{"id":365,"date":"2019-08-15T19:57:40","date_gmt":"2019-08-15T19:57:40","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/onetruekev.co.uk\/Mutterings\/?p=365"},"modified":"2020-12-20T13:14:04","modified_gmt":"2020-12-20T13:14:04","slug":"the-greatest-hip-hop-album-ever","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/onetruekev.co.uk\/Mutterings\/2019\/08\/15\/the-greatest-hip-hop-album-ever\/","title":{"rendered":"The Greatest Hip-Hop Album Ever"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

If it wasn’t for The Jam, and my previous well\ndocumented obsession with all things Weller, then the fairly obscure Hip Hop\ncompilation album \u201cElectro 13<\/em>\u201d would be my favourite album of all time.\nIf I were to look at it from a purely plays perspective then this would win\nhands down, even now, thirty-three years on from its original release, it still\ngets play on a regular basis.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Street Sounds Hip Hop Electro 13 was the\nthirteenth compilation album in a series and was released 1986 on the Street Sounds\nlabel. The album was released on LP and cassette and contained twenty-one\nelectro music and old-school hip-hop tracks mixed by Herbie Laidley (known as\nMastermind).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Morgan Khan’s Street Sounds label was set up in\nthe early 1980’s and brought an eager UK market Hip Hop, Dance, Disco, Soul,\nand House music for the rest of the decade. The original run of the Electro\nseries brought twenty seven albums in total, starting out in old school electro\nstyle hip hop and running into the golden era of the late 1980’s. Alongside\nthis it had its Street Sounds series with twenty four albums of the latest\ndance, hip hop and house tunes. The Anthems series of Soul sounds, and a brief\nHousetrax series of Chicago House. It also brought together some great\nre-release material, including the four-album set of Enjoy Records, and the fourteen-album\nbehemoth of the Philadelphia International label. The black and yellow Street\nSounds icon on the cover of a record was a quality mark. Over the course of a\ndecade they curated the greatest collection of compilation albums ever\nreleased.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cElectro 13\u201d<\/em> was a one off in the\nElectro\/Hip Hop original main series 22 albums. With twenty-one tracks split\nover two mixes, and no complete tracks. All the other Electro\/Hip Hop albums in\nthe series had between seven and ten full length tracks with a brief mix\noverlap between them. The only other exceptions were in the larger Electro\/Hip\nHop series, as \u201cElectro Crucial 3<\/em>\u201d featured two mixes containing a total\nof twenty tracks, and the \u201cNY vs LA beats\u201d<\/em> which had two mixes totalling\ntwenty-three tracks. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The departure from the usual format for this\nElectro album was due to UK Fresh ’86, a single day Hip-Hop festival organised\nby Street Sounds in conjunction with Capital Radio and hosted by Mike Allen at\nWembley Arena. (It formed part of the larger ‘Capital Music Festival’ that ran\nthat year.) To date that day is still the biggest single Hip-Hop concert every\nseen in the UK. Fifteen of the twenty-one tracks included on Electro 13 were by\nartists that appeared at UK Fresh ’86. It is still a source of disappointment\nthat I couldn’t go to UK Fresh. Having only just turned sixteen, it was on the\nlast Saturday of Leicester’s July fortnight when all the hosiery firms went on\nholiday. As such I would have been travelling back from the family summer\nholiday on the day of UK Fresh, and once back out of range of getting tuned\ninto Capital radio.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I had shown an interest in Hip Hop fairly early\non. Buying “The Message<\/em>” and playing it to death horrified my\nmother, who still to this day expresses her disgust at this “new rap\nmusic”. Then a guy at school – Nick Starkey – lent me the first of the\nElectro series on tape. I made a copy, and from then on was hooked, saving\nmoney to get the albums when I could afford them. I used to pretend I was\nscratching by trying to replicate the sound by me rubbing my fingernails on the\nblack vinyl of my Griffin Savers holdall. I tried with some records as well,\nquickly finding out that trying to do so without a slip mat just made an utter\nmess of the B side of the record you were trying to scratch with. Early Hip Hop\nhad been playing looped up-tempo (normally disco) tracks with MCs rapping over\nthe top of them. The Electro phase saw a move towards artists creating their\nown beats with the rise of drum machines and samplers. Then there was the\nprogression to sampling and layering of samples to create a base to rap over,\nas Hip Hop moved from Electro into its Golden Age. For me, this was the\ncrossover point.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Up to 1986, Hip Hop and the charts were only\npassing acquaintances. Hits in the UK singles charts were few and far between. Grandmaster\nFlash, Melle Mel and The Furious Five accounted for half of the top forty hits.\nThe Sugarhill Gang, Afrika Bambaataa and Mann Parish had “rap” hits.\nThe Rock Steady Crew, Ollie & Jerry and Break Machine had the breakdancing\nhits, but outside of this there was very little. Even those breaking through in\nlate 1985 and early 1986 were seen more as novelty hits (Doug E Fresh’s “The\nShow<\/em>“, Whistle’s “Just Bugging<\/em>“, Lovebug Starski and\nThe Real Roxanne’s songs on this album, and DJ Jazzy Jeff & The Fresh\nPrince’s “Girls Ain’t Nothing But Trouble<\/em>“). All that was\nabout to change as this album was being mixed ready for release, Run-DMC were\nteaming up with Aerosmith to release “Walk This Way<\/em>“. Within a\nyear, top twenty hits were commonplace. Run-DMC, Eric B & Rakim, LL Cool J,\nSalt ‘n’ Pepa, The Fat Boys, Public Enemy, Mantronix and The Beastie Boys all\nhad hits in 1987. by 1988, British Hip Hop Artists were having hits as well,\neven if they were looked down upon by the Americans. Wee Papa Girl Rappers,\nDerek B, The Cookie Crew and Monie Love all hit the top twenty. Yet so many\nmore didn’t hit the charts, despite having better sounds, rhymes and overall\nsongs than many who hit the charts today. There was a whole heap of artists who\nwere born at least twenty years too early.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

