"Someone offered me $500 for the acetate of the Beatnuts' remix of Mobb Deep 'Shook Ones Part 1'." - Stretch ArmstrongThe above is quoted from this interview with Stretch Armstrong by DJ Eli over at the TurntableLab's blog. Check the interview here.
I had this on a cassette dubbed from the infamous Stretch and Bobbito show back in 94 and didn't realize it was a Beatnuts remix. I always figured it was a Stretch homemade remix or an acapella blended over a rare instrumental. Well, needless to say, I lost that tape probably within a month of taping it off the radio and recently is the first time I heard it since. Now, I'm not really a religious guy in any way at all. But I always thought that if there was a heaven, all my lost Stretch and Bob tapes would be there along with everything else I ever lost. Like all my WBAI, WNYU, Red Alert, Hank Love and Halfpint, and Awesome Two tapes. Plus all the shows I didn't have on tape. Not to mention every rare piece of vinyl ever pressed in the world. In this heaven, I would have unlimited copies of everything and my celestial neighbors would envy my godly collection. But in order for them to get a copy of anything[which I have unlimited amounts of anyway] they would have to offer me up 3 virgins of different ethnicities for me to have my way with. If heaven is anything like that at all, may the good lord strike me down before I finish this post.
Oh well. Time to stop dreaming and move it on along. Here's another excerpt from that Stretch interview:
"Ha- well you did manage to get me to give you the EPMD/LL Cool J "Rampage" demo. How ill is that? We used to play that on the air like it was no thing. For those of you that don't know it, the beat is different, and you hear the 2" stop, LL tell the engineer to take it back to the top, and then he spits rhymes that never made the album. It's a demo, but it's also a snapshot of the recording, hearing LL talk and experiment a little."
Yeah, I had this one on tape, too. I'm not sure if the one we have for you here is the entire version of that demo. But, hey, it's 3 minutes of some ill hip hop history. LL destroys it, as he was hungry again at that time trying to get back in the limelight. You'll notice that PMD spits the famous, "While you were banging on tables, I was banging Snow White," backwards. Instead, he says,"While I was banging on tables, you were banging Snow White."
After I stop typing, enjoy both the Shook Ones Beatnuts remix and the partial Rampage demo. Thanks go out to jamo609 and serch4beatz, both of the Philaflava T.R.O.Y. forum. The amount of rare Stretch and Bobbito shows and hard to find mid 90's mixtapes that these guys have been uploading is abundant. Don't sleep, that's only one thread out of hundreds where these got unearthed. Last week officially marked my first year as being a part of the Philaflava message boards, and I can't stress enough how conducive to my hip hop life it has been.
If you're not down, do yourself a solid and join up. You won't regret it. Just make sure you go directly to the T.R.O.Y. forum.
Mobb Deep - Shook Ones Pt.1 (Beatnuts Remix)
EPMD, LL Cool J - Rampage (Demo)
Thanks again go to jamo609 and serch4beatz.
--Verge
one of the greatest post i've seen!! beatnuts remix is crazy, so obscure!! pmd's backward line is so funny on the rampage demo! haha
ReplyDeletetroy is the only reason to have the internet.
ReplyDeleteNice find with the Mobb Deep track, even though it's kinda meh.
ReplyDeleteI have the full version of the Rampage demo its 3:25 long
ReplyDeletei also have the original demo version of Kool G Rap enter the dragon
same beat as the one on the Juice Crew EP but totally different lyrics ill be dropping both on my new mixtape Please listen to my DEMO coast to coast edition
Great tracks thanks for this
ReplyDeleteThanks for leaving feedback, everybody.
ReplyDelete@DJ MIKE NICE- That sounds real dope, man. I'll definitely keep an eye open for that one.
@Boothe- To each their own n all that, but I don't think it's meh at all. I mean maybe it's pretty simple and doesn't change up really, but I think it's raw like that. I love that bell or xylophone or whatever sample. Pretty much a typical really ill Beatnuts remix. One of them beats that might be too plain for them to rhyme on themselves, but perfect for a remix at that time. Thanks for the props and checkin in.
--verge
The Beatnuts "remix" was really just a beat Juju had laced and mixed the acapella off the 12" over it, not entirely on beat at that. I did have an acetate but where it is God only knows.
ReplyDeleteThanks for checking in and straightening that out, Stretch. So, do you remember if it's the same beat they used on this one?
ReplyDeleteAnd one other question- That Akinyele "No Exit" with the different beat you used to play, was that the B-side of the "Break A Bitch Neck" record?
This is really dope, never posted here but respect to everyone to the fullest. Been a fan forever Stretch. Mad love to anybody sharing those vaulted gems.
ReplyDelete