Diggin In The (Online) Crates

“Eeeevn if I stutter I'm a still come off!”

Alright, my favorite music sites are back up. (CDzlimited.net and 2720.net) So in celebration, I will not “hot-link” their music, but have put together a Canhead Must Have list. This is a list of albums you must have in your collection if you are really down for this hip-hop sh!t.

Here they are in no particular order. You may notice some classic albums that are not on this list. I am avoiding some of the more popular LPs, (like NWA, Dre, B.I.G., Pac.) this is a list of albums that many may not be up on, but need to be. You ready?
~ ~ ~
Eric B & Rakim-“Follow The Leader” –True Q Story- On one of my many trips to NY from TN, my uncle picks me up in his Caddy, and we ride through BK. Soon as we hit Eastern Parkway, “Follow the Leader” comes on the radio for the first time. I’ve been hooked ever since.

Ice Cube - Amerikkka's Most Wanted (I started this gangsta sh!t!!)

Slick Rick-“The Adventures OF Slick Rick” (100% hip hop)

Onyx-Baccdafucup(Reppin’ that East Coast mentality!)

A Tribe Called Quest-“Low End Theory” (Native Tongue at it ‘s finest!)

Geto Boyz-“We Can’t Be Stopped” (Uncle Scarface back in the day with his boyz)

Boogie Down Productions – “By All Means Necessary” (Fresh for 2005 you suckkkkaaaaas!)

EPMD - Strictly Business-“You Gots To Chill”, “It’s My Thang”, “Strictly Business” this album is off the meter!

Black Moon – “Enta Da Stage” This CD reminds me of Brooklyn bodegas with the BIG AZZ nickel bags. You could get like 3 blunts outta one bag, sit on the stoop and listen to Buckshot. Before Biggie, Brooklyn belonged to Black Moon and Duck Down fam.

Marley Marl's House of Hits- I was looking for “Marley Marl In Control Vol 1” but this will do. Nothing but the hits by Marley Marl, the old school king of the beats.

There will be more of these to come. I know some of you internet nerds got comments about why this or that album isn’t the greatest. Whatever punk. Do the knowledge and respect the art!

Spread love duke!

Who's dropping dimes?

Let me find out some of my people are dropping dimes. Nah, none of my folks would ever do anything as foul as that! No, I'm not talking about that kind of dime dropping. Spending money on Inauguration Day is the kind of dime dropping I'm talking about.

In addition to the "Turn You Back On Bush" protest that is scheduled to jump off on the 20th, now all American patriots can join in the peaceful protest movements by refusing to spend ANY money on Jan. 20th.

Taken from "Not one damn dime.com"

During "Not One Damn Dime Day" please don't spend money, and don't use your credit card. Not one damn dime for gasoline. Not one damn dime for necessities or for impulse purchases. Nor toll/cab/bus or train ride money exchanges. Not one damn dime for anything for 24 hours.


On "Not One Damn Dime Day," please boycott Wal-Mart, Kmart and Target. Please don't go to the mall or the local convenience store. Please don't buy any fast food (or any groceries at all for that matter).


For 24 hours, please do what you can to shut the retail economy down. The object is simple. Remind the people in power that the war in Iraq is immoral and illegal; that they are responsible for starting it and that it is their responsibility to stop it.


"Not One Damn Dime Day" is to remind them, too, that they work for the people of the United States of America, not for the international corporations and K Street lobbyists who represent the corporations and funnel cash into American politics.


"Not One Damn Dime Day" is about supporting the troops. The politicians put the troops in harm's way. Now 1,200 brave young Americans and (some estimate) 100,000 Iraqis have died. The politicians owe our troops a plan -- a way to come home.


There's no rally to attend. No marching to do. No left or right wing agenda to rant about. On "Not One Damn Dime Day" you take action by doing nothing. You open your mouth by keeping your wallet closed.

Read all about it here!

Now there is a protest I can get behind. As Inauguration Day falls on the day before I get my paycheck, I can participate in this one with ease! I might add that I may be a lot of things, but a DIME DROPPER I am not!! I have never dropped dime on anyone, and I really wanted to sometimes, but I didn't. So I feel like the perfect candidate for this demonstration. Are you with me people!?! VIVA LA REVOLUTION, NO DROPPING DIMES!

New Funk!

Hip-hop hogs rap with 'Farm Market'

Gotta love that Wyclef!

In hip-hop circles, good gals finish last

~~

On the way, the new Game CD. Looks to be that next sh!t!

