Archive for April, 2004

I have a fairly decent music collection covering all media, from records to mp3s. Right now, I’m trying to get my hands on a copy of “Ain’t Gonna Bump No More (With No Big Fat Woman)” by Joe Tex. The B-side of that 45, which I haven’t seen in years, is “I Mess Up Everything I Get My Hands On.” We’ll see what happens with that.

Anyway, spurred on by some blogs I visited this week, I decided to put my the MP3 player on the laptop on random and see what the first 50 songs would be. Sometime soon, I will do the same thing on my desktop. The results will be interesting for two reasons. First, I have a lot more music on my desktop than I do on the lap (because I have twice as much HD space). Second, I primarily use Winamp on the lap while I use Media Player on the desktop. So while there are no built-in controls for uniformity, that’s not really that important. I just want to see what songs come up. Bearing in mind, however, that there are fewer artists on the lap, so they’re more likely to turn up more often.

Here’s the first list from the lap:

1. Maxwell – Sumthin’ Sumthin’
2. Roy Ayers – Red, Black, & Green
3. The Meters – Africa
4. Prince – I Wanna Be Your Lover
5. Common – Funky For You
6. Biggie – Niggas Bleed
7. Jay-Z – Friend or Foe
8. EPMD – Crossover
9. Beatles – Blackbird
10. Stevie Wonder – Living For the City
11. Michael Jackson – The Way You Make Me Feel
12. Oscar Peterson Trio – Yours Is My Heart
13. OutKast – Two Dope Boys In a Cadillac
14. OutKast – Snappin’ and Trappin’
15. Ice Cube feat. Chuck D – Endangered Species
16. Fred Hammond – Our Father
17. Ray Charles – In The Heat of the Night
18. Tramaine – How I Got Over
19. L.L. Cool J – Fast Peg
20. The Temptations – I Could Never Love Another
21. Tramaine – What Shall I Do?
22. Prince – Alphabet Street
23. A Tribe Called Quest – Check The Rhyme
24. Jay-Z – Sunshine
25. OutKast – Ghetto Muzik
26. Fred Hammond – Willing to Follow
27. the Brothers Johnson – Come Together
28. Leaders Of the New School – Transformers
29. L.L. Cool J – Jingling Baby
30. Bar-Kays – Soul Finger
31. Lauryn Hill – Nothing Even Matters
32. Stevie Wonder – Ribbon In The Sky
33. EPMD – Can’t Hear Nothin’ But The Music
34. Take 6 – Delilah
35. Funkadelic – Back In Our Minds
36. Stevie Wonder – All Day Sucker
37. James Brown – Evil
38. Biggie, feat. Method Man – The What
39. Stop the Violence All-Stars – Self Destruction
40. Stevie Wonder – Yester-me, Yester-you, Yesterday
41. Ohio Players –O-H-I-O
42. Bob James – Caribbean Nights
43. Fred Hammond – Prodigal Son
44. Stevie Wonder – I Wish
45. Commissioned – More Than I
46. Biggie – Big Poppa
47. Parliament – Sir Nose D’Voidoffunk
48. EPMD – Symphony
49. Walter Hawkins – God Is Standing By
50. Pharcyde – It’s Jiggaboo Time

I was kind of surprised at this because even though I don’t have as much on the lap as I have on the desk, it’s still a fairly formidable collection. I didn’t think I would have so many repeat artists. This is probably a decent little playlist, though. I wonder what I would write about a person if I had to make a personality profile based on what they’re listening to. That’s a good fiction exercise. I may run it in my notebook.

Somehow, I was foolin’ around and I ran up on this. So far, I’ve been “Pimp Master Tooley Ice,” “Professor Truth Avery Gates,” “Funk Master Tooley Large,” “Bishop Don Tooley Luthor,” and “Fadeproof Avery Shizzle.” This joint is crazy.

– Speakin’ of which, here she is now.

BTW, I finally found out who Larry Davis is. Now there’s a story that needs telling.

Living down here in the DC area, with Virginia being so close and all, I hear a lot more about the Civil War than I used to. One local paper even has a weekly column devoted to it. My question is, why? What’s there to be gained? Wouldn’t McWhorter call that victimology too?

