Check Out Def Jam’s Secrets To Success!

It's funny cuz it's true.


Def Jam's Secrets To Success! from jeff on Vimeo.

It's also likely how Puffy aka P.Diddy, Puff Daddy, WTF he's calling himself these days made Bad Boy the camp supreme back in the day.

How else do you explain Total and The L.O.X. going PLATINUM (WTF?!?) back in the late-90s.

My theory anyway.

Deniece Williams - Free

If you can't vibe to this there's no hope for you.

Deniece Williams - Free



The Funky Snob wasn't aware that Maurice White (Earth, Wind & Fire) produced this. Nice.

Stardust-Music Sounds Better With You

The Funky Snob approves of this groove:




Stardust, a side project of Daft Punk's Thomas Bangalter, delivered this gem (featuring this dope sample of Chaka Khan's "Fate") in the late-90s.

If any dance track exemplifies sweat-drenched, alcohol-tinged late-night euphoric revelry this is it.

Anthony Hamilton's Ain't Nobody Worryin'

Every time I’m ready to give up on today’s R&B/Soul music and dust off some Stevie Wonder and Donny Hathaway, along comes someone like Anthony Hamilton to fully reaffirm my faith in the genre.

With Ain't Nobody Worryin', Anthony Hamilton could’ve went the easy route and crafted some bubblegum soul complete with guest appearances with the rappers du jour – to his credit he didn’t. What he did do, however, is create a solid soul (sans the “neo” tag) that wouldn’t look the least bit out of place next to Marvin Gaye or Bobby Womack on the shelf.

Anthony Hamilton - Can't Let Go



Heavily drawing from southern soul and gospel influences, Hamilton’s unique and easygoing drawl takes us back to a time where old school soul reached the mainstream consciousness. The title track, Ain’t Nobody Worrying is a “What’s Going On” type joint, perfectly details the ills of today’s society. Lead single “Can’t Let Go” is hot buttered soul, “Change Your World” is classic Motown, and “Pass Me Over” is contemporary gospel. He even skillfully throws in some reggae vibes with “Everybody.” Even though this album was released December 2005, this was an early candidate for best of 2006.

That said, this song is just too corny:

Anthony Hamilton - Sista Big Bones



Why this was released as single, I don't know.


Even so, The Funky Snob is looking forward to his new album, The Life of a Southern Gentleman, tentatively slated for a June release.

Biz Markie - It's spring again

In case you don't know...

It's spring again- Biz Markie

Where in the World is Jimmy Cozier?

Who you say?

Jimmy Cozier - She's All I Got


Yeah. That dude.

I wouldn't call this song a classic but it's worth a "That song was cool. Whatever happened to that dude?"

Hence this post.

Erykah Badu - New Amerykah, Pt. 1

The Funky Snob’s initial WTF?!? feeling on listening to New Amerykah was perhaps too hasty. The initial folly was in greedily gulping Badu’s latest straight out the box, instead of letting it marinade in my mental.

Having now given this a few listens and fully digested the goods, I’m still not sure whether I enjoyed it or if I’m willing to send my regards to the chef simply on account of not tasting fresh new “neo-soul” for a while.

(Okay, I think we’ve tapped this particular metaphor enough.)

New Amerykah, Pt. 1: 4th World War is….it just is. The album is proof that the industry needs Badu more than she needs it. Her first new project in years, Badu is content to let her hair down (is it really her hair this time?) and succumb to the militant-P-Funk-neo-soul-incense-burning-esoteric esthetic that she has cultivated since she summoned the spirit of Billie Holiday with 1997’s “On and On.”
So we get a 11-track project that nonchalantly non-commercial, heavily hip-hop influenced and markedly militant.




"I just laid down my vocals and let the music breathe while the melodies tell the stories," says Badu.

Indeed. Those expecting an album full of mainstream sounding joints like “Honey” will be sorely disappointed.

As a tribute to J Dilla, "Telephone" is perhaps one of the more commercial sounding songs, even at eight minutes long. “The Hump” bumps with a creeping bassline but loses points for the pointless and indulgent bridge in the middle. Indulgent is the operative word with the album as many songs are heavily experimental (see” Master Teacher, My people).

Not that there’s anything wrong with that but Badu has always been guilty of creating songs that would have so much more reasonance if she delivered them with just a bit more focus.

Sonic mediation is all good but off kilter for off kilter’s sake leaves me with vertigo. New Amerykah is destined to be one of those albums that everyone has and claim to love…but one that they don’t actually listen to much.

Black Science Orchestra - New Jersey Deep

Classic house material.

Black Science Orchestra - New Jersey Deep

The Roots - Get Busy

More fire from The Roots...

The Roots - Get Busy


The Rising Down hype machine is working overtime. Hot.

Raheem DeVaughn - Customer

The new Raheem DeVaughn single...



I don't blame his A&R people for serving this up (see what I did there?) as the new single. There are much better joints on the Love Behind The Melody album (Mo Better?). But with its concessions to today's "R&B" (ay-ay-ay-AY) and on-the-nose lyrics, "Customer" is perhaps well suited to the juvenile Soulja Boy crowd. And can/should Burger King sue?

And has Raheem ever had a decent video for one of his songs? He really needs to step up his "find a good director" game. That said, I have to respect DeVaughn's hustle and hope he stays on his grind.

The Roots - 75 Bars (Black’s Reconstruction)

Off the upcoming Rising Down project:



DAMN.

Dropping N-bombs all ironical like too.