There are no full-length versions included on\nthe album, and some of the tracks had quite short pieces used from them. Additionally,\nthe mixes dipped back in time to use some tracks from before 1986 (and from\nprevious Electro albums), whereas all the other Electro series were very much of\nthe current time. I think that the release of Electro 13 can be seen as the\npoint where the baton is handed over from Old School to Golden Age. It includes\nthe first single from Eric B & Rakim who would change the game completely.\nAnd unknown to most non hip-hop heads, it saw Dr Dre and DJ Yella in their\npre-NWA days as part of the World Class Wreckin’ Cru.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A common question asked, on forums and face to\nface, is what is your favourite Hip-Hop album of all time? Well, for me, this\nwould have to be it. With some of the biggest names from the Old School on it\n(such as Grandmaster Flash and Afrika Bambaataa), and future giants, it is the\nultimate hip-hop album. There is some inventive mixing between tracks. Some\namazing samples and beats, and a gamut of great lyrics, and future giants\n(Rakim, Dre). There is a lot of fun, a bit of bragging, some silliness, and\nmasses of social commentary included. This album should be the starting point\nfor any newcomer to hip-hop to hear what can be done before the major labels\nchoked the life out of it. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

I think to date I’ve bought seven copies of\nthis album. I’ve lost two to house moves, two to lending to (ex) friends and\none to being worn out and scratched to hell; and so, keep two copies of it now,\njust in case. Having the time and money to do it, I went about getting all the\noriginal 12″ singles for the tracks from the album. I started in 2003 and\nit took me four years and hundreds of pounds before I completed the set with\nthe last two as they came onto Discogs at the same time. “UK Fresh ’86\n(The Anthem)<\/em>” by Hashim featuring MC Devon and “The State\nWe’re In (Vocal)”<\/em> by Easy Mike featuring M.C. Sure Shot, the latter of\nwhich I’d been (un)reliably informed had never been released. Plus, one I’d\nbeen told had been released as a single never had, as M.C. Chill’s “The\nProphecy<\/em>” was only ever released on his eponymous album.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Track listing <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Side one<\/p>\n\n\n\n

1. – “Style (Peter Gunn Theme)”<\/em>\n– Grandmaster Flash. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Flash, now without the original Furious Five\nafter alleged drug related and contractual issues, comes back with this single\nfrom his second album on the Elektra label. The main bassline from the song is\nfrom Henry Mancini’s “Peter Gunn Theme<\/em>“, but he adds in\nsamples from Freedom “Get Up and Dance<\/em>“, Cameo “Single\nLife<\/em>“, Maze feat Frankie Beverly “Before I Let Go<\/em>“,\nand Afrika Bambaataa and The Jazzy 5 “Jazzy Sensation<\/em>” to\ngreat effect. Released as a single in the UK, it didn’t chart. Was sampled in\nPrince Shahem Beloved’s “I Can Go Freestyle<\/em>“. My favourite\npost Sugarhill Grandmaster Flash track, there are definite overtones of this\nbeing a diss record, lines like “you thought you had style, you thought\nyou had grace, but you wouldn’t know class if it hit you in the face”\nsuggest that there was some hangover of enmity from the split from Sugarhill.\nFlash (real name Joseph Saddler) faded away in the late eighties and nineties,\nbut now nearly forty years on from his initial release “Superrapping<\/em>“,\nhe is touring the globe wowing audiences and gathering new fans. He really was\nthe original superstar DJ.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Released on Elektra – EKR 39 T in 1986 with\nedited and instrumental versions on the B side.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

2. – “Bambaataa’s Theme (Assault On\nPrecinct 13)<\/em>” – Afrika Bambaataa and Family. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Sampling the theme from John Carpenter’s original\n“Assault On Precinct 13<\/em>” from 1986, this single, released on\nTommy Boy was the first single release from his fourth album. Released as a\nsingle in the UK, this didn’t chart, but I did try and help it. Bambaataa was\nthe founding father of the Zulu Nation. As such he was one of the forefathers\nof Hip Hop, as the Zulu Nation and Grandmasters helped to transform the gangs\nof seventies New York into the Hip Hop crews to lead them into the eighties.\nThere is an elegant simplicity in this largely instrumental track. Yes, the\nmusic is borrowed, but it is used to great effect, and shows that Electro was\nabout far more than just rapping<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Released on WEA in the UK – U8663(T) in 1986\nwith “Tension<\/em>” as the B Side.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

