BOOGIE DOWN PRODUCTIONS @ Yo! MTV Raps '92

In this classic episode of Yo! MTV Raps Fab 5 Freddy visits with Boogie Down Productions (KRS, Kenny Parker, ICU and Willie D). Recorded right around the release of the still (very) underrated "Sex & Violence" album, KRS drops a lot of jewels well worth catching. Around the middle the BDP posse takes the stage over at the Yo! studios and perform an ill live medley. A big shout out goes out to Hip Hop Junkie at YouTube for recording and sharing this video with us all.

Also while we're still on BDP and "Sex & Violence", I want to bring back a true classic for y'all. The Ali Shaheed remix of "We In There", which is probably the most hardcore track Ali ever did and also one of the best remixes of all time if you ask me.

BDP - "WE IN THERE" [REMIX]

[Album] SOULS OF MISCHIEF / ADRIAN YOUNGE - "There Is Only Now"

It was a long time in the making, and I had very high expectations on the LP and it actually managed to live up to every single one of them. There's no question that Adrian Younge's produced Souls Of Mischief album "There is Only Now" is a straight-up fantastic album that's equally potent to both Souls and Younge fans. The album is out now and is a definite purchase for every serious hip-hop head if you ask me, and if you haven't had the chance to hear it yet, you can stream it in it's entirety below thanks to their official Soundcloud page. The stream is clean but after you heard it you will most likely be very tempted to purchase a copy of the vinyl or CD @ at your favorite retailer so press play and head over to UGHH or your retailer of choice. TURN IT UP and stay tuned for more info on the Bilal/Younge/Ali Shaheed LP as it progresses!!

BILAL - "Sirens II"

Bilal's new single "Sirens II" is another winner from the soul whiz, working as a sequel to Adrian Younge's "Sirens". Matter of fact the track is produced by Younge, together with Ali Shaheed Muhammad, who is working together for the entire project. Amazing news!

CORMEGA Interview @ NPR Microphone Check

Having dropped perhaps the best album of the year so far, Cormega sits down with Ali Shaheed Muhammad and Frannie Kelley for an interview from NPR's Microphone Check. Here 'Mega discusses his growth as an artist, his relationship to Nas, the industry, family life, and of course his new album "Mega Philosophy". Enjoy!

JOHN LEGEND - "Tomorrow" [prod. Q-TIP] / "Wanna Be Loved" [prod. ALI SHAHEED MUHAMMAD]

A long with a very few soul/R&B artists of the day, such as Anthony Hamilton, D'Angelo, Tre Williams, John Legend has always paid respect to his musical roots, unlike the plastic R&B artists that dominates the watered downn cash-hungry industry of the day. In late August, Legend followed up his critically aclaimmed collaboration of classic '70s soul cover songs with The Roots ("Wake Up!") with his new LP "Love in the Future". Unlike its predecessesor the new album contained nothng but new material from the singer/songwriter/pianist, was executive produced by KanYe West (who also provides co-production, additional or main production on 12 of its songs), with production by Q-Tip and Ali Shaheed Muhammad, respecitvely (!), Twilite Tone (a.k.a. Y-Not of early Common Sense fame), two joints by Bink!, 88 Keys and more.

I actually just found out about this album yesterday, as it ompletely flew under my radar and while I havem't found the time to give it a front-to-back listen yet, you know I had to bang the respective Tribe productions which turned out to be very welcome treats. While 90% of the LP's songs features at the minimum 3-4 producers (like any KanYe helmed album of the day), the Q-Tip track utilizes a beautiful sampling style and is credited as the sole producer for what is entitled "Tomorrow". It's of course a soul track but it features plenty of Kamaal's abstract production trademarks - several layers of music, together creating an extremely beautiful, driving backdop for Legend. To my ears it sounds like a well-orchestrated production fusion of samples and live instrumentation. A beautiful rhythm, a nice synth bridge, a drivimg basslime that does a amazing job , not to mention the beautiful sampled vocal itro and accompanying strings. 

As mentioned above, The Abstract isn't the only original ATCQ member to pop up on this release, but so does producer Ali Shaheed Muhammad on another sweet moving soul banger called  "Wanna Be Loved". Produced in conjunction with Doc McKinney, you can find trademarks from many of Ali's earlier soul productions like those heard on the "Lucy Pearl" album (1999), just to name one project. John's vocals are constantly in the forefront, but the background music is just as layered as 'Tip's contribution, tight drum and bass combination, nice strings, and several additional instruments that you best experience in full through headpohones. You'll find the download for both songs below so make sure to check them out... Whether you're a big soul fan, this is amust hear. It hasn't been releaased as a single, but this one's on the house my droogs! And be sure to support John Legend @ Amazon or your retailer of choice!
 

