Monday, September 30, 2013
Sunday, September 29, 2013
Saturday, September 28, 2013
Friday, September 27, 2013
Wednesday, September 25, 2013
Monday, September 23, 2013
KEEP IT OLDSKOOL MOVIE OF THE WEEK
The Mack was released in 1973 and was written by Robert J Poole and directed by Michael Campus. The movie has become one of the most quoted and popular Blaxploitation movies of all time. The movie starred Max Julian, Carol Speed and Richard Pryor. There was also a scene stealing actor who played a rival to Max Julian’s character played by Dick Williams.
Goldie finds out the consequence of dominance
Goldie with start- up capital
The movie set in Oakland California centers on Goldie (Julian) returning home from a 5 year prison sentence and decides that he doesn’t want to go back to the petty crime and becomes a pimp. We watch as Goldie with the help of his right hand man Slim (Pryor) climb the ranks and becomes one of the higher echelon flesh peddlers in the city. This ofcourse doesn’t sit well with many people, his brother Olinga a militant who wants to rid the streets of the cancers of drugs and pimps, his former boss Fatman and Pretty Tony a rival pimp who just lost his best earner to Goldie. The movie shows that world of a pimp in 1970s Oakland and although glamorizing it to an extent it does show the down side in vivid detail as we watch it all fall apart around Goldie over the Willie Hutch soundtrack.
Goldie and Slim (Julian and Pryor)
Goldie “running his game” on Diane
Frank Ward, Goldie, Pretty Tony and Ted Ward
China Doll just “chose” Goldie
Many people do not know the backstory that went into making the movie and the problems that the director Michael Campus had to deal with. Oakland was a powder keg with the pimps and pushers on one side and the militant Black Panthers on the other side. The director was being “protected” by The Ward Brothers who were the dominate figures in crime and prostitution in Oakland in fact the custom Cadillac that Goldie drove in the movie belonged to Frank Ward. Richard Pryor was extremely hard to work with during that time based on his addiction to drugs so much so that he was fired before movie was completed. Although there was a script most of the dialogue between Goldie and Slim was improvised by Max Julian and Richard Pryor . No awards were given for this movie and no box office records were broken but this movie became an instant cult classic and you can hear many of the quotes from this movie in countless rappers songs and videos, was spoofed by Martin Lawrence on his TV show. The Mack is a mainstay at all of the 70s film festivals and one of this authors favorite 70s movies
WOW YOU SURE LOOK GOOD TO ME! KEEP IT OLDSKOOL
Sunday, September 22, 2013
Friday, September 20, 2013
Keep It Oldskool Artist Profile
THE SYLVERS
The Sylvers are a group that not many are really aware of. Sure you heard the song ‘Hotline” and “Boogie Fever” but when you hear do you say “yeah that’s the jawn but who sings that again?” did you know that Leon Sylvers III wrote “Second Time Around” for Shalamar or “And The Beat Goes On” for the Whispers? This was a very talented group that was pigeon holded as just a “disco act” but some of the best songs they made were not “disco” songs. Keep It Oldskool wants eveyone to remember THE SYLVERS
The Sylvers were from the Watts section of Los Angeles California. The oldest members of the siblings toured and were the opening act for greats like Ray Charles as The Little Angels. The Sylvers included Leon,Olympia,Charmaine,James,Edmund,Ricky, Angie,Pat and Foster. The first album self titled named The Sylvers was released in 1972 featured great songs like “I wish I could talk to you” and “Fools Paradise” At this point the group although not considered mainstream did chart as high as #15 on the R&B charts. In 1973 a song that was orginally written for lead singer Edmund but was instead given to Foster called “Misdemeanor” (many hip hop fans know that sample from the D.O.C song “Its Funky enough”) and also featured Angie and Pat.
