NaS' latest

NAS – UNTITLED (2008)

This is the 9th and latest studio album from one of hip hop’s greatest, NaS. Originally titled ‘Nigger,’ NaS changed it to ‘Untitled’ after much pressure from the record company. I just got this album in the mail today and after reading review after review, I figured hip hop fans should hear this. From the first few tracks I’ve heard, it sounds like NaS is finally back (Illmatic and It Was Written were classic, but we know he fell off after that). Nas studies and lyrically dissects some of the our most divisive issues: race, inequality, poverty, and power. Definitely something to pick up if you’re a fan of hip hop, particularly political hip hop.

Track Listing:
1. Queens Get The Money
2. You Can’t Stop Us Now (Featuring Eban Thomas of The Stylistics & The Last Poets)
3. Breathe
4. Make The World Go Round (Featuring Chris Brown & The Game)
5. Hero (Featuring Keri Hilson)
6. America
7. Sly Fox
8. Testify
9. N.I.G.G.E.R. (The Slave And The Master)
10. Untitled
11. Fried Chicken (Featuring Busta Rhymes)
12. Project Roach (Featuring The Last Poets)
13. Ya’ll My Niggas
14. We’re Not Alone (Featuring Mykel)
15. Black President (Featuring Johnny Polygon)

Sample it here, buy it here

Southern Rock Classic

I’m back! Gonna start things back with one of my favorite classic rock records.

LYNYRD SKYNYRD – PRONOUNCED LEH-NERD SKIN-NERD (1973)

This is the debut album that cemented Lynyrd Skynyrd’s place in rock history. This is the album that contains what most people believe to be the greatest classic rock song of all time, “Free Bird.” My other favorites off this album are “Simple Man” and “Tuesday’s Gone,” both of which are also classic rock staples. This is definitely an album for the fans of rock music with a little southern blues flavor. If you haven’t heard “Free Bird” (for those of you living under rocks), you must check this out. Greatest. Guitar Solo. Ever.

Track Listing:
1. I Ain't The One
2. Tuesday's Gone
3. Gimme Three Steps
4. Simple Man
5. Things Goin' On
6. Mississippi Kid
7. Poison Whiskey
8. Free Bird

Sample it here, buy it here

Where Blues Meets Rock - 6 Albums of Blues Nirvana

Well here it is; the mother-load. This is going to be my last post for the next week or so while I’m on vacation, so enjoy it.

VARIOUS ARTISTS – WHERE BLUES MEETS ROCK (VOLUMES 1-6)

This is what sparked my first interest in blues music; this is where it started for me. After hearing the live rendition of Walter Trout’s “Say Goodbye To The Blues,” I knew I had to hear more from him, this album, and anything and everything that involved the blues. There are currently 7 of these Where Blues Meets Rock volumes, I only have the first 6, but this shall last you quite a while. With over five and a half hours of blues power coming from over 35 different bluesmen, this will satisfy the wants of any blues or rock fan. I’m not going to list every track that’s on all 6 of these albums, however I’ll name just a few of the artists you will find on these albums: Walter Trout, Joe Bonamassa, Leslie West, Dave Hole, Pat Travers, Bobby Mack, The Hamsters, Omar & The Howlers, and many other great, quality musicians. I’ve discovered many new blues talents from these compilations; these truly should be in every blues and rock fan’s collection.

Sample them here (part 1), here (part 2), here (part 3), here (part 4), here (part 5), here (part 6), here (part 7).

Buy them here.

Enjoy!

Hip Hop Request

Saw a request for more hip hop, so he's a classic album by Gang Starr:

GANG STARR - STEP IN THE ARENA

One of my favorite albums ever, by one of my favorite hip hop groups. DJ Premier shows off his extensive jazz knowledge on this record, with heavy jazz samples which will have everybody bobbin' their head to this. Combine that with Guru's smooth monotone style, and you have classic hip hop. Definitely one to be in everyone's collection.. if you haven't heard Gang Starr, he's a good place to start.

