Let's Get Physical?

For real, I mean for real, for real? Are you serious about this?

Reuters Reports

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) – Move aside Madonna and watch out Barry White. The winner of the sexiest song of all time is -- Olivia Newton-John with "Physical," according to music publication Billboard.

Billboard has come up with a list of the 50 most popular songs about sex in time for Valentine's Day with each song given points according to its performance on the Billboard hot 100 chart from August 1958 until January this year. "Physical," released by Newton-John in 1981, topped the list after spending 10 weeks as No. 1 in the Billboard Hot 100 chart.

And while it certainly speaks to sex with lyrics such as "There's nothin' left to talk about, unless it's horizontally," the song became known as well-known as a track for aerobics classes in line with the singer's
exercise-themed video. Second in the list came Rod Stewart's 1976 song "Tonight's the Night," followed by Boyz II Men's 1994 ballad "I'll Make Love To You."
"Some songs are steamy slow-jams, some are hi-octane arena-rockers, but what they all have in common (and what got them on this list) is that the
subject matter of each song is directly related to sex, in some way," Billboard
said in a statement.

Other highlights include Rod Stewart, who made the top 10 twice with "Tonight's the Night" and "Do Ya Think I'm Sexy," and Marvin Gaye hit No. 5 with the classic "Let's Get It On."
Following is a list of the top
10 of the top 50 sexiest songs:
1. "Physical" - Olivia Newton-John
2. "Tonight's The Night" - Rod Stewart
3. "I'll Make Love To You" - Boyz II Men
4. "Too Close" - Next
5. "Let's Get It On" - Marvin Gaye
6. "Hot Stuff" - Donna Summer
7. "Do That To Me One More Time" - Captain and Tennille
8. "Like A Virgin" - Madonna
9. "Kiss You All Over" - Exile
10. "Do Ya Think I'm Sexy?" - Rod Stewart

How is this possible?!!? I mean are you kidding me, do the people that come up with these list even have a radio with a FM station on it?!!

Do the names R. Kelly or Trey Songz ring a bell?

I am been married for 15 years and these 2 guys STILL make me blush!

With titles like “I Invented Sex”, “Sticky Face”, “12 Play”, “Sex Me” and “Bump and Grind”, how does Olivia Newton John’s song even get into the top 50?

These are just some of the songs that were looked up at the click of a mouse, the mainstream radio is loaded with songs about sex and vivid descriptions of sexual acts, so I find it hard believe a song from 1981 is number one on the charts for being the sexist song of all time.

I mean they use Olivia Newton John’s song “Physical” in health clubs all over the country to exercise to, so how bad can it be? Whereas they would probably feel uncomfortable playing R. Kelly’s songs at a strip club. Go figure…how times have changed.

BLACKsummers'night....CLASSIC!!!!

July 7th 2009 was the day the music industry changed for the better. It was the day"class" was injected back into the industry and this time the industry will be rewarded for it. Maxwell’s new album BLACKsummers'night was released on July 7th 2009 and it is a work of musical art, that will produce numbers.

BLACKsummers'night is full of emotions that only great music can give you. I feel almost as though I am able to feel what he was feeling when these songs were created.

The music and the lyrics stay with you. On the song “FIST FULL OF TEARS” Maxwell says…

We gon fight the war

We gon fight our fears

The only thing I wanna throw is a fistful of tears

How deep is that?

This unbelievable masterpiece will take you back to the old school (CLASSIC UNIVERSITY) days of Marvin Gaye, The O'Jays, The Whispers, Luther Vandross, and The Commodores.

When a man is able to comeback and make music like this after close to a decade of down time, in the mind of Classic University, Maxwell is now in the same category with legends like Stevie Wonder and Prince. Yes I said it. I know he has not made nearly as much music as they have but he has been extremely consistent and the quality as has been as high as it gets each and every time.

I never thought I would be saying this but Maxwell is even more musical than he has ever been on this album. Feels strange saying this but Maxwell has grown, matured if you will, as an artist and we the listeners have benefitted tremendously. I read that Maxwell used a 10-piece band live in the studio and it is very obvious in the sound and vibe that the chemistry was through the roof.

This process should be a shot of espresso to a music industry that needs to WAKE UP!!! We need more 10 piece live bands in the studio! That kind of sound CANNOT be duplicated by computers.

