...Anchorman on most jams, its Don Burgundy...

Tanya Morgan is (my new favorite) rap group, as my purchase of their album Sunset... the EP. I had heard this song before on the Tanya Morgan is a Rap Group mixtape, but they put an extended version of it on the EP. However, the extended version is really just the song twice over, with it being a different (earlier/demo) version the second time. Regardless, rarely would I stick around to listen to the same song twice in a row but this song is too good to skip after the first version plays. Pretty much everything about this song is amazing, the sample, the beat, the lyrics, its all good and totally worth your while. This is the song I use to introduce people to Tanya Morgan, and it works. Anyways, listen to this song, then head over to Amazon or wherever and buy the album. Also, check out Donwill's blog where you can download more TM music and music from all the Lessondary crew.

Stay Tuned - Tanya Morgan [zshare mp3] [buy the album @ Amazon]

Their new album Brooklynati is coming soon as well, so keep your eyes open for that.

Bonus Joints:

Ced Hughes - Juke Joint [zshare mp3]

Check out Ced Hughes' myspace to download the whole mixtape

Che Grand - City On Fire [zshare mp3]

It's too late for water now, instead we gon' burn it down
Che's got big things coming, check out this song and then go to his myspace to get more

People tellin me hip-hop is dead, but what the hell is this runnin all through my head?

...Scored like ten on my IQ test...

From this post forward I'm gonna try to be a little more focused with the posts, but still throw in those bonus joints for good measure. This post is about Camp Lo...


Camp Lo - "Coolie High (demo)" mp3 (zshare)

Camp Lo - "Coolie High" mp3 (zshare)

Camp Lo - "Black Connection" mp3 (zshare)

Camp Lo - "Black Nostaljack (A.K.A. Come On)" mp3 (zshare)

It's rainin' Alize I'm floatin through the Holland Tunnel swervin'

Coolie High actually just came on in Winamp on the random play as I was typing the name into this post, and needless to say it's clear that this post is oh so necessary. I had never even heard of Camp Lo until this year, 11 years after the release of Uptown Saturday Night, and I have been fiendin for it nonstop ever since. They're on that 70's Blaxploitation flick tip, which misses me a lot of the time, but then again they're so hard to understand anyway that I don't know if I'm actually missing anything. Regardless, the music is so fucking good this album is in my personal top 5 hip-hop albums of all time just for the completeness and overall excellence of every, single track without exception. Only in the last couple of days did I find the rarities & b-sides compilation that the Coolie High demo is from, so I haven't listened to much of that yet but that song was the first one I heard and I almost wish they had kept that version for the official, but then again if they did that we wouldn't have the album version, and I love both so it's all good.

Also, I love that album art, for some reason it reminds me of Guernica, just with some swingin cats having a good time instead of people dying. In fact the art is a reference to Marvin Gaye's album titled I Want You, from 1976, another 70's reference. Needless to say, if you were alive and black in the 70's this is the album for you.

Bonus Joints

88 Keys - "Just LIKE a Man ft. Guilty Simpson" mp3 (zshare)

just cuz I love what 88 does to the sample at the beginning of the song

Wale - "Camp Lo" mp3 (zshare)

Wale loves Camp Lo too, proving that they're your favorite artist's favorite artist for sure
Besides Black Thought, Ye, and Jay-Z, I told ya Camp Lo was my favorite

Wale - "Work" mp3 (zshare)

Here's a Black Thought tribute track by Wale, no Kanye or Jay-Z tributes yet, as far as I know

Tanya Morgan - "Everybody Sucks" mp3 (zshare)

To the tune of House of Pain's "Jump Around," just cuz Von Pea murders the second verse, and the rest of the song is pretty good as well. check www.mcdayjob.com to download more Tanya Morgan, Donwill, and related music for free courtesy of Donwill

Ostrich Productions Muxtape Updated

As of 6/24/08 the Beewry muxtape is in full effect with some new shit and some old. Take a listen and enjoy.

