The following collection of videos recorded in December of 1990 at an Elektra Records showcase is absolutely indispensable for any fan of classic hip-hop. The lineup is impeccable: Pete Rock & C.L. Smooth, Brand Nubian, KMD, and Leaders Of The New School. To say that all of these acts were in their prime is understatement; of the four groups, three (Rock & C.L., KMD, and L.O.N.S.) had all yet to release their classic debuts. Thus, all these legends are young, hungry, and have all their creative energies intact, their spirits yet to be hardened by music industry politics and the eventual extreme commercialization of hip-hop as the decade wore on.
Perhaps the biggest treat to get fans salivating over these videos are the appearances of unreleased material in the Rock & C.L. and Brand Nubian vids. C.L. takes center stage (with Rock holding down the decks off-screen) with two still-unearthed gems (to my knowledge, anyway; they don't appear on the 2009 Basement Demos collection, and if they're on an earlier Rock & C.L. demo, I've yet to see it pop up online) bookending the track "Good Life" from the duo's All Souled Out EP which would drop the following year. In the case of Brand Nubian, who are still with Puba in tow following that year's classic One For All LP, the trio perform the unreleased, incendiary cut "The Devil" (which was actually unearthed on the rarities 12" The Now Rule Files), a track ripe with 5%'er anti-"Devil" rhetoric that would no doubt have given the mainstream media more fuel to freak out about regarding the controversial group (their between-song banter no doubt would've sent uptight white media pundits into a frenzy).
As for KMD and L.O.N.S., there are no lost-to-the-ages treasures appearing in their respective sets, but we do get both Zev (who of course would reinvent himself much later as MF Doom) and Onyx The Birthstone Kid working the crowd up with "Gasface Refill" and "Peachfuzz" from their then-current 12" and L.O.N.S. rocking with joyous vigour "Teachers, Don't Teach Us Nonsense" and "Case Of The P.T.A." (which would both appear on their first 12" and their debut album A Future Without A Past). Viewing the L.O.N.S. performance, it's obvious that the young man known as Busta Rhymes was destined to be a breakout star. With that, I give you a bonus Yo! MTV Raps performance of "The International Zone Coaster" at the end of the post.
By the way, if anyone has any info on the two unreleased Pete Rock & C.L. Smooth cuts in their performance (the first rocks the oft-sampled Five Stairsteps "New Dance Craze" break), please let me know! Now to the videos:
Perhaps the biggest treat to get fans salivating over these videos are the appearances of unreleased material in the Rock & C.L. and Brand Nubian vids. C.L. takes center stage (with Rock holding down the decks off-screen) with two still-unearthed gems (to my knowledge, anyway; they don't appear on the 2009 Basement Demos collection, and if they're on an earlier Rock & C.L. demo, I've yet to see it pop up online) bookending the track "Good Life" from the duo's All Souled Out EP which would drop the following year. In the case of Brand Nubian, who are still with Puba in tow following that year's classic One For All LP, the trio perform the unreleased, incendiary cut "The Devil" (which was actually unearthed on the rarities 12" The Now Rule Files), a track ripe with 5%'er anti-"Devil" rhetoric that would no doubt have given the mainstream media more fuel to freak out about regarding the controversial group (their between-song banter no doubt would've sent uptight white media pundits into a frenzy).
As for KMD and L.O.N.S., there are no lost-to-the-ages treasures appearing in their respective sets, but we do get both Zev (who of course would reinvent himself much later as MF Doom) and Onyx The Birthstone Kid working the crowd up with "Gasface Refill" and "Peachfuzz" from their then-current 12" and L.O.N.S. rocking with joyous vigour "Teachers, Don't Teach Us Nonsense" and "Case Of The P.T.A." (which would both appear on their first 12" and their debut album A Future Without A Past). Viewing the L.O.N.S. performance, it's obvious that the young man known as Busta Rhymes was destined to be a breakout star. With that, I give you a bonus Yo! MTV Raps performance of "The International Zone Coaster" at the end of the post.
By the way, if anyone has any info on the two unreleased Pete Rock & C.L. Smooth cuts in their performance (the first rocks the oft-sampled Five Stairsteps "New Dance Craze" break), please let me know! Now to the videos:
Oh, 5 stars! Thank you!
Posted by: Holly | September 28, 2012 at 11:28 PM
Absolutely amazing performance.
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Posted by: Abercrombie | October 07, 2012 at 09:36 PM
what a performance! I can't wait to see them live. My sister will definitely love to heard them sing live. She doesn't like them because she said they aren't handsome. lol. I have to inquire how much the ticket to their concert would cost. My friends will join me in here after we are all finish writing our school papers. I can't wait!
Posted by: english proofreading | October 11, 2012 at 04:08 AM
The following collection of videos recorded in December of 1990 .
Posted by: Indira Rousseau | November 03, 2012 at 06:47 AM