Hip Hop and Breakz

Following on from last weeks High Drama remix (part 2 ? who knows maybe) this week we have the final part of the trilogy; High Drama Part 3: the Search for 2 (are they referring to the part 2 in that title ?). This came out in early 1998 if I remember right and it was released on Guesswhyld (GW 201) distributed by Fat beats, like the first two parts and like the first two parts this was purchased from Mr Bongos on Poland Street in London's West End. Of course like most of the decent Hip Hop record shops in London Mr Bongos has long since closed down which is a shame as I bought many dope tunes from there and even remember seeing a few good in store performances too. You can still check out the Mr Bongos website but its mainly focused on the rereleases put out on the Mr Bongos label and their mostly Latin, Jazz and Funk albums and compilations. Returning to the 12" at hand, the track is produced Shawn J Period who was at the time at the top of his game and not only did we ...

After doing the original 'High Drama' last week it only seemed logical to put up the remix this week. The remix came out a couple of months after the original also on Guesswhyld (GW 201) in late 1997. This was a pretty big hit on the Indie scene and was featured on a lot of mixtapes at the time, my favourite being the Eddie Ill and DL tapes which featured so much dope indie music at the time. This was another Mr Bongo's( a long since closed down Hip Hop record shop in London's West End) purchase and probably cost about £6.50, around this time I was spending at least £30 a week on vinyl and mixtapes, the good old days when buying music still held some excitement. The 12" features the 'High Drama remix', 'Service remix' and the original 'Service' with instrumentals too. The best joint on the 12" is easily the 'High Drama remix' which is remixed by Shaun J Period. Shaun J Period always struck me as a bouncier version of Hi-Te...

As some of you know I saw Mos Def live in London a couple of weeks ago and I was incredibly disappointed; he was late on stage, did barely an hour, did none of the tracks I wanted to hear, he did a mediocre drum solo (you are not Questlove) and bad Michael Jackson covers. I came away asking myself was I the only one there who thought he sucked ? but after speaking to some friends I came to the conclusion That the real hip hop heads were let down by this poor concert. Even the people who thought it was good could said the best thing about it was that Definition was fantastic and so were couple of other tunes. These guys seemed happy that he did three great songs, in all honesty I have to say three songs don't make a concert. So I went home and vowed not pay to see Mos Def again and that I would content myself by listening to some good old Mos Def before he became the pretentious artists that he now appears to be. So I dug into my record collection and found one of my favourite...

For the second instalment of my Random nineties series I've stuck with the Non Phixion/Necro family and gone with Ill Bill's Gangsta Rap 12" which dropped in 1999 on Necro's second label Psycho-Logical label (PL2). The 12" features two tracks; Gangsta Rap and How to kill a cop both of which are produced by Necro. Gansgta Rap features a lovely piano loop with a spiralling bass riff and a mellow trumpet sample that almost sounds out of place on this track but somehow Necro pulls it off to great effect creating an eerie track with a mellow vibe. DJ Eclipse provides some nice cutting and scratching of a dope ODB sample (You's a Gangsta?) and Ill Bill drops some funny tongue in cheek lyrics about being a thug; "Aye yo I smoke dust and shoot cops, Sold guns to Tupac, smoke blunts with Biggie Smalls and sold drugs on new lots, I was too young, couldn't get up in clubs in the old days, we used rob and terrorise kids in front of home-base, When Funkmaster Fl...

From now until the end of the year I will be upping a random nineties 12" each week. For the first instalment of this ongoing random nineties 12" series I have gone with a Non Phixion 12" from 1998. This was the third 12" from Non Phixion following on from the Legacy and 5 Boro's 12"s which were released on MC Serch's Serchlight indie label. This 12" however was released on Uncle Howie (UHR004) / Hebrew National (HN-777) and was recorded at Area 51 studio in Brooklyn and then later mixed at the famous D&D studios. It was distributed by Fat Beats. All the tracks in this are produced by Necro who handled a lot of the group's production and the label that this was on was on, Uncle Howie was Necro's own label and named after his own Uncle Howie who can be seen in the video for Necro's LL inspired I need drugs , check the link for one of the sickest videos ever!. Getting back to the 12" at hand this is a fine example of Necro...

