“Tickle tickle, trickle trickle; you can’t buy Nature with a nickel,” Afrika insists before stopping what is supposed to be his second verse for an impromptu saxophone break. That’s one of several quirky bits that help make this song; the title track of the second Jungle Brothers album; the gem it is. “I’ll walk a mile for a funky beat,” Mike G says and this one; a fusion of hip-hop and jazz; certainly is.
my rating : 4 of 5
1989
![audio review : Ghetto Music [ The Blueprint Of Hip-Hop ] ( album ) ... Boogie Down Productions](https://marcellee.com/posts/124329.jpg)
KRS-One is The Teacher and, as the title of this album suggests, his classes focus, almost exclusively, on two main subjects. Rapping about rap is appropriate enough. The genre is inherently lyrical. It’s his obsession with race, specifically “the black race”, that gets tiresome. Not that this isn’t good (Ghetto) Music because it is. The beats are “slamming” and the aforementioned rhymes are far from wack.
my rating : 4 of 5
1989
With 1100 watts of power, this Burner, designed for use “at home, dorm or office”, makes a decent single-serving cooker. It’s a bit annoying how it turns on and off, presumably when it reaches a certain temperature, instead of running continuously, but it does its job. It’s perhaps even more handy as a small, albeit somewhat dangerous, space heater.
my rating : 4 of 5
This circus-themed Ice Cream; a Limited Edition from Van Leeuwen; doesn’t taste like Kettle Corn to me. It’s certainly sweet, but the flavor is more akin to caramel, though there’s none included on the ingredients list. There are, however, “pieces of honeycomb”, which adds to the fun.
my rating : 4 of 5
This Limited Edition (December) cereal is based not just on Rudolph The Red-Nosed Reindeer, the popular Christmas character, but the stop-motion TV special from 1964 specifically. That’s him on the box. The main flavor is hot cocoa, which makes the addition of yummy marshmallows all the more appropriate.
my rating : 4 of 5
This Limited Edition (October) cereal is basically plain Cap’n Crunch with “ghosts”. The fact that they “turn milk green” might be fun for kids, but it’s otherwise nothing more than a quirky party trick. The flavor is akin to Cap’n Crunch’s Crunch Berries, though the regular version tastes better than both.
my rating : 4 of 5
The best part of this Chicken Pot Pie is the “flaky crust”, which Banquet promotes as being “made from scratch”. Microwave or conventional oven, you’ll never get it to look as good as the picture on the box, which omits the top slit and cooking container, but it makes; rather two or three make; for a hearty homestyle meal.
my rating : 4 of 5
This Kraft Original is, as far as my childhood is concerned, the quintessential Mac And Cheese. The cooking instructions say to add margarine or butter; an optional tip that makes it even tastier than it already is; but you can ignore the milk bit as it’s better less creamy. Eat with bacon or sausage for the full effect.
my rating : 4 of 5
This Chocolate version is an alternative to Little Debbie’s plain Christmas Tree Cakes Ice Cream. I prefer the latter, but they both serve as tasty treats. The Chocolate here tastes like fudge or hot cocoa, which makes for an especially yummy experience when you melt it down to a goo.
my rating : 4 of 5
The bridge is tranquil and drumless, but, with a title like Gravity and all its spatial implications, I’d imagine the whole song would sound like that. Perhaps it’s a good thing it doesn’t. The Machinedrum (and-bass) breakdown at 2:13 is the best part. This is also one of Tinashe’s better songs, albeit one that continues her fixation with the cliché concept of romance, in the way of vocal melody.
my rating : 4 of 5
2023
At just under two minutes long, this may be more of an album (mixtape) interlude than an actual song. Either way it serves as one of Erykah Badu’s best. I’ll Call U Back, the busy party prepper says to someone on the phone over a lush soundscape produced by Zach Witness. If there’s a flaw, it’s that the beeps go on a bit too long at the end.
my rating : 4 of 5
2015
New Amerykah Part Three was supposed to come out in 2012, but Erykah Badu has apparently abandoned that series, which would be okay if this were her next album. Instead we waited nearly six years for a mixtape. The title comes from Tyrone and the concept is based on, meaning literally every track has to do with, phones. Why phones? That’s a good question. Why a whole mixtape about a song she made nearly two decades ago is a better one.
Telephone is one of her best songs and a portion of it is Screw Mixed here, but it just makes you want to listen to the original; the same with her version of New Edition’s Telephone Man and Drake’s Hotline Bling. That’s not to say Badu’s renditions don’t improve on them; I like her soulful quirky style; it’s just disappointing to hear so many covers. The rest of the tape sounds like demo bits from what could be another good album. I’ll Call U Back is especially groovy.
my rating : 4 of 5
2015