Breaker one, breaker two, Jimmy Spicer just died so let's make like Jeckyll & Hyde and do the do. Telephone or tell a friend that Jimmy was laying down "crazy space shit that don't even make no sense" on wax three years before Rammellzee's Beat Bop. When Spicer Magnetic claimed "planet Rhyme On is my place of birth" on Adventures Of Super Rhyme, it's not so much a boast as an explanation of how he appeared ex nihilo as Rap's first eccentric on wax. 1983's Money (Dollar Bill Y'all) is rightfully lauded as Jimmy's masterpiece, but it's his 1980 debut that cemented him as Rap's king of the yakety yak yard. For twelve minutes Jimmy the raconteur travels across time, space, Transylvania & Studio 54 in four different voices flipping labyrinthine storytelling rhymes to sound like freestyled stream-of-consciousness one minute, and then flipping clearly-improvised ad libs to sound like finely-honed writtens the next.
(From Adventures Of Super Rhyme 12"; 1980)
As well as being Rap's original oddball, Jimmy was also the first Rapper who didn't even need to release an album - why bother to record an LP when you've already dropped a couple of 10/10 timeless classic 12" singles with "more rhymes than a clock got chimes"? Jimmy Spicer: kinda like Jay Electronica, only actually good.
R.I.P to the O.G Super M.C. May your soul rhyme & roll in steree-eree-o forever ever.
r.i.p. :(
ReplyDeleteYou know Adventures Of Super Rhyme and Money (Dollar Bill Y'all) are true fucking classics because most of us first heard them sampled on/interpolated by countless songs by other people.
ReplyDelete^ Absolutely. Maino's Hi Hater was my introduction to Money (Dollar Bill Y'all).
ReplyDeletePlus the hook obviously interpolated on C.R.E.A.M innit.
ReplyDeleteCall me crazy but I never really related those 2 songs to each other. I definitely see it though. Is ‘dollar dollar bill y’all’ enough of an unquestionable nod?
ReplyDeleteDef.
ReplyDeleteLegend. R.I.P.
ReplyDelete