JumpinJack AJ

I foolishly didn't pick up his new album when i saw it on shelves. Reading this will probably have me picking it up 2day. Enjoy! ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Smokey Robinson Still 'Having Fun' After 50 Years of SongcraftPosted on Aug 25th 2009 5:00PM by Melinda NewmanComments (55)Print | Email More Smokey Robinson has found a better way to describe his 50 years in show business than anyone else could with the title of his new CD, 'Time Flies When You're Having Fun.' The soulful, steamy album is all Robinson originals, except for his cover of the Norah Jones hit 'Don't Know Why' and one special bonus track. Guests on the album, which was recorded with the musicians playing live to give the project a warm, intimate feel, include India.Arie, Joss Stone and Carlos Santana. Robinson's glorious falsetto remains as poignant and provocative today as it was on such Motown classics as 'Ooo Baby Baby,' 'I Second that Emotion' and 'The Tears of a Clown.' Robinson wrote more than 35 Top 40 hits for his group the Miracles and others, including classics by the Temptations and Marvin Gaye. And that's not even counting his post-Motown era, which includes such smashes as 'Cruisin'' and 'Being With You.' The Rock and Roll Hall of Famer talked with Spinner about the difference between sexy and crude, today's songwriters, the song he wishes Michael Jackson had gotten to hear and, of all things, getting down and dirty in the bathtub. So many of the songs on 'Time Flies' are sexy and suggestive but never lewd. Where do you draw the line? I draw the line at being crass. As a songwriter, I know there are no new words, there are no new chords, there are no new notes on the piano, there are no new ideas, really. So when I sit down to write a song, I want to say the same thing that's been said maybe before but always try to put a different twist on [it]. I don't think you have to be crass to get a sexy idea across. Many songs on the radio today are about as subtle as a sledgehammer. I hear a lot of good music on the radio. I don't really knock the young writers because they're writing for their era. A lot of things are able to be said now and not censored so they're just coming right down front with every idea, I guess. But I do think there's a subtlety that should be involved because a lot of young people are listening. What's your favorite song on 'Time Flies'? I don't have a favorite one because I give them all my same concentration ... [but] I hope that 'Love Bath' gets some attention because I love the way that song came about. How did it come about? One day, I was actually in the car, and I was thinking about how intimate it is to take a love bath with someone that you love or someone that you're in to. And how intimate that is with the candlelight. You're there in the water and with each other and there's music in the background. So I said, ''Hey! I want to write a song about that." I want to make it funky and groovy. How long does it take you to write a song? Songs take different times for me ... 'Shop Around' is a song that took me, at best, 30 minutes to write. 'Cruising' took five years. There's a hidden bonus track of your jazzy remake of the Jackson 5's 'One More Chance' on the CD. Why leave it unidentified? I did it like that because that was one of the first songs I recorded for the project about three years ago, and after Michael's death I did not want people to think I was exploiting his death. So that's why the song isn't even mentioned on the CD. I didn't put the title on there, I didn't put anything. It's like a mystery song because I didn't want people to think, "Oh, his little brother died, so now he's exploiting that." Did Michael get a chance to hear it? I'm sorry he didn't ... I would have loved for him to hear it; that was going to be my plan. This is your 50th anniversary in show business. What do you wish you'd known at the beginning that you now now? How to govern myself. How to deal with