I was really hyped when I heard the heavy use of horns at the beginning
and thought "Shit, tha man's gone out and released a straight-up funk
album!!" Unfortunately, I felt rather let down by the time song #49
finished up (for those of u that haven't heard it yet,check out the end of
the cd, it's there). I don't know what went wrong, but I wish it hadn't.
Now I know that I'm gonna get flamed by those hard-core Prince fans
who'd pay $100.00 for a Japanese import of tha man farting into a
microphone, but let's face it, Prince has put out MUCH better stuff. Even
the ballad's really bad, and he always nails those right on the head. Won't
stop me from seeing him live if he comes to Montreal tho; ain;t too many
bands who put on a better live performance than NPG imo.
Beasties: THEY ARE DEFINITELY BACK!!!! Think Paul's Boutique, and quit
salivating; this one's just awesome, and VERY fonkay. Fans of old-school
rap'll really dig it as well. Tons of old samples are used throughout the
record, but unfortunately, they're all listed in the credits this time
around, which takes the fun out of trying to figure all of them out for
ourselves. Smokes.
Black Eyed Peas- I can definitely see what all the fuss is about; the
Peas got a great sound and an obvious respect for other black musical
genres. I was hesitant to buy the record at first cos' the hype seemed to
say that they were just Roots/Pharcyde/Tribe wannabes, but after seeing them
perform on Vibe, I decided to check 'em out for myself. Really happy 2 see
that although I see where the comparisons come from, the Peas still manage 2
sound like no one but themselves. That interpolation of Jacob Miller's
"Tenement Yard" on song 2 is unbelievable! They got me singing "Too much
watchy watchy watchy" all day long, which tells me that they're definitely
doing something right. For my money, the Peas definitely deserve props for
taking hip-hop/rap/funk to the next level by doing their own thang rather
than trying to cash in on a sure thing (read: all top 40 nonsense).
Unfortunately, I ain't takin' a chance at buying a ticket to the
Smokin'Grooves Tour; rap acts ALWAYS get stopped at the Canadian border,
which means that we always wind up getting only half the acts showin' up and
still have 2 pay the full price.
Later,
Stimpson
-----Original Message-----
From: Tunde Olubajo <tunde@arches.uga.edu>
To: funky-music@mit.edu <funky-music@mit.edu>
Date: Monday, July 13, 1998 11:30 AM
Subject: Re: Chaka khna
> Chaka Khan Comes Home On New Album
> After 20 albums and seven Grammys, Chaka Khan will make a bid for career
>independence with a new set and her own record company. The
>singer/songwriter will launch her new venture, Earth Song Entertainment,
>Aug. 25 with "Come 2 My House," an album written and produced by Khan and
>the Artist Formerly Known As Prince. The disc, which will feature the
>talents of R&B bass player Larry Graham and rapper Queen Latifah, will be
>preceded by first single "Spoon," due to drop Aug. 11.
>
>Khan will promote the album via her Web site, www.chakakhan.com, as well as
>by holding listening parties in mansions in Atlanta, Dallas, Los Angeles,
>Minneapolis, and New York. In addition, she is planning "Come 2 My House"
>contests that will award winners such home-oriented prizes as a paid rent
or
>mortgage, paid utilities, and domestic amenities.
>
>
>I hope this album turns out ok, especially since Prince album sucked so bad
>imo. Any opinions on the new Prince? Also how was the HBo special, and what
>songs did Isaac Hayes perform.
>
>
>
>