This is about rap-rock fusion and my new love for the song “Hoochie Coo” by blues-rock outfit The Black Keys. The song features Jim Jones and Mos Def—an odd and unlikely pairing if there ever was one. This is also about the song’s historical context: the strange and curious marriage of rap and rock by Aerosmith and Run-DMC on “Walk This Way.” The song, which originally didn’t feature Run-DMC and was on Aerosmith’s 1975 album Toys in the Attic, was re-released as a cover by the rapping trinity on 1986’s Raising Hell. Verbally a collective effort by Run-DMC, it begins:
Now there’s a backseat/lover
That’s always under/cover
And I talk til my daddy say
Said you ain’t seen/nothin
Til you’re down on her/muffin
And there’s sure to be a change in ways
Now there’s a cheer/leader
That’s a real big/pleaser
As far as I can remi/nisce
But the best thing/love it
Was her sister and her/cousin
And it started with a little kiss, like this
Rap and rock’s nuptials probably run deeper than the formation of Boston’s proclaimed bad boys and the tenacious Queens crew, but in terms of hip-hop archetypes, (of, if we really want to call it what it is, paradigm shifts) the most obvious choice is “Walk This Way.” The song birthed the hybrid sub-musical genre that is now a cornerstone of studies in popular music. And for all that, the song signals something far more significant: An age of possibility.
This is where “Hoochie Coo” comes into the picture. The abridged biography of The Black Keys goes something like this: In 2001 vocalist/guitarist Dan Auerbach and drummer/producer Patrick Carney, both of Akron, Ohio, merged to create The Black Keys. They would go on to record five exceptional and widely acclaimed albums: The Big Come Up (2002), Thickfreakness (2003), Rubber Factory (2004), Magic Potion (2006), and, most recently, Attack & Release (2008), which featured startling production from beat savant Danger Mouse (he produced The Grey Album and is one-half of Gnarls Barkley). The Keys have been noted for their Midwest minimalism—garage rock sensibilities with offcuts of Delta blues.
Now, coupled with Jim Jones and Mos Def, both adept rhymesayers in their own right, “Hoochie Coo” turns into the makings of something epic. I call it the age of possibility because without Aerosmith and Run-DMC’s mold there might have been no fusion of rap and rock in the mainstream. This is not to say it would have never happened, because it very well could have in some dingy basement in South Dakota with three no-name rappers and an outdated rock band who plays at the local tavern on weekends. But the influence of popular culture and the intermixture of mainstream acts like Aerosmith and Run-DMC are why The Black Keys are even able to craft rap-rock ballads like “Hoochie Coo.” Music mogul Dame Dash (you remember, alongside Jay-Z he created powerhouse label Roc-A-Fella Records) acts as master of ceremonies; he is credited with bringing the Keys together with Jim and Mos and a slew of other rappers on Blak Roc, the forthcoming collaboration album that also features Pharoahe Monch, Q-Tip, Raekwon, RZA, and Nikki Wray (among others). The album hits stores on November 27th.
I find myself excited again at the prospect of something daringly fresh, something that could be monumental with Dame’s professional guidance. After all, he shepherded the career of Jay-Z until their spilt in 2001. If we look at what Dame did with Reasonable Doubt alone that is reason enough to anticipate his new project. Love him or hate him, he’s known for making powermoves in hip-hop. And it turns out Run-DMC had it right from the very beginning: “it all started with a little kiss, like this.” Too true. And so twenty-three years later the question becomes: Can two Midwest musicians with an affinity for blues-rock revivalism and Dame Dash’s backing birth a new era in hip-hop? That, I cannot say. But I do know this: The possibilities are endless.
For more Tipping Point, read last month’s column—In Search of Ol’ Dirty Bastard.
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