3. – “UK Fresh ’86 (The Anthem)”<\/em>\n– Hashim featuring MC Devon. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Known for his Electro classic \u201cAl-Naafiysh\n(The Soul)<\/em>\u201d, Hashim was one of several artists lined up for Capital Radio’s\nUK Fresh ’86. MC Devon had his only appearance on this track which was put\ntogether to promote the UK Fresh event. Hashim (Jerry Calliste) had started as\na promoter of Hip-Hop gigs. He worked as a janitor at Tommy Boy records before\ngoing on to start his own label – Cutting Records, before leaving that to his\nbusiness partners to go on and set up Precise Records. It isn’t any surprise\nthat MC Devon didn’t go on to have much more of a career releasing tracks. The\nrhymes are almost childlike, and it sounds as if he was struggling over the\ndelivery. He was just born thirty years too early; he’d be a maestro nowadays.\nHashim had featured on previous Electro releases. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Released on Streetwave, a label also run by\nMorgan Khan, on label number MKHAN72 with another mix on the B side.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

4. – “Fast Life<\/em>” – Dr. Jeckyll\n& Mr. Hyde. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The full version was featured on \u201cElectro 5<\/em>\u201d.\nDr. Jeckyll & Mr. Hyde consisted of Andre “Dr. Jeckyll” Harrell\nand Alonzo “Mr. Hyde” Brown. The group was known for its corporate\nbusiness image, wearing designer suits and ties while they rapped. The group\nfirst performed under the name Harlem World Crew. After the group’s demise,\nAndre Harrell became the founder and chief executive officer of Uptown Records.\nHe later went on to head Motown Records. The track is a quite serious and heavy\nsocial commentary about a teenage wannabe gangster. How the life attracts him,\nbut how his peers eschew the lifestyle.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Released on Profile Records – PRO-7048 in 1984\nwith the track \u201cA.M P.M.\u201d<\/em> also on the A Side, and instrumentals of both\non the B side. Wasn’t released as a single in the UK.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

5. – “Get Loose<\/em>” – Aleem. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Aleem featured on other Electro releases. Just\nmissed out on the UK charts proper, peaking at number 82 in January 1986.\nSampled in “Get Loose<\/em>” by L.A. Mix feat. Jazzi P, “Band\nin a Box’s Get Dynamite<\/em>\u201d by Band In A Box, “My Telephone<\/em>”\nby Mikey D & the LA Posse, “Armed and Extremely Dangerous<\/em>\u201d by\nLondon Rhyme Syndicate, and “Who Am I?”<\/em> by K-Bee & Ceil-B.\nAleem were twin brothers – Taharqua and Tunde-Ra Aleem, who had been doing\nstudio work since the late sixties and had worked on Jimi Hendrix’s “Cry\nOf Love<\/em>” and “Rainbow Bridge<\/em>“. They formed NIA\nrecords and produced several other early Hip Hop artists, including Captain\nRock who also appears on \u201cElectro 13<\/em>\u201d. A much more vocal release, with\nan electro backing track, and soulful singing from Leroy Burgess who is related\nto the Bell family of Kool & The Gang fame. It almost has the vibe of an\nearly Chicago House track.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Releases in the US on their own NIA label in\n1984, it was released on Streetwave in the UK – MKHAN61, with “Get Loose\n\/ Release Yourself<\/em>” and a dub version on the B side.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

6. – “(Solution To) The Problem (The\nDEFinitive Dance Mix)”<\/em> – Masquerade. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Charted at number 64 in the UK singles chart in\nJuly 1986. Sampled Ronald Reagan’s “We Begin Bombing in Five Minutes<\/em>”\nspoof speech, and “Change the Beat (Female Version)”<\/em> by\nBeside. More social commentary, this time on getting nations getting dragged\ninto overseas conflicts. Uses dialogue from then US President, Ronald Reagan,\nand UK Prime Minister, Margaret Thatcher and the conflict with Libya and its\nleader Colonel Gadaffi as its base to bring together an anti-war message.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Released on Streetwave – MKHAN67 in 1986. This\nmix was the B Side, the A side was the Extended Vocal Mix.            <\/p>\n\n\n\n

7. – “Square Dance Rap (Power\nMix)”<\/em> – Sir Mix-A-Lot. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Way before his massive world-wide smash of\n“Baby Got Back<\/em>“, this features some of the fastest rapping I\nhad ever heard at that point. The full version was featured on \u201cElectro 12<\/em>\u201d.  Just missed out on the UK charts proper,\npeaking at number 81 in July 1986. Sampled “Rock Me Baby<\/em>” by\nB.B. King, “Get Out of My Mix”<\/em> by Dolby’s Cube, and “Change\nthe Beat (Female Version)”<\/em> by Beside. Sir Mix-A-Lot (Anthony Ray) was\nknown for driving the streets of his native Seattle blasting out his new\ncompositions to get them airplay due to the lack of other outlets for Hip Hop\nthere. Cowboy rap, at the time I would have thought that this could have stood\nin its own category for eternity. Then came “Country Mike’s Greatest\nHits<\/em>“, the Beastie Boys in disguise, and of course Kid Rock. It was\ndifficult to reconcile this with the style and pitch on “Baby Got Back<\/em>“.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Another released on Streetwave – MKHAN69 in\n1986. The mix was the second track on the B Side, which it shared with the\nRadio Edit. The A side featured the Rodeo Drive Mix and the US Original\nVersion.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

