Checking out Baha Burger in Birmingham on my way to Florida.
Month: June 2011
The Traffic Jam Band at Dan McGuiness Pub in Southaven
The Traffic Jam Band on stage at Dan McGuinness Irish Pub in Southaven.
A Requiem for Cleaborn Homes
The Cleaborn Homes public housing development was built in Memphis in 1955. The Memphis Housing Authority began demolishing it in April this year. The powers that be are telling us that this is improvement, that those forced to leave will be better off, and that the new beautiful development for higher-income people that will be built will be better for Memphis.
But is there any real gain in tearing down people’s neighborhoods and communities? What good actually results? We are told the buildings are old, in which case they could have been rehabilitated or completely replaced, but with the original residents given first priority to be allowed back in when the new construction is completed. We are told the area is overcrowded, but the reconstruction could have been designed to lower density. We are told that the area has become a crime problem, without any regard for the impoverished living conditions that fuel crime. In fact, the mass displacement of these folks may trigger more crime, as their cost for housing, even with vouchers, will be far more significant.
In short, while redevelopment advocates have perhaps shown why the old buildings need to be torn down and replaced, they haven’t shown why the original residents must be uprooted and moved to other areas of the city. The reasons for THAT they’d rather not touch with a ten-foot pole.
And so the memories of more than 50 years come crashing down at the behest of a heedless monster machine called greed and progress, banished to live only in the mind, faded photos and a couple of t-shirts. All “progress” isn’t forward.
The overwhelming supremacy of South Park Mexican has at times threatened to eclipse the other talent on the Dope House label out of Houston, but with Dope City, the other talented artists on the roster get an opportunity to be heard, and fans of SPM will be pleased with new tracks from their favorite artist as well. Producers such as Nathan Happy Perez, Jaime Pain Ortiz and Shadow provide the funk-laden foundations for rhymes by SPM, Juan Gotti, Lil Rob, Low G, Lucky Luciano, Grimm and Rasheed, and soulful vocals by Carolyn Rodriguez. Dope City runs the gamut from R & B anthems like “Gangsta Girl” to tributes to the homeboys in prison like “For My People”, to the pleading for a better life in “Help Me Find A Way.” The album is consistently high-quality throughout, and it’s not just the SPM tracks that stand out.
Album Review: Mississippi Fred McDowell “Come And Found You Gone”
Mississippi Fred McDowell, of course, is a legend. He was one of the first country bluesmen to be rediscovered and recorded by scholars, and toward the end of his life toured across the country and overseas. Although he would claim “I don’t play no rock-and-roll music”, songs he performed like “Get Right Church” were covered by the Rolling Stones, and he guest appeared on an album with Don Nix. So for the fan of Mississippi traditional blues, the first commercial issue of these field recordings made by the eminent blues scholar Bill Ferris is a welcome discovery. McDowell’s home community of Como is stuck just where the hill country meets the Delta, and likewise, McDowell’s blues style seems to cross-breed the hill country and Delta styles. There are familiar standards here, of course, like “John Henry” and “Little Red Rooster”, but also unusual original compositions like “Dream I Went to the U.N.” where the lyrics say he went to “set the nation right.” There are also gospel tunes, including “Get Right Church”, “I Got Religion”, “You Gonna Meet King Jesus” and McDowell’s take on “Where Could I Go?” a tune that springs from the white country gospel tradition. On various tunes, McDowell is joined by his wife Annie Mae, and his friend Napoleon Strickland on harmonica. On the final track is an excerpt of an interview with Bill Ferris regarding these recordings. Extensive liner notes and photos increase the value of this lovingly-conceived issue of recordings that resurrect a voice from the grave. To listen to “Come and Found You Gone” is almost like spending an afternoon with Mississippi Fred McDowell on his front porch.
Just as Devin the Dude has always been slightly different than the “typical” Texas rap artist (if there’s even such a thing as a typical Texas rap artist), his group the Coughee Brothaz have also been decidedly different. And with their latest release, Fresh Brew, the difference is starkly evident. You’ll hear no brags about drug dealing, cars, clothes or jewelry. The overriding emphasis is funk, and if a lot of the lyrics deal with the joys of marijuana, others are truly motivational, such as “No Such Thang as I Can’t” and “Backstrokin’”, the latter dealing with the importance of money. There is an all-star cast of guests, too, including the other two Odd Squad members Rob Quest and Jugg Mugg, as well as Slim Thug and South Park Coalition founder K-Rino. All in all, Fresh Brew is a release of exquisite quality and lasting importance.
RIP Cleaborn Homes (via @jasper8591)
782 tate st. block party 123456 live {rip cleaborn homes} (by jasper8591)
(Source: http://www.youtube.com/)
Many Voices: How Racism Killed Earle, Arkansas
More background history on the rather tragic town of Earle, Arkansas. Many Voices was a civil rights newspaper published in West Memphis from 1970-1972, covering events in the East Arkansas delta region. Earle was often mentioned in various issues of the newspaper, as there was always some kind of protest, conflict or boycott going on there. I suppose that’s what led to the downtown of empty and abandoned stores.
Mixtape Review: OG Boo Dirty “The Story of OG”
I’ll admit that I had never heard of OG Boo Dirty until the now-infamous confrontation that apparently occurred between him and some of Yo Gotti’s people at the Level II. And I honestly wasn’t expecting anything out of the ordinary when I downloaded this mixtape. And besides that, I am, and have always been, a fan of Yo Gotti. But I have to admit that this mixtape surprised me for its consistent quality. For one thing, the production quality is stellar, with first-rate beats throughout. And, even more to my surprise, OG Boo Dirty is a better-than-average rapper, and while street rap usually seems tired and redundant to me these days, he does it well. Obviously, the high points of the mixtape are the two songs that are starting to be heard everywhere in Memphis these days, “She’s A Freak”, and “South Memphis Stand Up” another anthem for those on the Southside alongside Gangsta Blac’s legendary “South Parkway.” Altogether not a bad mixtape. Click on the cover to download and enjoy.