1. Nina Simone - Do I Move You?
   
2. N.E.R.D. - You Know What
3. Jean Grae - Not Like Me
4. Blu - Party of Two
5. Percy Miracles - You'll Never Change
6. Rhymefest - Foolin Around
7. Talib Kweli - Say Somethin
8. Rukus - Let the Beat Build freestyle
9. Wale - Hey... Mr. Carter
10. Girl Talk - Still Here
11. The Hood Internet - Juke and Pop
12. The Cool Kids - Stove Top Oven Fresh Baked Goods

I ain't a bitch throwin darts, I'm the pink power ranger

Charles Hamilton - Just A Musician [mp3]

New kid Charles Hamilton killin it on Lil Wayne's "A Millie" beat, I still don't like the beat that much but Charles Hamilton is infinitely better on it than Weezy...




F... and at least he makes sense

bonus: Charles Hamilton - Sun Music [mp3]

K-Os - The Rain [mp3]

K-os is one of the better singer/rappers out there and I really like this track from his Atlantis: Hymns for Disco. I hesitate to use the term neo-soul as a genre because neo-soul was a label attached to certain R&B artists and the whole fad sorta died when it wasn't what it should've been. Anyways, I use it sometimes for artists that are doing something new but still bring that soulful depth to their music, like Gnarls Barkley and k-os, especially this song.

Wale - The Grown Up [mp3]

New song from the Mixtape About Nothing that takes on the topic of love and maturity. Ironically, Wale put a lot of substance on his mixtape about nothing. The Seinfeld theme is mixed in perfectly though and as far as concept mixtapes go this is one of the best, along with Rhymefest's "Man in the Mirror"

bonus: Wale - Smile remix prod. by Mark Ronson [mp3]

And because I love me some 80's samples...

Crooked I - Died In Your Arms [mp3]

With the wild wolves around you...

Sigur Rós: Viðrar Vel Til Loftárása [zshare]

"It is good weather for airstrikes." At 10:57min, Viðrar Vel Til Loftárása is a heartbreak waiting to happen. An epic song with a great music video [It was filmed in Iceland, so you know that it'll be beautiful].


Okkervil River: For the Enemy [zshare]

I don't think that I will ever get tired of this song. I judge a song by how well it changes my mood, and For the Enemy does it to me every time.
And I'm a sucker for a song with an organ.


Okkervil River: Maine Island Lovers [zshare]

Another one by the boys down by the river. This was the song that made me a fan.
An affair. Rejected love. Heartbreak.
Just close your eyes and listen.

"When I fell on the concrete it was lovely,
because you could see what’s been running so hot in me.
But when I fell on the concrete, you went white as a sheet
and wished that nothing in this world would ever hurt me.
Well, keep wishing."

Modest Mouse: Baby Blue Sedan [zshare]

Okay okay. It's a little whiny/emo/whatever, but when the mood is right [or wrong], it translates to whatever's going on.
Unless you're looking for a bad trip, I suggest unchecking this on your iTunes' Party Shuffle the next time you and your buds decide to eat some pizza avec de la psilocybine. Trust me.


Lauryn Hill: Nothing Even Matters [zshare]

Now this one brings back some fond memories. More uplifting than a similarly titled song Everything Means Nothing to Me by E.Smith, this song always levels me out when I'm in a rut. It's hard to explain, but the vocals and music just blend together and, sometimes, switch places. The organ, keys, and bass, etc. sometimes say more to me than D'Angelo and Lauryn's words.


Bon Iver: The Wolves (Act I & II) [zshare]

Last, but not least, is The Wolves (Act I & II). I have yet to see J.Vernon play live, but I hear that this song is his best live performance. And I can understand why. His oblique lyrics say the right things [and everything] without ever changing the overall meaning of his songs.
I'm pretty sure that this is my most played song of 2008 [so far]. Solace is my game too, Justin.
[edit]
My roommate told me that I was good at burning bridges.
He [obviously] has never heard this song.
[/edit]

"Solace my game, solace my game
It stars you
Swing wide your crane, swing wide your crane
And run me through"

Do you think I'm crazy?

