Gang Starr

小簡(jiǎn)介
Gang Starr是由本號(hào)Keith Elam的Guru和真名Chris Martin的DJ Premier組成，他們一個(gè)是天才詞作者，一個(gè)是優(yōu)秀的音樂(lè)制作人，經(jīng)過(guò)了多年考驗(yàn)，如今已經(jīng)名滿天下。Guru是嘻哈學(xué)者，他的歌詞不光在政治上大做文章，而且還導(dǎo)演了無(wú)數(shù)幕紐約城的黑人悲喜劇。而DJ Premier在爵士音樂(lè)和Hip Hop之間來(lái)去自如的掌控則是Gang Starr的成功關(guān)鍵。
在1989年，兩人初次相見(jiàn)之后，發(fā)行了首張專輯No More Mr.Nice Guy，這張雄心勃勃的專輯力圖把大量爵士樂(lè)融入Hip Hop音樂(lè)之中，結(jié)果反響不算熱烈，但是他們沒(méi)有氣餒，他們花兩年的時(shí)間對(duì)這一音樂(lè)形式進(jìn)行了再思考和再探索，1991年他們換了新廠牌發(fā)行了第二張專輯Step in the Arena,這一專輯一舉成功，DJ Premier更是成為紐約重要的制作人之一，而且以他的采樣技術(shù)以及大量使用爵士樂(lè)融合進(jìn)嘻哈樂(lè)而受到好評(píng)，而Guru針砭時(shí)弊的歌詞，使他遠(yuǎn)遠(yuǎn)超越了同期一批只會(huì)寫物質(zhì)生活的詞人。一年之后，第三張專輯Daily Operation發(fā)行，延續(xù)了上張專輯的成功，成為了他們的一大旗幟。其中引人注意的作品有開(kāi)場(chǎng)曲The Place Where We Dwell,它僅運(yùn)用了一個(gè)短短兩秒的鼓的采樣和Scratchin'就創(chuàng)造了一個(gè)繽紛的世界。而淡淡爵士味道的No Shame in My Game則恰到好處地把Guru的聲線鋪墊出來(lái)。這兩張專輯也被AMG評(píng)為五星級(jí)專輯，是Gang Starr的顛峰之作。但是這兩張專輯的單曲只在地下說(shuō)唱界引起了很大的反響，商業(yè)上沒(méi)有獲得任何較好的成績(jī)，甚至盡管Premier已經(jīng)成為了一個(gè)偉大的嘻哈樂(lè)制作人，他仍然堅(jiān)持自己的音樂(lè)路線，從不妥協(xié)。
1994年，Hard to Earn，他們的第四張專輯發(fā)行，這張專輯他們依舊高舉反商業(yè)的大旗，并得到了評(píng)論界的好評(píng)。之后兩人開(kāi)始了各自發(fā)展道路，但是組合還仍在維持，1998年Moment of Truth發(fā)行，盡管四年沒(méi)有發(fā)片，兩人還是為嘻哈樂(lè)聽(tīng)眾奉上了又一張精彩的專輯。一年后，他們發(fā)行了成軍十年的首張精選集，這張雙CD的專輯見(jiàn)證了Gang Starr的不斷發(fā)展的歷程，也成為他們繼續(xù)在音樂(lè)旅途上不斷進(jìn)取的“源點(diǎn)”。2003年，又是一個(gè)四年之后，他們又為樂(lè)迷奉上了他們新的作品,也是他們的第六張錄音室專輯The Ownerz,這次他們一改往日的爵士說(shuō)唱風(fēng)格，居然玩起了商業(yè)味道十足的硬核說(shuō)唱，對(duì)此兩位的解釋是只是想嘗試不同風(fēng)格的音樂(lè)罷了，當(dāng)然這其中佳作不少,比如和Fat Joe合作的Who Got Gunz以及與Big Shug和Freddie Foxxx二人共同完成的Capture(Militia,Pt.3)。
by Jason BirchmeierThe most influential MC-and-DJ tandem of the 1990s, Gang Starr set new standards for East Coast rap with a pair of early-90s touchstones, Step in the Arena (1991) and Daily Operation (1992), whose appeal has only grown over the decades. Beginning with these classic releases, both listeners and critics heaped mounds of praise upon Guru and DJ Premier — the former because of his socially conscious lyrics and no-nonsense stance, the latter because of his DJ-style beat-making and jazzy sound. Following Step in the Arena and Daily Operation, Premier became one of New Yorks most demanded producers, crafting hits for the citys finest MCs, including the Notorious B.I.G., Nas, Jay-Z, and KRS-One. Guru likewise collaborated with plenty of well-known artists — Roy Ayers, Donald Byrd, NDea Davenport — on his solo debut, Jazzmatazz, Vol. 1 (1993), and its series of follow-ups. Following Hard to Earn (1994) — the duos fourth Gang Starr collaboration overall — Guru and Premier began focusing primarily on their solo projects, reuniting infrequently — too infrequently, many fans felt — for albums such as Moment of Truth (1998) and The Ownerz (2003). During this period of solo activity, Gang Starr became increasingly recognized as a touchstone, one that critics and hip-hop purists frequently cited as a standard-bearer for streetwise, socially conscious East Coast rap.Guru (born Keith Edward Elam on July 17, 1966, in Boston, MA) and Premier (born Christopher Edward Martin on March 21, 1966, in Houston, TX) began working together in 1989. Guru had founded Gang Starr a couple years earlier, in 1987, and had already established a working relationship with Wild Pitch Records. The partnership of Guru and Premier as Gang Starr led to a formative debut album, No More Mr. Nice Guy (1989), and its featured single, Words I Manifest. The DJ-spotlight track DJ Premier in Deep Concentration is another highlight of the album, which spent years out of print. Between albums, in 1990, Guru and Premier contributed a song, Jazz Thing, to the Mo Better Blues soundtrack. Gang Starr subsequently moved to Chrysalis Records for their second album, Step in the Arena (1991), on which they perfected the approach of their debut, that is, a stark, hard-hitting jazz-rap production style, complete with Premiers masterful DJ cutting, over which Gurus battle-rap-hardened yet smoothly delivered lyrics — often thoughtful, sly, and streetsmart — take flight. Gang Starrs third album, Daily Operation (1992), furthered the duos approach stylistically; widely considered an East Coast rap classic, its arguably Guru and Premiers finest work, along with its predecessor. Beginning in 1993, Guru and Premier began