The only problem I have with the masterpiece is that it is not long enough. There are only 9 songs and I am already hungry for the next of the BLACKSUMMERS' NIGHT trilogy. Honestly, I can talk about this album forever, but in closing, here is a little more information on the BLACKSUMMERS' NIGHT trilogy.

The trilogy's subsequent chapters, blackSUMMERS' night and blacksummers' NIGHT, are slated for release in 2010 and 2011 respectively. This 2009 album reunites Maxwell with long-time collaborator Hod David, who serves as co-producer and co-writer of the album. Striving for an emotional authenticity and real world sound for the album, Maxwell and Hod recorded the entire album live in the studio with an A-list ensemble of elegantly sympathetic musicians.

INSTANT CLASSIC!

If you do not know this face by now, you soon will. This is Laura Izibor (born 13 May 1987) on Griffith Avenue, Dublin, Ireland, is an Irish R&B singer of Irish/Nigerian descent.

Two days ago on June 16th 2009, Laura Izibor released her debut album "Let The Truth Be Told" here in the US. Two words…INSTANT CLASSIC!

I have listened to the album about 4 times and I cannot for the life of me figure out which song I like best. All 14 (The Deluxe Version) songs are great to me, even the remix of “From my heart to yours” is awesome.

I have literally listened to this album straight through 4 times. I cannot and have not skipped or fast forwarded through any of the songs.

It is a very soulful album while at the same time it covers a broad range of sounds. There are no insinuative lyrics, just decent, passionate lyrics put to good old feel-good music with exceptional singing and Classic University is forever a fan.

And Laura Izibor, there is a Classic University Scholarship waiting for you on campus.

Death of Auto-Tune!?!?

“This is anti-autotune, death of the ringtone, this ain't for itunes, this ain't for sing-along”

The first words uttered in the new song “DEATH OF AUTO-TUNE” by rapper, mogul Jay-Z, a man after my own heart. I as well very strongly dislike auto-tune! Being a fan of the Oldschool, hence the name CLASSIC UNIVERSITY, I love the times when a great voice and great music was all that counted.

Even in Oldschool hip-hop it was all about the artistry of the lyrics and the skill it took to write poetic words. Now in the auto-tune age, its about who sells the most records, who looks the best or who is the most “gansta”. I put “gansta” in quotes because 95 percent of these so called “gansta” rappers, are just acting tough, that is why they can transition into the movies business so easily

Now-a-days because of the auto-tune era we have singers who really cannot sing are selling millions of records, those “gansta” rappers who cannot really rap, are now singing over beats with auto-tune and of course, selling millions of records.

Are they creating decent music? To some degree yes, but are they staying true to the art form? Not be any stretch of the imagination.

Can you imagine Luther Vandross or Donnie Hathaway using auto-tune? Can you imagine Rakim or KRS-ONE singing melodies in a rap song? It is all about the mighty dollar.

So personally I say kill the auto-tune…murder it and reduce it to ashes!!

When Jay-Z introduced the song at the Hot 97 Summer Jam he had T-pain standing right next to him and mentioned Kanye West on the track so I am guessing they are in agreement. Mind you these 2 Kanye West and T-Pain have been auto-tunes greatest sponsor. In fact T-Pain’s whole career has been almost nothing but auto-tune, so if he is willing to grow, then the industry should be willing to do the same.

There is only fitting way to end this post is with a verse from the song, “DEATH OF AUTO-TUNE”….

You rappers singin too much,
Get back to rap you T-Pain'n too much
Ah, I'm a multi-millionaire
So how is it I'm still the hardest(expletive)here?
I don't be in the project hallway
Talkin' bout how I be in the project all day
That sounds stupid to me,
If you a gangsta, this is how you prove it to me
Yeah, just get violent
This is death of autotune, moment of silence

la da da da, la da da da ... hey hey hey goodbye!!!

When does it end?

The nappyafro.com reported...

A few Tuesday’s ago (May, 19th to be exact) we saw album releases from Busta Rhymes, Method Man & Redman, & of course, Eminem. This was so far the biggest release date of 2009. All three acts that I mentioned are veterans in the game and well respected by their peers. Another thing they have in common:

They’re all over the age of 30.

