Greetings! I hope you all enjoyed your summer and are doing well. Labor Day marks the unofficial end of summer and my official return to this labor of love that I call TimeisIllmatic (I’m considering changing the name. Hit me in the comments if you have any good name suggestions). Finally, I’ll begin my journey back to 1997, and I hope you all take this trip with me. The kids are back to school, and I’m back to blogging! Let’s get into it.

Camp Lo is the Bronx-based duo comprised of Sonny Cheeba and Geechi Suede, who came on the National scene in the late nineties. But before the twosome would make a name for themselves in the industry as Camp Lo, they originally called themselves Cee-Lo (as in the dice game) back when they began working with Ski, aka Ski-Beatz. If you’re unfamiliar with Ski’s name, you might be familiar with some of his production work. He’s solely responsible for the music behind both albums from the early nineties hip-hop group Original Flavor (a group he was also a part of) and most notably, for producing a handful of tracks on Jay-Z’s classic debut, Reasonable Doubt. Around the same time Ski was cooking up beats for Jay-Z’s album, he was helping Camp Lo sculpt their demo tape. The demo tape would eventually wind up in the hands of the powers at Profile Records, resulting in a deal for Camp Lo, and they would soon begin to work on their debut album, Uptown Saturday Night.

The album is named after the 1974 film starring Sidney Poitier and Bill Cosby (years before we found out he was Pill Cosby, but I’m sure he was already living up to that alias when the movie was filmed and released), which also inspired Geechi’s alias (Geechi Dan Buford was a character in the film played by Harry Belafonte. Side note: before settling on the alias of Sonny Cheeba (borrowed from the martial artist/actor Sonny Chiba, most famous in the U.S. for his starring role in the 1974 movie The Street Fighter), Sonny’s original alias was Cochise, the name of the character that dies in the classic seventies flick, Cooley High, which was also the inspiration for Camp Lo’s debut single (“Coolie High”)). It’s safe to say that Sonny and Geechi were obsessed with cinema (their sophomore effort would pay homage to another Poitier/Cosby flick, Let’s Do It Again, and their third release was titled, Black Hollywood). Camp Lo would stick with Ski’s production sound for Uptown Saturday Night, as he would have a hand in producing all but one track on the album. The album wasn’t a huge commercial success, but it did garner critical acclaim from the critics and streets alike.

I remember the singles from Uptown, but this was another album I didn’t buy before starting my secular hip-hop hiatus. I did cop a used CD copy back in the early 2000s, but it’s been years since I’ve listened to it in its entirety. Let’s see how kind time has been to this project.

Random Fact: The album cover artwork (credited to Dr. Revolt) pays homage to Ernie Barnes’ classic painting, “Sugar Shack,” which was used on the album cover for Marvin Gaye’s 1976 album I Want You, and as one of J.J. Evan’s paintings during the closing credits for Good Times.

Krystal Karrington – The song title comes from a character from the eighties TV series Dynasty (Krystle Carrington), played by Linda Evans, whom Geechi shoutouts in the song’s opening bar (“I gets Krystal Karrington ice rock, gritty”). Ski loops up a grumpy bass line for the backdrop that intermittently goes into dramatic stabs while a persistent guitar plucks a singular note throughout. Sonny and Geechi give us our first dose of their unique lyrical spray, which is hard to follow but simultaneously intriguing as hell. Are they talking about armed robbery or getting pussy? Maybe both?

Luchini AKA This Is It – This was the second single off Uptown. I mentioned the television series Dynasty in the previous song, but this song involves a different Dynasty. Ski borrows and builds the backdrop around a loop from the eighties funk/soul band named Dynasty, creating arguably a top-ten hip-hop beat of all time (yeah, I said it!). The self-proclaimed “magnets to moolah” spill slick word combinations and sip Amaretto (or, as Sonny dramatically pronounces it, “Amare-da”) throughout this magnificent exhibition of a hip-hop song. Speaking of liquor, this record sounds like expensive champagne, the audio equivalent of a bottle of Louis Roederer Cristal.

Park Joint – The generic song title sounds like it was carried over from the makeshift title given on the beat tape it was picked from. Ski combines crisp drums and a bouncy loop (the same loop Pete Rock used for an interlude on The Main Ingredient album. Not so random factoid: years later, Camp Lo would record and release an album produced by Pete Rock (see 80 Blocks From Tiffany’s)) to create the subtle bop. The instrumental was solid, but Camp Lo’s vibrant verbiage outshines the music.

B-Side To Hollywood – This is the only track on Uptown that Ski didn’t have a production hand in. The late Trugoy from De La Soul gets the production credit, and he also drops a verse (where he recycles Greg Nice’s classic opening bars from Nice & Smooth’s “Hip-Hop Junkies”) sandwiched between Geechi and Sonny’s bars. I’m a De Le Soul fan, but I strongly dislike this record. Plug Two’s lackadaisical instrumental came dangerously close to lulling me to sleep, and its blandness almost seemed to stifle Camp Lo’s normally lively lyrical content. With that said, continue to rest easy, Trugoy.

Killin’ Em Softly – The song begins with a fuming Geechi Suede telling Sonny Cheeba he’s going to off some unidentified dude if they ever cross paths again while a contradicting tender piano loop plays in the background. Then Ski adds drums to the luscious piano chords, and the duo lays out the details of their drama, which includes beautiful ladies, sheisty brothers, guns, and an attempted robbery. The storyline is a little challenging to follow, but the smoothly sophisticated music makes the rhymes, and trying to figure out why Geechi’s on some “Fuck that dude!” shit worth decoding.

