Jeffrey:

Loc-ed After Dark is an interesting choice for our second week of the project, because it is an album for which I have no nostalgia. I had never heard it before last week. I’ve heard “Wild Thing” and “Funky Cold Medina,” of course — can you have any relationship to American culture at this point without having the lyrics to those songs imprinted on your brain? I always assumed, because of the blow-up success of those two singles, that Tone Loc was just a one-hit wonder who was lucky enough to have squeezed out two hits. The Timmy T. of rap, if you will. (Which is redundant, as I just learned that Timmy T. was also a rapper, despite his hit singles having been not raps. Thanks, Wikipedia!)

When “Wild Thing” came out, I had a supremely geeky habit of listening to Casey Kasem’s America’s Top 40 radio program every weekend and writing down the chart positions of every song. Living in Clio, Michigan and having no MTV, this was the only way I knew to discover new music … especially hip-hop, which did not get a lot of airplay outside of the major cities. I remember the weekend “Wild Thing” first hit the top 40, I was offended that someone was already biting Sam Kinison’s “Wild Thing” remake, which had come out just a short time before. Of course, the similarities existed in title only, as Tone Loc’s song has nothing to do with the Troggs’ original. But I still can’t help but think that every time Sam heard Tone on the radio, he was thinking, “that should’ve been me.” And then he drove his car into a pickup truck, another unfortunate victim of the East Coast/West Coast rivalry. Even though they’re both West Coasters.

Surprisingly, Loc-ed After Dark is much more than just a collection of throwaway songs surrounding the two singles. This is a remarkably strong record from start to finish, thanks in large part to the fine work of the Dust Brothers. Matt’s right — the production on these songs really holds up, much more so than on many of the other blockbuster rap records of the era. Tone’s lyrics are nothing to write home about … his subject matter ranges from “my raps are great” to “you should listen to my raps” to “everyone likes my raps.” But his voice is unmistakable, and his flow still sounds tight even though it’s somewhat mired in the “roses are red, violets are blue” repetition of early hip-hop.

Loc’s confidence is in full effect from the opening track — “On Fire (Remix)”. Loc is so beyond he releases the remix before the original. It’s not an essential cut, but it does a nice job of letting the listener know that there are no other rappers who compare to Tone Loc; therefore, turning the tape off should not be a priority. At the end of this track, Loc announces that it’s time for the “Wild Thing” … showing astute judgment of his fan base. “I’m great, this tape is great,” he assures us, “now let’s get this ‘Wild Thing’ bullshit out of the way.”

"… ohhhh … my life …"

Everything about Loc’ed After Dark is geared toward a pleasurable audience experience. Tone has a helpful habit of letting us know when the song’s coming to an end, I guess so we don’t freak out and think, “what the fuck just happened? Where’s the music?” 5 of the 11 tracks end with a variation on “I’m out” … from the first track (“Time for the ‘Wild Thing.’ See you later. I’m gone.”) to the ninth (“And I’m gone.”) My favorite comes in Track #7, “Next Episode,” when Loc leaves the scene with “I’m outta here. Hasta lamalakum.” (Incidentally, you know how “Wild Thing” ends with “hasta la vista, baby”? This song actually came out a few years before Terminator 2. Which means Tone Loc actually originated the phrase “hasta la vista, baby.” If it weren’t for Tone Loc, Arnold Schwarzenegger probably would not be the governor of California today. Another interesting fact about Loc-ed After Dark: it was the first hip-hop record by a black artist to hit #1 on the pop charts, and only the second hip-hop album to hit #1, period … the first being the Beastie Boys’ “License to Ill.”)

Tone released one other record after Loc-ed After Dark, 1991′s Cool Hand Loc. By that point, however, MC Hammer and Vanilla Ice had usurped Loc’s role as pop radio’s rappers of choice. Loc did all right for himself in the acting world for awhile, with capable turns in Ace Ventura and Heat. Assuming Delicious Vinyl didn’t screw him on the contracts, though, he never had to work another day in his life.

On the Awkward Scale of Pizzas, I give Loc-ed After Dark … an impressive 4 1/2 pizzas!

Next week: You’re in the jungle, baby! You’re gonna dieeeee!

Sidenote: in my search for Kinison’s “Wild Thing,” which is not available on YouTube, I turned up this little thing. Which, I think we can all agree, is certainly a thing. Enjoy!

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