Si incazzarono tutti. Lo insultarono, ma mica a viso aperto. Piuttosto, come fanno i rapper: tra le rime dei loro dischi.
LL Cool J, Run DMC, Digital Underground, Ice Cube e compagnia cantante (pardon: rappante). Il primo, anni dopo, chiarì e si scusò. Diamogliene atto.
Questo e tanto altro ancora scatenò Stanley Kirk Burrell, più comodamente MC Hammer, dal 1991 più comodamente ancora Hammer. Che ‘MC’ ormai ce l’avevano tutti, pure il nostro Frankie Hi Nrg.
E già. Questo perché questi gangsta incazzati e incazzosi sradicavano l’umore dei loro lavori nei bassifondi, lo rielaboravano con talento certosino e le sputavano alla nicchia di fans in adorazione.
MC Hammer la pensò più facile. Senza scomodarsi troppo, dopo il successo inaspettato (non eclatante ma pur sempre foriero di quattrini e belle speranze) dell’album di debutto “Let’s Get It Started” (preannunciato dalla prima incarnazione, l’autoprodotto “Feel My Power” ndr) si barricò per qualche settimana in un camper con due produttori che nessuno conosceva (Louis Burrell e Scott Folks) e sfruttando una manciata di piste pescò basi a destra e a manca, ci mise sopra due strofe, e frantumò ogni record. Di vendite, di airplay, di pubblico.
Al tempo: non era tutta merda. L’uomo dimostrò di avere orecchio fine e intelligenza. Mandò nelle classifiche di tutto il mondo ‘U Can’t Touch This’, che prendeva pari pari il brano “Super Freak” di un certo Rick James, un altro che bisognerebbe aspettare per qualche dove per dargli giù botte, e ci rappò sopra qualche tavanata. In quel periodo, si sa, un singolo ‘boom’ era sufficiente per trainare l’album di riferimento. “Please Hammer Don’t Hurt ‘Em” non fece eccezione. Anzi: superò i 20.000.000 di pezzi venduti.
A molti fischiarono le orecchie. Certamente a Prince, le cui basi vennero propinate in ben tre brani: “Pray” (When Doves Cry), “Work This” (Let’s Work) e “She’s Soft And Wet” (Soft And Wet) ma anche a Jacko (“Ti sfido, cazzo, prendiamo due stadi e vediamo chi fa più pubblico”). Ma Michael la prese bene: incalzato dai giornalisti, disse, “Ah, ma io sono un suo fan”. Gnaffete.
Hammer diventò bambole, diventò cartone animato (Hammertime), diventò icona.
Chi vi scrive, incuriosito, comprò l'album a scatola chiusa. Nel senso: leggevo per ogni dove di 'sto tizio ma ai tempi mica era come oggi che, perdio, fai click sul tubo e ascolti un brano. Allora quattordicenne, rimasi più che altro divertito. C'era di peggio e, per l'amor di Dio, c'era anche di meglio.
Hammer si arrichì. Diventò esoso, inavvicinabile. Come da copione, negli anni si mangiò quasi tutto. Basti osservare la genesi dei lavori successivi: "Too Legit To Quit" (1991) ne dimezzò fasti e pretese, seppur creando una discreta breccia. "The Funk Headhunter" (1993), che tentò di incattivire sound e contenuti, calò di dieci spanne facendo giusto capolino nelle chart. "Inside Out" (1995) passò inosservato. Così come i lavori successivi.
Certo è che “Please Hammer Don’t Hurt ‘Em” ha un posto nella storia, e tant'è. Il primo disco rap a piazzarsi così in alto e per così tanto tempo, oggi continua a brillare di luce propria per l'animo prettamente napoletano : futtetenne (mi perdonino gli amici partenopei se il lessico dovesse essere errato). Hammer ignorò regole comportamentali tipiche del rapper di strada, si insaponò, si cosparse di profumo e tirò dritto finché il pubblico, attratto da altre falene, non gli voltò le spalle.
Venne anche a San Remo, nel 1992, a fare il pirla da Pippo Baudo.
