Dedicated to the premise that life would be better if we all took ourselves a little less seriously.
Tuesday, September 30, 2008
G:TB Song of the...Time Period, Old School Style
Fine. You don't like the gay. I get it. Methinks thou dost protest too much, hmmm?
I see Mark's Outkast, and raise him my favorite non-Beastie Boys rap tune. Brings back memories of coming up hard on the mean streets of Lake Ridge, VA.
The back alleys of my neighborhood, littered with trash cans aflame and evidence of gang violence, were filled with that song my senior year in high school.
(Actually, we called them driveways, and they were populated with Volvos warming in the morning to take us to preparatory school. But we played "I'm Bad" on the Blaupunkt cassette player as we headed to the Academy, and we damn well loved that song.)
The link below has the clip of Pelosi's speech yesterday, as well as the opening text. The partisan rhetoric in that speech caused 15 Republicans to give a big EFF U to the bill.
If you think this bailout is the Republicans' fault, you're absolutely crazy.
Sorry for the long link, but I"m too lay to "tiny url" it.
Ahhh, early LL. Nice work. LL was great, before he figured out he was a sex symbol. Just like how Ice Cube was great, before he stopped hating white people.
hell, rhymo, there's more than enough blame to go around on both sides of the aisle. you'll forgive me if i don't find the "that lady said mean things so we're taking our ball and going home" argument particularly compelling.
I don't disagree with you in the least bit, Rob. But her speech was a joke. It came when a whole lot of Democrats (and Republicans) were mugging in front of cameras, saying they weren't acting as Republicans or Democrats, but as Americans. What was the upside of her comments?
The bill, though murky, was a decent bi-partisan effort. Pelosi tried to sneak in some low blows, while dropping in catch-phrases that had very little to do with the issue at hand.
But here'e the rub:
This bill will probably not open up the commercial papaer (ie, short term debt) market. This market is the lifeline of most firms. It's totally broken right now. And stock markets aren't reflecting this. GE rolls over $95 B every 3 months for general working needs. They typically paid slightly more than Treasury rates because of their creditworthiness. To raise those kinds of funds now, they'll have to go to the debt markets and pay out a mid-teens interest rate. Same for Caterpillar and dozens of other capital-intenisve firms. I can't stress how huge a dilemna that is. All of a sudden, a higher cost of capital renders projects infeasible. Companies will now manage their balance sheets and not manage for growth.
This, my friends, is how you slide into a recession. It's not a Wall Street issue, and it's not a partisan issue. It's an economic issue, affecting companies all over the country. We need to enable credit creation.
an explanation that cogent is what a large swath of the public is missing. both sides have done a poor job in explaining the consequences. granted it's a massively complex issue and most of us lack the background to understand the intricacies, but the politics is extremely off-putting.
although i am capable of carrying two dissimilar concepts in my mind at once.
i don't necessarily have a strong opinion on the bailout, mostly because i don't know who to believe regarding the causes and consequences. team gop's performance over the past 8 years doesn't give me great reason to believe they'll handle the current situation with any sort of competence.
The top 5 of a credible list should have at least one of:
1. Scenario 2. Welcome to the Terrordome 3. J. Beez Comin' Through 4. Mighty Healthy 5. Ain't No Nigga 6. White Lines 7. Anything from Enter the Wu-Tang other than C.R.E.A.M. 8. Can I Kick It 9. Love's Gonna Getcha 10. The What
None of these made the top 100. Which is preposterous.
2 Live Crew and PM Dawn have no business on this list. Master P's inclusion is inexcusable - he singlehandledly destroyed hiphop.
Those kinds of lists are always so off that it makes me think they're impossible to get right in a way that placates all kinds of knowledgeable listeners. You can argue the semantics of what "greatest" means -- the top 10 is filled with songs from the Sugarhill Gang to Run-DMC/Aerosmith to Salt 'n' Pepa to PE to NWA that crossed thresholds and innovated and took the genre to bold new places. Doesn't mean those songs are awesome.
Beastie Boys' lone selection is "Hold It Now, Hit It"? I understand the thought process -- it's almost painfully transparent.
1. Licensed to Ill was a breakthrough record that epitomized "crossover". 2. Oh, but "Fight for Your Right to party" is a dated joke that even the Beasties have subsequently distanced themselves from. 3. Well, what on LTI has smatterings of legitimate hip-hop without a predominant overtone of sophomoric humor? 4. Not much . . . how about "Hold It Now, Hit It"? 5. Sure. Go for it.