8. – “Return Of Captain Rock<\/em>”\n– Captain Rock. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The full version was featured on \u201cElectro 1<\/em>\u201d\nand \u201cCrucial Electro 1<\/em>\u201d. Captain Rock (real name Ronnie Green) was an\nunderground fixture in the early 80\u2019s. His appearance at UK Fresh ’86 saw him\nallegedly strip down to his thong on stage. The track had very laid-back vocals\nover sounds that made you think you were travelling with a spaceship Captain,\nvery much in the style of George Clinton. Before being Captain Rock, he was Dr\nJekyll and Mr Hyde\u2019s live DJ from their period in the Harlem World Crew.  He was known as DJ Ronnie Green. He went on\nto referee for NCAA Division 3 basketball in the late 80\u2019s and early 90\u2019s and\nto run a youth program in New York City, for underprivileged kids. Sampled\n“Change the Beat (Female Version)”<\/em> by Beside. Was sampled in\n“Hyperspeed (G-Force Part 2)”<\/em> by The Prodigy, “Dig\nYour Own Hole<\/em>” by The Chemical Brothers, “Check It Out<\/em>”\nby Ferry Corsten, and “Hyperspeed<\/em>” by Drumattic Twins. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Released on NIA Records (NI1236) in the US only\nin 1983. The B side was the instrumental.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

9. – “Running (“The Nest”\nRemix)”<\/em> – Information Society. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Also featured in a mix on \u201cElectro Crucial 3<\/em>\u201d.\nFormed in 1982 in Minneapolis the Information Society had independently\nreleased two albums before moving to New York and getting a record deal and\nreleased this single in 1985. A very Electro sounding instrumental section of\nthe track was used in the mix on this album. There was a vocal version, but it\ndidn’t sound much like this one. They had been a very sparse electro sounding\nband at outset, and gradually changed style away from that over their career,\nwith the different versions of this track probably marking the main turning\npoint. Sampled “Hot Pants Pt. 1 (She Got to Use What She Got to Get\nWhat She Wants)<\/em>” by James Brown. Sampled in “Love You, Will\nYou Love Me (Hard Love Mix)<\/em>” by Judy Torres, “Emergency<\/em>”\nby Cha-os, “Give It to Baby<\/em>” by Altern 8, “Fallen\nAngel<\/em>” by Clear Touch, “Freshmix Vol. 1<\/em>” by DJ EFX,\n“Kamikaze (Took My Love)”<\/em> by 2 in a Room, “Strange Mix\nMedley (007 Mix)”<\/em> by Depeche Mode, “Paranoid Thugism<\/em>”\nby Genaside II, “I’ll Be Loving You<\/em>” by Collage, “A\nNight at the Edit Block<\/em>” by Blade to the Rhythm, and “For All\nYou Non-Believers (Have a Nice One)”<\/em> by Spacework. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Released on Tommy Boy (TB877) in the US only in\n1986. This mix was the first track on Side B, which it shared with the\nInstrumental. The A Side had the Vocal Mix and Percappella.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

10. – “Mission Possible<\/em>” –\nWorld Class Wreckin’ Cru. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The World Class Wreckin’ Cru also featured on\nother Electro releases. World Class Wreckin’ Cru debuted in a club owned by one\nof the early West Coast DJs, Alonzo Williams. Before he opened “Eve After\nDark” in 1979, Alonzo was one of the most popular DJs in the Los Angeles\narea. He began producing dances under the name of Disco Construction, named\nafter funk group Brass Construction. Seeing the popularity of this new craze,\nhe entered the market of running nightclub performances. The club opened with\nDetroit-born Andre Manuel aka Unknown DJ directing the music program. Disco\nConstruction created a subgroup called the into Wreckin’ Cru which were the\nLonzos roadies and later adding World Class it became the name of the recording\ngroup. Lonzo hired local DJs Antoine “Yella” Carraby and Andre\n“Dr. Dre” Young who later became the original Mix Masters for KDAY.\nAlonzo Williams created the label “Kru-cut” which began releasing The\nWreckin’ Cru music through the mid-1980s with very minimal resources through\nMacola Records. When this track came out, we knew nothing about Dr Dre or DJ\nYella, within two years NWA were the biggest thing going. There is a big\ndifference between this and “Straight Outta Compton<\/em>“, and it\nwas a few years before I made the connection. Dre in what looks suspiciously\nlike make-up and shiny metallic outfits on the 12” and album covers is\nalways good entertainment value for those who weren’t aware. Sampled “Dance\nto the Music<\/em>” by Sly & the Family Stone, and “Mission:\nImpossible Theme<\/em>” by Lalo Schifrin. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Released on Epic – TA7281 in 1986 with “World\nClass Freak<\/em>” as the B Side. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Side two<\/p>\n\n\n\n

1. – “Amityville<\/em>” – Lovebug\nStarski. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

