Guardian Music — From Marc Bolan to Nico to Buddy Holly, your list of favourite debut releases made for premier readingHow to begin? First impressions are very important. They can be make-or-break, though an artist may be lucky enough to have several cracks at the wh... more info

Guardian Music — The series which started with Cole Porter covers recognises Brazil's recognition as 'a major force in world affairs'In 1989, Leigh Blake and John Carlin were just two friends with a dream. In response to the effect of the Aids epidemic on NYC's artis... more info

Guardian Music — 1988-89: Number 17 in our series of the 50 key events in the history of dance musicConfusingly, the Second Summer of Love was really two summers. The first, 1988, was the warm-up as acid house graduated from hipster secret to the dominant sound of Br... more info

Guardian Music — 3 March 1989: Number 22 in our series of the 50 key events in the history of R&B and hip-hop music"Yet our best-trained, best-educated, best-equipped, best-prepared troops refuse to fight. Matter of fact, it's safe to say that they would rather switc... more info

Soul Sides — Damn, De La Soul Is Dead is already 20 years old? F—, I feel old. John Book goes in on discussing the album and I don’t have much to say except for this: De La was the reason I got into hip-hop and by extension, was the reason I got into musi... more info

Popdose — De La Soul dead? Hardly? Their masterful sophomore effort, one of the best hip-hop albums of all time, gets the Flashback '91 treatment on Popdose. more info

Guardian Music — Once in the vanguard of hip-hop's golden age, the rap legend remains a custodian of musical values long since lost to lucreWilliam Michael Griffin Jr, aka Rakim Allah, remembers the first time he came to England. It was November 1987; the 19-year-ol... more info

The Hip Hop Chronicle — A few hours ago so the Science Of Speech concert with Rakim, De La Soul and Blackstar (Talib Kweli & Mos Def). I unfortunately missed Rakim’s set but here is footage of De La Soul and Blackstar’s set.   a2a_linkname="Blackstar Bring Out Jay Elec... more info

Guardian Music — Rakim, On tourWho could forget that immortal couplet: "Me and Eric B and a nice big plate of fish/ Which is my favourite dish"? Besides promoting the healthy benefits of an Omega 3-rich diet, Eric B & Rakim's 1987 album and single Paid In Full marked... more info

MVSW — Jeru the Damaja ~ “Ya Playin’ Yaself” Old School gem from back in 1996. Samples: De La Soul ~ “Stakes is High (A cappella)“ Rufus Thomas ~ “Do the Funky Penguin“ The New Birth ~ “You are What I’m All About“ Lyric Exerpt: Yo are yo... more info