Lewis Parker seemingly left these shores a long time ago, opting to hone his already considerable skills in the birth city of hip-hop, New York, instead of his native UK. Over the past few years he's produced for such luminaries as Ghostface Killah, done remix LPs reworking songs by everyone from MOP to Kool G Rap, and he's released albums with underground stalwart John Robinson.
I'm so late on this if I was a lass I'd be pregnant, but he released on the low a new EP entitled 'Dangerous Adventures' back in the Summer. It continues his new direction of working with US artists and harking back to the so-called golden era of our beloved genre and culture. Below you'll find tracks he has laid down for emcees like one half of the Cali Agents, Planet Asia, one half of Def-Jukies Cannibal Ox, Vast Aire, and QB emcee Killa Sha amongst others.
Its the sort of material we've come to expect from Lewis, which is definitely a compliment, because this guy has been churning out brilliant material since the mid-90s. Although his songs seem to have became a lot more homogenised over time (and less reliant on odd antique samples which was a facet to his music he relished in back at the turn of the millenium) he still delivers the very definition of boom-bap.
It baffles me why he hasn't had more beat placements with great emcees, because he can create soundbeds that, if handled by the best emcees, can become classics.
Enjoy his latest.
And as an added extra, here is a song he produced recently for songstress Brianna Colette. It's so smooth out the mp3 is slippy. Versatility is one of the greatest things a producer can be, and I've not heard much material from Lewis tailored to an RnB audience, but this song is superb. I could definitely chill with a full album of this.
So, a small step back in time today. September 2004. 5 and a half years ago roughly. UK hip-hop magazine HHC released a compilation in conjunction with Radio 1Xtra and one of their biggest DJs at the time DJ Excalibah featuring the names of many emcees and artists coming up, ready to bubble over and erupt on the UK rap scene.
I have to say, most of them really did, and this CD represents some of the earlier work of all artists at the time on their way to success. To be honest, quite a few of them were already established as names to watch out for, as by the time this was released Klashnekoff had already made waves with Daggo Mentality, Foreign Beggars had already released their breakthrough SMASH with Skinnyman "Hold On" and a few other names on there were featured with more experienced heads like Konny Kon and Lewis Parker.
A certain Sway Dasafo features on here before he dropped the surname along with at the time a new producer called The Last Skeptik, who of course has gone on to bigger and better things also. The cd also features a song which has since become a bit of a UK classic in "For The Haters" by Dirty Diggers.
Enjoy the selection and check out where all of these artists are now, many of them achieving at the very least national fame with their material.
1. Intro 2. Micall Parknsun - Tha Shit 3. Beats In Progress (feat. Kashmere & DPF) - Space Cadets 4. Stylee Cee (feat. Skorzayzee) - Want Whats Yours5. J.T.W.R. - Get Over It 6. The Last Skeptik (feat. Sway Dasafo) - Prior To The Present 7. Verb T (feat. Red) - Ravenous 8. Cappo & Konny Kon - Capkon Entertainment 9. Yungun & Lewis Parker - The Big Idea 10. Klashnekoff - Black Rose 11. Caramac (feat. Low Key) - Happy Ending 12. Dirty Diggers - For The Haters 13. Foreign Beggars - Frosted Perspeks
Another HHC release featuring young and upcoming UK artists on the scene followed in 2005, with the cd entitled 1Xtra Homegrown Cuts 2005. Amongst others this compilation featured Humurak D Gritty, Phoenix Black and Shade One.
The artists on show have been a bit less noticeable as those in the DJ Excalibah mixed release, but the cd itself is nonetheless entertaining throughout and adept at showcasing some lesser known names, in turn aiding them to get their deserved shine. Enjoy.
So here's the second instalment of the NA mixtapes series. Just another collection of songs I made back in the day (I wish I could be more specific than that but to be honest, I really can't). A bit of everything here, but its in similar vein to the first compilation from what I can see so enjoy it.
