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Let’s take a trip back in time to 1990. I was a senior in high school, with a high-top fade, a couple of African medallions, and a stopwatch. Yeah, we wore stopwatches in Oakland to put our Town Styles on Flava’s clock. Come to think of it, that dance he did in Eric B. and Rakim’s “I Ain’t No Joke” video was very hyphyish. Well during this period of pro-Black, Public Enemy inspired Hip Hop, a stellar crew emerged, X Clan.

While writing this, I am playing their album “To The East Blackwards” for the second time in a row. I pulled this album out the archives because Professor X was on my mind due to his recent passing. This album takes me back to many fond memories and astounds me that I can play it straight through and every song is a bonafide jam. No filler here. If Chuck D is the Hard Rhymer and Flava, the Joker, then Brother J is the Knowledgeable Rhymer and Professor X is the Ghetto Philosopher. Brother J spits some of the hardest rhymes EVER on many of the greatest Hip Hop samples of all-time to blend a mad fusion of knowledge, trunk rumbling tunes, dance ability and pure Hip Hop. Professor X’s constant refrains of “Vainglorious” and “This is protected by the Red, Black, and Green, Siissssy” were catch phrases of the day. This is easily one of the Top 10 Hip Hop albums ever and should be required listening of any self-respecting Hip Hopper that exists. Some of you might even like it a little more than Nelly. :~)

Sadly, due to all of the samples on their first album and the change in sampling policy, making it more difficult going forward, they were never able to recapture the magic of their initial release. They released other projects and remained active. But none were as good as their first output. Ironically, it was Professor X’s, not very good, solo album that made me decide to always listen to an album first before buying it just on name recognition. Sugar Shaft the DJ passed away back in 1995. In the words of Professor X:

“MALCOLM, MARTIN, HUEY, THERE’S A PARTY AT THE CROSSROAD!”

Casual, of the mighty Hieroglyphics Crew comes at us with his alter ego, Smash Rockwell. Like Biggie said, this brother has flows like “Licorice!” I bet he could spit rhymes all day long and still teach Moother Goose a thing or two.

The musical landscape is very diverse on this album. On his anthem, ‘Oaktown,’ Casual enlists the services of Too $hort, E Mac, G Stack, and Richie Rich. It has an oldschool, stripped down, bass heavy, riding beat similar to Too $hort’s classic, ‘The Dope Fiend Beat.’ The most inspirational song is ‘Single Mother.’ The beat is super hot like some pre-Super Fly, Curtis Mayfield flavored, inspirational soul. Casual spins a very touching story, as he “takes this time out to honor” all the single mother’s out there. This song is very touching. For the Hyphy cats out there, he gives us ‘In The Whip.’ It has a hard Hyphy beat that was made to ghostride the whip to and he’s spins some crazy tales about doing his thing while riding around The Town.  

Other standouts include ‘Nickel and Dime Gangsta’ featuring the Ambassador of the Yay, E-40. ‘Hieroller’ features his Hieroglyphic brethren, Opio and Tajai creating the lyrical mayhem that they are known to do. ‘I’ll Hit That’ showcases Cas getting straight ill on the oldschool, Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five groove, ‘I’m Nasty.’ ‘Wakmup’ highlights Smash Rockwell waking ‘em up and breaking cyphers up. In all Casual gives us 15 hot cuts, but I can’t forget my favorite song of them all, “Styles So Many, Styles So Many, Styles!” Yes, Casual busts mad styles on the song ‘Styles.’ With that song alone, how could he go wrong?

You can catch Casual and the Hieroglyphics on tour currently in a town near you.