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Pop Rock Nation

Tag: Teddy Riley

  • Friday Throwback:Don’t Take My Mind on a Trip

    I figured this would be an ideal posting, given it’s timeliness. Did you ever know that Boy George was down with the new jack swing? The Culture Club frontman scored a Top 5 R&B hit in the spring of 1989 with Don’t Take My Mind on a Trip, which was produced by producer-guru Teddy Riley (of Guy and BLACKstreet fame). This uptempo banger finds George lamenting a potentially unfaithful lover, but more interesting than the song is this clip, which was taken from a British chat show hosted by the late Paula Yates. First off, you’ve gotta love the fact that in the interview portion of this clip, George is asked what depresses him and he answers “violence”. In light of the fact that George is headed off to the pokey for a year after beating the shit out of a trick, that strikes me as more than a little ironic. Additionally, you’ve got to love the lip-synched performance with the highly caffeinated DJ, the clueless chick keyboard player and George in all his shoulder-padded glory. Enjoy, boys and girls.

    *Insert joke about George going to jail here*

  • Infatueighties: #79: The Show

    For someone who considers themselves a serious hip-hop fan, there’s surprisingly little hip-hop on this Top 100 list. I think there’s maybe 8 rap songs on this list (now when I decide to do the Nineties list, that might be a different story). That said, the songs that did make it to this list are stone cold classics, and Doug E. Fresh and MC Ricky D.’s The Show certainly qualifies.

    For a song with essentially no chorus, there are tons of hooks here. The scratched “oh my God”s, the dinky keyboard (allegedly played by a very young Teddy Riley of Guy and BLACKstreet fame) playing the “Inspector Gadget” theme, “six minutes, Doug E. Fresh, you’re on”. The kids who turned this song into a classic didn’t seem to mind the lack of a hook. I can clearly remember sitting on the school bus in Southfield, Michigan, reciting this song word for word with 25 other kids. I betcha the kids today can’t do that with a Lil’ Wayne song! (said in crochety old man voice)

    While Slick Rick’s turned into a hip-hop legend (and was far more influential as an emcee than a lot of folks are willing to give him credit for), Doug E. Fresh has sort of turned into a hip-hop journeyman. He’s never released an album worthy of his talents, although a Greatest Hits album is looooooong overdue. He’s probably better known these days for his appearances on every VH-1 pop culture special known to man, as well as for being hip-hop’s only Scientologist (trying hard not to make a face here). Questionable religious practices aside, we’ll always have “The Show”, right?