When Sylvia Robinson was setting up Sugarhill\nRecords, it was Lovebug Starski (born Kevin Smith) she approached to record the\nfirst release for the label. He was the house DJ at the Bronx club Disco Fever\nand was known to MC over the records, and is credited with coming up with the\nterm Hip-Hop – Starski claimed that he coined the phrase while trading the two\nwords back and forth while improvising lines with Cowboy of the Furious Five at\na farewell party for a friend who was headed into the Army. He turned Sylvia\nRobinson down, who went and found what became The Sugarhill Gang and released\n“Rapper’s Delight<\/em>“. Starski did turn to a recording career\nstarting in 1981. This release was his biggest chart hit in the UK and is\nunfortunately seen as more of a novelty record, one that should really have\nbeen issued around Halloween, as it covers several Halloween’s tropes. Hit\nnumber 12 in the UK singles chart in May and June 1986. Another one that I’d\nbought as a single, and that got played nearly to death. He died in February\n2018. No credited samples, but had an impersonator doing voices from Spock and\nKirk from Star Trek amongst others. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Released on Epic – TA7182 in 1986. The B side\nwas a Dub mix.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

2. – “Pee-Wee’s Dance<\/em>” – Joe\nSki Love.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Just missed out on the UK charts proper,\npeaking at number 94 in July 1986. Sampled “Tequila<\/em>” by The\nChamps, “Synthetic Substitution<\/em>” by Melvin Bliss, “Pump\nThat Bass<\/em>” by Original Concept, and dialogue from two scenes (Mario’s\nMagic Shop and I Meant to Do That) from Pee-Wee’s Big Adventure. Has been\nsampled in 197 songs, including 2Pac’s “Ambitionz Az a Ridah<\/em>“,\nThe Chemical Brothers\u2019 \u201cHey Boy, Hey Girl<\/em>“, Public Enemy’s “Rebel\nWithout a Pause<\/em>“, Beastie Boys\u2019 “Posse in Effect<\/em>“,\nEazy-E’s “Boyz-N-The-Hood<\/em>“, Mr. Lee (Chicago House)’s “Get\nBusy<\/em>“, LL Cool J’s “You Better Watch Me<\/em>“, and De La\nSoul’s “Area<\/em>” amongst a whole host of others. Proof that you\ncould rap about absolutely anything in the mid-eighties. I can’t imagine Pee\nWee Herman getting a track dedicated to a dance like his if such a film came\nout now.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Released on Vintertainment and Elektra in the\nUS, it came out on Cooltempo (COOLX125) in the UK in 1986. B side had the\nAcappella Beat and Instrumental version.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

3. – “Latoya<\/em>” – Just-Ice. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Just Ice also featured on other Electro\nreleases. Born Joseph Williams Jr. he was a former bouncer at punk clubs, he\nwas the first of the New York rappers to embrace gangster rap, and when he\nburst out of the Castle Hill neighbourhood in the New York City borough of the\nBronx as Just-Ice, he gained instant notoriety. Muscle-bound, tattooed,\naggressive\u2014he resembled Mike Tyson in more than just looks\u2014and with a mouthful\nof gold teeth, he certainly stood out. His debut album Back to the Old School\ncame out on the independent New York label Sleeping Bag, and certainly sounded\nlike no other hip-hop album, thanks to his fast and forceful rhymes, Ben\n“Human DMX” Paynes’ beatboxing, as well as the distinctive production\nof Mantronix’s Kurtis Mantronik. Not long after his appearance at UK Fresh ’86\nhe was charged with the murder of drug dealer Ludlaw DeSouza, but later proven\ninnocent. Sampled “Leaving on a Jet Plane<\/em>” by Peter, Paul\n& Mary. Was sampled in 48 songs including Alicia Keys feat. Mos Def, Common\nand Damian Marley’s “Love It or Leave It” Alone<\/em>\u201d, Welcome to\nJamrock, MF DOOM’s “Kon Karne<\/em>“, The Prodigy’s “Wind It\nUp<\/em>“, Funkdoobiest’s “Rock On<\/em>“, KRS-One feat. Kid\nCapri’s “Stop Frontin’<\/em>“, De La Soul’s “D.A.I.S.Y. Age<\/em>“,\nand Nas, MC Shan, UTFO and Kool Moe Dee feat. Grandmaster Caz, Dana Dane and\nJust-Ice’s “Where Are They Now (80’s Remix)”.<\/em> Story of the\nsong is basically; sees girl. Is nervous about talking to her. Mate tells him\nto stop being a chicken. Girl tries to brush him off before he starts. He raps\nto her anyway. She changed her mind. They get together. Like a Shakespeare tale\nfour hundred years on.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Wasn’t a main single release, it was the second\ntrack on Track A of the “Put That Record Back On<\/em>” single\nreleases in the US only on Fresh Records – FRE-003 in 1986. The B Side had the\ninstrumental of “Put That Record Back On<\/em>” and “That\nGirl Is A Slut<\/em>“.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

4. – “The Prophecy, Part 1 (In The\nBeginning)”<\/em> – M.C. Chill. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