In the early nineties Diamond D released one of the best albums of the decade, Stunts, Blunts and Hip Hop. The album featured Diamond behind the boards with co production from Large Pro, Showbiz, Buckwild, Lakim Shabazz, Jazzy Jay, The 45 King and Q-Tip. Diamond was also on the mic alongside some of his D.I.T.C. friends including Big L, Fat Joe, Lord Finesse as well members of Brand Nubian. The album was incredible and featured amazing use of samples and loops from varying sources and genres. But then there was nothing heard from Diamond as an artist for a number of years although he kept his name in the game by doing production work for a number of artists including OC and House of Pain. Then in 1997 Diamond D dropped his sophomore album, Hatred Passion and infidelity on Mercury. It was a strong album with good production although not as groundbreaking as his first it did feature additional production from Buckwild. The album featured a number of guests including; Pete Rock, Ph...

Saturday the 31st of October is the Halloween Gullyvers at Londons' Plastic People. MK and A-Cyde are joined by Thor on the decks playing the funkiest mix of Hip Hop, Soul, Funk, Dancehall and Breakz. From 10:30 until late. Full details on the flyer above.

Russel Fong & DJ Matt Cali have compiled dope little four part mix of breaks and instrumental hip hop that is well worth checking out.. They represent CA and NY and have hooked up this dope little mix that I'm bumpin' as I write this and its a real nice mix. Theres some bits you'll recognise and some other bit you may not but its all good. "This Dj concerto, in four parts, takes you on a journey into sound denoting the best part of hip hop, the soul of the music. "The Little Green Tape" is perfect to vibe out to. Repeat is a must." - L*Roneous You need to download this, click here to check it out. Its seriously dope.

Another true hip Hop DJ legend has died, Mr Magic aka John Rivas. It is impossible to list how important this man was to Hip Hop especially in the early days. may he rest in peace and his family is in my prayers. Too many Hip Hop legends have left us this year.

Queensbridge legend Cormega returns with a new album this October, Born and Raised. The album is set to drop on October the 20th and deserves a place in any self respecting real hip hop fan's collection. With production from Large Pro, Nottz, Havoc and two tracks from DJ Premier you know the beats will be dope. The album also features guest appearances from KRS ONE, Big Daddy Kane, PMD and Grand Puba on the track "Mega Fresh X" which has Red Alert on the cuts. Check the link below for one of the Premier tracks, "Make it clear" Mega and Primo

Gullyvers returns this Saturday the 26th of September after its Summer Hiatus. In addition to DJ MK and ACyde special guest DJ Beware joins London's funkiest night. Starts at 10:30pm, get there early.

Early Saturday the 19th of September the hip hop world lost another one of its DJ legends, Roc Raida. Roc Raida was an amazingly innovative DJ who played a major part in the Excutioners, easily one of the best DJ crews ever. May he rest in peace and his family are in my prayers.

I've not heard of Mr Mecca before but I know that Skyzoo and Torae rip mics on the regular. This is a dope joint using the Flava in ya ear beat and with sick lyrics dropped by all MCs on the track in the style of the Mc who ripped the original Craig Mack classic. peep the video.

I picked this bootleg EP up in the summer of 1997 from the legendary Deal Real record in London's West End. I remember paying about £8 for it and I think it was essentially a bootleg of four tracks from Loud artists; Xzibit, Tha Liks, Big Pu and The Dead Presidents (Dead Prez). My man Mr lawson tells me this was a bootleg of tracks featured on a Loud promo tape called Summer Heat. It has soome good tunes and I have always been a fan of tha Liks so I picked it up. The first track on this is from Xzibit and is called L.A. Times and is produced by Mel-Man, someone who I heard often does Dre's work for him. This was released by Loud as an official promo 12" in '97 before being featured on Xzibit's second album 40 Dayz and 40 Nights in 1998. Its a decent enough track with an almost marching beat and Xzibit dropping his usual insights on life. Not bad, nothing amazing just a typical Xzibit album track really. The second joint on the A-side is the Liks jojnt and its a...

I was never a big Lord Have Mercy fan, to me he was always a hype man for a rapper who didn't need a hype man. But when this bootleg 12" came out in 1998/99 I was a major M.O.P. and I still am to this day so I had to pick this because of the fact that it co stars lil' Fame and Billy Danzene. This bootleg was picked up in Uptown records in London's west end for about £8. It is produced by Nottz and it was originally recorded for Lord Have Mercy solo album 'Thee ungoldy hour', but that album never came out. However a track as dope as this rarely gets left on the cutting room floor and finally made it onto M.O.P.'s 2000 classic 'Warriorz'. Home Sweet Home could almost be a Premier, joint like the majority of the 'Warriorz' album was, but its Nottz who created this funky joint. Its made up of some nice horns as well as an off kilter piano loop with some humorous lines from Lord Have Mercy and those Brownsville boys. Of course Billy and L...