What brings this to mind is that courtesy of Black Electorate, I have seen the twin brother of that white “Black” dude I saw on the bus a couple weeks ago. Peep this. Unbelievable. I thought I had seen everything, but now…I’m one step closer.

Seriously, though, I’m the main one talking about historical accuracy, so I’d be the first one to say the elements in the Civil War don’t break down quite as simply as we’ve been taught. That goes both ways. Still, seeing a Black man carrying the Confederate flag…boyyy some things you just can’t prepare for.

Speaking of history, here’s a quick history test…just to see what you know about.

“Americanity” is a secularized version of what Carl F. Ellis, in Free At Last describes as “Christianity-ism,” which is the worship of Christianity, as opposed to the actual practice of Christianity. As I attempt to navigate that tricky nexus between religion and politics, it seems that there is frequently some confusion between true Christianity and the worship of America and/or the worship of the religion of Christianity. My first exposure to the idea of the differentiation came when I was 14. I read “Black Power and the American Christ” on the way to Philadelphia and right away, I knew I was on to something. Biblical Jesus would never condone slavery, particularly as it was practiced in the West; American Jesus was all for it. The essay didn’t question Jesus but it did question his “followers’” commitment to Him, as opposed to their commitment to themselves and their way of life and their willingness to use Jesus to justify what they were doing.

The following quote is from Mattias Gardell’s book, In The Name Of Elijah Muhammad: Louis Farrakhan And The Nation Of Islam

The religion of the Republic, alternatively known as “Americanity” or the “civil religion” of the United States, is the semi religious dimension of the notion of America as a melting pot. Immigrants from various European countries, adhering to different religions and denominations, were supposed to substitute their particular identities for their new identities as Americans. A child of the Enlightenment and the Hegelian notion of progressive evolution, the creation of the United States of America was depicted as a fulfillment of mankind’s ambitions to create a better world. Multicultural tolerance was achieved through transcending the specific, by projecting unifying fundamentals on a higher level of abstraction. The separation of church and state was supplemented by introducing a religious dimension as a central rationale for the American project, making Americanity a creed and the United States an instrument of God’s work in the world. As discussed by Robert N. Bellah in his classic essay on the American civil religion, Biblical themes and symbols are used in the historiography of the United States. The Americans are identified as the “chosen people”, who through an “exodus” from Europe reached the “promised land” and there founded the “New Jerusalem”.” American civil religion has its own prophets (Benjamin Franklin, Thomas Jefferson, George Washington), its own martyrs (Abraham Lincoln, the Kennedys, all soldiers killed in war), its own sacred events (the Declaration of Independence, the Boston Tea Party), its own sacred places to which pilgrimage is made (Gettysburg, the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier, Lincoln Memorial), its solemn rituals of commemoration (Independence Day, Memorial Day, Thanksgiving Day, Veterans Day), and its sacred symbols (the Stars and Stripes, the White House, the Statute of Liberty). As the sacred expression of the American dream, Americanity preaches all the values, norms, and ideas associated with the American way of life. The United States is the defender of freedom, democracy, and moral decency against every form of totalitarianism, which during the Cold War was principally defined as communism but is now increasingly being replaced by Islam. In this fortress of individual liberty with equal opportunities for all, each man can reach success… The ideology of Americanism pays homage to the lonely individual with a trust in God and denies the existence of collective injustices.

If anybody wants to question the veracity of what Gardell says about the exaltation of American individuals and documents as near-canonical, just look at the names of American history textbooks. For a math book, I might get “Statistics” or “Multivariate Statistics,” if they get expansive. History? From McGraw Hill/Glencoe we get, “History of a Free Nation” and “The American Odyssey.” In other words, we are expected to take the “official” version of American history as gospel truth; there is no valid reason to question the moral consistency of the Founding Fathers. Hence the consistent need to define the United States in Judeo-Christian terms. And really, I don’t even disagree that there is a strong religious theme in the documents that define our country. I wouldn’t even question that there is a definite Judeo-Christian foundation. That ain’t the only foundation, though.

For as much as America was founded in pursuit of religious freedom, etc., etc., it was also founded in pursuit of profit. America is now as it has always been, about the dollar. Of course there are always other considerations, but whatever the intention, noble or ignoble, the economic aspect provides tension. Everybody talks about the 3/5 compromise because of what it literally meant, but why compromise in the first place? If, as was actually the case, many of the delegates from the free(er) states did not want to allow slavery under the new government, why did they do it? Why include the slave-holding states? Can’t tax ‘em if they’re not included.

