Been meaning to post this Lost Boyz classic for ages, but it took the invention of the Grooveshark widget to provide the necessary technological push. We were definitely latecomers to this whole album, and for years our fandom extended only as far as the remixed version of “The Yearn” (which we actually scooped up on a Pete Rock compilation). But the cut above came on shuffle a few months back, and we’ve been revisiting it on a regular basis ever since. Great song, but not exactly a mood brightener. One of the great hip-hop meditations on that eternally baffling question: “Is it better to have loved and lost, then never to have loved at all?”
As an aside, does anyone know what happened to the producer of this tune, the epically named “Mr. Sexxx”?
scottstev // Jul 14, 2009 at 2:47 pm
I remember this one playing on “The Box” almost all the time. Poor man’s BET; “The Box.”
Brendan I. Koerner // Jul 14, 2009 at 4:26 pm
@scottstev: “Yo! MTV Raps” is what got me hooked on the genre–esp. the video for “Self Destruction” (which I’ll have to post about soon). I still have the 12-inch of that song, purchased from the Music+ store on Ventura Blvd.
My love of that show also enabled me to recognize Fab Five Freddy in “Rachel at the Wedding.”
scottstev // Jul 14, 2009 at 4:33 pm
“Rachel Getting Married” to be completely pedantic. But I totally missed him, until I listened to the commentary tracks. What a fantastic movie that improves greatly with re-watching. The guy I caught right off the bat was Robyn Hitchcock, an old friend of Demme. Demme filmed one of his concerts. Did you catch Roger Corman as guest filming the wedding?
As far as hip-hop, my tastes run completely Caucasian. Public Enemy, N.W.A, Tribe Called Quest, De La Soul. Sad to be a walking cliche, but I own it and will defend those acts to my last breath.
Brendan I. Koerner // Jul 14, 2009 at 4:37 pm
@scottstev: Ah, yes–conflated Demme with Baumbach. Thanks for the correction. Didn’t catch Corman–probably need to rewatch. Though it’ll take some stomach, as I remember it being an emotionally wrenching viewing experience.
A couple of weeks ago, I attended a party where Q-Tip spun classic Michael Jackson all night. I remember thinking, “If the junior-high kid who bought ‘People’s Instinctive Travels…’ could see me right now, he’d be quite pleased with the man he’d become.”