Run DMC said a DJ could be a band
(A little footnote to the previous post.)
For all the ink spent writing about the importance of punk and post-punk, the sounds coming out of Harlem and the Bronx in the early 80s were even more revolutionary and, given how pop music has evolved since, more influential too. Punk liked to proclaim that you didn't need to know how to play an instrument to make a record, but hip-hop said that you didn't need instruments at all. As the song said all you needed were two turntables and a microphone.
For several years it was thrilling music but I lost interest in hip-hop by the beginning of the 1990s as I suspect a lot of (white?) people my age did too. I'm not entirely sure why, unlike punk hip-hop never died or went underground but took over the entire planet so maybe the "novelty" wore off and the initial burst of creativity stagnated into cliched sounds and poses. I'm sure there are still great hip-hop records being made but at some point my ears drew a line and said "that's enough for me, I'll just stick with the records I've already got thanks very much."
Like these old favourites which still sound fantastic.
Download: The Godfather - Spoonie Gee (mp3)
Download: Rebel Without A Pause - Public Enemy (mp3)
Download: I Know You Got Soul - Eric B and Rakim (mp3)
3 Comments:
That Spoonie Gee smokes, don't it?
It doesn't have much to do with your post today per se - sorry - but as a regular reader of your blog (good work, by the way) I want to bring something to the attention of your readership, who seem to be a generally discerning bunch with good musical taste.
A campaign has started to get The Who to Number 1 in the UK singles chart, something they have never achieved. The campaign, like so much else these days, is being driven by social networking - please take a look at their Facebook group or their Twitter feed.
Their plan is to get the excellent "Baba O'Riley" to No. 1 by merit of MP3 download sales in the week commencing 16th Nov 2009. Seems to me that this would be a good thing. Please spread the word!
So excited was I at the prospect of getting The Who to number 1 that I got the FB link wrong in my previous comment (sorry). It should be tinyurl.com/WhosNo1 - cheers.
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