The Greatest Hip-Hop Producer of All-Time!

This one's for you, T.

I mentioned in a previous post that the late Jay Dee aka: JayDilla was in all likelihood the greatest hip-hop producer of all time. A bold claim to be sure given the number of heavyweights up for consideration, many of whom are still actively producing today. But I don't think I'm too far off base with this claim.
Honestly, I don't know where to start when it comes to talking about JayDee. I mean, he was so prolific, so creative, so unique, so effective and so influential that it is nearly impossible to point to a single release or period of time that signaled his arrival to the music scene. And it's equally as tough to point to one record to identify as a good starting point for any would-be Jay Dee fan. I'm just gonna jump into this.

Donuts (2006)
Donuts was released 3 days before James Dewitt Yancey died from lupus. It was his last completed full-length album. It is also his most unique, most conceptual and most sonically mature. The concept, though not entirely new (all instrumental) is one that allows you the listener the time and auditory space to fully digest the meal that is a JayDee production.
He titled the album Donuts which in itself is a minor stroke of genius. Each track is merely a minute or two long, delicious morsels of sonic wizardry. You get just enough time to taste and enjoy each one right before moving onto the next. It's 45 minutes of brilliance. He takes you everywhere. Great music to just play in the background especially since the first track and last track are exactly the same so the album loops endlessly when played on repeat.
I can't say enough about this album. I recommend this as a good Jay Dee primer because it showcases Dilla at the height of his productive powers and enables you to understand the genius of his earlier and later-posthumous works.

The Shining (2006)
The Shining was Dilla's first posthumous release. It featured the same developed production sound of Donuts, one of the tracks actually being a full length "Donut" complete with Common and D'Angelo vocals. This album has some tracks that are simply bananas. BANANAS! I mean it starts off with hype-man-supreme, Busta Rhyme trash talking over a clever interpolation of Rimsky-Korsakov's Flight of the Bumblebee then jumps right into E=MC2, a track so fully muscled that it is just barely matched by Common's heavyweight lyricism. The remainder of the album doesn't disappoint especially given the strong finish both lyrically (Black Thought, JayDee himself) and productively (Love Movin', Won't Do). As with most of his fully produced albums you will be left wanting more.

Welcome 2 Detroit (2001)
I guess what i'm trying to do is introduce new listeners of Jay Dee by working backwards through his catalog of major releases. I'm not sure if that make sense but I'm doing it anyway. Y'see the thing is this is only the tip of the iceberg when it comes to Jay Dee. In all likelihood, if you are a hip-hop or R&B fan, you've been nodding your head to Jay Dee tracks for over 12 years. I'm talking about Tribe Called Quest, DeLaSoul, Common, Busta, Janet Jackson, D'angelo, The Pharcyde, Eryka Badu...it's ridiculous what this kid has done. ALL quality.

This particular release was the beginning of his stepping into his own shoes so to speak. Up until this album it was either credited or uncredited production for other rap and r&b acts or production for his own group, Slum Village. We'll get to them in a minute. Welcome 2 Detroit was his first major solo release. It featured, unsurprisingly, many unknown D-town rappers as well as Dilla himself rhyming over his increasingly unique and distinctive production.
Some of my personal faves include Pause, Rico Suave Bossa Nova, and Come Get It feat. a young rapper named Elzhi who would eventually take Jay Dee place in the group Slum Village.
Speaking of which...

Fantastic, Vol. II (2000)
This album was my "official" introduction to the production of Jay Dee. I say "official" because I would soon learn that the Jay Dee i was listening to on this album was the same Jay Dee whose name or initials peppered the releases of some of the aforementioned hip-hop and R&B acts.
Anyway, I forget how I came across this album. It's not really important. What's important is how thoroughly tight this album is. There are few missteps productively, if any. I remember bumping this album for 6 months straight. This cd accompanied me everywhere; down to chinatown to pickup DragonBall Z tapes; over to BooBoo's in Hoboken for their nightly "Power Hour" (all mixed drinks, beers & shots=$1; 8-10pm); or all the way up to Hanover, NH for Homecoming Weekend. This album was the soundtrack of my life for much of 2000. Was so enamored with the group that I had to cop a couple of tickets for me and my cousin, B when they came to SOB's. Great show. Great album.

Ok. By this point you're probably well enough versed in Jay-Dee to start branching out in various directions...and there are VARIOUS directions. Like I keep mentioning the man produced so many songs and albums. Below is a list of some of his production over the past decade.
This list is by no means comprehensive! (click here for a complete discography).

