Resolutions. Sure, they're fun to make as it gives us the appearance of trying to evolve and better ourselves. But really living up to our words and promises---well, that's a different story. One of my resolutions was to celebrate the living. Like most things, this stems from a kick-yourself-if-you-could moment. Here's my tale. Former Clash frontman and all-round deity Joe Strummer was touring America. I had a chance to go see him play in New York, but decided against it. My reason? Sloth. Not the "Hey, you guys" dude from Goonies, but sheer laziness. I figured "I'll see him next time he comes around." My first regret was when I heard he did a few songs with former bandmate Mick Jones at the show I would have attended. We'll call this Mistake #1, but this just skimmed the surface. The mistake I couldn't recover from came ten months later when Joe Strummer died. Mistake 1.5 a.k.a. The Wound That Shall Never Heal. I call this the Shamrock Shake Mentality ("Oh, I missed it? I'll catch it next year. No big deal.)
What did I learn from Mistakes 1 and 1.5? Celebrate the living. Appreciate people while you can because when they're gone, they're gone for good.
This brings us to last Friday night.
I came home to have dinner between happy hour and post-happy hour.
While checking Facebook, I found out that Rakim was in town.
I immediately began to weigh going and not going, since it was about 12 degrees out. (Thank you, New England winter.) I eventually made up my mind to go but had to figure out how to kill time until the God MC. I eventually wound up at the bar I had just left and had a drink with some friends, trying to not be overly giddy about seeing Rakim, The God MC, perform live. This was a lifelong dream as he's arguably the greatest MC ever. I knew I had time to kill because he's notoriously late. I mean late to the point where people think "Is this guy going to show up?" When the conversation at the bar turned into a game of Truth-Or-Dare, I made my exit.
I arrived at the venue, hoping Rakim would go on at midnight. My mistake. I sat through a superbly average rapper, LC. LC is the kind who talks about returning to lyricism and bringing back New York hip-hop, but then does a song about his "swag." (If you don't know what swag is, you're probably better off. But if you're a glutton for punishment, google "swag+rap." Don't say I didn't warn you.) Anyone who is performing right before Rakim, should not, under any circumstances, ever, ever, ever talk about their own lyricism....unless you're KRS-ONE, Big Daddy Kane or Kool G Rap. (You get the picture.) Anyway, LC finally finishes up. And the waiting begins. (Note to LC: unless you fire guns with live ammo into the crowd at your shows, it's probably a bad idea to have the same stage name as a character from The Hills.)
If it wasn't for the DJ spinning between acts, I probably would have left. I argued with myself about five times on the issue of leaving even though I'd dropped a significant amount of cash on the show. Luckily, my heart and mind were soothed by a musical selection from 1988 to about 2000. Essentially, he was playing all the songs I would play at my wedding .(Bride to be named later.) I waited for an hour-plus and my patience was wearing thin as my excitement wore off. I had to keep reminding myself that "It's Rakim. It's Rakim. It's Rakim."
At one in the morming, Rakim takes the stage. I was pretty pissed at this point. But then he broke into "I Ain't No Joke." Immediately, all the rage and resentment faded away. And I was completely in the moment. The crowd, mostly people thirty and above, lost their minds. There's something beautiful about grown men bugging out to Rakim. You could see the music taking them back to their youth. He followed that one with the DJ Premier-produced "It's Been A Long Time" from his solo album The 18th Letter. (By the way, a Rakim-DJ Premier album would probably be the best thing since Hulu.)
Then, things went a little south. He did his ladies' jam "Mahogany" and then another verse for the ladies from his cameo on Truth Hurts' "So Addictive." At this point, I started to pray/cross fingers/sacrifice a goat in the hope that he'd do "Follow The Leader." For those unintiated, this is quite possibly his greatest songs. For him not to play it would be criminal.
CRIMINAL.
When he did "Paid In Full," I knew I wasn't going to get "Follow The Leader" which was a shame.
During his fifty-five minute set, like the other old folks at the show, I was taken down memory lane. I remember watching Eric B. and Rakim videos on Yo! MTV Raps. But as I stood there, much older than the eleven year old version of myself, I found myself sucked in by the beauty of his words. The phrasing, the rhyme structures, everything. Here's the guy who really kicked open the doors for the then-New School. His legacy lives today. Not some, not most, but every MC/rapper worth his salt cites Rakim as an influence. Not only that but he's probably the one MC whose lyrics are referenced till this day. ("I came in the door/I said it before;" "Thinking of a master plan..." The list goes on and on.)
Despite making me wait until an ungodly hour, it was well worth it. He captivated the crowd, didn't fail to hit any of his marks (minust "Follow The Leader.") And he finished with the last single from his illustrious collaborations with his former DJ, Eric B--"Know The Ledge." Overall, I can't really complain too much about The God MC.
He came. He delivered. I was wowed.
Guess you could call it a religious experience.
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