1. Jeru Tha Damaja - My Mind Spray 2. Sauce Money - Intruder Alert 3. Casual - Thats How It Is 4. Common - Ressurection (Large Professor Remix) 5. Dead Poets Society - Klockuz 6. Jahah & J Hen - Let's Go Back 7. Jemini The Gifted One - Funk Soul Sensation 8. Lord Finesse & DJ Mike Smooth - Baby, You Nasty 9. Mr. Lif - Live From The Plantation 10. Kool G Rap & Nas - Fast Life (Remix) 11. Red Hot Lover Tone - Give It Up (Diamond D Remix) 12. DJ Premier - DJ Premier In Deep Concentration 13. Neek The Exotic - Real Hip Hop 14. Aceyalone - I Think I Know Too Much 15. Original Flavour - Can I Get Open? (Remix) 16. Lewis Parker - 101 Pianos 17. Souls Of Mischief - Our Secret 18. TiRon - Tha Ghetto (Time 2 Go) 19. Crooked Lettaz - South's On My Mind 20. Scritti Politti (feat. Mos Def) - Tinseltown To Boogiedown (Ali Shaheed Muhammad Variation)
Lewis Parker. Arguably Britain’s greatest ever beatmaker. He has consistently stuck to his guns throughout his career since the release of Jedi Antiks back in the mid 90s. Crackling feedback, organic beatloops, an ear for finding the perfect sample - Parker has, in my opinion, laid down the blueprint for the perfect song.
It came as no surprise to me that he was eventually picked up and contacted by some prominent US artists, most notably Ghostface Killah for the song ‘Shakey Dog’ from his LP Fishscale, to create some audible gold.
Parker has a career spanning over 15 years at the top of his game, with each album brilliant in its own right (even his mixtapes and beat CDs are a joy to listen to), and its great to see the man succeed on his own terms.
Its very rare in this current climate of hip hop (read: ringtones outselling albums, Soulja Boy outselling everyone (!) and musicianship out the window) that a producer from Parker’s mould would succeed without changing his sound. You won’t find any Swizz Beatz casio sounds here, no sir.
Anyway, posturing aside, and me declaring all out love for the fellow, this guy is basically incredible on the beats. Other british producers such as Jehst and Dirty Diggers have undoubtedly been heavily influenced by his style and he's got new material coming out in 2010 in the form of the full-length 'The Puzzle', which was initially earmarked for late 2009 but seems to have been pushed back somewhat. I've enclosed a vid from his new LP here also, but lets go back to union square.
The Mixtape Vol. 1 was released late 2006 as a collection of rare and unreleased tracks, remixes and just select songs spanning his career so far from 1996-2006. Its just chock-full of big songs and even though it doesnt even touch any of his full-length album material, still has a quality second to none.
01. Intro 02. Rise 03. Fake Charades 04. Parker's Siesta 05. New York Skit 06. Don't Forget About Ya Boy 07. International Heat (feat. iTruth) 08. Gettin' Funky (Funky Trouble Pt.1) (feat. Trez) 09. Funky Trouble Pt.2 (feat. Tah Born) 10. Get Ya Hustle On (feat. Tah Born) 11. Love Is Blue(Johnny Johnson & His Bandwagon) 12. Dirt Off Your Shoulder (LP Remix) (feat. Jay-Z) 13. Shakey Dog (feat. Ghostface Killah) 14. Smith Bros. (LP Remix) (feat. Raekwon) 15. Never Gonna Stop(feat. Dynas) 16. Static (feat. Jacky Danz) 17. Incognito (Dirty Card Remix) 18. Sky High (feat. Dynas) 19. End Of The Day(feat. River Nelson & Vex Davortex of The B 20. Anybody (feat. Mr Pressure) 21. Soon 2 B (feat. Mr Pressure) 22. Beautiful Life (feat. River Nelson) 23. What The Ancients Say (Remix) 24. Intensity (feat. T.R.A.C. aka Terry Nickels)
And finally, here is that vid from the fortcoming LP 'The Puzzle'. Lets hope its released soon.
F**k it okay, I'll put a few classic Parker tracks up aswell. You've twisted my arm.
I was looking through my old CD collection for old tracks maybe to upload onto the site and came across this UK Hip-Hop compilation I made back in early 2003. It has just completely random tracks on it because at the time I only had dial-up internet and used Kazaa to dl tracks. It always took about 45 minutes to download one track!!! The wierd thing is, at the time that seemed really reasonable! So, forgive me if some of the tracks are better than others, but it does have a few gems on it. I skimmed over it on iTunes earlier today and some of the tracks aren't special, but I probably just put them on the compilation anyway because it took 45 mins to get it. I wasn't exactly just going to delete it after that much of a wait!