If you think about it, most of Hip-Hop’s elite are over the age of 30. I guess it’s no longer a young man’s game. So I was thinking, since you see a lot of lists with titles such as “25 Hottest Celebs Under 25” or “40 Richest Under 40”, why not The Best 30 Rappers Over 30?

But for this list, we got set some ground rules. #1 of course is the most obvious; you gotta be over the age of 30 (That throws out people like Weezy, Lupe, Drake, & T.I.). #2, you have to be 30 as of this list (Both The Game & Joe Budden will be 30 this year, but aren’t as of yet). #3, you got to be active and releasing records with new material that relevant (Rakim & Big Daddy Kane are legends but they don’t make this list). Other than that, the only requirement is being 3-0 or older. So, here’s it: The Best 30 Rappers Over 30 (Ordered from oldest to youngest). 30 is the new 20! Did I forget anybody? (Update: Fabolous replaces Beanie Sigel)

Ice Cube (June 15, 1969) - 39
Jay-Z (December 4, 1969) - 39
Raekwon (January 12, 1970) – 39
Q-Tip (April 10, 1970) - 39
Redman (April 17, 1970) - 39
Ghostface Killah (May 9, 1970) - 39
Fat Joe (August 19, 1970) - 38
Scarface (November 9, 1970) - 38
DMX (December 18, 1970) - 38
Method Man (April 1, 1971) - 38
Snoop Dogg (October 20, 1971) – 37
Common (March 13, 1972) - 37
Busta Rhymes (May 20, 1972) - 37
Black Thought (October 3, 1972) - 36
Eminem (October 17, 1972) - 36
Bun B (March 19, 1973) - 36
Nas (September 14, 1973) - 35
Mos Def (December 11, 1973) - 35
Andre 3000 (May 27, 1974) - 35
Styles P (November 28, 1974) - 34
Big Boi (February 1, 1975) - 34
Jadakiss (May 27, 1975) - 34
50 Cent (July 6, 1975) - 33
Talib Kweli (October 3, 1975) - 33
Rick Ross (January 28, 1976) - 33
Cam’ron (February 4, 1976) - 33
Kanye West (June 8, 1977) - 31
Ludacris (September 11, 1977) - 31
Young Jeezy (October 12, 1977)- 31
Fabolous (November 18, 1977) - 31

I am going to write my congressman to see if they can put an age limit on RAPPING! Rappers are almost 40 years old still talking about clubs and cars.

It is sickening and sets a bad example for real teenagers. I would be willing to bet that at least 3 of the guys on this list are honest to goodness GRANDFATHERS!!!

KNOW WHEN TO SAY WHEN! And I am not talking about drinking and driving!

Another Tirade!!!

I was flipping through the channels the other night and I came across the original 50 cent hit “In da Club”.

While this was and is a great song, unbeknownst to myself and those who loved it, it was the beginning of an era that I despise. The era of the song about the CLUB!!!!!!

If you were to listen to a hip-hop/R&B radio station for any significant length of time these days you are going to hear a song about either the club, what goes on in the club or the notorious V.I.P.

Due to the popularity of the songs about the Club, many new artist have to have a club song, and some artist are making their first single a song about the club, as a result the radio waves are flooded with this nonsense.

Granted, some of these songs are made “FOR” the club and to get you up and dancing, however the same goal can be accomplished with plain old original music, there is no need to focus so heavily on the actual club.

Just to illustrate my point, check out a few of these recent hit songs…

Usher – Love in this club
Plies – I am the club
Beanie Sigel – In the Club
Young Jeezy – In this club
Lil john – In da club
R. Kelly – Freaky in the club

These are just songs with “CLUB” in the title. I went to a hip-hop lyric site and searched for “club” and almost 1,800 songs came up, how ridiculous is that? Where is the originality? Is that a thing of the past?

Does this mean that if I am new artist, when making my album, all I need to do is make a song about the club, a “murder” song, another club song, a “how rich I am” song, oh and one more club song for good measure?

This club trend is even bleeding significantly over in to R & B, one of the biggest hits of 2008 was Ushers song “Love in this Club”, where he talks about actually having sex in the club right in front every one. WOOOOOOW! Whatever happened to hotels and parking lots? LOL!