Durò poco. Oggi il nostro si arrabatta in vari modi. Nei talent show danzerecci (ah già: era, a detta, un ottimo ballerino), autoproducendo (e chi lo scrittura più ?) materiale inedito quando gli capita, andando in tour con Vanilla Ice (di cui, come si suol dire, tratteremo in seguito) o predicando, perché sì: negli anni, smesso il lusso, è diventato anche pastore. Che Dio ti benedica, figliuolo, disse Stanley Kirk Burrell più comodamente Hammer scendendo dalla Limousine e sistemandosi il collanone.
Elenco tracce testi e video
02 U Can't Touch This (04:17)
You can't touch this
You can’t touch this
(oh-oh oh oh oh-oh-oh)
You can't touch this
(oh-oh oh oh oh-oh-oh)
My, my, my, my (You can't touch this)
Music hits me so hard
Makes me say "Oh my Lord!"
Thank you for blessing me
With a mind to rhyme and two hyped feet
It feels good when you know you're down
A superdope homeboy from the Oaktown
And I'm known
as such
And this is a beat, uh, you can't touch
I told you homeboy, you can't touch this
Yeah, that's how we livin' and ya know,
You can't touch this
Look in my eyes man, you can't touch this
Yo let me bust the funky lyrics, you can’t touch this
Fresh new kicks and pants
You got it like that now you know wanna dance
So move out of your seat
And get a fly girl and catch this beat
While it's rollin'. Hold on
Pump a little bit and let them know it's going on
Like that, like that
Cold on a mission so fall on back
Let 'em know that you're too much
And this is a beat, uh, they can't touch
Yo I told you, you can't touch this
Why you standing there man, you can't touch this
Yo sound the bell school is in, sucker
You can't touch this
Give me a song or rhythm
Making no sweat that's what I'm giving 'em
So now they know
You talk about the Hammer when you’re talking ‘bout a show
That's hyped and tight
Singers are sweatin' so pass them a wipe
Or a tape to learn
What it's gonna take in the 90's to burn
The charts legit
Either work hard or you might as well quit
That's word because you know
You can't touch this
You can't touch this
Break it down!
(Oh-oh-oh-oh-oh-oh-oh-oh-oh)
(Oh-oh-oh-oh-oh-oh-oh-oh-oh)
Stop! Hammer time!
Go with the flow. It is said
If you can't groove to this then you probably are dead
So wave your hands in the air
Bust a few moves run your fingers through your hair
This is it for a winner
Dance to this and you're gonna get thinner
Now move slide your rump
Just for a minute let's all do the bump
Bump bump bump yeah, you can't touch this
Look man, you can't touch this
You'll probably get hyped boy 'cause you know you can't, you can't touch this
Ring the bell school's back in, break it down!
(Oh-oh-oh-oh-oh-oh-oh-oh-oh)
(Oh-oh-oh-oh-oh-oh-oh-oh-oh)
Stop! Hammer time!
You can't touch this
You can't touch this
You can't touch this
Break it down!
(Oh-oh-oh-oh-oh-oh-oh-oh-oh)
(Oh-oh-oh-oh-oh-oh-oh-oh-oh)
Stop! Hammer time!
Every time you see me, that Hammer's just so hype
I'm dope on the floor and I'm magic on the mic
Now why would I ever stop doing this?
With others makin' records that just don’t hit
I toured around the world from London to The Bay
It's "Hammer. Go Hammer. MC Hammer. Yo Hammer!" and the rest can go and play
You can't touch this
You can't touch this
You can't touch this
Yeah, can't touch this
I told you, can't touch this
Too hype. Can't touch this
Yo get me outta here, you can't touch this
(Oh-oh-oh-oh-oh-oh-oh-oh-oh-oh-oh-oh)
03 Have You Seen Her (04:44)
ah yeah, I'm glad I put this tape in,
I'm just gon' cruise down the road,
look at the stars in the sky,
and drift off into the sweet memorys that I have,
of a love that my heart has been searching for,
for so long, and I know somewhere,
If I keep searching, that love I'll find,
the picture grows clearer and clearer,
from the back to the front of my mind,
and like love, a love I know I'll have,
the girl that I want, she'll be mine, she'll be fly, and it'll last,
I see her face and I can't let go,
she's in my dreams and my heart, so let me know,
(have you seen her?)
have you seen her?,
(tell me have you seen her?)