I'm a skateboarding head although its not too often that I get to skate these days but I saw this video and thought it was dope.

Rest in Peace to the very talented Baatin from Slum Village. His loved ones are in my Prayers. Baatin was a rapper who used his voice as some would use a musical instrument but could hold his own with thought provoking intelligent rhymes. I saw him live on two occasions and he had an energy unlike any other rapper. Baatin, who turned 35 in March, left Slum Village in 2002. He continued to record and play occasional solo dates before returning to the Slum fold for the group's upcoming album, "Villa Manifesto," due Sept. 22. He was with the group for its gig at June's Rock the Bells Tour stop at DTE Energy Music Theatre, and last week performed in a video shoot for Slum's new single, "Cloud 9." "Baatin will be missed," Slum Village's T3 said in a statement. "I'm glad we got a chance to work together before he passed. We lost another Slum soldier, a dear friend and a brother. He touched many lives." Fellow group founder James...

I don't usually post this kinda stuff but this made me laugh on an otherwise shitty day. Hope you enjoy it too Wu-Tang Lego: Da Mystery of Chessboxin' from davo on Vimeo .

"I'll Be Around" was record by The Spinners (known as "Detroit Spinners" in the UK) in 1972. The song was co-written by the legendary Thom Bell and Phil Hurtt and produced by Bell. The production of the song gives it a smooth, mid-tempo feel, with guitar at the forefront and punctuation from female background singers, horns, strings and congo-playing from Larry Washington. Bobbie Smith handles lead vocals on the song. The song was included on the group's 1972 self-titled album on Atlantic Records, their first album release for the label. It was initially released as the B-side of the group's first single on Atlantic, with "How Could I Let You Get Away" being the A-side. Radio deejays, however, soon opted for "I'll Be Around" which led to Atlantic flipping the single over and the song became an unexpected hit, eventually spending five weeks at number one on the U.S. R&B chart (the group's first number-one on the R&B ch...

Just a brief update highlighting the first single from Rakim's long awaited new album,The Seventh Seal. The album is due by the end of the Summer and Rakim has yet to announce who will be behind the boards for this one. Its new, its Rakim follow the link below. Let me know your thoughts in the comments. Full Breakz and Bootlegs update coming the next couple of days. Rakim-Holy are you

Heres a couple of Nas Joints for you QB heads out there. The first is called 'Be Worried' and is produced by Swizz Beats, a producer I don't really check for to be honest but this track isn't too bad. He seems to have gone for an epic sounding beat but the chorus doesn't really work for me and it detracts from the tune and Nas's lyrics. The second track is called 'Film' and I am told its produced by a young cat from Chicago called C-Sick. The beat sounds like its using a sample from that old House track by Ultra Nate but slowed down a lot. Its decent enough, Nas drops some nice lines and you'd expect. I prefer this one to the Swizz Beats joint and its good to see Nas using some new talent production wise. Check the link below for the zip file of both. I speak to the streets like we executive chief types.

DJ MK and Harry Love killing it live from the Kitchen every week night from 10pm onwards with special Guest Pat Sharp dropping in the mix. Check the link below for 100% dopeness. Pat Sharp tends to play a bit to much backpack rap and Harry and MK tend to rip shit up on the decks. The Funhouse

Try as hard as I did I just couldn't get excited about that last Wu Tang album, it had a couple of dope tracks but was ultimately disappointing especially the weak ass Beatles cover. However these two tracks taken from the new Wu Tang album called Chamber Music sound dope. This claims to be an album of entirely new Rza produced material featuring live instruments with no B Sides, dodgy bootlegs or freestyles. Check the link below for a couple of tracks from its. The first is Harbor Masters which features Ghostface, Inspecta Deck and A.Z. and is dope track with tight drums and good verses from all three. The other track is called Ill Figures and features Raekwon, M.O.P. and Kool G Rap and is slower track with a nice organ sample. If these are a good indication of what the album holds then it should be worth checking out. My staten Island homies lay you down on pieces of ice.