M.C. Chill also featured on other Electro\nreleases. Never released as a single. Nice take on the Bible “in the\nbeginning there was the word”. M.C. Chill goes on to prophesize there will\nbe greed and destruction of rap. a lot of which could be considered to have\nbecome true. However, as this was his first (and last) album, his claim that he\nwas there at the beginning and will be at the end, does seem a little bit of a\nstretch.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It was only available on M.C. Chill’s album\n“M.C. Chill<\/em>“, released on Fever Records – SFS001 in 1986. It\nwas track 3 on Side 2. The other tracks were (side 1) “M.C.\nStory”, “Downbeats<\/em>” and “Chill-drens Rhymes<\/em>“,\nand (side b) “Open Your Eyes”, “Jealousy”<\/em> and “Bust\nThis Rhyme<\/em>“<\/p>\n\n\n\n

5. – “Eric B. Is President<\/em>” –\nEric B. featuring Rakim. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Eric Barrier played trumpet and drums\nthroughout high school, and later switched to experimenting with turntables\nprior to graduation. The newly dubbed “Eric B.” soon began DJing for\nradio station WBLS in New York City. Barrier wound up meeting Alvin Toney, a\npromoter based in Queens. Eric B. had been looking for rappers and Toney\nrecommended he use Freddie Foxxx, a Long Island MC. Toney took Eric B. to\nFoxxx’s home, but Foxxx was not there, so Toney suggested another option:\nWilliam Griffin, a.k.a. Rakim. Griffin had begun writing rhymes as a teenager\nin Wyandanch and had taken the name “Rakim” as a result of his\nconversion to The Nation of Gods and Earths. The various early pressings of\nthis had the title printed as both Eric B is President and Eric B for\nPresident, and it saw the first release from the greatest MC of them all –\nRakim. It is said to be a response to Janet Jackson’s “What Have You\nDone For Me Lately?<\/em>” responding to her verse of “Used to go to\ndinner almost every night, Dancin’ ’til I thought I’d lose my breath, Now it\nseems your dancing feet are always on my couch, Good thing I cook or else we’d\nstarve to death – Ain’t that a shame? What have you done for me lately.”\nwith the third verse of “Go get a girl and get soft and warm, Don’t get\nexcited, you’ve been invited to a quiet storm, But now it’s out of hand cause\nyou told me you hate me, And then you ask what have I done lately, First you\nsaid all you want is love and affection, Let me be your angel and I’ll be your\nprotection, Take you out, buy you all kinds of things, I must have got you too\nhot and burned off your wings, You caught an attitude, you need food to eat up,\nI’m scheming like I’m dreaming on a couch with my feet up, You scream I’m lazy,\nyou must be crazy, Thought I was a donut, you tried to glaze me”. This was\nmy first introduction to Eric B & Rakim, and so began the obsession with\nhaving everything recorded by them. In a time where numerous remixes came out\nfor each single release, it means I have over thirty 12″ inch singles by\nthem. I consider Rakim to be the greatest MC of all time, and it is great to\nsee him in such demand for collaborations from all kinds of artists today.\nReleased as a single in the UK, didn’t chart despite me buying two different\nversions of it. Sampled The Mohawks\u2019 “The Champ<\/em>“, Mountain’s\n“Long Red<\/em>“, James Brown’s “Get Up, Get Into It, Get\nInvolved<\/em>” and “Funky President (People It’s Bad)”,<\/em>\nFonda Rae’s “Over Like a Fat Rat<\/em>“, and The Honey Drippers\u2019\n“Impeach the President<\/em>“. Was sampled L.O.D.’s “I Feel\nIt (Remix)”,<\/em> 8-Off Agallah’s “Ghetto Girl<\/em>“, Sham\n& the Professor’s “So-Low-Ist<\/em>“, The Troubleneck Brothers\u2019\n“Back to the Hip-Hop<\/em>“, Tony D’s “Buggin’ on the\nLine”,<\/em> Da Beatminerz feat. Caron Wheeler and Pete Rock’s “Open\n(Remix)”,<\/em> Facemob feat. Scarface’s “Rivals<\/em>“, Urban\nFlow’s “Just for You<\/em>“, Da 5 Footaz’s “It All Got Start<\/em>“,\nT.W.D.Y. feat. Otis & Shug’s “Out 2 Get Mo<\/em>“, Jackers’\n“It’s Finna Be On<\/em>” and a dozen other tracks. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Released in the UK on Cooltempo (COOLX129) in\n1986. It had the extended dub mix on the B Side. A second version on (COOLN129)\nhad “My Melody<\/em>” on the B Side. Was released on Zakia and\nFourth & Broadway in the US.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

6. – “Bring The Beat Back (Vocal)<\/em>”\n– M.C. Boob A.K.A. Steady “B”. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Warren McGlone known by the stage name Steady\nB, was a member (and de facto leader) of Philadelphia’s Hilltop Hustlers crew.\nSteady B released five albums over the course of his career, with mixed\nsuccess. He is currently serving a life sentence in a Pennsylvania state prison\nfor his role in the murder of Philadelphia Police officer Lauretha Vaird,\nduring a botched bank robbery in January 1996. Sampled The Headhunters feat.\nPointer Sisters\u2019 “God Make Me Funky<\/em>” and E.U.’s “Knock\nHim Out Sugar Ray<\/em>“. Sampled in Sublime’s “Steady B Loop Dub<\/em>“,\nDJ Red Alert & Mike Slammer’s “Just Wanna Hold U Tight”,<\/em>\nEPMD and D.J. K La Boss’s “D.J. K La Boss<\/em>“, and Vicious V’s\n“In Full Effect – Master Done It<\/em>“. Includes some of the most\noff-beat rapping I’d heard. Well at least until Kanye West’s first album.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Was the B Side of “Yo Mutha<\/em>”\non the US release on Pop Art Records. It’s release in the UK on Streetwave\n(MKHAN75) had reversed the order, with an instrumental on the A side, and\n“Yo Mutha<\/em>” and its instrumental on the B side.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