I'm looking for that love,
she's a thought and a vision in my memory,
I haven't met her, but tell me where could she be,
(have you seen her?)
have you seen her?,
(tell me have you seen her?)
I'm looking for that special love,
(love, oh love, love is a feeling that I need)
love is a feeling that the Hammer definetly needs,
(please be mine)
baby be mine,
(I need your love to make it)
I need your love to make it,
so why don't you be mine,
the search is going on,
from coast to coast,
a women for the man, who's propping the most,
(have you seen her?)
have you seen her?,
(tell me have you seen her?)
my heart is beating strong,
this love cannot be wrong,
I need her and I want her, so come on to my home,
(have you seen her?)
have you seen her?,
(tell me have you seen her?)
I'm a keep looking,
at the movies, in my car, on my stero,
at a game of Different World or the Cosby Show,
(have you seen her?)
have you seen her?,
(tell me have you seen her?)
yo veo, tell me what's up,
at the track, at the club, or out buying dub,
if you've seen her, then I'll have her, cause I'm in love,
(have you seen her?)
have you seen her?,
(tell me have you seen her?)
my heart is hurting so bad,
(love, oh love, love is a feeling that I need)
love is a feeling that I know I need,
(please be mine)
be mine baby,
(I need your love to make it)
I need your love to make it,
why don't you be mine,
(baby, be mine)
where could she be?,
at the store around the corner,
or wondering at night,
or chilling with another brother holding the mic,
(have you seen her?)
have you seen her?,
(tell me have you seen her?)
Hammer, you know I'm looking,
calling all my friends all around the place,
Guy, Lavertte, or my homey Rob Base,
(have you seen her?)
have you seen her?,
(tell me have you seen her?)
if you've peeped her out, tell me,
yo, veo on the phone,
Ted, Dre, or Ed Lover,
Fab Five, homeys won't you help a young brother,
(have you seen her?)
have you seen her?,
(tell me have you seen her?)
I got a picture in my mind,
the thought is so clear of the love I need here,
like D-B magic, and why don't you appear,
(have you seen her?)
oh baby, why don't you appear,
(tell me have you seen her?)
I can see yo' face,
I'm seeing her face, again and again,
come knocking at my door, and you know I'll let you in,
(have you seen her?)
have you seen her?,
(tell me have you seen her?)
oh, my sweet love,
searching 'round the world, what more can I say?,
the girl is hard to see like an unseen VJ,
(have you seen her? tell me have you seen her? have you seen her?)
05 Help the Children (05:19)
Help The Children
lyrics by Mc Hammer
Help 'em
Help our children
Help 'em
Help our children
(CHORUS)
WIll you let them be
Will you help our children live to see
Our generation is trying
Oh how we're dying
WIll you let them be
Will you help our children live to see
A better day is coming
To keep our lives going
Right is here and then it's gone
And what seems right can be oh so wrong
Let's protest and not molest
Our young girls
And help them live to see this world
Clearly
As it is
And pray for the mother with kids
Who's lost control, but not her soul
Many kids will die before they're
20-years-old
(CHORUS)
WIll you let them be
Will you help our children live to see
Our generation is trying
Oh how we're dying
WIll you let them be
Will you help our children live to see
A better day is coming
To keep our lives going
Papas, where have you gone
I see mama by the telephone
Waiting, but you don't call
Tears on the fears
And I see them fall
It hurts, but we'll go on
You're just another brother who's left his home
And family
Yeah we cry
Mama said she loved you
And I don't even know why
(CHORUS)
WIll you let them be
Will you help our children live to see
Our generation is trying
Oh how we're dying
WIll you let them be
Will you help our children live to see
A better day is coming
To keep our lives going
Money and death
The line the truth
A dime bag of crack
The end of you
Black and white
A constant fight
Years and years
And day and night
Or was it right
I've got to stand
To make a better way
For a young black man
And a land
