In A ATL Frame Of Mind - Oooooooohhh...On The TLC Tip

Came home and turned on Retro Centric like I always do and the video for "Hat 2 Da Back" came on and I decided I wanted to listen to TLC's first album again. I rememeber the first time I heard, and saw I guess since it was the video, "Ain't 2 Proud 2 Beg". I thought it was crazy and totally different then anything out at the time. Three smokin' hot ladies who were singing and rapping over a track that killed. I bought the CD when it dropped in Febuary of '92 (11th grade, damn I'm getting old) and loved it. Listening to it now I still enjoy it but listening to it after having heard CrazySexyCool I realize this was just their finding their sound CD. There were four singles from this album and that seems about right. The other songs a good but nothing jumps out at you like those four tracks. All in all, still enjoy the hell out of this album and it really sets the table for they massive success they would later enjoy.

Back from Vaction & Listening Again

So I went to Charleston SC this weekend with my lovely wife, sans kiddies by the way, and had a great time. I didn't listen to anything Friday, Saturday, or Sunday except whatever was playing on the '80s, '90s and Backspin channels on XM Radio while we were in the car.  Heard lots of great stuff I hadn't heard in awhile and some stuff I had forgotten about completely. Also realized I have a lot of music from that era I need to listen to and starting tomorrow I will.

Not going to lie to you guys, Monday and Tuesday I spent the day watching TV and catching up on shows and movies on the DVR and didn't even think about listening to anything. But today I had some work to do upstairs hanging some new decks I picked up over the weekend and cleaning up so I went a different route then usual. Instead of picking an album to listen to I grabbed some promo mixcds and advances from back when I had the record store and listened to them instead.

DJ S&S Keith Sweat Mix CD Sampler
"Didn't See Me Coming"

First up was a DJ S&S Keith Sweat mixcd sent to us before his "Didn't See Me Coming" album dropped in 2000. It's a nice little mix with snippets of songs from that album and some hits from his past. The only problem with that is it makes you realize how great Keith used to be and how he didn't really have it anymore at by that point.

D'Angelo Soul Blends
mixed by DJ Mark Ronson

After that I put in D'Angelo Soul Blends mixed by DJ Mark Ronson which was sent out to promote his second album "Voodoo" which came out in 2000. This was a great mixcd with plenty of tracks from Voodoo and Brown Sugar. The only bad thing was it really made me sad that a artist with this much talent and ability can't get his shit together and give us another album. Maybe he'll make a Maxwell like comeback soon and we'll all be amazed.

Mashonda "January Joy" Album Sampler

And lastly I threw on the sampler for Mashonda's never released album "January Joy". For those of you who don't know who Mashonda is, she is Swizz Beatz former wife who he left for that homewrecker Alicia Keys. They also had a child together and she was an artist on his Full Surface Records label. The only full song on here is "Back of the Club" with snippets of 5 other songs. Kanye West and Jadakiss are each featured on a song and judging from the sampler this would have been a really nice album. As you can see from the pic this album is signed by Mashonda. She did a walk-thru at our store while promoting the album and she was great. Really nice and humble and seemed genuinely glad we liked the tracks and that we wanted to push the album for her. Maybe that's why I don't give Alicia Keys the same pass most women seem to. If Angelina is a slut and homewrecker then so is Alicia. Till tomorrow, Cheapsoles

Joell Ortiz - Free Agent

So today's CD was the latest release by Brooklyn emcee Joell Ortiz, Free Agent. Here's the deal with this CD, if your under the age of 25 and don't know the difference between a rapper and a emcee then don't bother to listen cause your just gonna cry and bitch about it being some up top shit and get mad because you might have to actually pay attention to the words of the song. If you happen to like real hip hop and lyrics then this CD is for you. Some of you have probably heard a lot of the songs on here as most have been released already in some form or another. Hell, "Put Some Money On It" has already been released as a remix on the Slaughterhouse EP that came out 2 weeks before this album did. "Call Me" was released last summer and actually got some pretty decent radio and video play. It is also the perfect example of how tho make a radio friendly hip hop song without selling out and losing your core audience. Joell is also 1/4 of the group Slaughterhouse who recently signed with Shady Records. The ironic part of that is that at one point Joell Ortiz was signed to Aftermath Records.

