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Grandmaster Flash - The Bridge: Concept of a Culture
| Rapreviews |
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The press release accompanying "The Bridge" describes the CD in my hand as the "first [new] studio album in 20 years" from Grandmaster Flash. Has it really been that long? It depends on how you're counting or who you ask. In 1988 Grandmaster Flash & the Furious Five released a reunion album titled "On the Strength" which was received poor reviews but has managed to go gold in the intervening years. Cowboy would die a year later and the group would not attempt another comeback, but whether Flash was inactive from this point on is less clear. For the first half of that span Flash was pretty quiet, but in 1997 "Salsoul Jam 2000" quietly arrived on the scene, a mix album paying tribute to the Salsoul Records catalogue. Arguably that's not a "studio album" but the very label putting out "The Bridge" released "The Official Adventures of Grandmaster Flash" in 2002. As a historically important retrospective on Grandmaster Flash's career it's regarded as second to none, yet the question remains if recording interview segments and one or two new DJ mixes constitutes a "studio album" or not. If they were recorded IN a recording studio this writer would argue that it does. If we want to stretch the Strut Records definition of "studio album" to the limit though, it may be that they're implying that ONLY a full album of new and original rap songs with Grandmaster Flash on scratch and production qualifies. Since none of the albums from 1997 until now were collaborations between the Grandmaster and rappers, I'll accept their definition of "studio album" for that limited purpose. To be honest the excitement of reviewing a new album from Grandmaster Flash would be exactly the same whether he had released a new studio album in the last 20 years or the last 2. As a turntablist the man I aspired to be like was the same man who recorded the first hip-hop song I ever heard, "The Adventures of Grandmaster Flash on the Wheels of Steel." Sadly loving the art of scratching is not the same as being any good at it, and though I look back fondly on my college radio disc jockey days, I undoubtedly did hip-hop a favor by retiring from the Technics. My talents as a writer and webmaster have served the culture far better, but the nickname 'Flash' remains. Any album from my namesake is automatically going to pique my interest whether a dusty Sugarhill 12" scored at a rummage sale or a CD of disco classics given the mix treatment only Flash can provide. Shit, I was even more excited about "The Chris Rock Show" when I learned Grandmaster Flash would be the musical director and I was already a big Chris Rock fan at the time. The only way I can do an honest review of "The Bridge" is to the readers that the phrase "God damn that DJ made my day" applies to both a Grandmaster and a Jam Master equally for me. I was not fond of the elitist Rock and Roll Hall of Fame until 2007, but solely for the fact they decided to induct Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five I changed my mind. (Hopefully they won't forget there are other hip-hop pioneers equally worthy of being so honored.)...full text |
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| Spin |
| Flash's first studio album in more than two decades isn't for wallflowers. "Tribute to the Breakdancer" and "Here Comes My DJ" (with the effusive DJ Kool of "Let Me Clear My Throat" fame) showcase the legendary turntablist's ear for party starters. Overall, The Bridge has a very Reagan-era vibe, and not just due to appearances by KRS-One and Big Daddy Kane; the synth-laden "Unpredictable" rivals Timbaland's recent '80s-influenced productions. Flash's experimentation with 21st-century slang, however, isn't as successful -- the sluggish "Swagger," featuring Snoop Dogg and Red Café, is as generic as its title....full text |
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| Pitchfork. |
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For all of the hip-hop landmarks to see the light in 1988-- It Takes a Nation of Millions to Hold Us Back , By All Means Necessary , Straight Outta Compton , Critical Beatdown , Long Live the Kane , The Great Adventures of Slick Rick -- one detail that often goes overlooked is the fact that it was also the year Grandmaster Flash released his last LP, briefly reuniting with Melle Mel to drop the commercially disappointing On the Strength . After it tanked, Flash shifted his focus to become a highly in-demand touring DJ, which wasn't the worst career move: His status as a musical icon is indelible in any case, and some of the mixes he released-- like 2002's b-boy break/scratch showcase The Official Adventures of Grandmaster Flash or 1997's disco mix Salsoul Jam 2000 (re-released in 2005 as Mixing Bullets and Firing Joints )-- are essential for anyone who likes old-school hip-hop. But while I won't begrudge Flash for wanting to get back into the studio and reassert his place in the hip-hop pantheon, maybe we should all agree to pretend that The Bridge doesn't actually exist. Expecting a great, sonically relevant album in 2009 from one of the few hip-hop artists to get pressed on wax 30 years ago might be a bit naïve-- especially when the artist in question hasn't dropped a full-length album of original beats since the Reagan administration-- but it's Flash , dammit, the man who personified the DJ for an entire generation. How could he have a hand in anything so sub-par?...full text |
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