http://aftermath-entertainment.com/

~~~

UPDATE:::

Field Mob on Bet.com in the booth. "I go off on my own like Cadilac lights"

I've been a little under the weather so I didn't post over the weekend. But I have to do this one for my peoples..........

J.....E......T......S...... JETS, JET, JETS!

Damn it feels good to see people up on it! Now we face Pittsburgh this Saturday. My prediction for the game...."PAIN!"

1 ya self!!!!!!!

Wide World of Hip-Hop

The new hip hop movement has begun. Just in time for the Game CD release!
"It's time to strip the 'authentic' label off rap"-Stanley Crouch
"Take BackThe Music" article in Essence


~
Over at HipHop-Blogs, Hashim has a post about the article Greg Tate wrote in the the latest Village Voice. Greg is a veteran in the game, and has contributed some insightful articles in the past. In his latest piece, "Hip Hop Turns 30", Greg goes on to discuss the current state of affairs in hip-hop. Hashim disagrees with him on a few points. Personally, I'm to much of a Gemini to totally take any side of the issue. There are good points on both sides, but I don't really expect to hear political messages in music. Sometimes I want to hear Lil Jon, some times I want to hear Common. But I hate when rappers try to do both, talk about their bitches and G-packs while starting the revolution. It's confusing. Read the articles for yourself.
~
Came across some funny hip-hop tidbits while webslinging. Gotta love hip-hop. Check out SOHH forums for some funny shiznit!
~
Hilary Duff rolling with Dip Set
http://img141.exs.cx/img141/9060/duffset2hy.png
~
Nas-"These Are Our Heros"
~
Ras Kass interview at Dubcnn.com
~
News
It’s about to go down! I told you that Bush’s win in Ohio was fishy. Don’t believe me? Read the following articles.

http://nyc.indymedia.org/feature/display/138281/index.php

http://www.newsday.com/news/nationworld/nation/sns-ap-electoral-vote,0,1335379.story?coll=ny-leadnationalnews-headlines
~~
Audio picks

Sound Ink – “Monday Night At Fluid”
King Honey featuring MF Doom Kurious and King Ghidra

Goapele- “Closer video”
~
I'm outta here. Your boy is coming down with the flu and I'm behind on papers and essays so I'll probably won't post for a few days.

The Mature Voice In Hip Hop

Article at MSNBC on the god Nasir.

Nas: The mature voice of hip-hop They must not have heard "Oochie Wally" or "You Owe Me" but hey, Nas is the man.

Missy's new show "The Road To Stardom" is on U Pick a Negro tonight. I may have to watch.

Be easy.....

Bush is the prez but I voted for Shirley Chisholm!

"There is little place in the political scheme of things for an independent, creative personality, for a fighter. Anyone who takes that role must pay a price."

Shirley Chisholm
11/30/1924 : 1/1/05

Taken from PBS.org

American politician, the first black American woman to be elected to the U.S. Congress.

Shirley St. Hill was the daughter of immigrants; her father was from British Guiana (now Guyana) and her mother from Barbados. She grew up in Barbados and in her native Brooklyn, New York, and graduated from Brooklyn College (B.A., 1946).

While teaching nursery school and serving as director of the Friends Day Nursery in Brooklyn, she studied elementary education at Columbia University (M.A., 1952) and married Conrad Q. Chisholm in 1949 (divorced 1977).

An education consultant for New York City's day-care division, she was also active with community and political groups, including the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) and her district's Unity Democratic Club.

In 1964–68 she represented her Brooklyn district in the New York state legislature.In 1968 Chisholm was elected to the U.S. House of Representatives, defeating the civil rights leader James Farmer. In Congress she quickly became known as a strong liberal who opposed weapons development and the war in Vietnam and favored full-employment proposals.

As a candidate for the Democratic nomination for U.S. president in 1972, she won 152 delegates before withdrawing from the race.Chisholm, a founder of the National Women's Political Caucus, supported the Equal Rights Amendment and legalized abortions throughout her congressional career, which lasted from 1969 to 1983.

She wrote the autobiographical works Unbought and Unbossed (1970) and The Good Fight (1973).After her retirement from Congress, Chisholm remained active on the lecture circuit. She held the position of Purington Professor at Mount Holyoke College (1983–87) and was a visiting scholar at Spelman College (1985).

More links to the story

Shirley Chisholm bio
http://nh.essortment.com/shirleychisholm_ruol.htm

NPR with audio
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=4256255

LA Times
http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/nation/la-010305chisholm_lat,0,5038544.story?coll=la-home-headlines

In other news

Hip Hop DX has the exclusive. I posted the story of Kanye West's "Jesus Walks" scandal a while back, now the original version of the song is posted online for the world to hear. I'm sure this will fan the hate flames a bit more! Check out Rhymefest.com. Long live the ghostwriter!

I'm out. One ya self!

Alicia Keys pictures...why? Because I can! Love you girl!

Two Double Oh Five!

Sports Update!
It's a good thing I didn't place bets this week. I would have got clobbered like Dr. Doom fighting the Thing! (By the way, the Fantastic Four movie is on the way kiddies!! Look for my "Saturday Morning Cartoons, Fruity Pebbles and Cherry Kool Aid" post coming soon)

Heres the breakdown..

My picks Final score

Eagles over the Bengals--- Cin-38: Phil-10---Huh?

Green Bay over Chicago Green Bay 31: Chicago 14. That's more like it.

Vikings over Redskins Wash 21: Minn 18--- I don't know what to say about this one. Washington has scored over 21 points only 3 times this whole season. This was the third.

Baltimore over Miami Baltimore 30: Miami 23 "Just like I figured"

Detroit over Tennessee Ten 24: Detriot 19 What the hell? The Titans lose all season and win today? Go figure. I love the Titans so a win is a win. See ya'll next season. I'll holler!

