Heds and Dreds: DJ Quik’s Compton Fried Reggae

Words by Jesse Serwer

The song “Babylon” on Book of David, the most recent album by DJ Quik, has Bizzy Bone of Bone Thugs N Harmony interpolating “Ring the Alarm” on the hook. It’s certainly novel to hear Bizzy apply his nasal Cleveland twang to some Tenor Saw, but the fact that it happened on a Quik record shouldn’t take anyone familiar with his catalog by surprise. The Compton representative has had a reggae/dancehall flavored tune on just about all of his albums. There’s often a skit-like quality to these tracks, and none are among his best known work, but collectively they go to show how the West Coast pioneer was more than just Way 2 Fonky: he’s one of hip-hop’s most diverse and multi-talented artists and producers. Here’s a look back at Quik’s most irie jams–’cause Kingston… is just like Compton.

“Tha Bombudd” (Quik is the Name, 1991)

Produced entirely by Quik when he was just 19, Quik is the Name, which quietly reached its 20th anniversary last month, is the most seminal G-Funk album by a non-NWA/Dogg Pound member. As with his later stabs at reggae vocaliazing, here Quik adopts singjay style in the vein of a Yellowman or Josey Wales, chatting bout “I said mi smoke di bombudd like it’s going out of style/Gimme di bombudd, mi give you big kool-aid smile.”

“Me Wanna Rip Your Girl” (Way 2 Fonky, 1992)

This one, over an old riddim by Linval Thompson, might be the most classic of all of Quik’s forays into reggae on the strength of its hilarious lyrics, starting with this intro: This is a song I wanna dedicate to my true/You thinking you’re my homey I would never turn my back on you/But mi say lately you got the girl and she make me feel real irie yuh know/And mi wanna redact/So mi say yuh like dis.

“Tha Bombudd II” (Rhythm-Al-Ism, 1998)

This sequel appeared on Quik’s somewhat under-the-radar 1998 comeback album Rhythm-Al-Ism. Vocally he sounds really comfortable in the singjay style here, adding some depth to the usual weed talk formula by covering the gamut of THC responses, good and bad: “Sometimes I smoke and I feel overjoyed/Sometimes I smoke and I feel paranoid/Sometimes I smoke and I nuh even feel a ting/Sometimes I smoke and feel I’m going insane, lawwwd.”

“Murda 1 Case” feat. KK and Pharoahe Monch (Under Tha Influence, 2002)

For this track with Pharoahe Monch and KK of 2nd II None, Quik farmed out the chatting duties to a deejay who identifies himself as “Chuckie Maccabee”—or is that Quik’s voice in disguise?

“Trouble (Remix Pt. 3)” feat. Beanie Sigel and Suga Free (2002)

While the original album version of this track featured raps and a hook from frequent Quik sidekick AMG, the remix subtracted him for raps from Beanie Sigel and Suga Free and some dancehall-isms from an uncredited dude who sounds like a cross between Bounty Killer and Kardinal Offishall.

“If You Should Lose Me” feat. 2nd II None (Mr. Quik’s Hidden Stash, 2006)

Released on the 2006 rarities LP Mr. Quik’s Hidden Stash, this fairly faithful cover of Yellowman’s “If You Should Lose Me” featuring Quik’s longtime collaborators 2nd II None appears to date from sometime in the mid ’90s.

“Exodus” (DJ Quik & Kurupt, BlacQKout, 2009)

Former rivals in the gangster rap world, Quik and Dogg Pound pitbull Kurupt traded beefs and G stuff for bouncy club jams on the feelgood 2009 collaborative effort, BlaqKout. And it was damn near perfect: it was my favorite rap album 2009 and the best Quik release since Way 2 Fonky. Kurupt’s call-and-response chatting (“Jump, stomp, pump and reach again,” repeat 100x) gives it an almost soca-like vibe.

“Babylon” (Book of David, 2011)

The beat on this is straight up hip-hop but I repeat: Bizzy Bone flipping “Ring the Alarm.” Ol’ Bizzy kind of kills his verse, too. Whoa-oh-ayyyy!!!