The Genius - Words From The Genius (February 19, 1991)

I'm ending the Easy Mo Bee run on this blog with a rather unpopular choice. Not to say reviews of Osten's work won't pop up here again but, to my knowledge, he only has one album directly credited to his name: Now Or Never: Odyssey 2000. And trust me: While it really isn't that bad of an album, it's just not review material to me. So, the only choice left to me is the lone album he fully collaborated on with another artist. And that artist just so happens to be a founding member of one of the greatest and most long lasting hip hop acts of all time. (Furthermore, just don't ask about Rappin' Is Fundamental, as that would be wasting everyone's time. Most importantly mine.)

You see, Gary Grice (Not to be mean or anything, but that last name really sounds like a licorice brand or something.) is one of the very few MCs who've lived long enough to properly experience the very birth of this hip hop thing we obsess over so much. Hell, he was fucking twenty-five when this album dropped. And as such, he's also part of an even fewer group of MCs who wasn't really influenced by anybody. Yes, he had the ability to form his very own style from the jump, which would serve him very well in the future. As a resident of Brooklyn neighborhood Bedford-Stuyvesant, bka Bedstuy, Gary is a true believer in it's Do Or Die attitude. And it truly shows in his career that began as a founding member of battle rap group Force of The Imperial Masters, later redubbed the All In Together Now Crew, along with his two cousins Russell Jones and Robert Diggs. Gary called himself The Specialist while Russell and Robert took The Professor and The Scientist as their respective pseudonyms.

Said career would finally catch a break when Gary was recruited by Cold Chillin' Records, home of the famed Juice Crew, of which fellow Brooklynites Big Daddy Kane and Masta Ace were members. Now, at this stage, Gary probably thought that his skills as an MC would guarantee him instant promotion. Alas, if only he learned from fellow former Cold Chilla Kool G Rap's career woes with the infamous label before signing with them, as they only pushed Kane on that label. Everybody else was basically thrown to the wolves when it came to marketing.

Speaking of which, this album here had a very curious crafting process: Gary, who now renamed himself the Genius, (because he's smart, you see.) brought fellow Bedstuy alumni Osten Harvey Jr., who dragged his younger brother Patrick along for better or worse. Patrick Harvey, aka LG aka LG Experience, was a young upstart who wanted to follow in his older brother's footsteps, as Osten had already made an impact with his two Big Daddy Kane productions on It's A Big Daddy Thing. We'll see just how he fares in his first work sessions in the review.

Now, the true reason for me choosing this particular album is because of the unanimous flak it gets from hip hop heads who are diehard fans of Gary's ventures as the GZA from another group he co-founded: The Wu-Tang Clan. (That, and the fact that this album has absolutely zero guest appearances. Which would make it a true insight into Gary's ability to hold an album by his very lonesome) Hands down one of the most long-lasting hip hop supergroups of all time, its members are still releasing albums under the Wu banner to this very day. Now, understandably, GZA did follow this solo outing with Liquid Swords, one of the greatest albums in music history. An album that completed its one millionth sale twenty goddamn years after its five hundred thousandth, accomplishing the latter feat in merely two months. That has to tell you something about said album's legacy in this art form. As such, many people heard Liquid Swords first, and were considerably underwhelmed when they finally heard this album and thought it wasn't as good, and just so we're clear: I consider my past self Exhibit A. My current opinion is that this outlook I had was not even remotely fair to Words From The Genius, as it was crafted with a mindset that had not yet understood what it takes to make an album of Liquid Swords' caliber. Furthermore, Robert Diggs bka the RZA, who is once again co-founder of the Wu with Gary and, you guessed it, Russell Jones bka the late great Ol' Dirty Bastard (RIP), hadn't even begun producing professionally at this point in their respective careers. And given that he is the sonic director of Liquid Swords, the unfairness of this argument has really reared its hairy, warty ass. All one needs to do is clear his head from such lofty expectations and imagine you live in a world where there is no Wu-Tang Clan to speak of.  Only then will one be able to unbiasedly judge this album's merit or lack thereof.

In 2006, Traffic Entertainment, having acquired the entire Cold Chillin' catalog, issued a re-release that included tracks produced by the RZA back when he called himself Prince Rakeem that were done immediately after the original album dropped and were thrown away after it tanked, but mysteriously found and branded as "smash hits" in a 1994 re-release. You know, because Cold Chillin' would never try to capitalize on the Wu-Tang's sudden rise at the time, right? So yeah, basically, that's the version I'm reviewing.

So, is the shit any fucking good?

COME DO ME
I present to you the lead single aka the main reason people despise the entire album aka one of the absolute worst contractual obligations of all time. It really is no wonder why this album tanked, given that this is its leading single. You just know that any attempt at pushing Gary as a ladies man will blow up in your face in the worst way possible. I'm sorry, Gary but I saw the fucking video for this thing. (Mainly to catch a glimpse of ODB & Wu debutant Raekwon the Chef in their very first appearances to the public as extras.) My dude, when you repeated that ridiculous hook to the camera you looked like Witch fucking Hazel. The producer of this steaming pile of sewage is Jesse West, who's normally pretty capable. Don't believe me? Check his work on KRS-One's Step Into A World (Rapture's Delight). I hold Cold Chillin' fully responsible for this piece of shit, because there was no way for Jesse to make things interesting neither here nor on the remix he was forced to make that ends this 2006 re-release. I've talked about this abomination long enough, and I advise anyone who's legitimately interested in this album to SKIP. THIS. SHIT.

PHONY AS YA WANNA BE
Alas, the true beginning of this album, and the b-side to the horrid abovementioned lead single. I'll bet the very few people who caught Come Do Me on rotation were too peeved to even look at the back cover of the single to check if there's another song when they encountered it in Sam Goody stores, right? Too bad, as this song is pretty fucking good. Easy Mo Bee truly began his experimentation games that would later make him the legendary producer that he is right here on this very track. The guitar licks in the beat provide the backing needed for the Genius to relay some punchlines that clearly show why he is regarded as one of the true greats this game has ever seen. An early lyrical precursor to Clan In Da Front, and as such, this shit knocks in all the right ways. I especially loved the Four Tops interlude in the midst of the song, after which Gary gallops ahead with his punchlines, starting with quite the cheeky reference to said Four Tops sample. Awesome.