working separately. Gurus debut album, Jazzmatazz, Vol. 1 (1993), took the so-called jazz-rap style to a new level, featuring jazz musicians such as Lonnie Liston Smith, Branford Marsalis, Ronny Jordan, Donald Byrd, and Roy Ayers, along with guest vocalists such as NDea Davenport (of the Brand New Heavies) and MC Solaar (of French rap fame). Meanwhile, Premier produced six tracks for KRS-Ones solo debut, Return of the Boom Bap (1993); moreover, in 1994 he proceeded to produce three tracks for Nas debut, Illmatic (N.Y. State of Mind, Memory Lane [Sittin in da Park], Represent); two for the Notorious B.I.G.s debut, Ready to Die (Unbelievable, an unreleased remix of Machine Gun Funk); five for the self-titled debut of Branford Marsalis Buckshot LeFonque project; the entirety of Jeru the Damajas debut, The Sun Rises in the East; and also a handful of remixes for various artists. Amid all of this activity, Guru and Premier found time to record their fourth album, Hard to Earn (1994), which was more hardcore-fashioned — as was the style at the time, in the wake of Death Rows uprising — than past Gang Starr albums and, also unlike past efforts, featured guest rappers. The album spawned the duos biggest hit to date, Mass Appeal, their first to break the Billboard Hot 100 singles chart (peaking at number 67).Following Hard to Earn, Guru and Premier resumed their solo activity. Guru released Jazzmatazz, Vol. 2: The New Reality (1995) and a various-artists compilation, Guru Presents Ill Kid Records (1995), while Premier produced the bulk of Livin Proof (1995), the debut of Gang Starr affiliates Group Home (a duo comprised of Lil Dap and Melachi the Nutcracker, who both had been featured on Hard to Earn). Also in 1995, Premier produced three tracks on KRS-One, the rappers second solo album; and two tracks on Hold It Down, the third album by Das EFX; as well as assorted remixes and one-off productions. While Guru remained more or less inactive during 1996-1997, releasing no solo albums, Premier stayed busy, producing the entirety of Jeru the Damajas second album, Wrath of the Math (1996); five tracks on Bahamadias debut, Kollage (1996); six on M.O.P.s second album, Firing Squad (1996); three on Jay-Zs debut, Reasonable Doubt (1996) (Devils, Friend or Foe, Bring It On); one on Nas second album, It Was Written (1996) (I Gave You Power); two on Jay-Zs second album, In My Lifetime, Vol. 1 (1997) (A Million & One Questions, Friend or Foe 98); two on the Notorious B.I.G.s second album, Life After Death (1997) (Kick in the Door, Ten Crack Commandments); four on O.C.s second album, Jewelz (1997); two on Rakims solo debut, The 18th Letter (1997); two on the Lady of Rages debut, Necessary Roughness (1997); and more.In 1998, after four years between albums, Gang Starr returned with Moment of Truth, their first album to chart number one (on the R&B/Hip-Hop album chart, that is; it peaked at number six overall, still their best showing commercially to date). Moment of Truth was a significant departure from past Gang Starr efforts, very much contemporary in style; for example, the album features numerous guests (Inspectah Deck, Scarface, G. Dep, K-Ci & JoJo, M.O.P.) and bore little trace of the duos jazz-rap beginnings. The lead single, You Know My Steez, became the second Gang Starr hit to break into the Billboard Hot 100 chart (peaking at number 76). A double-disc retrospective, Full Clip: A Decade of Gang Starr (1999), subsequently marked the duos ten-year anniversary. In the years that followed, Guru and Premier continued to focus on their own work. Guru continued his Jazzmatazz series, beginning with a third volume, Streetsoul, in 2000; he also released solo rap albums, beginning with Baldhead Slick & da Click (2001). Premier continued his production activity, working with superstars such as Jay-Z, Nas, and Common, as well as underground rappers such as Royce da 59, Termanology, and NYGz; he even dabbled in mainstream pop, most notably working extensively with Christina Aguilera on her double-disc album Back to Basics (2006). As for Gang Starr, Guru and Premier did reunite for The Ownerz (2003), a celebrated return to form, but the reunion proved short-lived, leaving back-catalog collections such as Mass Appeal: The Best of Gang Starr (2006) to fill the void.