Am I the last guy to get in on this shit? Don't matter...
Chapter 1 - The Stall and the Failed Result
So I pumped the lil sis for some info on what the flatland college demographic is pumping through their speakers, and she mentioned a lil' big chick named Amy Winehouse.
I actually heard of the 'House from a Riff Market (can't link to duke, don't know him like that) post a while back but it was mostly a jigajag about how there is a Lily Allen-Amy Winehouse axis in which the Winehouse gives better than the Allen gets.
Needless to say, reading breathless blog posts about the latest singles choppers does little to expand one's chops, so a quick perusal of YouTube's "Rehab" low-res made me realize that I'd been listening to this full-voiced, horn-infused retrocool for a couple weeks on XM Cafe in the tavern. The tune is remarkable mainly because there isn't a lot of jazz - jazz as in music writ large - out there (if we bar former American Idol contestants and late-nineties holdovers like Xtina) that showcases some chicas with mad notes in their lungs and not some child-like coyness (see below) or country-fried reediness (Neko Case - where is she these days?).
In short, the song was alright but didn't necessitate a blog post (don't ask me what actually does - it's not knowable, all about feel, the groove, ease).
So all went blanks for a while, and I even had saved a draft on Blogger that was titled Amy Winehouse and that had no text in the body. On one particularly hard-up-for-content day I even thought I would do a joke about how many bloggers have a draft saved on their accounts with the title "Amy Winehouse" and no text in the text box. But now I don't have to, because Jay-Z spit a verse over "Rehab." Which brings us to . . .
Chapter 2 - Grizzled Minor Leaguers Show the New Talent How to Keep a Streak
A rap remix of a pop tune ain't really new. Think "mashups" and whatever. But the thing about Winehouse that's really appealing is that she sounds old-school with a draggy groove and lets the timbre of her voice do the talking. Think about it - the main lyric that attracts you to it, that worms its way into your skull is "No, no, no." Which let's just say isn't exactly David Antin / Susan Howe - level of academic achievement. Of course it's still brilliant in its minimalist directness, but the point is that "Rehab" is a 21st-century song from after 1980 that can be sampled by rappers without a "mashup" novelty button tacked on and without any P-Diddy-at-the-helm "too easy" controversy. That is, "Rehab" goes with rap the way James Brown and Ornette Coleman do - with pounds of style and ounces of soul in the remainder column.
In that respect, putting Jay on "Rehab" appears obvious even to the point that one wonders if "Rehab" was the teaser for the remix, but honestly hearing Winehouse on XM Cafe threw me enough that I wouldn't have thought of it myself. Whoever's responsible (Was it Amy? Was it Jay? Do they get together over coffee and talk this kind of thing over?), the track is nicely pressed for all its apparent blasitude. Not a club banger, not even a hot verse, but it's nice to see that there are still places that producers can go for stuff that just sounds like hip hop from the moment the ball hits the bat.
Chapter 3: Bring it Home
As any Mariners fan will tell ex-Brewer Richie Sexson (Batting Average < .200), you don't always gotta swing for the fences to make a great play; sometimes a hit will suffice. If the trend continues, 40 will soon be the new 30. In the upcoming dry-spell, you're gonna have to show a few wrinkles and shorten up the swing.
What "Rehab" illustrates perfectly is this: The "Show Me What You Got" Budweiser commercials during Sunday football games were necessary for Jay-Z's survival, even if he didn't know it then. A shortened song means shortened swings means more solid hits; "Show Me What You Got" is fire when it's a minute long and there's beer involved. When you're not in the coke game anymore, you got to get into people's living rooms the way John Cougar Mellencamp does it. Trying to gloss over your age with "still fly" garbage is a mistake. People will shoo their toddlers out of the way.
What we have here is rap's answer to adult contemporary. I'm picturing Norah Jones collabo's, maybe even some Wynton Marsalis shit. Yeah W's arrogant but I mean it's Jay-Z we're talking about here. Remember Erykah Badu? Yeah me too.
Summer's coming, and the babysitter will soon be rolling the kids (yeah if we're in the new Jay-Z demographic we're gonna have to have kids - sorry ladies) to little league for the day. New parents will have the house to themselves for once, and you know what that means ;). After a rough week at the office it'll be a godsend to throw in some "Rehab," and bring sultry back. It's time to pour ourselves some iced tea get our swing on. Let's get a little loungy, a little hot, a little sweaty.
Jay's just the messenger, let's not sacrifice him just cause he's the first one to come to terms with his age. Remember, we're all gonna get there eventually. It's only bad if you're afraid of it. Buy no rogaine and listen to more Amy Winehouse. Monogamy is not so bad.
Amy Winehouse feat. Jay-Z - "Rehab Remix"
I'm biting his style a little
