tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5786585453263433062024-03-13T23:23:37.225-05:00Mixed ReactionA lifelong journey through mixtapes.Ivanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04786658818562297429noreply@blogger.comBlogger39125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-578658545326343306.post-50573141225853040652014-03-13T13:52:00.000-05:002015-03-19T09:28:34.390-05:00The Collection Vol. 23 (Fall 1999)<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<b>Side A</b><br />
Radiohead-Subterranean Homesick Alien<br />
Led Zeppelin-Stairway To Heaven<br />
Hanson-MMMBop<br />
Fiona Apple-Never Is A Promise<br />
Sugar Ray-Falls Apart<br />
Creed-Higher<br />
Semisonic-Delicious<br />
Stroke 9-Little Black Backpack<br />
Limp Bizkit-Nobody Like You<br />
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<b>Side B</b><br />
Save Ferris-Mistaken<br />
The Offspring-She's Got Issues<br />
Santana feat. Product G&B-Maria Maria<br />
Hole-Miss World<br />
Macy Gray-Do Something<br />
Metallica-No Leaf Clover<br />
Will Smith-Will 2K<br />
Maxwell-Whenever, Wherever, Whatever<br />
Hanson-Speechless<br />
Hole-Asking For It<br />
Eightball & MJG feat. Cee-Lo-Paid Dues<br />
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Once again, the influence of my growing CD library made itself known on <i>The Collection</i>. Based on what songs I'd included since the beginning of the year, I would say the number of CDs I owned at this point was somewhere around 14. While the pace at which I was acquiring albums was not as quickly as my brother's, whose own hip hop collection was still an influence on my tapes, the scales were starting to tip in my favor. The first four songs on Side A were actually from CDs that I owned (the Led Zeppelin track was actually from a mix CD that a friend found and thought I might like and they were right). That was the first time I ever did that mainly because I now had the assets to pull it off and set the template for future mixtapes. <br />
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<b>Song that made me realize <i>OK Computer</i> just might be great after all: Radiohead-Subterranean Homesick Alien</b><br />
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It was difficult to escape the hype surrounding Radiohead's much-lauded third album. Nearly every publication I could remember had it at the top of their lists. I was familiar with their previous singles and "Karma Police," which most of them I loved, so I figured I'd give <i>OK Computer</i> a try. I bought it for my birthday that year along with Red Hot Chili Peppers' Californication and Sublime's self-titled one and found those both immediately more accessible. It was slow going for me in the beginning with <i>OK Computer</i> and I was starting to think I had wasted my money. None of the songs popped out to me and it all seemed too cryptic. Then it happened. Late one night I was playing the album with the lights off in my room and I all of a sudden got it. All of the loneliness in "Subterranean Homesick Alien" came bubbling to the surface and I started to realize how much power that chorus had. I understood the mood of the album and it eventually grew to be one of my favorites of all-time. I can credit <i>OK Computer</i> with making me a better listener and it began with this song.<br />
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<b>Song that could be sneaky and make me misty-eyed if I'm not careful: Fiona Apple-Never Is A Promise</b><br />
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It all starts with that piano melody. Fiona's so great at capturing sounds that are somber yet beautiful. It almost seems as if she's about to cry each time the chorus starts with that slight little rasp right before it begins. I was a few years late to this song since I didn't have MTV and it didn't get played on the stations here in Chicago, but it was perfect timing for a teenager.<br />
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<b>Song that was the closest I had ever gotten to sticking a needle in my vein: Hole-Miss World</b><br />
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The way that Courtney Love hung on every syllable when she sang "I"m Miss World/somebody kill me" gave me a bit of a rush. I had never done drugs, but I could tell that there was something unique with how Love howled. It was anguished, loose and gritty and it seeped into my bloodstream. I could feel that angst that came with coming down after getting high and I had Courtney Love to yell in my face and tell me all about it. Even without the haggard image she portrayed in music videos melded to my mind, the drug of choice for "Miss World" seemed obvious based on audio alone.<br />
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<b>My go-to song anytime I felt I had to defend Hanson: Hanson-Speechless</b><br />
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I think male teen pop stars often get an unfair reputation that's mostly based on their looks and target audience. Before Justin Bieber began taking cues out of the bad boy guidebook, he was still widely derided for what I felt was inoffensive music. He's had some good songs and others I didn't care much for, but according to the general public he is the worst thing ever. There is absolutely no logic in that since most of the people who hate his music are least likely to even be fans of pop and have misconstrued conceptions of what "real music" is. Once a teen idol reaches a certain commercial status, a backlash is inevitable. Hanson went through the same thing, which baffled me since I felt their songs were consistently of high quality. I'll spare you the whole debate about the merits of pop music, but I did often use "Speechless" as a way to show that they weren't super squeaky clean. I'm not saying that it was incredibly funky, but it wouldn't be what you'd expect if all you knew was "MMMBop" and "Where's The Love."<br />
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<b>Song that I imagined OGs playing on repeat: Eightball & MJG feat. Cee-Lo-Paid Dues</b><br />
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These guys always seemed to go at their own pace to me. They're mostly known for <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FUM8tEWYoGw%E2%80%8E" target="_blank">"Lay It Down"</a>, but I've always preferred their laidback stuff. "Paid Dues" was perfect if you were still a fan of hardcore hip hop, but might have had a few kids and a minivan. You could still be mature and rock with it.<br />
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<b>Song that time forgot: Stroke 9-Little Black Backpack</b><br />
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I can't even remember which wave of alternative music this was. Fourth? Fifth? The times were changing and by next year this sound would almost be completely removed. Now I think of it as one of those fun moderate hits that only people who listened to the radio will remember. Distorted arpeggios will always warm my '90s lovin' heart. <br />
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Ivanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04786658818562297429noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-578658545326343306.post-27987668483287277552013-11-01T10:55:00.000-05:002013-11-01T10:55:49.913-05:00The Collection Vol. 22 (Fall 1999)<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://lh6.ggpht.com/-ZaGAzvr7zu0/UiludQY7XcI/AAAAAAAABlE/IAvSMPmDUN8/s1600/2013-09-06%25252000.53.07.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"> <img border="0" src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/-ZaGAzvr7zu0/UiludQY7XcI/AAAAAAAABlE/IAvSMPmDUN8/s320/2013-09-06%25252000.53.07.jpg" /> </a> </div><br />
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<b>Side A</b><br />
Ricky Martin-Shake Your Bon Bon<br />
Fiona Apple-Fast As You Can<br />
Eve-Gotta Man<br />
Beastie Boys-Alive<br />
Smash Mouth-Then The Morning Comes<br />
Limp Bizkit-Rearranged<br />
Jimmie's Chicken Shack-Do Right<br />
Q-Tip-Vivrant Thing<br />
Santana feat. Everlast-Put Your Lights On<br />
Marvin Gaye-What's Going On?<br />
Radiohead-Paranoid Android<br />
Sublime-Seed<br />
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<b>Side B</b><br />
The Beatles-Good Morning, Good Morning<br />
Limp Bizkit-N2gether Now<br />
Santana feat. Lauryn Hill and Cee-Lo-Do You Like The Way<br />
Red Hot Chili Peppers-Californication<br />
Smashing Pumpkins-Jellybelly<br />
Fiona Apple-Slow Like Honey<br />
Dr. Dre feat. Snoop Dogg-Still D.R.E.<br />
Static-X-Push It<br />
Foo Fighters-Learn To Fly<br />
Blink 182-All The Small Things<br />
Korn-Falling Away From Me<br />
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When it comes to <i>The Collection</i>, I've always counted <a href="http://mixedreaction.blogspot.com/2011/11/collection-vol-6-summer-1998.html" target="_blank">Vol. 6</a>, <a href="http://mixedreaction.blogspot.com/2012/01/collection-vol-9-fall-1998.html" target="_blank">Vol. 9</a> and <a href="http://mixedreaction.blogspot.com/2013/03/the-collection-vol-19-summer-1999.html" target="_blank">Vol. 19</a> among some of my best. When I went back to those tapes, there was a warm sense of familiarity, as if I had just checked back in with an old friend. All my tapes are friends in one or another, but some you just remember more fondly.<br />
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I knew going into this project to expect good things from the mixtapes I just mentioned, but it had completely slipped my mind just how much I had enjoyed <i>Vol. 22</i>. Over these past few volumes, I had increasingly more control over the sound and direction of my mixes and now it had gotten to the point where more than one-half of a side was dictated by my CD collection instead of the radio (That run on Side B from The Beatles to Fiona? All me). All in all, I have to say there weren't any embarrassing moments on this one.<br />
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<b>Okay, maybe at least one embarrassing moment: Ricky Martin-Shake Your Bon Bon</b><br />
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One thing I'm starting to realize after going back to these tapes is that Ricky Martin's music was pretty overrated, which can often be lost in the midst of the buzz and glow of the late 90s <a href="http://articles.latimes.com/2004/aug/15/entertainment/ca-gurza15">Latino Explosion</a>. After his breakout North American performance at the <a href="http://www.blogger.com/www.youtube.com/watch?v=if4CekZnY6I%E2%80%8E">1999 Grammys</a>, Ricky Martin's stock was at an all-time high and everyone was buying. The only thing is that none of his subsequent songs matched the electricity of "La Copa de la Vida," but most people were too polite to admit it. I'll admit to "Livin' La Vida Loca" having its moments, but it doesn't hold up that well. "Shake Your Bon Bon" is not quite as redeeming. I used to think it was kind of catchy, but deep down inside, I knew it was unforgivably corny.<br />
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<i>I'm a desperado <br />
Underneath your window<br />
I see your silhouette<br />
Are you my Juliet<br />
I feel a mad connection<br />
With your body</i><br />
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And this is how I decided to kick off Side A.<br />
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<b>Obligatory song that time has forgotten: Jimmie's Chicken Shack-Do Right</b><br />
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I always found it hard to take these guys seriously because of their name. I'd see it and think, "Oh, they probably have tons of crappy songs." But here's the thing: "Do Right" is the only track of theirs that I've heard. And it's pretty good! I used to love the crunch of that chorus with harmonies that sounded more sophisticated than anything that has the combination of the words, "Jimmie," "chicken" or "shack" should be associated with it.<br />
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<b>Song that I wish more people knew about: Smash Mouth-Then The Morning Comes</b><br />
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It's lonely being a fan of <i>Astro Lounge</i>, Smash Mouth's second album. Everyone is still fatigued from "All-Star" to this day and coupled with the success of "Walkin' On The Sun," it's incredibly easy to dismiss the band as a throwaway act from the late '90s. Part of me thought that they were just a fluff band that was good for a fun moment or two. I believed that up until I gave <i>Astro Lounge</i> a listen and I found out they were full of more fun moments than I could count. It still wasn't anything deep, but it was radio-ready pop/rock of a pretty high caliber and it always made me smile. "Then The Morning Comes" was basically them getting their <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oc7b62El_fk%E2%80%8E" target="_blank">Zombies on</a> and stuck closely to the '60s-influences sound they made their name on. What I really loved was the transition of the pre-chorus going into the chorus. A good pre-chorus is always a pleasant surprise for me and it still is to this day. For instance, you order what you think is just going to be a nice sorbet and you're perfectly fine with that. It's going to be delicious and with just the right texture. And then *BOOM*: they bring it out and it has a cookie on top, which you weren't expecting at all. Back in 1999, the chorus for "Then The Morning Comes" was the cookie on top of my sorbet. <br />
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<b>Song that only gets sexier over time: Fiona Apple-Slow Like Honey</b><br />
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It's no secret that I had an affinity for songs that were fitting for a stalker's soundtrack (or "one with deep yearning" is the term I probably would have preferred back then). Alt radio hits like <a href="http://mixedreaction.blogspot.com/2011/11/collection-vol-6-summer-1998.html" target="_blank">"Walking After You,"</a> <a href="http://mixedreaction.blogspot.com/2013/03/the-collection-vol-19-summer-1999.html" target="_blank">"Crash Into Me,"</a> and <a href="http://mixedreaction.blogspot.com/2012/01/collection-vol-10-winter-1998.html" target="_blank">"Got You (Where I Want You)"</a> spoke to me because it felt like all I knew how to do back then was admire from a distance. "Slow Like Honey" was never a single, but I felt it went deeper with its obsesssion than anything that was on the radio at the time.<br />
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<i>You'll remember me like a melody <br />
Yeah I'll haunt the world inside you<br />
Gonna win you over <br />
Slow like honey<br />
Heavy with mood</i><br />
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What also added that extra bit of stalker quality to it was the low tone that Fiona sang in. It was filled with pure lust and determination, something that I was certainly sympathetic to. Just the way the intensity increased during that last chorus was enough to make you want to bite your lip. I was an Apple fan prior to buying <i>Tidal</i> and only being familiar with the singles, but "Slow Like Honey" might have been the beginning of me truly falling in love with her music. <br />
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<b>Song that made me feel like I had plenty of years of good music from Lauryn Hill to look forward to: Santana feat. Lauryn Hill & Cee-Lo-Do You Like The Way</b><br />
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There was an aura of calm whenever I thought about this song. The world just made that much more sense. Of course Lauryn Hill would drop a good verse and compose a melody that could have easily been a holdover from <i>Miseducation</i>. Of course Carlos Santana would be a part of something so contemporary after having released singles with Robb Thomas and Everlast. And of course Cee-Lo had an incredible voice! Overall, I think was happiest about Cee-Lo getting an incredible amount of exposure from being on <i>Supernatural</i>. Looking at his success now, his first flirtation with the mainstream started with this track and at a time when he was still known primarily as a rapper. Everything about this song simply felt right and I supported it 100% because it was how things should have been in 1999. I had no idea at the time that this would be one of Lauryn Hill's last great recordings. I try to stay away from current music talk on this blog, but facts are facts, folks. <br />
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<b>Song that made everything in the world feel just a little more epic: The Beatles-Good Morning, Good Morning</b><br />
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I haven't really had the chance to talk about how important of an album <i>Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band</i> was to me. For starters, it was the first Beatles album I ever owned. I was starting to tap into the mystique that had been constantly presented to me, thanks to the rock canon. Everything I read was telling me that they were special and I was starting to find out why. <i>Sgt. Pepper's</i> was such a lush and imaginative world, filled with treats both audio and visual. Just about every song had colorful imagery I could play with and there was always something new to discover whenever I listened to it on my headphones. As far as "Good Morning, Good Morning" was concerned, I don't think I had heard anything as frantic so late in an album up until that point in my life. It gave the CD a second wind right before the finish and made the whole experience feel climatic. When it got to those rhythm changes, I could feel the world moving in a spiral as John Lennon rapidly jumped from thought to thought. It made my pulse pick up the pace on more than a few occasions. <br />
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<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/lzhSbBftWtk" width="320"></iframe>Ivanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04786658818562297429noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-578658545326343306.post-28092403135384379142013-05-30T11:01:00.000-05:002013-05-30T11:01:36.492-05:00The Collection Vol. 21 (Summer 1999)<a href='http://lh4.ggpht.com/-9xVQoizXXac/UZmGw5UXmyI/AAAAAAAABko/ZU_v-eyxGGA/s1600/2013-05-19%25252021.09.58.jpg' imageanchor='1' style='margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;'> <img border='0' src='http://lh4.ggpht.com/-9xVQoizXXac/UZmGw5UXmyI/AAAAAAAABko/ZU_v-eyxGGA/s320/2013-05-19%25252021.09.58.jpg' /> </a><br />
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<p><b>Side A</b></p><p>Juvenile-Back That Thang Up<br />
Alanis Morrisette-So Pure<br />
Chris Gaines-Right Now<br />
Missy Elliott feat. Big Boi-All N My Grill<br />
Red Hot Chili Peppers-All Around The World<br />
Jamiroquai-Canned Heat<br />
Metallica-Nothing Else Matters<br />
Long Beach Dub All-Stars-Trailer Ras <br />
LFO-Summer Girls<br />
Mariah Carey feat. Jay-Z-Heartbreaker<br />
Britney Spears-(You Drive Me) Crazy<br />
Beck-Sing It Again</p><p><b>Side B</b></p><p>Radiohead-Airbag <br />
Sublime-Garden Grove<br />
The Beatles-Lucy In The Sky With Diamonds<br />
DMX-No Love 4 Me<br />
The Roots-Table of Contents 1 & 2<br />
Nine Inch Nails-We're In This Together<br />
Lou Bega-Mambo No. 5<br />
311-Come Original<br />
Traffic-Dear Mr. Fantasy<br />
Chemical Brothers-Music: Response<br />
Limp Bizkit-Rearranged<br />
</p><p>I can easily tell this tape was made some time in August. With my birthday money, I went to North Riverside Mall and bought three CDs: Red Hot Chili Peppers' <i>Californication</i>, Sublime's self-titled album and Radiohead's <i>OK Computer</i>. Along with Beck's <i>Mutations</i>, Jamiroquai's <i>Synkronized</i>, The Chemical Brothers' <i>Surrender</i>, Limp Bizkit's <i>Significant Other</i> (which I didn't purchase, mind you) and The Beatles' <i>Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band</i>, my CD collection was starting to grow. This became apparent in a big way, starting with Vol. 21 of <i>The Collection</i>.</p><a name='more'></a><br />
<b>Song that made me feel as if I had finally caught up to the kids at school: Sublime-Garden Grove</b><br />
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Sublime’s self-titled album was released all the way back in 1996. Yes, it was 1999 and there were no longer any singles in rotation at that point, but it didn't matter at all. Back then, if an album had three or more singles that I really liked, I wanted to buy it regardless of whether it was current or not. <i>Sublime</i> fit the requirements and although I was three years behind, I was content nonetheless. All the random lyrics and melodies I had heard sung in class and through the hallways were now starting to become familiar. I was not only happy to finally have the album in my possession, but to be in the loop as well.<br />
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<b>Speaking of Sublime, here’s the spotlight on a long-forgotten song: Long Beach Dub All-Stars-Trailer Ras</b><br />
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If I recall correctly, this was the project that the remaining members of Sublime started after lead singer Bradley Nowell passed away. It unsurprisingly sounded very Sublime-y, which made me very happy whenever it came on the radio. I think they did his legacy proud with this song.<br />
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<b>What the hell was I thinking: Chris Gaines-Right Now</b><br />
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I’m almost positive that this is the worst song on any volume of <i>The Collection</i>. Look through some past posts and some of you may disagree. I’m aware that I've championed some things that may not exactly paint me as the portrait of being hip (but then again, if you have indeed read some of these posts, you’d understand that clearly was never my goal), yet for the life of me, I don't think there is a single bone in my body that can defend this song. At the time, I was probably intrigued by the novelty of Garth Brooks doing pop and being on a radio station that I actually listened to. I also probably thought the whisper-rap thing was kind of neat. Now that I think about it, I was never that fond of the chorus back then either. I likely hit the record button because of just how unique the whole Chris Gaines thing was. That has to be it. I don’t understand how I could in my right mind place such a corny, abysmal attempt at being socially conscious on here. I'm sure Garth's heart was in the right place and I can respect that, but this song has absolutely no redeeming qualities.<br />
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<b>Okay, Ivan. Not only are you being a hypocrite, you’re also being confusing: Lou Bega-Mambo No. 5</b><br />
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One thing you had to have understood about my listening habits was that I pretty much had the radio on nonstop, so I was able to latch onto songs right before they went into heavy rotation. My feelings toward “Mambo No. 5" were very sincere. I thought that it was a goofy song with a little bit of swagger and a catchy chorus. I didn't take it seriously and I was pretty positive that neither did Lou Bega. The 1990s were filled with quirky dance pop stuff and it's not my fault that I liked a song that would eventually go on to annoy millions. I simply refuse to apologize for that. It would be a while before I even the video for this, so the images that came into my mind during the first verse were just about the funniest, silliest and most outrageous thing my imagination could cook up at the time. They’re bouncing up and down! They’re going to the liquor store around the corner and buying life-size bottles of alcohol! There are lots of beautiful women clapping and swaying! And my goodness, the colors! I loved replaying those moments whenever this song came on. That's what “Mambo No. 5" did for me.<br />
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<b>Song that confirmed all that reading about music had paid off: Traffic-Dear Mr. Fantasy</b><br />
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If you noticed in the image for the tracklisting at the top of this post, I wrote down Traffic, but not the name of this song. I really don't recall the DJ saying the name of the song, but just based on gut instinct, it felt like a Traffic song. I had never heard a Traffic song in my life, but I was aware of their existence from just reading magazines and finding their names on all-time lists. My knowledge of classic rock was by no means extensive at this point, but I knew enough to make educated guesses. If you had played "Whipping Post" for '99 Ivan and asked him who the artist was, he would have probably selected Allman Brothers after five or so tries based on the fact it sounded like Southern rock and he had read somewhere that they were known for playing that type of music. I didn't confirm that "Dear Mr. Fantasy" was a Traffic song until years later, but I'm sure I probably felt a little justified.<br />
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<b>Song that reminds me the most of science class: Chemical Brothers-Music: Response</b><br />
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We had to split into groups of two for presentations and I was partnered with another guy. He was a good fella: bright, friendly, mostly quiet, had a sense of humor when he opened up. Since this was for science, my main contribution to the presentation was the idea that we have a song playing in the background. The presentation was to last five minutes, so I thought that "Music: Response" gave us enough time and provided enough pizzazz to keep our classmates interested. I played him the song from my mixtape and he was onboard. The presentation went well. I think the music gave us that extra bit of adrenaline and I had never seen him so confident and pronounced when talking about something. He became a new man through the power of The Chemical Brothers and for that I was grateful. <br />
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<iframe width="320" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/iVsL3EX7384" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>Ivanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04786658818562297429noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-578658545326343306.post-8176377483109388022013-04-23T16:39:00.000-05:002013-04-23T16:39:47.258-05:00The Collection Vol. 20 (Spring 1999)<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://lh4.ggpht.com/-uSYqmXrtU-8/UWOZgYXjq7I/AAAAAAAABkE/AH7ygklKViY/s1600/2013-04-08%25252023.13.06.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"> <img border="0" src="http://lh4.ggpht.com/-uSYqmXrtU-8/UWOZgYXjq7I/AAAAAAAABkE/AH7ygklKViY/s320/2013-04-08%25252023.13.06.jpg" /> </a> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://lh3.ggpht.com/-YSr5z_rqtSg/UWOZknDB_kI/AAAAAAAABkM/WFu4sGUC970/s1600/2013-04-08%25252023.13.53.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"> <img border="0" src="http://lh3.ggpht.com/-YSr5z_rqtSg/UWOZknDB_kI/AAAAAAAABkM/WFu4sGUC970/s320/2013-04-08%25252023.13.53.jpg" /> </a> </div><br />
