dodgy Bootlegs Number 12-Tragedy Judas Theory and MOP's Raise Hell remix

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 to give CNN a call and squash the simmering beef. They're not exactly the people you would get in to mediate between two warring parties are they? (Anyone remember the original version of Drop a Gem on em? with the intro thatfeatured Mobb acting out a scene where they were torturing a Tupac Character).

The rest of this 12" is made up of a couple of M.O.P. remixes that would eventually show up on the fantastic Firing Squad album. Both are Premier produced; Raise Hell remix (and the radio version) and Downtown Swinga Part 2. Both are typical M.O.P. tracks and at the time Premier's production on them was very different to what he had been doing up until then especially Dowtown Swinga. Check the link below for the rip.
We be getting them open.

Ghostface and Doom in ChinaTown Wars

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

Raekwon's Letter to B.I.G.

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

dodgy Bootlegs Number 11-Trigger Tha Gambler, Smoothe DA Hustler and D.V. Alias Khrist The Hitman for Hire

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 stores despite the positive response to his track on the Nutty Professor soundtrack, My Crew can't go for that. This track again featured Krist doing a nice Hall and Oates impression with Trigger dropping his usual rhymes. It was a fun track and it got a lot of airplay on MTV at the time. Soon after My Crew Can't go for that a track called Hitman for Hire started popping up on mixtapes. This featured Trigger and Smooth trading verses with Krist supplying the hook.

I bought a copy of this track for £6.50 from Uptown records in London's SoHo. It was a shop I would only go to after exhausting all the offer shops in the area as it was more of a dance and R&B shop than a Hip Hop shop. The was no instrumental on the 12" or a radio version. There was no info on the label so I am unsure who produced this track although I'd hazard a guess that it was DR Period as he handled most of Smooth's production. There are also similarities between the production style on Smooth's album and this track. Its a dope track with the two brothers doing their usual trick and Krist dropping a cheesy hook. I haven't seen this track anywhere else so this may be the only pressing that was made.Check the link below for the rip and also a bonus track too.

The Hitman For Hire

dodgy Bootlegs Number 10-The Beatnuts Dawn of the Dead and Off the Books remix

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 and war, thug galore with the long hair
Big Pun, Pun the name that makes the kids run
Like spelling murder reverse it deliver redrum
Come one, come all, if you wanna brawl
I'm the mighty Thor clotheslining motherfuckers like Steven Segall
Cause all you gonna get, is your ass kicked or up in a casket
That's it (that's it?) That's it
Its a dope up beat party track with Pun showing off his truly legendary skills on the Mic, Beatnuts dropping their usual thugged out alcoholic rhymes and Cuban Linx doing an admirable job of not looking weak on the mic next to these heavy weights.

The other track on this bootleg is labelled Dawn The Dead and is a slower track with a nice Cello sample running over a Jazz infused drum break. Dawn Of The Dead was on the Japanese version of their self-titled album. Its pretty much a standard Betanuts track although its clearly from the early days before they got just a little too jiggy for the fans of the early albums. Its still dope though and if you're Beatnuts fan you need it in your collection. Check the link below for the rip and leave a comment if ya like this sheet.
Pun's got a big Nine