Marques Houston had a song a few years ago called “Clubbin”. The song was a hit and it was produced by the 50 year old teenager and club king, R. Kelly, who in turn made the above song “Freaky in the club” and his hit “I’m a flirt” was all about the club as well. And who was featured on that song with R. Kelly? T-Pain....and in case you didn’t know, T-Pain apparently LIVES in the club, because most of his hits are about, guess what subject?

Remember T-pain’s hit song “Bartender”, guess where they work, CLUBS. How about the song “Buy you a drank”, I am not sure what a “DRANK” is but drinks are made by whom? BARTENDERS and once again, where do they work? CLUBS!!!! Oh and don’t forget the hit song “I’m N Luv wit a stripper”, just so happens strippers work in strip CLUBS, which is where bartenders serve drinks and strippers strip!! Go figure!

T-pain also helped produce “Blame it” one of the hottest songs on the radio right now…Now boys and girls, can you guess what that song is about? THE STINKING CLUB!!!

AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAARRRGH!!!

Music is at an all time low right now because as soon as someone comes out with a hit song, no matter what it is or what it is about every one has to copy it. No originality and no artistry needed, just check the top of the music charts, then copy and paste.

We here at Classic University are saddened and depressed by this state of affairs and we are about cut out early and go to the Club and get a drank!

Classic University REALNESS!!!

Maxwell may appear smooth and suave onstage, but he says it's all just an act.

The soul singer says he's actually insecure — so a concert tour last fall helped boost his confidence about releasing a new album."Just the encouragement, you can't imagine," Maxwell said at a reception Tuesday. "I'm an insecure person at best. ... I feel like going on the road, I got so much inspiration.".

On the other hand…Maxwell says "The way I make good music, it's not about what's expected of me," he said recently after a Manhattan reception for his upcoming CD. "It's hard to make good music when you're thinking about what somebody wants you to do." So he didn't think about what the fans or his record label wanted. As we say in the 'hood, Max did him. It's been eight years since he released his last album.

"It was a lot easier than I thought it would be," he said about his prolonged vacation. "It was a lot easier than I thought it was to enjoy. [My career] started when I was 21. I don't want to complain about my life, because I don't want to sound crazy to a person that's living a life. I've been blessed. But the common things people take for granted, I never had for a long stretch, such as riding on the train."

"I feel like I've relished these few years, where I got to kick it, where I got to meet girls who didn't know who I was, where they would be like, 'What's your name?' " he said. "Knowing you're appreciated for you as a person was something that was very easy to be into for a while. “
"What tends to happen when records are coming out and all the things that come around you, you're never sure [how genuine people are]," he added. "I'm very insecure, and I want to know people appreciate real things. You want to know somebody's around you not because of what you could offer or who you are."

Maxwell, through the inspiration of his fans, seems to have put his insecurities aside for now. His new work of art BLACKsummers'night, due to be released July 7 and marks Maxwell's first album in almost 8 years, is a nine-track Columbia Records set, the first installment of a planned trilogy, was recorded with a ten-piece band. The first single, the lullaby-like "Pretty Wings," was released Tuesday. The second and third parts of the Trilogy are supposed to be released in 2010 and 2011, respectively.

The single “Pretty Wings” made the highest debut in four years at Billboard’s Adult R&B chart where it landed at no.15 this week. But that is not the only chart victory for Maxwell. The former “Fortunate” singer leaped up to no.22 on the Hot R&B/Hip Hop songs chart which also scored him the best debut by a male artist in a year.

When asked what kind of reception he expected for the album, he said: "I try not to live by expectations. "If you just do it with love, the rest will be taken care of."

"I wanted to be like, 'I like how this sounds,' " he said of his pressure-free recording process this time around." 'I don't care if people buy it or not. It makes me feel good.' "

I really like what he is saying here, it seems that Maxwell is so real as a person that the fame and celebrity actually stalled his career. As a fan, I am glad he is back making great music, but as a human being, it sickens me that he has to go through this just to do what he loves. Do you Maxwell!

New School Vinyl.

I am so Oldschool I still use vinyl….well…kinda. Check out what Verbatim has to offer for the Classic University types.

This is a groovy vinyl look with the rugged quality and performance of Verbatim CD-R technology.

