Old Skool Joint(s) of the Week: Valentine's Edition

Look, I know this blog's been on life support lately (I mean we're halfway through February and we've only got one post all year, what is that shit?), but I think it's time to revive this with a theme post. Instead of sitting around hating on Valentine's Day, I thought it might be nice to just roll with it and throw up a few of the songs we all used to get down to back in the day. And by "get down to" I definitely mean "stand awkwardly against the wall to at school dance."

DL: Next - Wifey

Now I'm pretty sure no one uses the word "wifey" any more, but that doesn't mean that the message these boys are trying to get across is any less effective. I mean, "either braids or weave, skirt or jeans, you're still my queen"? That is some unconditional shit.

DL: Tyrese - Lately

Does Tyrese being part of this post need any explanation beyond the fact that I had pictures of him plastered all over my 8th grade agenda? Answer: No.

DL: Jagged Edge - Let's Get Married (Remix)

Now, I'm not really one for marriage, but if someone were to ever propose to me all they'd need to say is "meet me at the altar in your white dress. We ain't getting no younger, we might as well do this" and I'd be all up on that shit. I mean, I'd still say no, but I'd definitely appreciate the gesture.

DL: K-Ci & JoJo - All My Life

When you're listening to this one, just pretend Nelly never ever sampled that piano bit and you'll feel a lot better. Oh, you didn't remember that song even existed until I reminded you? You're welcome.

DL: Musiq Soulchild - Just Friends

Do I have a person history with this song, and is this person history the fact that a boy told me to listen to it when I was 14 as his way of telling me he was into me? No. Definitely not.

Old Skool Joints: Roxbury Edition

This week's Old Skool Joint post is inspired by the failure that was my Thursday morning last week. After getting little sleep and spending a combined two hours on transit all for 20 minutes of class I threw myself down on the couch. I promised that I'd just take a little nap and then get right back to school work. This plan might have worked if I hadn't taken a minute to check what was on tv. I mean, how can anyone resist "A Night At the Roxbury"?

I caught the movie a few minutes before Will Ferrell goes to marry Molly Shannon, and it might be because I was a little delirious, or it might be because I'm right, but I decided that the sequence that follows is the greatest thing to happen in any SNL skit turned feature length motion picture. First, Chris Kattan busts up the ceremony by holding a boombox over his head, John Cusack style, and blasts "What is Love?"



Then (and I couldn't find a video) he and Will Ferrell re-enact that scene from Jerry MaGuire that we're all so familiar with, while Bruce Springsteen's "Secret Garden" softly plays in the background. Brilliant.

The point is, I think we should all take a few minutes to enjoy these songs. Preferably back to back for added comedic effect.

DL: Haddaway - What is Love? (m4a)
DL: Bruce Springsteen - Secret Garden

Old Skool Joint of the Week #13 (?)

Brandy and Monica - The Boy Is Mine

Since the last post on this blog was about two fabulous women getting together and collaborating, I figured I'd choose something that was along the same lines (though I wouldn't say these two are as fabulous as Beyonce or Gaga, but when I was 11 I had slightly different standards).

So let me take you all back 11 years (can you believe it's been that long?) to a time where Brandy and Monica were two of the hottest ladies in the R&B world. Naturally, they obviously had to be rivals and completely hate eachother. What better way to clear the air than to get together and record a track about how you're both in love with the same man?

Now, I don't know if anyone else spent hours at sleepovers working out routines with their childhood "bffs," but I know I sure as hell did. I always played the part of Brandy, partially because she was my favourite but mostly because at one point I had the braids.

So let's all take a few minutes to relive our past and enjoy the video (and make sure to note how 90s it is, from the decor, to the Jerry Springer on the tv, to the cameo by Mekhi Phifer):



DL: Brandy (Feat. Monica) - The Boy Is Mine

Old Skool Joint(s) of the Week

Ace of Base

If you are anything like me you've been jamming to Lady Gaga's "Alejandro" ever since the day the demo leaked (I promise this is relevant and not just an excuse to talk about Gaga). Assuming you were alive in the mid-90s and paid even the slightest attention to pop music you probably remember a little Swedish group called Ace of Base. Since everyone and their mama has pointed out the fact that "Alejandro" sounds a hell of a lot like an Ace of Base track, it felt like the the right time to revisit them.

I'm throwing up the video for "Beautiful Life" because it was their, um, most visually appealing and features one of my favourite uses of a green screen. I mean, they fly through a soccer field, a bar fight, and a night club, and it all looks so realistic! Everyone should be taking notes for their future recession-proof videos.




DL: Ace of Base - Beautiful Life
DL: Ace of Base - All That she Wants

Old Skool Joint of the Week #11

Billy Joel - The River of Dreams

Usually when I get the urge to blog but don't really know what I want to write about, I just put my "OMG the 90s" playlist on shuffle and skip through until a song comes on that gets me excited. Now, if I were making a list of songs from the early 90s that I absolutely loved, this probably wouldn't have even crossed my mind. There's nothing "cool" about this week's song. I don't think all the 6 year olds were grooving to this in their bedrooms, nor do I think this would ever fill a dance floor, but the instant I heard this one I knew it had to go up.