Jets over Rams St. Louis 32: NYJ 29 That was a good game..I was trying to sleep, as I work nights on the weekends, but I had to get up and watch this one. I thought we had them a few times, but it don't matter...J-E-T-S- JETS,JETS, JETS!! LET'S GO TO SAN DIEGO!!! It may not be a pretty way to get in the playoff, but at least we are in there.

Panthers over Saints NO 21 :Car. 18 Yeah yeah yeah Frat, I know. Why did I bet against your boys. Admit it, Carolina should have had this game in the bag. It has been a wacky season.

Steelers over Bills Pitt 29 :Buff 24 My boss went to Buffalo for this game. At least he got to see a good one. It was a close one tho', but imagine if the Steelers would have had their starters in. It would have been much worse!

New England over San Fran NE. 21:S.F. 9 You have to know that NE are going all the way again this year. No doubt about it.

Seattle over Atlanta Seattle 28:Atlanta 26 Damn, yet another close game. Warrick Dunn must be mad as hell, missing that 2 point conversion. So close. Seattle looks good, but they ain't all that. Dallas did it to them for crying out loud...and speaking of Dallas.

NY got the win over America's Team, Eli proves that he ain't no "trick baby" and dumb NY Giants fans can feel a little better about their over hyped team! "Die Hard NY Giants fans=New Yorkers who know nothing about football!" (that's a quote from a friend, I won't say who becasue NY Giant fans can be violent too!)

What a week! I don't think anyone covered the point spreads so it was a wrap this week. But exciting nontheless. Who's going to the Super Bowl for the tailgate party? (About all I can afford!)


News
It’s a new year and right out the gate, there are more than enough issues to discuss.
I came across this article, “Giant Tsunami Strikes and Bush Goes AWOL for 3 Days” by Ralph Nader at his site CommonDreams.org. It’s a must read!

Man of The Year!

Also at CommonDreams.org, a link to an editorial piece at the Capital Times on Barack Obama and why he should be the man of year, and not son of a Bush.


WTF? Quote of the day:
Apart from the huge death toll,” Seth Mydans reported for the Times (using a version of the aside-from-that-Mrs.-Lincoln construction), “it was the presence of large numbers of foreign tourists that distinguished this disaster from the many floods and typhoons that take a heavy toll in the region every year.”

Although Christmas is over, I really want this for my apartment!



http://www.workmade.com/home.html

Business
ProHipHop.com is the move, in case you don’t know yet. They have quite a few good linked article that you should check out!

Entertainment

Preview Nas’ new CD “Street Disciple”.....NOT!!!

Ok, I have to speak on this. There is a website I found out there, CDzLimited.org. They have tons of music online, that you can listen to for free. So I thought it would be cool to post a few of their links once in a while. Then they posted a link to a similar site 2720.net or something like that. They had the hookup for the Nas CD.

Anyway, they both shut down, because of people "leeching" off their site. I know they ain't talking about me. If you are, check this out homie. I post your links, because I'm trying to big you up. You got some fly sh!t that I want to show my people, and I always say where I get the links from. You should stop tripping and post that stuff. The people deserve to hear your low-bandwidth copies of Nasir's new album, Ray Charles collections, or Pantera and Clutch CDs. Don't hate is all I'm saying. Spread love duke. Post that sh!t already! Now when you click on the link, it takes you to their server's main site, like that is a way to make friends online. Whatever, if you don't wanna play nice with the rest of us, F' you, get off the playground. Your songs sounded like doo doo anyway.

Big up to my boy Kenzi Butler who is rocking the mohawk! I just cut my George Jefferson Afro....gotta let it grow out and get the Mr. T!

And with that, I'm out.

Tsunamis

I could have posted the latest hip-hop news (Who shot at who, sued who, called who a you know what, or said something about someone's mama on record) but it all seems so pointless and stupid compared to the news of the tsunamis and it's victims. I didn't think there could be a disaster worse than 9/11, but this is a much bigger tragedy. The news reports seem to get worse every day. Here are some links on the story. If you can, please donate to the American Red Cross, and pray for the thousands of people affected by this natural disaster.

Red Cross donations

Millions hunt food as tsunami toll rises

U.N. Urges Expansion of Tsunami Warning System to Indian Ocean

New tsunami alert triggers panic in India

Britain emerges as a leader in aid campaign for tsunami disaster

Bush vows financial aid for tsunami victims

(put this on your site)

A little bit of this...a little bit of that

Friday Night Fights aka Rumble In The Jungle

You may have read the story in Allhiphop.com, but check out Eedris’s version of the airplane scuffle and what happened before hand. LET'S GET READY TO RUMBLE!!

Q: What happened in Lagos?

A: We got back to Lagos and I thought that they were going to change. But I was backstage and they allowed 50 Cent's boys to embarrass us. Because we resisted, 50 Cent had to come on stage straight from his car. After that I went on stage and I told the fans. "You are beautiful people and Nigeria is a beautiful country. If you don't love 50 Cent, if you don't love Eedris Abdulkareem, you wouldn't be here.

But how come 50 Cent came on stage and dropped N200 notes on you, saying "I heard you people are poor." I asked if that is how poor they really are and they said no.

~Bob Ejike makes a good point as well. He states “If the reverse situation were the case, would Americans have frustrated their national star into creating a violent scene in an aircraft before getting his due?” Good question.

~I tried to link Eedris Abdulkareem’s website, but it seems to have exceeded it bandwith limit. I imagine he is getting mad traffic or G-Unit has some G-hackers! This is a big story in Nigeria.

Word to the mother(land)!
~~~~~~~~~~~~
“She got a gold tooth, you know she’s hardcore!”