It has been a little while since I dropped a Dodgy bootleg on y'all so heres a dope little mid nineties East Coast gem for you to savour. Back in 1996 the seminal DJ / Producer, Frankie Cutlass dropped a dope little compilation album called Politics and Bullshit. Frankie handled the production and had some dope emcees on board; Kool G Rap, Mobb Deep, M.O.P., Lost Boys, Heltah Skeltah, Craig G, Fat Joe, Busta, Sadat X and BIz Markie to name a few. A few months before the first single from this album dropped the phenomenal Mobb Deep, Kool G Rap and M.O.P. track Know the game started making noise on Mixtapes and getting play from people like Westwood and 279. The track is a 100% classic that often gets overlooked when people mention Mobb Deep and Kool G Rap other duets. Not only does this track have Mobb Deep and Kool G Rap, both QB legends but it has Billy Danze and Lil' Fame on the hook, what more could you ask for? Well a dope beat would good and Frankie Cutlass does his...

Its late 1995 and although the year clearly belonged to the East Coast in particular the Wu Tang Clan no one was ready for the lyrical and musical onslaught that two cousins from Staten Island was about to release on the hip-hop world. Not only had Rza shown us the grimy underbelly of Staten Island's sound with the original Wu Tang album but he had gone on to smack the hip hop world in the head with amazing albums by Method Man, Old Dirty and of course Raekwon. But so far nothing had prepared us the the lyrical genius that was Liquid Swords. Without a doubt my favorite Wu solo album. We had heard rumors and comments from various Clan members about Gza's complex lyrical skills but nothing could have prepared everyone for the immense and complex lyrics that we were to hear on the Liquid Swords LP. Not to mention the dark, sample heavy, intrictae production supplied by the Abbot, Rza. The first 12" from the album was the title track Liquids swords with the double A side...

Low Key is one of the dopest UK MCs and following on from the G20 protests he decided the death of Ian Tomlinson needed to be highlighted. The death of Ian Tomlinson at the hands of police was bad enough but for them to go and choose a coroner with a history of bad verdicts almost always in the favor police was damn shameful. I understand that every society needs the police and that there is some police out there who take their jobs and power seriously but the police that are implicated in Ian Tomlinson's death are not those police. The attempts to disguise what has happened by using your own dodgy coroner only make the circumstances of the death even more suspicious. Its strange that with all of protestors about on that day that the police manage to kill the only man who had absolutely nothing to do with the protests. R.I.P. to Ian Tomlinson and sympathy to his loved ones.

Back in 1997 Common dropped his third album, One day it will all make sense. This was Common's first album under the name Common following on from a law suit that prevented him from using his previous rap moniker, Common Sense. Some might say that this album was more accessible or perhaps even commercial as it featured a wider array of guests than Common had ever had before and it also featured some radio friendly RnB tracks. Although at the same time this was a more mature effort from Common and featured lyrical content beyond his earlier releases. For example the track featuring Lauren Hill has common rhyming about the decisions facing a young couple over whether or not to carry on with an unplanned pregnancy, the only other group I can think of who handles this subject with such maturity would be Digable Planets. The track I have decided to cover today was the first 12" from the album, Reminding me of Sef. This tune was a little more soulful that the Common we had hea...

I bought this 12" in 1996 from Unity records near Carnaby Street in London's West end. This was mainly a drum and Bass shop but in the back they had a dope lil' Hip Hop section that always had the best promos and bootlegs. This 12" is labelled up as a Test pressing and is on green vinyl so I probably a bit over the odds for it but at the time was really getting into M.O.P. and I have always been a QB fan. Side 1 features a track from Queensbridge Legend Tragedy joined by Mobb Deep. The track is called Judas Theory and is a diss to Capone N Noreaga. For some reason Tragedy was unhappy with them and decided to make this track. Its a pretty regular mid nineties QB joint probably produced by Havoc and it features a rather angry Tragedy calling out CNN as some sort of bitches or snakes as he actually calls them. Not really too sure why Trag wrote this or where Mobb Deep fit into the whole picture but I'm sure they weren't the voice of reason telling Tragedy ...

