Current mood: bored Category: Movies, TV, Celebrities
This blog was originally going to be about "Cadillac Records", the movie based on blues label CHESS Records, but I wont say too much about the movie. I will say these few things and then move on to the real subject...
*Overall it was great. I loved it as a movie. But remember kids, Hollywood never tells the truth, the whole truth, and so on and so forth. There was a good amount of stuff added for dramatic edge(seeing as though real life is not enough; see reality tv). I wont point out those instances, you gotta do your own research.
*Beyonce did a better job acting than I thought capable. And yes, she can sing too, but did she channel Etta? Kinda. See, all the other actors who sung powerfully channeled their characters(especially Eamon Walker), so you could believe they were them. Beyonce sounds like Beyonce trying to be Etta James. Now that's not necessary a bad thing, (her rendidtion of "I'd Rather Go Blind" is the best thing to ever fall outta her mouth) especially if you're not familiar with Etta. She did good. That's that.
you've probably noticed that this is turning into a blog about "Caddillac Records"...you would be right if this next point wanst the last point, but it is and you aint(ha!).
*They should've shed a little more light on Howlin' Wolf's later work with Willie Dixon. These collaborations needed like a 45 minute segment by themselves. Howlin' Wolf is my favorite Chess artist, but Willie Dixon is/was the fucking man(you can see my enthusiam for the man if you check my music section under interest). Willie Dixon is CHESS. They coulda went a little deeper into Wolf and Willie contributions to the label. This is my only real complaint.
Now, on with the show...
I can't wait til they make movies about the musical icons that matter most to me. Unfortunately, they will ultimately suck. I'm crossing my fingers and hoping for the best for the following artist:
James BrownHis is probably coming soonest seeing as though he died 2 years ago. I hope Spike is still directing it. We'll see...
Sly (and the family) StoneWhere do I begin? Well, first off, I should be involved in this project somehow. That is the only way to garauntee greatness. Lol. seriously though, I fear that the story will be told incorrectly and without enough focus on what's most important: the music! They'll trail off into the scandals 90% of the time. Quote me.
Parliament-FunkadelicI don't think this story can be told with just one movie. As much as I'd like to see this played out in a cinema, it'll probalby be regulated to a four hour TV special(see The Temptations). Which isnt a bad thing, it just loses some of the grandeur. Plus the story(well the most essential parts of it) span form the mid-late 50's to the early 80's, not to mention the multiple people involved(somewhere in the high double digits). All this makes for either the most comprehensive view on P Funk ever, or just a good enough outline of the story. "Caddillac Records" fits the latter; CHESS Records held way more artist than were featured and more great output from some of the artist featured. Either way, I can't wait.
T-Bone WalkerOne of the biggest influences on generations and generations of guitarist through the guitarist he influenced( Chuck berry, Jimi Hendrix, B.B. King, etc). From what I understand, there is no video footage of Mr. Walker in his prime anywhere. All those directly influenced by him saw him live. T Bone was a bad muh fucka. He played the guitar behind his head, with his teeth, upside down, and all that waaaaay before anyone. Plus a handful of his songs have become standards, sung by everyone from fellow blues men to British invaders. It'd be a gas(yes, I said a gas) to see someone playing him in a movie and really showing people what it was like to witness the man himself back in the 40's. This probably wont come out til my daughter is in her 20's. Oh well...
Willie Dixon/Howlin WolfTheir stories deserve their own movies. Nuff said.
Betty DavisLoooooong overdue. This woman is soooo important to black music that it's scary...okay, I'm over doing it just a little. I could sit here and tell you her story, but I wont rob you of the learning experience. She deserves a movie, a book deal, a tv special, the fucking works. This will probably get the straight to dvd treatment. Here's hoping to a good one...
and finally(for this blog atleast):
Miles DavisThis is in the works, from what I know. Don "The Don" Cheadle is slated to play the "Prince of Darkness". For those who don't know, Miles is one of the most important figures in 20th century music. PERIOD. If anyone on this list needs a movie, it's the man himself. Miles was at the forefront of every major movement in jazz since and including Bebop(he sat "Free Jazz" out). Right before he died he was recording an album blending hip-hop rhythms with jazz soloing and sensibility(with Easy Mo Bee nonetheless). Miles was always on or above the curve. He was---IS the man and always will be.
This concludes this blog, probably the longest blog in my collection. I'll finish this list later. Cheers fuckers.
Tuesday, June 30, 2009
SUPRISE BITCHES!!!!! (aka On My Way To Church cont)/*Tuesday, November 04, 2008 -myspace
Current mood: accomplished Category: News and Politics
I didn't vote for Obama....you should've voted for him, but I rode the McKinney/Clemente train.
Your votes don't count anyway...electoral colleges....I made my statement with my vote. I voted for real change, and I feel good about it.
Good luck to the Obama supporters tho. Barack the vote, bitches.
I didn't vote for Obama....you should've voted for him, but I rode the McKinney/Clemente train.
Your votes don't count anyway...electoral colleges....I made my statement with my vote. I voted for real change, and I feel good about it.
Good luck to the Obama supporters tho. Barack the vote, bitches.
On My Way To Church.../*Tuesday, November 04, 2008 -myspace
Current mood: breezy Category: News and Politics
Oaklette United Methodist Church that is. That's muh voting place. Right 'round tha coner. Anyhow, I saw some shit on the news that really opened my eyes; there's a 109 year old black lady (somewhere in the south) that is voting. 109! There was like a 50 year gap when she pretty much couldn't vote! Now she gets to vote for a 1/2 black president*. That's big man.
