ARTIST: MC Hammer
TITLE: Here Comes The Hammer
LABEL: Capitol
TYPE: Normal release
GENRE: Rap
SOURCE: CD Maxi (3-5+ tracks)
BITRATE: 201 kbps avg/44100 Hz
ENCODER: Lame 3.97
SIZE: 24.99 MB
PLAYTIME: 16:30
RELEASE DATE: 1990-XX-XX
RIP DATE: 2010-03-18
Track List
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1. Here Comes The Hammer (Uh-Oh Here Comes 6:00
The Hammer)
2. Here Comes The Hammer (7" Edit) 4:40
3. Here Comes The Hammer (Instrumental) 5:50
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Total Playtime: 16:30
Release Notes:
There had been hit rap singles and albums before him, but MC Hammer was the man
who truly brought rap music to a mass pop audience. Armed with a flamboyant
wardrobe (particularly his trademark baggy parachute pants) and a raft of
sampled hooks lifted straight from their sources, Hammer's talents as a dancer
and showman far exceeded his technique as an MC. Still, he had an ear for catchy
source material, and that helped his second album, Please Hammer Don't Hurt 'Em,
become the best-selling rap album of all time. Even if he was never able to
duplicate that level of success, and even if his street credibility was
virtually non-existent, Hammer still broke down numerous doors for rap music in
the mainstream, demonstrating that hip-hop had the potential for blockbuster
success in the marketplace.
MC Hammer was born Stanley Kirk Burrell in Oakland, CA, on March 30, 1962. A
member of a strongly religious family, he landed a job as a bat/ball boy for the
Oakland Athletics baseball team, where he entertained fans by dancing during
breaks in the game, and earned the nickname "Hammer" for his resemblance to
all-time home run leader "Hammerin'" Hank Aaron. An aspiring ballplayer himself,
he failed to catch on with a professional organization following high school,
and enlisted in the Navy for three years. Long a fan of funk and soul, he became
interested in hip-hop upon returning to civilian life, and began performing in
local clubs; with the financial help of several Athletics players, he also
started his own record label, Bust It, and recorded a couple of popular local
singles. With ex-Con Funk Shun mastermind Felton Pilate producing, Hammer
recorded an album titled Feel My Power in 1987. After impressing a Capitol
Records executive with his already elaborate live show, he was signed to a
multi-album deal, the first of which was a revamped version of Feel My Power
retitled Let's Get It Started. Producing an R&B hit in "Turn This Mutha Out,"
Let's Get It Started went double platinum.
Still, nothing could have foreshadowed the phenomenon of Please Hammer Don't
Hurt 'Em, the 1990-released follow-up. Its first single, "U Can't Touch This,"
blatantly copped most of its hooks from Rick James' funk classic "Super Freak,"
yet Hammer's added catch phrases (and young listeners' unfamiliarity with the
original song) helped make it a smash. "U Can't Touch This" dominated radio and
MTV during 1990 in a way few rap singles ever had, and won two Grammys (Best R&B
Song, Best Solo Rap Performance); save for a quirk in its release format -- it
was only available as a 12", which cut down on its sales -- it would easily have
been the first rap single to top the Billboard pop chart. The next two singles,
"Have You Seen Her" (a flat-out cover of the Chi-Lites' '70s soul ballad) and
"Pray" (built on the keyboard hook from Prince's "When Doves Cry"), followed "U
Can't Touch This" into the Top Ten, eventually pushing sales of Please Hammer
Don't Hurt 'Em past the ten-million mark and making it the number one album of
the year. Still, a backlash was growing against Hammer's frequent borrowing
(some said theft) of classic hooks for his own hits; hip-hop purists also railed
about his often simplistic, repetitive lyrics (indeed, "Pray" set a new record
for the number of times its title was repeated during the song, at well over
100). The charges of rank commercialism weren't lessened by the merchandising
machine that soon kicked in: endorsement deals, MC Hammer dolls, even a Saturday
morning cartoon show.
Seeking to counteract the criticism, Hammer dropped the "MC" from his name and
used more live instrumentation on his 1991 follow-up album, Too Legit to Quit.
While it sold very well (over three-million copies) and produced a sizable hit
in the title track, Hammer's stage show had become as lavish as his lifestyle;
loaded with singers, dancers, and backup musicians, the supporting concert tour
was too expensive for the album's sales to finance, and it was canceled partway
through. Hammer scored his last big hit with "Addams Groove," the theme to the
film version of The Addams Family, and then paused to reconsider his approach.
In 1994, he returned with The Funky Headhunter, a harder-edged, more aggressive
record that went gold, but failed to win him a new audience among hardcore
hip-hop fans. On 1995's Inside Out, Hammer seemed unsure of whether he wanted to
appeal to pop or rap audiences; the album flopped, and Hammer was let out of his
contract. In 1996, Hammer filed for bankruptcy, his taste for luxury having
gotten the better of his dwindling income; his mansion was sold at a fraction of
its cost. The crisis prompted a religious reawakening, and he began to write new
material with an emphasis on spirituality and family. The album Family Affair
was slated for release on Hammer's own Oaktown 3.5.7. label, but plans were
aborted at the last minute; only 1000 copies were pressed, and were never
distributed nationally, save for limited Internet downloads. Several projects
were rumored to be in the works, including another album (War Chest: Turn of the
Century) and a soundtrack to the film Return to Glory: The Powerful Stirring of
the Black Man, but none ever appeared. Finally, Hammer released a new album, the
patriotic-themed Active Duty, through his own WorldHit label in late 2001.