7. – “(Bang Zoom) Let’s Go Go Go”<\/em>\n– The Real Roxanne with Hitman Howie Tee. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

UTFO went out to get a female MC in response to\na war of words with Roxanne Shante, and to name her The Real Roxanne. Their\ninitial choice Elease Jack, who recorded the first single The Real Roxanne\nunder the character’s name had bailed by the time they got to recording this to\nbe replaced by Adelaida Martinez. A top twenty UK chart hit, again\nunfortunately seen as somewhat of a novelty hit with the Looney Tunes samples\nincluded. The track also featured backing singing from Full Force. Hit number\n11 in the UK singles chart in June and July 1986, one of those sales would have\nbeen to me, as this was another that got a lot of playing time when it came\nout. Sampled The Isley Brothers\u2019 “For the Love of You (Part 1 &\n2)”,<\/em> Malcolm McLaren’s “Buffalo Gals<\/em>“, Funk, Inc.’s\n“Kool Is Back<\/em>“, Full Force’s “Alice, I Want You Just\nfor Me”<\/em>, John McLaughlin’s “Honky-Tonk Haven<\/em>“, Billy\nSquier’s “The Big Beat”,<\/em> Les Elgart’s “Bandstand\nBoogie<\/em>“, and dialogue from Looney Tunes “The Wabbit Kicked the\nBucket” and “That’s All Folks”. Has been sampled in 147 songs,\nincluding De La Soul feat. Jungle Brothers and Q-Tip’s “Buddy”,<\/em>\nEazy-E’s “Boyz-N-The-Hood”,<\/em> Sir Mix-a-Lot’s “Flow Show<\/em>“,\nDJ Kool’s “20 Minute Workout<\/em>“, Bomb the Bass’s “Megablast\n(Hip Hop on Precinct 13)”,<\/em> De La Soul’s “Cool Breeze on the\nRocks<\/em>“, 3-2 Get Funky’s “Too Funky<\/em>” and Rodney O and\nJoe Cooley’s “Supercuts (Yeah Boy)”<\/em> amongst all the others.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Released on Select records in the US, it was\nreleased on Cooltempo (COOLX124) in 1986 with “Howie’s Teed Off<\/em>”\nas the B Side.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

8. – “Queen Of Rox (Shante Rox On)\n(Street Version)”<\/em> – Roxanne Shante. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The full version was featured on \u201cElectro 7<\/em>\u201d.\nBorn Lolita Shant\u00e9 Gooden she started rapping at the age of nine and changed\nher name from Lolita to Roxanne at fourteen. In 1984, the young rapper ran into\nTyrone Williams, DJ Mr. Magic, and record producer Marley Marl outside the\nQueensbridge housing project. U.T.F.O. had recently released a single called\n“Hanging Out<\/em>,” which did not gain much critical acclaim;\nhowever, the B-side “Roxanne, Roxanne<\/em>“, about a woman who\nwould not respond to their advances, became a hit. Shante was contracted to\nwrite a track in rebuttal to U.T.F.O.’s rap, posing as the Roxanne in the U.T.F.O.\nsong. Marley Marl produced the song “Roxanne’s Revenge<\/em>” using\nthe original beats from an instrumental version of “Roxanne, Roxanne<\/em>“.\nThe track became an instant hit and made Shante, only 14 years old at the time,\none of the first female MCs to become very popular. Sampled her own “Roxanne’s\nRevenge<\/em>“, Bob James’s “Take Me to the Mardi Gras”<\/em> and\nThe Gap Band’s “Burn Rubber on Me (Why You Wanna Hurt Me)”.<\/em>\nSampled in her own “Runaway<\/em>” and “Funk Daddy feat.\nDee-Lyrious’s “Hoo-Ride<\/em>“. The best Female MC of all time in a\ntrack that is a loose retelling of her story of how she was\n“discovered” and used to respond to U.T.F.O’s “Roxanne\nRoxanne<\/em>“. Recorded with Rick James on “Loosey’s Rap<\/em>”\nand then kind of vanished from the scene for nearly ten years before coming\nback on Mekon’s “What’s Going On<\/em>“, showing she had lost none\nof her edge or delivery. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Released in the US only on Pop Art Records\n(PA1408) in 1985. This mix was the second track on the A Side with the Radio\nversion, the B Side had the dub mix.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

9. – “The State We’re In (Vocal)”<\/em>\n– Easy Mike featuring M.C. Sure Shot. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Sampled James Brown’s “Funky Drummer<\/em>”\nand Grandmaster Flash & The Furious Five’s “The Message<\/em>“.\nIt was one of three singles Easy Mike released on the label along with “It’s\nEasy<\/em>” and “I Salute<\/em>“, all three being released in\n1986. Had another release “Talk About Brotherhood<\/em>” on Unsilent\nMajority Records. M.C. Sure Shot only appearance on any track came on this\nrecord. Back to social commentary, touching on politics, war and the ghetto.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Released in the US only, with the only official\nversion being a promo on The Future Records – TF003. The A side also had the\ninstrumental on, and the B Side had “It’s Too Political”<\/em> vocal\nand instrumental versions on it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