TRUE FRESH MC
Freaking a legendary Funkadelic sample, Mo Bee approaches the track with relentless energy in mind this time. Which stands in beautiful contrast to the directness exhibited in the prior track. the Genius really takes this to heart as his performance this time switches to a conscious display of his superior intellectual background. You'd think that this is unfitting of punchline-ism on paper, but once again, this is something you have to listen to in order to fully appreciate. Another one-two combo.

THE GENIUS IS SLAMMIN'
This time Easy Mo Bee tries his best to compete with Gary's punchlines by combining two handpicked samples by The MGs and The Meters brilliantly to form a beat out of the top shelf. The Genius ingeniously responds by weaving various themes of intelligence in his punchline-filled verses. I have to admit, one of the things I like the most about these results is that they present a totally different aesthetic than Gary's later work with his cousin. One I guarantee most people would've enjoyed had Come Do Me not fucked it up for everybody by delaying our exposure to the true meat of this album by at least four years. Fuck that, I still love this song.

WORDS FROM A GENIUS
Alright, these two aren't showing any sign of slowing down! Osten with the prominent Funkadelic sample and Gary with his by-now golden standard of punchlines. Genius' rhymes really present a strong point regarding actually writing your rhymes against freestyling your career away. And, as many pointed out, many of the greats who now write their rhymes in their head started off writing on paper and perfected their shit to the point where their reflexes have become ingrained in their brains. And Gary still outdoes all of them with his meticulous care for what comes out of his mouth and exactly how it does so. So, don't give me that bullshit about "one-taking a classic". If you didn't exert any effort in your rhymes, they're probably worthless. And just so you know, none of this lyrical brilliance would be digestible if the actual music isn't working for you. Well, I'm here to say it's working wonderfully for me thanks to Easy Mo Bee. Dope! One note: Prince Rakeem remixed this track with the result appearing later on this 2006 re-release and though it wasn't nearly Wu-Tang level material nor as good as the original Easy Mo Bee cut, it was fairly decent. If nothing, it's on this remix that the first signs of Bobby's meticulous nature show themselves.

WHO'S YOUR RHYMIN' HERO
The debut of Mr. LG Experience. Osten's younger bro tries so hard to impress the label here, and wrongly so, with his straight-up lazy looping of a Jimmy McGriff sample. And yet I still would've liked this song if it wasn't for the ear-rape of a hook, screaming of corporate interference, that completely ruined the LG Experience for me. To top it all off: Gary's punchlines, while still light years ahead of your average ghetto references, fail to reach the standards he set for himself so far on this album. This was, unfortunately, a failure.

FEEL THE PAIN
Osten returns, armed with a second Meters sample, and obliterates any memory of the previous song with a smacking beat. This is not lost on our Genius as he dives head-on into battle mode, plowing ahead with punchline after eviscerating punchline. You really feel this Gary Grice cat is not bullshitting when he mentions his history of battling crews all around New York. This shits bangs something proper.

THOSE WERE THE DAYS
Still not through with impressing you, Gary continues to a different venue for him to steamroll you with some more punchlines with: Nostalgia. He chooses to display his dominance in the high school scene this time, and the results are just as effective. Interestingly enough, this is the last song of what I call the, ah, "Braggadocio Medley" on the album. I like that this album pays good attention to sequencing. Not Liquid Swords good, but good nonetheless.

LIFE OF A DRUG DEALER
This song marks the beginning of what I call the "Conscious Medley". In said song, Gary portrays the hardened protagonist with the titular occupation. I like that our Genius began this "medley" with the caricature song, if you will. Backed by Osten's magnificent Bobby Rush choice, Gary launches into a single 30-bar verse that becomes the inspiration behind his later smash, Killah Hills 10304. Please note that the overabundance of violence and foul language displayed here is most certainly tongue-in-cheek. End result? There's a reason Gary revisited this well later on, as this song rocks.

STOP THE NONSENSE
God DAMN, is Easy Mo Be ever on fire with these funky beats! Here, Gary gets his preach on, and he makes sure that he keeps his wit dialed up to 11 in order to have a glimmer of hope at reaching them boneheads who run for the hills as soon as anyone tries to say anything remotely positive. And I do mean 'wit' in every sense of the word. The line: "It goes way beyond just saying no" makes my point pretty clear, no?

LIVING FOUL
Here comes the part where someone listening to this album might get tired, as admittedly these songs seem like they're blending in together. But forgive me for not being that guy because I'm just a person who really appreciates effort when I recognize it. And by this point, I recognize that Osten, with his Bobby Rush-sampling ways, was going to make sure that he blew away minds of people like me who just have an affinity for the relentless, if I may. Gary shares his producer's stubbornness by making this song his personal war on drugs, and it works wonders for me. Even if his third verse sounds a tad hypocritical now. You'll know why when you hear the damn song. Moving on.

DRAMA
Now, you'd think that this would be a song about girl problems. Naturally, you'd be dead wrong. Allow me to single this song out as my favorite track on the album, by far. With Easy Mo Bee delivering the coup-de-grace of his journey on said album by freaking the fuck out of a Millie Jackson classic. And there is no clearer proof that our Genius earns his nickname than this baby here. This is to pre-Wu Gary Grice what Ready To Die's title track was to the late Chris Wallace. For in this song, Gary truly runs the gamut of his MCing skills. He brings motherfucking everything to the table: punchlines, metaphors, imagery, storytelling, subject matter, you name it. If you absolutely had to forego listening to the entire album and felt it absolutely necessary to sum up what you'd get, then I'd tell you to stop being a bitch and listen to the goddamn album and pay special attention to this track right here. I salute anybody who became a fan of either Gary or Osten as a result of this song. Way before Bad Boy & the Wu.