It 1975 the song “Boogie Fever” from the Showcase achieved more mainstream acclaim going #1 in US R&B and Pop charts . They kept the momentum going with songs like “Hotline” and “High School Dance” from 1976s Something Special album. As the disco backlash began they continued to make albums with the last one being 1984s Bizzare album. The Sylvers accomplished a lot more then most acts of their day .They have a 10 album catalog. Primary producer Leon was instrumental as the in house producer for Solar Records which feautured Shalamar, The Whispers and Lakeside. This group was finally given its due with a TV ONE episode of Unsung. Keep It Oldskool remembers the Sylvers and will state they had the best kept afros ever seen.
KEEP IT OLDSKOOL
Tuesday, September 17, 2013
Monday, September 16, 2013
Keep It Oldskool Movie of the week
The Blues Brothers was released in 1980 and was directed by John Landis. This movie made on a budget if $30 million went on to gross over $115 million. The movie was born from the Blue Brothers performances on Saturday Night Live. The movie starred Dan Akroyd and John Belushi. This movie had to many cameos to even name. Some of the more prominent ones were Ray Charles, Aretha Franklin and James Brown.
Elwood and Jake Blues
Elwood and Jake Blues (Dan Akroyd and John Belushi)
The plot involves Jake Blues (Belushi) a blues musician getting out of prison and along with his brother Elwood (Ackroyd) hearing that the orphanage they grew up in is set to close unless they get the back owed property taxes. The brothers decide that in order to raise the money they will need to get the band who have broken up and went on to different lives back together. During their odyssey the run across Nazis, a crazed ex fiancé and ofcourse the police. The movie features one of the best car chases (even through a mall) ever. The movie features great musical performances most prominently Aretha Franklin and Ray Charles
Aretha Franklin performing “Think”
Ray Charles performing in the Blues Brothers
Car chase through the Mall
The Blues Brothers was as staple of cable TV for a long time. The movie spawned a sequel in Blues Brothers 2000 released in 1998 minus John Belushi whom had passed away in 1982 although not a very good movie. That doesn’t take away from the fact that in 1980 Ackroyd and Belushi (John not Jim) were the coolest Caucasians on film.
Keep It Oldskool
Friday, September 13, 2013
Thursday, September 12, 2013
OLDSKOOL NEWS
Dj Mr. Cee former DJ for Big Daddy Kane resigns from Hot 97 New York Radio Station
"It's almost like the Anthony Weiner thing," the DJ told Billboard of the accusations against him. "There are people out there who don't have my interest at heart."
Mister Cee, a 20-year veteran DJ of New York's Hot 97 (WQHT), has resigned from the station after a YouTube video surfaced containing audio of a sexual encounter and financial transaction allegedly involving the on-air personality. Though he denies the allegations, Mister Cee (born Calvin LeBrun) told Billboard it was in his and the station’s best interest for him to resign.
"The main reason why I resigned is because there was a video that was released today that kind of implied that I was making a transaction with a transsexual, which is not true, by the way. If you watch the video, you don’t see my face, you don’t see that person's face. So for me, it was really about stepping down for the sake of the station," Mister Cee said. "It got to the point where my transgressions and my mistakes were affecting the station, whether it was affecting the station’s income, whether it was affecting certain clients that wanted to buy time during my hour and felt like they didn’t want to stand next to the brand because I was on the air at that time. To that point, instead of them telling me, 'We’re gonna have to let you go,' I just felt like the best thing to do was for me to step down because it's obvious that whatever mistakes and transgression I’ve made, whatever’s being put out there is being put out there for the fact that I’m on radio."
(to read more go to http://www.billboard.com/articles/columns/the-juice/5687409/hot-97-dj-mister-cee-talks-resignation-my-transgressions-were)
KEEP IT OLDSKOOL
Wednesday, September 11, 2013
Keep It Oldskool Artists Profile
“Brace yourself for the awesome and rare The real, the right dynamite is in the atmosphere”
Everyone knows The Roots are the foremost Hip Hop band. A group that was formed in 1979 in Brooklyn, NYC is one of the forerunners of this concept. Stetsasonic were intially called The Stetson Brothers. The group which included Daddy-O, Frukwan, DBC, MC Delite, Prince Paul and Wise were signed to Tommy Boy Rrecords and released their debut album On Fire in 1986 and off the singles “Go Stesta”, “Just Say Stet” and “Forever My Beat” the crew got steady airplay.