But that’s not all there is to it. I just looked at a site called Accuracy in Academia, where the author of this article claims that Christianity is a neglected motivating force in American history. Luckily for me, he uses Christopher Columbus, which more than makes my case for me. Even as Columbus was giving thanks to God, he and his men were slaughtering natives for less than nothing. If Christianity is about talking it, then what’s all the fuss about Bill Clinton? If it’s about what you do, then America was never fully a Christian nation. That doesn’t mean it’s not a great place to live (now, at least), but it does mean that we don’t need to make up stories about how great and magnificent we are while trying to ignore the parts of the story that don’t fit that framework.

Likewise, that movie about the Alamo is coming out. Wanna know one of the main reasons Texas wanted to secede from Mexico? They wanted to be able to keep slaves. Remember the Alamo. How about know the Alamo.

I mentioned in my post on Black History Month that people don’t really know American history. They know the version whose purpose is to inculcate them to the “Americanity.” The most disturbing thing to me is that some people, when confronted with the facts of Columbus’ actions, make accusations of “revisionist” history, like what’s being said is inaccurate. My point here is not to venerate or vilify Christopher Columbus or any other figure in Amerian history but to say that if we taught history instead of Americanity, there would be no need for correcting the historical narratives we know. Seriously. If we’re supposed to be representing Christianity, then we can’t hold on to Americanity; we can’t venerate the heroes without addressing their shortcomings as well. They were men. If the Bible details the shortcomings of every figure except Jesus, who had no shortcomings to detail, then why do we try to pretend like the Founding Fathers were flawless? David doesn’t stop being Israel’s best king because of the situation with Bathsheeba. Acknowledging that American figures had conflicts and contradictions wouldn’t hurt them either.

We still do the same thing, by the way. When I talked about Paul Robeson before, I mentioned that many people pay homage to Muhammad Ali because he was willing to risk everything he had earned for what he believed. What they don’t realize is that if Big George had pummeled Ali in 1974, Ali would be an afterthought today. Furthermore, most of the people who write abut Ali these days attempt to gloss over his treatment of Joe Frazier, lumping it in with all Ali’s other pre-fight antics. While acknowledging that Ali was pure-D wrong for his treatment of Frazier may diminish his legend somewhat, it’s the truth. That’s what we should be shooting for.

Bear in mind that this is just a first approximation. When I really have some time to think about this, I’ll come up with a mathematical way ascertaining perfection, if there really is such a thing. These are just some albums that don’t seem to have any bad songs. Maybe some people will disagree; I probably will in a few days. Also, I should note that there are some albums I don’t have yet, but based on what I have heard of them, they could be strong contenders.

• Walter Hawkins – Love Alive,
• Walter Hawkins - Love Alive II

For those of you unfamiliar with Gospel records, the two Walter Hawkins records are fantastic. I don’t know if they’re available on CD or not; I would imagine that they are, or maybe in some type of compilation. Whatever. Find them and get them. I have a pet theory about Gospel music that I’ll probably kick around at some point, but suffice it to say that for me, these albums represent the last era where Gospel music was pure.

• Michael Jackson – Thriller

Say what you want about Mike now, but back in ‘83…(okay, now I’m feeling old) There is not a bad song on this record.

• Prince – Purple Rain

Prince has a lotta good albums but this one is the best. Maybe one day I’ll print the text of that backwards part at the end of “Darling Nikki.”

• Stevie Wonder – Innervisions
• Stevie Wonder – Songs In the Key of Life

I thought about putting all the albums from Talking Book to SITKOL on here, but among those four, Innervisions and Songs stand out. The wild thing about Songs is that I literally grew up with that record. It came out when I was two and I remember listening to that at some point during every subsequent year of my life. It’s kinda like my mother in that it wasn’t until I got older that I really understood how amazing it really is.

Near-Perfect

• Public Enemy – Nation of Millions : Show ‘em Wha’cha Got
• De La Soul: - De La Soul is Dead: Kicked Out the House
• Mos Def & Talib Kweli – Black Star : B Boys Will B Boys
• Maxwell – Maxwell’s Urban Hang Suite : Suitelady (?)