STAY OUT OF BARS
Now, you'd think that this would be a song about prison problems. Naturally, you'd be dead wrong. In actuality, the previous song marked the end of the "Conscious Medley" and a very unhappy, uncomfortable and unfitting return to corporate radio-whoring territory. LG Experience is back, and he brings, admittedly, much more effort in his production game than his previous abomination of an attempt. And yet, our Genius decides, in his infinite wisdom, that he should return to be as ignorant as possible by spinning a tale of the most stereotypical actions and fantasies that you can think of. Now, normally this wouldn't bother me in the least, but when it's an MC of Gary fucking Grice's pedigree? I'm actually insulted. To top it all off, Gary ends the song with the most senseless act of violence. One question for the Liquid Swords fan reading this: how does any of the above translate to an even remotely intelligent song?! You're right. It DOESN'T.

WHAT ARE SILLY GIRLS MADE OF
Basically, a ripoff of the countless "Gold Digger" song EPMD made popular. You can smell the corporate rot from 25 years ago all the way over wherever you're reading this from. And, while I really can't front on some of the lyrics, LG's Al Green-sampling experience (I will never get tired of clowning that nickname.) left a lot to be desired and our Genius' hook is, you know, ass. Plus, Gary really hasn't shaken off his character from the previous song in his very apparent disdain for women here. I really can't take that viewpoint seriously. You want women to stop being bitches? Here's an idea: Stop telling them they're bitches! Another sewage track that really is beneath our Genius.

SUPERFREAK
Oh, this can not be what I'm hearing. The GZA. From the legendary Wu-Tang fucking Clan. Spitting a sex rap. And don't give that bullshit about Queen's Gambit. Queen's Gambit was one long extended metaphor, with the emphasis not on Gary's tale but on how he told it. Which is definitely not the case here. Oh, and Queen's Gambit had one banging-ass beat, not this Rick James-sampling shitty LG experience (I really need to stop doing that). Motherfuck this song all the way down to its filthy innards.

PASS THE BONE
Didn't I tell you that third verse on Living Foul sounded a tad hypocritical? What do you mean you didn't hear the damn song?! Anyway, most Wu fans already herald this track as the only truly notable result from the Words From The Genius journey but for the uninitiated: This is the very first publicly recorded Prince Rakeem appearance and his debut production. And boy, does it ever show. This shit blows. Hell, his remix to the title track is leagues ahead of this. Back to the actual lyrics: Gary chooses to bless Bobby's very first production outing with a stoner rap. If you are a fan of Gary Grice's storied career by any chance, you'll definitely recognize how ludicrous what I just wrote is. And we're done.

FINAL THOUGHTS
As a project of insight on the evolution of Easy Mo Bee the producer: This is quite possibly the best place to start. The man did not compromise his approach. Not one bit. Can't say the same for his lil bro and the rest of the production gang: Jesse West was particularly terrible. In a song I've heard from him recently, he even brags about collaborating with the Wu, the collaboration being Come Do Me. Believe me, Jesse, if you're bragging about producing a song like that, (for a Wu co-founder, nonetheless.) you're needlessly and stupidly smearing your reputation. Bobby Diggs' mistakes are a bit more forgivable, seeing as it is his first time behind the boards and all. For his part, Gary Grice was without doubt a fully accomplished MC at the time of this album's making, and he wastes no time in repeatedly showing you that. This album may very well be the only album in the Genius' entire discography that shows you exactly how lyrically capable he is when carrying a full album without any guest appearances. That being said, all this makes some of Gary's choices of subject matter here all the more jarring. The sex raps in particular left a very bad taste in my mouth. But that makes me ask: is it really the artist's fault? Or is it the label's? Our Genius wasn't the only one clowned by the Cold Chillin' piffle machine. Look at what Kool G Rap went through with his Live and Let Die album with DJ Polo. But Gary got an even rougher deal: At least G Rap was able to make the album he wanted. Mr. Grice was in no such luck. Yeah, I'm sticking the blame for this album's crap songs entirely on Cold Chillin'. Imagine: All this horseshit because Big Daddy Kane sold five hundred thousand copies. So now, every MC with any shred of talent needs to be Big Daddy Kane. I will say this, though: Thank GOD they fucked their deal up with this guy. Or else, we wouldn't have Liquid Swords. Gary Grice would not be the hip hop legend he is today. And most importantly, nobody would've heard of the Wu-Tang Clan, nor become fans of theirs and years later discover this album as a hidden gem. Come on. You knew I was getting to this. The crap present on this album, while truly exhibiting Black Shampoo-levels of putridity, isn't enough to ruin the straight up classics on the effin' thing. Just momentarily erase the existence of the Wu, exactly like I told you.

WORTH IT?
It's an enlightening look at a legend's professional beginnings. Spoiler alert: they're still very fucking good, even if they do take a turn later on for the absurdly awful. So you're goddamn right it is.

Wanna know where Easy Mo Bee went from this? click here. For more GZA, here. And finally, Wu-Tang central is right here.

The Notorious B.I.G. - Ready To Die (September 13, 1994)

You knew I was going here, didn't you?

In 1993, a fucking jackass by the name of Sean John Combs, whom I've established in the previous post to henceforth be known as Comby on this here blog, met up with the three figures that contributed the most to his success: Osten Harvey Jr., Christopher Wallace & Craig Mack. And before any of you corporate assholes reading this over at that sewage disposal shoot called Bad Boy Entertainment get your panties in a bunch, I'm sure you lead very difficult jobs. But regarding the music business, all a fan's going to care about is the actual end product that reaches him/her: the music. Anyone who has a problem with that: If you'd please proceed to the nearest toilet and heartily drink its contents. You'll feel much better.