<b>Side A</b><br />
The Beatles-Getting Better<br />
Fastball-Out Of My Head<br />
Redman-Let Da Monkey Out<br />
Smashing Pumpkins-Muzzle<br />
Sly & The Family Stone-Everyday People<br />
The Jackson Five-ABC <br />
Shawn Colvin-Sunny Came Home<br />
Kid Rock-Bawitdaba<br />
Live-The Dolphins Cry<br />
Buckcherry-For The Movies <br />
snippet of Dire Straits' "Money For Nothing"<br />
Santana feat. Rob Thomas-Smooth<br />
Smashing Pumpkins-Lily (My One & Only)<br />
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<b>Side B</b><br />
Mary J. Blige-All That I Can Say<br />
The Cranberries-Linger<br />
Sheryl Crow-My Favorite Mistake<br />
Nine Inch Nails-Starfuckers Inc.<br />
Blink 182-What's My Age Again?<br />
Garbage-#1 Crush<br />
Foo Fighters-Big Me<br />
Christina Aguilera-Genie In A Bottle<br />
Chris Isaak-Baby Did A Bad Bad Thing<br />
Len-Steal My Sunshine<br />
U2-Mysterious Ways<br />
Kid Rock-Cowboy<br />
The Beatles-A Day In The Life<br />
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I remember being in physics class and letting my lab partner look at one of the tracklists for my tapes (<a href="http://mixedreaction.blogspot.com/2012/01/collection-vol-9-fall-1998.html" target="_blank">Vol. 9, to be exact</a>) and her playfully giving her approval and disapproval one song at a time. To give you an idea of how our relationship worked, we sometimes flipped each other the bird in the hallways with straight faces initially and laughed about it right after. Her critique went something like this: "That's a cool one. That's cool. You put that on here? Hate that. They're cool. They're cool." <br />
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The one criticism she gave me that stood out was how random it was. "You can't follow up Cake with Barry White." Of course I can, I thought to myself! Only a passionate, open-minded, music-loving fanatic with taste as diverse as mine could stomach having genres crash into each other with very little care and gather enjoyment from it. My lab partner didn't know what she was talking about. I was being a typical defiant adolescent and just brushed it off.<br />
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Her words came back to me when I revisited this volume in the present day,<a name='more'></a> specifically when it went from "Muzzle" to "Everyday People." It never bothered me as a kid because I thought of it as two songs I loved that were back-to-back, but now it brought attention to itself through the lack of cohesion. When my lab partner pointed out the randomness, it was something that couldn't be helped since it was recorded off the radio. I used CDs for that transition between Smashing Pumpkins and Sly & The Family Stone, so this was all my doing. I unknowingly, yet purposely, implemented that awkward transition. <br />
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Around this time, I was starting to put more care into how I began and ended a side as I bought more CDs (in my mind, I was doing something totally epic by including "A Day In The Life" at the end of Side B), so I obviously cared a little bit about building tension. How long it was before I started to care more is a question that future posts will likely uncover.<br />
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<b>Song that became my motto based off of its first line: Smashing Pumpkins - Muzzle</b><br />
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"I fear that I am ordinary, just like everyone." Dear Billy Corgan, you nailed it. You got to the heart of me. When I was younger, I wanted anything but to be normal. I wanted to be an individual, different than those before and after me. There was no fun in being a conformist, but then again I can't think of many odes to being normal that sounded as anthemic as this. <br />
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<b>Another adult alternative song that I was late to the party on because I was young and stubborn: Shawn Colvin - Sunny Came Home</b><br />
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For someone who was actually pretty mature for their age, I just could not get into some of the softer modern rock that would often get played on WTMX (The Mix) until months after it had peaked. I was young and needed guitars, angst, love, boom and bap. If I didn't get either one of those immediately from a song, it at least had to have a good chorus and melody. I wasn't terribly opposed to "Sunny Came Home" at the time, but whenever I came across it on the radio, I always felt that I could find something better to record. Then I actually listened to it, found there actually was some angst by way of arson and deemed it acceptable.<br />
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<b>Let it be known that I think this is one of the greatest songs of the '90s and can debate anyone who thinks otherwise: Len - Steal My Sunshine</b><br />
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No one at school could believe I liked this song. On the surface, it was goofy, way too cheery and it had a white guy rapping, which was still seen as a negative back then even while Eminem valiantly fought against the tide. Sometimes as kids, embracing something with such a strong pop sound could be seen as a sign of weakness or lack of hipness, which is why I think "Steal My Sunshine" caused such a negative reaction in some of my circles. Still, if it's purpose was to make you smile yourself silly while giving you something to hum along to easily, few songs did it better during the decade than this one. I hate the notion that all songs need serious content for us to accept it publicly. Till my dying day, I will stand faithfully by "Steal My Sunshine," for the simple fact that I have two ears and I like fun.<br />
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<b>And while I'm in a defensive mood...: Kid Rock - Cowboy</b><br />
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Another attribute of music that the general public won't champion is if it's presented in a manner they feel is lowbrow, which is also idiotic to me. The one question I always ask people concerning a song is "How does it make you feel?" I ask that to get past any preconceived notions or prior knowledge that might impact one's judgment. Regardless of what you've been conditioned to think will make you acceptable in front of your peers or who is singing, that question is the only thing that should matter once the song is over. If I wanted to maintain my "integrity," I had every legit reason to not be a fan of Kid Rock. His rhyme skills were elementary and he made music for numbskulls. Still, "Cowboy" made me feel something the first time I heard it. It was probably how Rock so effortlessly inhabited the character of sleazy Midwestern pimp trying to make a quick buck out west. Another unwritten rule I have about music is not to get too caught up in what is being said, but how it's being said. The execution in the music itself is something that should never be taken lightly. "Cowboy" was pretty refreshing at the time with its mix of Southern rock, hip hop and Western cues. The line that won me over came during the third verse: "I ain't no G, I'm just a regular failure/I ain't straight outta Compton, I'm straight out the trailer." I've never stepped foot inside a trailer park before in my life, but there was so much pride and bravado in that delivery that I couldn't help but get excited. It was such a great statement because it summed him up perfectly. I became a fan in that moment. <br />
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<b>Not that I feel the need to defend my taste, but I think we can ALL agree this is definitely one of the best songs of the '90s: The Cranberries - Linger</b><br />
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What would one of these mixtapes be without a song of deep longing and pining? While "Linger" was a much older song by this time, its effect was still strong. Part of what made it one of the best songs of the 1990s was that it took that longing and pining to a level that few on MTV could match. I felt for Dolores O'Riordan every time the chorus came around: "You know I'm such a fool for you/You've got me wrapped around your finger." Add the strings along with that sorrow-filled voice and the melancholy was undeniable. It's still one of the most beautiful songs I've ever heard.<br />
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<b>I still haven't seen Eyes Wide Shut, but I was pretty much convinced that it would be the greatest movie ever based on this song in the trailer: Chris Isaak - Baby Did A Bad Bad Thing</b><br />
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Speaks for itself.<br />
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<iframe width="320" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/NIAneEiWEJ4" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>Ivanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04786658818562297429noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-578658545326343306.post-33887538584131881552013-03-22T16:17:00.001-05:002013-03-22T16:17:13.388-05:00The Collection Vol. 19 (Summer 1999)<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://lh5.ggpht.com/-96io02g9tpA/UQfI69JezOI/AAAAAAAABjk/WvY-CpIgHyc/s1600/2013-01-29%25252006.58.12.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"> <img border="0" src="http://lh5.ggpht.com/-96io02g9tpA/UQfI69JezOI/AAAAAAAABjk/WvY-CpIgHyc/s320/2013-01-29%25252006.58.12.jpg" /> </a> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://lh6.ggpht.com/-9pB9kpd13hg/UQfI_VABnnI/AAAAAAAABjs/axUEwKeu-Kg/s1600/2013-01-29%25252006.58.27.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"> <img border="0" src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/-9pB9kpd13hg/UQfI_VABnnI/AAAAAAAABjs/axUEwKeu-Kg/s320/2013-01-29%25252006.58.27.jpg" /> </a> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://lh4.ggpht.com/-i_Exzxp3ggU/UQfJDTeXrdI/AAAAAAAABj0/z9iFXZCaX-Q/s1600/2013-01-29%25252006.59.12.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"> <img border="0" src="http://lh4.ggpht.com/-i_Exzxp3ggU/UQfJDTeXrdI/AAAAAAAABj0/z9iFXZCaX-Q/s320/2013-01-29%25252006.59.12.jpg" /> </a> </div><br />
<b>Side A</b><br />
Jordan Knight-Give It To You<br />
Crystal Method-Busy Child<br />
Paul McCartney & Wings-Nineteen Hundred and Eighty Five<br />
The Chemical Brothers feat. Noel Gallagher-Let Forever Be<br />
The Guess Who-No Sugar Tonight/New Mother Nature<br />
Puya-Oasis<br />
Whitney Houston-It's Not Right (But It's Okay)<br />
Trick Daddy feat. Trina-Nann <br />
Moby-Bodyrock <br />
Rammstein-Du Hast<br />
Busta Rhymes-Gimme Some More<br />
Busta Rhymes-Party Is Goin' On In Here<br />
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<b>Side B</b><br />
Outkast-Rosa Parks<br />
Outkast-SpottieOttieDopalicious<br />
Dave Matthews Band-Crash Into Me<br />
Chamber Brothers-Time<br />
The Beatles-Within You Without You<br />
Rob Zombie-Dragula<br />
Beastie Boys-Hey Ladies<br />
Robbie Williams-Millennium<br />
Limp Bizkit-Nookie <br />
Sugar Ray-Someday<br />
Bree Sharp-David Duchovny<br />
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I get a warm feeling whenever I look at the tracklist for <i>The Collection Vol. 19</i>, and not because of the season it was created in. It feels and sounds like home. My mind is so in sync with these tapes that whenever I hear one of these songs today outside of this context, I'm expecting the next tune on a certain mixtape to follow. Having said that, there were few surprised as I listened to this one because it was that big a part of me. The previous summer was defined for me by <i>Vol. 6</i> and just by going off memory alone, I think this volume might have reigned over the summer of 1999 for me. <a name='more'></a><br />
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<b>Song that introduced me to 2-step before I even knew what 2-step was: Jordan Knight - Give It To You</b><br />
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I never bought Jordan Knight as a convincing sex symbol. Especially held up with the video, I thought his dancing was a bit vanilla and his promises of "giving it to you" was just too obvious a come-on that it made me feel like he could make nary a bedspring squeak. Yet, the production itself was undeniable (Jimmy Jam & Terry Lewis, which I would later discover) and there's absolutely nothing wrong with the song. Knight is actually pretty serviceable here, but it's all about the Timbaland-lite beat during the verse and surprising switch to 2-step for the chorus, which sounded amazingly fresh to me back in 1999. <br />
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<b>Song that made me realize that the Dirty South was probably going to be around for a while: Trick Daddy - Nann</b><br />
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Admittedly, I was a bit slow to warm up to the new wave of Southern hip hop. I had long been a fan of Outkast and The Geto Boys, but having grown up surrounded by the music of the East Coast, I was automatically inclined to reject anything that sounded like it was having too much fun. What I and many stubborn hip hop fans saw as silly or lacking lyrically was really just a new approach that was as innovative as some of the best stuff around at the time. <br />
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<b>Song I didn't like until I realized how stalker-ish they lyrics were: Dave Matthews Band - Crash Into Me</b> <br />
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At this point, I never had any issues with Dave Matthews Band and I was surprised as I got older that they were reviled in some corners. I had enjoyed each of their singles, but could not get on board with "Crash Into Me." This was usually the case with slower songs and it also sounded too much like an adult contemporary song for my taste, so it was quickly dismissed. Fast-forward to the summer and I'm watching the video on MTV on a show where the lyrics scrolled along at the bottom of the screen. It was the first time I had even really paid attention to the words and once I found out how creepy it was, I began to like it. Basically, if a song had anything to do with voyeurism, I was intrigued as a kid.<br />
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<b>The song is fantastic and all, but seriously, it has one of the greatest music videos of all-time: Chemical Brothers - Let Forever Be</b><br />
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I missed out on <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p5NX1FC-7-w" target="_blank">"Setting Sun"</a> the first time around, so the novelty of Noel Gallagher working with The Chemical Brothers was pretty mind-blowing to me at the time. Add to that, it sounded like a modern-day version of "Tomorrow Never Knows" and the buzz I felt was undeniable. Also, still my favorite to this day. Don't believe me, just watch. <br />
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<b>Song that I didn't get why everyone hated it until I got older: Limp Bizkit - Nookie</b><br />
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To such an eclectic-leaning kid such as myself, the idea of mixing heavy metal guitar with rap was pretty exciting. I could now show some of my friends that not all rock music was weird. You can bob your head to it! He's not screeching on the chorus! This guy's wearing his cap backwards just like you! At the time, just about every review of Limp Bizkit I read was negative and I simply thought the critics didn't get it or were too afraid to embrace something with a heavy sound. Looking back, I can now understand how juvenile this song was, but I'll be damned if Wes Borland's guitar work to this day still doesn't bring out the goofball side of me. <br />
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<b>Minor hit that I have to put a mandatory spotlight on because who else is going to keep the memory alive: Bree Sharp - David Duchovny</b><br />
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The first time I was aware that there was a song called "David Duchovny," I might have had a bit of skepticism, but also a good deal of excitment. After all, <i>The X-Files</i> was appointment television for me every Sunday night, so the fact that anyone else wanted to acknowledge the show outside of the two or three people at school I talked to about it was a big deal. But could a song called "David Duchovny" actually be worth my time? I wanted to believe. I fell in love with that chorus immediately because I thought it was just the most adorable thing what Sharp used to rhyme with Duchovny. It was catchy and she was obviously an X-phile, which earned the song an immediate place on <i>The Collection</i>. <br />
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<b>Song that I was convinced was the coolest thing I ever heard in my life at the time: Outkast - SpottieOttieDopalicious</b>s<br />
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<i>Aquemeni</i> was another one of those CDs that I used from my brother, hence why there are two Outkast songs back-to-back on here. Since I had no idea of when the CD would be laying around the house next, I took whatever opportunity I had to get as many songs in as I could while making the mixtape still appear diverse. I obviously knew that "Rosa Parks" would be on there, but I also had to have track 12. That's how I initially knew "SpottieOttieDopalicious." Our school drama club was having another wrap party and I was helping out with the music. Kids left their CDs with us in the sound booth and we just played music from that selection. I think I had popped in <i>Aquemeni</i> to play "Rosa Parks" and midway through the song, one of my friends came up to the booth and motioned for me to play track 12. I obliged and proceeded to have my young mind blown. Stuff like this wasn't supposed to be on a hip hop album, but it made sense that a group as out there as Outkast would have a dub song with blaring horns on their album. I watched from the booth as people swayed and bobbed to the song and I knew that I had to listen to it in a proper setting.<br />
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<b>Song I didn't know what the title of until this year: Puya - Oasis</b><br />
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Nowadays, it doesn't bother me as much whenever I hear a song on the radio and the DJ doesn't say its name. I know that now in the 21st century that there are enough resources around that all I need to do is either remember a few lines from the song or simply hold my phone up in the air. Things weren't so easy back in 1999. Add a song completely sung in Spanish and things get more complicated. For the longest I thought that this was some long lost Bradley Nowell song. Thank God for Shazam. <br />
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Ivanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04786658818562297429noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-578658545326343306.post-7955901015644308152013-03-06T13:53:00.003-06:002013-03-06T13:53:48.781-06:00An update on the blogGreetings to everyone. It has been a while since I've made a post on Mixed Reaction, mainly because I was busy with my other blog Hectic But Eclectic working on <a href="http://h-b-e.blogspot.com/search/label/best%20of%202012" target="_blank">year end stuff for 2012</a>, which I usually start preparing for in the fall. Along with life happenings in general, it was unfortunate that I had to keep putting off this blog. With things starting to slow down a bit, I should be able to update here at least once a month from here on out. There are way too many tapes in my possession to stop now and I look forward to sharing them all with you. Look for the first new post soon.Ivanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04786658818562297429noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-578658545326343306.post-89791010148133428432012-09-04T17:26:00.003-05:002013-03-06T09:53:22.416-06:00The Collection Vol. 18 (Summer 1999)<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-iOozOf6NwJo/UA-BBeWV7jI/AAAAAAAABao/kIvrb6boJpc/s1600/2012-07-24%2B23.55.12.jpg" imageanchor="1"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-iOozOf6NwJo/UA-BBeWV7jI/AAAAAAAABao/kIvrb6boJpc/s320/2012-07-24%2B23.55.12.jpg" width="320" /></a><br />
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<b>Side A</b> <br />
<br />
Dave Matthews Band-What Would You Say <br />
The Roots-The Next Movement <br />
D'Angelo-Brown Sugar <br />
Stevie Wonder-Isn't She Lovely? <br />
Beck-Cold Brains <br />
Beastie Boys-Threw MCs & One DJ <br />
Beastie Boys-Song For The Man <br />
Soundgarden-Burden In My Hand <br />
Led Zeppelin-D'yer Ma'ker <br />
Jamiroquai-Use The Force <br />
Pearl Jam-Last Kiss <br />
Beck-Nobody's Fault But My Own <br />
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<br />
<b>Side B</b> <br />
<br />
Jamiroquai-Virtual Insanity <br />
Red Hot Chili Peppers-Scar Tissue <br />
snippet of John Mellencamp's "Jack & Diane" <br />
Lauryn Hill-Everything Is Everything <br />
Madonna-Candy Perfume Girl <br />
Lenny Kravitz-American Woman <br />
Ricky Martin-Livin'La Vida Loca <br />
Stone Temple Pilots-Trippin' On A Hole In A Paper Heart <br />
Madonna-Beautiful Stranger <br />
The Who-Eminence Front <br />
Hole-Doll Parts <br />
snippet of Portishead's "Sour Times (Nobody Loves Me)" <br />
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There are a few repeats on this volume, not because I had started running out of songs, but I just wanted to improve on the quality of some I had recorded before. Some of the beneficiaries of this were <a href="http://mixedreaction.blogspot.com/2011/09/integrity-musics-scripture-memory-songs.html" target="_blank">"Trippin' On A Hole In A Paper Heart,"</a> <a href="http://mixedreaction.blogspot.com/2011/08/memorex-dbs-1-summerfall-1996.html" target="_blank">"Virtual Insanity,"</a> and <a href="http://mixedreaction.blogspot.com/2011/09/integrity-musics-scripture-memory-songs.html" target="_blank">"Burden In My Hand"</a>, where I didn't catch the songs in their entirety the first time around. In the case of Jamiroquai, I used the album version since I had recently bought <i>Travelling Without Moving</i> and saw this as my chance at retribution.<br />
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My CD collection (not counting my brother's) was now at a total of five with the addition of Beck's <i>Mutations</i> as well. One of the tendencies I had when I was younger was my anxiety about going into stores or restaurants I had never been into before, which would partly explain why I started so late in buying my own music. I became more comfortable with the K-Mart by our place, which naturally led to a few new CDs per month, as you'll probably pick up on as these posts go on.<a href="http://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=578658545326343306" name="more"></a><br />
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The biggest change now was that my mixtapes also included album tracks from genres outside of hip hop and I like to think that it gave things a more intimate appeal. No longer was <i>The Collection</i> just solely dominated by radio, but it would also include little heard favorites from albums I bought with my own money. There were times I couldn't believe that I had as many five CDs in my collection. Every time I looked at them, I felt like a rich man. <br />
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<b>Song that would make me incredibly giddy and try my best to imitate dances from the 1960s: Madonnna-Beautiful Stranger</b><br />
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It's no secret that I was a sucker for songs where the singer is pining for someone, so that would already put "Beautiful Stranger" up by a few points. On top of that, you got Madonna and William Orbit's take on psychedelia through a bouncy pop lens and it all came off as eclectic fun in the typical '90s way. It's still one of my favorite Madge songs to this day.<br />
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<b>Song that made me go "Boo yah! That's why this guy's my favorite artist.": Beck-Nobody's Fault But My Own</b><br />
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By the time <i>Odelay</i> fell into my possession, Beck was absolutely The Guy in my world. Nearly every track from the album resonated with my ears and I was proud to call him among my favorites. I had seen him perform "Nobody's Fault But My Own" on Saturday Night Live before I bought <i>Mutations</i> and thought highly of it, but when I finally listened to the recorded version, it didn't just feel like one of the most beautiful songs that Beck had done up until that point, but just one of the most beautiful songs from 1998 in general. For the longest, I thought this was his greatest vocal performance until his cover of <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EBo4Sy8FxMc" target="_blank">"I Only Have Eyes For You"</a> came along a few months ago. I had yet to cause any kind of serious distress in a relationship, but every time I listened to this song, I felt like I had done somebody wrong.<br />
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<b>Song that often makes go "Aww, how cute!": Led Zeppelin-D'yer Ma'ker</b><br />
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Why does "D'yer Ma'ker" always make me go "Aww?" For me, I think it's a pretty sincere stab at reggae, but the execution is not quite there because of the simple fact that it sounds like a hard rock band stepping out of their comfort zone by doing reggae, which is exactly what it is. With the drum breaks and the guitar riff, you can hear them trying so hard and although it's still enjoyable, it lacks any hints of the nuances associated with reggae. Try dancing to it and you'll see what I mean.<br />
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<b>Another song that also gave me confidence in one of my favorite artists: Red Hot Chili Peppers-Scar Tissue</b><br />
