Grand Master Flash and The Furious Five

I'm not going to try and pretend I am some sort of expert on rap music.  But I'm also not some potser from Iowa and I do know that Grand Master Flash and the Furious Five is more than just and awesome sounding name for a Kung-Fu movie.

Flash and Melle Mel (the main rapper of the group, Flash was the DJ) are sort of like the Jimi Hendrixes of Hip-Hop.  

Alright, the threads might not have gone the distance, but their beats are as fresh as ever!

Flash revolutionized what people thought DJs could do with a turn table and a beat.  By slowing down the beats on his tracks, he brought the lyrics to the forefront, essentially creating rap as we know it today.

Mel's lyrics actually meant something worth listening to and he was able to say them with out sounding all up on himself and preachy (what up, Kanye).

Their record "The Message" is maybe the greatest achievement ever in the genre after you consider how ground-breaking it was.  You can listen to it today and it is still a solid track, yet, you almost never hear them mentioned, anywhere.

They never duplicated their success they had with "The Message" (although, Melle Mel did have another hit with "White Lines", a track that everyone thinks was done by Flash).  Even so, I feel like the general lack of respect these guys get easily gets them the title of Underrated.

Alex Chilton (1950-2010)

Alex Chilton might be the most unheralded father of modern indie/folk music today.

Wilco has covered him, and the Replacement's best song his about him.  But good luck finding anyone at a White Stripes concert that can name you one Big Star song.

I didn't even know that I had been listening to his songs (recorded by other people) for years until about a year ago.

Alex Chilton died today, and he was Underrated his whole life.  If you count yourself among the masses of people who have yet to appreciate his talent,  do yourself a favor, and never travel far without a little Big Star.