me ... Over time, you get a chance to learn how to deal with yourself through anger, through love, through all the emotions we go through in life, especially the emotions like sadness and anger. You learn how to deal with that to the point that you're not going to let that injure you. You wrote 'You're the One for Me' specifically for Joss Stone, who duets with you on the record. I have known Joss since she was 15 years old. I dubbed her "Aretha Joplin" because that's how powerful she is. She kicks her shoes off and just gets to singing on me; she can really, really, really sing. I don't think I've ever heard Joss sing with her shoes on. How did having Carlos Santana play on 'Please Don't Take Your Love' come about? I called Carlos and said, "Hey, man, I'm doing a CD and I want you to play something on it with me," and he said, "Well, send it to me, my brother"... Carlos has his own studio [in San Francisco]. We had a ball. Carlos is a very spiritual man, so he burns candles and stuff like that in the studio. You still tour a lot. What do like out of playing live after all this time? Let me tell you something: I love writing, I love recording, I love producing, I love all those things. My favorite part of my work is doing the concerts because I get a chance to see the people. I get a chance to just have a two-and-a-half-hour party. I see people there who have their kids in their arms and the first time I saw them, they were in their parents' arms. It's incredible. What's the key to taking care of yourself on the road? I don't drink or smoke, not that I knock people who drink or whatever they want to do. I'm not a party person. It kills me, in fact, a lot of people ... I do a meet and greet after the show and sometimes people will come back there because they think, "Entertainers, all you do is entertain and party." They'll come back there and say, "Hey Smoke, OK, where's the party?" and I tell them, "I just had the party! I had the party onstage." After my shows, I go to my room, I look at TV until I fall asleep and I just try and take care of myself. Why do you still do meet-and-greets after your shows? Because people are there. [long pause] A lot of those people who get the chance to come back have 50 of my albums, so why can't I spend five or 10 minutes talking to them? I may never get that close to them again ever, so that's how I look at it. The album's title is 'Time Flies When You're Having Fun.' Was there a time when it wasn't fun? Yeah, there was. My last couple of years of being with the Miracles, it wasn't as much as fun to me, which is why I retired from the group [in 1972]. My kids were being born at that time and I didn't want to be away from my kids. I felt like the Miracles and I had done everything a group could do at least twice and I'd been on the road since I was at least 16 years old. I was vice president of Motown and I thought, well, I'll just retire and do my vice president duties, maybe write some songs for some people, produce some records, but I'll never do it again myself. And after about three years of that, I was climbing the walls, so I knew what my true calling was. What was the best piece of advice you were given that you now pass down? Never take show business for granted. Never think that you started it or that you're going to stop it. If you happen to have a few hit records and the world becomes aware of you, [don't] think that the world can't do without you. Is there anything you feel you still have to accomplish? I don't have to have a starring role or anything like that, but I would love to have a great, meaty roll in a great movie. You've said how you write hasn't changed over the years, but has any piece of technology made it easier? No. I promise you every time I sit down to write a song, I want to write a song that if I had written it 50 years beforehand it would have meant something that's going to mean something now, and 50 years from now it's going to mean something. That's my goal.