*JOHN LEGEND - "TOMORROW" [prod. Q-TIP]

*JOHN LEGEND - "WANNA BE LOVED"
[prod.ALI SHAHHED MUHAMMAD & Doc McKinney]"

Damu The Fudgemunk - "Spirit Of Ummah"

Yesterday I posted Damu's "Coffe Run", which will land as side B of an exclusive 45 given away as a bonus item with the release of The Fudgemunk's new LP "Spare Overtime Re-Inspired". Tonight I got the A-side of that 7" for y'all, a smooth remix of the instrumental "Randi" - recorded in late 2011 in the spirit of Jay Dee's, Q-Tip's and Ali Shaheed's mid-'90s sound. "Spirit Of Ummah" courtesy of 2DBZ, thanks!

Throwback Classic: Scritti Politti & Mos Def - "Tinseltown to Boogiedown"

Scritti Politti is an experimenta british band that got their break with the late '70s New Vave/post-punk era, who has tried their hands on most any genre you could imagine. One thing they are NOT, however, are a hip-hop group in any way, shape or form; which is exactly what's make their "Tinseltown to Boogiedown" so brilliant; in fact, it's one of the best singles of  '99. Luckily, they don't themeselves try their hand at rapping, instead settling for the chorus and production while inviting The Mighty Mso Def to do the session and performs a lot more than just a simple 16 bars verse; add to this that his verses were recorded around the time as his lyrical masterpiece "Black On Both Sides". The other emcee on the song is a Lee Majors. But the most interesting part of this late '90s 12" is the high-profile remixes; Psycho Les, Ali Shaheed Muhammad, Pete Rock, and Rob Swift! If you're striving to get your hands on this, this is the definite version and features all versions and its instrumentals besides the original mix which can be heard above.

Often referred to as the king of the remix, Pete Rock's interpretation of "Tinseltown" is filled with all of the typical qualities of "another Pete Rock remix"; it's soulful but with an hard edge, and sounds very close to perfection when coupled with Mos' parts..Equally stunning is the darkerm, sinister variation provided by Psycho LES, who incorporates a violin sounding synthesizer effect which becomes the songs theme, while amplifies the drum beat several notches to give the joint a real booming vibe. This might actually be my favorite out of the five versions of the song! Not unexpectedly, Tribe DJ and producer Ali Shaheed goes for a smoother sax-driven feeling by emphasizing the soul elements of the original, giving it that vintage The Ummah sound. Few versions of the single included all four versions, and the one most often left out from pressings was The Rob Swift variation, which is real heavy on the low end and percussion, and is guarantee to have your head bopping.throughout the entire record. ..  On the suject Speaking on Swift, if you have yet to hear "The Architect", the time is now! 

I'ma let the music speak for itself now, I just find it amazing how well worth the price a 12" single like this is. Too often, artists release a single featuring the main song that also appears on his/her album, backed by instrumental, clean and acapella versions of the main track. An exclusive B-side or two such as a remix or a previously unreleased song/s shouldn't just be an option, but a law! With that being said here's Scritti Politti, Mos Def, Lee Morgan, Pete Rock, Psycho LES, Rob Swift and Ali Shaheed Muhammad. TURN IT UP!!


01. "Tinseltown to Boogiedown" [Psycho Les Variation]
02. "Tinseltown to Boogiedown" [Ali Shaheed Muhammad Variaion]
03. "Tinseltown to Boogiedown" [Pete Rock Variation]
04. "Tinseltown to Boogiedown" [Rob Swift Variation]
05. "Tinseltown to Boogiedown" [Psycho Les Instrumental]
06. "Tinseltown to Boogiedown" [Ali Shaheed Instrumental]
07. "Tinseltown to Boogiedown" [Pete Rock Instrumenal]

SCRITTI POLITTI x MOS DEF - "TINSELTOWN TO BOOGIEDOWN: Variations"

[Comp] ALI SHAHEED MUHAMMAD - "IN THE SHADOWS"

There's absolutely no argument that A Tribe Called Quest with its huge impact on the hip-hop scene isn't one of the most influential and greatest hip-hop grops of all time. From the heavily jazz-influenced soundscapes, to the innovative turntble work, to the positive and often hilarious lyrical concepts; all three members contributed something unique to the table. All the elements came together to form like voltron and created one of the most unique musical styles the world has ever witnessed. The chemistry beween its two vocalists, Q-Tip and Phife Dawg still holds up as one of the ultimate tag teams of rap music, and 'Tip and Ali's unmistakable mixture of boom bap tinged jazz with its heavy low end and fequent use of the Rhodes pianio was certainly a new vibe that would inspire generations to come.