Stetasonic’s second LP In Full Gear was released in 1988. This would be their most popular album . With songs like “Sally” and “Float On” Stet continued to make great music. One song on that album took on the backlash of rappers using samples of older artists a lyric from “Talkin All That Jazz” summed what the group thought about those who complained about sampling :
“Tell the truth, James Brown was old 'Til Eric and Rakim came out with 'I Got Soul”
Stetsasonic “On Fire” 1986
Stetsasonic “In Full Gear” 1988
The group released one more album 1991s Blood Sweat and No Tears before disbanding. Dj Prince Paul went on to producing and being very instrumental in the early career of De La Soul. as well as joining Gravediggaz with Frukwan and RZA of the Wu-Tang Clan. Daddy-O was involved with Krs One in the Stop the Violence Movement. Stetsasonic is another underrated group that many who are to young remember have never heard about. Keep It Oldskool remembers!
GO STETSA AND KEEP IT OLDSKOOL
Tuesday, September 10, 2013
Monday, September 9, 2013
The Keep it Oldskool Movie of the week
The Cotton Club was released in 1984 and was directed by Francis Ford Coppola . It was set in the 1930s and had fictional characters interwoven with non-fictional characters. The movie starred Richard Gere, Diane Lane, Lonnete Mckee as well as Nicolas Cage, James Remar and Bob Hoskins.
The movie’s main fictional characters are Sandman Williams (Hines) a “hoofer” (tap dancer) with dreams of making it big even it means leaving his dance partner brother. There is Sandman’s friend from the neighborhood Dixie Dwyer (Gere) who plays a mean horn and who also wants to get out of the neighborhood. Dixie and Sandman lives are mixed in to the story of real life gangsters Owney Madden who owns the Cotton Club and Dutch Schultz. This movie shows the outrage African Americans felt about a club that featured the greatest performers of their generation however most African Americans couldn’t even get in other then the Bumpy Johnson inspired character Bumpy Rhodes (played by Laurence Fishburne) We watch as Dixie and Sandman both strive to achieve their goals and the women they loved Vera and Lila played by Lane and Mckee respectively and the toll it takes on family and friends.
Dixie and Vera (Richard Gere and Diane Lane)
Sandman Williams (Gregory Hines)
Dixie and Dutch Schultz (Richard Gere and James Remar)
Owney Madden and Dixie (Bob Hoskins and Richard Gere)
The Cotton Club is not mentioned as one of the great gangster films ever made. True It is not on the same level as The Godfather, Once Upon a Time in America and Godfather part 2 but that doesn’t take away from the fact that it is a very good movie. There was great acting in even in some of the smaller parts like the one by the directors nephew Nicolas Cage as Dixie’s younger brother Vincent or James Remar as Dutch Schultz.
KEEP IT OLDSKOOL
Saturday, September 7, 2013
Friday, September 6, 2013
Thursday, September 5, 2013
From Backpacks to Jiggy Part 2
This era in hip hop is not something that we at Keep It Oldskool are really enthused about. There was a seismic shift in hip that began in the late 90s that became a “zombie virus” that now has rappers in this current state. Keep It Oldskool wants to so see if we can pinpoint at what point there was the change.