Great interview! Anyone know when it was done? It's great to see a mastermind just laidback and talking candidly.

I didn't really follow DJ AM at all. But i send out prayers to his family, friends, and fans.

Wow! This is the Mariah i've been holding out for....even if it is a cover. Beautiful.

When it comes to Code Red singles, they only released "Boom! Shake The Room,""I'm Looking For The One (To Be With Me)," and "I Wanna Rock." Overseas they released singles for "Twinkle Twinkle (I'm Not A Star)" and "Can't Wait To Be With You."

Other than "Game Proof" I wasn't really into Chilli's leaked stuff that much. It all sounded very Ciaraish. I've only heard one of the leaked songs from T-Boz's album and really liked it. I really wish there was an official release of that FanMail concert. It was so dope.

So overall, this album isn't what i wanted. I didn't expect her to come with another Black Reign. I expected some singing but the truth is there is only 4 straight Hip-Hop joints on the record. It's still a good album and it does reflect where she is in her career properly. This is definitely a grown Queen Latifah. If u ignore the last Flavor Unit album, her greatest hits album, and her 2 Jazz/Soul/Pop albums, this is her 1st urban studio album in 11 years. Much of the album is what i guess u would call mainstream Urban music. It's not straight R-N-B but it's not pop music. "The Light" has Latifah hungry and spitting over a polished Hip-Hop record with a simple/sung chorus. I think this is a good opening record. "Fast Car" has a progressive urban mainstream vibe. Latifah is singing with vocoder background vocals buried in the mix. Missy "Misdemeanor" Elliot has rap on the track. From 1996-2001 i LOVED Missy. Ever since then she's gotten more annoying, lyrically predictable, and artificially southern. I used to hold Missy as an up-and-comer to the ranks of Hip-Hop's female legends. It hasn't turned out that way...so why is she rapping on a Latifah joint when Latifah could do it better herself? "Cue The Rain" is another urban mainstream track with dance-style synths and rock guitars. Latifah sings with a bunch of swagga on this track. It's not what i want from the Queen but the song has got some energy. It'll make u move. "My Couch" is still keeping the record in the urban mainstream area with a rhythmic R-N-B feel. "Take Me Away (With You)" is keeping the feel of the previous songs in tact. She still singing on a danceable rhythmic R-N-B track. This one features Marsha Ambrosius of Floetry. Latifah does manage to spit a short verse towards the end tho.' "With You" evolves from the previous song and gets dancier with vocoder vocals. "Hard To Love Ya" is a good record. It's got a modern radio-ready Hip-Hop beat. Shawn Stockman of Boyz II Men is on the chorus. This is the perfect track for Latifah to spit on but she's singing. Busta Rhymes shows up for a love-based verse. This is one of my favorites on the record. "What's The Plain" is a bland urban mainstream song. U can groove to it, but that's about it. "Long @$$ Week" is Latifah getting back on track (finally). The modern polished Hip-Hop beat has Latifah spitting and not missing a beat. The song is about letting go and having fun after a long and stressful week. It's a feel good record. This is Hip-Hop growing up...i know it speaks 2 me. "Runnin'" has the confusing mixture of dance-synths and and rock guitars. Latifah sounds really good singing on this with moments of her rap-singing as well. Not my flava, but i like this. The song is about a relationship where the loyalty to each other is ?uestioned. "People" may be the best track on the record. The soulful R-N-B meets Hip-Hop track has Latifah spitting alongside Mary J. Blige on the hook. I love this song. Give us a video 2 this!! More grown-up Hip-Hop for the real heads. This is just dope. "If He Wanna" is a reggae-tingled R-N-B joint. Latifah is singing sweetly with Serani on the hook. Simple, relaxing, and good...but not as good as "Weekend Love" off Black Reign. "Over The Mountain" has the Queen explaining how this album was about her "spreading her wings" but that she's not a changed person other than growing. It's a essentially a gospel-message wrapped in a slow haunting Hip-Hop meets Soul track features guitars in the mix. I really like this one. Oh, and she is rapping on this one 2. "The World" has her sing-rapping over a laid back grown Hip-Hop/R-N-B beat. ----------------- The concept of the album was 2 mix all these 2gether....hence the title "Persona." U can also get that impression by looking at the album cover which features 5 Latifahs on different vibes. The fierce ghetto Latifah, the "I'm about to receive my Grammy Latifah, the strictly business Latifah, the housewife Latifah, and the rock chick Latifah. I haven't had time to really get in2 the lyrics. The truth is, alot of those urban mainstream tracks just don't keep my attention enough to even grab what they are about. In my opinion the best songs are the Hip-Hop joints and those are the songs where she sounds most at home (after all she didn't need to stretch for them) and the subject matter is the most clear and the lyrics the most creative. Those open to an experimental Latifah need to get the album. I also think that this album will really speak to females. When i make a copy of this for the car, it'll probably only have about half of the songs off of this album mixed with some of her most recent songs i liked from the past. Latifah really should do an official mixtape for those of us really wanting all Hip-Hop.

Visqo, i spelled her name wrong...it's COLBI CAILLIT. She's an acoustic soul singer. She had some big songs a little over a year ago with "Bubbly" and "Realize." Brakes, i'm liking that song. It's alot better than the previous song he put out for the new album. QUEEN LATIFAH - Cue The Rain Persona (2009)

Classic...definitely one of the masters. Thanx for posting this. Anyone else interested in a Biz Markie remix of an MJ classic? ha ha

COLIE CAILLAT - Runnin' Around Breakthrough (2009)

They performed somewhere in Japan a couple months ago. U never know.

I had no idea it was dropping yesterday until yesterday. I'm gonna write my review soon. I was wondering if anyone else has gotten the album. It's not the Hip-Hop album we all wanted, but it's got 4 or so Hip-Hop joints on it. The rest of it is a mix of R-N-B and Mainstream Urban. I wish it was straight Hip-Hop but i'm still liking this alot.