Dilla produced for just about EVERYBODY in the hip-hop and R&B game; sometimes major album releases, sometimes underground mixtapes, sometimes remixes. All I'm trying to do is give you an idea of the wealth and breadth of his work. Maybe you'll recognize some of these joints.

1996
A Tribe Called Quest - 1nce Again, Get A Hold, Keeping It Moving, Stressed Out, Word Play from "Beat, Rhymes, & Life"
Busta Rhymes - Keep It Movin', Still Shinin' from "The Coming"
De La Soul - Stakes Is High from "Stakes Is High"
Mad Skillz - It's Going Down, The Jam from "From Where???"
Kieth Murray - The Rhyme (Remix), Dangerous Ground from "Enigma"
Tha Pharcyde - Runnin', Bullshit, Splatittorium, Somethin' That Means Somethin', Drop, Y? from "Labcabincalifornia"

1997
Busta Rhymes - So Hardcore from "When Disaster Strikes"
Janet Jackson - Got Til It's Gone (Ummah Jay Dee Revenge Mix) 12" single

1998
A Tribe Called Quest - 4 Moms, Against The World, Busta's Lament, Da Booty, Find A Way, His Name Is Mutty Ranks, Start It Up, Steppin' It Up from "The Love Movement"

1999
Heavy D - Listen from "Heavy"
Macy Gray - I Try (Remix) 12" single
Q-Tip - 11 tracks from "Amplified"
The Roots - Dynamite from Things Fall Apart

2000
Black Star - Little Brother from "The Hurricane (Soundtrack)"
Busta Rhymes - Enjoy Da Ride, Live It Up, Show Me What You Got from "Anarchy"
Common - 10 tracks from "Like Water For Chocolate"
D'Angelo - various tracks from Voodoo
De La Soul - Thru Ya City from "Art Official Intelligence: Mosaic Thump"
Erykah Badu - Cleva, My Life, Didn't Cha Know, Kiss Me On My Neck from "Mama's Gun
Guru feat. Bilal - Certified from "Guru's Jazzmatazz Street Soul"

2000
Bilal - Reminisce from "1st Born Second LP"
Busta Rhymes - Genesis, Make It Hurt from "Genesis"
Daft Punk - Aerodynamic (Slum Village Remix) 12" single
De La Soul - Peer Pressure (Intro & Outro Monologues by Jay Dee) from AOI: Bionix

2001
Busta Rhymes - It Ain't Safe No More, What Up, Turn Me Up Some from "It Ain't Safe No More..."
Common - various production & instrumental credits from "Electric Circus"
DJ Jazzy Jeff - Are You Ready (with Slum Village) from "The Magnificent" 12" EP
Talib Kweli - Where Do We Go, Stand To The Side from "Quality"

2004
De La Soul - Verbal Clap, Much More from Grind Date

2005
Common - Love is, It's Your World (Part 1 & 2) from Be
Common - The Movement from NBA 2K6 - The Tracks
Talib Kweli - Roll Off Me from Right About Now

*******

I chose to end the list in 2005 since all his production afterwards is either posthumous work or tracks you'll find from one of his solo releases, and there is LOTS of it. Jay Dee released so much underground and solo work that you could get lost in it all. My suggestion to you is to pick up two albums that can serve a sort of intro to his grittier underground work.

1. Jaylib: Champion Sound
This was a collabo effort that teamed Jay up with another underground legend, Madlib. Upon hearing a tape of Madlib's recordings over his own tracks, Jay called up Madlib and discussed making an official collaborative release. The album would be made entirely of beats emailed back and forth, mixed and remixed by the two legendary producers. Like much of Jay's work it became an instant classic.

2. "Ruff Draft"
This was a posthumous re-release and represents one of the creative directions Jay Dee was really interested in. The name, "Ruff Draft," says it all. Jay loved dirty, or what he would call, "raw" production. He's a Detroit native. This album represents his "ridin' around with a mixtape" roots. Again, like everything Jay touched, it's substantive, innovative and just plain dope!

There isn't much more for me to say. Hope this helps anyone interested in getting into Jay Dee, but remember, this is just the tip of the iceberg. Take a good listen of the albums I've mentioned. Once you get a good sense of what he's about and what you like you can check out his complete discography and start cherry picking from your tastes.

Jay was the man.
He was taken from us all too soon, but fortunately he left us with a wealth of his work to enjoy. So enjoy!

R.I.P. JAY!!!