Is she wrong for voting for Obama cuz he's black? I mean, c'mon...she lived during a time when that shit was impossible. A time when no one ever thought it would happen. Why not vote for Obama, right? Well, then why shouldn't the rest of us black people do it? There's a ton of black people from those era's that didn't make it to this time. That lady's parents, siblings, school friends, prom date, all of them are probally dead and gone. They'll never see this (physically anyhow), but she's here reppin' them. We, as black people, need to rep all our other fallen people. Those who were lynched, those who were murdered, those who rotted in jail for shit they didnt do, those who died in the feilds during slavery, those who died on the ships on the way over here.
I don't think Obama or McCain are any different from our past presidents. Not really. They try to make it seem like they can change shit. They are fucking politicians**! That's it people! But this vote for Obama is symbollic. For god sakes, he could be the first black president! He probally wont do too much, but he'll be in there!
So black people, get the dick outcha throat and go vote.
"Give a damn, y'all..."-Sly Stone
*Yea, people forget that Obama is half white. Both sides forget. We can have a real party when a "full" black pres. gets in. Obama is just a symbol of what may be able to happen.*
**And Obama is just a politican. So he's really no different in terms of merit, honesty and whathaveyou.**
Oaklette United Methodist Church that is. That's muh voting place. Right 'round tha coner. Anyhow, I saw some shit on the news that really opened my eyes; there's a 109 year old black lady (somewhere in the south) that is voting. 109! There was like a 50 year gap when she pretty much couldn't vote! Now she gets to vote for a 1/2 black president*. That's big man.
Is she wrong for voting for Obama cuz he's black? I mean, c'mon...she lived during a time when that shit was impossible. A time when no one ever thought it would happen. Why not vote for Obama, right? Well, then why shouldn't the rest of us black people do it? There's a ton of black people from those era's that didn't make it to this time. That lady's parents, siblings, school friends, prom date, all of them are probally dead and gone. They'll never see this (physically anyhow), but she's here reppin' them. We, as black people, need to rep all our other fallen people. Those who were lynched, those who were murdered, those who rotted in jail for shit they didnt do, those who died in the feilds during slavery, those who died on the ships on the way over here.
I don't think Obama or McCain are any different from our past presidents. Not really. They try to make it seem like they can change shit. They are fucking politicians**! That's it people! But this vote for Obama is symbollic. For god sakes, he could be the first black president! He probally wont do too much, but he'll be in there!
So black people, get the dick outcha throat and go vote.
"Give a damn, y'all..."-Sly Stone
*Yea, people forget that Obama is half white. Both sides forget. We can have a real party when a "full" black pres. gets in. Obama is just a symbol of what may be able to happen.*
**And Obama is just a politican. So he's really no different in terms of merit, honesty and whathaveyou.**
Is that what it took? (aka "It's All Good Baby Baby..." cont)/*Friday, October 31, 2008 -myspace
Current mood: bummed
U mutha fuckas kill me. I've been droppin blogs like bombs, with next to no kudos or responses, right? Then I say somthin' bout "The Greatest Rapper of All Time" and people come out the wood work! OMECA doesnt even listen to rap for real!!!!! She responded! Zach's a poser fuck boy who didnt start listenin to rap for real until eminem....sorry zach, but thats the truth...well the eminem part is true at least....
The point of the blog was to point out that hip-hop politics wont let people say that Biggie wasnt the greatest. I mean, muh fuckas act like Rakim never/doesnt exist! Like Kane didnt/doesnt walk the earth. Even these rappers who debuted in the 90's that I think are in line for the role of the "Greatest" say that Big is the best (except for Ghost, that nigga champions the god mc* more than anyone, shouts to Ghost Deni)!
Point: If you really think that Biggie's the greatest, I mean really think it, then that's wassup. But all the rest of you mutha fuckas (zach) are dick riders, and that was the point of the exercise, to point you mugs out.
I'm going to just start tearing down rappers left and right so I can get some action goin on in my blogsphere...
stay tuned....
Shouts to Dayne for keepin it real for me.
*the god mc is Rakim Allah you fucking posers*
U mutha fuckas kill me. I've been droppin blogs like bombs, with next to no kudos or responses, right? Then I say somthin' bout "The Greatest Rapper of All Time" and people come out the wood work! OMECA doesnt even listen to rap for real!!!!! She responded! Zach's a poser fuck boy who didnt start listenin to rap for real until eminem....sorry zach, but thats the truth...well the eminem part is true at least....
The point of the blog was to point out that hip-hop politics wont let people say that Biggie wasnt the greatest. I mean, muh fuckas act like Rakim never/doesnt exist! Like Kane didnt/doesnt walk the earth. Even these rappers who debuted in the 90's that I think are in line for the role of the "Greatest" say that Big is the best (except for Ghost, that nigga champions the god mc* more than anyone, shouts to Ghost Deni)!
Point: If you really think that Biggie's the greatest, I mean really think it, then that's wassup. But all the rest of you mutha fuckas (zach) are dick riders, and that was the point of the exercise, to point you mugs out.
I'm going to just start tearing down rappers left and right so I can get some action goin on in my blogsphere...
stay tuned....
Shouts to Dayne for keepin it real for me.
*the god mc is Rakim Allah you fucking posers*
"It's All Good Baby Baby..."/*Saturday, October 18, 2008 -myspace
Current mood: groggy Category: Music
*Disclaimer*
I know I'm going to catch hell about this, but lets keep open minds here people. If you dont like what I'm sayin, it's not the end of the world. We all have opinions dude, so don't get ur panties in a bunch.
*End of Disclaimer*
In spirit of the new movie coming out about Biggie, I decided to get this out the way before muh fuckas start the bullshit prmototing and dick riding;
BIGGIE SMALLS AKA THE NOTORIUS B.I.G. IS NOT THE GREATEST RAPPER OF ALL TIME.(neither is Pac, but that's another blog)
I've been fuming bout this for a few years now. See, mutha fuckas just co-sign n shit and it pisses me off. It's like hip-hop wont let you say different. I'll let niggas get away with sayin' it's Jay*, but cmon....
