Just Another Case Of Slept On Hip Hop Posted by Junior

Cru: Just Another Case and The Ebonic Plague From: Da Dirty 30 [Def Jam, 1997] Returning to one of my favourite post themes today - the why oh why isn't this more famous than it is/wrongly slept on classics righteous venting. The Cru's Da Dirty 30 seems to be getting more well known as time goes on but is still not really at the level of respect the album should be courting after 10 years of circulation. Released in 1997 in the middle of Def Jam's messy reorganisation, the 30 track album (with only around 6 skits) suffered from what I can only take as a botched publicity drive. Even in the far off land of the UK I managed to catch the single Just Another Case on late night radio which was enough to get me to hunt down the album (a lot harder back in those primitive times involving lots of, gasp, shop enquiries and magazines). However, the expected following hype for the album release never materialised and it sunk into 1997 without leaving a trace. On to the album itself and why it's a personal favourite. While Cru's mcing is of a more than acceptable standard, what really sets the album apart is the production work from under appreciated man behind the music Yogi. Producing the whole album single handedly, Yogi continually flips the styles, successfully offering everything from ATCQ jazzy flavours to RZA dark and threatening soundscapes. Perhaps this is what damaged the group more than anything as while the wide range of styles allows them to offer something to every kind of rap fan it's not really clear what market they should have been pushed to. Anyway, Just Another Case is the track that sold me on the group and it still resonates today. Featuring a beautifully understated hook of guitar and swirling strings the crew/cru unravel a tale of hard knocks boosted by an in form appearance by Slick Rick (still one of my favourite vocal styles in the history of hip hop). The Ebonic Plague is a more upbeat track once again featuring vocals from Q-Tip voiced Yogi, ODB voiced The Mighty Ha and Chadeeo. This time they get Rass Kass offering some lyrical input (speaking of where are they now rappers.....)and the track bubbles and bounces along in impressive fashion. It was really quite a trial to only pick two tracks from the collection with so many different styles on offer and I can only recommend you pick up a copy to discover your own favourites and perhaps share a moment of sadness as "DJ Footlong" wraps up the album promising a part 2 to follow shortly. Ten years and waiting guys...........