Way back in '93 my parents drove a 1980-something Ford Thunderbird with no FM radio, and nothing as high tech as a tape deck, so we had to deal with whatever the AM dial would give us. I remember this song being a staple on 14 CFUN when they used to actually play music so this one is tied up with all sorts of childhood memories. Hopefully, some of you feel the same way.


Billy Joel - The River Of Dreams (Official Music Video)

DL (mp3): Billy Joel - The River of Dreams

Old Skool Joint of the Week #10

This week's song comes from 1999's Fanmail, aka the last record TLC released that mattered (I know it's rough, but it's true: there's no TLC without Left Eye). Now I know everybody remembers No Scrubs and Unpretty so I'm not going to waste your time by putting on of those up. Instead, I want to talk about the relatively successful (for an unofficial single) I'm Good At Being Bad. I don't think that TLC was ever meant for children, but they were definitely popular with young girls. This record came out when I was 12, and this was one of those tracks I had to turn the volume down on so my parents wouldn't hear me listening to it. Now it's ten years later and I'm still vibing to it.

Here's a video of them performing a slightly edited version on the Fanmail tour, plus a link to the album version, so you can find out just what type of man T-Boz, Left Eye, and Chilli were looking for:



DL: TLC - I'm Good At Being Bad

Old Skool Joint of the Week #9

Kris Kross - "Jump"

Lil' Bow Wow wasn't the first pre-teen rapper that Jermaine Dupri decided the world needed to hear. Almost a decade earlier he came across little Chris Kelly, and Chris Smith and Kris Kross was born. They did it first and, maybe I'm blinded by nostalgia, I think they did it best (backwards clothes excluded).

Totally Krossed Out was among the first CDs I ever got, and it was definitely the first rap record I ever owned. My 5-year old self used to crank this and bounce off the walls whenever I put it on. To be honest, my 22-year old self still does. Don't try to play it cool and act like you don't get a little pumped whenever "Jump" comes on either.

Old Skool Joint of the Week #8

Skee-Lo - "I Wish"

I've definitely been slacking when it comes to these posts lately, but as part of my quest to finally reach 100 posts on this blog by the end of this year, I might try and pick it up. Emphasis on "might."

This week's Old Skool Joint comes to you via a short video interview of the incomparable Ms. Megan Fox. When asked if there was anything she would like to change about herself she answered, "I wish I was a little bit taller, I wish I was a baller, I wish I had a girl who looked good I would call her." Since she's currently my favourite celebrity, it only made sense to throw this song up on the blog.

When I decided to check Wikipedia to see if I could find something to say about Skee-Lo other than "This song came out in 1995 and was on my Hit List compilation cd," I found out that this was somehow actually nominated for a Grammy. It went up against Notorious B.I.G.'s "Big Poppa," 2Pac's "Dear Mama," Busta's "Woo Hah!! Got You All In Check," and lost to Coolio's "Gangsta's Paradise." I'm just going to let that information summer for a while and let you all figure out what I think the Grammy voters were smoking that year.

And here's the aforementioned Megan Fox video for the hell of it:

Old Skool Joint of the Week #7

Damn, did I really let over half a month go by without putting something new up on this blog that no one reads? (I mean, seriously, if you do read it can you leave a comment sometime? It feels so lonely out here. Wait, did that come off as desperate? Yeah, I guess it was pretty desperate. But I ain't apologizing to our non-existent readers anyway). What was I saying? Oh right. New post.

September sure snuck up on me pretty fast. This is usually a pretty sad time of year for me, and this year is especially rough since this is pretty much the last Summer Vacation I'll ever have. Come this time next year, I won't be "on vacation," I'll just be "unemployed." The point is, I'm feeling a more nostalgic than ever and that made it a little hard to pick a song to post up here.

I figured I'd go back to another time I was starting the last of something. In September 1999 I was just starting seventh grade, and you know what was pretty fucking big back during that transitional year of my life? Jennifer Lopez.

So let's all take a few minutes to remember a time before every magazine felt the need to come up with a "clever" nick name for every celebrity couple. Back when obnoxious hair clips, blonde highlights, and big puffy jackets were acceptable. And most importantly, a time when people understood the importance of a fierce dance break in the middle of a song:

Jennifer Lopez - "Feelin' So Good

Old Skool Joint of the Week #6

Lately, I haven't even had to put my "OMG THE 90S" playlist on shuffle to pick a song to post up on here. The universe just keeps throwing them my way. It's like the world knows I'm on some kind of serious nostalgia trip this summer.

You may have noticed that I've got a soft spot for cheesy dance music. You know, the kind of stuff you might find on a Dance Mix 90-something cd, or the kind you might find the Butabi brothers jamming to at the Roxbury. As for this song, I basically forgot it even existed until a DJ decided to throw it on while I was out last weekend. So please, crank up the volume and take a few minutes to reminisce and enjoy:

Max-A-Million - "Fat Boy"

Old Skool Joint of the Week #5

Whitney Houston - "My Love Is Your Love"

You know, Whitney's had a pretty rough couple of years. She's spent a good chuck of this millennium being the punch line to quite a few jokes, and giving Maya Rudolph endless material to work on Weekend Update. I'm pretty sure she's never going to live down that "crack is wack" Diane Sawyer interview, but hopefully most people have forgotten about Being Bobby Brown by now.

