TOWN LOVE is an online art museum dedicated to celebrating the vibrant past and present of Northwest Hip-Hop. You can browse by artist or browse by year.

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Released: 1984

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A film about Northwest hip-hop from

Rhyme One Time (For God Almighty)

According to the excellent half-hour Youtube program titled “The Emerald City Beginning – Episode 1,” hosted by Rubik and E-Dawg, perhaps the earliest rivalry in Seattle rap belongs to Jam Delight vs. The Terrible Two. In the video, Captain Crunch recalls teaming up with fellow Terrible Two member Sugar Bear for the first battle in 1981 against Garry Jam and Boss Cross who were Jam Delight. Jam and Cross were the victors that day at Lateef’s nightclub and Terrible Two subsequently decided to regroup as a trio called Emerald Street Boys.

The two members of Jam Delight continued making music together, and in 1984 they wrote this incredible Seattle rap song titled “Rhyme One Time (For God Almighty).” Instead of Jam Delight they called themselves Rhyming Gospel Sensations. The song begins with a bouncy Harold Faltermeyer type of keyboard melody, and then Garry Jam (Gary Gilmer) and Big Boss Cross (Christopher Cross) take turns rapping about their faith. The lyrics are clever and heartfelt, including gems like, “Before you eat dinner you need to say grace.”

“Rhyme One Time (For God Almighty)” came out on Douglas T. Green’s Seattle record label called TLP Records, which listed an address at 25th and E. Cherry. Garry Jam went on to make a very humorous song called “Snot” with Sir Mix-A-Lot and Daddy Rich the following year. He also made a solo track called “Funky Fresh Beat Of The Drum.” Big Boss Cross recorded a track in 1986 titled “Party Invader.” Both Jam and Cross are pioneers in Seattle rap history, and hopefully more and more of their work will become available. Cross passed away in 2016, rest in peace. Written by Novocaine132

Rhyme One Time (For God Almighty) was created in and features appearances from:

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A film about Northwest hip-hop from

I Pity The Man

In 1983, a Seattle musical group named the Cosmic Tunas recorded a song titled “Draw The Line” for a compilation cassette called Local Product from Green Monkey Records. One member of the Cosmic Tunas was a man by the name of Bruce Scott. In 1984, Bobby and Jack Oram decided to record a parody rap record based on the TV character of Mr. T from the A-Team. Mr. T was known for saying “I pity the fool” on the program. Jack named himself Mr. X, and the track was called “I Pity The Man.” Bruce created his own record label to release this song, and later in 1984, he put the record out on B.S. Records.

The track itself was recorded in two parts. Part One is on Side A, and it features confrontational brags and boasts from Mr. X about how ‘bad’ he is. He tells the listener not to mess with him in a variety of entertaining ways. Side B features Part Two of the track. In Part Two, his backup singers get in on the act, and they sing about how bad Mr. X is. Part Two is looser, and Mr. X just riffs on his earlier themes explored in Part One. He continually reminds the listener that he “pities the man” who doesn’t step back from him.

The beat creates a funky backing groove, if somewhat repetitive. The music has some bounce, with a kind of Rick James feel to it. They were infringing on some intellectual property, but just like Weird Al Yankovic they were protected by the parody nature of their track. This is apparently only the fourth or fifth rap record to ever emerge from Seattle. Prior Seattle vinyl releases included Little Ray Rapper in ’81, Teleclere in ’82, Emerald Street Boys in ’83, and CT & The Record Band in 1984. B.S. Records never released another song, this was their lone contribution to the 206 rap canon. (Written by Novocaine132.)

I Pity The Man was created in and features appearances from:

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A film about Northwest hip-hop from

Supersonic Rap

In 1979, not only did the first-ever rap hit single (“Rapper’s Delight”) from New York sweep the nation, but that was a particularly special year for those in Seattle because the Sonics won the NBA Championship.

At the turn of the decade, Seattle would-be rappers began to experiment with this new art form. David Perry who was successful in the Seattle disco scene released his comedy rap single “I’m Little Ray Rapper” in 1981. 1982 saw the release of Teleclere’s proto-rap jam “Ultra Groove.” Emerald Street Boys (no doubt influenced by the 1979 smash “Christmas Rappin” by Kurtis Blow) created their own Seattle hit with “Christmas Rap” in 1983.

Then in ’84 came Charles Thompson & The Record Band. Thompson captured the excitement felt by fans of the Seattle Supersonics, and this track is a paean to the squad. The track is based around a simple chorus chant of “Let’s go Sonics all the way/And be the champs of the NBA” while The Record Band lays down a funky melody mixed with some spicy drums.

CT wrote rap verses about the Sonics players at the time, and the names will be familiar to any Seattle sports fan of this era. Downtown Freddy Brown. Jack Sikma, Dennis Johnson, and of course Gus Williams. The track has a James Brown feel to it, with tight arrangements and vocals almost shouted or grunted in excitement. The lyrics generally are fun little phrases and details from basketball lore. An example: “They say one man can’t win a game/It’s team ball that brings everybody fame.” Clearly, this is one of the earliest rap songs to emerge from Seattle, and it is a holy grail for record collectors all over the world. (Written by Novocaine132.)

Supersonic Rap was created in and features appearances from:

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