During that pivotal year, two of those three people struck up an undeniable chemistry that would provide both of them with a solid ground for launching into the stratosphere of timeless hip hop. Of course I'm talking about Easy Mo Bee & The Notorious B.I.G. Said relationship gave Comby's Bad Boy Records their first song ever. Oh and what a song it was. Party And Bullshit established Biggie's growing reputation as an MC to be reckoned with, being his first ever professional solo outing, while adding to Easy Mo Bee's already-impressive productions list, joining songs by legends such as Big Daddy Kane & The Genius (famously re-invented as Wu-Tang co-founder GZA). However, Mo Bee detoured from working with Biggie for a short period when he headed into the lab with Craig Mack. I'm not sure what Osten was on at that time because if people thought he was good on Kane's Looks Like A Job For..., boy were they in for something.

His production dramatically got better. Much better. Osten & Mack's final collaboration during those sessions, Flava In Ya Ear, became the hit of the season in 1994, ensuring Craig Mack's name would be remembered on blogs written 21 years later. Mack's following album, Project: Funk Da World, included many similar examples and was considered a heavily underrated classic, even on blogs written 21 years later. This, of course, was to the enormous chagrin of Comby, who had no part in this magical experience besides introducing these two to each other and shopping the magical single around. So, in now-typical Comby fashion, he blackballs his own artist's album, despite the shit selling five hundred thousand copies, while redirecting his filthy money-whoring vision towards his other MC, whom with he would ensure Mack's debut would be all but forgotten.

Now, B.I.G. was continuing his grind in the industry, becoming somewhat of a cameo fixture, appearing on songs like Heavy D's A Bunch Of N****s, for example. Comby thought it was time BIG and Mo Bee got back to making BIG's album. And, this time, Comby made sure he was there every step of the way, looking for any chance to take credit, whether he deserved said credit or not. Not that this stopped Osten & BIG from making some very smart moves to ensure this album's position to be timeless: Mo Bee & BIG invited DJ fucking Premier and Lord fucking Finesse to contribute to the album, while handpicking some of Comby's suggested producers to cook up some worthy additions from their part as well.

Obviously, all involved succeeded in making an impact, as Ready To Die, Bad Boy's first official album, sold a jillionl records in the United States alone and is remembered years later as a landmark in hip hop history. Does it, however, earn all that publicity and hype?

INTRO
Comby's filthy hands are all over this. UGH!

THINGS DONE CHANGED
Darnell Scott, kudos, man. I know this is your lone production ever, but goddamn is it a good one. Biggie wastes no time in submerging himself into the instrumental, built meticulously around various exquisite Main Ingredient samples along with distinct Biz Markie & Dr. Dre vocal excerpts, launching into the type of introspective, socio-political portrait that only an MC of his caliber can paint. And, trust me: there are a lot of those around. Anyways, a fine song, indeed.

GIMME THE LOOT
Easy Mo Bee demonstrates his post-Craig Mack sound on a BIG track for the first time. The results are, of course, glorious. Biggie describes the life of a duo of stick-up criminals, one of them being a juvie, with both roles convincingly played by our host. The reason I consider this a highlight of BIG's entire career is because by writing the second crimy a little kid, he simultaneously gave this tale a sad reality-check. For unfortunately, we live more than 20 years after this album's release and to this day, kids are falling into the life of crime so needlessly because of their natural inability to look at the bigger picture at that stage of their lives. A brilliant follow-up.

MACHINE GUN FUNK
Easy Mo Bee returns to his top-notch sampling ways by taking a single second from a Black Heat record and flipping it multiple ways to give us the magnificent final result. Mr. Wallace reverts to punchline mode beautifully as he sprinkles disses towards the rap competition who were most definitely listening. Apparently this was the song Biggie wanted for the first single, and while I'll admit Juicy was a better business choice, artistically this fit BIG's aesthetic at the time so much more. Especially considering the fact that this could be a Party & Bullshit sequel of sorts. In any case, by the end of this song you will be jumping around your 4x4 bedroom bellowing the hook right the fuck along with Mr. Funke’s ingeniously sampled words. Another Mo Bee smash.

WARNING
Osten returns, locked and loaded with a very famous Isaac Hayes sample that he loops to hypnotize you into dancing to this thuggery tale of violence that's supposed to act as a metaphor for Chris' success in the rap game. The execution by both MC and producer is dope and yet, his conversation-with-himself idea was done much better in Gimme The Loot. That and the hook is ass. And finally, the skit at the end of the shit is so fucking worthless that it ends a great song on a damn whimper. And making matters worse: Comby acts as both dumbass would-be assailants in said skit. He just had to force himself in, didn't he? I still like most of the song, though. Three outta three for Mo Bee, so far.

READY TO DIE
Let's get this song's flaws outta the way: Comby, Comby & fucking Comby. Now, we start the praise by saying straight out the gate that this is BIG's best solo performance on this album, hands fucking down. This is the artistic & lyrical culmination of everything that hip hop considers great about the late legend. The punchlines, the narrative, the metaphors, the introspection. Nowhere are all these traits crystalized better than this song right here. Might I add that this is also Easy Mo Bee's best contribution to this album. Osten whips up a Willie Hutch sample and makes it sound like a slice of fucking Heaven on Earth. This song definitely ranks as one of the absolute best title tracks of all goddamn time. This would've been my choice to be the first single of this album. Fuck you for even coming near this track, Comby.

ONE MORE CHANCE
Speak of the devil. Comby just had to follow that high point with one of the worst songs on the entire fucking album. Might I add that Mr. Carlton Thompson from Comby's jolly bag of Hitmen seems to me like he couldn’t say no to Comby at this period in his production life. Good thing he shoqed the world what he can really do with Nas' One Mic, huh? Anyways, Nevertheless, him & The Bluez Brothers get major props for this magnificent beat. I will, however, gladly rob Comby of any credit he got in the making of this song's beat, though. He never has and never will be a proper producer because he consistently refuses to pay his dues as a beatmaker. All this, and we haven't got to the true reason I hate this track. Yes, it's the fucking misogyny present in this sex rap. Not that I am OK with it, but I would normally turn a begrudgingly blind eye  to it if the misogyny was one or two lines on a song, but when it's the entire fucking thing? That fucking pisses me off to no end. I honestly cannot fathom how girls can dance to songs that explicitly degrade the very nature of being a woman. And I truly believe that as a man: you must be extremely insecure if you have to brag about your sexual prowess on a massively-distributed commercial release. Fuck Comby for convincing Biggie that this was a good idea.

