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Al Green |
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Monty Alexander |
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Jurassic 5 |
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Al Green’s “Love And Happiness” is one of those tunes that’s loved by all. Enjoy the original, and consider adding a couple of clever reinterpretations to your MP3 collection.
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Lady Day And John Coltrane
Did You Hear What They Said?
Winter In America (Solo Version)
Back Home (w/Brian Jackson) |
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I’ve been listening to Gil Scott-Heron’s music consistently for decades. I own about eight of his LPs, and have been on the hunt for at least two others. His recent passing merits a proper tribute.
Gil’s music was a gumbo of jazz, blues, R&B, and spoken word — Gil called it “bluesology, the science of how things feel.” He had a gift for melody and was among the most evocative lyricists that emerged from the civil rights movement. I don’t consider Gil to be a great album artist — there are many intolerable tracks in his repertoire — but when the music, lyrics, and personnel clicked (usually when Brian Jackson was involved), the impact was super powerful.
I remember going to see Gil at Yoshi’s Jazz Club in Oakland circa 1998. I am almost sure Brian Jackson performed with him that night (which rarely happened post-1980), but the Internet has not been forthcoming with corroboration. Gil wasn’t all there but it didn’t take more than a few songs for him to find his equilibrium. His voice had become hoarse, yet was no less emotive. I had hoped to see him perform again, but he seldom performed in his later years due to substance abuse and related incarcerations.
Rather than replicate a greatest hits collection, I tried to pick tracks that capture some of the emotions that have coursed through me as I contemplate Gil’s life and career.
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Pony (Extended Version) Released in 1996 |
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Timbaland is among the all-time great hip hop/R&B’s producers, and Ginuwine’s “Pony” was one of his first big hits. Like many Timbaland tracks, it’s held up flawlessly over the years.
Timbaland takes pride in fusing together unlikely elements in service of a slamming, unique beat. The most dominating sound on “Pony” is a deceptively simple three-note froglike bassline. But it’s the weirdness that takes the track to another level — the loopy slide whistle, the way he lets the beat breathe during the verses, the chugging percussive sound that lurks underneath.
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Stevie Wonder |
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TLC |
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Scala & Kolacny Brothers |
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This time on Musical Cousins: three totally different songs with three totally different takes on the word “creep.”
First up, Stevie Wonder’s haunting “Creepin’,” featuring backup vocals from Minnie Riperton. In this song, creep refers to the stealth way a lover invades the dream world. The melody is typical Stevie perfection, but the moody, off-kilter synth floating underneath hints at something less rosy.
In TLC’s 1994 single, “Creep,” the Atlanta trio and producer Dallas Austin made a buoyant R&B/pop classic dedicated to cheating on the one you love.
The last take on the word “creep” comes from an early Radiohead composition where the creep in question is the song’s self-hating narrator. I prefer Scala & Kolacny Brothers’s cover, used to great effect in the trailer for The Social Network. Dozens of post-pubescent Belgian girls singing in unison truly is creepy.
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Ain’t No Fun (If the Homies Can’t Have None)
Oh No
The Set Up (Remix) |
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Sad to hear of Nate Dogg’s recent passing. Nate wasn’t the first singer to provide R&B-style hooks on rap records (TJ Swan, perhaps?), but I can’t remember any R&B/hip hop hybrid prior to Nate’s 1992 appearances on Dr. Dre’s The Chronic that didn’t inflict collateral damage to anyone’s street cred.