend my morning diggin through some records instead" I'm like cool, thanks for laying it out. But Sadat's all "Your pussy can't see these lips, I keep my tongue in my mouth/cause I can't see down South," and I'm sorry but it seems like you hate women. It's akin to the whole, give me a douchey open-book fratboy over a spindly art-fag who claims he's a feminist because: Red Flag, you know? I'm always gonna bump Brand Nu though. I can't resist an Edie Brickell sample, much less a Groove Theory sample I mean that's just scientific fact.

Sadat X - The Lump Lump (Nubian Mix)

Brand Nubian - Slow Down

Brand Nubian - Love Me Or Leave Me Alone

Friday Funtime

Double dose!
Nice and Smooth - Sometimes I Rhyme Slow

Gang Starr feat. Nice and Smooth - Just to Get a Rep

"I am good-natured and provide satisfaction":
Best PSA ever.

Friday Funtime: Five Classic Dancehall Gems, Plus One

I dug in the (CD) crates for this one. Picking one Beenie Man song was too hard, you're getting two.
Beenie Man - Who Am I
Red Rat - Tight Up Skirt
I'm a sucker for Red Rat's borderline-irritating voice and trademark "ohhhhh nooooo"s. I almost posted "Big Man Little Yute" since I love how he sounds there sparring with the way deeper voiced Goofy, but we're doing classics today.
Beenie Man - Let Him Go
Murder She Wrote - Chaka Demus and Pliers
This song reminds me of a girl I used to know; I have a memory of driving with her while she sang along and me thinking about how she herself had a pretty face and bad charactah, as Chaka says.
Bounty Killa - Living Dangerously
Sister Nancy - Bam Bam
By far my favorite version of this standard. The barebones dubby production and the way her voice goes nearly off-key singing "This woman" gets me every time.

Friday Funtime

If you don't remember this song I don't even know you anymore. It takes me back to a simpler time of ten years ago, when I weighed the same as I do now yet could somehow put away 80 ounces of malt liquor without falling over.
"Uptown Saturday Night" is one of those albums that didn't make it back in the cross country move, so if you have it, be a buddy and burn it for me?

Camp Lo - Luchini (buy)

Friday Funtime

Pharoahe Monch just released his sophomore album "Desire," just 18 million years (ok 8 years) after "Internal Affairs" came out. To be honest I haven't heard it yet, but hearing about it made me remember how this song still gets me. every. time.

Pharoahe Monch - Simon Says

Since Molly and I were talking about how great PalmsOutSounds is last night, here's a link to couple ESTAW remixes of "Simon Says" they've got.

That Soulja Boy "Crank That" song is about two more plays away from crumbling all of my resolve, and I fear that soon I will actually like it. Don't let the terrible video quality deter you from watching this fantastic montage of people doing the Soulja Boy dance sensation that's sweeping the nation: Crank Dat Soulja Boy MIX!!!

Friday Funtime

When the East is in the house...
Danger - Blahzay Blahzay

Nightclub brawls are dangerous. But he's okay! (via Goldenfiddle)

Friday Funtime

Over 18 and my eyes are green, I wear more gold than that man on A-Team.

Slick Rick - Mona Lisa