The CD is straight up NY hip-hop with some really great records including the standard DJ Premier track "Sing Like Bilal". The only real misstep on the CD is "Cocaine" which is yet another cliched drug as a female story. The bonus track makes up for though. Highly recommend for grown-ups. Till tomorrow, Cheapsoles

Grease, Soul On Ice, Duets - The Chapter, & The Social Network or Way To Much Time Alone Today

Banged out 4 albums today which means either I need a life in the worst way or I was sick in the bed all day. And I'm healthy as a horse, well except for that whole not being able to walk thing, so I guess I really need a life. Anyways, going to keep these short and simple since there are so many plus it's getting late.

Grease - Original Motion Picture Soundtrack

This is what you guys voted on and I was thrilled to do it. Call me whatever you want but this CD is a classic. Just song after song that everybody knows the words to, and don't pretend like you don't. "Your The One That I Want" and "Greased Lightnin" are probably my favorites but this album is loaded with greatness. The best songs are the ones specifically for the film as there are some classics on here that were hits long before this film was thought of. I mean who doesn't hear "Summer Nights" and instantly think of Travolta singing in the bleachers and then running into Olivia Newton-John and being shocked as hell. And the final scene with Olivia in those pants so tight they had to sew them on her. Smokin hot. And listen to the words of "Greased Lightnin", that is one nasty ass little song. They actually call the car a "pussy wagon", how slick is that?

Ras Kass - Soul On Ice

This is some straight up lyrical West Coast hip-hop right here. Ras Kass debut album from 1996 still delivers to this day. The beats don't sound dated at all and the topics are just as relevant today as they were back then. The highlight of the album to me is still "The Evil That Men Do", a 6 minute long breakdown of history. Not the history they teach in those school books and Sunday school but the real history of mankind. Just a brilliant record by a actual emcee not some Wacka Flocka bullshit ass rapper. If you like lyrics and skills hunt this album down and check it out. Promise you'll be better for the experience.

The Notorious B.I.G. - Duets - The Final Chapter

Also known as Puff's third to last Biggie money grab. This album will appeal to those pop radio listening rap fans. If the only Biggie songs you know are Hypnotize & Mo' Money Mo' Problems then you'll be entertained by this money grab CD. If your a real B.I.G. fan then you see this CD for what it is, a bunch of repackaged songs from his first two Cd's over new beats with a bunch of guest stars, many of which I doubt B.I.G. would ever work with if he hadn't been murdered. It's the type of thing that should really piss you off if you love hip-hop. And I mean hip-hop not rap. There is a difference for you children out there. B.I.G. was hip-hop, Wacka Flocka and all that dumbed down bullshit is rap. No skills having ass clowns over a simple ass beat making everybody listening dumber with each word.

The Social Network Soundtrack / Score - Trent Reznor & Atticus Ross

Most of you probably won't ever listen to this but if you saw the movie you know how great the music is. I just love this soundtrack and Daft Punk's Tron Legacy soundtrack as my background music while I'm writing or working around the house. This is the darker of the two and just fit my mood today. either you know it or you don't and you either love it or don't care about it at all.  But it was my fourth album of the day so it gets talked about today. I highly recommend it to all the film lovers out there.

That's all for today. Vote for tomorrow's CD in the poll and I'll see you then, Cheapsoles

You Guys Pick Tomorrow's CD

I just put up a poll with five CDs for you guys to chose from for me to listen to tomorrow. whichever gets the most votes by 10:00 AM tomorrow will get listened to and replaced in the poll. Each day a new CD will be added and I'll listen to the one you guys pick for me. Probably keep this going for a few weeks if I can or until I come up with another way to pick something. Make sure and vote, Cheapsoles.

P.S. If nobody votes I'll pick something but I'm going to keep the poll idea going no matter what the response is. I know, I'm kind of a stubborn bastard ain't I?