While everyone is waiting for the Ghost and Doom LP (at one time rumored to be titled Swift and Changeable) to drop the two masked men have contributed a track to the Grand Theft Auto : Chinatown Wars Nintendo DS game. The game is already out and is the typical gang related violence we've come to expect from the GTA franchise and as usual they've gone and hooked up a dope lil' soundtrack. Not only do we have a Ghostface and Doom Collaboration produced by Oh No but we've also got a remix of it too. Both are dope and well worth checking as is the game if you're a DS fiend. Check the link below. We Run these streets like a renegade

Heres a little joint dropped by Raekwon as a tribute to the Late Great Notorious B.I.G.. Its a slow joint with Raekwon showing off his lyrical skills in the form of a letter to Biggie talking about their friendship, squashed beefs and dropping classic albums around the same time. Raekwon is popping up a lot right now as I said last month is Cuban Linx part 2 going to finally drop or am I being a too hopeful. I shook your hand in Cali

Back in 1995 Smooth Da Hustler burst onto the scene with a track called Broken language with featured his brother Trigger the gambler. The track was a simple idea, have smooth and trigger going back and forth boasting about what they were over a steady beat that seemed to be building to a crescendo. The track was very popluar at the time although to be honest I found it a little boring and the novelty quickly wore off. What was good about the track was the great chemistry between Smooth and Trigger. Smooth went onto drop a fairly strong album although not groundbreaking. The album featured his brother and a sort of East Coast version of Nate Dogg, D.V. Alias Krist who specialized in singing some rather cheesy but likable hooks. The album dropped on Profile and shortly after Trigger got picked up by Def Jam who were obviously hoping to capitalize on the hype surrounding his brother. However Tigger's Def Jam solo album, Life's a 50/50 gamble never made it to the record stor...

I picked this 12" up in January 1998 from the now defunct Mr Bongo's on Poland Street in London's SoHo. I am unsure if either of these tracks got a legitimate release but if they didn't t the time I'm sure that they will pop up sooner or later on one of the multitude of Beatnuts greatest hits of unreleased collections that seem to get a bi-annual release. The Off the Books remix features an elctro-synth laden beat with Big Pun dropping a classic verse; Hey yo it's all love, but love's got a thin line and Pun's got a big nine, respect crime but not when it reflect mine The shit I'm on is wrong but it lasts long Pull a fast one, then Pun'll wake up, with the stash gone I'm mad strong, and my cream is fast Smoke the greenest grass, my bitch got the meanest ass and a taste legit, I don't have to waste a whole case of Crist' All it takes is my pretty face and my gangsta wit Lace the click, cause we all share It's all fair like love a...

Heres a new MF Doom track for y'all. This is taken for his new album Born like that that is due next month. The track uses a dope violin sample over the usual Doom drums, its dope nonetheless. The al;bum will be on Uk based LEX records and willbe released under his shortened moniker Doom. The album will feature Ghostface Killah, Raekwon the Chef, the late J DIlla and Kurious, Born Into This hits stores on the 23rd of March. Give an mc a rectal historectomy

This week's dodgy bootleg is a 1997 released Jeru 12" featuring two post Gangstarr tracks. This was picked up from one of London's West End record shops, probabley Deal Real before it shut down or perhaps Mr Bongos and it probabley cost somewhere around £7. The A-side is called East NY Stalks and the B-side is Friend or Foe which is often referred to as Friends due to Jeru's interpolation of the chorus from the classic track Friends. As mentioned this 12" dropped in 1997 only a year after the underated but incredible Wrath of the Math which was entirely produced by DJ Premier. But soon after this album dropped rumors started to circulate that there was beef between Jeru and the Gangstarr foundation in particular DJ Premier. Then in 1997 we get this bootleg/promo 12" showing up in record shops with the track 'Friend or Foe' on the B-side. This is supposedly a diss track aimed at Gangstarr and Premier in particular. There is a number of reasons fo...

So once again a few Raekwon joints are being leaked and we're all getting our hope us that Only Built 4 Cuban Linx part 2 may be finally ready to drop. Can this seriously be the case after at least four years of hype is Da Chef finally ready to unleash the sequal to one of the best albums of the 1990s. Last week we had the incredibly dope Criminolgy part 2 which had Rae and Ghost trading rhymes in a fashion similar to the early Wu-Gambinos tunes with Rza flipping the same Sweet inspirations joint, Why Marry albeit in a slightly different manner. Then today we had Wu-Ohh pop up online featuring Method Man and Ghostface and what sounds like vintage Rza again claiming to be from Cuban Linx 2. Raekwon has also been doing the usual pre album guest spots hoping to drum up some anticipation for an album that should have been here 3 years ago. In the last three years I have picked up and downloaded about 13 tracks all claiming to be from this much anticipated album and I have collected...