In case you somehow forgot, Whitney used to put out a hit record, and I'm not just talking about that song from The Bodyguard. This one is definitely one of my favourites. Nothing like a laid back jam about love that'll endure anything the world can throw at it.



Whitney's got a new album set for release this coming fall, and I really hope she's got her shit together now so this one works out for her. Pop music could always use more people who can, you know, actually sing. If you're worried about how her voice has held up over the years, don't. As Jane Fonda reassures us, her voice "remains strong." Plus, how fucking 90s would it be to have new records from Whitney and Mariah drop practically back to back?

Old Skool Joint of the Week #4

Before I get to the song, I'm adding a little regional nostalgia that won't mean shit to most people so the rest of you can probably just skip ahead. You see that up there? That's an old as hell bus transfer that I found at the bottom of my highschool memories box (which, by the way, is full of embarrassment, but that's another story for another day). I don't have anything so old that it has "BC Transit" stamped on it, but that thing reminds me of a simpler time. Back when a bus driver might accidentally give you an extra 15 minutes, or might not notice you're short a dime, and it didn't take 5 minutes for 10 people to get on because they keep inserting their card the wrong way. Also, a time when it didn't cost $2.25 to go one damn zone and when they realized vinyl seat covers was the way to go in a city where it rained this much.

You know what else used to be a little bit better back when bus transfers were made of newspaper? Janet Jackson. Now, don't get it twisted, I'm not saying homegirl isn't still fierce as fuck (because she is), but her last couple records have been lacking a certain something. I'm going to blame Jermaine Dupri for that, and no, I don't have any rational reasoning behind that so don't ask.

I'm going to be honest, it's been a while since I really listened to any old school Janet and I almost forgot this track even existed. Thankfully, today's episode of Ranked! on MuchMoreMusic played it and all the good times came flooding back. I thought this video was dope as hell, I mean, who wouldn't want Janet to show up at their house for a party, even if it was all a dream? I'm also pretty sure I sat in front of the radio listening to Z95 waiting for this song to come on the Hot 6 @ 6 so I could tape it. There was no HypeMachine back in '98.

So, enjoy...

Janet Jackson - "Go Deep"

Old Skool Joint of the Week #3

What's this? A new post two Fridays in a row? I'm on a roll here.

Picking a song to highlight this week was actually pretty difficult. Thanks to a trip down 90s R&B memory lane led by my fellow poster on this blog nobody reads, I was overwhelmed with Darkchild produced tracks to choose from. Should I go with Brandy? Monica? That Tatyana Ali song? So rather than pick one of those, I decided to go with a little late 90s/early 00s female Hip-Hop:

Eve Feat. Faith Evans - "Love is Blind"

Eve sort of fell off after she let her hair grow out and got that show on UPN. Musically, she's spent most of the past six years guesting on other people's records and releasing that annoying as fuck (but totally catchy) "Tambourine" song. Back in '99, she was just breaking out as the "Ruff Ryder's First Lady." While she was running around with DMX, she released this track about getting revenge on a friend's abusive boyfriend. It's a shame that I mostly remember this one as the soundtrack to every 14 year old girl's "troubled" relationship, because it's actually got some powerful lyrics. But you know how it is, shit can get real tough when your boyfriend doesn't call you right after you page him.

Old Skool Joint of the Week (Redux)

Remember how over a month ago I said that I was starting a new feature on this blog to try and generate some regular content, except it was a complete and utter failure? No? Okay, well that doesn't matter. Point is, I'm going to try that one again by bringing you another shot of 90s nostalgia:

The Mighty Mighty Bosstones - "The Impression That I Get"

With their ska beats the Bosstones had more than a few kids skanking in their Doc Martens with their plaid shirts tied around their waists. The horn section also helped hundreds of band geeks believe there was a place for them beyond the half-time show of their highschool's football games. The band also scores major 90s points for appearing in one of the greatest teen movies of all time, Clueless. I'm also pretty sure there's some Sabrina the Teenage Witch connection to this song, but I'm blanking right now. Anyway:





Fun Fact: I almost missed the Bosstones' set at the first Warped Tour I went to because some guy wanted me to listen to his band's demo on a discman he brought. Times sure were tough in the days before MySpace.

Old Skool Joint of the Week

Thanks to my recent marathon watching of Buffy the Vampire Slayer I've been hit with a serious bout of 90s nostalgia. To try and cure it I wound up making a two hundred and something song playlist highlighting the best (and worst) songs of the decade. So now, in an effort to try and come up with some regular content for this blog no one reads, I'm going to showcase a song off that list ever week so we can all reminisce together.

First up, Real McCoy's "Another Night".

As I'm sure you remember, dance music was pretty big for a while in the 90s, and this was definitely one of my favourite synth heavy songs that you would probably see someone in neon tights with a belly ring dancing to on Electric Circus. Enjoy: