Jam Jay Crime File

US television channel, TV One, recently covered the death of Jam Master Jay as part of their Crime File series.  But before looking at the tragic death of Jam Jay, the episode begins by documenting the formation of Run DMC, them getting signed to Profile Records and the influence Jay had on his band members. 
Also covered is the demise of Run DMC in the late 80's, supposedly caused by Russell Simmons' law suit against Profile Records, although I'm not sure that I'd entirely agree with that perspective.  Run DMC had a distinct sound, but the late 80's saw the hip hop landscape change dramatically.  To me, the group no longer fitted so neatly into this new era and they failed to adapt.

Other angles explored are Jam Jay's signing of Onyx and 50 Cent, and the financial difficulties he later faced.  Then we get to the night of the murder.  Don't expect any revelations here, we see the well documented links to Kenneth 'Supreme' McGriff touched upon, but then dismissed!  The occupants of the studio that night are all named and we see a reconstruction of the events, but ultimately we're not given anything new or led to any different conclusions.

But don't let this put you off, this is still a good documentary that, for the most part, explores Run DMC's history and influence and only the last 10 minutes is given to examining the night of the murder.  It contains contributions from a range of industry associates and his friends Eric B and Fredro Starr.

When Philly Met Brooklyn

This is the recently made documentary about Freshco & Miz, the emcee and DJ duo who won their respective titles as the Battle for World Supremacy Champions in 1989. For those too young to remember, the Battle for World Supremacy was the competition to win back in the day, and winning had always ensured that a prosperous career lay ahead.

Previous winners of the DJ battle had been DJ Scratch, Cash Money and Jazzy Jeff. So when Miz won in 89 and teamed up with Freshco, the emcee champion from the same year, they looked set to follow in their predecessors shoes, but that wasn’t to be. This documentary explores their journey to, and beyond, the Battle for World Supremacy. Why it didn’t work out and what happened to masters of their craft.

There’s some really nice nuggets of history shared through the narrative of this documentary. Miz in particular highlights some of the evolution that was taking place at that time in terms of DJing techniques and how the music industry was changing around them. Keep an eye out for appearances by MC Serch (BfWS host), MC Lyte, Guru, Ice-T as well as early performances by Treach, Dres and Yo-Yo and several others.

As a side note, I’m not sure what happens to Monie Love at 57:30, she suddenly decides to speak like someone with learning difficulties, very bizarre!

Fresh Fest 2

This is Video Music Box’s televised coverage of Fresh Fest 2 from 1985. This comes from the era when multiple headlining acts doing stadium tours was something new, and this footage shows how it all went down. 

Presented in the style of a documentary, we get to see Grandmaster Flash & the Furious 5, Whodini, Fat Boys and Run DMC all perform their live sets.   And let’s not forget that this is when they were at their peak and performing what we now call ‘their classics’. There’s plenty of interesting back stage clips, a press conference with Whodini and Run DMC doing a collaborative freestyle and a few other artists making surprise cameo appearances too.

This is a must see for old school enthusiasts, but if you’re a graf fan, then be prepared for the over-the-top anti graffiti messages (no doubt encouraged by NY Mayor Ed Koch, famed for his anti graffiti views). Incidentally, Ed died last week (1st Feb), but that’s purely co-incidence and not the reason I’m sharing this. Check out Mario Van Peebles ‘Don’t Do It’ skit, it’ll make you cringe.

I'd also recommend you check out Robbie's recent interview with Ralph McDaniels, who filmed this concert, over at Unkut.com.  Ralph McDaniels is the creator of Video Music Box that pre existed MTV Raps and BET, and in the interview he details how this concert was filmed along with a whole host of other interesting hip hop history.  One of the things he mentions, is his involvement with filming the Lifers Group documentary.  I just checked YouTube and it isn't on there.  I have a copy, so will endeavour to get that uploaded and shared in the near future.

Ralph McDaniels interview - Part1 and Part 2.

Flashback

It's a brief look back at some of the gems from around the internet this month, but don't let that fool you.  The two interviews are quality pieces that explore untapped history from two very different artists.  And then I had a macabre few minutes deciding to share the final piece, but there's something about it I find quite fascinating. 

MC Shan Interview

This is a corker. Anyone who is familiar with Shan will know that he’s honest, upfront and outspoken, which are all the ingredients required to serve up a good interview. And Robbie (from Unkut.com) does a sterling job (as always) in asking Shan some unique questions to draw out some great stories and hip hop history. Shan recalls dissing LL Cool J (and his fans turning LL’s limo over), the formation of Cold Chilin Records, drug addiction, various beefs and why hid didn’t appear on The Symphony. Definitely worth digesting!

Unkut - MC Shan Interview

What happened to Kool Kim?

Or his partner Hass G for that matter?  Well, if you ever wondered what happened to The UMC's check out Unkut's upfront interview with Kool Kim who explains what went down, reminisces on growing up with the Wu Tang  on Staten Island (and battling Shyheim), and recalibrates people's opinion on whether they were hard or soft.  

Unkut.com - Kool Kim Interview

Biggie Smalls - The Autopsy Report

I know it's a bit grim, but at the same time its kind of fascinating, and I know some of you will be intrigued by this.  TMZ have obtained a copy of The Notorious B.I.G.'s autopsy report which details how many times he was shot and what, from a medical point of view, actually killed him.

What's most interesting to me is the details of the entry and exit wounds.  If you do the math, it's clear that he was moving around in an attempt to minimise the risk of being hit.  It paints a grim picture of the chaos that must have occurred in those few tragic seconds.

http://www.tmz.com/2012/12/07/notorious-b-i-g-autopsy-death-report-christopher-wallace-gunshots-heart-arm-scrotum/

Fresh Beats

I tend to find that January and February are pretty quite months for new releases, or more specifically, the good quality releases that we're waiting for don't generally drop during the post Xmas lull.  But although no killer albums have dropped yet, there are a number of tracks that are bubbling right now that hint towards 2013 having some interesting releases.

There's even enough of them to make it worth me cobbling together this post together and sharing them with you (and that doesn't happen to often!).

Boston's Finest

First up is some new Edo G.  Boston's long time favourite emcee is back with more of the grown man rap that we've come to expect from him.  This is a release from his forthcoming album Intelligence & Ignorance that drops on 5th February.  I've got to say, that Edo G is certainly one of the more consistent emcees from the golden era, and this track demonstrates it.



That's not it, there's plenty more after the jump!

More Unreleased Rakim

Following on from my previous post, producer Dominic Owen is blessing us with yet another unreleased track from his personal collection.  In my last post I speculatively questioned how many other Rakim tracks had better versions that remained unreleased, and this is just further evidence that the answer to that question could be many.

What I find quite frustrating is that 1995 is the era when Rakim was coming under a lot of fire for his poor selection of producers and tracks, and rightly so.  Many of his official releases were lyrically outstanding and musically underwhelming.  And now we see another example of a shelved track that is far superior to much of what was being released at that time.
This version has that classic mid 90's sound to it and would have been a real head nodder had it been released.  Forget that, it still is a head nodder, take a listen.

Fresh Prince Gets Raw

Yep, updating this blog is a good couple of weeks overdue, but I’m hopefully now back in action and normal service will resume. My online persona had to take a back seat for a few weeks whilst the living and breathing me got on top of some real life business! You’ve got to keep life in check, or else it sneaks up on you with surprises. So, having conquered several family illnesses, completed a DIY project, started a new job and survived the festive period, I find myself in 2013.

I should probably start by wishing everyone a belated happy New Year, but I guess that by now you’ve quit the diet, started smoking again, cancelled the gym membership etc and things possibly aren’t looking so happy! Well the best fix for getting through the dismal month of January is…… to immerse yourself in hip hop.

It’s been a short while since I shared some vinyl, so I thought I’d kick the New Year off by sharing something that on face value might not seem that appealing, but read on and I think you might be surprised by an early example of record industry interference with the artists lyrical content.