Track List:
1. Name Tag (Premier and the Guru)
2. Step in the Arena
3. Form of Intellect
4. Execution of a Chump (No More Mr. Nice Guy Part 2)
5. Who's Gonna Take the Weight?
6. Beyond Comprehension
7. Check the Technique
8. Love Sick
9. Here Today, Gone Tomorrow
10. Game Plan
11. Take a Rest
12. What You Want This Time?
13. Street Ministry
14. Just to Get a Rep
15. Say Your Prayers
16. As I Read My S-A
17. Precisely the Right Rhymes
18. Meaning of the Name, The

Sample it here, buy it here

More Bonamassa

JOE BONAMASSA – SHEPHERDS BUSH [LIVE] (2007)

After seeing an early request for more Bonamassa, I decided to up this iTunes exclusive live show from 2007. It’s only a few select songs from a lengthy set, but it gives a taste for what’s to come off of his new live album coming out this August. My favorite cut off this would have to be “Blues Deluxe,” though every song is smoking. If you think you’ve heard Bonamassa’s best, definitely check this one out. Some of his best guitar (and vocal!) work can be found off this live iTunes album. Definitely hard to come by (unless of course you’re one of the millions of people with iTunes). Regardless, I didn’t come across this until about a month ago, and I’ve been attempting to work out his live version of Blues Deluxe ever since.

Track Listing:
1. Walk In My Shadows
2. Blues Deluxe
3. Mountain Time
4. Bridge To Better Days
5. Just Got Paid

Sample it here (part 1) and here (part 2), buy it here:

I’ll probably only be posting an album every other day unless I get more response. Don’t forget to say thank you if you grab it so I know I’m not just posting it for one person!

Rarities

These next albums that I’m upping were fairly hard to find, so I figured I re-up them for those who are unable to find them from other sources online. That being said, don’t forget to buy them after you try them!

JERRY GOLDSMITH – RUDY SOUNDTRACK (1993)

Rudy has got to be my favorite sports movie of all time, and the main reason for this is it’s soundtrack. Jerry Goldsmith does a wonderful job of complimenting the movie's sentimental tone with extremely beautiful music. This is for the fans of the sports classic Rudy or if you’re just a fan of beautifully composed music in general. Definitely something worth checking out.

Track Listing:
1. Main Title
2. A Start
3. Waiting
4. Back On The Field
5. To Notre Dame
6. Tryouts
7. The Key
8. Take Us Out
9. The Plaque
10. The Final Game

Sample it here, buy it here

TOM SCOTT – THE HONEYSUCKLE BREEZE (1967)

This is yet another obscure jazz record that I picked up after getting into hip hop. Most of you will recognize that sax bit on “Today” from the Pete Rock & C.L. Smooth’s classic track “They Reminisce Over You (T.R.O.Y.).” While I must say that much of the album is not quite up to par with that track, this track alone makes this album worthwhile. Favorite tracks would have to be “Today,” “Mellow Yellow,” and “Baby I Love You”

Track Listing:
1. Honeysuckle Breeze
2. Never My Love
3. She's Leaving Home
4. Naima
5. Mellow Yellow
6. Baby, I Love You
7. Today
8. North
9. Blues for Hari
10. Deliver Me

Sample it here, buy it here

Sticking to Classics

For my second post, I’m going to stick to posting some classics of the hip hop, jazz, and blues genres.

KRS-ONE – A RETROSPECTIVE (2000)

KRS-One is my favorite emcee of all time. Most hip hop heads regard him as the emcee’s emcee; your hip hop collection is not complete if you don’t have any KRS-One in it. He first hit the hip hop scene with the release of Criminal Minded when in the seminal group Boogie Down Productions. A Retrospective is a compilation album of his greatest hits with Boogie Down Productions and some tracks from his first three solo albums, Return of the Boom Bap, the self-titled KRS-One, and I Got Next. This album is great for anyone who is new to KRS-One, or hip hop in general. I highly recommend this to anyone, even the hip hop haters out there, because I assure you that once you heard him speak, you’ll think twice about hip hop music. My favorite cuts would have to be “My Philosophy,” “Sound Of Da Police,” “Criminal Minded,” and the previously unreleased “Essays On BDP-ism.” This truly is a must have for hip hop fans. I’ll never forget the first time I heard “My Philosophy”… I thought I knew what hip hop was about, bumpin’ some 2Pac record… then I heard that track; the Turrentine sax sample (off of that Cherry album I upped early, infact), the beat, and then the voice. Hip hop changed for me that day.