Last week I was asked what my favorite non-Beasties rap songs were. Roll back the calendar, people...
*** LL Cool J, "I'm Bad," "Mama Said Knock You Out" Fat Boys, "Can You Feel It" UTFO, "Roxanne, Roxanne" Grandmaster Flash & the Furious Five, "The Message" Whodini, "Friends," "Big Mouth" Newcleus, "Jam On It" Rock Master Scott & the Dynamic Three, "Request Line" Sir Mix-a-Lot, "Baby Got Back" 3rd Bass, "Pop Goes the Weasel" PE, "Don't Believe the Hype" Eminem, "Without Me"
but my favorites will always ALWAYS be Run-DMC. Could be any one of these: "Rock Box" "King of Rock" "Peter Piper" "It's Like That" "Jam Master Jay" (and most everything off the 1st album)
...favorite rap song just might be one from way off the radar...
I also think that people who make Top 100 lists don't want to have more than one song per artist on the list. Every song from The Low End Theory could be on a Top 100 list, but they don't want more than one Tribe song. So they have to fall back on some old bullshit (as opposed to Some Old Bullshit) to fill out the list.
The back alleys of my neighborhood, littered with trash cans aflame and evidence of gang violence, were filled with that song my senior year in high school.
ReplyDelete(Actually, we called them driveways, and they were populated with Volvos warming in the morning to take us to preparatory school. But we played "I'm Bad" on the Blaupunkt cassette player as we headed to the Academy, and we damn well loved that song.)
forget oreos, eat cool j cookies, friends.
ReplyDeleteThe link below has the clip of Pelosi's speech yesterday, as well as the opening text. The partisan rhetoric in that speech caused 15 Republicans to give a big EFF U to the bill.
ReplyDeleteIf you think this bailout is the Republicans' fault, you're absolutely crazy.
Sorry for the long link, but I"m too lay to "tiny url" it.
http://michellemalkin.com/2008/09/29/nancy-pelosis-bailout-attack-speech-on-the-house-floor/
Rhymo...for your viewing pleasure...
ReplyDeletehttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cMnSp4qEXNM
Ahhh, early LL. Nice work. LL was great, before he figured out he was a sex symbol. Just like how Ice Cube was great, before he stopped hating white people.
ReplyDeleteThis week VH1 Soul is counting down the 100 greatest hiphop songs of all time. Act like you know.
ReplyDeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeletehell, rhymo, there's more than enough blame to go around on both sides of the aisle. you'll forgive me if i don't find the "that lady said mean things so we're taking our ball and going home" argument particularly compelling.
ReplyDeletejust correcting my moronic typos - nothing to see here.
ReplyDeleteI don't disagree with you in the least bit, Rob. But her speech was a joke. It came when a whole lot of Democrats (and Republicans) were mugging in front of cameras, saying they weren't acting as Republicans or Democrats, but as Americans. What was the upside of her comments?
ReplyDeleteThe bill, though murky, was a decent bi-partisan effort. Pelosi tried to sneak in some low blows, while dropping in catch-phrases that had very little to do with the issue at hand.
But here'e the rub:
This bill will probably not open up the commercial papaer (ie, short term debt) market. This market is the lifeline of most firms. It's totally broken right now. And stock markets aren't reflecting this. GE rolls over $95 B every 3 months for general working needs. They typically paid slightly more than Treasury rates because of their creditworthiness. To raise those kinds of funds now, they'll have to go to the debt markets and pay out a mid-teens interest rate. Same for Caterpillar and dozens of other capital-intenisve firms. I can't stress how huge a dilemna that is. All of a sudden, a higher cost of capital renders projects infeasible. Companies will now manage their balance sheets and not manage for growth.
This, my friends, is how you slide into a recession. It's not a Wall Street issue, and it's not a partisan issue. It's an economic issue, affecting companies all over the country. We need to enable credit creation.
an explanation that cogent is what a large swath of the public is missing. both sides have done a poor job in explaining the consequences. granted it's a massively complex issue and most of us lack the background to understand the intricacies, but the politics is extremely off-putting.
ReplyDeletedrew - what songs will comprise the top 5?
ReplyDeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDelete(Rob quickly placates Tim and then tries desperately to change the subject)
ReplyDeletepolitics!
ReplyDeletealthough i am capable of carrying two dissimilar concepts in my mind at once.
