Disco de J Dilla: “Donuts”

J Dilla a.k.a. Jay Dee passed away Friday, February 10, 2006 from complications from lupus. I started the review off this way because a lot of people don't know a lot about Jay Dee. Unless you were heavily in tune with the hip-hop scene, you may not have noticed his presence. As an early member of Slum Village, Jay Dee was instrumental in bringing older R&B and Jazz sound back to the forefront of hip-hop music. It has always been present in rap music, dating back to "Rapper's Delight" by the Sugarhill Gang. It's been continured over the years by deejays like Pete Rock, Jazzy Jeff, Dj Premier, and most notably Kanye West. Jay Dee continued this tradition in all the music he has produced for the likes of A Tribe Called Quest, Slum Village, Pharcyde, and Common. Donuts is his last release before his untimely death and serves up some of the best instrumental music to rock your head to.

It's virtually impossible for this to be like other reviews where you break down each track. Each track possesses it's own unique flavor. And even though there are some that will leave you perplexed, it still shows you the extensive amount of time it must take to find those tracks that make the cut. Jay Dee obviously did a lot of digging in the crates for some of these cuts. Still other selections are a blending of sounds and samples, almost putting you in the mind of techno or drum-n-bass music.

Those that appreciate the time and energy it takes to be a deejay and producer will be enlightened from the collection on Donuts. If anything, Donuts will serve as the starting point and inspiration for the growing number of deejays and wannabe producers in the game today. Jay Dee's respect in the game didn't come over night, but he never let go of niche once he found his place in the industry. He will be truly missed by those who know of him personally, those who knew of his work, and those who will come to know his music over the years to come. Be on the lookout for a future Jay Dee album from BBE this summer. R.I.P. Jay Dee.

Much like MF DOOM's Special Herbs and Spices collection, here J Dilla rounds up 31 great hip-hop sound bytes, with extremely limited rap that you MUST hear. Although this album has the most abrupt changes between tracks found in any album to date, which can throw many off into thinking they have bought an album that didn't get recorded properly, this is just a great experimental method of producing something unique, that could have sounded like [...], if it wasn't for J Dilla choosing the best selection of sounds heard outside of a Dan the Automator album. There are some kickin' beats here and if you are interested in the alternative Hip-Hop that is certainly the future of this genre, then make sure that you get Donuts at all costs. This album is fire.

Jay Dee was in the middle of blowing up when his life came to a tragic end, far too soon. Luckily, the 30-plus beats that make up "Donuts" provide a fitting tribute to the man who even the me-first Kanye West referred to (right on the CD cover!) as "a drum god."

Dilla's drums, however, don't necessarily take center stage on this beat collage. It's the chopped soul loops that are the main attraction. Bits of vocals and instrumental snippets slide in and out of the mix, creating a future-soul sound that would likely have launched the careers of plenty aspiring MCs.

While I personally prefer Madlib's "Movie Scenes" instrumental album to "Donuts," there's no doubt that this is worth adding to any hip-hopper's collection.

RIP Dilla.

There's nothing at all wrong with this album, except that it's not an album at all. Donuts is essentially a beat-tape. It's ideas that were probably meant to be fleshed out at some point in the future. This is not an instrumental hip-hop album conceived and executed to stand on its own as a creative work. With rare exceptions, these are snippets, not songs. Granted, the snippets contained here are some of the last ideas we'll hear from a genius producer, but just realize what you're buying.

With that disclaimer out of the way, Donuts is one hell of a listen. If I still smoked weed, this would be my accompaniment of choice.

Even in abbreviated form, Jay Dee's production evokes moods. As a hip-hop fan, this essentially turns you into your own A&R as you imagine De La Soul on one track ("Two Can Win"), Biggie on another ("Stepson of the Clapper"), MF Doom on still another ("Mash"), and on and on. There are even two joints back-to-back ("Geek Down" & "Thunder") that I would love to hear Drama use on his next T.I. mixtape. But those are just some of my fantasy pairings. You'll come up with plenty of your own.

Dilla pulls a 45 King (a la "Wooden Horse" and "Hard Knock Life") with "Lightworks" where he transforms a quirky jingle into an undeniable hip-hop burner. Then there's "Time: The Donut of the Heart." This is a special case. A nice little sample goes bananas as Jay plays with the time signature to drive it right over the top.

Donuts is an incredible collection of music. As an insight into the creative process of one of hip-hop's most talented producers, it is invaluable. But it's still not an album.