Last year I discussed the classic single Girl's ain't nothing but trouble by DJ Jazzy Jeff & The Fresh Prince as part of my Silver Anniversary Series.  However, I was discussing the original 1986 version, not the one that is more commonly found on various compilation CD's and their 1988 debut album.  The original version is much harder and contains stronger lyrics (well, stronger than what we have come to expect from Will Smith).

The frustrating thing for me at the time of writing was that I couldn't track down a copy of the original 12" to include with my post, like I'd done for most of my other reviews in the series.  Then recently, one of our readers kindly shared some insightful knowledge in the comments section saying that they thought the UK release on Champion Records was the same version as the one released on Word-Up Records, and the licencing note confirms this.  Hmm, interesting!

What makes this information even more interesting to me is that sitting in my own collection is a promo copy of the UK version, released on Champion Records.  I'd never considered it as being a potential copy of the original, and it's not a record that I frequently dig out and listen to (I can't imagine why), so I was unfamiliar with this version.  But upon checking it, sure enough it's the original version!!!

So it seemed only right to upload it for the nerds out there who appreciate the intricate differences between records and those who are curious about how hardcore Will Smith once was.  Warning - he doesn't drop any truly hardcore lines and it certainly isn't ignorant rap, but here's just one example of how the language and tone of the record changed:

1988 revised version: "she started grabbin' all over me, kissing and hugging.  So I shoved her away and said you better stop buggin."

1986 original version: "she started grabbin' all over me, kissing and hugging.  I punched her in the chin and said, 'you better stop buggin'."

For a more detailed breakdown of the differences between the two versions, refer to the previously recommended article by Werner Von Wallenrod here: http://wernervonwallenrod.blogspot.co.uk/2011/01/dj-jazzy-jeff-fresh-prince-uncensored.html.

Thanks to the reader who took the time to leave the comment and for pointing me to my own record collection, lol.  It's crazy to think I spent time looking for something on the internet that I had sitting under my very nose (quite literally, this record was within 4 feet of my computer)!

Mike Check

Download full original 12" in 320kbps mp3 (20mb)
http://www.mediafire.com/?95wl9drd3wr640d

World's Most Dangerous Group

It's been a minute since I blogged something from the west coast, and I've never really touched on one of the west's biggest names, N.W.A.  And with all the current hype surrounding Kendrick Lamar, and Compton being put back on the hip hop map, it seemed like a good time to reflect on the history of the original dudes that made Compton famous (even if it was for all the wrong reasons).
I should also acknowledge that this month saw the 20th anniversary of Dr Dre's The Chronic LP.

This hour long documentary on N.W.A. begins by portraying the L.A. environment and music history that gave birth to the formation of the band.  It then follows the groups journey into the mainstream, the controversy that followed, and ultimately the break up of the group and Eazy's death.  That's all to be expected of a documentary like this, but they also cover stories like Eazy-E's intent to kill Suge Knight, so it's not entirely what you might expect!
Overall it serves as a good reminder of the music, the press coverage and what made N.W.A. so great, the controversy.

As with everything that was once controversial, it's comical to look back and contemplate what all the fuss was about.  There's some good contributions from the band members along with Jerry Heller, Eazy's wife Tamica and The D.O.C.

Originally shown on VH1 and narrated by Chris Rock.

Ruff (Sleigh) Riders!

As its that time of year, I usually post something festive to mark the occasion (it's about as festive as I get).  I had a couple of ideas, but then this came up.  I'm not sure what's more surprising, a hardcore rapper reciting Christmas carols, or the fact that he can recall all of the reindeer names!

Merry Xmas to all of our readers, from the FoaWP crew.

End of Arsenio

For those that don't remember it, here is a clip from the last Arsenio Hall show which received a major hip hop send off from some of the biggest names in the game at the time.  Let's not forget that Arsenio Hall gave a lot of air time to rap music when many major television networks were not interested.

The line up includes, Yo Yo, MC Lyte, Naughty by Nature, A Tribe Called Quest, Fu Schnickens, CL Smooth, Guru, Das EFX, GZA, Method Man and Ghostface Killah, KRS-1 and Mad Lion.