Oakland emcee sOul recently teamed up with fellow Oaklanders Crown City Rockers members Woodstock and Headnodic to write and record a tribute to the influential late great Gil Scott-Heron. Simply titled “Gil Scott Tribute” the song was recorded in one take (captured in the video above - a video blog session recording with Headnodic who mixed the track) and features Woodstock playing the beat live on his MPC and sampling Gil Scott Heron's “We Almost Lost Detroit” (off Gil Scott Heron & Brian Jackson's 1977 album Bridges) as well as recreating previous hip-hop interpretations of the original sample. Intricate stuff, and it works nicely too, with sOul on the mic spitting socio-political commentary along personal life monologue.

The song was recorded simply as a tribute to Gil Scott Heron and is not for sale but available as a free download here. Gil Scott Heron, who died at age 62 in May 2011, has been called the "godfather of rap" - a term he himself dismissed, preferring to label himself a "bluesologist." After the artist's sudden death a couple of years ago Chuck D of Public Enemy saluted Scott-Heron as a highly influential figure saying, in a heartfelt tribute to the man, that, "We do what we do and how we do because of you!" I agree with Chuck D as to the impact on hip-hop and music in general that Gil Scott Heron has made.

Record collectors/vinyl fanatics are sure to fully appreciate the latest video (above) from Headnodic which features a non-stop display of approximately 200 different record album covers. How many can you recognize?  The video for the song "The Mondays" featuring KAT 010 and is taken from the album Red Line Radio on Traffic Entertainment which was released back in July by the Bay Area producer who came to fame as a member of the Crown City Rockers.
The video, which is also directed by Hednodic, is described by the record-loving artist as, "an open love letter to vinyl." The track features Hednodic on the bass and drum programming, with Kat O1O on the Rhodes, Crumar Orchestrator, and melodica. Purchase the album Red Line Radio either from Amoeba.com or in one of the three Amoeba Music stores.

1) Ghostface Killah Ghostdini: The Wizard of Poetry in Emerald City (Def Jam)

2) Crown CIty Rockers The Day After Forever (Gold Dust Media)

3) Jay-Z The Blueprint 3 (Roc Nation/Atlantic)

4) Raekwon Only Built 4 Cuban Links Pt II (ICEAL)

5) Brother Ali Us (Rhymesayers)

Thanks for this week's Amoeba Music Hip-Hop Top Five chart go out to Tom at the Berkeley store where, in addition to updating the Amoeblog on the top selling new hip-hop albums, he reports that, as of yesterday,  the Telegraph Ave. store has, "got all the Halloween decorations up and it looks mighty spooky." What's spooky to me is how quickly the summer just flew by and the fact that it's almost Halloween again. Dang! Time really does fly. Case in point is Ghostface Killah -- it seems like it's only been a few years since the Wu-Tang Clan rapper dropped his first solo release, Ironman, but actually that release came out thirteen long hip-hop years ago, in 1996! His latest album, Ghostdini: The Wizard of Poetry in Emerald City on Def Jam, which is this week's number hip-hop release at Amoeba, is actually the eighth solo release from the Wu rapper, who took his name from the 1979 kung fu film Mystery of Chessboxing.

1) Mos Def The Ecstatic (Downtown)

2) Chali 2na Fish Outta Water (Decon)

3) DOOM Born Like This (Lex Records)

4) Cage Depart From Me (Def Jux)

5) Wu Tang Chamber Music (KR Urban/KOCH)

At the Berkeley Amoeba Music store this week the top selling albums are all ones that have been out for a few weeks or more but that are proving to be staples for the Summer of '09. Charting records include the latest releases from Mos Def, Wu-Tang, and Chali 2na, as well as DOOM's (aka MF Doom) recent Born Like This and Cage's Depart From Me, both of which are incidentally on Definitive Jux (aka Def Jux), the label co-founded by El-P that seemingly can do no wrong as it steadily builds a catalog of quality, lasting hip-hop in an era of the genre when there is so much clutter elsewhere.

The OM 15 party is tonight! San Francisco based OM Records will be celebrating 15 successful years with a big show at the Mezzanine this eve (Friday, August 14) with Mark Farina, J Boogie, Whooligan and others. I just caught The Whooligan at the same venue a week ago when he was performing with 40 Love during the wonderful Amoebapalooza 2009.

1) Q-Tip The Renaissance (Motown/Universal)

2) Black Milk Tronic (Fat Beats Records)

3) T.I. Paper Trail (Grand Hustle/Atlantic)

4) Kurupt & Roscoe The Frank & Jesse James Story (Highpowered Entertainment)

5) DJ Babu Duck Season Vol. 3 (Nature Sounds)

Thanks to Marques at Amoeba Music Hollywood for this week's Top Five Hip-Hop albums chart where, as with the other two Amoeba stores, Black Milk's Tronic, DJ Babu's Duck Season Vol. 3, Q-Tip's The Renaissance, and T.I.'s Paper Trail are all selling well. Also on this new chart is the wild west themed The Frank & Jesse James Story from Kurupt along with his younger brother Roscoe, aka the James Brothers. Guests on this all West Coast rap offering include Too $hort, WC, and Daz Dillinger. Keeping in the brotherly (though not technically siblings) mode is new crew The Temper Twins. Check out the group's cool new video/song "Change It Up" below. The Twins, comprised of Jimmy Temper & Tim Temper plus Shotgun, are a new Hollywood (by way of the East Bay) group whose seeds were first sown 17 long years ago at an Oakland BBQ when then newcomer to the local hip-hop game Sunspot "Tim Temper" Jonz, later of Mystik Journeymen/Living Legends fame, first crossed paths with Julian "Jimmy Temper" Brooks, MC and founding member of the psychedelic hip-hop pioneering duo The Mod Squad who got signed to TNT Records, and then picked up by Priority Records for a hot minute, scoring a buzz with 1992's People's Park.