If I
explain what I love about rap it would be captured in “Mostly Tha Voice.” Take some great drums, add a James Brown bass
line from “Give it up or Turnit A Loose,”
insert a great voice and some masterful rhymes, and let the DJ scratch and add
some flavor - it’s a magic combination. “It’s mostly tha voice, That gets you up/ It’s mostly tha voice, That makes you
buck/ A lot of rappers got flavor, and some got skillz/ But if your voice ain’t
dope, You need to chill.” Guru had one of the most incredible and instantly
identifiable voices in rap. His raspy style never felt rushed or uncertain, and
he always delivered great lyrics. DJ Premier would often use a spoken word
phrase from another rap song and scratch it up as a chorus or an intro, as he
does at several points on this record. Hard to Earn was the fourth Gang Starr record and it
was released in 1994.
The
first full length song, “Alongwaytogo,”
is set up in an interesting tension/release cycle by DJ Premier. He starts out
by using a springy sample taken from the Quincy Jones song “Snow Creatures” along with a vocal
sample from A Tribe Called Quest’s “Check
The Rhime.” When Guru is rhyming in the verse DJ Premier sustains a long,
tense tone over the beat. This suspended tone provides pressure which can be
released at the chorus. Once the chorus arrives he releases the sustained tone
and slices up one of his trademark vocal samples (“How far must you go to gain
respect?”). These clearly marked sections are not only a hallmark of Gang
Starr’s style but also a sign of how well designed the songs are.
“Code Of The Streets” starts out with
a sample of Monk Higgins’ “Little Green
Apples.” It is a descending chord progression that loops
throughout the song. DJ Premier has reprogrammed the drums underneath the
sample to have a more bouncy and lilting feel than the original Blue Note
record. The lyrics explore stealing cars. “Take this for example young brothers want rep/ Cause in the life they’re
living, you can’t half step/ It starts with the young ones doing crime for fun/
And if you ain’t down you’ll get played out son.” “Brainstorm” is a pure exhibition of
rhyme and DJ skill. The beat is very stripped down and Guru is throwing out
rhymes as DJ Premier scratches records and fades them in and out. It is another
example of Gang Starr’s strength and cohesiveness as a duo stripped down to the
bare boned essentials.
Currently
“This Is America,” Childish
Gambino’s hit single/video, has millions of views on YouTube addressing many of
the same issues that “Tonz O Gunz” presented
in 1994. This song contains a sample of the Isaac Hayes song “Breakthrough” and starts off with an
excerpt from a Malcolm X speech.
“Tonz O Gunz” is about guns
flooding into poor neighborhoods and the black on black violence that happens
as a result. “The Planet” uses
Steve Davis’ “It’s All Because She’s
Gone” as a rhythmic and melodic bed for Guru’s story of moving to New
York. Once you hear the original sample it’s amazing to hear what it is
transformed into. It is sped up slightly and the drums are reprogrammed
underneath it giving it a springy and bouncy feel. Guru tells the tale of his moving
to Brooklyn and the challenges that it presented in a cohesive narrative that
is wrapped around a catchy chorus. “Boom
bash dash, I had to break, I had to getaway/ Packed my bags, to leave for good,
it was a Monday/ Kissed my mother, gave my Pops a pound/ Then he hugged me,
then he turned around.”
Another
high point for the record is “DWYCK.” It
features the duo Nice & Smooth and the sample of the drums is a simple bed
of bass, snare and high-hat from the first few seconds of Melvin Bliss’ “Synthetic Substitution.” “Mass Appeal” loops a guitar lick from
the Vic Juris record “Horizon Drive” to
be the recurring motive for its melodic content. Once again DJ Premier breaks
up the verse by scratching a spoken word version of the chorus. This time he is
scratching a vocal sample from Da Youngsta’s song “Pass Da Mic.” One of the impressive things about DJ Premier’s
sample selections is the variety. Jazz records, blues records, and R&B all
make appearances, but in addition how about the Malcolm X sample, Gong, or even
sampling a line from one of their own records? This record is dense with samples
and lengthy at 17 tracks. I wish I could go into detail about each song but
that would make this brief essay too long. Instead I’ll try and impress upon
you that the basis of each song is a choice sample or three, and that the
rhyming is top notch. Guru has a voice that is one of the best in rap, and the
chemistry and cohesiveness of this duo should not be missed. The song topics
may fall solidly within a predictable genre and variety of topics, but it should
be taken into consideration that this is prototypical New York rap in the
1990’s. The listener must contemplate the execution and the atmosphere. DJ
Premier takes classic samples, often combines them with then contemporary
influences of peers, and tailors beats for Guru to inhabit and show his skills
within.
-
Doug Anderson
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