Biggie only dropped like 3 or 4 albums worth of shit(that's both albums, any and all freestyles, remix verses, ghost written verses, and any feature slots on albums). But since he died muh fuckas wanna hold his catalouge on this pillar of GOD MCness....it's fucking hype. There have been plenty better before him and plenty better after him.
Now, for his time ('93-'97) he was the fucking shit. I think "Ready to Die" was an awesome album. It was raw. He was hungry. I don't think he was hungry for real during the making of "Lif Aftre Death". And then he died. Period. It's tragic, yes, it's down right a shame. Imagine how far he coulda went. When Jim Hendrix died he was changing his whole style, just built a new state of the art studio, and was perfecting some new guitar wizarddry. He died in 1970 for god sakes. Can you imagine the damage he woulda done in the 70's? Who he woulda collaberated with, got inspired by and inspired?
Imagine if Biggie eventually left Bad Boy. What if he signed with Def Jam? What would he be doing in this age of independent labels and ringtones? How would his flow have changed? What would he have said about Bush? Would he even have cared about Bush? We'll never know and that's sad, but that doesnt change the fact with all of his catlaouge doesnt make him the greatest. Top 20 definately...Top 10 of the 90's for sure. That's about it.
If Biggie's your favorite rapper, I want you to put him next to your 2nd favorite rapper. Look at them both really hard and ask yourself, "What makes Biggie better than (insert rappers name)?" I mean really do it. Make a list. Make a chart. Make a fucking Venn Diagram for fucks sake. What's stopping (insert rappers name) from being above Biggie? Is it some fond memory you have of when you first heard Hypnotize? Did "Me and My Bitch" describe you and your bitch when it came out? Are you from Brooklynn? Or is it fucking hip-hop politricks?
Now remember, I am in no means right...but I'm also not wrong. This is the greatest thing about opinion. Just really take a look at yourself. Are you caught up in hype? ask now before the Biggie movie comes out and you get really caught up in some royal hype. Thanks.
*Jay-Z is not the greatest either. But the reason Jay-Z is not the greatest rapper of all time is because he's not a rapper...he's a hustler.*
*Disclaimer*
I know I'm going to catch hell about this, but lets keep open minds here people. If you dont like what I'm sayin, it's not the end of the world. We all have opinions dude, so don't get ur panties in a bunch.
*End of Disclaimer*
In spirit of the new movie coming out about Biggie, I decided to get this out the way before muh fuckas start the bullshit prmototing and dick riding;
BIGGIE SMALLS AKA THE NOTORIUS B.I.G. IS NOT THE GREATEST RAPPER OF ALL TIME.(neither is Pac, but that's another blog)
I've been fuming bout this for a few years now. See, mutha fuckas just co-sign n shit and it pisses me off. It's like hip-hop wont let you say different. I'll let niggas get away with sayin' it's Jay*, but cmon....
Biggie only dropped like 3 or 4 albums worth of shit(that's both albums, any and all freestyles, remix verses, ghost written verses, and any feature slots on albums). But since he died muh fuckas wanna hold his catalouge on this pillar of GOD MCness....it's fucking hype. There have been plenty better before him and plenty better after him.
Now, for his time ('93-'97) he was the fucking shit. I think "Ready to Die" was an awesome album. It was raw. He was hungry. I don't think he was hungry for real during the making of "Lif Aftre Death". And then he died. Period. It's tragic, yes, it's down right a shame. Imagine how far he coulda went. When Jim Hendrix died he was changing his whole style, just built a new state of the art studio, and was perfecting some new guitar wizarddry. He died in 1970 for god sakes. Can you imagine the damage he woulda done in the 70's? Who he woulda collaberated with, got inspired by and inspired?
Imagine if Biggie eventually left Bad Boy. What if he signed with Def Jam? What would he be doing in this age of independent labels and ringtones? How would his flow have changed? What would he have said about Bush? Would he even have cared about Bush? We'll never know and that's sad, but that doesnt change the fact with all of his catlaouge doesnt make him the greatest. Top 20 definately...Top 10 of the 90's for sure. That's about it.
If Biggie's your favorite rapper, I want you to put him next to your 2nd favorite rapper. Look at them both really hard and ask yourself, "What makes Biggie better than (insert rappers name)?" I mean really do it. Make a list. Make a chart. Make a fucking Venn Diagram for fucks sake. What's stopping (insert rappers name) from being above Biggie? Is it some fond memory you have of when you first heard Hypnotize? Did "Me and My Bitch" describe you and your bitch when it came out? Are you from Brooklynn? Or is it fucking hip-hop politricks?
Now remember, I am in no means right...but I'm also not wrong. This is the greatest thing about opinion. Just really take a look at yourself. Are you caught up in hype? ask now before the Biggie movie comes out and you get really caught up in some royal hype. Thanks.
*Jay-Z is not the greatest either. But the reason Jay-Z is not the greatest rapper of all time is because he's not a rapper...he's a hustler.*
OH MY LORD!!!!/*Tuesday, August 12, 2008 -myspace
Current mood: anxious Category: Music
I just peeped a lil bit of "SHINE A LIGHT" Scorcesse's new concert/docu on the Stones.....
Mick Jagger, will you please please please sit the hell down?! This aint back in the day muh fucka. Your voice is no longer strong, it's wobbly and unsure of it's self. Couple that with the fact that your frame is mad fraile lookin and you've got the recipe for an old fart rocker.
Dont anyone get it twisted. Yall out there who know me well know I love the Stones, and will stand by Mick's golden year vocals, but this....this is soooooooo sad. Like I saw one performance and thought "Maybe it's just a fluke. He just fucked that song up." WRONG. His voice just erked me eveytime he sang.
