piece of shep

I’ve not done a song of the week in a long time but I was listening to music on my iPhone and this song came on. It is one of my all-time favorite songs. The song is Yesterday by hip hop group Atmosphere. If you don’t know who Atmosphere is, they are a two-man group from Minnesota made up of rapper Slug and producer/DJ Ant. I’ve been listening to some Atmosphere music for years, but never really connected with a specific album. That all changed when their latest album, When Life Gives You Lemons, You Paint That Shit Gold, came out. The album is such a great album. I’d say it’s probably their best. The production on it is spectacular. There are only a couple tracks that I don’t particularly care for.

Anyway, back to the song at hand. Yesterday is a song where Slug raps about thinking he saw someone yesterday. Really listen to the lyrics and you’ll understand why this is such a great song. He is at his best on this song. His flow is outstanding and Ant came through with a great beat. This is probably in my top 10 of all hip hop songs. You can visit Atmosphere’s MySpace page or their record label, Rhymesayers Entertainment.

In the spirit of the week where we inaugurate Barack Obama as the President of the United States of America I thought I’d post a song of the week.  It’s been a while since I’ve done one of these, but Obama’s campaign slogan reminded me of it.  The song is by a group called The Treacherous Three.  They were a hip hop group that formed in the late 70’s and had a few hits, including Santa’s Rap, and were featured in movies such as Beat Street and Wildstyle.  One of the members, Kool Moe Dee, went on to have a successful solo career.

With the success of Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five’s song The Message, other rappers decided to try their hand at socially conscious music.  The song I present to you today was released long before Barack Obama declared “Yes We Can” but the sentimants are the same.  Let’s work together.  Let’s treat each other as equals.  Let’s rebuild America.  Yes We Can.  Here is song Yes We Can-Can by the Treacherous Three.

Kansas City, Missouri’s Tech N9ne recently came out with a new album entitled Killer. With each new album Tech reaches more and more people and gets closer and closer to the mainstream. This album is the closest he has ever been. He is selling out shows all across the United States, hooking up with major rap stars, and even has had his video for Bout ta Bubble, from his last album, on MTV. His new album debuted at number 12 on the charts, a very respectable debut for someone who is independent in every sense of the word. He has not had any promotion on TV or radio for this album. All the promotion has been in interviews in magazines and his amazing performances at shows.

Tech N9ne is definitely rewriting the books on being an independent rap superstar. You need no look any further than Killer for proof. Ice Cube, Paul Wall, and Scarface are a few of the bigger names that appear on the two-disc album. You can even tell that Tech is reaching for the mainstream with his selection of beats on the album. It’s not his best album, but has several great songs in the 32 track set. The best song on the album, in my opinion, is a song in which Tech does what he does best. It’s a song in which Tech takes us on a trip into his psyche and let’s us into his deepest emotions. This song is about how he wishes he could cry just once. Everything would be better if he could cry and the tears could wash away all the bad things in his life. It’s a pretty deep song and it’s not every day you hear a rapper talk about crying, let alone wishing they could cry. Have a listen and purchase the album.

I first heard this song by Peter Sarstedt whle watching The Darjeeling Limited. I don’t know what it is about this song, but it’s one I can’t stop listening to.  I don’t know anything about Peter Sarstedt or his music.  I just know that it fit very well with the movie it was in.  The sound is just amazing, yet simple, and the lyrics are great.  Give it a listen.

You talk like Marlene Dietrich
And you dance like Zizi Jeanmaire
Your clothes are all made by Balmain
And there’s diamonds and pearls in your hair

You live in a fancy appartement
Of the Boulevard of St. Michel
Where you keep your Rolling Stones records
And a friend of Sacha Distel

But where do you go to my lovely
When you’re alone in your bed
Tell me the thoughts that surround you
I want to look inside your head

I’ve seen all your qualifications
You got from the Sorbonne
And the painting you stole from Picasso
Your loveliness goes on and on, yes it does

When you go on your summer vacation
You go to Juan-les-Pines
With your carefully designed topless swimsuit
You get an even suntan, on your back and on your legs

When the snow falls you’re found in St. Moritz
With the others of the jet-set
And you sip your Napoleon Brandy
But you never get your lips wet

But where do you go to my lovely
When you’re alone in your bed
Tell me the thoughts that surround you
I want to look inside your head, yes I do

Your name is heard in high places
You know the Aga Khan
He sent you a racehorse for chistmas
And you keep it just for fun, for a laugh haha

They say that when you get married
It’ll be to a millionaire
But they don’t realize where you came from
And I wonder if they really care, they give a damn

But where do you go to my lovely
When you’re alone in your bed
Tell me the thoughts that surround you
I want to look inside your head

I remember the back streets of Naples
Two children begging in rags
Both touched with a burning ambition
To shake off their lowly brown tags, yes they try

So look into my face Marie-Claire
And remember just who you are
Then go and forget me forever
‘Cause I know you still bear
the scar, deep inside, yes you do
I know where you go to my lovely
When you’re alone in your bed
I know the thoughts that surround you
‘Cause I can look inside your head

I really love the band Flogging Molly. I’ve been a fan of them for years, since I heard their album Drunken Lullabies. Ever since I picked up that album I’ve been following their music career as closely as possible. I’ve purchased all their albums and enjoy them. Their latest album Float is a superb album. Anyone who is a fan of good punk rock, especially Irish-American punk rock, needs to listen to this. From their website:

Flogging Molly’s latest album, Float, recorded in King’s native Ireland, delivers still another iteration of the band’s sonic evolution. More mature yet retaining the immediacy that marks all of their work, Float may find the widest audience acceptance of any Flogging Molly album. Hard charging tunes “Paddy’s Lament” and “You Won’t Make a Fool Out of Me” give way, as listeners have come to expect, to more sober ruminations on tracks like “Float.” The overall effect is a symphonic layering of sound that possesses a unique rhythmic flow from boisterous to bereaved and back again. Long time fans and new discoverers will be equally astounded.

My favorite track from the album right now is “Requiem for a Dying Song.” It’s the first track on the album and sets the pace for what is to come on the rest. Enjoy.