9. Funky Four Plus OneThat’s The Joint
Nearly every Friday I used to go to 125th Street and buy new soul releases. I was into West End and Salsoul and those labels, but I didn’t think of myself as a collector. I just wanted the tunes. On 125th Street Sylvia Robinson had the Sugarhill shop and down a couple blocks Bobby Robinson had the Enjoy shop. I used to go from one to the other listening to new releases. That’s where I used to find out about block parties. I remember going to the Bronx to hear Bambaataa DJ. I remember that he played ‘That’s The Joint’ and the next day I went uptown to find a copy. Sha Rock and Rahiem were the greatest, the way they rode a beat. I loved the block parties, the graffiti, the clothes, the clubs. The first song I ever recorded, in 1980, was a mercifully unreleased rap song called I’m ‘A Country Boy’.