The rest of the boys were on fire tho. If Mick woulda quieted down I coulda enjoyed muhself. I just couldnt watch him tear down his own songs, some of which I love to death.
I guess we all gotta fall off someday...
R.I.P. to Bernie Mac and Isaac Hayes
I just peeped a lil bit of "SHINE A LIGHT" Scorcesse's new concert/docu on the Stones.....
Mick Jagger, will you please please please sit the hell down?! This aint back in the day muh fucka. Your voice is no longer strong, it's wobbly and unsure of it's self. Couple that with the fact that your frame is mad fraile lookin and you've got the recipe for an old fart rocker.
Dont anyone get it twisted. Yall out there who know me well know I love the Stones, and will stand by Mick's golden year vocals, but this....this is soooooooo sad. Like I saw one performance and thought "Maybe it's just a fluke. He just fucked that song up." WRONG. His voice just erked me eveytime he sang.
The rest of the boys were on fire tho. If Mick woulda quieted down I coulda enjoyed muhself. I just couldnt watch him tear down his own songs, some of which I love to death.
I guess we all gotta fall off someday...
R.I.P. to Bernie Mac and Isaac Hayes
Blackout Blake/*Tuesday, May 20, 2008-myspace
Current mood: breezy Category: Parties and Nightlife
At Zac's "Welcome Home" party, we all did it big, but Blake did it HUGE. He doesnt remember much so don't ask that mutha fucka. Anyhow, Blake's drink list:
Bottle of Vodka
Forty of Budwiser
Half bottle of Hypnotic
Half bottle of Hennesy
Too many shots of Jim Bean
One too many Apple rum shots
And a few shots of Jose Cuervo
He blew chunks all on Zacs bathroom floor. I cleaned it up with the help of my supporting cast:
Antoinette
Brandon
and last but not least Satryl
Thanks guys!
Anyway, I have a few video clips and a pic, so If yall wanna see them just holla. Oh and Meet was leanin on a fence for like two hours, so me and Antoinette were baby sittin him and Blake. He was fucked up, but not like Blake. Blake passed out while he was shittin! Lol! He almost fell through Zacs shower doors. He held up the bathroom so long muh fuckas were usin Zac's moms bathroom in her room.
Zac's dumb ass was....drunk. It was a damn shame...
Also, I made a disastorous return to spades. Malik and I got our asses handed to us...well not really. See, there's a difference between gettin whooped and losing. We lost. I lost the game for us....Zac and whoever his partner was...oh it was Adam, yea them muh fuckas got lucky.
Adam was passed out too. And Malik, and Skreech...Skreech took a few shots too. Brandon even came through...Great party man...
Shouts to Eric and Ryan.
At Zac's "Welcome Home" party, we all did it big, but Blake did it HUGE. He doesnt remember much so don't ask that mutha fucka. Anyhow, Blake's drink list:
Bottle of Vodka
Forty of Budwiser
Half bottle of Hypnotic
Half bottle of Hennesy
Too many shots of Jim Bean
One too many Apple rum shots
And a few shots of Jose Cuervo
He blew chunks all on Zacs bathroom floor. I cleaned it up with the help of my supporting cast:
Antoinette
Brandon
and last but not least Satryl
Thanks guys!
Anyway, I have a few video clips and a pic, so If yall wanna see them just holla. Oh and Meet was leanin on a fence for like two hours, so me and Antoinette were baby sittin him and Blake. He was fucked up, but not like Blake. Blake passed out while he was shittin! Lol! He almost fell through Zacs shower doors. He held up the bathroom so long muh fuckas were usin Zac's moms bathroom in her room.
Zac's dumb ass was....drunk. It was a damn shame...
Also, I made a disastorous return to spades. Malik and I got our asses handed to us...well not really. See, there's a difference between gettin whooped and losing. We lost. I lost the game for us....Zac and whoever his partner was...oh it was Adam, yea them muh fuckas got lucky.
Adam was passed out too. And Malik, and Skreech...Skreech took a few shots too. Brandon even came through...Great party man...
Shouts to Eric and Ryan.
Shingles All The Way/*Monday, May 19, 2008 -myspace
Current mood: blah Category: Life
I recently had shingles. It sucked ten thousand dicks. It felt like somebody was kicking me in my side for hours. The shit lasted for two weeks and some change. It was at it's worse on the seventh day. That's when I said "Fuck it!" and took my no insurance havin ass to the hospital. Doc came in and looked at it for 1.3 seconds and said "That's shingles...yep, classic case."
For those of you who dont know what shingles is, it's an advanced form of chicken pox, they're both in the herpes family. I aquired this form of the virus because I never had chicken pox as a kid.
Send me twenty dollars....now.
I recently had shingles. It sucked ten thousand dicks. It felt like somebody was kicking me in my side for hours. The shit lasted for two weeks and some change. It was at it's worse on the seventh day. That's when I said "Fuck it!" and took my no insurance havin ass to the hospital. Doc came in and looked at it for 1.3 seconds and said "That's shingles...yep, classic case."
For those of you who dont know what shingles is, it's an advanced form of chicken pox, they're both in the herpes family. I aquired this form of the virus because I never had chicken pox as a kid.
Send me twenty dollars....now.