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From about 1991 to 1999, the Chili Peppers were probably among my top 10 acts, even through the Dave Navarro experiment. Sadly, this hasn't been the case in recent years as I have gradually been able to find myself unable to defend their newer stuff. If I had known "Scar Tissue" was going to be the beginning of the end, maybe I wouldn't have been as happy. Back in 1999, I really couldn't help my excitement with this song, even if it was more laid back than what one would expect from a lead single. It was a bit of curveball because instead of just giving me something to mindlessly funky to bop around to, I became drawn into the story of the song and its imagery, which made me love the Chili Peppers that much more because they were still able to surprise me. Good times. <br />
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<b>Song that showed me what true angst was about: Hole-Doll Parts</b><br />
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I remember watching this video with my sister in her room back in '94 and the one remaining comment from her that still sticks with me to this day was "She sounds like she wants to kill herself." When she said that, it somehow made Courtney Love seem that much cooler. When she sang "I am doll parts/bad skin," it was about as ragged a delivery I had yet to hear in my young life. Maybe it was the visual of how worn down and decayed she looked in the video, but Love and "Doll Parts" became the epitome of angst on MTV for me in the mid-'90s, which is saying a lot considering how mopey a lot of the hits were at the time. <br />
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<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/RD9xK9smth4" width="320"></iframe> Ivanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04786658818562297429noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-578658545326343306.post-11689976526234564642012-06-28T19:00:00.001-05:002013-03-06T09:56:43.658-06:00The Collection Vol. 17 (Spring 1999)<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-PemosQZSRqg/T9a7_fOI_-I/AAAAAAAABaI/iC7lNUpwntU/s1600/2012-06-11%2B22.08.43.jpg" imageanchor="1"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-PemosQZSRqg/T9a7_fOI_-I/AAAAAAAABaI/iC7lNUpwntU/s320/2012-06-11%2B22.08.43.jpg" width="320" /></a><br />
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<b>Side A</b><br />
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Korn-Freak On A Leash<br />
Hole-Awful<br />
DMX-The Prayer<br />
Redman-Da Da DaHHH!<br />
Notorious B.I.G. feat. Puff Daddy & Mase-Mo' Money Mo' Problems<br />
The Lox-Not To Be Fucked Wit<br />
Madonna-Drowned World/Substitute For Love<br />
Barenaked Ladies-Call and Answer<br />
Lauryn Hill-Every Ghetto, Every City<br />
Beastie Boys-The Negotiation Limerick File<br />
Madonna-Little Star<br />
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<b>Side B</b><br />
Slick Rick-Bedtime Story<br />
New Radicals-Someday We'll Know<br />
Busta Rhymes feat. Janet Jackson-What's It Gonna Be?<br />
Fatboy Slim-The Rockafella Skank<br />
En Vogue-Giving Him Something He Can Feel<br />
The Allman Brothers Band-In Memory of Elizabeth Reed<br />
Blaque-808<br />
Jimi Hendrix Experience-The Wind Cries Mary<br />
Underworld-Push Upstairs<br />
Godsmack-Whatever<br />
Metallica-The Unforgiven<br />
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For the most part, my mixtapes were enjoyed in a solitary fashion, which probably explains why I was always so eager to share them at a moment's notice. It's a habit that still sticks with me today, but I do it more out of necessity now. Back then, it was more opportunistic and anticipatory. If I knew there was going to be a gathering of some sort, I would bring at least a few tapes in my pocket, regardless of how bulky they made my pants look.<br />
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On this occasion, my friends went to a party that one of their classmates was throwing. I remember being quite fond of this classmate because she knew who Sublime were and had the Hooverphonic album on cassette nestled in the back of her car. I thought we had an instant connection. It didn't take much to impress me back then. <br />
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Growing up on the West Side, I always cherished those moments whenever I found someone who listened to music outside of the normal hip hop and R&B that dominated the neighborhood. This was rare territory and I was instantly smitten. <br />
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I would have loved to have been able to sit down with her while one of my mixtapes played and just find out more about her, but that never became a reality at the party. I mostly stuck with my friends and when there was a desire for a change of pace in the music, I brought up my mixtape, which I had already queued up ready to go starting with DMX and ending with The Lox.<br />
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The hosts allowed me to play my tape and my friends felt more comfortable that they were listening to music that they recognized. Of course, I ran like hell to stop the tape once the opening of the Madonna song came on, but overall, no one complained since the crowd got some Biggie out of it. <br />
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<b>Song whose artist and title remained a complete mystery to me until about two years ago: The Allman Brothers Band - In Memory of Alice Reed</b><br />
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It was hard enough trying to find the title of a song back in the late 90s, especially since the Internet had yet to enter its 2.0 phase. Resources were limited (hello Alta Vista) and you had to either hope you'd hear it again or knew someone that already did. The few occasions where I recorded a song without having heard it before would usually come from the oldies or classic rock stations. There would either be something about the groove or the guitar sound that let the record button give way to my instincts. When this happened, I could make a halfway decent guess as to who the artist was by using context clues and lyrics from the song, but with "In Memory of Alice Reed" being an instrumental, I was clueless, hence why its spot on the tracklist has still remained blank thirteen years later.<br />
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<b>Another song that came highly recommended by my brother: The Lox - Not To Be Fucked Wit</b><br />
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I just remarked to a friend the other day that the late 90s was an amazing time for hip hop. You could walk into a record store each week and expect to find a CD worth buying and not even have to think hard about it. There was a lot to be excited about at the time and it was simply an abundance of product to be bought. My brother was one of those guys who bought a CD seemingly every week, which meant that nearly each week or every other one, he had a new favorite song to share with me. What really appealed to him on this track was just how matter of fact the chorus was stated: "Who's not to be fucked wit?/That's me." It was grimey and straight to the point, like a lot of stuff coming out of New York at the time. I couldn't see the appeal at first because I felt it moved too slow to me, but after a while, I was able to see it for how hardcore it was. <br />
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<b>Song that ignited maternal feelings that I never knew were there: Madonna - Drowned World/Substitute For Love</b><br />
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I liked my songs emotional. That's nothing new. If the singer laid it all on the line and the lyrics resonated with me, I was pretty much all for it unless the guitars were too heavy. When it came to "Drowned World," I had nothing in common with it. I didn't have countless lovers all over the globe and I certainly wasn't a parent, but having known the Madonna persona for so long, it was shocking to hear her open up so much. I want to say that I might have been close to tears for one listen.<br />
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<b>Song I have a hard time believing I liked considering how the band turned out: Godsmack - Whatever</b><br />
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My affinity for Alice In Chains might be the only reason I ever liked this song. It's not like I had huge expectations for this band at all, but I started to dread the words "new Godsmack album" in later years because seemingly everything after lacked the tunefulness of "Whatever." Their presence makes me frown nowadays, but for one brief moment in time, I was happy to hear a Godsmack song on the radio. Even as I was listening to it for this post, I couldn't help but think how crunchy the hook for this song was as I tried to contain myself from starting a mosh pit on the train.<br />
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<b>Song that was so simple on the surface that I didn't realize how great it was until later: Fatboy Slim - The Rockafella Skank</b><br />
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For the longest, I used to think this song was just typical electronica goofball junk. That whole refrain seemed too jockish for me that I couldn't even look past the beauty of how the song built to a great climax. The surf guitars probably came off as corny to me and I couldn't take it seriously, until <a href="http://www.ew.com/ew/article/0,,286265,00.html" target="_blank">Entertainment Weekly included in their music year-end list for 1998</a>. For what I thought was a sub-standard song, I was initially shocked to see it on their list, but they described how it gave you a buzz and the next time I listened to it, I finally understood. I was so thrown off by a few elements that I really didn't pay attention to the sum of all the parts. Even now those parts that I was dismayed with are essential for me. The buzz hasn't faded since. <br />
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<b>Song that caused a brief confusion about drum machines: Blaque - 808</b><br />
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By the time I had gotten well acquainted with the <a href="http://www.myspace.com/beastieboys/music/songs/super-disco-breakin-explicit-32574620" target="_blank">Beastie Boys' "Super Disco Breakin',"</a> I was pretty sure what an 808 sounded like, thanks to them loudly proclaiming such. Then this song came along and I didn't hear anything resembling what I thought to be one on this track. I definitely heard a drum machine, but it sounded way too sleek to be the old school sound that the Beastie Boys were referencing. I just came to the conclusion Blaque were banking on the fact that their listeners already knew what an 808 was and thought it would be cool to draw a comparison to that and their lovin'. <br />
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<br />Ivanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04786658818562297429noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-578658545326343306.post-16043694114268954932012-05-29T06:00:00.000-05:002013-03-06T09:57:16.984-06:00The Collection Vol. 16 (Spring 1999)<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<b>Side A</b><br />
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Eric Clapton-Layla (Unplugged)<br />
Bush-Comedown<br />
Beastie Boys-The Move<br />
Lauryn Hill-Forgive Them Father<br />
Madonna-Ray Of Light<br />
Lit-My Own Worst Enemy<br />
Pearl Jam-Yellow Ledbetter<br />
Beastie Boys-I Don't Know<br />
Blur-Tender<br />
Monica-Don't Take It Personal (Just One Of Dem Days)<br />
Monica-Forever Always<br />
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<b>Side B</b><br />
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Madonna-Nothing Really Matters<br />
A Tribe Called Quest-Electric Relaxation<br />
Lauryn Hill-Final Hour<br />
Eurtyhmics-Sweet Dreams (Are Made Of These)<br />
Beastie Boys-Sure Shot<br />
TLC-No Scrubs<br />
Marilyn Manson-The Beautiful People<br />
Nicole-Make It Hot<br />
Brandy-Almost Doesn't Count<br />
Edwin Starr-War<br />
Metallica-One<br />
Orgy-Blue Monday<br />
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With <i>Vol. 16</i>, my CD collection grew from one to three with the addition of Beastie Boys' <i>Hello Nasty</i> and Madonna's <i>Ray Of Light</i>. <a href="http://mixedreaction.blogspot.com/2011/09/collection-vol-2-fall-1997.html" target="_blank">Since I spent most of the allowance I got from my mother on comic books, magazines and blank tapes,</a> I didn't have the funds to buy CDs on a regular basis until my brother decided to throw me an extra $20 every two weeks when he got paid. Like clockwork, I would walk to the K-Mart in our neighborhood sometime during that weekend and buy a CD. It's where I bought <i>The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill</i> and many more that followed.<br />
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Not only would I be able to use my brother's CDs, but I was now starting to add even more of my myself into <i>The Collection</i> with selections of album tracks from CDs that I purchased. It may not seem like much, but it meant a world of difference since I wasn't able to do the same with my cassettes, which I had for years. The rest of <i>Vol. 16</i> was business as usual, with an assortment of radio favorites and selected songs from my brother's CDs.<br />
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<b>Song that inclues the unofficial riff of the late 90's, in my opinion: Lit - My Own Worst Enemy</b><br />
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When I look back at some of these songs, it's hard to believe how I didn't like them from the beginning. I'd like to think that I had fairly open-minded taste at times back then, but I was usually quick to dismiss something for a number of petty things before eventually finding favor with it. In the case of "My Own Worst Enemy," I thought it sounded too bratty and immature and portrayed itself as lacking substance. Eventually, I grew to accept that doesn't necessarily matter when making a good recording and I definitely appreciate this song tons more than I did back in 1999. It might have been around the 30th or 40th time that I heard it on radio that I realized that opening riff was too much fun to let overanalysis get in the way. Due to its multiple uses in movie trailers and commercials, I think a lot of people tend to feel the same way and it's also why whenever I think of this period, a lot of times this riff will pop in my head.<br />
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<b>Another song that built the case for listening to albums all the way through, in my young mind: Monica-Forever Always</b><br />
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The singles for Monica's debut album, <i>Miss Thang</i> (as a reminder, "Don't Take It Personal," "Before You Walk Out Of My Life, "Like This And That," & "Why I Love You So Much") ranged from solid to pretty damn good, so it was no surprise that her album would have some worthwhile tracks as well, considering Dallas Austin's involvement. Still, it was pleasing to discover "Forever Always" buried at the end of the album, a track that could have easily worked as a fifth single for <i>Miss Thang</i>.<br />
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<b>Song I was shocked to learn that my classmates didn't like: Blur-Tender</b><br />
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So remember when I wrote about the <a href="http://mixedreaction.blogspot.com/2011/09/nothin-but-hits-pure-rap-r-and-rock-vol.html" target="_blank">Superlist</a>, a weekly chart I created based on the popularity of songs? Well, to further my music geekery, I actually had an awards show based on the Superlist. Yep, I created the categories, filled the nomination fields and declared my own winners. Looking back, I'm surprised that not one person laughed at me for going to the extent I did. There was indeed some astonishment, but for the most part, as with most awards shows of any kind, people were more likely to debate the results. That's even more mind-boggling now because here you had kids chastizing me over certain categories and results for an award that was imaginary. Anyway, I mention this because one year, I had Blur's "Tender" taking Best Alternative Group Performance and one of my classmates couldn't believe it because he thought it was a crap song. Someone else chimed in and agreed and I was a bit dismayed. The first time I heard it, I thought it was such a beautiful track and a nice change of pace for Blur. For me, it was also one of the more emotional songs on radio during its time. I listen to it now and my feelings have not changed. You were wrong, Johnny! <br />
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<b>Song that never failed to get the party started in Club Ivan aka my bedroom: Madonna-Nothing Really Matters</b><br />
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As you'll find out in the next few volumes, <i>Ray of Light</i> was an album that I adored very much and I know there are a few other songs coming up that strike more of an emotional chord that I can go more in depth with. For now, I just want to highlight how awesome of a groove this track provided. <br />
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<b>Song that ranks as my favorite Brandy song: Brandy-Almost Doesn't Count</b><br />
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With "Brokenhearted" and "Sittin' Up In My Room" following up very closely, "Almost Doesn't Count" became my favorite Brandy song in very little time. It was one of the first tracks that enabled her to leave behind her teenage past and made me view her as a woman. I've always thought Brandy had a good recording career, but whenever this song came on, it was always felt like it was a huge step above anything else she had done, probably because of how effortlessly solemn she sounded.<br />
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<b>Song from <i>Hello Nasty</i> that I played the most for my friends: Beastie Boys-I Don't Know<br />
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By this time, <i>Hello Nasty</i> had been out for more than half a year and with all the reviews and year-end accolades, I knew to expect some curveballs from their typical sound. It was always fun to see people's reaction afte I played them this song and told them they had been listening to the Beastie Boys. Things wouldn't have mattered if they hadn't been able to pull it off. On paper, it always seems interesting whenever a well-known artist switches things up, but that can only be as enjoyable as the execution. With "I Don't Know," I did feel that initial high of experiencing something different from them, but it soon became a welcome companion in the typical life of an adolescent. I even printed out the lyrics and posted it in my locker.<br />
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<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/_rDklqPG5pU" width="320"></iframe>Ivanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04786658818562297429noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-578658545326343306.post-91949650064991070112012-04-16T22:23:00.002-05:002012-04-16T22:24:45.217-05:00The Collection Vol. 15 (Spring 1999)<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-qGVTUpdh7nw/T3vRNFrLytI/AAAAAAAABYQ/cmtHC0p6f0k/s1600/2012-04-03%2B23.05.34.jpg"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-qGVTUpdh7nw/T3vRNFrLytI/AAAAAAAABYQ/cmtHC0p6f0k/s320/2012-04-03%2B23.05.34.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5727401373923527378" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-WfhjncEV554/T3vRbIhW6RI/AAAAAAAABYc/TSKmvsJHbDQ/s1600/2012-04-03%2B23.04.33.jpg"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-WfhjncEV554/T3vRbIhW6RI/AAAAAAAABYc/TSKmvsJHbDQ/s320/2012-04-03%2B23.04.33.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5727401615205787922" /></a><br /><br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Side A</span><br /><br />Lauryn Hill-Superstar<br />Nas-It Ain't Hard To Tell<br />Seal-Whirlpool<br />Phil Collins-In The Air Tonight<br />New Radicals-You Get What You Give<br />Nirvava-Come As You Are<br />The Prodigy-Firestarter <br />Poe-Angry Johnny<br />Primus-My Name Is Mud<br />Seal-Violet<br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Side B</span><br /><br />Infamous Syndicate-Here I Go<br />Lauryn Hill-Lost Ones<br />2 Skinnee J's-Riot Nrrrd<br />Korn-Got The Life<br />House of Pain-Jump Around<br />The Beatles-Come Together<br />Isaac Hayes-Theme From Shaft<br />Ricky Martin-Cup Of Life<br />Toni Braxton-I Don't Want To<br />Sixpence None The Richer-Kiss Me<br />Jay-Z feat. DMX-Money, Cash, Hoes <br />Lauryn Hill-Tell Him<br /><br />Once a week in Spanish class at school, we would go to the audio room in the Foreign Language department. We had several rows of cubicles and in each one was a cassette player with headphones attached, which had an intended purpose for exercises and such. During these weekly trips, I often let some of my classmates listen to my mixtapes, mainly because when you're a teenager, you want to do anything besides pay attention in class. I would always have at least a few on me at a given time, so it became a bit of regular thing for people to expecting me to have music. I think they mostly fast forwarded to the album tracks I had from some of the hip hop albums of the day, but it was still gratifying in a way to have my peers come to me for music. <a name='more'></a><br /><br />All of this probably started happening around <span style="font-style:italic;">Vol. 15</span> since I can clearly remember someone discovering a song from here and wanting to talk about it after class (a little more on that later). It honestly slipped my mind that this was how we spent our time and this tape brought back those memories. <br /><br />Just to show you how little I've changed, I've been using the same exact Walkman I had during those years to revisit these mixtapes when I'm on the go. I find that it's very convenient for me this way since I have to schedule 90 minutes to listen to one while I'm at home and it's already a chore trying to keep up with current happenings in music as is. Here are some pictures of it. And yes, the part that covers the batteries has either been lost or of no use since 1999. <br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-dci7Z6b4P4s/T3vP9BlkX6I/AAAAAAAABXs/m5rPnEmFQnE/s1600/2012-04-03%2B23.08.35.jpg"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-dci7Z6b4P4s/T3vP9BlkX6I/AAAAAAAABXs/m5rPnEmFQnE/s320/2012-04-03%2B23.08.35.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5727399998436695970" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ZTu7dIHSNFk/T3vQ8BT7qmI/AAAAAAAABYE/hb6vok7TacU/s1600/2012-04-03%2B23.07.28.jpg"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ZTu7dIHSNFk/T3vQ8BT7qmI/AAAAAAAABYE/hb6vok7TacU/s320/2012-04-03%2B23.07.28.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5727401080694483554" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/--p0olVX4EWA/T3vQHUurd6I/AAAAAAAABX4/9HAhrGBf17g/s1600/2012-04-03%2B23.07.43.jpg"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/--p0olVX4EWA/T3vQHUurd6I/AAAAAAAABX4/9HAhrGBf17g/s320/2012-04-03%2B23.07.43.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5727400175373875106" /></a><br /><br /> <br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Song I feel could be a hit today: New Radicals - You Get What You Give</span><br /><br />I think the falsetto here was what initially turned me off to it. It wasn't something that I was used to hearing on rock radio, plus there was just a lacking cool factor all around. Luckily, I eventually came to my senses and appreciated the 70s pop influences that were going on, which were not really in vogue in 1999. Each successive listen in my adulthood has left me impressed with how good it sounds, not just for its period, but how easily it could fit in to any other one. <br /><br /><iframe width="320" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/DL7-CKirWZE" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe><br /><br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Song that someone from my Spanish class really liked: Lauryn Hill - Tell Him</span><br /><br />If you could believe it, there were kids during the spring of 1999 who had yet to hear <span style="font-style:italic;">The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill</span>, including me until I had bought it that March. With three appearances from Ms. Hill on <span style="font-style:italic;">Vol. 15</span>, I was obviously very pleased with the album. One of the main memories I have from passing out mixtapes in Spanish class is when a friend excitedly told me how much "Tell Him" had a struck a chord. He appreciated that there was a sense of ambiguity about whether it could have been about a guy or God. I thought it was enlightening to get that perspective because I hadn't really thought to include God in what Lauryn was talking about. Even now to this day, I approach this song from both angles. <br /><br /><iframe width="320" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/KIgDtNM4Sg8" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe><br /><br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Song I can thank JC Chasez for turning me on to: Seal - Violet</span><br /><br />In just about every issue of <span style="font-style:italic;">Rolling Stone</span> around this time, there would be a small item where an artist was asked to list some of their favorite songs for a playlist. This was an extra learning tool for me because there was still a world of music out there I had yet to hear. If it was an artist I was a fan of, it lent their picks a heavier weight and made the matter to listen to them that more urgent. I never really had anything against 'N Sync around this time, except that I wasn't too fond of most of their singles from the debut (plus, I felt that BSB had better songs and harmonies). For this issue of <span style="font-style:italic;">Rolling Stone</span> that I happened to purchase, JC Chasez was chosen to give some of his picks. Most of them were pop and R&B tracks I was already familiar with, but one selection piqued my interest. He had chosen Seal's "Violet" and described it as a tune that was perfect for riding around late at night to. I had given Seal's first album a listen about a few months prior, but it hadn't connected with me except for a few songs. Not that I held Chasez in such high regard then (that wouldn't come until "Bye Bye Bye" and "Blowin' Me Up With Her Love"), but his description encouraged me to revisit the song. As it turned out, Chasez was pretty damn spot-on that I nearly felt ashamed for not realizing its greatness on my first listen. <br /><br /><iframe width="320" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/ClkwYJPsqJE" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe><br /><br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Song I feel that too few people know about: 2 Skinne J'S - Riot Nrrrd</span><br /><br />One thing about listening to the radio for about 4-5 hours each day is that stuff rarely falls through the cracks. You're bound to catch every song that is in rotation at a station at one point or another. I think that these tapes are representative of that since they capture a lot of songs that the general public has mostly forgotten. One of those songs that hasn't quite made its way out of the 90s is "Riot Nrrrd." Part of the reason why I still dig this song is because of that very reason: its sound is undeniably 90s. With the success of Beck and the Beastie Boys consistently expanding their palette, it paved the way for a lot of acts who had varied CD collections and a fondness for hip hop. "Riot Nrrrd" switched things up so giddily and so often that it made it hard to define, which has always been the type of music I've been drawn to. <br /><br /><iframe width="320" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/UmFLMLfJPas" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe><br /><br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Song that I honestly forgot existed until I listened to this volume again: Poe - Angry Johnny</span><br /><br />I'll tell you how shoddy my memory is with this song: I don't even remember if it was released around this time or if it was from her debut album back in '95. I instantly remembered the hook because it definitely stood out on alternative radio. Part of me wants to say that this received steady airplay in '99, but I just keep thinking of seeing this video back when I still had cable, which was pre-1996. Regardless, I'm glad to have it back in my life.