FUCK ME (INTERLUDE)
Do you really want me to say something else after that last song? Fuck it I will: It's no wonder Lil' Miss Kimberly Jones is viewed as a slut by the industry, given that this was her first recorded performance. Audio porn? Really, Comby? How is this a good look for your artist? How is it even consistent with the nature of this album?!

THE WHAT (FEATURING METHOD MAN)
Thank GOD Osten's back. This time, he brings a friend to help Biggie erase the horseshit we just listened to from our memories. Keep in mind that when this album dropped, the Wu movement was steadily picking up steam in the game and a very big part of that was Method Man's eponymous single. Add that to the fact that they were gearing up for his solo debut that would drop two months later. So, both rappers needed each other in this, and they needed this to work. Well, I am here 21 years later to tell you it indeed has, and in the best way imaginable. BIG and Mef, who's a punchline genius, bounce off each other like it's second nature. And it's fitting that Easy Mo Bee should oversee the proceedings with an awesome Leroy Hutson loop. A huge step back in the right direction.

JUICY
This song only adds to my infuriation with Mr. Comby Combs. For it is a proven fact that he and Trackmasters' Poke stole this beat composition outright from legendary producer Pete Rock. I mean, what a way to repay an old friend. Comby and Pete were originally crewmates under Heavy D RIP, where Pete Rock was already cutting his teeth as a renowned producer while Comby was a fucking roadie. Pete obviously trusted the little snake enough to play him some of his beats, not knowing what Comby would do afterwards, which was commission Poke to straight up jack the making of the beat and releasing it under his own name. A fact that Comby conveniently avoided to touch upon in the 2009 Notorious movie. Do any of you out there even know how many people think Comby's some sort of superproducer because of those actions? For that, this song shall always be tainted to me. It doesn't matter that Biggie spits some of his most uplifting lyrics ever on this song. That only adds to the lie, in my eyes. Truly a shame, because evidently Pete Rock's beat fit BIG's lyrics like a fucking glove. Hell, I'm sure Pete would've retooled it to be at least The World Is Yours-level of classic. The hook is, once again, ass by the way, and I'm fully aware that it might've still been included had Pete Rock produced this shit.

EVERYDAY STRUGGLE
The Bluez Brothers build this track around a Dave Grusin loop for dolo, mostly unencumbered by Comby's pesky bullshit, and the track is all the better for it. I didn't say Comby didn't force his way into this track, though, as his adlibs miraculously find their way into the song. BIG's performance, however, negates whatever hopes Comby had of ruining the song and elevates the shit into a contemporary hip hop classic. The imagery displayed by our host clearly demonstrates why he achieved legendary status.

ME & MY BITCH
Run! Here come the jolly bag of Hitmen! Well, actually Comby dragged Chucky along with him into the Bluez Brothers session, who were in the midst of making a fairly decent beat. Comby slithers into the booth where Biggie was writing his lyrics. Comby convinces Biggie that the album didn't have enough lady material. 'It doesn't matter if you're dissing the shit out of them, you have to mention the ladies, Big. That's how we get you a wider audience, Big.' Big, evidently, rolled with the idea, and the result was what could've happened to Method Man's All I Need had he not written the lyrics without ever intending to release them commercially. Add in Comby's random interludes with a random bitch, and what we're left with is an utter abomination. Not as bad as One More Chance, but an abomination nonetheless. Thank God I skip this shit or I would be earless right now.

BIG POPPA
A G-Funk beat. Chucky Thompson's first production with Comby monitoring each and every facet of its making, including the lyrics, is a fucking G-Funk beat. So, of course this was a hit. It doesn't matter that this mere fact stood, in each and every way possible, against the direction most of this album is taking. And I haven't even started talking about the fucking lyrics yet. I don't care if each and every single one of Comby's artificial clones come and ad-lib me to death, I don't believe for a second that the player image was Biggie's idea nor that it suited him and I don't care how much pussy he got as a result of that. By the way, nobody gets to make the arguments that 'hey, it's called being artistically multi-faceted' or 'He's just exploring different sides of himself', because we all know that it's the oldest copout in the book and that it's a goddamn marketing ploy. Hell, if the fucking Grammys took notice, then the ploy very well succeeded. And just so we're clear, the Grammys is the worst dishonor this song could receive, in every possible meaning. To top it all off, BIG references Craig Mack in a way that could be interpreted as a diss. I mean, as if he would need additional beef problems three years later. For he just laid the foundation that would lead to Comby pushing him towards dissing his former labelmate at a later time when beef seemed to jump at him at every turn. Fuck this piece of shit.

RESPECT (FEATURING DIANA KING)
Not that Poke's beat is bad or anything, but fuck me if the One More Chance beat didn't fit here. A KC & the Sunshine Band sample looped simplistically yet effectively by Poke & Tone, the latter whom hates BIG's patois-spewing cohost and the entire song now, lays the groundwork for Mr. Wallace to give us an autobiography on wax out of the top shelf. That's all I've got, and frankly, that's all you really need. Moving along.

FRIEND OF MINE
So, the skit at the beginning, right? Need I say more? Osten, you truly disappoint me. How did you find yourself producing this? How did you even think this was a good idea? Wait a minute. It was Comby, wasn't it? Anybody not liking my review of this song so far: Please administer the action exhibited in the aforementioned skit to your damn self. I don't care if it's physically impossible to some of you.