THE RIOT Series.../*Tue Nov 18, 2008 3:34 am-slyandthefamilystone.net forum
"There's A Riot Goin' On" is my favorite album of all time. I've been studying this album for 3 years and some change now. I can't stop playing it!!!! Lol, I play the whole thing through out the course of a day. I say all that to say this: I am obsessed with this album, and I want to know everything about it. So, I'm going to start this thread off wiith a few things I've read, heard from people, or recognized myself. All of you can share facts as well. I'm going to close with a series of questions. Please try to stay on subject("Riot"). Here we goe..... Just Like A Baby- Alright, first off I recommend everyone go home right now and Plug your headphones into whatever you can play this album on. Pull your headphone jack out just a pinch. You should be able to hear one channel; left or right. Jiggle it round til you can hear the channel that just has his lead vocal(and the clavinet intro) it's like he's singing in your ear!!!!! Anyway, at 2:54 it sounds like he's saying "Fuck with me baby, it'd be..." great or something. Cant hear the whole thing. Between 4:27-4:30 he's saying something to someone in the background. Uh...I have more but my keyboard is dying and it's taking like five minutes to type one sentence(battery powered). I guess you folks can start posting... I'll be back when I get some batteries. Thanks for the future post!
*Tue Nov 18, 2008 2:40 pm
Alright, let's continue... Just Like A Baby- There's an organ(or two) buried in the mix during the instrumental break. And there's an organ during the chorus(or bridge?). Apparently that's Larry on bass, and I've read that Bobby's(Womack) playing guitar and harmonizing, I believe it. Family Affair-Alright, so many things I've read! *Sly recorded his vocal lying on a piano(which would explain why his voice sounds like that). Clive Davis Reportedly said "We can't release that as a single, he sounds stoned." *Parts of this were recorded in that winnabego(spell check please). *Billy Preston on keys, Bobby Womack on guitar(or Freddie?) Brave and Strong-Is that a flute in the beginning? Lol, anyhow I need to know who plays what on this song. Also, Sly is feeding one or both of the organs through some type of wah(he does that a few times on this album). You Caught Me Smilin'-Okay first off, the backing vocals are just Sly and a random chick, i believe. There's three guitars, so naturally I assume two are sly and the other's freddie.with Gerry gibson on drums, and ofcourse the horn section. Sly on bass and organ. Time-Organ through a wah again(the intro is the best example). There's a few moans and groans and laughs throughout the song. Spaced Cowboy-There's a Lead vocal and two backing vocals. One backing vocal is definatley sly(sounding fucked up) and a random woman(or rose?). I originally thought that his harmonica solo ended at 2:52 but he sustains the last note til 2:58. Then there's this scary moaning he does from 3:46 until the end of the song...creepy. It sounds like he's fucking dying man.... Running Away-First off, sooooo many people think it's just Rose singing but Sly's vocal is buried in the mix(similar to "If It Were Left Up To Me"). For the longest, I thought that it was just cynthia double tracked, but Jerry's back there to, blowing beautifully. I wanna take this time to point out that everyone that goes home to listen to "Just Like A Baby" on one channel(it's the right channel), should do that for the whole album. Listen to it straight through, then listen to it on the right channel, then on the left. you can hear a lot more that way. also speeding it up and slowing it down. dont listen to it backwards......or listen to it backwards and let me know how that sounds. Got more stuff later. gotta get back to work
*Tue Nov 18, 2008 2:40 pm
Alright, let's continue... Just Like A Baby- There's an organ(or two) buried in the mix during the instrumental break. And there's an organ during the chorus(or bridge?). Apparently that's Larry on bass, and I've read that Bobby's(Womack) playing guitar and harmonizing, I believe it. Family Affair-Alright, so many things I've read! *Sly recorded his vocal lying on a piano(which would explain why his voice sounds like that). Clive Davis Reportedly said "We can't release that as a single, he sounds stoned." *Parts of this were recorded in that winnabego(spell check please). *Billy Preston on keys, Bobby Womack on guitar(or Freddie?) Brave and Strong-Is that a flute in the beginning? Lol, anyhow I need to know who plays what on this song. Also, Sly is feeding one or both of the organs through some type of wah(he does that a few times on this album). You Caught Me Smilin'-Okay first off, the backing vocals are just Sly and a random chick, i believe. There's three guitars, so naturally I assume two are sly and the other's freddie.with Gerry gibson on drums, and ofcourse the horn section. Sly on bass and organ. Time-Organ through a wah again(the intro is the best example). There's a few moans and groans and laughs throughout the song. Spaced Cowboy-There's a Lead vocal and two backing vocals. One backing vocal is definatley sly(sounding fucked up) and a random woman(or rose?). I originally thought that his harmonica solo ended at 2:52 but he sustains the last note til 2:58. Then there's this scary moaning he does from 3:46 until the end of the song...creepy. It sounds like he's fucking dying man.... Running Away-First off, sooooo many people think it's just Rose singing but Sly's vocal is buried in the mix(similar to "If It Were Left Up To Me"). For the longest, I thought that it was just cynthia double tracked, but Jerry's back there to, blowing beautifully. I wanna take this time to point out that everyone that goes home to listen to "Just Like A Baby" on one channel(it's the right channel), should do that for the whole album. Listen to it straight through, then listen to it on the right channel, then on the left. you can hear a lot more that way. also speeding it up and slowing it down. dont listen to it backwards......or listen to it backwards and let me know how that sounds. Got more stuff later. gotta get back to work
LIFE/*Sun Feb 22, 2009 4:48 pm-slyandthefamilystone.net forum
No one ever really talks about this album. It kinda gets swept under the cover a lot. I just wanted to post a few things about the album I like:
*First off, Freddie straight owns this album! His guitar work is so boss! There's some mean leads in there, kinda blusey too. His rhythm work is up to the usual standard, but his lead lines are devastating.
*The arrangments-OH MY GOD! Like how they just bust into waltz time at the end of "Harmony", how in the middle of "Fun" they sound like they're trying to hypnotize you into having fun, how on "Animal" they break into sort of a free jazz thing (monkey around? bear friend? lol), how on "Into My Own Thing" he makes the band sound like one big horn section, etc, etc, etc. I can go on for days.