The production of the three first classics, before Jay Dee was added to the fold of The Ummah, has been somewhat controversial. The Abstract, beter known as Q-Tip, was responsible for much of the beats and arrangements; it's hard not to recognize his drum patterns and innovative use of jazz samples. 'Tip has many times stated that he was the sole producer of all Tribe's music (the stuff not hadled by DiLLA of course), which I personally believe is far from the whole truth. Many of the classics gives writing or co-writing credit to Ali Shaheed, including a song like "Crooklyn" that is generally thought to be a 'Tip production, when in fact they both collaborated on the beat as anyone in´possession of the actual single can attest to. Last, but definitely not least, if Shaheed was only contributing the scratches on those records he hardly would've gotten publishing and writing credits. The Ummah, which of coures consisted of Q-Tip, Ali and Jay Dee, was one hell of a power trio which is often overlooked as to what they each contributed to the music, as they all had quite different styles, yet were all clearly very influenced by eachother whcih gave the trio a coherrent sound. Ali was probably the most soulful, R&B fusing producer out of the three, easily being able to undercut a regular R&B jam with some vintage hip-hop aesthetics without ever coming off as forced. D'Angelo's "Brown Sugar" and Jon B's "Cool Relax"are both perfect examples of this.

Although he mainly produced under The Ummah or A Tribe Called Quest banner, we can not overlook the magnitude of the plenty of songs credited only to Ali Shaheed Muhammad (something you often have to read the actual credits to gain knowledge of); and that's where this compilation comes in. Kicking things off with Sha's masterful and energetic remix of Boogie Down Production's classic single "We In Here", which is a perfect example of Ali's style as he totally flips the original, giving it a totally new sound without losing any of the rawness of the original mix. This is followed up by another ceritifed hip-hop classic in the form of the first Crooklyn Dodgers joint (Masta Ace, Buckshot & Special Ed) that was released in '94 on the "Crooklyn" soundtrack (it should be noted that both Q-Tip and Mummad are credited for this one). Now, it wouldn't be right to at least include one Tribe joint, but as is usuaul with my compilations I won't add any album material. Instead I have opted with the Mr. Muahammad remix of "Check The Rime" which beauifully flips the sonic concepts of the OG. After the '94 cut "We Run Things" from Mr. Khalyl, Lee Stone and Y-Tee. Following that we're moving into the jazz and soul realm which the producer handles with excellence; a reinivsion of the Curtis Fuller classic "Five Spot After Dark", remixed for a jazz remix compilation from 2006. Another sick departure from the traditional hip-hop bangers to the jazz realm comes in the form of legendary sax-player Greg Osby's "Rise" and Shaheed's remix where he enlists a rare guest apperance by none other than CL Smooh. The heat simply don't stop and this is in fact one of my personal favorite compilations in quite some time... In fact, I like it so much that I went back and added 320 kbps rip of many of the songs to add to our listening experience. Oh and for some good measure, check out my previous compilation of Q-Tip's prouction work, titled "Abstractions of Funk" - now that would've made a slamming double C D don't you think? TURN IT UP!!!

01. Boogie Down Productions - "We In There" [A Tribe Called Quest Remix]
02. Crooklyn Dodgers - "Crooklyn'"
03. A Tribe Called Quest - "Check The Remix" [Mr. Muahmmad's Remix]
04. Da Bush Babees - "We Run Things (It's Like That)"
05. Curtis Fuller - "Five Spot After Dark" [Remix]
06. D'Angelo - "Brown Sugar"
07. Fu-Schnickens - "La Smoove" (Ft. Phife Dawg)
08. Ice Cube - "What Can I Do?" [Eastside Remix]
09.Scriti Politti / Mos Def - "Tingseltown to Boogiedown" [Shaheed Variation]
10, Gil Scott Heron - "Don't Give Up"
11. Mos Def - "Got"
12. Shaquille O'Neal / Phife Dawg - "Where Ya At?"
13. Greg Osby / CL Smooth - "Raise" [Shaheed Remix]
14. Shola Ama - "Lovely Affair"
15. Jon B. - "Cool Relax" [Ummah Remix] (Ft. GURU)
16. Fu-Schnickens - "True Fuschnicks" [Shaheed's Fix]

ALI SHAHEED MUHAMMAD - "IN THE SHADOWS"