I got these links from my boy Silent Bob aka Ray J
(I don’t know why we call him that, he’s always talking sh!t).

This girl’s got game!
http://www.pumpupthemovie.com/toss.html

Lil Jon’s high school picture
http://www.collegehumor.com/?image_id=93662

This or That aka Name That Sample

Al Green - Simply Beautiful
Talib Kweli - Good To You
~
Paul MaCartney & Wings: Old Siam, Sir
Knoc'turnal: Muzik
~
Web slinging

Must have!
http://www.roadragecards.com/

How scary are you?
http://www.blogthings.com/scaryquiz.html

Seconds of Madness game!
http://ghost.aesthetic.ru/index.htm

Spongebob Squarepants shuffle board game
http://home.zonnet.nl/edu_peters/sponge_bob.htm

Whose world is this? It’s mine, it’s mine, it’s mine!
http://www.die.net/earth/

Uno.

Merry Christmas!

Snowglobe
http://ww12.e-tractions.com/snowglobe/globe.htm

Dame Dash Bear
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&category=2387&item=5544561244&rd=1

I'm locked up! (They won't let me out!)

I know, I know, I know...the holiday season sucks. Not everyone is partial
to to all the merriment and festivities. The last minute shopping.
The over-spending. The long holiday dinners with the in-laws. And God forbid
your not a Christian or are one of the more advanced Christians who are aware
that Jesus wasn't born on December 25th (Hi Ma!) But this year, I refuse to
let reality rain on my holiday season. Yeah, Christmas is all commercial
now anyway, but you know what? With all the madness I have been through
this year (ask my friends, they'll tell you) and all the madness we all have been
through this year, I say let the real world wait. Let's celebrate! If you don't have
any loot for gifts, are mad at everyone in your family and don’t want to see them
at X-Mas dinner, or are just a scrooge in general, be grateful for what you've got.
Some of us have it much worse this holiday season. Peace to all our soldiers and
innocents fighting and dying overseas! God bless you all! And peace to the woman
you love to hate! Keep your head up M.


Dear Friends,

When one is incarcerated with 1,200 other inmates, it is hard to be selfish
at Christmas hard to think of Christmases past and Christmases future --
that I know will be as they always were for me -- beautiful!
So many of the women here in Alderson will never have the joy and well
being that you and I experience. Many of them have been here for years
-- devoid of care, devoid of love, devoid of family.

I beseech you all to think about these women -- to encourage the American
people to ask for reforms, both in sentencing guidelines, in length of
incarceration for nonviolent first-time offenders, and for those involved in
drug-taking. They would be much better served in a true rehabilitation
center than in prison where there is no real help, no real programs to
rehabilitate, no programs to educate, no way to be prepared for life "out there"
where each person will ultimately find herself, many with no skills and no
preparation for living.

I am fine, really. I look forward to being home, to getting back to my valuable
work, to creating, cooking, and making television. I have had time to think,
time to write, time to exercise, time to not eat the bad food, and time to walk
and contemplate the future. I've had my work here too. Cleaning has been my
job, washing, scrubbing, sweeping, vacuuming, raking leaves, and much more.
But like everyone else here, I would rather be doing all of this in my own home,
and not here -- away from family and friends.

I want to thank you again, and again, for your support and encouragement.
You have been so terrific to me and to everyone who stood by me.
I appreciate everything you have done, your emails, your letters, and your
kind, kind words. Happy holidays,