<br /><br /><iframe width="320" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/lrygAv93Ick" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe><br /><br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Song that had me conflicted and confused because of how glossy and gritty it sounded: Jay-Z feat. DMX - Money, Cash, Hoes</span><br /><br />Fans of Jay-Z could obviously tell he was leaning towards a mainstream sound on <span style="font-style:italic;">In My Lifetime Vol. 1</span>, but with <span style="font-style:italic;">Vol. 2...Hard Knock Life</span>, there was no disguising it. Not to say that the man couldn't still crank out a banger. This track was probably one of the top bangers of '98 (honestly, what song with DMX wasn't a banger around this time?), but it sounded kind of pretty to me. I think it might have been the sliding keys in the higher register that gave the song some of its candy coating, but whenever the beat dropped the and verses started flying, it all became serious. In my head, I knew that "Money, Cash, Hoes" was great for breaking bottles against people's heads, but it would be perfectly acceptable if they were Cristal bottles. <br /><br /><iframe width="320" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/kValaG55kUk" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>Ivanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04786658818562297429noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-578658545326343306.post-74011806474580836612012-03-28T21:49:00.001-05:002012-03-28T21:51:39.751-05:00The Collection Vol. 14 (Winter 1999)<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-jNIObaEXSro/T2k-yNjLHLI/AAAAAAAABWk/Kesghtr0lLY/s1600/2012-03-20%2B21.25.14.jpg"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-jNIObaEXSro/T2k-yNjLHLI/AAAAAAAABWk/Kesghtr0lLY/s320/2012-03-20%2B21.25.14.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5722173833902496946" /></a><br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Side A</span><br /><br />Beastie Boys-Remote Control<br />Sarah McLachlan-Angel<br />Underworld-Born Slippy <br />R. Kelly-When A Woman's Fed Up<br />The Living End-Prisoner of Society<br />Tamia-You Put A Move On My Heart<br />Kid Rock-I Am The Bullgod <br />Vallejo-Snake In The Grass<br />The Roots feat. Erykah Badu-You Got Me<br />Santana-All I Ever Wanted<br />Green Day-Nice Guys Finish Last<br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Side B</span><br /><br />snippet of Spencer Davis Group's "I'm A Man"<br />snippet of Al Green's "Here I Am (Come And Take Me)"<br />Beastie Boys-Brass Monkey<br />Beastie Boys-Girls<br />Redman-I Got A Seecret!<br />Jay-Z-Nigga What, Nigga Who<br />DMX-Slippin'<br />Toni Braxton-Un-break My Heart<br />Semisonic-Secret Smiles<br />snippet of New Radicals' "You Only Get What You Give"<br />Mary J. Blige-Real Love<br />Local H-Bound For The Floor<br />Everlast-Ends <br /><br />By the time I got to <span style="font-style:italic;">Vol. 14</span>, I was pretty much a robot when it came to making mixtapes. The process itself had become like a ceremony: I'd sit on this can in my room, headphones plugged in with the volume cranked up high and furiously switch from station to station until I found something that pleased me. I know I've described this before, but only now I had become so accustomed to the ritual that I would be in a trance, alert without even being aware of how alert I was. <br /><br />One of the things I absolutely hated was being bothered whenever I was recording or scouring through the stations. It could have been as simple as my folks asking what I wanted for dinner. No matter what it was, it made my blood boil because it took me out of whatever groove I was in. I was creating art, magic and history all in one. If everyone understood this, I would have had fewer frustrating moments. Such is the power of a trance. <a name='more'></a><br /><br />Side note: The first two songs on Side B were not written on the cassette tracklist because I didn't know the titles at the time. I recognized Al Green's voice, but absolutely had no idea who Spencer Davis Group was. Of course, in 2012 this problem could be easily rectified through technology. Not so much in 1999.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Song I'm convinced whenever I listen to is probably the greatest thing ever recorded: Underworld - Born Slippy</span><br /><br />I'm not exactly positive why it took me a few years to include this on one of my mixtapes. There's a very faded memory somewhere of me recording over this song because I'm more familiar than I should be with the last 25 seconds of it. The only other option is that I was slow to get into this song, which is pretty ludicrous. I don't remember ever being at odds with "Born Slippy," so I'll just go with my gut and say I foolishly dubbed over it. It's crazy to think that such a thing could happen because whenever I listen to it now, it's nothing but pure euphoria and I'm destined to move no matter what setting I'm in. Few songs bring me the level of joy that this one does. It completely takes over me. <br /><br /><iframe width="320" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/TlLWFa1b1Bc" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe><br /><br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Song that never failed to make me feel like a bratty rebel: The Living End - Prisoner of Society</span><br /><br />When I was listening to this tape again, I pretty much had the same reaction I did 13 years ago. I felt like stomping around and throwing non-stop middle fingers in the air. This is that kind of song. Just about anything that apes a classic punk sound will have an air of rebellion in it, which made it perfect for jumping around to as a teenager. <br /><br /><iframe width="320" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/sxhdFXc7KMw" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe><br /><br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Song I always felt was one of the sexiest of its era: Tamia - You Put A Move On My Heart</span><br /><br />This tune was released a little bit before I started making mixtapes, but it's always stuck with me and I couldn't have been more pleased to have finally recorded it. It was so easy going and had a slow-building sensuality that whenever Tamia finally let loose during the chorus, it would usually give me a shiver or too. This has always been one of my favorite vocal performances of the 90s because how she made you feel every phrase that she sang. Add a video that highlighted her good looks and you've got an all-time Ivan classic. <br /><br /><iframe width="320" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/na1pVdg3e4c" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe><br /><br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Song that served as evidence (at least for me) that the late 90s were a great time for alternative radio: Vallejo - Snake In The Grass</span><br /><br />This was one of those songs you might've missed if you didn't listen to Q101 too often. It got some moderate spins during its day, but the interesting thing here is that you were able to find little gems like this fairly often around this time. Before KoRn and Limp Bizkit brought out the aggression in modern rock radio, something with a trip hop influence could make it on to the airwaves without anyone blinking an eye. I didn't know how good I had it at the time.<br /> <br /><iframe width="320" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/HKQahZouyKs" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe><br /><br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Song I always use as proof as Redman being one of the best MCs ever: Redman - I Got A Seecret!</span><br /><br />This is not only my favorite Redman songs, but one of my favorite songs period. Definite top 250 status, if we're getting technical. There's a reason why only a handful of American MCs have successfully rhymed over a drum 'n bass track. The rhythm is not something that lends itself easily to rapping, which makes what Redman did here that much more impressive. He kept things true to his patented rugged flow, but I would always get delirious whenever he switched things up here. It borders on manic when you look at what he did technically, yet it's as cohesive as anything from the album.<br /><br /><iframe width="320" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/w_KL5eAiXvI" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>Ivanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04786658818562297429noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-578658545326343306.post-82819788692008606172012-03-07T22:17:00.001-06:002012-03-07T22:18:58.481-06:00The Collection Vol. 13 (Winter 1999)<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-JttrrRwu0fQ/T1bbj1jvzQI/AAAAAAAABV4/YyrZyrf5llE/s1600/2012-03-06%2B21.45.44.jpg"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-JttrrRwu0fQ/T1bbj1jvzQI/AAAAAAAABV4/YyrZyrf5llE/s320/2012-03-06%2B21.45.44.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5716998185712340226" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-QcIJrsY-bSw/T1bbjpla_HI/AAAAAAAABVw/xOS7Imw0dDo/s1600/2012-03-06%2B21.46.46.jpg"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-QcIJrsY-bSw/T1bbjpla_HI/AAAAAAAABVw/xOS7Imw0dDo/s320/2012-03-06%2B21.46.46.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5716998182498139250" /></a><br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Side A</span><br /><br />Metallica-Enter Sandman<br />Lisa Loeb-I Do<br />Everclear-One-Hit Wonder<br />Ginuwine-What's So Different<br />Stray Cats-Rock This Turn<br />Chaka Khan-Ain't Nobody<br />Sublime-Date Rape<br />Will Smith-Miami<br />Alanis Morissette-Unsent<br />Juvenile-Ha<br />snippet of Ace of Base's "The Sign"<br />Cardigans-My Favourite Game<br />DMX-The Omen<br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Side B</span><br /><br />Smashing Pumpkins-Today<br />Lenny Kravitz-Are U Gonna Go My Way?<br />Lauryn Hill-Ex-Factor<br />Britney Spears-...Baby One More Time<br />Limp Bizkit-Faith<br />Brandy & Monica-The Boy Is Mine<br />Lo-Fidelity All Stars-Battleflag<br />2Pac-Changes<br />Redman-I'll Bee Dat!<br />Redman-Da Goodness<br />Beastie Boys-Root Down<br />Jay-Z-You Must Love Me<br /><br />Around the time that this volume was recorded, I don't think there were too many current songs on the radio catching my attention. I never thought about doing stats for previous tapes, but it's very telling that 56% of the songs here were not tracks that were in heavy rotation on radio stations in Chicago. With me buying 90-minute blank cassettes on a regular basis, it would only be a matter of time before I sapped the landscape dry of all the songs I desired within a certain period. In the past, this could have resulted in a weaker edition of <span style="font-style:italic;">The Collection</span>, but with my new CD player, I had a wider palette to work with and I could afford to be more selective for once.<br /><a name='more'></a><br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">If you must know, this is my absolute favorite song on this volume: Smashing Pumpkins - Today</span><br /><br />I sang this song a lot when I was younger, and whenever I got to the line "Today is the greatest day I've ever known," it used to fill me up with such happiness because I felt that the oncoming day would be actually be the greatest ever, even if I had been feeling down. That connection has eternally won "Today" a place in my heart, but I would probably be a huge fan regardless because of just how epic the guitars sounded and those soft/loud dynamics I'm usually a sucker for.<br /><br /><iframe width="320" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/xmUZ6nCFNoU" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe><br /><br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Song that furthered my appreciation for lyricism in hip hop: Redman - Da Goodness</span> <br /><br />It was much easier for a song to hold my attention if there was a consistent theme throughout, especially in hip hop. I certainly didn't mind artists flowing just for the sake of flowing, but my listening skills weren't as sharp as they are now, so I might have glossed over some things if I didn't have the lyrics right in front of me. There really isn't a concrete subject matter on "Da Goodness," but it was one of my brother's favorites from <span style="font-style:italic;">Doc's Da Name 2000</span> and he was especially impressed with Busta's verse at the end. He got excited one time while listening to it and replayed it for me to listen on his headphones. This wasn't the first time that he did this, but this was one of the main songs that stuck with me.<br /><br /><iframe width="320" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/vx_uqkmyiC0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe><br /> <br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Song that was guaranteed to make me stomp around in my room: Lo-Fidelity All-Stars - Battleflag</span><br /><br />The bass line was one of the most devious I had ever in my life until that point. I didn't have a mirror in my room, but I'm pretty sure I would scrunch my face whenever this came on while simultaneously working on a sweat. For me, the biggest release of energy was the part in the chorus where it went "I said Hallelujah!" and the bass dropped back in the song again. "Battleflag" only got airplay on Q101, but it made me move like WGCI.<br /><br /><iframe width="320" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/WZqYsmzzNEU" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe><br /><br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Song that blew me away the first time I heard it, no lie: Britney Spears - ...Baby One More Time</span> <br /><br />The first time I had heard of Britney Spears was by looking at the Billboard charts. Her first single, "...Baby One More Time" had already lodged itself into the top ten for a few weeks, but I had yet to hear it. It wasn't unusual to see a song or two that I had never heard of pop up on the chart every now and then, seeing as how our main pop station, B96, was often slow to adapt to newer artists unless the demand was there. After a few weeks of seeing her name in the top ten, she cracked B96's nightly countdown at 9:00 and that's where I first heard "...Baby One More Time." I had no idea what she looked like or how old she was; I just know that the chord progression in the chorus was so alien to me that I finally understood why it was such a huge hit. It just kept getting higher and higher until I was forced to smile and I knew that it was worthy of being on <span style="font-style:italic;">The Collection</span>. I cherish this time with the song because there were no outside factors influencing how I felt. No constant MTV airplay. No <a href=" http://www.rollingstone.com/music/photos/britney-spears-the-rolling-stone-covers-20081125">provocative Rolling Stone cover</a>. It was just me and the music. I've always felt that this was the best way to listen to a new song for the first time, just letting it be you and the music and not paying attention to anything else. You get a honest reaction each time and there is no perception of the artist to taint how you feel.<br /><br /><iframe width="320" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/C-u5WLJ9Yk4" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe><br /><br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Song that is a very, very close second for my absolute favorite on this volume: Ace of Base - The Sign</span><br /><br />I remember getting very emotional sometimes when this song played on MTV. I think it might have been the shots in the video of the lead singer looking solemn in the beginning, but I was also touched by how slightly melancholy she sounded as well. No, I didn't have an ex-girlfriend when the song first came out and it didn't even matter, because dammit I felt all of her pain since I knew what it was like to have wanted someone. All those different hooks toyed with my emotions as well, since they so easily emoted heartbreak at one point and then defiance just mere seconds later. Now that I'm older, I still love it just as much and I'm practically convinced that it is one of the few perfect pop songs of my generation.<br /><br />Side note: While I was recording this song, I was using my alarm clock radio to check on other stations. This is the only time I can think of where I switched the dial while it was recording in order to catch the beginning of a song. On tape, it sounded like it ran straight into "My Favourite Game" instead of the abrupt audible stops that were usually heard in between.<br /><br /><iframe width="320" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/DNPjeIamsck" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe><br /><br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Given how much of a Mannie Fresh fan I am, this song took a surprisingly long time for me to get into: Juvenile - Ha</span><br /><br />The first time I heard "Ha," I'll admit that I was thrown off. Everything about it felt so jagged that it was hard for me to connect with it. I was very used to a conventional style of rhyming where MCs made it a point to stay on beat, but Juvenile's cadence on this track was so foreign that I initially passed it off as lacking talent. I loved hip hop from the South, but this was too jarring. It also didn't help that I couldn't make out half what he was saying. It wasn't until I was in the corner store one time and heard someone rapping the chorus that I started to develop a bit of an appreciation for the song. Then I actually sat down and read the lyrics and realized how packed with imagery they were. It was actually nonstop imagery, just a complete barrage of observations, which gave it a poetic feel to me. Coupled with Juvenile's delivery, the song always had a vibe of Beat poetry from the Gulf region in my eyes. <br /><br /><iframe width="320" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/Ww9VlmXKYgs" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>Ivanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04786658818562297429noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-578658545326343306.post-4980021834885255922012-02-23T16:19:00.000-06:002013-03-06T10:00:20.876-06:00The Collection Vol. 12 (Winter 1999)<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-_s6mLZfYWGk/Tzs9K4OBdLI/AAAAAAAABVE/zlzwBcfGqO4/s1600/2012-02-14%2B22.49.53.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5709224209721423026" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-_s6mLZfYWGk/Tzs9K4OBdLI/AAAAAAAABVE/zlzwBcfGqO4/s320/2012-02-14%2B22.49.53.jpg" style="cursor: hand; cursor: pointer; height: 240px; width: 320px;" /></a><br />
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<span style="font-weight: bold;">Side A</span><br />
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K.P. & Envyi-Swing My Way<br />
Stone Temple Pilots-Sex Type Thing<br />
snippet of Toni Basil's "Mickey"<br />
TLC-Waterfalls<br />
Metallica-Turn The Page<br />
Zhane-Off My Mind<br />
Lauryn Hill-Can't Take My Eyes Off You<br />
The Offspring-Why Don't You Get A Job? <br />
TLC-Silly Ho<br />
Celine Dion-My Heart Will Go On<br />
John Mellencamp-Not Running Anymore<br />
Blues Traveler-But Anyway<br />
Primus-Wynonna's Big Brown Beaver<br />
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<span style="font-weight: bold;">Side B</span><br />
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Crucial Conflict-To The Left<br />
Boyz II Men-Water Runs Dry<br />
Tool-Sober<br />
Dave Matthews Band-So Much To Say<br />
Metallica-When It Sleeps<br />
TLC feat. Outkast-Sumthin' Wicked This Way Comes<br />
Redman-Whateva Man<br />
Red Hot Chili Peppers-Soul To Squeeze<br />
Stone Temple Pilots-Creep<br />
Placebo-Pure Morning<br />
Monifah-Touch It<br />
Live-I Alone<br />
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One of the luxuries of having a CD player was that I now had more control over my mixtapes. If nothing good came on the radio for a while, there was no need to fret since I could select a number of tracks from the albums that my brother had. A lot of my earlier mixes had some filler due to me just being thrilled with being able to record and own songs. With the CD player, there was a higher probability that I would enjoy future volumes of <span style="font-style: italic;">The Collection</span>. <br />
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As precise as I had become with recording songs in their entirety from the radio, I would still resort to snippets here and there, usually if they were older songs. My patience in waiting to capture a song from beginning to end paid off with a better quality of mixtapes, but whenever I heard something from the '80s or earlier, I became reckless and disregarded any caution by quickly hitting record. Back in 1999, you never knew the next time you would hear Toni Basil's "Mickey" on the air. Other than that, things kept rolling along smoothly for <span style="font-style: italic;">Vol. 12</span>.<br />
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<span style="font-weight: bold;">Song I hated when it first came out, but eventually warmed up to: Stone Temple Pilots - Sex Type Thing</span><br />
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Out of all the post-Pearl Jam/Alice in Chains grunge bands that started popping up from 1992 on, Stone Temple Pilots eventually became my favorite, although I was not a fan of this first single. As was the case with <a href="http://mixedreaction.blogspot.com/2012/01/collection-vol-9-fall-1998.html" target="_blank">"Cherub Rock"</a>, it was hard for me to get past the fact that I could barely make out what the lead singer looked like in the video and thus resulted in me not being able to make a connection as a youngster. It also didn't help that the title of the song also didn't show up in the chorus. Yes, I'm aware of how weird that seems but I've since gotten over it. After repeatedly watching the video over and over on MTV, my resistance wore down once I associated the lyric, "I know you want what's on my mind" with the song title. Then it clicked and me and "Sex Type Thing" have been on good terms ever since. <br />
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<span style="font-weight: bold;">Song that made me appreciate listening to albums all the way through even more than I did before: Zhane - Off My Mind</span><br />
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I've never been concerned with only listening to new albums since I've always been intrigued by good music of any era, even if it was just a few years old and seemed passé. As I've stated in earlier posts, I really didn't get a chance to purchase albums of my own and if I didn't hear a full-length through a family member, I likely didn't hear it at all. One of the albums I was anxious to hear from my brother's CDs was Zhane's debut based on the strength of the singles. I had a gut feeling that it would be a good one and I ended up being correct. One of the many highlights was "Off My Mind," a jazzy number that sounded nothing like I had expected to be on the album. Just the fact that I had known so little about a gem like that on such a popular album made me realize even more that listening to CDs from beginning to end would always be worth it. <br />
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<span style="font-weight: bold;">Song that always caught my attention with its opening lines: Placebo - Pure Morning</span><br />
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I've never been interested in weed, but I was always so delighted to hear about it at the beginning of this track. I always liked how it got straight to the point because it always made me stick around for the rest of the song, even if the only words I still know are those first four lines. Throw in the word "breasts" and "Pure Morning" definitely stuck out Q101. The song itself was no slouch either, with a repetitive melody that was easy to catch on to and a load of haziness all around.<br />
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<span style="font-weight: bold;">Another album track from an album that I never got the chance to listen to during its heyday: TLC - Sumthin' Wicked This Way Comes</span><br />
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I didn't discover <span style="font-style: italic;">Crazysexycool</span> through my brother's collection since my mom had it on cassette. By the time I finally listened to it during the summer of '96, they were no longer on the radio, so I was still behind. Even though I was already familiar with the album, I still took advantage of my brother's CD copy and used it to record "Waterfalls and "Sumthin' Wicked This Way Comes" for this mixtape. When I initially started to listen to <span style="font-style: italic;">Crazysexycool</span>, this track immediately became my favorite and I luckily I didn't have to rewind too far to listen to it since it was the last track. Dre's verses were obvious high points, but it was something about hearing distorted guitar on an R&B track that endeared me to this song. I've always been a fan of that kind of juxtaposition.<br />
