Vinyl’s revenge
Recalling that Cornell University has a large digital archive, featuring an extensive collection of early rap flyers and photos, I stumbled onto a section chronicling the first 1,400 records in Bambatta’s original collection. Much like one of your old share-house mates might have done, Bam went through a phase where he would write his name…
There I was, like a total rube, thinking I had this record. But nah, it turns out that this was incorrectly listed on the back cover of the Cappuccino 12″ but never pressed. Instead, this wonderful reimagining of a landmark Lyte moment is trapped in the purgatory of being a CD bonus track on the…
White labels rule the world. Download: Nas remixes and bootlegs radio mix
Finally got my hands on a bootleg of this masterpiece, yet another casualty of the ‘Cop Killer’ fallout which resulted in any rap lyrics involving shooting police being either censored or the whole song getting pulled. DJ Premier really went all-in with that demented horn loop that recalls a squeaky screen door swinging in the…
Soulshock and Cutfather are a couple of Danish DJ’s who both managed top three placings at the DMC’s in the 1989 and 1988 respectively, which served as something of a rite-of-passage for any DJ trying to make a name for themselves internationally. Wikipedia claims that this led to Soulshock getting booked to tour as Queen…
I can’t seem to leave the house these days without tripping over a crate of rap bootlegs with 300 Yen price tags on the sleeve. Apparently Japanese record dealers have decided to unload all of the nineties rap white labels they bought by the container-load from Beat Street Records, and as a result the place…
Earlier this week I was enjoying a few beers at a bar (set to the soothing sounds of a four-hour Japanese jazz and soul set courtesy of CRC representative Callum), and was soon joined by my old mate Debonaire, who proceeded to drop a bomb on me when he announced that he’s decided to shut-up…
Liner notes and the shout-outs on the back of rap albums were a big deal at one point, providing a clue as to other groups worth checking out in the ever-crowded late-80s rap explosion. Here are six memorable efforts (click the pics for larger versions)…
The otherwise forgettable sophomore album from Terminator X contained a pretty good late-era Whodini song and a great Brag Rap demonstration courtesy of Strong Island resident Melquan (aka Mel Quan Son Slaughter the Ghetto Beethoven to his friends). While ‘Krunchtime’ got some b-side shine on the flip of the ‘Under The Sun’ single, it turns…
Here’s a classic article from the UK’s The Face magazine in 1990 documenting The Decepticons and the Lo Lifes back in the day.
So the other night I was watching a Seinfeld re-run to grab some more essential fashion tips from CRC style icon George Costanza, and lo and behold – the next thing I see is America’s Greatest Postal Delivery Guy aka Newman bagging up a stack of wax at an old fella’s apartment with a Cold…
A true CRC stalwart, Milano has dealt with all manner of setbacks in the music biz and yet still prevails. To whet your appetite before his Boulevard Author album with Showbiz is released on 19th July, please enjoy fifteen great songs from the big fella, who premiered a rough cut of his vaulted The Believers…