Martha Stewart

P.S. I thought you might be interested in the brief my lawyers filed with the Court this afternoon.
~~~
In Sports:

Holy cow! HOW ABOUT THEM JETS!!! My squad is about to make me a
very happy man.
Heading into what may be one of their biggest games yet, Gang Green looks ready for war!
At least Chad is. He is going to war with the media and I for one support him and what he has to say. He should pipe down a bit until we at least win the division. Then talk all the sh!t you want.
But regardless, I gotta do it one time for my boys......
J--E--T--S!!!! JETS--JETS--JETS!!
Meanwhile, Monday night was interesting as well. Who would have thought that Miami would do it to the Pats? Who would have thought that Tom Brady would "throw a dumb pass" and have a pass deflected for the first time this entire season? Who knew Miami had it in them and would sneak past the champs? Next season, you guys should wear the Syracuse style jerseys. I think you blinded the Pats defensive line!

I'm outta here for the holidays! Jr. and I are gonna wait up for St. Nick and sk him if he wants to play Sonic or Madden 2005. Hope you get all you want this X-Mas!

Happy Holidays! (even to those of you who bar-humbug)

The Dis-Education of Kanye West

I must be living in a cave or something. I had no idea there was such an anti-Kanye West movement going on. We get a guy making (or buying) a song about Jesus and gang of fools start hating on him. But if he did “buy” the song “Jesus Walks, so what?

I once did some production work for a once popular, now fallen off music producer, with the assumption that he was going to put me on. Months later, I hear my drum tracks and rare jazz samples on a very popular female emcee’s song. The producer in question refused to return any of my calls. He would have gotten knocked the f’ out the night I bumped into him at a major recording studio in Manhattan, if his pistol packing bodyguards would have had the night off. Now that is f’ed up.

Kanye’s deal doesn’t seem to be that bad to me. I agree, he can come off a bit annoying, but I can’t totally throw him under the bus. Not yet. But you can! Here are some links on the subject. Go to Byron Crawford.com for more info.
http://www.sixshot.com/articles/4769/
http://www.rapnewsdirect.com/News/2004/12/17/K.West.Pet/


Jacked this from Bol..don’t hate me..hate Republicans!
http://www.ericblumrich.com/ihr.html

Def Poetry Plugged In-January 28th

To all my Canheads and poetry heads in NYC, make sure you mark your calendars for this event! Canhead’s favorite poet ,Tantra, will be on the stage along with some heavyweights in the spoken world scene. This one is not to be missed!

Danny Simmons & BAM present Def Poetry Plugged In

Vernon Reid Poetry Project
featuring:

Sonia Sanchez
Ursula Rucker with special guests Karen Gibson
Roc and Fluid,
Sydnee Stewart,
Maritri & Tantra

Hosted by Reg E. Gaines
Curated by Kamilah Forbes

BAM Howard Gilman Opera House

Jan 28 at 7:30pmTickets: $20, 25

---The following was taken from the Brooklyn Academy of Music’s website---

Danny Simmons and BAM present Def Poetry Plugged In, a collaborative evening fusing spoken word, rock, and hip-hop that features poets and musicians sharing their love for wordplay and good grooves.

Poet and playwright Sonia Sanchez, a strong voice for racial and social justice for more than four decades, performs for the first time with guitarist Vernon Reid (Black Rock Coalition, Living Colour).

Co-headliner Ursula Rucker is a sophisticated and seductive poetess whose socio-political work has been featured on two solo albums and in the coveted album-ending spot on The Roots' first three releases.

Also on the bill: Funky poetic vocalist Karen Gibson Roc and her revolutionary band Fluid; poet, actor, and playwright Sydnee Stewart; and Brooklyn-based vocalist/poetess duo Maritri & Tantra.

Reg E. Gaines (lyricist for Bring in 'Da Noise, Bring in 'Da Funk, founding member of Scratch DJ Academy) hosts. Russell Simmons will make a special appearance (doing what he usually does).

http://www.bam.org/events/05RBAM/05RBAM.aspx

~Gee our old LaSalle ran great~

F' The I-Pod, we got the OG of mobile music machines right here. So what it ate both my Lisa Lisa and The Cult Jam and DJ Red Alert tapes. I still got love for that little Walkman. You couldn't tell me I wasn't the man when I had this. Yes I had the exact one pictured above, and it kept me happy during many a detention and in-school suspension day.Like Edith and my boy Archie say, "Those were the days."


Bums at school were always begging me to borrow it, like they would be able to give back such a work of technical art. Like I would be able to part with it for more than 6 minutes Dougie Fresh your on. I would spark fire out your monkey azz if you even looked like you wanted to ask me such stupid sh!t!

Sad to say, my Walkman introduced me to a life of crime, as I began my "Summer of '84 AA Battery Shoplifting Spree" that held every store in Minglewood Acres (my old stomping grounds) in terror! I had the game mastered, being able to boost a AA 8 pack in 10 seconds flat. You heard correct party people, the Walkman was my gatway drug. Soon, I graduated from stealing batteries for Walkmans, to stealing batteries for boomboxes, cables for my home stereo, and finally...the top of Mount Zion..the DJ setup. But it all started with that thin gold Walkman.

Don't take it personal Mr. Jobs. If your feeling generous and want to donate a I-Pod to the Canhead Music Research Department, I'll gladly accept. I promise to give all misplaced I-Pods a happy home. And once their time in the new gadget spotlight is up, I will post a throwback page just to remind the lost youth of tomorrow what good portable music machines were all about.



Go find your old Walkman and reminisce! Just don't sing out loud on the train or at the gym when your listening to your old Night Ranger or Kid n Play tapes. I'm outta here meathead! Get outta my chair will ya, and while your at it, play my outro!!