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<span style="font-weight: bold;">If you're between the ages of 25-45 and grew up on the West Side of Chicago, chances are you know at least a few lines from this song: Crucial Conflict - To The Left</span><br />
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I used to have the belief that in order to consider yourself a true West Sider, you must either own Crucial Conflict's <span style="font-style: italic;">The Final Tic</span> or at the least be able to recite a verse from "Hay." Since the group proudly repped the West Side, their debut album was a great source of pride and became a universal communicating point all the way from Damen Ave. to Austin Blvd. I never bought the album, but simply going to school and hanging around friends, I already knew a good deal of the songs from either them playing it or constantly quoting it. "To The Left" was always one of my favorite tracks because it felt soulful, but it was also one of their hardest. "Hay" and "Ride The Rodeo" got the most play on the radio and TV, but everyone in the streets knew that this is where it was at.<br />
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<span style="font-weight: bold;">The only song from <span style="font-style: italic;">The Collection</span> that my mother ever sang along to: Boyz II Men - Water Runs Dry</span><br />
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Since the ironing board was right next to my bedroom in our apartment, it was easy for anyone in that spot to be able to hear exactly what I was listening to. My taste was a lot more varied and contemporary than my mother's, so I'm pretty sure she didn't find much common ground with what came from my speakers most of the time. So yes, she had to listen to Crucical Conflict's "To The Left" before "Water Runs Dry," but once it came on, I could hear her singing along. It wasn't that surprising since 1.) It was Boyz II Men. Everybody's mothers loved Boyz II Men 2.) It was a big hit during its time, and 3.) It was written by none other than Babyface. This wasn't a really significant event, but whenever I listen to this volume, I always tend to remember that moment and I really don't know of any other instance she sang along to one of my mixtapes. <br />
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<span style="font-weight: bold;">Song that showed me just how aggressive women could be: KP & Envyi - Swing My Way</span><br />
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The gender roles in our culture have led us to believe that when it comes to courtship, men should always be the initiator. Of course, just the opposite has happened countless times, but whenever this occurred in TV, movies and music at the time, it was still seen as shocking. What I loved about "Swing My Way" was how bold and confrontational it felt. KP had a need and nothing was going to stop her from achieving it. I knew girls like that, but it was refreshing to hear a track like that since they were underrepresented. Having an all-out catchy chorus didn't hurt its enjoyment either. <br />
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<span style="font-weight: bold;">Song I thought was the sexiest during its run: Monifah - Touch It</span><br />
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For just about any adolescent male, a video such as "Touch It" would definitely have its highlights. And no, I'm not talking about the <span style="font-style: italic;">Apocalypse Now</span> references, but the image of Monifah in a short dress with a high slit was about as sexy as television would allow. It was also a pretty smart move to sample Laid Back's "White Horse," already a sexy beat in its own right. What really did it for me was how breathy her vocals sounded. She made it feel like as if she was about to lose control at any moment. <br />
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<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/-CL89fxfGZI" width="320"></iframe>Ivanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04786658818562297429noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-578658545326343306.post-80940296880805853012012-02-07T17:00:00.001-06:002013-03-06T10:01:45.709-06:00The Collection Vol. 11 (Early Winter 1999)<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-orx_79ctq4Q/TynwhZoZRWI/AAAAAAAABUk/y0enld9zgEo/s1600/2012-02-01%2B19.13.52.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5704354859648107874" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-orx_79ctq4Q/TynwhZoZRWI/AAAAAAAABUk/y0enld9zgEo/s320/2012-02-01%2B19.13.52.jpg" style="cursor: hand; cursor: pointer; height: 240px; width: 320px;" /></a><br />
<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-mFCv1FhaxE0/TynwhMgnE_I/AAAAAAAABUU/EFqkcdCZd9w/s1600/2012-02-01%2B19.14.24.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5704354856125797362" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-mFCv1FhaxE0/TynwhMgnE_I/AAAAAAAABUU/EFqkcdCZd9w/s320/2012-02-01%2B19.14.24.jpg" style="cursor: hand; cursor: pointer; height: 240px; width: 320px;" /></a><br />
<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-l3ZTUTsbABg/Tynwg_SrGcI/AAAAAAAABUI/aN93C5Fo5cs/s1600/2012-02-01%2B19.14.46.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5704354852577679810" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-l3ZTUTsbABg/Tynwg_SrGcI/AAAAAAAABUI/aN93C5Fo5cs/s320/2012-02-01%2B19.14.46.jpg" style="cursor: hand; cursor: pointer; height: 240px; width: 320px;" /></a><br />
<br />
<span style="font-weight: bold;">Side A</span><br />
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Lord Tariq & Peter Gunz-Deja Vu (Uptown Anthem)<br />
Jay-Z feat. Amil & Ja Rule-Can I Get A...<br />
Marvin Gaye-Sexual Healing<br />
M. Doc feat. Cristina-Free<br />
Citizen King-Better Days (And The Bottom Drops Out)<br />
Nirvana-Rape Me<br />
Bush-Machinehead<br />
U2-Sweetest Thing<br />
Whitney Houston & Mariah Carey-When You Believe<br />
The Roots-Datskat<br />
The Roots-Swept Away<br />
Seal-Dreaming In Metaphors<br />
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<span style="font-weight: bold;">Side B</span><br />
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Beastie Boys-She's Crafty <br />
BLACKstreet feat. Mya, Mase and Blinky Blink-Take Me There<br />
Sublime-Santeria <br />
Lil' Kim feat. Puff Daddy-No Time<br />
Seal-Fast Changes<br />
The Offspring-Pretty Fly (For A White Guy) (Remix)<br />
Soul Coughing-Circles<br />
Cracker-Low<br />
Lauryn Hill-To Zion<br />
Neutral Milk Hotel-King Of Carrot Flowers Pt. 1<br />
Led Zeppelin-Kashmir<br />
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Thanks to my brother's hip hop collection, I could pretty much have any song I wanted in its unedited form. I had yet to even consider buying my own CDs since it already took enough for me as a jobless kid to buy $1 blank cassettes. If he left his CD case laying around, I would try to record as many songs as I could because there was no telling when he would grab it for his own use, which explains why hip hop tracks will sometimes be bunched together for at least the next few volumes.<br />
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Since my brother was always buying new stuff, he wasn't as interested in a lot of his older CDs, so he sort of just let me have them, which included some hip hop and R$&B classics and even non-urban stuff like Seal and Hootie & The Blowfish (yep, that was his CD and I hope that doesn't embarrass him). This was a very formative time for me as a listener since I was able to embrace hip hop further on my own. Aside from the few cassettes I'd get for birthdays and Christmas, I did not have many opportunities to listen to albums on my own. About a third of the hip hop I was exposed to came from hanging out with my brother and my cousin, who both bought the latest releases with regularity. The coming mixtapes will give a good idea of how much my brother's library had an impact on me and <span style="font-style: italic;">The Collection</span>.<br />
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<span style="font-weight: bold;">One of the first big discoveries from my brother's stash: The Roots - Swept Away</span><br />
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I was familiar with The Roots and their single from a few years prior, "What They Do" off <span style="font-style: italic;">Illadelph Halflife</span> and their latest one, "You Got Me," was starting to gain some traction around the time. Little ol' ignorant me thought that <span style="font-style: italic;">Illadelph</span> was their first effort, so I was pretty puzzled and excited to see <span style="font-style: italic;">Do You Want More?!!!??!</span> among my brother's CDs. Overall, I was impressed with the songs and the musicianship in general, which was even more of a novelty in 1995 than it was in 1999. One of the tracks that immediately took my attention was "Swept Away" since I probably thought it was the most chorus-oriented song on the album. <br />
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<span style="font-weight: bold;">Song that made me wish I had more money so that I could buy CDs: Lauryn Hill - To Zion</span> <br />
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I used to listen to <a href="http://www.soundopinions.org/" target="_blank">Sound Opinions</a> faithfully back in the day when it came on WXRT. I relished the concept of a radio talk show devoted strictly to music and tuned in every Tuesday night from 10PM-12AM (or however late I could stand to stay up). On this night, the two hosts, Jim DeRogatis and Greg Kot (the music critics for the Chicago Sun-Times and Tribune respectively), were discussing their favorite albums of 1998. Kot had <span style="font-style: italic;">The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill</span> as one of his picks and shared "To Zion" as one of the key tracks. I had yet to hear the album, but with me being a big Lauryn Hill fan I bought just about every magazine cover she was on and I had read countless reviews of the album, so I was already familiar with the back story of the song. I could even tell you what to expect, from Carlos Santana's guitar to the high note she hit at the end and also a few lyrics here and there. As much as I knew about the song, my expectations were still exceeded. It was just as good as any of the singles up until that point and it was every bit as passionate as I imagined. It's always a rare treat whenever you can grab an album track from the radio, so naturally I replayed it a lot since I couldn't afford the CD. If anything, it just made me want <span style="font-style: italic;">Miseducation</span> that much more. At least now I could hop into a few conversations at school about the album.<br />
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<span style="font-weight: bold;"><br />Oh, and I also got this one from Sound Opinions that night too: Neutral Milk Hotel - The King of Carrot Flowers Pt. I</span><br />
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DeRogatis' #1 album for that year was <span style="font-style: italic;">In The Aeroplane Over The Sea</span> by Neutral Milk Hotel. I was sort of familiar with it since I read his top ten in the Sun-Times, but when he went into the description of <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Elephant_6_Recording_Company" target="_blank">Elephant 6</a> and how trippy their music was, I was instantly intrigued and ready to press record. For me, it was one of the more abstract things my ears had heard at the time. Years later, I bought the album and grew to love it. <br />
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<span style="font-weight: bold;">Another track I had no idea that was a cover at first: M-Doc feat. Cristina - Free</span><br />
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When I was young, I thought this melody was so vibrant and original, then I found out it <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=imTDWIZwEDU" target="_blank">Deniece Williams did it first</a> and I understood why it felt so timeless. To me, this version was possibly the greatest thing ever because it was rare to hear melodies that soaring over contemporary R&B production. I've come to appreciate Williams' take on it more over the years, but back then you couldn't tell me one wrong word about this track. <br />
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<span style="font-weight: bold;">Song that was better than it had any right to be: BLACKstreet feat. Mya, Mase and Blinky Blink - Take Me There</span><br />
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Even with the talent surrounding this track, I'm sure on paper that a song sampling the <span style="font-style: italic;">Rugrats</span> theme would cause some skepticism. Such a description would have excited me enough to give it at least one listen, but my hopes would not have been high. The results turned out to be as charming as anything that was on radio at the time and I think the right decision was made to focus on reminiscing about childhood for this song. It definitely made me smile often. <br />
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<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/PavmBvo1Iu4" width="320"></iframe>Ivanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04786658818562297429noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-578658545326343306.post-57797620155408203432012-01-18T18:52:00.001-06:002013-03-06T10:03:17.062-06:00The Collection Vol. 10 (Winter 1998)<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-_-bAOhbX-JA/TxYQ_b8YaBI/AAAAAAAABTQ/P8JvQkTqczs/s1600/2012-01-17%2B17.48.21.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5698761060502759442" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-_-bAOhbX-JA/TxYQ_b8YaBI/AAAAAAAABTQ/P8JvQkTqczs/s320/2012-01-17%2B17.48.21.jpg" style="cursor: hand; cursor: pointer; height: 240px; width: 320px;" /></a><br />
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<span style="font-weight: bold;">Side A</span><br />
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R.E.M.-Daysleeper <br />
snippet of Labelle's "Lady Marmalade"<br />
Aretha Franklin-Respect<br />
Fastball-Fire Escape<br />
Jewel-Hands<br />
George Michael & Mary J. Blige-As<br />
Toni Braxton-Breathe Again<br />
Notorious B.I.G.-Hypnotize <br />
Seal-Kiss From A Rose<br />
Goodie Mob-Cell Therapy <br />
Hootie & The Blowfish-Goodbye<br />
Jay-Z-Lucky Me<br />
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<span style="font-weight: bold;">Side B</span><br />
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Whitney Houston feat. Faith Evans & Kelly Price-Heartbreak Hotel <br />
Donna Lewis-I Love You Always Forever <br />
'N SYNC-God Must Have Spent A Little More Time On You<br />
Goodie Mob-Guess Who?<br />
Bruce Springsteen-Secret Garden<br />
U2-With Or Without You<br />
snippet of Barenaked Ladies' "It's All Been Done"<br />
The Proclaimers-500 Miles (I'm Gonna Be)<br />
The Braids-Bohemian Rhapsody<br />
The Cranberries-Linger<br />
Dave Matthews Band-Crush<br />
The Flys-Got You (Where I Want You)<br />
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If you take a good look at the tracklist, you'll notice that some of the songs on there were never radio hits. That's simply because <span style="font-style: italic;">Vol. 10</span> marked a new era for me in making mixes as I got a three-disc CD player that Christmas and I could now record songs beyond the dial. I'm not exactly sure how soon after I got the CD player that this mix was completed since stuff like the Jay-Z, Goodie Mob and Hootie CDs belonged to my brother and it would have taken time for me to develop my favorites when it came to non-singles. I do distinctly remember recording "Daysleeper" a day or two after Christmas, but for me to put a song like "Guess Who?" or "Goodbye" on <span style="font-style: italic;">The Collection</span> would have taken a week or two of familiarity with those albums.<br />
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The sequencing of the tracklist is also very telling since the second half of Side A—starting with Toni Braxton—is composed of nothing but songs I recorded from CD, which leaves me to think that I was highly enjoying this new world at the time. I still did record songs from the radio, and without that pesky wire antenna there were fewer moments of static, although the volume was noticeably lower on my new stereo as opposed to the boombox I had been using. <br />
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With my new CD player, I was better able to control the direction of my mixtapes, but I had yet to realize the power of cohesion and sequencing. At this point, I was simply thrilled with having unedited tracks with profanity finally be a part of <span style="font-style: italic;">The Collection</span>. Speaking of which...<br />
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<span style="font-weight: bold;">Song that made Jay-Z one of my favorite MCs: Jay-Z-Lucky Me</span><br />
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First off, I want to say that I love <span style="font-style: italic;">In My Lifetime, Vol. 1</span> and I think it's his most underrated album. The CD as a whole made me a fan, but it was with "Lucky Me" that I was exposed to the sensitive side of Jay-Z that truly endeared me to him. I thought that the distrust he felt on this song was incredibly sincere and descriptive. I'm usually drawn to vulnerability in hip hop and I always felt "Lucky Me" was one of the best examples during this period.<br />
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<span style="font-weight: bold;">Song that made me even more curious about Stevie Wonder: George Michael & Mary J. Blige - As</span><br />
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I'll admit that I had no idea this was a cover the first time I first heard it, but when I did find out it was Stevie Wonder, I became even more impressed by the man. He's made appearances on the past few volumes of <span style="font-style: italic;">The Collection</span>, so my appreciation was growing at a steady pace already. I eventually found out that this was a very faithful take on the song, which is probably why George Michael was able to get airplay on WGCI.<br />
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<span style="font-weight: bold;"><br />I really wasn't kidding when I said that I liked vulnerability in my hip hop: Goodie Mob-Guess Who?</span><br />
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<span style="font-style: italic;">Soul Food</span> is another album I adore, but when I finally got a chance to listen to it on my own, the sensitive track was once again the one that stood out and made its way onto my mixtape. Hip hop was already a language that I felt a connection to, so whenever there was something introspective going on, it would usually leave a big impact on me. After spending more time with the album, I would now rank several other songs above "Guess Who?", so it's interesting to have it documented how I was feeling at a certain point about <span style="font-style: italic;">Soul Food</span>.<br />
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<span style="font-weight: bold;">Song that made me think that Dave Matthews was actually kind of...cool?: Dave Matthews Band - Crush</span><br />
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As past tracklists have shown, I have no problem with DMB, but even I could tell that they were far from being hip. That voice, those dance moves, that saxophone. Even I could tell that none of those things screamed cool. Then along came "Crush," and my body moved differently to it than with any of their other songs. The bass line was slick enough that it could have sneaked onto urban radio and I was no longer content to just tapping my feet when one of their songs came on. For the first time, I could feel a little bit of soul in their music, which for a while had me believing that the group wasn't made up of complete dorks. <br />
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<span style="font-weight: bold;">Song that spoke to the obsessive in me: The Flys-Got You (Where I Want You)</span><br />
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So yeah, I had a crush or two (or a hundred) back in the day, so I usually took special interest in any song that was about pursuing or longing. I never cared much for the rap at the end, but it was all about those "oohs" during the chorus and that lower register that most lead singers around the time used that could instantly strike a chord with pining adolescents such as myself. <br />
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<span style="font-weight: bold;"><br /><br />Song that I never heard in its entirety until I did this post: Labelle-Lady Marmalade</span><br />
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The great thing about recording songs from the oldies station is that I could play them back anytime I wanted and didn't have to wait for them to appear in a Time-Life compilation commercial, thus bringing me fully up to speed with all the grown-ups. I've rarely allowed snippets on my mixtapes since the early days, but whenever I heard an older song on the radio, I usually just hit record hoping that I caught it at the beginning. "Lady Marmalade" is awesome and all, but it wasn't exactly setting the airwaves on fire back in 1998, which left the next time I would hear it again a mystery. I ended up only catching the song right before the last verse, but I knew the hell out of that part until the 2001 remake came along. Up until now, I had never heard the Labelle version from beginning to end and I've obviously been missing out. <br />
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<span style="font-weight: bold;">I can't help but champion follow-up songs by one-hit wonders, but only if they're good: Fastball-Fire Escape</span><br />
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<a href="http://mixedreaction.blogspot.com/2011/10/collection-vol-4-spring-1998.html" target="_blank">I've already mentioned "The Way"</a> in an earlier entry and how over the moon I was about it, but "Fire Escape" is another one of those tunes that time has forgotten. I've always felt a kinship with songs like this because despite how catchy I thought it was, it never gained much momentum in popularity. I've never had anything against success, but I did find myself rooting for the underdogs a lot.<br />
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<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/0jMyjjeSWak" width="320"></iframe>Ivanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04786658818562297429noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-578658545326343306.post-66462102391376490042012-01-11T19:24:00.002-06:002013-03-06T10:05:00.217-06:00Untitled 60 Minute Mixtape (Fall 1998)<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-ILngtAuf7ZI/Tw0HSewX89I/AAAAAAAABTE/ryLGVXLc6oU/s1600/2012-01-10%2B21.32.42.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5696217117768545234" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-ILngtAuf7ZI/Tw0HSewX89I/AAAAAAAABTE/ryLGVXLc6oU/s320/2012-01-10%2B21.32.42.jpg" style="cursor: pointer; height: 240px; width: 320px;" /></a><br />
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<span style="font-weight: bold;">Side A</span><br />
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Melissa Etheridge-I'm The Only One<br />
V.A.S.T.-Touched<br />
Busta Rhymes-Put Your Hands Where My Eyes Could See<br />
Outkast-Rosa Parks<br />
Ecoline Crush-Surefire<br />
Fatboy Slim-Praise You<br />
Love Unlimited Orchestra-Love's Theme<br />
Lenny Kravitz-Fly Away<br />
Sugar Ray-Everymorning<br />
snippet of Nirvana's "The Man Who Sold The World"<br />
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<span style="font-weight: bold;">Side B</span><br />
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Chemical Brothers-Block Rockin' Beat<br />
The Offspring-Pretty Fly (For A White Guy)<br />
Stevie Wonder-For Once In My Life<br />
snippet of ZZ Top's "Sharp Dressed Man"<br />
Marilyn Manson-I Don't Like The Drugs But The Drugs Like Me<br />
Busta Rhymes-Gimme Some More<br />
Eminem-My Name Is<br />
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With there being more than a few random mixtapes that don't belong to <span style="font-style: italic;">The Collection</span>, I often get confused with the chronology. I didn't realize that the <a href="http://mixedreaction.blogspot.com/2012/01/collection-vol-9-fall-1998.html" target="_blank">introduction of Sony's red tapes</a> could have possibly put this one before <span style="font-style: italic;">Vol. 9</span>, but I can't honestly say that with any confidence. I don't exactly recall the reasoning behind me getting a 60 minute cassette, especially since I was obviously in love with the 90 minute ones, but it might have been one of those times when the hour tapes were the only ones available at Walgreens. I did not label this one or even bother to write down a tracklist, probably out of frustration at it not being 45 minutes on each side. To me, its feeble running time did not deem it worthy of being part of <span style="font-style: italic;">The Collection</span>. Nonetheless, I still had some good times with this one, even if it did get the stepchild treatment.<br />
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<span style="font-weight: bold;">Song that I always forget the name of and the band itself, leaving me to doubt if I ever knew it back then: Ecoline Crush-Surefire</span><br />
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It happens about once a year, where I start randomly singing to myself, "Sheeee goes ballistic on meeee." I always struggle with remembering any information about the song, which is rare and makes me pretty positive that I never knew it to begin with. I'm pretty good when it comes to recalling the names of songs and artists, but whenever I Googled those lyrics and the results came back as Ecoline Crush, I only felt more confusion because I did not recognize the name. After writing about it now, I'm hoping that won't be the case anymore.<br />
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<span style="font-weight: bold;">That one time I hit record without ever hearing the song before and it worked out just fine: Fatboy Slim-Praise You</span><br />