*The electricity of the performance. I used to not like M'Lady until I saw them do it live (on video). On record it just felt like another "Dance To The Music" but live...that song was made to be played live! After seeing it live, now everytime I play the song I feel like I'm at a live show. I can go on for days....I'm gonna talk about the lyrics next....after some responses
*Mon Feb 23, 2009 1:11 pm
Some of the lyrics are slight, but taken in context with the performances and the compositions/arrangments it's forgivable. If you look at these lyrics, they're very introspective at times and revealing about what the band had been going through after Dance To The Music: "Dynamite" is one of those examples of slight, almost superficial lyrics. On the surface he's just talking about a hot chick he got with. But I personally think he's talking specifically about a groupie; in songs before this album when he speaks of women he's usually talking about being in love, falling out of love, working through love, or even not being with a girl because he doubts he'll get the love he wants. This is the first song that just talks about how hot the chick is and her coming on to him("I like the way she moves..." "She's got a beautiful tan" "I want you...me and you...") but like I said, the lack of depth in these lyrics is made up for by everything else in the song. Especially the way they poked fun at their last hit record at the end. Pricless. In "Chicken" those hangers on rear their ugly heads("cant you tell I'm in your corner, dont you know i'm good for you") and Sly responds to what can only be the fast life("You just think I'm scared to party, sometimes I do sometimes I dont...You can call me what you want") and peer pressure. I'm sorry, but lyrically "Plastic Jim" is a waste of time. It feels like he rush wrote it to go along with the "Elanor Rigby" refrain(which was clever). The song itself is awesome. Freddie goes all out, it's like he's soloing the entire time. "Harmony" has a little nugget of doubt wrapped up in its joy("do you like me for who i am, or who you want me to be?") "Life" is similar, as he sandwiches some introspective wisdom in between advice on life("You might be scared of somethin' - look at Mr Stewart He's the only person he has to fear He'd only let himself get near He don't trust nobody If he stopped bein' so shady He could have a nice young lady") "I'm An Animal" is just plain silly, but it's fun. "Jane is a Groupee" is as plain as the title states. It's on the verge of the same mistrappings as "Plastic Jim" lyrically(rushed), but he's trying to make a point. He could've taken a little more time to fine tune those couple of tunes, but they did do this in a really fast pace; Dance To The Music was released a mere 5 or 6 months before this. They probably did it on tour. anyhow, more later. I gotta take a break
_________________
"I switched from coke to pep..."
*First off, Freddie straight owns this album! His guitar work is so boss! There's some mean leads in there, kinda blusey too. His rhythm work is up to the usual standard, but his lead lines are devastating.
*The arrangments-OH MY GOD! Like how they just bust into waltz time at the end of "Harmony", how in the middle of "Fun" they sound like they're trying to hypnotize you into having fun, how on "Animal" they break into sort of a free jazz thing (monkey around? bear friend? lol), how on "Into My Own Thing" he makes the band sound like one big horn section, etc, etc, etc. I can go on for days.
*The electricity of the performance. I used to not like M'Lady until I saw them do it live (on video). On record it just felt like another "Dance To The Music" but live...that song was made to be played live! After seeing it live, now everytime I play the song I feel like I'm at a live show. I can go on for days....I'm gonna talk about the lyrics next....after some responses
*Mon Feb 23, 2009 1:11 pm
Some of the lyrics are slight, but taken in context with the performances and the compositions/arrangments it's forgivable. If you look at these lyrics, they're very introspective at times and revealing about what the band had been going through after Dance To The Music: "Dynamite" is one of those examples of slight, almost superficial lyrics. On the surface he's just talking about a hot chick he got with. But I personally think he's talking specifically about a groupie; in songs before this album when he speaks of women he's usually talking about being in love, falling out of love, working through love, or even not being with a girl because he doubts he'll get the love he wants. This is the first song that just talks about how hot the chick is and her coming on to him("I like the way she moves..." "She's got a beautiful tan" "I want you...me and you...") but like I said, the lack of depth in these lyrics is made up for by everything else in the song. Especially the way they poked fun at their last hit record at the end. Pricless. In "Chicken" those hangers on rear their ugly heads("cant you tell I'm in your corner, dont you know i'm good for you") and Sly responds to what can only be the fast life("You just think I'm scared to party, sometimes I do sometimes I dont...You can call me what you want") and peer pressure. I'm sorry, but lyrically "Plastic Jim" is a waste of time. It feels like he rush wrote it to go along with the "Elanor Rigby" refrain(which was clever). The song itself is awesome. Freddie goes all out, it's like he's soloing the entire time. "Harmony" has a little nugget of doubt wrapped up in its joy("do you like me for who i am, or who you want me to be?") "Life" is similar, as he sandwiches some introspective wisdom in between advice on life("You might be scared of somethin' - look at Mr Stewart He's the only person he has to fear He'd only let himself get near He don't trust nobody If he stopped bein' so shady He could have a nice young lady") "I'm An Animal" is just plain silly, but it's fun. "Jane is a Groupee" is as plain as the title states. It's on the verge of the same mistrappings as "Plastic Jim" lyrically(rushed), but he's trying to make a point. He could've taken a little more time to fine tune those couple of tunes, but they did do this in a really fast pace; Dance To The Music was released a mere 5 or 6 months before this. They probably did it on tour. anyhow, more later. I gotta take a break
_________________
"I switched from coke to pep..."
Purple Premonitions Part 2/* 6/30/09-Twitter
So, I'm BLASTING "17 Days" (by Prince of course), and this little Indian chick I see all the time comes and taps me. I'm thinkin she gettin ready to tell me to turn it down, right? She tells me that the ash tray thing is on fire. I go out back with her and unscrew it and get soaked in smoke... Someone else brought water to put it out. I had to throw away my purple March Of Dimes shirt, and get a Liberty shirt. I called my wife to tell her, and relaized that this too could be an omen.
Feel me...