Dies Natali Invictus aka 'The birthday of the unconquered"

I hope you are all enjoying your holidays and spending it with you family and loved ones. Take advantage of the time off and get some rest, watch football, eat, and be merry. For tomorrow, I break down the true origin of this holiday we go into debt for. Ahh what the hell, I’ll do it right now. (I gotta be me!)

~Taken from Werner Keller's book "The Bible as History"

"December 25 is referred to in documents as Christmas Day in A.D. 324 for the first time. Under the Roman emperor Justinian [A.D. 527-565] it was recognized as an official holiday. An old Roman festival played a major part in the choice of this particular day. December 25 in ancient Rome was the 'Dies Natali Invictus,' 'the birthday of the unconquered,' the day of the winter solstice and at the same time, in Rome, the last day of the Saturnalia, which had long since degenerated into a week of unbridled carnival . . ." (p.331).

~Excerpt taken from http://www.eternalcog.org

The Tower of Babel

"Virtually all pagan practices had their beginnings in the city of Babylon during the time of Nimrod. Nimrod was the grandson of Ham, the son of Noah (Gen. 10:6-8). He was the founder of Babylon (v. 10). Nimrod formed cities instead of going out and replenishing the earth as God had commanded Noah to do.

One of Nimrod’s accomplishments was building the tower of Babel. Some believe he did this to protect people from the potential threat of another flood from God. The scriptures reveal that Nimrod was "a mighty hunter before the Lord" (Genesis 10:9). The word "before" is better translated "against" and it is clear that he became the first post-flood dictator. The name "Nimrod" is translated from the Hebrew word "marad" and literally means "he rebelled. Ancient traditions regarding this apostate leader show that he rebelled against God, and in so doing, created a worldwide apostasy.

According to tradition, Nimrod married his own mother, Semeramis. Then, upon his death, Semeramis began to teach that her son had been reincarnated in the form of a full-grown evergreen tree which supposedly sprang up from a dead tree stump. On each anniversary of Nimrod’s birthday, December 25, Semeramis would visit this evergreen tree, claiming that Nimrod would leave gifts for her there. Through her politics and the use of her son’s name, Semeramis became the queen of Babylon, the home of the Chaldee Mysteries. She was also regarded as the "queen of Heaven" and "the mother of the divine son." After generations of these idolatrous practices and traditions, Nimrod came to be considered the son of Baal, the sun god.

He and his mother became the chief entities of worship as a Madonna and child. This belief and practice spread to Egypt, where the names of the gods were Isis and Osiris. The son Osiris was born December 25. In Asia it was Cybele and Deonius. In Rome they were called Fortuna and Jupiter. Throughout the world we still find the remnants of mother and child worship to this day. It is no surprise that this same system still exists at the end of the age. It is called "Mystery Babylon" (Revelation 17:5). Shockingly, it is disguised as Christianity and is still practiced in the celebration of Christmas."

~There are tons of articles and information on this subject on the web. Don’t get it twisted, I still got junior a Gamecube for X-mas, and if your wondering what El Q Tha Gr8 wants, I do have my eye on one or two things. But that doesn’t mean that I will blindly follow the masses down the road of an old school remixed Babylonian holiday. At the same time, I won’t yank Christmas away from my son and turn him into an over analytical freak of nature. (The world already has one of those!) So it’s on with the usual, gifts and cartoons on Saturday, bills on Monday.

~Know the ledge~

Reminding Me Of Self aka Brother Cue

I’ve been thinking about my father a lot these days. Maybe it’s because I don’t get to see my son as much as I would like to after the break-up, or maybe it’s just me getting old, soft and sentimental.

Anyway, in honor of my pops, I thought I’d dig up a few tracks to dedicate to him, and post them here. A little background for you, waaaaay back in the day, my father was a radio DJ, so music was always in my house. I remember waiting up late at night, just to hear him wish me a goodnight sleep and play a song for me. Some of the songs posted are ones he would play on air or around the house. Hope it gives you a warm fuzzy and makes you as misty as it did me. Love you daddy! (Mamma and Willie Mae get a page dedicated to them next!)

Colour My World- Make Me Smile-Chicago
Pops loves Chicago and so do I! I practiced the drum solo at the end of “Smile” for months on end to the dismay of my folks.

“Deacon Blues” – Steely Dan
I’m not sure how crazy my dad is about this song, but it sure does remind me of him. I’m not sure why. Maybe because it was always on the soft rock radio station he played in his insurance office when I worked for him. Regardless, this is his speed right here….

“Jungle Boogie” “Open Sesame” “Summer Madness” “Funky Man”—
Kool and the Gang
Ohhhh weeee! It’s no wonder I grew up to be a balding B-Boy! Saturday afternoon house chores were always backed by Kool and the crew, Sam & Dave, or The Godfather himself. That’s why I can name most of the samples used in hip-hop songs, I still remember them from back then! “Open Sesame” was on the first album my pops ever bought me(”Saturday Night Fever”) and it was the sample I gave to Jose Nunez and Harry “Choo-Choo” Romero for “The Doo Dance” on Gossip Records (go look it up!). And “Funky Man” was my first favorite song. Much love pop, much love!

“If You Don’t Know Me” “Be For Real” - Harold Melvin and The Blue Notes
May not be Pops favorite but it’s one of mine. “If You Don’t Know Me” is another one!

And finally, two songs that sum up my early years in the house….

