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Pop Rock Nation

Category: People

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  • Sound Dialogue – The Legacy Of LL Cool J

    Money Mike and I received some good feedback on our first Sound Dialogue which was focused on the comeback of the New Kids On The Block. This time, we’ll focus on the career and legacy of LL Cool J.

    LL Cool J recently released his 13th album (he includes his greatest hits album) titled Exit 13, which is the last album on his current contract with Def Jam. We started with the new album.

    GG: Before we get into LL’s career, I wanted to get into his latest album, Exit 13. First off, what did you think? I know you haven’t listened to it more than a few times, but give me your initial thoughts. And second, where does it rank in his catalog?

    MM: I’m still digesting the album. I think it’s okay in spots. There are about 3 or 4 songs that I really like, but overall it’s on the bad side of average. He hasn’t made a consistently listenable album since “10”, and that was six years ago.

    GG: Why do you think that is? Obviously, he’s a legend in the game. Is it hard for him to find what it was that made him so great back in the day now that he’s famous and successful? And not only in music, but other forms of entertainment. Why else can’t he stay relevant?

    MM: Plain and simple, he’s Hollywood. No matter how many times LL goes back to Hollis, Queens, he’s not the same kid who made “Rock the Bells” or “I’m Bad”. He’s a financially stable 40 year old man, and he’d probably do a lot better being himself than trying to act like he’s the same guy who made “Mama Said Knock You Out”. He’s trying too hard to keep up with the Joneses instead of just creating good music.

    GG: If LL came to you and said, “Money Mike, I need some help. Help me find the sound that I need to find and help me conceptualize my 14th album.” What would you say to dude?

    MM: Listen to Mama Said Knock You Out again, because that was the pinnacle of his career. Back then, he was hungry and worried about falling off and losing his career both for his ego and for his livelihood. Now he’s stable. He knows that if his album flops, he can go do a movie or a TV show or write another book. The loss of his street cred would be a blow to his ego, but it wouldn’t end his career.

    What he really needs to do is write about his life and stop trying to be current. Write about being a husband and father. Write socially conscious songs. Stop writing about jewels and being in the club, not only because the topics are tired, but because that’s not the life he lives. He has to be true to himself and stop worrying about having hits.

    Photo by Saquan Stimpson/monstershaq200 0

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  • Paul’s Found Vinyl – Episode 1: Tycoon

    Artist: Tycoon
    Title: Tycoon
    Label/No.: Arista AB 4215
    Year: 1978
    Peak Chart Position: #41
    Producer: Robert John “Mutt” Lange
    Singles: “Such a Woman” (Pop #26), “Slow Down Boy” (not charted)

    SIDE A:
    Such a Woman
    Slow Down Boy
    Out in the Cold
    Don’t You Cry No More
    Too Late (New York City)

    SIDE B:
    That’s the Way It Goes
    Don’t Worry
    How Long (Can We Go On)
    Drunken Sailor
    Count On Me

    Judging by the Cover: I’ll be honest. It was all about the mustaches for me. And the band got co-credit for the art direction! Actually, the combination of the airbrushed 70s faces and the cover’s obvious debt to Kraftwerk makes the band look like a bunch of Stepford Gays.

    What It Sounds Like: Don’t let the drawn-out, dramatic introduction to “Such a Woman” fool you. This early “Mutt” Lange production is all about strong pop hooks, gigantic, seamlessly layered harmonies, and a thick, hard pop/rock sound that still leaves some room for some sleazy New York blue eyed soul moves (see “How Long (Can We Go On)”, the band’s slinky ode to gettin’ a little on the side) – a prototypical version of the sound he brought to Foreigner 4, though the band’s sound was too diverse (whiffs of reggae here and there) and distinctive to dismiss as a mere corporate rock clone.  Lead single “Such a Woman” made a respectable showing on the disco-dominated pop charts in early ’79 – no doubt helped along by a pornographic picture disc single. But the catchy, straightforward rocker “Slow Down Boy” seems like the more obvious candidate for heavy rotation. Even better than both the singles is “Don’t You Cry No More”, a soaring rock ballad with a majestic a capella opening that sounds awesome on headphones. 

    The band followed this album up with a record called Turn Out the Lights in 1981, but it tanked, partially due to the ascendance of new wave and synth pop, partially due to their label’s apparent indifference.  Tycoon was dropped from Arista’s roster shortly thereafter, and while a third album, called Opportunity Knocks, was recorded, the band was unable to secure a deal to release it.  In November of 2007, lead singer Norman Mershon, pictured at the far right on the album cover, died from liver disease at the age of 57.

    Recommended if You Like: Foreigner, Those New Swiffer Commercials, Big Gay 70s Mustaches

    CD Availability:  Tycoon was issued digitally via iTunes a few years ago, thanks to the band’s friend and former manager Dean Sciarra, who runs a supercool website called ItsAboutMusic.com.   He also sells digital downloads of this album, along with the band’s second album Turn Out the Lights (1981) and their otherwise unreleased third record Opportunity Knocks, completed after they were dropped from Arista Records.  CDs of these albums are also available through ItsAboutMusic.com.  I had a chance to chat with Sciarra and while he confirmed that these are CD-Rs, he vouches personally for the integrity of both the sound mastering and the CD packaging which attempts to recreate the individual album and sleeve art to the greatest extent possible; given his personal relationship with the band, I’d take him at his word (and the iTunes downloads I purchased confirm the integrity of the sound).  The other cool thing about ItsAboutMusic is that the artists set their own prices for the CDs/downloads, and bank 90% of the actual purchase price.

    The album was reissued on the Renaissance label as a twofer with the band’s second album Turn Out the Lights.  But while this CD is readily available on Amazon.com (and a less expensive option), note that among reissue labels, Renaissance has a very poor reputation.  According to Sciarra, for the Tycoon two-fer, Renaissance acquired incorrect masters for the records, and so what you hear on the vinyl is not what you get on the CD.   Keep the vinyl. It’s good. 

    The Highlight Reel:  Snippets of “Such a Woman”, “Slow Down Boy”, “Don’t You Cry No More”, and “How Long (Can We Go On This Way)”

  • Seven Years On: Back To Life, Back To Reality. But…

    Today is September 11th, and while I would not only like to refrain from making political statements in addition to not sharing too much of my personal life on this blog, I have written something in reference to the events on this date in every blog I’ve ever had. This should be no different.

    I always scratch my head when I speak to people or read the op-ed page in the newspaper (yes, I still read the paper) and hear or read people saying that people should forget the events that happened on this date. There are plenty of things in life I have no problem forgetting. You can forget songs, you can forget what you had for breakfast, you can forget your house keys, but there’s no way I can forget a day when my world and the lives of so many people changed for good.

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