Junior Parker: Taxman

A taxman tribute, our 420 playlist, DJ Spooky's #PrivateJam and more in the music we tweeted this week

Tuesday, 15 April was Tax Day in the States, and depending on where residents fall on the country’s economic scale, some received a small chunk of change in return for year-long investment while others had to give up some hard-earned cash. To punctuate the dubious occasion, we gave a listen to Junior Parker’s slowed down, soulful rendition of The Beatles’ “Taxman,” which reminds us that …

Prince: Controversy

A taxman tribute, our 420 playlist, DJ Spooky's #PrivateJam and more in the music we tweeted this week

For this week’s #PrivateJam, DJ Spooky—the man who exemplifies the idea of the disc jockey as artist and creator of new music—cited Prince’s epic seven-minute jam “Controversy” as the song he’d be “really embarrassed to be caught doing air guitar to.” He says, “I remember when Purple Rain and stuff like that came through. I always felt it was reaalllly slick and pop. When I …

Cool Hunting’s 24 Songs for 4/20

A taxman tribute, our 420 playlist, DJ Spooky's #PrivateJam and more in the music we tweeted this week

This week marks the 20th anniversary of Nas’ (aka Nasir Jones) seminal debut album Illmatic, which remains equally relevant today. The record—permeated with thoughtful and poetic lyrics, performed in Nas’ trademark gravelly and passionate voice—is often credited with bringing East Coast hip-hop back into the raw fold and paving the way for the likes of the Notorious B.I.G. and Jay-Z. One listen to “NY State …