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think of Cee-Lo in that video for Closet Freak where dude
was wearing those Batman wings/cape. It’s like he is the
physical embodiment of his music….that’s what an MC is
supposed to be. This guy really sees the music…seriously,
he can probably physically see it.
Since the inception of Goodie Mob, this guy has been one
of the most distinct and salient characters in hip hop.
In an age full of biting sharks where half the east coast
was “soundin’ just like Rae”, this guy was doing stuff
that was flat out impossible to copy. When you go back
and listen to Soul Food or Still Standing,
your ear was always out for Cee-Lo cause you knew once he
got on the mic he was going to do sing something
outrageously soulful and eerie, or spit a flow that was
straight up cerebral, insightful, and poetic.
If you need to, go back and do the knowledge on those old
Goodie Mob albums…particularly Soul Food and
Still Standing….they are classics among classics. You
get a real idea of where Cee-Lo has come from and what he
is really about.
Now for the man behind the boards....
Danger Mouse--Music’s Woody Allen
I can literally go on and on about what kind of a talent I
believe Danger Mouse to be. The man is a self-described
auteur. I didn’t know what this meant, either. Initially
I thought it was French for “genius” or something….which I
thought was somewhat presumptuous on his part. But
evidently, an auteur is “a filmmaker whose individual
style and complete control over all elements of production
give a film its personal and unique stamp.” On the real,
when I read this definition, after hearing all of Danger
Mouse’s work, I got a little giddy. Mouse compares
himself to Woody Allen—the classic auteur. For someone --
a hip hop producer in particular -- to describe themselves
that way, really means that he is more than just a
beat-maker. He is a creator of musical opuses. He is a
consummate producer of musical cinema.
Put it like this, in a two year period since 2004, the guy
has been the mastermind behind three of the most
critically acclaimed musical masterpieces of our time and
is quickly on his way to his fourth with St. Elsewhere.
His mash-up of Jay’s Black Album and The Beatles
(White Album)—The Grey Album—is the stuff of legend
and has simultaneously set downloading records and serves
as a precedent for mash albums. Now you see mashes of
Frank Sinatra and Biggie…stuff like that. I’m not saying
he was the creator of this phenomenon, but he arguably has
done it the best.
He was also the mastermind behind the Gorillaz sophomore
effort Demon Days. This album is a flat out
cinematic voyage. The overall album has an alternative
rock feel, but with distinct hip hop
underpinnings. Danger Mouse just really sets the stage
and shows his versatility and flexibility in merging
multiple artists from disparate genres to create this
musical movie.
The Mouse and the Mask, is a collaboration with an
MC who might be one of the illest lyricists in a long
time—MF DOOM. The beats that Danger Mouse lays down on
this one are unreasonable and Doom destroys them all. His
selection of Adult Swim samples is genius. This album
made our top 10 for good reason. Do yourself a favor and
check this out if you haven’t already.
Look, I don’t want to get ahead of myself, but this guy
might be the next RZA.
What impresses me most about Danger Mouse is that he is
able to seamlessly work between and set a musical
landscape for any genre…….but only with an artist who is
willing to follow him to the depths of brilliance that he
is able to take them. You see, every artist can’t work
with DM because he has to have complete control
over the project—and on the real, that’s how all the great
producers—or auteurs—have to have it
The King of All Snubs
So what do you get when you put together the paradigm of
hip hop croonerism and a producer that makes musical
motion pictures? Well damn, only what might be one of the
most eclectic, seminal, and defining works of music that
we’ve seen.
You gotta look at it like this: Cee-Lo has always been
hampered by the fact that people just weren’t ready to go
where he wanted to go. Despite all his talents he was
still pigeonholed and typecast as “that crazy southern
rapper”. You can see shades of him dealing with this
issue on his first solo project Cee-Lo Green and His
Perfect Imperfections. As great as that album is, it
is peppered with skits where a dude is like “Well damn Lo,
aint you gon’ do something for the thugs?” and Cee-Lo
always begrudgingly replies like “Ugh, ok, I’mma spit this
hot fire, just to shut yall up”………and he does it and he
will always be able to do it. And then on his sophomore
joint Cee-Lo Green…Is The Soul Machine, he obliges
and pacifies his existing fan base with more “radio ready”
offerings.
But what if you could get Cee-Lo to do exactly what
he wants to do artistically. That would be scary
right? Moreover, what kind of producer could even
accommodate such a talent or an attempt?
There is clearly only one answer. And what comes out of
this juxtapositioning is St. Elsewhere.
You know this is going to be a cinematic experience from
the opening sound of tape rolling. The intro “Go Go
Gadget Gospel” is just that -- gospel music sprung from a
utility belt. There was an argument amongst the Music
Crew that Danger Mouse and Gnarls Barkley was just not
“soulful enough” to make the Top 10. For the love of
everything sacred, how can you listen to this opening
track, “St. Elsewhere”, “Who Cares”, “The Boogie Monster”,
or “On-Line” and tell me this offering isn’t
soulful?!?!?? I want some of that dope that the Crew is
smokin’……cause it works…..they're all delusional.
Take a track like "Fung Shuei"…….the track is so crazy to
me. First, the dude is describing fung shuei from its
classical definition, then moving on to his own personal
style of dress as fung shuei, and then his music and how
it all fits together—like fung shuei. That’s what this
album is—musical fung shuei. Its content is insane and
bizarre at times, but it all just fits together. They even
go so far as to invite you to come in and take part, but
you gotta come in with that open mind to the insanity. As
Cee-Lo says "And you're welcome to stay, but even the
company must compliment the fung shuei.”
The last track on the album, “The Last Time”, sounds like
the finale to a Broadway play. Again, Danger Mouse being
cinematic. This theme is so evident and consistent that
it’s ridiculous.
Seriously yall, I’m gonna have to apologize for the Music
Crew’s negligence on this one. I don’t know what we were
thinking leaving this one out of the top 10. I fought
hard for it…….honest I did. We had a chance to really
make a statement by including it…….at least in the 10
spot. This album represents everything this list is
about: creativity, artistry, originality. What has yet
to be seen is this album’s impact which, in my mind, is a
foregone conclusion. Hip hop music, soul music, and just
black music, is headed in this direction: albums that
focus more on music, creative and technologically new ways
of creating soulful and heartfelt music that touches the
minds and hearts of millions. One need only look at The
Foreign Exchange album Connected; an example of two
artists (Phonte of Little Brother and Nicolay) who never
even met each other but were able to create a gem of an
album through the advances of technology. That is what
this album is—a technological and artistic advance in
music. It’s a seminal piece that will be one of
the definitive albums for music going forward.
The Working Class Hero |