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It was late at night one Saturday and I was listening to the radio through my headphones, so as not to wake anyone up. As soon as the DJ said "new Fatboy Slim," my ears perked up. Having been a fan of "The Rockafella Skank," I was curious to see what he would come up with next. It's always a gamble whenever you're recording a song blind and this was one of the bigger payoffs since "Praise You" came to be one of my favorite songs of the year. I pressed my headphones tighter to my ears, so as to catch every little nuance and touch of soul throughout the record, tapping my feet and nodding my head in delight during its duration. When the song was finished, I wanted to listen to it again, which I eventually did over and over.<br />
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<span style="font-weight: bold;">Just how great was 1998 for hip hop, right?: Outkast-Rosa Parks</span><br />
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Going through some of these mixtapes, it's pretty amazing that 1998 gave us terrific albums by Big Punisher, Jay-Z and Lauryn Hill, not to mention efforts by DMX, Black Star, Juvenile, Goodie Mob, Beastie Boys, Redman and about a dozen others. As if things couldn't get any better, Outkast released <span style="font-style: italic;">Aquemeni</span> that fall, which was arguably the best hip hop album of the year. The lead single, "Rosa Parks," was just as thrilling and about as eclectic as I thought hip hop could get (until they proved me wrong just two years later, but that's for a later entry). It was definitely jarring to have a harmonica solo and a bluegrass breakdown in the middle of the song since it was something that I wasn't used to, but I loved it because of that.<br />
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<span style="font-weight: bold;">Song that I never would have figured for annoying until I heard it as an adult: The Offspring-Pretty Fly (For A White Guy)</span><br />
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I distinctly remember this song dividing people back at school: either you were a fan or you thought it was crap. I was strictly in the fan camp since I always enjoyed humor in my music and thought that the song's detractors were trying hard to be cool by dissing it. I mean, c'mon, he played Vanilla Ice instead of Ice Cube! Cracked me up back in the day. When I listened to it again for this post, the song did make me smile a bit, but with the obvious punchlines and the babyish female vocals on the chorus, I can now see how someone could have viewed this as annoying.<br />
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<span style="font-weight: bold;">My absolute third favorite song on here, behind "Praise You" and "Rosa Parks": Busta Rhymes-Gimme Some More</span><br />
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Aside from the video being one of my all-time favorites, "Gimme Some More" is as great an example of why Busta is one of the most technically pure MCs ever. The beat itself, which took a snippet from the score of <span style="font-style: italic;">Psycho</span>, was already challenging enough, but he made it sound like the most hardcore thing ever. I remember thinking how both that sample and Busta made the song an unreal listening experience.<br />
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<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/eHHT7dTmw8U" width="320"></iframe>Ivanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04786658818562297429noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-578658545326343306.post-19657158498521114862012-01-03T20:55:00.001-06:002013-03-06T10:05:48.059-06:00The Collection Vol. 9 (Fall 1998)Sorry for the long wait between posts. I was very busy with my best <a href="http://h-b-e.blogspot.com/2011/12/best-albums-of-2011.html" target="_blank">albums</a> and <a href="http://h-b-e.blogspot.com/2011/12/top-250-singles-of-2011.html" target="_blank">singles</a> of 2011 lists for Hectic But Eclectic. <br />
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<span style="font-weight: bold;">Side A</span><br />
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Squeeze-Tempted<br />
SWV-Can We<br />
Eagle Eye Cherry-Save Tonight<br />
Jackson 5-I'll Be There<br />
Everlast-What It's Like<br />
Beck-Tropicalia<br />
snippet of Hot Chocolate's "You Sexy Thing"<br />
Garbage-Special<br />
Barry White-Can't Get Enough Of Your Love Babe<br />
Cake-Never There<br />
Beastie Boys-Body Movin'<br />
Foo Fighters-I'll Stick Around<br />
Alanis Morrissette-Thank U<br />
snippet of Bobby Hebb's "Sunny"<br />
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<span style="font-weight: bold;">Side B</span><br />
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Al Green-I'm Still In Love With You<br />
Stevie Wonder-Living For The City<br />
EPMD-Crossover<br />
Lauryn Hill feat. D'Angelo-Nothing Even Matters<br />
Timbaland-Here We Come<br />
Jay-Z-Hard Knock Life<br />
snippet of Diana Ross' "I'm Comin' Out"<br />
Queen & David Bowie-Under Pressure<br />
Semisonic-Singing In My Sleep<br />
Smashing Pumpkins-Cherub Rock<br />
The Wallflowers-One Headlight<br />
snippet of Steve Miller Band's "The Joker"<br />
Smash Mouth-All Star<br />
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The most immediate thing you'll notice if you've been following this blog is the switch in color Sony made with their cassettes from blue to red. I'll gladly admit that such an ordinary change in hue is mundane, but it had an effect on me. Of course, there was the sense of betrayal that came with an unexpected new color. How dare they, I used to think. I was falling into a nice routine and they had to go and mess it up. I eventually got over it, maybe even within that same hour. Once I saw that they were now selling five-packs instead of three, I became accustomed to the red cassettes really quick. Anything that helped me indulge my music addiction further was welcome. <br />
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The fidelity and type of the cassettes were unchanged, so it was business as usual as far as the quality went. I'm also not sure if it's because I owned the blue ones longer, which made them more susceptible to wear and tear, but the red cases held up much better. Fewer of them fell apart and look only slightly used today. I can't say the same for the previous versions. The red cases also looked more pristine over time while the blue ones were doomed to be dingy. <br />
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I felt that <span style="font-style: italic;">Vol. 9</span> was another strong effort and I remember it being one of my most played during the time. Not every mixtape after this would be perfect, but it looked as if I had finally hit a groove with four straight volumes that I regarded highly. I probably relied more on older songs here than on any other previous mixtape, either because the well was starting to run dry for current stuff or the amount of oldies I was curious about was just endless. I never set out to record a specific older song; it's just that when I recognized something, I instantly jumped at it. A lot of my musical education came during this time and it has helped me impress a good deal of middle-aged people.<br />
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<span style="font-weight: bold;">Song that confirmed even more that my favorite artist could do no wrong: Beck - Tropicalia</span><br />
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Sometime during the run for <span style="font-style: italic;">Odelay</span>, Beck became That Guy for me. He had a sense of humor, he was eclectic and also a little awkward. That helped me relate to him, but just about every single he released stuck in my ear and became my favorite song of the moment. "Tropicalia" was no different. Bossa nova on alternative radio? Only Beck could get away it. That's part of what made him That Guy.<br />
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<span style="font-weight: bold;">Song I was telling everybody at school about before it got really, really popular: Smash Mouth - All Star</span><br />
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No one really expected big things from Smash Mouth after "Walkin' On The Sun," including me. I liked that song a lot, but they seemed like the typical quirky 90s band with a limited shelf life. The first time I heard "All Star," I wanted to hear it again immediately. The chorus was catchy and simple enough that it stuck with you, but it was a lively song all around. I remember being so energetic telling people about this song, saying "Ohhh, have you heard that new Smash Mouth song yet? It's pretty good!" In hindsight, that doesn't sound like the coolest thing one could say, but it came from a sincere place. That's why I keep defending "All Star" to this day, because my opinion of it was not affected by hearing it in every other TV show or movie trailer and that I was always open to the possibility that it could in fact be just a very well done pop song with universal appeal. <br />
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<span style="font-weight: bold;">Biggest surprise on the radio at the time, at least for me: Everlast - What It's Like</span><br />
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Count me among those who thought that I would never hear from Everlast again back at the beginning of 1998. The success of this song and his rebranding as a hip hop folkster was a welcome twist amongst the growing trend of artist who thought they could rap that were starting to appear on alternative radio. At this point of my youth, I always associated songs that told stories with being "deep," so I felt extra thoughtful and introspective whenever this came on.<br />
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<span style="font-weight: bold;">Song that I had no idea how much I loved until I was able to hear it in its entirety on a regular basis: Stevie Wonder - Living For The City</span><br />
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The scene in <span style="font-style: italic;">Jungle Fever</span> where Wesley Snipes is searching for his crackhead brother forever solidified that this song was a monster to me. Since I hadn't seen <span style="font-style: italic;">Jungle Fever</span> when it was first came out in theaters, that had been the only time I heard it all the way through. Thanks to <span style="font-style: italic;">Vol. 9</span>, I could listen to it anytime and it was easily one of my most anticipated songs here. The "dadada daa daa" part where everything just exploded slayed me every time.<br />
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<span style="font-weight: bold;">Song I feel obligated to mention because this band had a lot of really good songs at the time and this might be one of my last chances to talk about them: Garbage - Special</span><br />
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Each time that Garbage has made an appearance on one of my mixtapes, I wanted to write about them but could never fit it in. It's a bit disrespectful considering that I probably liked all their singles from this period. I can't recall if any of the singles from their next album, <span style="font-style: italic;">beautifulgarbage</span>, made it on to <span style="font-style: italic;">The Collection</span>, so instead of taking a chance I'm going to highlight them now. Garbage, I'm so sorry for not giving you your props sooner. My younger self would like to thank you for so many fun listening moments, with "Special" being the most upbeat out of all them. Please forgive me.<br />
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<span style="font-weight: bold;">Song that took forever to grow on me, believe it or not: Smashing Pumpkins - Cherub Rock</span><br />
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Every time "Cherub Rock" came on MTV, I used to change the channel. My thought process went something like this: "I can't even see what they look like. Plus, it's taking too long for them to actually sing. This is crap and why am I watching it?" Yep, I could definitely be petty as a youth. Thankfully, I eventually gave the song a chance and it ended up being one of my favorite Pumpkins songs. I started to realize that the chorus wasn't all that bad, even if I could barely make out what the band looked like. <br />
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<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/q-KE9lvU810" width="320"></iframe>Ivanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04786658818562297429noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-578658545326343306.post-20457533596206899092011-12-08T16:10:00.000-06:002013-03-06T10:06:26.048-06:00The Collection Vol. 8 (Fall 1998)<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-4iJy7AluCW4/Tt_NexSTkcI/AAAAAAAABSE/iXMcU-47gE4/s1600/2011-12-06%2B21.25.02.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5683487183274742210" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-4iJy7AluCW4/Tt_NexSTkcI/AAAAAAAABSE/iXMcU-47gE4/s320/2011-12-06%2B21.25.02.jpg" style="cursor: hand; cursor: pointer; display: block; height: 240px; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; width: 320px;" /></a><br />
<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-tuKUvdaUu8Q/Tt_NfOXUbUI/AAAAAAAABSQ/SLr0JkbwotU/s1600/2011-12-06%2B21.24.23.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5683487191080398146" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-tuKUvdaUu8Q/Tt_NfOXUbUI/AAAAAAAABSQ/SLr0JkbwotU/s320/2011-12-06%2B21.24.23.jpg" style="cursor: hand; cursor: pointer; display: block; height: 240px; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; width: 320px;" /></a><br />
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<span style="font-weight: bold;">Side A</span><br />
Marilyn Manson-The Dope Show<br />
Soundgarden-Spoonman<br />
Lauryn Hill-Doo-Wop (That Thing)<br />
Shawn Mullins-Lullaby<br />
Beastie Boys-Sabotage<br />
Al Green-Let's Stay Together<br />
Divine-Lately<br />
Smashing Pumpkins-Disarm<br />
Aerosmith-I Don't Want To Miss A Thing<br />
Sheryl Crow-A Change (Would Do You Good)<br />
Red Hot Chili Peppers-Higher Ground<br />
Dovetail Joint-Level On The Inside<br />
Soundgarden-Pretty Noose<br />
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<span style="font-weight: bold;">Side B</span><br />
Sam & Dave-Hold On, I'm Comin'<br />
Foo Fighters-I'll Stick Around<br />
Xscape-Our Little Secret<br />
snippet of Stevie Wonder's "I Was Made To Love Her"<br />
Natalia Imbruglia-Wishing I Was There<br />
Foo Fighters-My Hero<br />
Local H-All The Kids Are Right<br />
Metallica-Fuel<br />
Bush-Glycerine<br />
R.E.M.-Man On The Moon<br />
Garbage-I Think I'm Paranoid<br />
snippet of En Vogue's "Hold On"<br />
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Pretty much each volume of <span style="font-style: italic;">The Collection</span> is special to me in one way or another, but in hindsight, <span style="font-style: italic;">Vol. 8</span> represented that I had arrived when it came to making mixtapes. Two years prior, my tapes were often sloppy and ramshackle, but this volume was seamless for the most part with nary a trace of a DJ's voice. My attentive methods paid off and this was the first volume that I played for a bigger audience.<br />
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I performed in a production of <span style="font-style: italic;"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/A_Raisin_in_the_Sun" target="_blank">A Raisin In The Sun</a></span> at our school and during the wrap party on the night of our last show, we needed music to provide us entertainment. Our theatre group was very diverse, made up of different races and cultures, so for everyone to feel truly included and have a good time at the party, I knew the music played had to be just as diverse. In the dressing room before and after shows, music was always being played and I might have snuck in my mixtapes for a moment or two, but the wrap party was obviously a much bigger deal since the entire cast and crew was going to be there, along with family members. I had dreaded someone immediately showing their disapproval and snatching the cassette out after a few songs, thus further signaling my hermit-like approach to music, never to share in public again.<br />
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There was plenty of rock to satisfy a good deal of the kids, but I knew that the R&B songs interspersed throughout would satiate the fans of the genre and not let them feel totally left out. I can't remember exactly where it started, but it might have been around the Shawn Mullins song on Side A and the mixtape was allowed to play to the very end without an incident. Some songs got a more enthusiastic response than others (I specifically remember bonding with someone over Metallica's "Fuel"), but I think the kids were just happy to have some sound in the background and that it was contemporary. <span style="font-style: italic;">Vol. 8</span> was probably the best choice for such a varied group since there weren't any embarrassing selections (at least at the time they weren't embarrassing) that would have brought everything to a halt and it mixed old and new. Like I said before, it felt like I had arrived. I always kept my own personal taste in mind whenever I made a mixtape, but I had improved to the point where my craft could be acceptable for general audiences, whatever the intention. I haven't stopped sharing since then. <br />
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Sidenote: Okay, this is the third time that Foo Fighters' "My Hero" has made an appearance, but I swear I recorded it from the very beginning this time. Honest. <br />
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<span style="font-weight: bold;">My absolute favorite song on this mixtape: Divine - Lately</span><br />
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What I loved about this song was how organic it sounded as opposed to a lot of the heavily produced stuff that was going on at the time. Its approach was easygoing, much like the summery, Southern vibe in the video. A lot of the guitar riffs used in R&B songs around this time were catchy, but felt very abrupt as its focus was to meld with the groove, which made "Lately" stand out to me even more because of the melodic phrasing used here. <br />
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<span style="font-weight: bold;">First song that I can remember losing my mind over: Stevie Wonder - I Was Made To Love Her</span><br />
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I was about 11-years-old when I first heard this song and I just remember my eyes widening like crazy in amazement. I didn't know it at the time, but I had my first official freakout over a song. Let me explain: when I freakout over a song, I lose control over my impulses and I'm so overwhelmed in ecstasy that it's hard for me to even have a conversation. Some of the gestures that go along with this have included me slowly shaking my head from side to side, near tears, a hand over my mouth, dropping to my knees or just repeating "Oh my God" a bunch of times. I didn't quite have that same reaction as I recorded the song—my first encounter since that day— but I was still pleased to have it, even if it wasn't in its entirety. <br />
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<span style="font-weight: bold;">Just another song from a one-hit wonder that I thought should have gotten more attention: Natalie Imbruglia - Wishing I Was There</span><br />
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It took me less time to warm up to this song than with "Torn", so of course I was pulling for it to be as big a hit. So much of the Alanis blueprint is all over this track, which is probably what endeared me to it so much. You've heard "Torn" enough to last an eternity. Listen to this instead! <br />
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<span style="font-weight: bold;">Song that made me realize that there was much more to Chicago than Smashing Pumpkins, Liz Phair, Veruca Salt and Urge Overkill: Dovetail Joint - Level On The Inside</span><br />
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I used to have this horrible, horrible habit of believing that local music was inferior. There was so much music for me to listen to and now I have to make room for some mediocre band who doesn't even have a music video (oh to be young)? For some reason, I gave a pass for local music when it came to R&B and hip hop since those artists were more likely to make an appearance in my neighborhood or be the talk amongst my friends. I was still pretty sheltered to the rest of the city, so Q101 was my only exposure to the Chicago rock scene. If a song didn't catch my interest instantly, I immediately turned the station, which was the case with a lot of local stuff. "Level On The Inside" caught my ears because of how sparsely it started off and with the soft/loud dynamics that continued on, which of course I was a sucker for. The song definitely had a local flavor since it felt more thoughtful than a lot of the other hits that were in rotation, but for once I was starting to think that there was more to Chicago than what was on MTV. Yep. Gotta love the youth. <br />
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<span style="font-weight: bold;">Oh wait! Chicago was probably more awesome than I remember: Local H - All The Kids Are Right</span><br />
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It's a shame that Local H is so underrated because they have nothing but jams upon jams. Sure their songs have a similar sound, which makes it easy to take them for granted, but then you look back and realize that this wasn't even their most popular song and you start to wish you had respected them more back in the day. <br />
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<span style="font-weight: bold;">Song that made me feel like I was on drugs without ever trying them once: Marilyn Manson - The Dope Show</span><br />
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There was something about the croak in Manson's voice that made things feel very hazy. I could feel the inebriation coming through the speakers, and thus I felt inebriated myself. Sort of. Whatever it was, it made me sway my body slowly back and forth and it made my limbs go limp. <br />
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<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/5R682M3ZEyk" width="320"></iframe>Ivanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04786658818562297429noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-578658545326343306.post-91904036513095818712011-11-30T23:51:00.001-06:002013-03-06T10:07:15.181-06:00The Collection Vol. 7 (Summer 1998)<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-J8Vcs7017Bw/TsW8-__mFFI/AAAAAAAABR0/2vTWg_cBTnY/s1600/2011-11-17%2B19.48.13.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5676150695886459986" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-J8Vcs7017Bw/TsW8-__mFFI/AAAAAAAABR0/2vTWg_cBTnY/s320/2011-11-17%2B19.48.13.jpg" style="cursor: hand; cursor: pointer; display: block; height: 240px; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; width: 320px;" /></a><br />
<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-d9AFI7PJNRM/TsW8-prUnXI/AAAAAAAABRo/Z1HHTx67SAw/s1600/2011-11-17%2B19.48.56.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5676150689895849330" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-d9AFI7PJNRM/TsW8-prUnXI/AAAAAAAABRo/Z1HHTx67SAw/s320/2011-11-17%2B19.48.56.jpg" style="cursor: hand; cursor: pointer; display: block; height: 240px; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; width: 320px;" /></a><br />
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<span style="font-weight: bold;">Side A</span><br />
Depeche Mode-Enjoy The Silence<br />
Blues Traveler-Most Precarious<br />
Grant Lee Buffalo-Truly Truly<br />
Everclear-Father Of Mine<br />
Smashing Pumpkins-1979<br />
Green Day-Longview<br />
Third Eye Blind-Graduate<br />
Will Smith-Just The Two Of Us<br />
Pearl Jam-Betterman<br />
Counting Crows-Round Here<br />
Hootie & The Blowfish-Only Wanna Be With You<br />
Wyclef Jean-Gone Till November<br />
INXS-Need You Tonight<br />
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<span style="font-weight: bold;">Side B</span><br />
Creed-What's This Life For?<br />
Sublime-Doin' Time<br />
Atrixo-Audacious<br />
Live-Selling The Drama<br />
Nine Inch Nails-Down In It<br />
Barenaked Ladies-One Week<br />
Bush-Swallowed<br />
Soft Cell-Tainted Love<br />
Monica-The First Night<br />
Billie Myers-Tell Me<br />
Dave Matthews Band-Stay<br />
Lauryn Hill-Can't Take My Eyes Off You<br />
snippet of Dovetail Joint's "Level On The Inside"<br />
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I probably used up all the summer jams for <a href="http://mixedreaction.blogspot.com/2011/11/collection-vol-6-summer-1998.html" style="font-style: italic;" target="_blank">Vol. 6</a>, which didn't matter to me at the time because I still played the hell out of it. If I had to take a guess, this might have been created in late-July or early August because I remember the Monica and Lauryn Hill songs got airplay towards the end of the season. Overall, this volume felt like summer winding down when I listened to it. As much as I enjoyed <span style="font-style: italic;">Vol. 7</span>, it felt like my vacation had already hit its peak by then and it showed in the music. Following Brandy & Monica's "The Boy Is Mine," was there really room enough for another smash?<br />
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This was also the first mixtape I had the courage to play in front anyone that wasn't family, even if it was for a few songs. By this time, all of my friends knew that my taste was varied, so I tried not to force different kinds of music on them too much, or at least the stuff I felt they couldn't relate to. I distinctly remember being at a friend's house and planning ahead to play this mixtape since "Tainted Love" was a song we both liked. I would simply suggest that we listen to it at an opportune moment and just like that, I would get to share this passion of mine beyond my room. I knew that the following song, "The First Night," would be acceptable, and for the next few tracks, I had my first audience. I think we might have either been playing video games or having a conversation, which allowed Billie Myers to sneak in. Somewhere around "Stay," the stereo was probably turned off. I might have gotten too nervous or ashamed to let it play since their reaction to "Tell Me" was not as enthusiastic as I had hoped. I was thrilled and scared at the same time because I had yet to learn how to cope with being confident around others when it came to my love for pop and rock music.<br />
