Thursday 25 August 2011

The magic number : N.Y edition

Three somewhat underappreciated songs from the rotten apple.

Agallah - Rockin'
(From Doomsday mixtape; 2004)



Another highlight from the Doomsday mixtape that I now have a copy of thanks to the hombre HL and the blog-god Blastmaster. I've been struggling to find an adequate description for this track for the last five minutes so the best I can currently muster up is that it's the music which should soundtrack a loop of the infamous Operation Castle thermo-nuclear detonation test photograph that the Cro-Mags used on the cover of The Age Of Quarrel.

Spoonie Gee - Street Girl
(From Street Girl 12"; 1985)



Spoon Spoon Spoonie Gee more or less pioneered narrative in recorded rap music with Spoonin' Rap in 1979, so it was only fair that he'd redefine the art of storytelling with Street Girl in 1985 before rap's ultimate bard could bumrush the Jackanory corner with La Di Da Di. That said, Street Girl is as much about Davy Dmx's sublime production as it is Spoonie's elaborate tale of a crime of passion since Davy was one of the few producers from the post-Sucker M.C's booming LinnDrum 1983 - 1986 era with an ear for melody and cinematic flourish, as witnessed by just how of an earworm the main keyboard riff is and the way the beat languidly builds with tension during the last verse to signal the impending dread for the song's femme fatale as the gun gets cocked.

Sadat X - Cock It Back
(From The State Of NY Vs. Derek Murphy EP; 2000)



And speaking of click-clacking pistols, until somebody can prove me wrong (and please do, because there must be something I'm forgetting or just plain unfamiliar with) I'm declaring this Datty X joint from his EP on Dante Ross' Stimulated Records imprint the lost connection between Thug Luv by Bone & 2pac and Waka's Luv Dem Gun Sounds in the pantheon of gun-sounds-rap.

14 comments:

mister jay said...

i like to think of waka as a modern day spice-1. according to my calculations, over 85% of their rap content is on the subject of firearms. the gun shots are so frequent on this beat: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=43M1xENl-gM
i wish that spice 1 song with oj "ak ak loaded" was actually featuring waka, and i wish that waka song with a-wax was actually featuring husalah.

hl said...

Cmon man! How could you not pull this all together with "Hammers On Deck"?! Ratchet sound effects, Agallah, and Sadat X...

youtube.com/watch?v=PP4BDa1F5tM

Matthew said...

The Clipse's "Double Down" is prety damn click-clackin':

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LfAhA_hqrNY

Kelvin Mack10zie said...

Brilliant call, MJ.

HL and Matthew - both important songs in the sub-genre, but both post-Luv Dem Gun Sounds.

Anonymous said...

Double Down Classic; got that wrecklid. far better than the one sided mp3. Did that originally pop on Disco D's, (RIP), Mixtape?

Ain't nuttin compared to:

Money Boss players - "Can't keep a straight know'n the floor's about to give"!!!!!

Anonymous said...

"Can't keep a straight face know'n the floor's about to give"

step one said...

I was gonna mention 'Double Down' but as thats already been bought up I'll go with 'Full Metal' off Covert Coup. Ha.

brad said...

there was a good article on "street girl" in wax poetics a few years back

done said...

That dude is so underrated - the production on Tougher Than Leather is amazing.

Matthew said...

@ Anonymous #1, I think "Double Down" originally came out in 2006 on this:

http://www.discogs.com/Various-The-Source-Presents-Fat-Tape-Volume-1/release/1632750

It was also on DJ Benzi's "We Got the Remix" and on 12" some time after that.

Kelvin Mack10zie said...

I can't believe I forget to mention both versions of Gun Go by Agallah as another missing link.

James said...

Difficult to believe MOP haven't got one Gun Sounds song in their catalogue?

Anonymous said...

M.O.P. are the masters of onomatopoeia, they're above sound efx.

but there is: "Here today gone tomorrow"

Kelvin Mack10zie said...

Ah, yes. The best song on that first Marxmen disc.