“Fire” – Ohio Players “Do It (Til Your Satisfied)” – B.T. Express

I was all over these records. The Ohio Players album covers made me drool, the song sounded like a fire was going on in the studio, and my little feet couldn’t stop moving to BT Express! “Whatever It Is..” Still love it!

That’s it…I bet he still has all these records. Hey pop, give you boy a call once in a while, and not to ask me the question you always ask me either…your grandson says hello!

Listen and Read Sunday

~Listen
"My City" Common featuring Malik Yusef-off the "One Day It'll Make Sense" lp.
~Read
This the city of Chicago
The state of confusion
The style I'm using is free
Or at least it would be if my mind was
Peep I'm behind cause I didn't handle my function while in high school
Although I was cool
The hood I live in ain't that proper
Cause a cop a stop ya
And have you at a hundred and eleventh before you can say not guilty
I'm not filthy
Nor am I rich
Ain't that a bitch
Like life is
Not your wife is
See that your better halve
Do your math
And peep that two halves make a whole
And all I have to hold
Is my self pride
So these streets I strive
Like a Black Panther
Asking can the situation get much worst
All I do is try to appeal to the masses
As the phrase keep it real passes
The teeth of too many phoney individuals
Snakes, that smooth like criminalsT
hey create chemicals
That the Earth hate
Doing their damndest to decrease my birth rate
I'd settle for lesser knowing I'm worth wait
Or at least my weight in precious gems
So I'm steadily steadly steadly
Trying to lose my religion, like R E M
Created in His own image so are we him?
And through all this crises
Shid(Shit) I wonder where Christ is
Well he damn sure not in K town or the wild hundreds
Where they broadcast G.D. till the world blow-up
And Stone run it
Hunted by police for display in state vile cages
Come out to make minimum wages
And with a desiese that are contagious
It is fucking outrages
The amounts of Black and Brown they lock up
But the Most High encourages me to put the glock up
And Stock up on do for self knowledge
A brother couldn't afford to go to collage
So I had to learn form the school of hard knock
On the hard blocks of the ChiEven I, think about moving out to River Oaks
As my liver soaks
In mad Hennesy
Cause I got a bad tendency
To do a lot of drinking
Now I do a lot of thinking
Blinking, was your third eye
When you heard I was one of the chosen one
Industry doors keep closing
(sing)
Watch the closing doors
Niggas want a record deal
But can they deal with a record?
Cause once they get rich
They tend to switch
Like a sissy
Please miss me
With all that bullshit you popping
This knowledge I'm gonna keep dropping
Even if you had one of them red octagon
Motherfuckers say Mylik how you make your living?
I say by breathing oxygen

PSA From Canhead Records

..........A message from TurnYourBackonBush.org............

Dear Backers,We don't want to overwhelm you with emails on this list, but we've got some exciting news! Tuesday night, an AP article about Turn Your Back on Bush went out over the wires.

It was picked up on Wednesday by over 50 newspapers around the country and was covered on NPR that morning. We've had a sudden surge in traffic to our website, and calls from other media have started pouring in.

You can see the AP article at the link below.We need to capitalize on this great exposure and build on it to spread the word. We're in talks with a progressive press relations collective to take on this piece of the organizing right now, but we need to raise $3,000 in the next 3 days to pay for this expense.

We're asking you to dig deep - this will be a huge step toward our goal to get tens of thousands of people out on January 20th. Please click on this link and make a donation now. (If you can afford it, a donation of $50 would go a long way toward our goal.)Link to the AP article on Turn Your

Back on Bush:
http://www.newsday.com/news/politics/wire/sns-ap-inauguration-protests,0,5208996.story?coll=sns-ap-politics-headlines

This publicity has already brought in 4 new State Organizers on Wednesday alone. If you haven't signed up to help organize your state, please check out www.turnyourbackonbush.org/organize.html.

Thanks again,

The Turn Your Back on Bush Team
----
~Illuminati links of the day
I haven’t hit you with any of my “paranoia” links as of yet. Well guess what. That’s all about to change…..right…….NOW!
http://www.phrenicea.com/
http://www.wfs.org/
http://www.innovationwatch.com/

~In Sports:
In the NBA, some people think that after the dust has settled on the basketball “riot”, not much will be done to those charged. I tend to agree.

The Hip Hop Blog Fantasy Basketball League is getting interesting as my squad “Albany Hustlerz” find themselves in a heated battle with BlksRNaturalAthletes (seriously, that’s the name of the team I’m playing against now…don’t ask) I’m closing in on the Red Dust team, looking to take the number 8 spot.

Pittsburg plans on making a 2 game sweep of the New York teams as they prepare to enter the Meadowlands for lunch today. I think I heard Bettis and Staley fighting over who was gonna eat Manning’s food. Should be pretty messy.

Pray for my Jets people. Pray hard! Don’t bother praying for Tennessee. Even God can’t pull of some miracles.

~Last BUTT not least
Looking for a special gift for your lonely friend? I think this will do the trick.

If your bucking to having the best decorated house on your block this Christmas, make sure you don’t end up on this website.

This is a man’s world!

When you see me in the street solider, salute me!

This one is for all you who thinks Christmas stinks. If you have no sense of humor, do not click this link. If you do, Merry Christmas!

~Footnote:
You may have noticed that I took my links section off the page. It was a mistake; I was mucking around with the layout and lost them. So instead of re-listing them, I’ll just make it a point to post a few on every entry.

