Back to the "D": The Final Installment

That's right, we're going back to Detroit with this one in order for me to bring you the final compilation of my Producers from the D series. Following previous installments featuring works of Apollo Brown, Bronze Nazareth and Black Milk, it should come as no suprise that the top spot is owned by the late, great J Dilla. There's not much that can be said about James Yancey that hasn't already been said, but it's just amazing to see how strong this man's legacy is. Five years after his tragic and untimely passing, new generations of fans are finding out about his music and getting touched by it, at the same time as new projects like "Jay Stay Paid" and "Yancey Boys" are being released to satisfy the hunger of the older heads. T-shirts with the text "J Dilla Changed My Life" are worn by peeps all over the world who feels that statement enough to rock them, and while it's clearly over-dramatic, it does speaks volumes on the impact Dilla's music had on his fans. In fact, I can't think of any other producer who's been able to capture the pure essence of his soul and convey it into music the way Yancey did - especially on later works like "Stop", "One For Ghost" and "Last Donut Of the Night" from his final opus, "Donuts". The best way to describe Jay Dee's sound in one word would have to be TIMELESS.

It was clear that Jay Dee would top my list, but the real question was what I should include in the set to make it interesting to both fanatics like myself and the occassional listener. I decided that the best way to go about this was to include some rarities or lesser known works, some of the obvious classics and some of my personal favorites. I also wanted the compilation to come off as much as an actual album as possible which is why I decided to include alot of little interludes between songs. These instrumentals are lifted from various sources but mostly the 2005 beat tapes series. For the final track it hit me that I could use The Roots' "Can't Stop This" which is both an incredible track that captures the sound of Dilla in his last era and a great, heartfelt tribute to a fallen soldier and comrade. The first part of the song has Black Thought rapping over "Time: The Donut Of The Heart" while the second is produced by ?uestlove and James Poyser meaning it's the only part of the comp not laced by J.D. Oh, and also I didn't want to destroy the beautiful artwork I used for cover with writing anything over it but I call this comp "The Dillalade Deck" and you damn well, better TURN IT UP!! 

Also, for anyone that might've missed the incredible documentary called "Still Shining", make sure to catch it while you can. The doc was originally filmed in February and March of 2006, so this is right after Dilla's passing and much of the film focuses on the day of his funeral. Despite this, it is not a depressing watch, but rather one that wants to celebrate the memory of this great man and his enormous passion for music. "Still Shining" is produced by Brian 'B. Kyle' Atkins and was originally supposed to be included as a bonus DVD with "The Shining" album that was released in August of 2006. That obviously never happened and the film was left in limbo until earlier this year when a website called The J Dilla Project was set up. VISIT THE J DILLA PROJECT TO WATCH "STILL SHINING".

01. "Intro"
02. "Timeless" (Ft. Illa J)
03. "That Shit" (Ft. A Tribe Called Quest)
04. "Front Street" (Ft. 1st Down / Phat Kat)
05. "MPC 3000 Interlude"
06. "Party Crasher" (Ft. Big Tone)
07. "MCA" (Ft. Frank-N-Dank)
08. "Electric Piano Solo"
09. "Do You?" (Ft. Slum Village)
10. "Can U See The Pride in the Panther" [Remix] (Ft. Mos Def)
11. "Inthe'lade"
12. "Peer Pressure" (Ft. De La Soul & B-Real)
13. "Crypto" (Ft. DJ Uppercut)
14. "Secrets Of The Sand" [Remix] (Ft. Mood)
15. "Little Brother" (Ft. Black Star)
16. "Terminator Vs. Dilla"
17. "Life Goes On" (Ft. Royce Da 5'9")
18. "Keep On" (Ft. Dwele & Slum Village)
19. "Me & My Brother"
20. "One-4-Teen" [Remix] (Ft. Bahamadia & Jay Dee)
21. "Fuck the Police" (Ft. Jay Dee)
22. "Love It Here"
23. "Can't Stop This" (Ft. The Roots)

J DILLA - "THE DILLALADE DECK"