Sparkle – This record is a thing of beauty. Ski builds the backdrop around a sexy vibraphone-driven loop and upbeat percussions that Sonny and Geechi elegantly dismantle with irresistible, flossy poetic couplets. On an album loaded with phenomenal records, this is easily one of my favorites.

Black Connection – Camp Lo once again ventures into their underworld workings, as this track finds them playing the crime bosses to their crime squad that they affectionately call the Black Connection. Sonny and Geechi take the listener on a verbal adventure filled with talks of heists, international travel, money, materialism, lovely Lola Falanas, and sheisty hawks. The saga is capped off with our hosts in a shootout with the meddling fuzz. Ski soundtracks the duo’s rhymes with cool drums, a warm, watery melody, and a seductively somber horn loop that sounds tailor-made for Camp Lo’s seventies Blaxploitation style content.

Swing – From the first time I heard Geechi Suede rap, he reminded me of a more intense version of the Digable Planets lead emcee, Butterfly. Ironically, Butterfly joins his emcee doppelgänger on this duet while Sonny sits this one out. Both parties spit one verse over a hipster jazzy bop that comes with debonair drums and a few superior breaks, resulting in another high-quality album cut.

Rockin’ It AKA Spanish Harlem – Ski taps the title track to Loose Ends’ debut album, A Little Spice, to create a spicy Samba mood that is sure to evoke the feet and curvy hips of beautiful Boricuas and sexy senoritas to dance, and I’m sure it would still have the same effect nearly thirty years later. Our hosts lay low, sprinkling mild party rhymes over the track as they allow the sensuous music to take center stage. The Fearless Four recall on the hook was a nice added touch and homage to the pioneers.

Say Word – Ski turns hyper drums and a clever flip of a Jerry Butler/Thelma Houston loop into a soulfully exhilarating ride. And if the music isn’t enough to get your adrenaline pumping, Sonny and Geechi’s ferocious, abstract lyrical gymnastics will surely excite. Thankfully, their buddy, Jungle Brown, was kind enough to allow them to catch their breath between verses by graciously taking care of hook duties.

Negro League – Sonny and Geechi are joined by Karachi R.A.W. and Bones, as the foursome form *in my commentator voice* the mighty Negro Leeeeeeeeauge!!! Ski sets the pensive mood with an eerie backdrop as the four emcees pass the mic around the cipher like a hot potato. Their guests do a decent enough job on the mic but not decent enough for me to yearn to hear a supergroup album from the four of them.

Nicky Barnes AKA It’s Alright – The song is named after (at least the first part) the seventies New York City Drug Lord turned informant. Jungle Brown, who was assigned hook duties on “Say Word,” gets a chance to rhyme with Sonny and Geechi, or as he so elegantly puts it during his verse, “Articulatin’ figures, with these pretty brown niggas.” I love the peppy drums, and the Issac Hayes loop gives the record an edgy cinematic feel, which makes perfect sense, considering the loop comes from a track off the Shaft Soundtrack. 

Black Nostaljack AKA Come On – Over a shiny soulful groove, our hosts continue to talk their exquisite shit. Sonny brags about scoring a ten on his IQ test, which was a weird flex, considering 100 is an average IQ test score. Maybe that was just Sonny’s clever way of saying he gets stupid with the wordplay. Regardless, the record makes for yet another enjoyable audio treat. By the way, I love the song title, at least the first part of it.

Coolie High – This was the lead single from Uptown, previously released on The Great White Hype Soundtrack in April of 1996. The song title is a nod to the seventies Black cinematic classic (Cooley High), which aligns with all the seventies pop culture references the duo makes during the song. Ski samples the closing track from Janet Jackson’s mammoth 1986 album Control to create a creamily airy experience over thudding drums. A few decades later, this one still sounds amazing.

Sparkle (Mr. Midnight Mix) – This mix strips away the music from the O.G. track, leaving only the luscious bass line to support Camp Lo’s bars. The musical minimalism allows Sonny and Geechi’s opulent flows to shine even brighter, as their voices and cadences sound like instruments.

Throughout Uptown Saturday Night, Sonny Cheeba and Geechi Suede sound like two lifelong friends in their own world, speaking their own dialect with no concern about whether or not the listening public can decode their luxuriously abstract rhyming style, soaked in seventies Black pop-culture references (which in turn makes sense of the album cover artwork). The duo’s distinct voices, well-crafted flows, and unique cadences allow their perplexing stanzas to dance around the listener’s ears in pure entertainment. And if you’re not a fan of having to unlock riddles when you listen to rappers rhyme, which I can respect, Ski’s production will surely please. Ski uses mostly untapped jazz and soul samples for the album’s musical bed, chopping them up precisely and placing them over pristine drums that play their role well, rarely outshining the loops placed over them. Other than the one time that Ski relinquishes the keys to the production board (see “B-Side To Hollywood”), the rhymes and rhythms on Uptown form the perfect marriage, and thankfully, Camp Lo doesn’t disrupt the union by adding useless skits and interludes.

Unfortunately, Camp Lo’s sophomore project (Let’s Do It Again) wouldn’t be well-received and would start Camp Lo’s descent into independent label irrelevancy. But Uptown Saturday Night is an unheralded classic that has aged well and sets the bar high for the rest of their contemporaries who released albums in 1997.

-Deedub

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