You really should check this blog out on a daily basis. “The Number One Songs In Heaven” is the bomb. Some of the MP3 blog’s links up now are James Brown, Minnie Ripperton, George Benson, and Junior. Check them out and tell them I sent ya!

Spread love!

The Dog can’t stay outta trouble!



Hold your head up X!

DMX MP3s
“Get It On The Floor”
“Stop Being Greedy”

Goodies:
These guys got the hook up, all kinds of links here.

Jesus Walks:
Here’s a Bible verse sure to inspire us all!

Genesis 38:8-10

8 Then Judah said to Onan, "Lie with your brother's wife and fulfill your duty to her as a brother-in-law to produce offspring for your brother."

9 But Onan knew that the offspring would not be his; so whenever he lay with his brother's wife, he spilled his semen on the ground to keep from producing offspring for his brother.

10 What he did was wicked in the LORD's sight; so he put him to death also.

So Onan decided he should sleep with his sister in law but he pulled out so she wouldn’t get pregnant. Which part was wicked here, the pulling out early or the sleeping with his sister in law? I dunno, it’s a toss up! If I were God, I don’t think I’d be mad at the withdrawl as much as sleeping with extended family members. This was written before online dating and ladies night were invented so I kind of understand, but dating family is still gross!

Chumpies:
Peer Pressure-De La Soul w/ B-Real (“Mase, please tell him stop being so dramatic!”)

Madlib & Peanut Butter Wolf live at Friends & Family Don’t sleep!

No Mercy (ft. M.O.P.)-Pharoahe Monch

Hater's Anthem - Jean Grae

Hey Shawtie- I-20 w/ Devin The Dude

One!

Check 1 2 and ya don't stop

I posted this on Fresh To Death, another mighty fine blog out there defending the virtue of our fair maiden hip-hop. (I do love her so….)

We all know how much our beloved hip-hop has influenced damn near everything under the sun. Sometimes hip-hop has bitten the hand that feeds it by embarrassing us all, such as at the Vibe Awards or average sports star's freshman CD releases. Things like this make us shake our collective heads in disgust and feel like leaving hip-hop for spoken word(maybe). But every once in a while, something will make us proud to be B-Boys in our B-Boy stances. This is one of those times.

I heard this story about a week ago, but ran across it again and thought y'all deserved to read it if you haven't yet. In the Ukraine, a serious battle for power is going on. Many Ukrainians feel that they have witnessed a electoral theft that makes the Florida miscount look like a petty candy shoplifting spree. An entire movement has sprung up in opposition to the current president. So has an history making hip-hop song created by two forward thinking Russian musicians.

Razom Nas Bahato is all the hype in Ukraine. Sung totally in Ukrainian with a funky azz beat, the track really shows how far hip-hop has come and gone. Think about this for a second party people. A hip-hop song is the theme of a revolutionary movement, dedicated to overthrowing the ruling president and giving power to Yushchenko, a man who many feel was poisoned by the opposing party . Wow. Meanwhile in America, Bush is behind the wheel for another 4 years and we are still having blog wars and beefing over who won the Nas/Jay-Z battle. (tie, get over it)

Maybe Talib, Mos, and Pharaoh should have thought of that. I mean there were a gang of songs about Bush Sr and Jr (PE, Paris, Coup, Dead Prez) but nothing like this. If you love hip-hop, not only should you grab your d!ck and rub your t!tt!es right now, you should be wiping tears of joy out of your eyes and checking your English-Russian dictionary while banging this track. Check the links below for more info on this story. Hip-Hop F'ing Hooray!

The "Razom Nas Bahato MP3" is here..
http://www.orangeukraine.squarespace.com/journal/2004/11/29/razom-nas-bahato.html

Read these for more info:
http://www.worldonline.co.za/tiscali/news/news_story.jsp?content=130288
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A56188-2004Dec10.html
http://www.praguepost.com/P03/2004/Art/1209/news9.php

So nice, I had to post it twice. Sorry, I was at my bar last night so I don't have anything new to post...I am really starting to love my bar, you should check it out sometime if your in the neighborhood. Sunday nights are supposed to be hot but I have not made it down there yet. Again, sorry!

My friends at Albanypoets.com are going to be at my bar on the last Monday of every month and that's where I'll be, with my Heineken and Jack & Coke (in case you're thinking about buying the next round kicko!)

~Shalom~

Soccer sucks!

More goods from the internet.

~Nas- Bridging The Gap video
~This one is sure to make all my non-Christian (and some of my Christian) friends laugh….NOT!

In Sports

~“What did he think would happen?”:
Kobe is mad at The Mailman for ringing his bell twice! Kobe’s wife acts like she wasn't with it.

~Soccer is an ugly, racist, violent, mindless, stupid, gay azz sport anyway! F’ those backwards, slack jawed, dim witted, broke d!ck ,cavemen losers! I mean I understand that not everyone is going to be civilized and you will always have a few bad apples, but when and entire stadium starts booing and making monkey sounds, it doesn’t make you want to visit their “beautiful” (ie: stuck up,boring, bland food, bad driving, non English speaking) countries too soon. Makes me want to get on a plane and go to all the foreign soccer stadiums and do like my man did in Florida!

~At least this guy didn’t back out on his bet! You win some, you lose some, that how it goes. (Holla at me..I got M&N Throwbacks Jerseys 4cheap, 4real!!)

In other news:

~Fox is preparing to air a show that we already see on Maury, Montel and Jerry.

~When playing Scrabble, Hootchie and Crack Ho are words and count for points! I win!

~Here is a gift idea for the ladies. Thanks to April Wincell for the link.

I’m outta here like Kid’s high top fade!