Wale - The Crazy [mp3]

From the new Mixtape About Nothing by Wale, I can't stop listening to this song. The louder the better...
"I swear they think I'm crazy, too much percussion and bass..."

Mos Def - Beauty in the Dark remix ft. The Isley Brothers [mp3]

Just heard this song for the first time, another fantastic vocal performance by Mos. Its basically everything you want when you see Mos Def and the Isley Brothers listed on the same track, but better.
"My name is Black Dante, how can I resist when you come my way?"

Blu - My Boy Blu [mp3]

A less-well-known MC Blu of Blu & Exile fame, this song is from the (So)ul Amazing mixtape with DJ Heat. A lot of people hailed Blu as the best MC out in years, and I doubted... until I heard this song.

This is how we chill...

Aceyalone - Annalillia? [zshare]

"she looked me in my windows and said Anna-lillia/ ... Annalillia?"
One of my favorite narrative tracks, Aceyalone's unrequited love for Annalillia related in a wonderful way. You'll laugh, you'll cry, you'll wish you'd never been born.

Souls of Mischief - 93 til Infinity [zshare]

Classic west coastin' at its finest, this song is upbeat, laid back, with that lyrical quickness and wry sense of humor that makes you wanna just go drive around with it cranked up or turn it down in the headphones and zone out for hours, at the same time.

The Roots - @15 [zshare]

Ill lyricism from a 15 year old Tariq Trotter also known as Black Thought from the Legendary Roots Crew off their new album Rising Down, in stores now.

And how you used to cheat at checkers

Gladys Knight - And This is Love [zshare]

Gladys Knight is one of my favorite singers of all time, and this is probably my favorite song of hers. In her music I hear the roots of hip-hop, the music behind her singing can almost be directly sampled into a rap song (ex: Queen of Tears sampled on Wu Banga 101 by Ghostface Killah). True black music and soul music at its best.

Erykah Badu - 4 Leaf Clover [zshare]

What can I say about this song? Not my favorite Badu track of all, but definitely up there. A classic Erykah song, the perfect combination of hip-hop and R&B sensibilities. I guess all I can say is that this is one of those tracks I have an urge to hear every day.

M83, Erykah Badu, Okkervil River, Dirty Three

when you feel like you're in over your head

mp3:

M83: Teen Angst [zshare]
Air = The Virgin Suicides ; M83 = Life
A. Gonzalez creates the score to your every step. it's unreal.

Erykah Badu: That Hump [zshare]
when you feel like you'll never stop falling
when it feels like no one else has the same problems
when you're caught in a self-destructing cycle
when you fuck up the good things in your life
when you need someone to say what you can't/won't
...Erykah is there for you

Okkervil River: So Come Back, I Am Waiting [zshare]
this goes out to the black sheep boy in all of us.
choosing a couple of lines from
Will Sheff's masterpiece won't do it justice but i can't resist:

So come back to your old black sheep man.
He says “I am waiting on hoof and on hand.
I am waiting, all hated and damned.
I am waiting - I snort and I stamp.
I am waiting, you know that I am,
calmly waiting to make you my lamb."

Dirty Three: Sea Above, Sky Below [zshare]
not many songs can make me shudder like this one.
you begin to feel
uncomfortable in your skin after every chord
but then the song picks up a little pace
and you embrace the cold... with a fit of rage
and then the song is over. but you're still cold

Tenniscoats

"wide-eyed children at play in a room full of instruments" [Raven Sings the Blues]

Tenniscoats:
http://www.tenniscoats.com/
http://www.myspace.com/tenniscoats

mp3:
Tenniscoats: Baibaba Bimba
Tenniscoats: Donna Donna





MP3s from
motel de moka, Raven Sings the Blues