Hard...Just. Like. That.

Full disclosure: I am not a fan of rap and/or hip hop. Honestly, I don't even understand the difference between rap and hip hop. (If you can enlighten me, please leave a comment below.) I find it redundant, and over done, and I have a bit of an issue with taking someone else's song, and looping it for four minutes while you talk/sing (Fergie and Kanye, that's a nod to you).

Now, there have been some bright spots. Digable Planets and De La Soul were on to something new back in their heyday. Disposable Heroes of Hiphoprisy had a sound that was perhaps more accessible to me at the time, Cypress Hill was very original before they got stuck in their dank, sticky, green mold. I feel obligated to mention the Beastie Boys, but they also seem stuck in a rut after Ill Communication.

One group who seemed to get it right - at least to these ears - was Public Enemy. PE burst out almost fully formed right out of the gate. Aggressive, singularly focused, and driven by near unidentifiable samples, Public Enemy wrote a new map for the future of the genre. The duo of Chuck D and ready made foil, Flavor Flav, were perfect to propel the highly inventive and original beats of the Bomb Squad. It's easy to forget that It Takes A Nation Of Millions To Hold Us Back was released in 1988. I still take that disc for a spin from time to time.

Still, to my original point, not being a fan of rap generally, I think I can be forgiven for not having kept up with their catalog.

As I mentioned before in another post, I've found a lot of music in my life, but occasionally the music will find me. And those are the sweetest tracks.

Late in 2010 I was listening to Henry Rollins' show on KCRW. The second track on that show, as I recall, was "Harder Than You Think." Chuck and Flav have such original voices, it was painfully obvious that this was PE.

I was blown away.

Still am. It's incredibly powerful from the start, but Public Enemy knows what James Brown knew:  Repetition can amplify your statement. Alternating between an acoustic guitar and a screaming brass section that sounds like a "Rocky's Theme" outtake, "Harder Than You Think" adds more urgency, and becomes more insistent with every verse.

I measure top shelf music on whether or not it induces chills. This one of those songs.

Somebody, not sure who, coined the phrase "Writing about Music is like dancing about Architecture." I've always liked that. And yet I contribute to a music blog (I know, right? IRONY!).

At any rate, I don't know what else I could say that would add anything else to this track. It must be heard.

Please click the link below to view the video. Would've liked to embed the link here, but there were major label restrictions.


"Harder Than You Think"  Public Enemy

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Wash Your Troubles Away

The music we love becomes the soundtrack to our lives. Not a very original thought, I know, but facts is facts. Over the course of my life so far, I've been very fortunate to have discovered a lot of music. Or rather, at times, it's seemed that the music has found me.

One artist I return to often in CD spins and playlist creation is Gil Scott-Heron (b. April 1, 1949). If you only know him as the man behind "The Revolution Will Not Be Televised," you are missing out.

His first studio album, Pieces Of A Man, released in 1971 initially received only modest critical response. The album looked unblinkingly at issues such as race relations, the breakdown of families, drug use, self respect, and the power of music to communicate and heal. The power of the compositions and particularly Scott-Heron's intensely personal vocal delivery has forced many reassessments since it's release.

"The Revolution Will Not Be Televised" is the easy track to highlight and has even been called the birth of rap, but rap, hip-hop, neo-soul, and dance all owe huge debts of gratitude to all the tracks on Pieces Of A Man. It fostered styles and conventions that are now so common place that it's easy to forget how groundbreaking it was upon release.

And I owe a huge debt of gratitude to Gil Scott-Heron. His music has been the backdrop to many critical points in my life. Highs and lows, ups and downs, his music has enhanced the good times and helped me through the bad.

Happy birthday, Gil! And thank you.

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