Where the people smile
You've been holding me back
For such a long while
(CHORUS)
WIll you let them be
Will you help our children live to see
Our generation is trying
Oh how we're dying
WIll you let them be
Will you help our children live to see
A better day is coming
To keep our lives going
Children
Don't be fooled
And learn about the way
The men once ruled this country
Where we live
And read about the 60s
And what they did
So that we
Won't forget
And love one another
And give respect
When I see
A man who's old
A woman who's great
Touches my soul
Cause I know
They paved the way
So we can be here
And live this way
There was a time
Not long ago
When in front of the bus to the back I had to go
It appears
That things have changed
Maybe it's a different method but it's still the same game
(CHORUS)
WIll you let them be
Will you help our children live to see
Our generation is trying
Oh how we're dying
WIll you let them be
Will you help our children live to see
A better day is coming
To keep our lives going
08 Pray (05:13)
That's word,we pray(pray,pray)
We got to pray
Just to make it today
I said we pray(pray) ah,yeah,pray(pray)
We got to pray
Just to make it to pray
That's word,we pray
All my life I wanted to make it to the top
(That's word,we pray)
Some said I wouldn't
They told me no,but I didn't stop
(That's word,we pray)
Working hard,making those movies everyday
(That's word,we pray)
And on my knees every night,you know I pray
That's word,we pray(pray)
Ah,yeah,pray(pray) we got to pray
Just to make it today
I said we pray(pray) ah,yeah,pray(pray)
We got to pray
Just to make it today
That's word,we pray
Now I just think that you
Can do what ever you want
(That's word,we pray)
I'm bustin' these rhymes
Making this money and I won't
(That's word,we pray)
Forget my people or may town or my ways
(That's word,we pray)
And on my knees.every night I'm still gonna pray
That's word,we pray(pray)
Ah,yeah,pray(pray) we got to pray
Just to make it today
I said we pray(pray) ah,yeah,pray(pray)
We got to pray
Just to make it today
That's word,we pray
Time and time and time and time again
(That's word,we pray)
I kept on knocking,but
These people wouldn't let me in
(That's word,we pray)
I tried and tried and tried and tried to make a way
(That's word,we pray)
But nothing happened till that day I prayed
That's word,we pray(pray)
Ah,yeah,pray(pray) we got to pray
Just to make it today
I said we pray(pray) ah,yeah,pray(pray)
We got to pray
Just to make it today
That's word,we pray
Childrem dying,oh,so fast from this or that
(That's word,we pray)
Needing that money
Smoking that dope and doing that crack
(That's word,we pray)
Ten years old stand outside
Better look out
(That's word ,we pray)
Dead and gone,necer had a chance
What's it all about?
That's word,we pray(pray) ah,yeah,pray
We need to pray
Just to make it today
I need to pray(pray),ah,yeah,pray
We need to pray
Just to make it today
That's word,we pray
That's word,we pray( x3)
That's word,we pray(pray) ah,yeah,pray
We need to pray
Just to make it today
I need to pray(pray),ah,yeah,pray
We need to pray
Just to make it today
That's word,we pray
On a mission start to doubt.here we go
(That's word,we pray)
Kicking back,read these words we need to know
(That's word,we pray)
Living high,living good,living long
(That's word,we pray)
Take a minute,bust a prayer
And you're good to go
That's word,we pray(pray) ah,yeah,pray
We need to pray
Just to make it today
I need to pray(pray),ah,yeah,pray
We need to pray
Just to make it today
That's word,we pray
We're sending this one out to the Lord
(That's word,we pray)
And we thank you and we know we need to pray
(That's word,we pray)
Cause all the blessings that are good they come from above
(That's word,we pray)
And once again we want
To say "thank you" to the Lord with all our love
That's word,we pray(pray) ah,yeah,pray
We need to pray
Just to make it today
I need to pray(pray),ah,yeah,pray
We need to pray
Just to make it today
That's word,we pray
That's word,we pray(pray,pray) (x4)
That's word,we pray
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