I started playing my "Purple Palace" Prince playlist, and was stopped mid way into the first song, then I have to throw away the purple shirt on my back because it was ruined (I refuse to put that shirt in the car)...I dunno man....I dunno...
Feel me...
I started playing my "Purple Palace" Prince playlist, and was stopped mid way into the first song, then I have to throw away the purple shirt on my back because it was ruined (I refuse to put that shirt in the car)...I dunno man....I dunno...
Purple Premonitions/*6/30/09-Twitter
Yesterday, when I came into work, I started listenin to my "Purple Palace" Prince playlist just cuz. (I actually ended up playin it all day)
When I got my comp straight and pulled up all my shit, I discovered that June 25th was the 25th Anniversary of Purple Rain. Didnt know that, and I would've found that out if Michael Jackson and Farrah Fawcet wouldnt have died, right? Completely overshadowed; so much so, that a huge Prince fan such as myself MISSED it all together until the following Monday. Anyhow, last night I had a really long dream. It was the craziest looking shit, right? Throughout the WHOLE dream , no matter what else was goin on, everyone kept talkin bout how Prince had committed suicide (via pill overdose). The whole dream had Purple all over it and shit. I'm gettin a baaaaaad feelin yall. Also all weekend I randomly kept mentioning to people how I had "Thriller" on vinyl in good condition as well as "Purple Rain" in good condition, and how much money I'd get if Prince passed. I probably said it Friday, Saturday and Sunday And at that point I didnt even know it had been the 25th Anniversery on Thursday. Shit is spooky. Then fuckin Billy Myas died on Sunday... Mike and Prince bout the same age too...
And I DEFINATELY aint sayin this to wish it upon His Royal Badness, NOT AT ALL. I'm genuinley worried and spooked. Bad vibes. And adding on to my earlier tweets, I also randomly added "The B-Sides" disc to my Ipod this past weekend. We were jammin to "How Come You Don't Call Me Anymore?" I don't know man. It probably aint nuthin, but it's too much stuff to just ignore, y'know? If I wouldn't have had the dream, it wouldnt be that serious tho. The dream was so vivid...
When I got my comp straight and pulled up all my shit, I discovered that June 25th was the 25th Anniversary of Purple Rain. Didnt know that, and I would've found that out if Michael Jackson and Farrah Fawcet wouldnt have died, right? Completely overshadowed; so much so, that a huge Prince fan such as myself MISSED it all together until the following Monday. Anyhow, last night I had a really long dream. It was the craziest looking shit, right? Throughout the WHOLE dream , no matter what else was goin on, everyone kept talkin bout how Prince had committed suicide (via pill overdose). The whole dream had Purple all over it and shit. I'm gettin a baaaaaad feelin yall. Also all weekend I randomly kept mentioning to people how I had "Thriller" on vinyl in good condition as well as "Purple Rain" in good condition, and how much money I'd get if Prince passed. I probably said it Friday, Saturday and Sunday And at that point I didnt even know it had been the 25th Anniversery on Thursday. Shit is spooky. Then fuckin Billy Myas died on Sunday... Mike and Prince bout the same age too...
And I DEFINATELY aint sayin this to wish it upon His Royal Badness, NOT AT ALL. I'm genuinley worried and spooked. Bad vibes. And adding on to my earlier tweets, I also randomly added "The B-Sides" disc to my Ipod this past weekend. We were jammin to "How Come You Don't Call Me Anymore?" I don't know man. It probably aint nuthin, but it's too much stuff to just ignore, y'know? If I wouldn't have had the dream, it wouldnt be that serious tho. The dream was so vivid...
Thoughts From The Threshold Of The 21st Century/*Wed 6/24/09- Twitter
So the year is 2000. We just got this huge entertainment system: big screen tv, cd player, dvd player, huge speakers the works. It was a magical time; I watched the first episode of 106 & Park on that tv, Common was the musical guest if I'm not mistaken, which started my Common craze that year(accompanied shortly by me trying to convert to Islam). Anyhow, this was the first time I'd actually had a chance to watch a DVD, those having came out only a few years ago. I heard a lot about em, but I didn't get what was supposed to be the big deal. We rented "Dead Presidents" (at that point I had only seen a few parts of the movie on tv I think). Man, let me tell you... That shit fucked my head up. It was like being at the movies at home. The speakers and picture was soooo fucking boss. So believe me when I tell you that the music was BUMPIN'. After watching the movie, I had been particularly smitten by "I'm So Tired of Being Alone" by Al Green. the scene in which the song (and subsequent Soul train performance) appeared helped ingrain that song into my soul. At that point in my life, we were already fans of older music. Our child hood was filthy with old school influence from what my mother played, to movie soundtracks to cartoons like California Raisins to tryna find out what song was sampled on any given rap song, so it wasnt like we didn't already like older shit. But this was the first time in our lives that we actively decided to go find sold school shit to listen to. Napster had JUST started gettin sued real big time some months before thi, so a lot of newer music was being removed, but the older stuff wasnt being touched. This was a year or so before Napster completely shut down for a hot sec, so we were getting any and everything we wanted. We started with "I'm So Tired Of Being Alone" and just started tryna find shit (we hadn't heard since we were kids. Later, we got the first volume to the "Dead Presidents" soundtrack which would be my first real introduction to Sly Stone via "If You Want Me To Stay"). One of the ways we found most song names and shit was by going back through movies we had seen and looking up the music we liked from the movie. But it all started with hearing (and seeing) "I'm So Tired Of Being Alone" on that DVD of "Dead Presidents". We were like mad dogs after a truck load of bones. Lets face it, there's a lot more older music than newer music, realistically and literally speaking. when we decided to embark on this mission of hearin as much of it as we could, we discovered a WHOLE SERIES OF UNIVERSES. I could go on and on and oooooooon...but who cares? Done ranting....