TLC Prepping First U.S. Concert in Seven Years Posted Aug 25th 2009 12:45PM by Latifah Muhammad Filed under: R'n'B News The women of TLC are looking to get back into the swing of things by way of their first stateside concert in seven years. Although now a duo, following the 2002 death of member Left-Eye, T-Boz and Chilli are billed to play at the "Justin Timberlake and Friends" benefit concert on October 16. Hosted by the Grammy-winning singer, the concert will take place at Las Vegas' Mandalay Bay Events Center and will also feature performances by Alicia Keys, Ciara and Taylor Swift. The annual event is accompanied by Timberlake's charity gold tournament, which will take place October 16-18. Tickets for the concert go on sale Saturday. Following the death of Lisa "Left-Eye" Lopes, TLC maintained a low profile. In 2004 T-Boz, born Tionne Watkins and Chilli, born Rozonda Thomas, starred in the reality show 'R U The Girl?' where they searched for a new group member. After crowning 20-year-old Tiffany Baker as the show's winner, the threesome never recorded an album stating that they had no intentions of replacing Left-Eye. Known for colossal hits like 'Creep,' 'Waterfalls,' and 'No Scrubs,' the trio became the first female group to have an album go diamond-with over 10 million units sold of their sophomore album 'CrazySexyCool.' Once the biggest selling girl group of all time, TLC's musical success has been riddled with financial-lows most notably when they filed for bankruptcy in 1995. Both T-Boz and Chilli are said to be working on solo releases ------------------------------------ Am i crazy 2 be considering going out 2 Vegas 2 see this? I have a feeling they'll begin 2 do more shows so i should probably wait. I got a few days 2 figure this out...ha ha.

Definitely a few albums i'm interested in getting. I knew they were working 2 get that Q-Tip album out...i didin't know it was happening. I also didn't know about the Rakim one. I wonder how the John Forte one is gonna be. There's alot of non-Hip-Hop albums coming out that i'm hyped for...Mariah Carey's, Colbie Callait's, LeToya, All-4-One. This is the time of year that big albums start dropping with the holidays right around the corner. Alot of these people are gonna remind us what music should be like...and that it's still okay 2 buy albums.

I don't think Hancock was good enough of a movie to have a sequel. I guess there is stuff they could do with the story but do they really need to? Since all of this movies do well they just wanna do sequels to all of them. The problem is, only a very few are the kind of movies that can make total sense by having sequels.

I wish i could get excited about this.

Ugh...Jada is one bad check...but this just isn't authentic 2 me....which is good cuz i think this is terrible.

AQUALUNG - Brighter Than Sunshine Strange & Beautiful (2005)

Wow, that was awful. What does JJ+FP have to 2 with that hot mess, dirty south, ghetto trash?...other than doing a weak version of "Apache" in the middle of the video?

JJ+FP - I'm All That Homebase (1991)

JAY-Z, RIHANNA, + KANYE WEST - Run This Town Blueprint 3 (2009) I like the beat at the minute mark when it finally drops. I like Jay-Z not doing his predictable flow...but i'm not in love with his flow. Kanye sounds good 2 any of that Heartbreak + 808 crap but he'll never be better than below average. His voice just doesn't command any attention and his lyrics and flow are always a bit sloppy. I like Rihanna on the hook. I can't wait til she desides 2 be pretty again. Time 2 throw on some acoustic 2 fall asleep 2...i'm thinking about my man Keirnan McMullan... p.s. Brakes, page 60...u know what that means...

I still need 2 get his new album...shame on me!! JJ+FP - Summertime (DJ Jazzy Jeff's Mix) Summertime (CD Single) (1991)

AJ's life story...coming soon...

Yeah, i don't wanna claim to be a know-it-all or anything but "Summertime" is straight Fresh Prince. His lyrics, style, and writing parttern of each era are so strong that u can tell when it's all him...and Homebase is all him. I was listening 2 it on the way home from work 2day and just being sucked back in 1991. Classic FP.

Funny. Was FP properly interviewed during that show...cuz it looks like i missed this one. I've never seen it before.