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Side note: If you pay attention to the photo of the track list, you'll notice that I have Pearl Jam's "Betterman" listed as "In Hiding." Obviously, I had no idea what the song was called and it didn't help that they were in their anti-music video phase during that time. It was the main way I had of identifying songs on the radio. <br />
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Here's a look at some of the tracks:<br />
<span style="font-weight: bold;"><br />Song that for the life of me I could never catch at the beginning: Blues Traveler - Most Precarious</span><br />
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For a while, I think I had convinced myself that this was my favorite Blues Traveler song much in the way that people are attracted to rejection, making the chase more alluring. I wanted this song so badly, but I was always a verse or chorus too late(after all, this is its third appearance on this blog). Aside from being a huge tease, I think I was also attracted to it because it felt like the most compact song they had done in a while. Not too much noodling. Just straightforward catchiness.<br />
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<span style="font-weight: bold;">Song whose lyrics I obsessed over: Barenaked Ladies - One Week</span><br />
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The chorus I could easily understand, but it was like I needed an interpreter for everything else. It didn't help that there were some pop culture references that I had yet to understand included here, but it was done so rapidly that I had no hope of following it. I think I printed the lyrics to this song off the Internet within a month of being back at school. At one point, I think I could correctly recite about 85% of this song.<br />
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<span style="font-weight: bold;">First song I recorded from a CD: Wyclef Jean - Gone Till November</span><br />
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During the fall of 1997, the pop version of this song was my favorite thing going. The video couldn't come on enough and I cherished each time someone requested it on The Box. I even bought the single on cassette, which also came with the <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bE5xcdXaBiA" target="_blank">remix featuring R. Kelly and Canibus</a> (in typical tape space scavenging fashion, I recorded <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cWHicFCKxVE&ob=av2e" target="_blank">Missy Elliott's "Beep Me 911"</a> on the other side). Since my budget was limited and I couldn't afford to buy <span style="font-style: italic;">The Carnival</span>, imagine my shock when I listed to <span style="font-style: italic;">The Source</span> compilation that my brother owned and heard Wyclef rapping instead of singing over the entire track. It didn't feel right at first, but I grew to love the original version. I didn't get my first CD player until Christmas of that year, so I think I found a few extra minutes at the end of this tape for me to record it.<br />
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<span style="font-weight: bold;">Song that I'll begrudgingly admit to liking: Creed - What's This Life For?</span><br />
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I don't think it's appropriate to say that I hate Creed since I have never been forced to listen to them. If I despised them that much, I could have just easily switched the station whenever they came on. If I love an artist, I've probably listened to them a ton of times, and if I'm going to hate someone then I need to apply that same scale in spins. With that being said, I find Creed to be one of the most irritatingly dull bands of their time. At their worst, the songs were turgid and smacking of righteous self-importance. Whenever their first single, "My Own Prison," came on Q101, I had to turn the station for risk of boring myself to death. I found the follow-up much more appealing though. "What's This Life For?" felt like less of a retread of the grunge era (still, a retread nonetheless) and the way the song built after the second chorus really stood out to me. It's one of the few moments I genuinely enjoyed from this band. Just try not to tell too many people, okay?<br />
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<span style="font-weight: bold;">First song to make me flip out in public: Lauryn Hill - Can' Take My Eyes Off Of You</span><br />
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I was in a clothing store with some friends where WGCI was playing over the speakers. They announced that they were about to play a new Lauryn Hill song and my ears had immediately perked up. If you've been reading for a while, you'll know that <span style="font-style: italic;">The Score</span> was the first real album I owned, and with that started my infatuation with L-Boogie. I knew that she had a solo album coming out soon and it was instantly one of my most anticipated moments of the year. That day in the clothing store was my first encounter with solo Lauryn since "Sweetest Thing" back in 1996. When she first sang "I love you, baby" in that powerful, honey-roasted rasp of hers, I started smiling. Heavily. There was so much joy in the way she sang it and it completely took me over. I told my friends that I needed this moment to embrace the song and they completely understood, smiling and enjoying the song themselves as well. Whenever the chorus hit, I kept saying, "Oh my God, this amazing. Oh my God," like a stunned, deranged person. I made it my mission to record it when I got home. This version here is the one found on the <span style="font-style: italic;">Conspiracy Theory</span> soundtrack, not <span style="font-style: italic;">The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill</span>, which didn't have the same energy and power.<br />
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<span style="font-weight: bold;">Song I'm afraid time has forgotten: Grant Lee Buffalo - Truly Truly</span><br />
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At the time, I felt like this was the best song in rotation on Q101. It wasn't necessarily my favorite, but I could tell that there was something more serious going on besides the same commercialized product that was played around the hour. I heard an actual songwriter somewhere in there who cared a hell of lot more about melody then giving the kiddies something to mosh to. Naturally, it finished at 72 out of 101 on the station's year-end countdown.<br />
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<span style="font-weight: bold;">"No no, you've got it all wrong! This lesser-known follow-up single is way better than their big breakthrough hit that everybody loves. Don't look at me like I'm crazy!": Billie Myers - Tell Me</span><br />
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It's not like I had planned to like this song more than "Kiss The Rain" just to be a contrarian, although it may seem like that in some cases. I liked the song enough to include it on <span style="font-style: italic;">Vol. 6</span>, but I just felt so many more colors emanating from "Tell Me." It probably had to do with all the sitars and sex talk. This was another one of those songs that didn't come on the radio as often, so catching it was rare and rewarding.<br />
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<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/BfWuGnft0KQ" width="320"></iframe>Ivanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04786658818562297429noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-578658545326343306.post-30151848471232715272011-11-24T08:24:00.002-06:002013-03-06T10:11:20.020-06:00New post next weekFor those of you wondering why there haven't been any new posts recently, I've been hard at work on my annual Grammy nomination predictions for my other blog, <a href="http://h-b-e.blogspot.com/search/label/Grammys" target="_blank">Hectic But Eclectic</a>. If you click the link, you'll see just how extensive they can be and how dedicated I am to covering the Grammys in general. Expect a new post here on Mixed Reaction next week when all of that is taken care of.Ivanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04786658818562297429noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-578658545326343306.post-27930812003676486572011-11-10T12:56:00.001-06:002013-03-06T10:11:44.218-06:00ToneMaster Type I Normal Bias (Summer 1998)<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-EZHvSIIr4CA/Trrw69k7_7I/AAAAAAAABQw/schSOlLpNK8/s1600/2011-11-09%2B15.26.45.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5673111576379129778" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-EZHvSIIr4CA/Trrw69k7_7I/AAAAAAAABQw/schSOlLpNK8/s320/2011-11-09%2B15.26.45.jpg" style="cursor: hand; cursor: pointer; display: block; height: 240px; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; width: 320px;" /></a><br />
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<span style="font-weight: bold;">Side 1</span><br />
Smashing Pumpkins-Ava Adore<br />
Harvey Danger-Flagpole Sitta<br />
Blues Traveler-Hook<br />
The Offspring-Gone Away<br />
Savage Garden-I Want You<br />
Dave Matthews Band-Ants Marching<br />
Hootie & The Blowfish-Let Her Cry<br />
Pearl Jam-Alive<br />
Guns N' Roses-Live and Let Die<br />
Metallica-Sad But True<br />
The Verve-The Freshmen (softer AOR version)<br />
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<span style="font-weight: bold;">Side 2</span><br />
Garbage-Push It<br />
Semisonic-Closing Time<br />
Lisa Loeb-Let's Forget About It<br />
U2-I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For<br />
Gin Blossoms-Hey Jealousy<br />
snippet of Blues Traveler-Most Precarious<br />
Alice In Chains-I Stay Away<br />
Red Hot Chili Peppers-Aeroplane<br />
Spin Doctors-Little Miss Can't Be Wrong<br />
Lisa Loeb & Nine Stories-Stay (I Missed You)<br />
The Wallflowers-Heroes<br />
Natalie Merchant-Kind & Generous<br />
snippet of Brandy & Monica's "The Boy Is Mine"<br />
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During the school year, <a href="http://mixedreaction.blogspot.com/2011/09/collection-vol-2-fall-1997.html" target="_blank">I received money from my mother for which I was to use for transportation and lunch</a>, but now that it was summer the stipends slowed down. I still remember being able to buy comic books every week, so I don't think my financial situation was that dire, but I was definitely more careful with my money. One time, I decided to try out a new cassette for recording instead of the usual Sony Hi-Fi Type I that I had been using for <span style="font-style: italic;">The Collection</span>. My new choice was a brand called ToneMaster and was about 30 cents cheaper. It had a running time of 90 minutes so I figured I'd give it a run. When I finished making the mixtape and played it back, I could immediately tell where Sony used that extra money.<br />
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The fidelity was much lower on my ToneMaster cassette and lacked the fullness in sound that I had become accustomed to. It felt weak by comparison. Nonetheless, I was still able to enjoy this mixtape, as always and I was totally fine with this not being a part of <span style="font-style: italic;">The Collection</span>. The best volumes usually have the most diversity and from the looks of the tracklist, I spent most of the time recording only between Q101 and The Mix. <br />
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<span style="font-weight: bold;">My absolute favorite song here: "Stay (I Missed You)"</span><br />
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This song was a few years old at the time, so it's a bit unfair to bestow favorite status upon it, but as I was looking at videos to embed for this post, I couldn't help but look and sing along all the way through to this one. Usually, I like to listen to the first couple of minutes to make sure the quality of the video is fine, but as I was looking on, I could have sworn that Lisa looked me dead in the eye and dared me to join her in singing, for old time's sake. What I used to love about this song aside from having the total hots for Lisa Loeb was how it gradually built and then came back down, all without a traditional chorus. <br />
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<span style="font-weight: bold;">A close second for absolute favorite: "Flagpole Sitta"</span><br />
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"Flagpole Sitta" is not only my favorite current song on here, but I still think it's one of the best from the alternative period of the late '90s. I liked songs that made me bounce around or had imaginative lyrics with a sense of humor, so it was easy for me to fall in love with this track from the first time I heard it. <br />
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<span style="font-weight: bold;">Song I'd be most ashamed of liking if I believed in guilty pleasures: "Let Her Cry"</span><br />
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I get it. Hootie & The Blowfish were not hip then and are even less so now. To be honest, I'm not really a fan of most jammy traditional rock music, but if something sounds appealing enough I'm willing to throw away my biases. When <span style="font-style: italic;">Cracked Rear View</span> first came out, I wasn't even sure what "jammy traditional rock" was, but I could recognize its sound and I knew I'd rather listen to other stuff like Weezer and Green Day. After a while, I stopped letting my tastes get in the way and just accepted that their singles had memorable, solid choruses. I will defend "Let Her Cry" and the rest of the album as long as I'm breathing. <br />
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<span style="font-weight: bold;">Song that turned me off even more than Hootie did initially but I ended up liking anyway: "I Want You"</span><br />
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I used to think that this was the most toothless song ever. I've always been a fan of pop music, but in my younger days I needed it to be either ridiculously catchy or filled with attitude. "I Want You" just came off as wimpy and sounded a few years behind the curve, so I resisted. Oddly enough, I turned around on the song due to Rosie O'Donnell, of all people. I'd catch her talk show sometimes in the afternoon and she would often play snippets of it. It was either her enthusiasm for it or that she played the best part of the song, but it opened my eyes up to the possibility that it may not be all that bad. Once I gave it a chance, I found out that it was indeed ridiculous catchy, despite how wimpy it came off. <br />
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<span style="font-weight: bold;">Song I didn't really appreciate till I became an adult: "Hey Jealousy"</span><br />
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Even when I recorded this song back in 1998, it was mostly due to recognizing it from years before and liking it at that time. "Hey Jealousy" was never one of my top favorites back in 1993, but I rarely turned the channel whenever it came on. It wasn't until about five or six years ago when the song came up during a message board discussion and I went back to it. At that time, I couldn't believe that I gave such a gem a moderate reception. Somehow the chorus seemed bigger and it felt like I had heard the lyrics "Tell me do you think it'd be alright/If I could just crash here tonight?/You can see I'm in no shape for driving/And anyway I've got no place to go" for the first time, even though my little grade school ears could sing along to it with ease back in the day. <br />
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<span style="font-weight: bold;">Song that reminds me the most of failed opportunities: "The Boy Is Mine"</span><br />
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I had recently been pretty good at making sure that songs did not cut off before the end of a side, but in this case I didn't even take the time to think about it. Once I heard that a new song by Brandy and Monica was about to be played, I instantly hit record because I figured that it would be a song that I would eventually covet. For the first few weeks, all I did was ask people if they had heard it because it was so new and the collaboration monumental. When I had to go to summer school, this girl named Ines took the same bus as I did on the way home. We would always catch each other's eyes for the first couple of weeks, but we really didn't talk until she offered me a seat that she had been saving. One of my main topics back then when talking to a girl was music and movies because I knew that I could find some common ground there since I knew a lot about them. The conversation I remember most is when I asked her if she had heard this song and I exaggerated my excitement about it in hopes that it would lead to a deeper connection. We continued to talk whenever we took the bus together, but that was far as it went. Sometimes I wonder if I had more to talk about besides music and movies how things would have gone. Or I could have just asked for her number. <br />
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<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/Va1Y6uAgNJY" width="320"></iframe>Ivanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04786658818562297429noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-578658545326343306.post-1376716581784025602011-11-02T22:26:00.001-05:002013-03-06T10:14:12.013-06:00The Collection Vol. 6 (Summer 1998)<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-lkiY1b5mrrw/TrGqdl_HyvI/AAAAAAAABQk/YCtcy41HjZw/s1600/2011-11-02%2B15.27.37.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5670500831225957106" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-lkiY1b5mrrw/TrGqdl_HyvI/AAAAAAAABQk/YCtcy41HjZw/s320/2011-11-02%2B15.27.37.jpg" style="cursor: hand; cursor: pointer; display: block; height: 240px; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; width: 320px;" /></a><br />
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<span style="font-weight: bold;">Side A</span><br />
Sarah McLachlan-Adia <br />
Veruca Salt-Volcano Girls<br />
snippet of Curtis Mayfield's "Pusherman"<br />
Jimi Hendrix-Crosstown Traffic<br />
Dishwalla-Counting Blue Cars<br />
Vonda Shepard-Searchin' My Soul<br />
Beastie Boys- (You Gotta) Fight for Your Right (To Party)<br />
White Zombie-More Human Than Human<br />
Sublime-What I Got<br />
Pras feat. Mya and Ol' Dirty Bastard-Ghetto Supastar (That Is What You Are) <br />
Usher-My Way<br />
Aaliyah-Are You That Somebody<br />
Marcy Playground-Saint Joe on The School Bus<br />
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<span style="font-weight: bold;">Side B</span><br />
Smash Mouth-Can't Get Enough Of You Baby<br />
Smashing Pumpkins-Perfect<br />
Prince-When Doves Cry<br />
Billie Myers-Kiss The Rain<br />
Red Hot Chili Peppers-Breaking The Girl<br />
Foo Fighters-Walking After You<br />
Big Punisher feat. Joe-Still Not A Player<br />
Beastie Boys-Paul Revere<br />
Beastie Boya-Intergalactic<br />
Nirvana-Smells Like Teen Spirit<br />
The Urge-Jump Right In<br />
Sheryl Crow-All I Wanna Do<br />
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My expectations for music seem to always increase whenever it comes to summer. With it being the warmest season of the year, it's deliberate on the part of execs and artists to make sure that their most accessible and sunniest records are available for mass consumption. Due to the time off I had for summer vacation, I always associate the summers of my youth with good music since I had nothing but free time to indulge. All of these factors added up to my favorite mixtape of 1998.<br />
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I remember <span style="font-style: italic;">Vol. 6</span> held classification as "one of the really good ones" in the early days of <span style="font-style: italic;">The Collection</span> and it began a streak of mixtapes that I found highly favorable if I can recall correctly. I wish I could say that the solid, but underwhelming, <a href="http://mixedreaction.blogspot.com/2011/10/collection-vol-5-spring-1998.html" target="_blank">Vol. 5</a> was the catalyst for that improvement, but the truth is that I often recorded volumes so soon after one another that I never put much thought into how I could make the next one better. It was all about the thrill of capturing songs from the radio at this point.<br />
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Aside from me just really liking most of these songs a lot, I think <span style="font-style: italic;">Vol. 6</span> was above the usual standard because it encapsulated my love of different genres and spanned from current songs to those that were a few years old to those made before I was even born. I was rarely biased in my listening habits and I think that came across stronger here than with any of the 90-minute mixtapes I had done up until this point. Add the summer to that and I was one ecstatic kid.<br />
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Before I get into <span style="font-style: italic;">Vol. 6</span>, you might notice that "Breaking The Girl" was also on <span style="font-style: italic;">Vol. 5</span>. Much like the case with Nine Inch Nails' "The Perfect Drug" being on both that volume and <span style="font-style: italic;">4</span>, I didn't record "Breaking The Girl" exactly at the beginning on <span style="font-style: italic;">Vol. 5</span>, so when I had the opportunity to do so properly, I couldn't help myself and put it on here as well. <br />
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<b>Song that gave me the urge to break dance the most during the summer of 1998: Beastie Boys - Intergalatic</b><br />
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Speaking of multiple appearances, this is probably one of the few times where I've had an artist appear on a volume of <span style="font-style: italic;">The Collection</span> three times or more. Two songs by the same artist on one volume is not that big of an achievement considering how long some songs stayed in rotation and follow-up singles being released soon after. In the case of the Beastie Boys, their catalogue dated all the way back to 1986, so it wouldn't be unusual to come across multiple songs of theirs in a day. When you add a new album to the mix—their upcoming <a href="http://h-b-e.blogspot.com/2008/07/ten-years-gone-beastie-boys-hello-nasty.html" target="_blank"><span style="font-style: italic;">Hello Nasty</span></a>—the odds of hearing the Beasties on Q101 increased during the summer of '98. They've always been one of my favorite groups, but I remember going absolutely nuts when I heard "Intergalactic" for the first because it was one of the hardest and most straightforward hip hop singles that they'd done in a long time. As soon as I'd heard the opening lines, "Well, now don't you tell me to smile/You stick around I'll make it worth your while," I could feel that it was going to be a more aggressive effort. <br />
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<b>Song that instantly made you feel that a star had been born: Big Punisher feat. Joe - Still Not A Player</b><br />
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Even though WGCI never played the Beastie Boys unless it was "Paul Revere" during an old school set, it was a still a great time for the hip hop at the station. The entire year saw fantastic albums released from both the mainstream and underground worlds, which created a healthy competition to create the best product. One of the more enduring singles from this period was "Still Not A Player," which had a combination of verbosity and accessibility that now seems rare instead of commonplace on today's Hot 100. Aside from all of the memorable bars Pun dropped on this song, I mostly remember "Still Not A Player" for being refreshing at the time with its mixture of Latin music incorporated into hip hop. <br />
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<b>Song that was probably the apex of my Fugee standom: Pras feat. Mya & Ol' Dirty Bastard - Ghetto Supastar</b><br />
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At this time, I still thought that The Fugees were one of the best things going. <span style="font-style: italic;">The Score</span> was still one of the few albums that I owned and the singles from Wyclef Jean's <span style="font-style: italic;">The Carnival</span> were enough to keep me satisfied until their follow-up. I think Pras was probably everyone's least favorite member of the group, but it was still exciting to hear anything coming from that camp. Despite no appearances from Wyclef (although he did produce it) or Lauryn Hill, "Ghetto Superstar" turned out to be one of my favorite songs of the year, mostly because of ODB's verses and how delicate Mya sounded crooning the hook. It also sounded different than anything that was going on at the time. I'm not too sure anyone has interpolated a Dolly Parton song into a chorus since then. <br />
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<b>Song that became the soundtrack to any scenarios I imagined involving my crushes: Foo Fighters - Walking After You</b><br />
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If you've looked at some of the tracklists for my previous mixtapes, you're more than likely to spot a love song or two. I have no shame in admitting that I've always had a soft spot in my heart for songs about yearning, even to this day. One of my favorite tracks ever about an object of desire being out of reach is "Walking After You." I don't associate this song with any faces, so I may not have had a crush on anyone at the time that made me relate even more to the song, but I felt the sentiment of it all and in true pop music fashion, it transported me to a place where I did pine for someone, even if they didn't exist. This was one of those songs that I always had to rewind whenever I played this volume. <br />
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<b>Mandatory minor hit that I have to put the highlight on for this post: The Urge - Jump Right In</b><br />
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One of the things I've enjoyed about doing this blog is the chance to highlight songs that were minor hits in their format and now seem completely forgotten. "Jump Right In" by The Urge takes the honor for this volume and it still sounds good to this day. Anything that was a hybrid of ska and rock at this time would at least get you a small amount of airplay and for that reason I'm grateful that this little gem was a part of my teenage years. <br />
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<b>Song that made me proud to be a Chicagoan, which there was plenty of during the mid-'90s: Veruca Salt - Volacno Girls</b><br />
