JayLib - CHAMPION SOUND--Deluxe Edition Review
Posted by Phil Watts, Jr on 06.22.2007
THE DETROIT/L.A. CONNECTION!
Going from being the producer members of their respective trios to becoming two of the most innovative producers on the planet, it was only a matter of time before the both of them would work with each other in some capacity. This whole thing started as a little creative competition between the two of them (I remember ?uestlove talking about how J-Dilla would have sleepless nights because over some of the beats Madlib created), but soon, after passing around some beat tapes, they decided to get together for this project…well sorta. Actually, they recorded this separately, with Madlib in L.A. and Jay in Detroit. Usually when a colab is recorded this way, the results wind up kinda iffy, teetering between “just okay” to “…eh”, all because the collaborators aren’t in the studio together. So how does this rate?
Lyrically? It teeters between “just okay” to “…eh”.
Okay, let’s just get this out of the way right now: Neither Mr. Jackson nor Mr. Yancy are going to be winning any TOP LYRICISTS awards…not that they don’t have any redeeming qualities on the mic. J-Dilla started his career as the DECENT rapper in Slum Village (right along with mush-mouth T3 and crazy-ass Baatin), but he’s come a long way since. Picture Lord Finesse without the punch-lines and that’s pretty close to what J-Dilla sounds like.
Meanwhile, Madlib was always overshadowed by the lyrical gymnastics of Wildchild, but he did start of pretty nimble in his early years as 1/3 of the Lootpack. However, the moment he started working on his first Quasimoto project (THE UNSEEN), his style changed to the current “damn-I’ve-been-diggin-for-records-for-I-don’t-know-how-long-and-I-haven’t-slept-in-weeks” voice. Originally, this was to contrast his high-pitched vocals of Lord Quas, however he’s been rhyming like this ever since. On one hand, I give him a pass because it works well for the kind of records he does, which usually involve subjects like digging for records and getting blunted…however, it only works over his own beats (or beats similar to his). When things are kept too sparse, it leaves him exposed.
Beatwise…we all know that they’re two of the most innovative producers to come out over the last 10 years. But with their lyrical shortcomings, the question becomes “Who does a better job of carrying whom?” That question is answered right out the starting gate with “McNasty Filth”, where Madlib hooks up an uptempo, horn-laden, funk-fest with Jay Dee actually coming off dope. Too bad the same can‘t be said about his knucklehead duo Frank N Dank, who serve us such incredible Hip-Hop quotables like “You need to put your hands up/that’s what you need to do/cuz niggaz got game like the PS2!”, “It’s Dank--we hard/we lookin’ for hoes/those that’s workin’ it hard/we looking for those/so they can shake they ass for us…” and “Back and forth like a big ol’ ass/ I’m a mack of course--THAT’S A BIG OL’ ASS!” (BRILLIANT!!) Some of the best tracks on the album involve J-Dilla rocking over Madlib tracks, with songs like “Champion Sound”, “Heavy”, “The Official”, “The Mission”, “No Games”, and “Strapped” (featuring then-unsigned Guilty Simpson). In the “Ice” interlude, which pops up after the now-unhidden track “Raw Addict”, Jay gives some props to Dr. Dre : “It’s plain to see/you can’t change me/cuz I’ma be this nigga with ice…now ‘BITCHES AIN’T SHIT BUT HOES & TRICKS’ is what I’m thinking’ when I’m dickin’ your wife!!”
When the roles are switched, with Madlib in the booth and Jay behind the boards, it becomes a mixed bag. Songs like “Nowadayz”, “The Heist”, and “Strip Club” are far from J-Dilla’s best efforts on the boards and they kinda leave Madlib hanging. Come to think of it, these songs remind me of his abysmal effort on Frank N Dank’s should’ve-stayed-on-the-shelf 48 HOURS album. Hey…even Muhammad Ali got his ass beat once in a while, right? While Madlib seems lost on those songs, he does pick it up on “The Red”, “Starz”, and “Raw Shit”, his colab with Talib Kweli. (The two would work with each other again on a little album called LIBERATION. If you haven’t already copped it, do so. Now.) Jay goes for a more wonky sound for the Lord Quas joint, “React”, and it definitely works. The Rhyme Inspector Percee-P stops by for Jay’s drum-heavy “Exclusive”, a song that should’ve been LONGER.
In this 2CD deluxe edition of CHAMPION SOUND, not only does Madlib decide to make “Raw Addict” (which was a hidden track in the original album) official, he also brings in a B-side called “Pillz”, where he sounds seriously cracked out of his mind. Thankfully, Madlib took some time to rework some of the tracks he did with J-Dilla, as some of the remixes come off better than the originals, especially “Heavy”, “Official”, “The Mission”, and “Strapped”. If only J-Dilla would’ve lived to rework some of his beats.
As an added bonus, the instrumental versions of all the original songs are also included, for whether you’re an aspiring rapper needing beats to rock over, or you’re a beat junkie, or you just want to hear the beat without Madlib’s or J-Dilla’s voices over it. There’s plenty here for everybody.
THE GOOD (Undisputed World Title Champions): “Raw Shit”, “The Official”, “The Mission” (the original & the remix), “React”, “Strapped”, “Exclusive”, the addition of the remixes and instrumentals.
THE BAD (“Uh…this match is gonna have some BOWLING SHOE tendencies.”): “Nowadayz”, “The Heist”, “Strip Club”, pointless skits.
The 411: Looking back, this project really brought out a lot in J-Dilla. Not only did it bring out the best in him as a rapper, but it also reignited him as a producer. You could tell from all the projects that he’s released since Jaylib that he has learned a whole lot from Madlib. This is why I give so much praise to the people at Stones Throw records for allowing the creative freedom to make projects like this. Seeing the direction J's production style shifted to, it makes me wonder what JAYLIB 2 would've sounded like. If only. So whether you are a fan of both of theses artists, or just wants some hot beats, do yourself a favor and cop this immediately.