Maybe

• Ice Cube – Amerikkka’s Most Wanted?
• Marvin Gaye – What’s Goin’ On?
• ATCQ – The Low End Theory?
• Outkast - Stankonia?

Lookin’ through some pictures, I think my mom is just about the only conservative Black woman I know who wears her hair natural. Granted, it’s still not all that common in general, but she’s probably one of a very, very few. Actually I said natural, but I should’ve said a ‘fro. She’s not quite up there at Angela Davis level yet, but it is boomin’. But really, natural is right because she doesn’t wear it puffed out every day. However, she refuses to put any chemical in her hair that would change the nappy texture that God intened. I would expect to see this more frequently. Everybody else wears their hair the way it grows out of their head, why don’t Black women?

I had all these grand plans for what all I was gonna write last weekend, and what happened? Nothin’. First of all, on that Fideles Quaerens Intellectum II post, I lost the main book I was gonna be critiquing. I don’t think I left it in Philly, but I’m hoping it’s there and not somewhere travelling on the Washington-Boston axis on Amtrak.

Anyway, I did manage to sneak a picture of myself up there,although it was more work than it should’ve been. At this point, I’m just trying to make up some excuse to put a picture of my old lady on here. I need to just sneak and do it, though, or else it’ll be 10 years before I come up with a picture that she thinks is suitable. She’s just bein’ modest, though.

Speaking of my better half (or better 3/4, if I’m keepin it real), I got the song “Better Half” by Maceo and All The King’s Men. I’ve said before how much I like finding a bargain, and this is just the type I like. I wanted the song because it’s got a sample use I like, but then I found out that it’s the source for another sample that I’ve liked for a very long time. Then, samples aside, the song is just wicked. No matter what name they recorded under, whether Maceo & the Macks (that’s hot!), The Last Word, Maceo & ATKM, Fred Wesley & the JB’s, or just the JB’s, James Brown had the baddest band(s) in the land. At some point, I’ll smash through the 2nd era, which saw the first permutation of a recording band called the JB’s.

There’s an article at Blackelectorate.com called Americanity that I plan on writing about soon. The basic premise is one that I’ve believed since I was about 14: there’s a weird amalgation of American history and the Bible that has some people thinking that the prophesies in the Bible are actually talking about us. Moreover, I think there’s an unstated opinion that God is American. That is, nobody would actually say it if you asked them, but to listen to them talk about God, what He likes and dislikes, his concerns would be very similar to that of an American. But like I said, I’m on the top rope right now. In a minute, I’m gonna come swooping down from the sky and nail this one with the atomic elbow.

Also, looks like the Sixers are pretty much mathematically eliminated from the ‘offs. All I can say is…well there’s a lot I can say. I would start with AI, but I won’t. We’ll start with how jacked up their salary structure is vis a vis the collection of stiffs they have. The NYK’s have the highest payroll in the league, but at least they have a few people who are, or have been within the life of the contract, ballers, even if their play was never quite commensurate with their pay. The Sixers? They couldn’t even be Maceo and the Macks. AI and the Ain’ts.

Cycling around the net, as I am wont to do, I found a very interesting question at the-breaks.com. Is there such a thing as a perfect album, and if there are, which one(s)?

Now it’s important to differentiate between a perfect album and a classic album. Nation of Millions is arguably the best hip-hop album ever, and it’s unquestionably a classic, but is it perfect? No. “Show ‘Em Wha’cha Got” gets on my nerves every time. It’s more than made up for by the numbers 11, 12, and 14 on the CD (Night of the Living Baseheads, Black Steel in the Hour of Chaos, and the sublime Rebel Without a Pause) but it’s enough to keep the album from being perfect. Same thing with De La Soul Is Dead. Up until “Millie Pulled a Pistol on Santa,” it’s all listen straight through. “Kicked Out the House” is not a strike. Most of the albums on my list will probably not be hip-hop albums. If I can come up with an absolutely perfect album at all. (Of course, greatest hits and compilations don’t count.)

I’ve tipped my hand on this one before, so I’ll just come out and say that Songs in the Key of Life is a perfect double album: it’s two perfect albums in one. Aside from that, I’ll just keep my opinions to myself until I’ve had a chance to really think this one through. If any’a y’all have any candidates, I’d definitely like to see. One more freebie: Maxwell’s Urban Hang Suite.