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On the other side of the airplay spectrum, it was pretty hard to escape "Volcano Girls" on Q101. I'm sure that with Veruca Salt hailing from Chicago that they would have been on the station's playlist regardless, but it was encouraging to know that it was also a national hit as well. I liked how it felt relentless, but the melody still felt soft underneath it all. <br />
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<br />Ivanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04786658818562297429noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-578658545326343306.post-45993791119730652162011-10-25T21:02:00.003-05:002013-03-06T10:14:49.246-06:00The Collection Vol. 5 (Spring 1998)<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-jK6so0pMrrU/TqdfAlR3_3I/AAAAAAAABPw/bCygh-h7kNU/s1600/2011-10-25%2B15.33.38.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5667603119680782194" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-jK6so0pMrrU/TqdfAlR3_3I/AAAAAAAABPw/bCygh-h7kNU/s320/2011-10-25%2B15.33.38.jpg" style="cursor: hand; cursor: pointer; display: block; height: 240px; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; width: 320px;" /></a><br />
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<span style="font-weight: bold;">Side A</span><br />
311-Down<br />
Everclear-Everything To Everyone<br />
Nine Inch Nails-The Perfect Drug<br />
Next-Too Close<br />
Dionne Farris-I Know<br />
Men At Work-Who Could It Be?<br />
Will Smith-Gettin' Jiggy Wit It<br />
Charli Baltimore-Money<br />
Master P feat. Sons of Funk-I Got The Hook-Up<br />
The Offspring-I Choose<br />
Smashing Pumpkins-Rocket<br />
Goo Goo Dolls-Iris<br />
Mitch Ryder-Devil With A Blue Dress<br />
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<span style="font-weight: bold;"><br />Side B</span><br />
Red Hot Chili Peppers-Breaking The Girl<br />
Sarah McLachlan-Building A Mystery<br />
Smashing Pumpkins-Tonight, Tonight<br />
snippet of Dave Matthews Band's "Crash Into Me"<br />
snippet of Days of the New's "Shelf In The Room"<br />
Cherry Poppin' Daddies-Zoot Suit Riot<br />
Luther Vandross-Here & Now<br />
Black Sabbath-Paranoid<br />
Blues Traveler-Most Precarious<br />
U2-One<br />
somethin' for the people-My Love Is The Shhh!<br />
Rose Royce-Car Wash<br />
Annie Lennox-Walking On Broken Glass<br />
Faith No More-Epic<br />
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Before I popped in<span style="font-style: italic;">Vol. 5</span> for the first time in years, I had long associated it with being one of my least favorite mixtapes. I just remember there always being a level of disinterest whenever I reached into my bag of cassettes and pulled out that case with the 5. I still liked it, but I think it suffered from a lot of filler.<br />
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At this point, I was still in my phase where I recorded just about anything as long as I thought it was decent and I was familiar with it. Master P had made a few appearances on my mixtapes so far, but I could never cite him among my favorite artists at the time.<br />
<a name='more'></a>"Make 'Em Say Uhh!" is one of the highlights of his career as far as I'm concerned, but I can't quite muster up the same enthusiasm for his appearances on TRU's "Fedz" and Montell Jordan's "Let's Ride." At the time I wasn't aware of how important it was to the mixtape listening experience to be careful with the selection of each song. While noting the progress of these mixtapes since I started this blog, I've dealt with and overcome random song snippets interspersed throughout, the voices of DJs being heard for more than two seconds and songs at the end of a tape cutting off due to the lack of space. Now, it'll be interesting to see when I started limiting the tracks to songs that I deeply cared about and not just stuff I recognized. To be fair, I still think "I Got The Hook Up" has its charms. <br />
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I would also file "Building a Mystery" and "Money" into the same category of songs I tolerated but wasn't exactly over the moon about. Luckily, there are still some all-time favorites on here such as "Rocket," "Tonight, Tonight," and "Breaking The Girl." The only thing is that those songs were not from 1998, which probably helped to cool off my excitement about this mixtape knowing that there weren't any current gems on it. <br />
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I'm fully aware of how crazy this may sound, but my favorite current song on here was probably "Gettin' Jiggy Wit' It." I always thought that Will Smith was a solid rapper who had good comedic timing and if the lyrics were right, his delivery was impressive (yes, he copped Rakim's style for "Summertime," but he added so much to that record.) With Nas handling the writing duties and an irresistible Sister Sledge sample, it's hard to not have fun with this track. Hip hop was still struggling with accepting an increasingly growing mainstream aesthetic in the face of traditional underground values at the time, which made Will Smith's pop aping as far from cool as you could get, but all of the elements here just simply added up to an enjoyable record for me. <br />
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Following that, I think my second current fave on this tape would be "My Love Is The Shhh!" <a href="http://mixedreaction.blogspot.com/2011/09/nothin-but-hits-pure-rap-r-and-rock-vol.html" target="_blank">I was big into Timbaland's sound</a> at the time, so anything using that stuttering drum pattern was cool with me. It goes without saying that it was used to better effect on multiple Ginuwine, Aaliyah and Missy Elliott tracks since it came from the originator, but it was all forgiven since I found the chorus catchy. <br />
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Ironically, "Too Close" is now my favorite song of '98 from <span style="font-style: italic;">Vol. 5</span>, but I was not a huge fan of it at the time. I don't think I overcame my indifference to "Butta Love" at the time and it interfered with me being able to appreciate all of the joys "Too Close" had to offer. <br />
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What's even more incredible to me is that I'm pretty sure that I liked "Zoot Suit Riot" more at the time than "Too Close." Whenever I didn't hear the typical guitar-fronted song on rock radio, it immediately caught my interest. I didn't mind the swing revival of the late 90s, but I never took it too seriously since I rarely heard more than one song by a certain band on the radio. <br />
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Quick sidenote: I did have "The Perfect Drug" on <span style="font-style: italic;">Vol. 4</span>, but I didn't get the song right from the beginning, which is why I felt the need to record it again. Hearing both volumes so close to each other, I think I only missed a few lines the first time around. <br />
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Around this time, I started to switch over more to some of the oldies stations. They didn't figure as heavily into my previous mixtapes since I had such limited space on those cassettes and I was more concerned with catching recent favorites, but dealing with 90 minute tapes had opened the door even further to more formats. I always liked the random placing of a song that was a decade old or more on these mixtapes because it reminded me of the joy of stumbling onto a song I only knew by its chorus or a certain riff. It's pretty easy to conclude that I probably relied more on the oldies for this volume since there were so few current favorites. I don't think I had ever heard "Car Wash" in its entirety before this, but as I soon as I heard those hand claps, I knew to immediately hit record. <br />
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While listening to it today, <span style="font-style: italic;">Vol. 5</span> wasn't as uninspiring as I remembered, but it lacked a certain magic that the previous ones had. I always equated this mixtape to a Sunday afternoon since it always felt like that time of the week was one of the hardest to find a song I liked enough to record. For a lot of songs throughout the volumes, I can recall whether I recorded them during the late afternoon, in the evening or during the day on a weekend. Sunday songs were usually the ones that I hadn't planned on recording, but decided to because it was familiar and I was in love with the process of hitting that red circle and monitoring the song. <span style="font-style: italic;">Vol. 5</span> was not recorded entirely on a Sunday, but that's just its overall feel.Ivanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04786658818562297429noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-578658545326343306.post-36785950082443820442011-10-18T21:21:00.000-05:002011-10-18T21:21:46.977-05:00The Collection Vol. 4 (Spring 1998)<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-JgMD2v7IPEw/Tpz2XvfI7SI/AAAAAAAABPQ/oukulflJDdM/s1600/2011-10-17%2B22.01.54.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-JgMD2v7IPEw/Tpz2XvfI7SI/AAAAAAAABPQ/oukulflJDdM/s320/2011-10-17%2B22.01.54.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5664673319069740322" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-edwlHN5kqbE/Tpz2Xd125fI/AAAAAAAABPI/h3cz8rROP9g/s1600/2011-10-17%2B22.01.22.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-edwlHN5kqbE/Tpz2Xd125fI/AAAAAAAABPI/h3cz8rROP9g/s320/2011-10-17%2B22.01.22.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5664673314333189618" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-8m8LAdHWGP4/Tpz2XnAAn4I/AAAAAAAABPk/dHfagPZNs20/s1600/2011-10-17%2B22.02.22.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-8m8LAdHWGP4/Tpz2XnAAn4I/AAAAAAAABPk/dHfagPZNs20/s320/2011-10-17%2B22.02.22.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5664673316791689090" /></a><br /><br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Side A</span><br />Guns N' Roses-Paradise City<br />Stone Temple Pilots-Vaseline<br />Pearl Jam-Wishlist<br />The Specials-It's You<br />Third Eye Blind-How's It Going To Be?<br />Garbage-Only Happy When It Rains<br />Montell Jordan feat. Master P & Silkk The Shocker-Let's Ride<br />Tool-Sober<br />Sparkle feat. R. Kelly-Be Careful<br />Alana Davis-32 Flavors<br />Ben Folds Five-Song For The Dumped<br />Scott Weiland-Barbarella<br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Side B</span><br />Dave Matthews Band-Don't Drink The Water<br />Snoop Doggy Dogg-Gin & Juice<br />The Offspring-Come Out and Play<br />K-Ci & JoJo-All My Life<br />2Pac-Do For Love<br />Alanis Morissette-Uninvited<br />Fastball-The Way<br />Janet Jackson feat. BLACKstreet-I Get Lonely (Remix)<br />Fiona Apple-Shadowboxer<br />Nine Inch Nails-The Perfect Drug<br />Tori Amos-Spark<br />Jon B.-They Don't Know<br /><br />Just looking at the selection from this volume and the <a href="http://mixedreaction.blogspot.com/2011/10/collection-vol-3-fall-1997.html">previous one</a>, I can't help but conclude that I had spent at least a few months without making a mixtape. I had always imagined that this was a near weekly experience for me, but that might not have been till '98 or '99 when I cranked them out on a consistent basis. If anything, this might have been very close to the end of spring since I always associate "Uninvited" and "The Way" with summer. I think I had pretty much recorded every current song that I desired for a certain time span and I may not have been in a rush to buy a blank tape. Plus, Christmas had passed, which resulted in me buying Janet Jackson's <span style="font-style:italic;">The Velvet Rope</span> and Boyz II Men's <span style="font-style:italic;">Evolution</span> on cassette, both of which stayed in heavy rotation for months since I only owned a total of five albums. <br /><a name='more'></a><br />Usually while revisiting these mixtapes, I'm able to recall what the next song will be within a few seconds of hearing the end of the preceding one, but I had a lot of difficulty doing that with <span style="font-style:italic;">Vol. 4</span>. I'm positive that I listened to it a lot, but it was probably not my favorite at the time. While I didn't record any songs that I flat-out disliked, I can't say that I was over the moon about a good deal of the stuff here, which no doubt has added to the disproportion in enthusiasm for it when compared to some of the other mixtapes. <br /><br />As always, there were enough highlights to keep me coming back. I was still a huge Alanis Morissette fan at the time, even though it had been three years since the release of <span style="font-style:italic;">Jagged Little Pill</span>, and the follow-up, <span style="font-style:italic;">Supposed Former Infatuation Junkie</span>, was still months away. I would have been salivating for any new Morissette songs at this time and "Uninvited" only served to make her even more mythical in my head. Not only was there her typical vocal overdrive, but she now had a full orchestra to match her bombast. It's still one of my favorite songs by her to this day. <br /><br /><iframe width="320" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/uvgi7P97lu0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe><br /><br />One of my favorite things about coming back to these mixtapes is getting reacquainted with songs that only received mild rotation on the radio. You would think that a Scott Weiland solo album around this time would have made more of a splash, but it was very much under the radar. I didn't know it at the time, but I was a sucker for any song that even slightly resembled glam rock. <br /><br /><iframe width="320" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/T92Y7ChqSSk" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe><br /><br />With my purchase of <span style="font-style:italic;">The Velvet Rope</span> using my Christmas money, it marked one of the first times where I didn't have to record a song off the radio since I already owned it. I would have certainly been all over the singles from this album and not having to record any made me feel older, as if this was one problem that people with jobs and money didn't have to go through. The remix and the original for "I Get Lonely" were basically the same, but the inclusion of BLACKstreet and a few other instruments made it worthy enough to put on here since I already loved the song. At the time, I used to wonder why Jimmy Jam & Terry Lewis would have to lift a Timbaland drum pattern since I already thought they were phenomenal in their own right. I could have understood lesser-known producers doing it, but not these guys. That little dilemma in my head took away some of the luster, but not to the point where I still didn't enjoy it. <br /><br /><iframe width="320" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/P65B5XQgu6s" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe><br /><br />The song that I identified most with during this time was "32 Flavors," which I didn't know initially was a cover of a Ani DiFranco song. There was something about the line in the chorus, "I am 32 flavors and then some" that spoke to me about my diversity as far as my taste in music and my individuality overall. I saw myself as being all over the place with my interests, so it was the perfect theme song. On a sidenote, I had gone a very long time without seeing the video since I didn't have cable and when I finally caught a clip of it on NBC's <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Friday_Night_Videos">Friday Night</a>, I was immediately blown away by how attractive she was in. In my youth, I guess I equated contemplative songs with Plain Janes who didn't need to be telegenic because they were singing about something with substance. Never again did I make that assumption. <br /><br /><iframe width="320" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/TEfbL53jhN4" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe><br /><br />I never hope to be one of those guys who are always talking about how about the music of their youth is superior to the current era, but there are times when I think that those who came up in the 90s had it better. Now I know that Fastball's "The Way" isn't probably the best example to use while making this point, but I think the styles used and its success make for a relevant argument. Pop music is at its best when it allows for variety, and the fact that a tango-driven power pop song became a success on the modern rock charts speaks to the range of the landscape. Things just aren't as fun when everyone is trying to copy a select few.<br /><br /><iframe width="320" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/b0wfu3tOrtQ" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe><br /><br />One achievement that separated this mixtape from the others was that this was the first time a song didn't cut off at the end of a side due to running out of space. After "Barbarella" was finished on Side A, there was an alien sound known as silence that went on for a few minutes until the play button popped up. In the midst of doing this blog, I often wondered where would the time come when I got fed up and decided that it wasn't worth it to capture only a minute or two of a song. Thirteen tapes in, I now have my answer.Ivanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04786658818562297429noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-578658545326343306.post-30737936972193633632011-10-13T12:06:00.001-05:002013-03-06T10:15:19.800-06:00The Collection Vol. 3 (Fall /Winter1997)<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-FYIwQQVz408/TpOyfNS3T3I/AAAAAAAABOw/zxcpqvsnU9I/s1600/2011-10-10%2B21.57.13.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5662065405749317490" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-FYIwQQVz408/TpOyfNS3T3I/AAAAAAAABOw/zxcpqvsnU9I/s320/2011-10-10%2B21.57.13.jpg" style="cursor: hand; cursor: pointer; display: block; height: 240px; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; width: 320px;" /></a><br />
<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-ORaDHXwfWG4/TpOyfhBUxOI/AAAAAAAABO8/MYhUGaOT9Dc/s1600/2011-10-10%2B21.57.53.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5662065411044459746" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-ORaDHXwfWG4/TpOyfhBUxOI/AAAAAAAABO8/MYhUGaOT9Dc/s320/2011-10-10%2B21.57.53.jpg" style="cursor: hand; cursor: pointer; display: block; height: 240px; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; width: 320px;" /></a><br />
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<span style="font-weight: bold;">Side A</span><br />
Smashing Pumpkins-Zero<br />
Busta Rhymes-Dangerous<br />
The Wallflowers-The Difference<br />
Chumbawamba-Tubthumping <br />
Paula Cole-Me<br />
Silverchair-Tomorrow<br />
Hanson-Weird<br />
Madonna-Frozen<br />
U2- Hold Me, Thrill Me, Kiss Me, Kill Me<br />
Sarah McLachlan-Sweet Surrender<br />
Barenaked Ladies-Brian Wilson<br />
Tracy Chapman-Fast Car<br />
Paula Cole-I Don't Want To Wait<br />
snippet of Nirvana's "Dumb"<br />
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<span style="font-weight: bold;">Side B</span><br />
Blues Traveler-Runaround<br />
The Verve-Lucky Man<br />
Beastie Boys-What Cha Want<br />
R.E.M.-Everybody Hurts<br />
Chumbawamba-Amnesia<br />
Jane's Addiction-Been Caught Stealing<br />
Madonna-Take A Bow<br />
Luscious Jackson-Naked Eye<br />
Metallica-The Unforgiven II<br />
Ben Folds Five-Brick<br />
Eve 6-Inside Out<br />
Nena-99 Red Balloons<br />
snippet of The Nixons' "Sister"<br />
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By this point, I had started to take recording songs off the radio more seriously than before. I went between both my cassette player and my alarm clock radio in order to follow two stations at once and keep track of everything. I would plug my headphones into the cassette player as it recorded so I could better listen to what was going on at other stations and to be ready at a second's notice whenever one came back from commercials. With 90 minute tapes, I quickly started to grab all the current songs that I had been anticipating, so I was frantically in search of something I hadn't recorded yet. I no longer wanted to catch a song in the middle or even after the first couple of lines anymore. I wanted it in its entirety and I now had the patience to let a song slip away if I couldn't catch it at its beginning. <br />
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When I got into these moments, I was very attentive and determined. I likened myself to a doctor performing surgery, working in a swift manner while still carrying on with absolute precision because of the multi-tasking that was going on. I also felt like a gambling addict being entranced by a slot machine, anxiously hoping that successive songs on the station would bring riches. If not, I would simply move on to the next one with fingers crossed that I would get lucky.<br />
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<span style="font-style: italic;">The Collection Vol. 3</span> was business as usual with the exception of the recording of "Weird." This was one of those moments where I had both radios going and I may not have been pleased with the reception of the station it was playing on. I badly wanted this Hanson song ("MMMBop" and "Where's The Love?" had somehow escaped my grasp), so I decided to record it from the alarm clock radio using the built-in mic on the cassette player. The sound quality made it the most atrocious thing I ever recorded. Everything sounded abrasive and muffled and there was no way that the dynamics of the song could flourish since I held the cassette player right up to the speaker of the alarm clock. I figured that I would get the highest volume if I held it closer. It being loud was about the only thing I got right. I used to listen to these tapes so much so that it always catches me by surprise whenever I listen to "Weird" in a clear quality. <br />
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It was pretty hard to escape "Tubthumping" around this time. To this day, I don't believe in a song being "overplayed." Either I liked it to begin with or I never did. My reasoning is that I'm always in the mood for a good song. Chumbawamba is now known as one of the most popular one-hit wonders of the decade, but their follow-up single, "Amnesia," was just as worthy of getting attention in my opinion. Whenever I listened to this tape, this was one of the songs I looked forward to the most since it had a short shelf life on radio. <br />
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Paula Cole is another artist that made two appearances on here. Oddly enough, I wasn't a fan of her first single, "Where Have All The Cowboys Gone?" since I had an aversion to most things AOR at the time (I had no idea how dark "Sunny Came Home" was until years later). I eventually grew to appreciate that song and the rest of the singles from <span style="font-style: italic;">This Fire</span>. The thing that caught my attention most about "Me"—and why I think she resonated with most people— was the sincerity of her vocals. It was distinct while still fitting in with the trends at the time and I used to love how emotive nearly every syllable sounded. When she sang "I am walking on the bridge/I am over the water/and I'm scared as hell," I immediately imagined her looking down at racing rapids, wind furiously whipping her hair while defiantly singing because that's how much I felt how frightened she was.<br />
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"Inside Out" had one of my favorite song introductions at the time. Its minimalism helped it to stand out more to me, even if the rest of the song wasn't up to par. I'm not knocking the record, but that beginning and the part where the singer held out "I'm through with you" for the last chorus were the sections that got me the most excited. It still stands as a nice product of late-90s modern rock though. <br />
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<span style="font-style: italic;">The Collection</span> wasn't just relegated to current songs—after all it couldn't be THE Collection without a sampling of pop music's past. I gained most of my exposure to older songs from my parents listening to the oldies station, all-time countdowns on MTV, random programming from VH-1 when they still played music, Time-Life compilation commercials and just plain discovering stuff through various forms of licensing from movies, advertisements, etc. Before, I'm pretty sure I had only heard "99 Red Balloons" through a clip of the video used in a commercial for some VH-1 show. What little I heard, I immediately liked, so I jumped at the chance to have it in full once I found it was being played. The way that pop music is etched into our conscious intrigues me in the way that if we had not lived during a certain era, it's very likely we won't have heard a song in its entirety, but become completely familiar with its chorus just by licensing. Just think of the millions of people who can immediately recognize "James Brown's "I Got You (I Feel Good)" or Aretha Franklin's "Respect," but probably never took the time to listen to those classic songs from beginning to end. Being able to record "99 Red Balloons" allowed me that honor and I'd like to think that I became a better person because of it. <br />
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As I mentioned before, working with 90 minute tapes allowed me to snatch up current songs at a much quicker pace, which allowed more room for songs from previous years that I had only seen on MTV. This volume seemed to be much heavier on those types of songs than previous editions, which is part of why I slightly favor this one over <span style="font-style: italic;"><a href="http://mixedreaction.blogspot.com/2011/09/collection-vol-2-fall-1997.html" target="_blank">Vol. 2</a></span>. The years of appreciation already built into "Everybody Hurts," "What Cha Want" and the like automatically gave those songs an added favor with me and made this mixtape a more pleasurable experience. Out of all the pre-1997 songs I recorded for <span style="font-style: italic;">Vol. 3</span>, "Take A Bow" was my favorite. By now, it's no secret that I'm a fan of melodic romantic ballads that are heavy on the yearning and few could write one better than Kenneth "Babyface" Edmonds. My little pre-teen heart used to melt to pieces when she sang "I've always been in love with you" during the chorus. It's still my favorite Madonna song. <br />
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<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/OwV1p7jrBsA" width="320"></iframe>Ivanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04786658818562297429noreply@blogger.com0