10. – “Ladies<\/em>” – Mantronix. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Mantronix also featured on other Electro\nreleases. Hit number 55 in the UK singles chart in February 1986, the first of\nten chart hits the group had over the next five years. Mantronix was formed by\nDJ Kurtis Mantronik (Kurtis el Khaleel) and rapper MC Tee (Tour\u00e9 Embden). They\nare primarily remembered for their pioneering blend of old school hip hop,\nelectronic, and club music. They underwent several genre and line-up changes\nduring its seven-year existence between 1984\u201391 and released five albums\nbeginning with their 1985 debut \u201cMantronix: The Album<\/em>\u201d. While working as\nthe in-store DJ for Downtown Records in Manhattan, Kurtis Mantronik met MC Tee,\na Haitian-born, Flatbush, Brooklyn-based rapper. The duo soon made a demo,\n“Fresh Is The Word<\/em>,” and signed with Sleeping Bag Records.\nElectro 13 used a lot of the instrumental part of the track before letting MC\nTee into treatise on the fairer sex.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This was released on 10 Records (TEN116-12) in\nthe UK in 1986 having had a US release on Sleeping Bag Records in 1985. It had\nanother version and the instrumental on the B Side.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

11. – “Sleep Walking<\/em>” – Family\nQuest. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Established in 1983, Family Quest were one of\nthe earliest UK rap groups but had only ever featured on 1984\u2019s \u201cOuter Space\n\u201984 Rap<\/em>\u201d by Automation. The group Dirty Harry, E=Mix, Cheeko MC aka Daddy\nHip Hop & Mystery (real names Zonya Sullivan, Hugh Christie, Barry Jacobs,\nKim Arthurs and Mark Malcolm) were regular hosts alongside Tim Westwood &\nDJ Fingers at Spats club in London\u2019s Oxford Street on a Saturday afternoon, and\nwere produced by Paul Phillips, formerly of funk band Hi Tension. As the title\nsuggests there are mentions of sleepwalking, both the physical sense (“I\ndreamt I was making love in the dark, when I woke up all alone in the\nPark”) and the metaphorical sense of people just sleepwalking through\ntheir lives every day (“Every morning, yawning, they only look half\nawake”). Also has a section of the track which calls out sexism at the\ntime, both in general life and the music industry, as a female MC has the line\nbefore the fadeout of the album of “In their dreams, we don’t exist, so\nthey can’t see us doing this.” In 1986 they entered a \u201cKing Of The\nStreets\u201d competition on Mike Allen\u2019s Capital Radio show and won. The prize was\nthis track, their only group release, produced by David Toop who wrote the book\nRap Attack and released on Morgan Khan\u2019s Streetwave label. They were the only\nUK act to appear on stage at the legendary hip hop show UK Fresh 86 at Wembley\nArena and appear on the accompanying Street Sounds \u201cElectro 13<\/em>\u201d album.\nSampled Mike Oldfield’s “Blue Peter<\/em>“, The Crystals’ “Do\nRon Ron<\/em>“, and dialogue from Peter Seller’s Inspector Clouseau in\n“A Shot In The Dark”.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Released on Streetwave (MKHAN74) in 1986. Had\nthe Wake Mix on the A Side and the Alarm Mix on the B Side.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Label – Street Sounds<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Catalog Number – ELCST 13 (Vinyl), ZCELC 13\n(Cassette)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Artwork & Design – Federation<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Sleeve Notes – Morgan Khan<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Charts\n\nUK Albums Chart –\nEntered the chart on 6th September 1986, it reached Number 23 and stayed in the\ncharts for 5 weeks. This was back before compilations were split out into a\nseparate chart.\n\n\n\n<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

If it wasn’t for The Jam, and my previous well documented obsession with all things Weller, then the fairly obscure Hip Hop compilation album \u201cElectro 13\u201d would be my favourite album of all time. If I were to look at it from a purely plays perspective then this would win hands down, even now, thirty-three … Continue reading “The Greatest Hip-Hop Album Ever”<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[8,9],"tags":[84,82,83,85,81,86],"class_list":["post-365","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-history","category-music","tag-album","tag-electro","tag-electro-13","tag-greatest","tag-hip-hop","tag-street-sounds"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/onetruekev.co.uk\/Mutterings\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/365","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/onetruekev.co.uk\/Mutterings\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/onetruekev.co.uk\/Mutterings\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/onetruekev.co.uk\/Mutterings\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/onetruekev.co.uk\/Mutterings\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=365"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/onetruekev.co.uk\/Mutterings\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/365\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":366,"href":"https:\/\/onetruekev.co.uk\/Mutterings\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/365\/revisions\/366"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/onetruekev.co.uk\/Mutterings\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=365"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/onetruekev.co.uk\/Mutterings\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=365"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/onetruekev.co.uk\/Mutterings\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=365"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}