UNBELIEVABLE
I take particular glee in stating that this song had absolutely zilch to do with Comby Combs. In fact, according to DJ Premier, this song was a last-minute addition to the album, with a simple phone call from BIG, $5000 in hand, to Primo begging him to make this record. That's all it took for this punchline classic to come to existence. Primo hides a brilliant Quincy Jones sample in the song's folds and surrounds it expertly in preparation for Biggie to spit some of his best punchlines to date. This track alone effectively washed away all of Comby's prior horseshit.

SUICIDAL THOUGHTS
Lord Finesse closes off the album with its most harrowing song bar none building the beat around a Miles Davis classic. This shit will give you nightmares, guaranteed, if you listen to it enough. He also accomplishes the impossible by reigning in Comby enough to give his lone worthwhile contribution to the album, ad-libbing as BIG's frightened friend who's listening to thoughts that very much show just how alone the late MC really felt at the time. Speaking of which, the lyrics presented here were clearly written by a Chris Wallace who was at a very dark stage in his young life, lashing out at everyone around him, regardless of their emotional relevance to him in a singular verse. No hooks, no structure. Just pure venom. The influence of Mind Playing Tricks On Me by the Geto Boys on BIG shines through in the best possible way. This song might be disturbing to some and yet I feel it's the perfect ending to this album. I'll explain why below.

FINAL THOUGHTS
Think back for a moment: The album's name is Ready To Die, the imagery describing death and fatal situations & circumstances are available in spades, and the only times you hear any sign of consistency is in themes of darkness. No matter how you look at it, this album was an act of therapy. Whether it's because Biggie really lived that terrible early life or because he was scarred by what was happening around him when he was growing up. Or both. However, Biggie did the smart thing and committed those thoughts to paper, then to wax.

Now, if only Comby let the young man do what he wanted on the lyrical tip without forcing the playboy image upon him. I can only imagine the heights this album would rise up to. Instead, he has him writing player and sex lyrics that heavily detract from this album's flowing narrative under the guise of 'clever marketing'.  Of course, that's not the only venue Comby tried to ruin. The Juicy debacle and Comby's insistence to suck the radio's cock with it's every whim guiding his musical suggestions threaten to throw this album into the sea of utter garbage songs.

Thank God, his bullshit only comes to fruition on roughly a quarter of this album. The rest is pure value, with Easy Mo Bee leading the herd of awesome producers into greatness. Any remaining issues I might have with this album have already been stated in my final thoughts here.

And for the first & last time: I refuse to review Who Shot Ya.

Move along, now.

WORTH IT? You bet your fucking ass. I'm not blinded by bias like many of this art form's fans. Or else, I would've cursed this album into oblivion for its mere association with Mr. Comby Combs. The times when this shit's good, it's really good. And vice-versa, unfortunately. Nevertheless, go get this shit now.

Easy Mo Bee did produce other shit, and here's the proof.

Craig Mack - Project: Funk Da World (September 20, 1994)

UPDATE: Craig Mack passed away on Monday the 12th of March, 2018. RIP. This legit broke my heart. This guy was the epitome of not giving one fuck about what everyone says about you. And he was happy in doing so. There's a lesson to be learned in that. I hope this review reflects just how much of an impact son really had on the game. Onwards...

I'm back. It took some coercing. BELIEVE me. But, I'm back.

Throughout this obsession of mine, I have come across some legendary artists whose work will define periods of my life forever. Some of these legends whose legendary status is not to be questioned are irritatingly underrated by the masses, others irritatingly overrated. Yeah, you read that right. Even legends can be overrated.

How so? Because their brand is so marketable to the industry that it makes them the only ones that get talked about to the point of exhaustion. Take LL Cool J & Jay-Z, for example: Both of these dudes have at least one classic album in their catalogs and more than their fair share of hit songs. Or Dr. Dre, who was a bonafide genius when it came to production. Keyword: was. These dudes, because of their significant commercial success, may lead the casual listener to believe that they’re the ONLY acts that are worthy of discussion.

And then you have guys like Sean John Combs, aka Puffy aka Puff Daddy aka P.Diddy aka Diddy aka Mr. Ciroc himself. Fuck it, I'm just gonna call this guy Comby. So, from this day forth, that shall be his name on this blog. Where do I even start with this fucker? He was an intern running with Dr. Jeckyll aka THE Andre Harrell who made him serve errands for THE late great Heavy D's crew back in the late 80's. Comby somehow only learned from that experience the following: Selling out will always be the key to success. In no way, shape or form am I saying that Jeckyll & the Hevster were sellouts. I'm saying that's what Comby understood from their success in the industry. But while Jeckyll & Hev were smart politicians, Comby is downright shameless in his pandering to the latest whim of the corporate world. And to tell the truth, he would've crashed and burned a long time ago if it wasn't for one man: Christopher Wallace.

Let's not get it twisted, person. Mr. Wallace bka the Notorious fucking B.I.G. is without question one of the worthiest MCs gracing the microphone to ever be called 'timeless'. Nowhere is this more apparent than on Comby's vanity label Bad Boy's first released album: The classic-yet-glaringly-flawed Ready To Die. The reason why it's glaringly flawed? Comby's insistence to suck the radio's cock with degrading songs "for the ladies". The fact that the cock-sucking produced commercial results is and always will be absolutely irrelevant to me. The reason why it's a classic? One name and one name only: Easy Mo Bee.

Osten Harvey Jr. was already a producer with a swiftly growing reputation as a potential classic-making machine by the time Comby came knocking. He had experienced various degrees of success with his collabos with the legendary Big Daddy Kane, and unwarranted failure with his full album collabo with The Genius, who would later blow up as the GZA with the rest of the immortal Wu-Tang Clan. Thanks, Cold Chillin'! The forced radio-whoring joints did wonders for GZA's later career, guys! Although you obviously didn't benefit from said rise in any way, shape or form. Gee, I wonder whose fault is that? And just so we're clear: Easy Mo Bee had absolutely zilch to do with those crappy songs.