Joan Jett & The Blackhearts, Kristen Stewart, And Bad Acting

Today's CD is I Love Rock 'n' Roll by Joan Jett & the Blackhearts. This was Joan's second studio album after The Runaways disbanded and was the first to feature her band "The Blackhearts". For those of you who have no idea who any of those people or groups are, I would suggest you watch "The Runaways" (2010) as soon as you can and then check out this album to fully understand the greatness of Joan Jett. And yes I agree with you, Kristen Stewart is a horribly shitty actress but you have to just accept that and watch the movie anyways. I mean seriously, who in the hell thought putting her non acting ass in a franchise film series was a good idea? I know the movies have made a ton of money but that's in spite of her not because of her. And while we're discussing those flaming piles of shit films, you Twilight weirdos do understand the writer is ripping off Joss Whedon and Buffy the Vampire Slayer don't you? Plus she is just making up bullshit vampire rules to fill in the massive plot holes in her stories. Was I this dumb as a child that I would have liked something so badly written and acted? Probably but I can pretend I wasn't.

Anyways, back to the album, this thing is amazing. The title track alone makes this album worth buying, it is a hard hitting straight rock & roll anthem. Released in 1982, it hit #1 on the Billboard Chart and stayed there for 7 weeks. The whole album is just song after song of straight up old school rock & roll including a rocked out version of the Christmas classic "Little Drummer Boy". This version of the CD includes several bonus tracks including a alternate version of "Nag" featuring The Coasters and a rollicking version of the frat classic "Louie Louie". All in all this is a great album that is the type of rock & roll everybody can listen to. It's simple, straight forward, and classic. Highly recommended and hopefully some of you will learn something from this album.

First Post, Cee-Lo Green, And The Point Behind This

This is what happens when a guy has way to much time on his hands. I was working on my other blog yesterday (cheapsoles.blogspot.com) and started thinking about all the things I collect besides sneakers and thought about the huge CDs collection I have amassed thanks to years of buying music plus the many years of working and later co-owning a record store. For years I either got stuff at cost or ended up with free copies of all kind of things. There is no telling how much really bad I brought home just because it was free. And I mean really really really bad music. What I realized is that I have all these albums by all kind of artists and yet I have probably never listened to over half of them all the way through. Some I have never even listened to at all much less just listened to the single. So I figured since I already have a blog about wearing every pair of shoes in my collection once without repeating a pair I might as well write another one about my other collection. It's not like I have a whole lot going on during the day anyways.

For those of you who read my other blog (all 2 of you) this blog is a little different. First, the language over will be a little more raw over as most of the music I'll be discussing comes with a Parental Advisory sticker. Second, while I will be listening to a different album everyday in it's entirety and discussing it on here, it won't be like that will be the only album I listen to that day. The plan is to pick a different album everyday and listen to it all the way through and write about on here, that's all. I'll still be buying new music, will still listen to other albums that day, I just want to make sure I actually listen to every album I own all the way through. Some of these albums I have listened to before, some I have listened to the singles and that's all, and some I have never listened to at all. Thirdly, there will be no order or logic to what I pick each day. One day it might be The Roots and the next day might be The Sex Pistols and the next day Alabama. Just whatever I grab or pick of the hard drive will get listened to. Might be jazz during dinner, might be rock while driving, might be r&b while cleaning the house, just depends on the mood and day.

So for my first entry I decided to finally listen to Cee-Lo's latest album "The Lady Killer" which was released last November. Of course I bought It the day it came out but every time I thought about listening to it I would end up listening to Fuck You, Old Fashioned, and Bright Lights, Bigger City before getting distracted and switching to ESPN Radio or another CD. For anyone who has listened to Cee-Lo's two previous solo albums you know what to expect and he delivers in spades. If all you know of Cee-Lo is his work with Danger Mouse as part of Gnarls Barkley then you might be a little surprised as this album is a pure R&B album. Those of you who only know him from the Goodie Mob days honestly shouldn't be that surprised by this. You've heard him sing many times before and already know just how eclectic he and the entire group are. Since I was emailed the new version of "Fool For You" the other day I can honestly I greatly prefer the new version to the album version. They added Melina Fiona to the song and it sounds amazing. She just adds a new dimension to the song that you didn't know was missing but now can't live without. Also, if Elektra is reading, make that version of the song the next single and release it to iTunes and follow it up with Old Fashioned. That song is just amazing and might be my favorite song on the album. It feels so old and yet fresh at the same time. The type of song your parents (or grandparents, depending on your age) would listen to and think it was something from back in their day. All in all, it's a great album I should have been listening to all along.

That's one of the things I'm most looking forward to with this project, finding those albums I should have been listening to all along and adding them to my rotation. And maybe I'll turn some of you on to something new and expand your musical tastes along the way. Till tomorrow, Cheapsoles