ReplyDeletei don't necessarily have a strong opinion on the bailout, mostly because i don't know who to believe regarding the causes and consequences. team gop's performance over the past 8 years doesn't give me great reason to believe they'll handle the current situation with any sort of competence.
congress is doing something right today.
ReplyDeletehttp://news.wired.com/dynamic/stories/I/INTERNET_RADIO_ROYALTIES?SITE=WIRE&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT&CTIME=2008-09-29-21-44-42
Law and economics in the muhfuggin' house!
ReplyDeletehttp://www.cnn.com/2008/POLITICS/09/29/miron.bailout/index.html?iref=mpstoryview
I don't want to step on Drew's toes here, but there better be some Grandmaster Flash and Snoop/Dre in the top 5.
ReplyDeleteLane Kiffin, finally fired.
ReplyDeleteHere's the list. It is, of course, wrong.
ReplyDeletehttp://www.hiphoppress.com/2008/09/vh1s-100-greate.html
The top 5 of a credible list should have at least one of:
1. Scenario
2. Welcome to the Terrordome
3. J. Beez Comin' Through
4. Mighty Healthy
5. Ain't No Nigga
6. White Lines
7. Anything from Enter the Wu-Tang other than C.R.E.A.M.
8. Can I Kick It
9. Love's Gonna Getcha
10. The What
None of these made the top 100. Which is preposterous.
2 Live Crew and PM Dawn have no business on this list. Master P's inclusion is inexcusable - he singlehandledly destroyed hiphop.
Teaneck High's own Doug Glanville dropping science in today's Times. Can you tell I'm procrastinating today?
ReplyDeletehttp://www.nytimes.com/2008/09/30/opinion/30glanville.html?_r=1&8ty&emc=ty&oref=slogin
As opposed to those days when you're splitting the atom?
ReplyDeleteOr your mammy's legs.
ReplyDeleteZing. You got me.
ReplyDeleteThose kinds of lists are always so off that it makes me think they're impossible to get right in a way that placates all kinds of knowledgeable listeners. You can argue the semantics of what "greatest" means -- the top 10 is filled with songs from the Sugarhill Gang to Run-DMC/Aerosmith to Salt 'n' Pepa to PE to NWA that crossed thresholds and innovated and took the genre to bold new places. Doesn't mean those songs are awesome.
ReplyDeleteBeastie Boys' lone selection is "Hold It Now, Hit It"? I understand the thought process -- it's almost painfully transparent.
1. Licensed to Ill was a breakthrough record that epitomized "crossover".
2. Oh, but "Fight for Your Right to party" is a dated joke that even the Beasties have subsequently distanced themselves from.
3. Well, what on LTI has smatterings of legitimate hip-hop without a predominant overtone of sophomoric humor?
4. Not much . . . how about "Hold It Now, Hit It"?
5. Sure. Go for it.
And so on.
Love the Biz at 100, though...
ReplyDeleteLast week I was asked what my favorite non-Beasties rap songs were. Roll back the calendar, people...
ReplyDelete***
LL Cool J, "I'm Bad," "Mama Said Knock You Out"
Fat Boys, "Can You Feel It"
UTFO, "Roxanne, Roxanne"
Grandmaster Flash & the Furious Five, "The Message"
Whodini, "Friends," "Big Mouth"
Newcleus, "Jam On It"
Rock Master Scott & the Dynamic Three, "Request Line"
Sir Mix-a-Lot, "Baby Got Back"
3rd Bass, "Pop Goes the Weasel"
PE, "Don't Believe the Hype"
Eminem, "Without Me"
but my favorites will always ALWAYS be Run-DMC. Could be any one of these:
"Rock Box"
"King of Rock"
"Peter Piper"
"It's Like That"
"Jam Master Jay"
(and most everything off the 1st album)
...favorite rap song just might be one from way off the radar...
Run-DMC, "Raising Hell"
I also think that people who make Top 100 lists don't want to have more than one song per artist on the list. Every song from The Low End Theory could be on a Top 100 list, but they don't want more than one Tribe song. So they have to fall back on some old bullshit (as opposed to Some Old Bullshit) to fill out the list.
ReplyDeletefor what it's worth, several gop pols are saying the pelosi speech did not kill the measure:
ReplyDeletehttp://thinkprogress.org/2008/09/30/gop-blame-pelosi/
http://thinkprogress.org/2008/09/30/mccotter-bailout/