Back to this, though. Easy Mo Bee's chemistry with the late Biggie was immediate. The two released BIG’s first ever single, Party And Bullshit, for Jeckyll’s Uptown Records on the Who's The Man? soundtrack (Yet another forgettable film with a killer OST) to rave reception. The two hit it off from there, with Mo Bee acting as the Large Professor to Biggie's Nas on some of the most critically acclaimed songs on the latter's debut album that were not produced by him. Y'know, Unbelievable? Suicidal Thoughts?

However, Easy Mo Bee's impact on the Bad Boy legacy went even further than that. MUCH further. See, at the time of BIG's signing, Comby was attempting to groom yet another potential golden egg. Some dude by the name of Craig Mack. Now, this guy's story is a doozy of an industry tale. Hailing from Brentwood Long Island, Craig Mack had already attempted to break into the business as part of a DJ-MC act with DJs Diamond J &Teddy Lee called MC EZ-Troup. They released a single & b-side in 1988, Just Rhymin’/Get Retarded that, despite impressing very influential figures like the aforementioned Heavy D, went nowhere due to the fact that the group’s deal with Fresh Records was absolutely rotten with absolutely zero promotion from the label. Feeling guilty about the ensuing chaos, legendary Brentwood duo EPMD (who got their hometown homies the deal in the first place) hooked Mack up as a future member of the then-invincible Hit Squad. Of course, EPMD immediately broke up afterward, leaving Mack without a home. Being that he had connections with both Erick & Parish, Comby knew about Craig's surprisingly-dope skills as an MC at that time. Surely enough, he swoops in with dollar signs all up in them goofy-ass eyes of his, promising Mack the promised land. Only one problem, though: Craig Mack, unfortunately, wasn't the prettiest rapper in the world. Comby had to figure something out. Enter Easy Mo Bee again.

By now, Osten's ear for potential talent in an MC was second-to-none. He most definitely had that gift in a producer that would bring the very best out of an individual working with him. Hell, he made a 17-year old Mally G sound like an absolute pro in 95. Anyway, Mo Bee took a quick-but-extremely-focused detour from his BIG venture to work with Mack, resulting in a certain batch of songs that were topped off with what would become Bad Boy's very first commercially released single: Flava In Ya Ear.

A few months after that song dropped, it set the hip hop world a-fucking-blaze. Everybody wanted to know who was that garble-voiced rapper spitting over that two-noted masterpiece of a beat. Comby, contrary to popular belief, was baffled. How the fuck did Easy Mo Bee pull off what he couldn't? Osten managed to turn the ever-so-anti-radio rapper into a hot commodity. So, of course, Comby roadblocked his own talent and went full force ahead into BIG's album. Simply because Mack didn’t want to be promoted as a pimp. Shows you the type of superficial asshole you’re dealing with. (Comby, if you have a problem with that: Sound off below.)

Despite all that, the following album, Project: Funk Da World, still sold five hundred thousand copies. Something that can never be taken away from Craigy here.

Speaking of which, the album was a divided work on the production tip: Easy Mo Bee handled five tracks, Craig himself handled five tracks (!!!) and a lone track was given to Rashad Smith to, um, experiment with. Incidentally, that track was the one Comby fell in love with enough to contribute his loathsome ad-libbing to.

Enough said. On to the review:

PROJECT: FUNK DA WORLD
Album intro. I almost skipped the whole thing, until I heard the famed Hamilton Bohannon sample, expertly cut for Mack to spit his BNB (Boasts 'N' Bullshit) via his unmatched delivery, which fails to grab you, I’m afraid. Imagine my surprise when I found out that Mack himself produced this.

GET DOWN
This track's intro still pisses me off to no end. However, a straight up majestic boom bap beat tackles you, robs you for all you're worth and just leaves you feeling as stranded as you could possibly feel immediately after that crappy intro. Enter Easy Mo fucking Bee. And this time, there’s no lack of interest from the listener, as Craig really gets into his groove when he's on this guy's beats, flowing without a care in the world and actually displaying some pretty good punchlines here and there. The iconic Q-Tip from A Tribe Called Quest would commission one of his most famous beats ever as a remix to this masterpiece. A definite win.

MAKING MOVES WITH PUFF
One hell of a goddamn slowdown. Not that that’s a bad thing when done right. This here is the aforementioned Comby track, which was the third single. Surprise surprise. This shit even had an accompanying video with MC EZ here trying to imitate Comby's abhorrent dancing in these shitty videos. Complete with explosions, because what rap video is complete without explosions, amirite? As for the song itself? Ironically, the beat may be trying a bit too hard to sound like an ATCQ composition but Rashad Ringo Smith surprisingly pulls off an infectious instrumental in what remains my favorite production of his, while Craig barrels through with his punchlines that should not be this interesting and yet you’re still wanting more. Admittedly, I still love this song, despite Comby’s wakass being on here.

THAT Y'ALL
The playful beat that you hear off the bat, again surprisingly made by Mack himself, throws you a bit off, but I feel it works primarily because of the PMD sample thrown in the mix. Craigy, however, screws up his chance at redeeming himself by delivering a truly horrid performance. This shit was hilariously bad.

FLAVA IN YA EAR
Every time I hear this song, it is stuck on repeat in my head for months to come. Months. Easy Mo Bee delivered a masterstroke of genius beatmaking so good that Craig couldn't help himself but deliver a performance that still takes your breath away, 21 goddamn years removed from the time of its making. All it took was two notes from a timeless O'Donel Levy record and you've got yourself a hip hop classic.

FUNK WIT DA STYLE
I won't even try to front: this beat blew me away when I heard it the first time. Constructed from a very recognizable Emotions sample and some truly inspired audio bit selections, I'm again baffled at the fact that Mack is this capable of a beatmaker. His production skills are noticeably worse, though, as he can’t grab the listener on here to save his life.