“King of New York and Hit em up” 95-99
We last left off with releases from Notorious B.I.G and Nasty Nas in 1994. This era the backpack was in full swing and in the town of Philadelphia there was The Roots. Their 2nd album came out in 1995 Do You Want More was like the Hip Hop of old dope rhymes over LIVE instruments. Led by Black Thought and Quest Love this group shattered conventional wisdom that it was all drum machines making the music in Hip Hop.1995 was very eclectic in terms of releases that year. There was 2PAC Me Against The World that was a great record with songs like “So Many Tears” and “Dear Mama” Tupac showed a softer side. The enigmatic artist that in 1 more year (1996) would drastically alter the musical landscape and give rise to one of the most ones sided rap beefs in history.
Everyone knows that Biggie and Pac were friends and that for some strange reason Pac who knew who shot him and paid no heed to Biggie’s warnings about the people he was hanging with decided that he would diss Biggie first in interviews then in the song “Hit Em Up” Over the years it has been stated that Biggie responded with “Who Shot Ya” That is incorrect. Biggie recorded that song BEFORE “Hit em Up” came out. Biggie never lyrically responded to Hit em Up and in a span of 2 years both would be dead from unsolved shootings. While the non-existent East Coast vs. West Coast beef was getting a lot of print in newspapers and magazines there were still some “Backpackish “ releases that were coming out there was Redman’s Muddy Waters and The Fugees The Score both released in 1996. However the music was starting to go “Jiggy” Jay Z a former protégé of Jaz O and toured with Big Daddy Kane released Reasonable Doubt and vaulted himself into the discussion as one of the next up and comers. Gone were the Carhartt vests and jackets and out came the Coogi and Moschino then…in came in the SHINNY WEAR Much has been made about Puff Daddy and the shiny suits. It was not just him, The Lox and Mase wore that shiny stuff also. If you search hard you will see a lot of rappers went “Jiggy”. There were even songs like the one by the aforementioned Lox actually had a song called “If You think Im Jiggy”
After 97 with no more Biggie and Tupac and Nas on a self imposed “non illmatic” period the mantle was there for Jay Z to take over.With releases in 1997 and 98 In my Lifetime and Vol. 2 Hard Knock Life respectivley he cemented himself as the coined phrase “King Of New York”. (Biggie had used the moniker Frank White from the movie King of New York and once he passed everyone was looking for the “next one” ) During the same time period down south there was a new movement that was independent of east and west influence and disntictive in its own right. One of the biggest rap stars in the world would come from this movement.
NEXT UP DIRTY SOUTH CASH MONEY WITH NO LIMIT
KEEP IT OLDSKOOL
Tuesday, September 3, 2013
KEEP IT OLDSKOOL MOVIE OF THE WEEK
Cult classic comedy D.C Cab was released in 1983. The filmed starred an in his celebrity prime Mr. T, Max Gail, Gary Busey, Adam Baldwin, a pre “Real Time” Bill Maher and the immortal Charlie Barnett. The movie set in Washington D.C didn’t win any awards and wasn’t a huge money maker (only made a small profit) but with the advent of cable TV gave it a cult following .
The movie story centers around Albert Hockenberry (Baldwin) who for some strange reason feels the road to success starts with owning his own cab company. He goes to D.C and gets a job in his dad’s army buddy Harold’s (Gail) D.C cab. He meets the rag tag bunch of cab drivers and instantly wants to hang out with the “roller in hair wearing” Tyrone (Barnett) Sure there is a back story of a kidnapping, a love interest for Albert and Samson( Mr. T) wanting to get the kids away from shady characters what 80s movie didn’t include such contrived stories? You see the capital city in a different light and before a lot of the beautification that swept a lot of the northern cities in the late 80s and 90s.
D.C Cab is a movie that you can watch and just laugh at the antics. This movie isn’t preaching about anything other the you can’t get rich owning a cab company. In the 100 minutes running time you will see the late comedian Charlie Barnett steal every scene that he is in. You will also see Mr. T step out of a ridicules looking cab meant to give the impression that the neighborhood kids will now leave the bad guys and drugs alone because they too can drive a cab with a gold plated grill! That alone makes the movie worth a look.
KEEP IT OLDSKOOL
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