Track Listing:

1. My Philosophy - Boogie Down Productions
2. I'm Still #1 - Boogie Down Productions
3. South Bronx - Boogie Down Productions
4. Sound Of Da Police - KRS-One
5. Love's Gonna Get'cha (Material Love) - Boogie Down Productions
6. Step Into A World (Rapture's Delight) - KRS-One
7. You Must Learn - Boogie Down Productions
8. Jack Of Spades - Boogie Down Productions
9. The Bridge Is Over - Boogie Down Productions
10. Jimmy - Boogie Down Productions
11. Criminal Minded - Boogie Down Productions
12. Black Cop - KRS-One
13. MC's Act Like They Don't Know - KRS-One
14. Why Is That? - Boogie Down Productions
15. Outta Here - KRS-One
16. Essays On BDP-ism - Boogie Down Productions

Sample it here, buy it here

If you dig this, be sure to post up, and I’ll start upping some of his BDP albums.

JIMMY SMITH – BACK AT THE CHICKEN SHACK (1960)

This is the kind of nasty, back-alley music that makes you wince in ecstasy. With Stanley Turrentine's tenor and Kenny Burrell's guitar sharing solo space, the Hammond master digs in with a blues-drenched shovel. While certainly fluent in the bop idiom, Smith's organ work maintains a direct emotional peg that reflects the swing and jump blues of a previous generation. Turrentine, a relative newcomer at this point (1960), proves a perfect foil for Smith's funky ideas, forgoing flashy bop runs in favor of soulful, expressive passages. Even on chestnuts such as "When I Grow Too Old to Dream" and "On the Sunny Side of the Street," the foursome boils the melodies down to their barest bluesy core. Back at the Chicken Shack is the prototypical soul-jazz recording.

This is a great introduction to the B3 Hammond playing of Jimmy Smith and the smooth tenor sax of Stanley Turrentine (also see my prior post for the album Cherry). My personal favorites on this album are “Back At The Chicken Shack” and “When I Grow Too Old To Dream,” although they’re all great tracks. A great mix of jazz, blues, and soul.

Track Listing:

1. Back at the Chicken Shack
2. When I Grow Too Old to Dream
3. Minor Chant
4. Messy Bessie
5. On the Sunny Side of the Street

Sample it here, buy it here

JOHN MAYALL & THE BLUESBREAKERS (WITH PETER GREEN) – A HARD ROAD [EXPANDED EDITION] (1967)

Peter Green has got to be one of the greatest (and under-rated) blues guitarists ever to pick up the instrument. A figurehead in the British blues movement, Green inspired B.B. King to say, "He has the sweetest tone I ever heard; he was the only one who gave me the cold sweats." In my humble opinion, this album even surpasses the Beano Album that John Mayall did with Eric Clapton the year before. Peter Green has influenced some of the biggest names of the blues today, including Gary Moore and Joe Bonamassa. If you’re a fan of some of that 60s blues, you must check this recording. I spent months looking for this, I finally laid down some cash and got it at Best Buy for around $45, so I hope you all enjoy it!

This set includes the original A Hard Road along with over a dozen tracks of bonus material that Peter Green recorded throughout his short-lived career with John Mayall.

Track Listing:

Disc 1:       Disc 2:
1. Hard Road           1. Looking Back
2. It's Over           2. So Many Roads
3. You Don't Love Me   3. Sitting in the Rain
4. Stumble             4. Out of Reach
5. Another Kinda Love  5. Mama Talk to Your
                          Daughter
6. Hit the Highway     6. Alabama Blues
7. Leaping Christine   7. Curly
8. Dust My Blues       8. Rubber Duck
9. There's Always Work 9. Greeny
10. Same Way           10. Missing You
11. Supernatural       11. Please Don’t Tell
12. Top of the Hill    12. Your Funeral and My
                           Trial
13. Someday (Sorry)    13. Double Trouble
14. Living Alone       14. It Hurts Me Too
15. Evil Woman Blues   15. Jenny
16. All My Life        16. Picture on the Wall
17. Ridin' on the L&N  17. First Time Alone
18. Little by Little      
19. Eagle Eye

Sample it here (part 1) and here (part 2), buy it here

PJ