Northern Author Hip-Hop Ad's UK Hip-Hop Mix-Up (2003)
1. Rodney P - Murderer Style - I haven't changed the tracklist order that it originally was, and its no surprise I put this first. A true classic from a true hip-hop legend. 2. Iceberg Slimm - Bad Boy - A bit of an in-joke this one. It used to ALWAYS be on the telly back when Channel U first started out, and me and my mates have always just laughed and joked about how Channel U is the dumbest shit ever to be put on television. This song had an even ridiculous chorus and was fairly listenable. 3. MUD Family - Rich & Switch - A track from Skinnyman's group about how rappers lose their grounding once they get successful. Not a bad song at all. 4. Funky DL - The Music - The first of three Funky DL tracks on the mix. I have always been a fan of his brand of hip-hop, but a little sceptical of his rap accent. Why does he feel the need to put on an american one when he isn't from the USA? Still, he is a good rapper and a great producer. 5. Braintax - Deal With It - Some old Braintax here. I have no idea when this song was made or what LP/12" it was from, but it sounds very 90s to me. I suspect this may be quite old. Whatever it is, this is classic Braintax at his best. 6. Ricochet Klashnekoff - Daggo Mentality -I believe that this may have been one of Klashnekoff's first ever releases. He still hadn't dropped 'Ricochet' from his name, and (without actually checking) I think this might have been on a WordLab compilation. A very good intro song fro the man, stating his claim before the music even starts ('Come like Britney Spears ya get speared in the heart') 7. Funky DL - Soul Silhouette - More DL, this time sounding verry jazzy. This is almost Native Tongue jazzy in the way it is crafted. Great song. 8. Rodney P & Skinnyman - Worldwide - Two superstars on a Joe Budha beat that is seeped in reggae dub bassline and sound. Suits Rodney more than Skinny, but nice nonetheless. 9. Ricochet Klashnekoff - Jangkroville (Jehst Remix) - Another Klashnekoff early release, this time with Jehst providing a remix and a verse. 10. Taskforce & Braintax - Three Amigos - Thoughts of 'El Mariachi' come to mind as the song starts, but once the beat comes in and Braintax opens up, it gets much more darker, with the typical UK basslines coming into play. Taskforce & Braintax work very well together here. 11. Skinnyman - Chat 'Bout - Skinnyman on the solo tip with a dark backdrop for him to paint a picture of his neighborhood and lifestyle. 12. Funky DL - Everybody Rock On -The last of the DL songs, and this one is jazzy hip-hop done up proper. It uses the same horn sample that was used on a Tweet song produced by Missy Elliott not long ago. This came first though, as I think this song is about 7 or 8 years old. 13. Micro, Rodney P, Taskforce & Braintax - Controlo - I have no idea where this is from, but it seems to be a song by French rapper Micro featuring british artists. Not a bad effort by all. 14. Phi-Life Cypher & Taskforce - Want It So Bad - One of my personal favourite rappers of all time has to be Life from Phi-Life Cypher. NO-ONE, I repeat NO-ONE has a better flow than him. Not the best thing either group has been involved in but some good verses on display here over an anarchist's backdrop. 15. Tommy Evans - Natured Out - From the intro I can tell its an exclusive from Undercover magazine (a good read by the way). A nice if rather dull track. Tommy can do much better. 16. Blak Twang (feat. Lynden David Hall) - Perfect Love - One of Twang's more sensitive songs, featuring the sadly departed Lynden David Hall. Hall was a classy vocalist with some great tracks and it was a shame he died so early in his life. A good song here with Twang on top form interpolating Hall's classic 'Sexy Cinderella'. 17. Lewis Parker - Sunflight -What can you say about Lewis Parker. He is quite simply an incredible producer. Up with the greats on any shore in my opinion. This song is off 'Its All Happening Now' and has a typical Parker beat and some smooth lyrics. A good outro song.
Just as a Brucey Bonus: Watch this vid from British maestro DJ Format with Canadian emcee extraordinaire Abdominal on the vocals. If you don't already know this song you really should be ashamed of yourself (punish yourself accordingly), and it is canny well known, but...enjoy it for what it is. A straight up and down babyliss-hair-straighteners rap track with a great beat, a great video and some stellar rapping from Abs (no, not the one from 5ive).