It’s a recordable disc designed after the popular 45-rpm record format. Impossible to ignore, these attention-getters are a great way to save delicate LP collections, make a standout business presentation or simply burn your personal music mix.

How can you not love these?!?!

Classic University Alumni!

Lionel Brockman Richie, Jr. was born June 20th 1949 in Tuskegee Alabama. Lionel Richie is a singer, a songwriter and record producer that has sold over 100 million records. WOW!

Lionel Richie is the Sam Jackson of the record business. Like Samuel Jackson, you never know where you might see Lionel Richie, he could collaborate with Kenny Rogers or Akon(He already collaborated with both). Lionel Richie is soooo underrated and yet he continues to write and produce.

I was listening to some of his classics today and this man writes songs like no other. His lyrics are full of love and full of emotions and should you need any help swooning a lady, go google "Lionel Richie lyrics".

In my humble opinion, Lionel Richie did not just make hits, he made classics! The man wrote and sang great ballads like "EASY", "THREE TIMES A LADY", "STILL", and "HELLO". Enough said. Not to mention he wrote and sang the ultimate "belly rub" (as my cousin Ben calls great ballads) "ENDLESS LOVE", a duet with Diana Ross.

All in all the man is a Classic maker and is still continues to do his thing, much like Samuel Jackson...LOL!

I have one question...What kind of name is Lionel? It sounds like he should be driving a 1996 Lime Green Lincoln Town car with shinny rims while sporting a Jerri-curl. Wait, he didn't have one of those for a minute? Either his mother knew he was going to be famous or he was some country bama born in the 40's...well actually...

I am just glad his talent took him to the top, because the only regular dude I can see with a name like "LIONEL" is a cool, pimped out, Jerri-curl wearing janitor with like 137 keys on his hip. Walking through an empty school singing songs he wrote while mopping up vomit.

Thanks for the Classics Lionel Richie, another certified Classic University Alumni.

Classic can be crazy.

Recently 0when I heard that Geico Insurance commercial, it made me reminisce. The commercial says "I always feel like somebody's watching me". For those that do not know, that was a very popular song back in 1984, the debut single of R&B singer Rockwell. The song featured Michael and Jermaine Jackson. That song made me think of some of my Classic University favorite songs.

As matter of fact, I have a little known fact about that singer Rockwell. Rockwell is the son of Motown CEO Berry Gordy. I bet you didn’t know that did you?

Well anyway…I digress. Let me get back on the subject. While thinking about those Classic songs, their lyrics came into mind and into question. The answer is…there are some sick people out here!! Let me break it down and show you what I mean.

Just look at a few lyrics to the VERY paranoid song by Rockwell, “Somebody’s watching me”.

“When I'm in the shower, I'm afraid to wash my hair
Cause I might open my eyes and find someone standing there
People say I'm crazy, just a little touched
But maybe showers remind me of Psycho too much,”

I don’t even want to know what that stinky hair dude was smoking! However that is just one song. To further prove my point, check out some lyrics from one of the most popular songs in the entire 80’s decade. “Every Breath you take”, by The Police…

“Oh can't you see
You belong to me?
How my poor heart aches with every step you take.
Every move you make
Every vow you break
Every smile you fake
Every claim you stake
I'll be watching you.”

WHAT?!?! If that don’t say extreme STALKER, nothing does. Sting said “Every smile you fake?” Woooooow, can you say “restraining order” boys and girls?

It is one thing to think something like this…but to write it down and put great music to it is beyond personality disorder! LOL!

I am not even done yet, Huey Lewis and the News had a song called “I want a new drug”, now check this out…

“I want a new drug
One that won't hurt my head
One that won't make my mouth too dry
Or make my eyes too red…
One that won't spill
One that don't cost too much
Or come in a pill”

How crazy is that? Just out in the open with it! Back in the day songwriting was seen as more of an art so people put their heart and soul in to it. Due to this, there was a strong chance some Looney tunes (pardon the pun) were written. Real artist may well wake up in the middle of the night with a melody or a song lyric in their head and they had to play it or write it down…so it is possible to hear anything from a real artist.

Case and point, listen to the lyrics of one of the best artist of all time, Prince and the infamous song “1999”

“The sky was all purple, there were people runnin' everywhere
Tryin' 2 run from the destruction, U know I didn't even care”

Surely…Classic can be crazy.