"Blues People" excerpts.../*Fri 6/12/09- Twitter
These next tweets I’ll be tweetin are excerpts (dumbed down a lil) from the book “Blues People” by LeRoi Jones. It came out in 1963. I suggest you guys (those who are interested) go find a copy. Buy it, borrow it, read it at your local book store a few days out of the week. It’s turning out to be my favorite book of all time. Here we go:
When black people got to this country, they were Africans, a foreign people. Their customs, attitudes, desires, were shaped to a different place, a radically different life. What a weird and unbelievably cruel destiny for those people who were first brought here. Not just the mere fact of being sold into slavery, no that in itself was common practice among the tribes of West Africa. But to be brought to a country, a culture, a society, that was (and is), in terms of purely philosophical capacity, the complete antithesis of one’s own version of man’s life on earth---that was the cruelest aspect of this particular enslavement.
An African who was enslaved by Africans (or for that matter, a Western white man who was, or is, enslaved by another Western white man) can still function as a kind of human being. There remains some condition of communication on strictly human terms. However, the African who was unfortunate to find themselves on some fast clipper ship to the New World was not even accorded membership in the human race.
There was no communication between master and slave on any strictly human level, but only the relation one might have to a piece of property---if you twist the knob on your radio, you expect it to play.
One of the most persistent traits of the Western white man has always been his fanatical and almost instinctive assumption that his systems and ideas about the world are the most desirable, and further, that people who don’t aspire to them, or at least think them admirable, are savages or enemies. The idea that Western thought might be exotic if viewed from another landscape never presents itself to most Westerners. As owners of these black people, they, Americans, were certainly in a position to declare that all thought outside their known systems was at least “backward”. What made the American most certain that he was “superior” to the African (aside from the fact that the African was his slave) was the foreignness of African culture.
It’s absurd to assume that all traces of Africa were erased from the black peoples minds because they learned English. The very nature of the English that black people spoke (and still speaks) drops the lie on that idea. The Africans belief in the supernatural was carried over into the life of the American slave. The reason for the Westerners ridicule of the Africans “fear” of the supernatural is simply that the white man conducts his life without thought to the gods.
When black people got to this country, they were Africans, a foreign people. Their customs, attitudes, desires, were shaped to a different place, a radically different life. What a weird and unbelievably cruel destiny for those people who were first brought here. Not just the mere fact of being sold into slavery, no that in itself was common practice among the tribes of West Africa. But to be brought to a country, a culture, a society, that was (and is), in terms of purely philosophical capacity, the complete antithesis of one’s own version of man’s life on earth---that was the cruelest aspect of this particular enslavement.
An African who was enslaved by Africans (or for that matter, a Western white man who was, or is, enslaved by another Western white man) can still function as a kind of human being. There remains some condition of communication on strictly human terms. However, the African who was unfortunate to find themselves on some fast clipper ship to the New World was not even accorded membership in the human race.
There was no communication between master and slave on any strictly human level, but only the relation one might have to a piece of property---if you twist the knob on your radio, you expect it to play.
One of the most persistent traits of the Western white man has always been his fanatical and almost instinctive assumption that his systems and ideas about the world are the most desirable, and further, that people who don’t aspire to them, or at least think them admirable, are savages or enemies. The idea that Western thought might be exotic if viewed from another landscape never presents itself to most Westerners. As owners of these black people, they, Americans, were certainly in a position to declare that all thought outside their known systems was at least “backward”. What made the American most certain that he was “superior” to the African (aside from the fact that the African was his slave) was the foreignness of African culture.
It’s absurd to assume that all traces of Africa were erased from the black peoples minds because they learned English. The very nature of the English that black people spoke (and still speaks) drops the lie on that idea. The Africans belief in the supernatural was carried over into the life of the American slave. The reason for the Westerners ridicule of the Africans “fear” of the supernatural is simply that the white man conducts his life without thought to the gods.
JUNETEENTH/*Friday 6/12/09- Twitter
Firstly, I want all to know, whether you are black, white, or candy-stripped, that next week is JUNETEENTH. For all those who aren’t familiar with JUNETEENTH, it commemorates June 19, 1865, the day Union General Gordon Granger and 2,000 federal troops arrived in Galveston, Texas, to take possession of the state and enforce the emancipation of its slaves. Though the Emancipation Proclamation had been issued on September 22, 1862, with an effective date of January 1, 1863, it had minimal immediate effect on most slaves’ day-to-day lives, particularly in Texas, which was almost entirely under Confederate control.
So in layman’s terms, it’s sort of like Black Independence Day so to speak. It represents the last of the slaves being “freed” and the start of Reconstruction. I hope everyone takes the time out next week to truly think about how lucky you are to be “free”, in the sense that you were not born into bondage. Also, pay homage to all the black folks who never made it out of slavery. Especially the ones from the first few generations of American born African slaves. To be born, live and die a slave has to be one of the most horrible experiences ever. On June 19th 2009, have a moment of reflection, at least.
So in layman’s terms, it’s sort of like Black Independence Day so to speak. It represents the last of the slaves being “freed” and the start of Reconstruction. I hope everyone takes the time out next week to truly think about how lucky you are to be “free”, in the sense that you were not born into bondage. Also, pay homage to all the black folks who never made it out of slavery. Especially the ones from the first few generations of American born African slaves. To be born, live and die a slave has to be one of the most horrible experiences ever. On June 19th 2009, have a moment of reflection, at least.
INTRO (PLEASE READ. NO, MUST READ...I GUESS.)
I will be blogging to keep track of my favorite rants I've done on twitter. I also will be moving my fav blogs from my myspace over here. Enjoy and leave comments, especially if you DON'T agree with my views, so we can have an open dialogue and learn somthin from each other. Thanks!
WELCOME TO TH3RI0T!
WELCOME TO TH3RI0T!
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