JUDGEMENT DAY
Osten's back at it again. This time, he brings to the table no more and no less than his absolute best production during his Bad Boy tenure. Ready To Die fans, read into that what you will. The fact still remains that Easy Mo Bee simply has better chemistry with Craig Mack than with BIG, even though his collabos with the late legend are still mostly timeless. He just brought something more outta Craig Mack, who hadn't yet gone batshit crazy and demonstrated effectively so by skydiving into the track with his performance. Hell, I consider this song even better than Flava In Ya Ear. (You know what to do if you don't like my opinion. Yep, down there.)

REAL RAW
OK, this song is quite the revelation. For the Craig Mack that you'll hear here sounds absolutely nothing like the rest of the album. The explanation is quite clear really, as this song was recorded during Mack's Hit Squad internship days. I must note, he sounds much more, for lack of a better expression, "composed". For example, his enunciation is infinitely clearer than what you hear on Flava In Ya Ear. The result is Craig Mack's finest lyrical display bar none. I know, I was flabbergasted, too. Not to mention a deft Days Of Our Lives reworking. I cannot stress enough how bewildered I am at Craig Mack's production touches so far. That was somehow intended as a compliment.

MAINLINE
Contrast the previous song with this one. Here, Craigy is damn near unintelligible, with an insistence on garbling his voice as much as possible. Let it be known though that with effort, you can still hear much from what he's saying. However, most rap fans won't appreciate the fact that they have to exert effort in deciphering this man's delivery here. So, even though I still really enjoyed this track because of Easy Mo Bee's masterful Mandre-sampling beat and Mack’s admittedly fun delivery, I can't really recommend our host's overall execution. This song is just too inaccessible. End of story.

WHEN GOD COMES
Now, this Mo Bee production suffers from no such problem. Here, Mack must've been very passionate about truth and what it means to him, (I guiltily admit that the resulting mental image of Mack's face when pondering too hard brought me to tears. Tears of laughing my fucking ass off. See this for reference. You'll know which face I'm talking about.) because he tries to commit every positive thought that ever crossed his mind to wax. It really works, though, as his sincerity shines through and he raises up some pretty legitimate points. Add that to Easy Mo Bee's spot-on Phoenix Authority retooling and you're left with one of the most introspective hip hop records ever made. No, I'm not joking.

WELCOME TO 1994
The final song on this album is fittingly a Craig Mack instrumental, and a dope one at that. He once again turns to another PMD sample, one which he sprinkles through a jeep-rattling instrumental that pushes him one last time towards what is unfortunately a very uninteresting performance. A pretty bland ending for an album like this one, as it’s crystal clear that Mack’s immediate circle, while not yes men, were unsuccessful in influencing him. For better or worse, he made the album he wanted to make.


FINAL THOUGHTS
Captain Obvious Time: This album sounds the furthest from Comby's vision of all the Bad Boy releases throughout the label's horrid 20+ year life. I honestly don't know who or what to thank for that particular tidbit. Should I thank Craigy and his flat-out weird tastes in entertainment? Or Easy Mo Bee and his criminally-underrated wizardry behind the boards? Or Comby himself for not directing his sellout visions towards this piece of work? Whatever the case may be, this album is still a worthy entrant into the widely-debated "Golden Era Of Hip Hop", despite the inconsistent hit-rate on the lyrical front. Beatwise, this is still very solid, though. By the way, I would have an issue with dude's hooks. Yet they're delivered with a unique and awesomely on-purpose 'I couldn't give less of a fuck what you think' laziness that sells each and every hook he does on this album. Bottom line, the critical and commercial milestones this album has reached only add to the legendary war chest of Easy Mo Bee accomplishments in hip hop. And for the most part? Craig Mack did pretty well for himself, too. Suck on that, Comby.

WORTH IT? Every goddamn step of the way. This is the only Bad Boy release where Comby had ZERO control, and that is an achievement in and of itself, thereby maintaining the distinction of being the only release free of the usual Comby hindrances, aside from one single song. That's definitely something Craig Mack should be proud of.

TRACKS TO TRACK DOWN:
FLAVA IN YA EAR (REMIX) (FEATURING THE NOTORIOUS B.I.G., RAMPAGE THE LAST BOY SCOUT, LL COOL J & BUSTA RHYMES)
The very single that launched Biggie into superstardom. Also, the very reason Easy Mo Bee left Bad Boy Records. Let's get into it: Every single aspect of this remix that wasn't lyrical was handled by Easy Mo Bee and Easy Mo Bee alone. So of course, Comby listed himself and a reportedly unwilling Chucky Thompson as co-producers, knowing damn well they both didn't have shit to do with the track. Interestingly, Easy Mo Bee now says that he doesn't hold any grudges against Comby but I don't believe that for a second. And if that's %100 true, then that's all the more reason to hate Comby, who has surely screwed over countless more figures in similar situations. Oh, the song itself? Improves on the original in almost every way. Almost. Comby's fucking adlibs during BIG's stellar verse somehow taint this song, albeit ever-so-slightly, but you will not care in the slightest as BIG delivers the immortal verse that truly informed the entire world of his arrival as a legitimate nationwide superstar and not just a regional hero. As for the host? Craig’s verse actually makes it sound as if him & BIG are battling, which might not be that far from the truth as BIG notoriously dismissed his former labelmate in a 1997 interview. Taking in that context, Craig still delivered a worthwhile verse that made his presence felt. I gotta mention that I’m not that big of a fan of LL's verse here. Too radio-whoring for my taste. Rampage gives us some pretty generic rhymes, and Busta tries and fails to recapture his Scenario magic. None of those flaws matter, however, when presented within the context of Easy Mo Bee's brilliant production. Using the same beat as the original, Osten seasons it this time with some guitar notes here and there, transforming the entire song with much more impressive results that negate each and every flaw this remix could've had. And as I've stated, Biggie's verse is immortal & Craig’s “reply” is uncharacteristically mirthless and potent. Do NOT let this remix slip through your fingers.

For more Easy Mo Bee, here.