He's baaaaaaaaaaak!!!

After years of waiting, Maxwell is finally going to release his long-awaited album, BLACKsummers’night (the 1st installment from the TRILOGY) on July 7th.

Maxwell announced on his twitter page this week that there will be a press conference on April 28th about the album at the Sony offices.

Maxwell has a new song and video called "Pretty Wings", which he said will be premiering sometime soon.

I personally cannot wait!!! I am a huge fan and Maxwell is one of the reasons I have not totally given up on this music industry.

I know Maxwell's new album BLACKsummer'snight will be worth the wait.

Classic!

In case you have been hiding under a rock, I would like to personally introduce you to greatness. The greatness that is Ryan Leslie. Ryan Leslie recently released his debut album entitled "Ryan Leslie" and is nothing short of classic. The album is 12 songs of pure artistry.

"Ryan Leslie" is one of those albums you can put in the player and let it play straight thru, no skipping no fast forwarding, although you rewind more than a few times.

There are dance songs, love songs, in love songs and just plain great songs to enjoy. My personal favorite this week is the song "Gibberish".

"Gibberish" is pure genius to me, the music is timeless and would unquestionably be a radio hit, yet Ryan's originality enlightened him to basically have no real lyrics to the song. Ryan mumbles and murmers the entire song and it is remarkable.

All songs are written, arranged and produced by Ryan Leslie. The whole album is classic, all the songs are well written, with decent lyrics, that are respectful to women and nothing too suggestive. I personally look forward to the next one from Ryan Leslie. However if the album is not enough for you and want more Ryan Leslie go to his website http://www.ryanleslie.com/.

My Valedictory Address...

Old school is the best school, hence the name Classic University. Classic is defined as something created that is generally considered to be of the highest quality and of enduring value. That’s why the older cars are called classics, older pieces of art…classic, older literature…classic, older music…classic. That brings us to University, which is an educational institution for higher learning!
When you add those two words together, (Classic University) it is my way of saying the Oldschool. This site will have news, gossip, sports, music and life from an Oldschool perspective. Why do we need that?

Nowadays everything is fast and furious, supposedly bigger and better, new and improved. Not from where I stand, the kids are crazier, the mothers are younger and the fathers are non-existent. The sports figures are celebrities and celebrities are gods, however they both stay drugged up and under arrest. And why does the average artist album have about 2 good songs on it. WHY?!?!

I know why, because today it’s all about the money, the mighty dollar. Gone are the days of playing sports for the passion of the game, making music for the love of the music, or creating art just for the creativity or the inspiration of it all. That’s why the world that we know today is watered down.

The NBA is full of overpaid crybabies that would not last two minutes in the NBA that I fell in love with in the 80’s and 90’s. Most players now are not fundamentally sound and they don’t know the game of basketball. Players these days are just very athletic and trying to get paid.

The beloved all American statistic driven Major League Baseball is full of athletes that are bigger and better…not because they work harder but because they have no problem cheating the game for the accolades or just to get paid.

The Music industry is all about the money as well. Records labels are about putting out a product that can sell units, not about the art of music or even the artist that composes the music. Some of the best artist and singers in the world do not have a record contract because they may be overweight or not attractive enough to sell records. So what happens? We the customers get a synthesized, over edited and a pretty much fake voice and fake product that we have invested money on…that is if you did not pirate the music in the first place!

And don’t even get me started on that. In the world of Classic University, if we wanted to pirate some music, we had to listen to the radio on a component stereo system (look it up on Wikipedia if you don’t know you young whippersnappers) put in a cassette tape, set the tape to record and hit pause and pray you were in the room when your favorite song came on so you could un-pause and record the whole song!! Then pray your little sister or brother didn’t pull the tape out of your favorite cassette tape and ruin it. I have spent a many a night sitting there with a pencil and a cassette tape turning, turning, turning and more turning to get the tape back in the cassette…yawldonthearmetho!!!

I tell you what, though…as a result I appreciated those songs, because I had to work for them. That’s how most things were back in the day, had to be worked for and earned so it wasn’t taken for granted.

This is also the reason why Classic University will be consistently fresh and new, because I will work for and earn your respect as a reader, fan, friend or whatever you may be.

I look forward to your comments and opinions.