hip hop is not dead, REAL HIP HOP that came out from the 80s is though, that era is looooong gone, which is very sad, because the stuff they play now on the radio, is complete shit.
This version of Rock The Bells is even better than the other version that they normally play on the radio back then!! Both versions are absolute classics, but this version is more lyrical than the one they put out on the "Radio" album!!
It's like looking at the pictures of your 1st child when it was still in the womb of your wife or girlfriend!! Truly brings a tear to hear the rawest form of what we now know is Hip Hop. There should be a HIP HOP hall of fame! LL would be the 1st soloist to be inducted no doubt! Maybe Curtis before L but I don't think L would mind letting Curtis go before him.
Shan cant hold LLs jock , Beat Biter is one of the wackest , if u want to call it retaliating song I ever heard!!! Weak ass beat and lyrics...u make me LMAO!! LL ripped this beat up , content and delivery....NO MATCH. This cut Droppin 'em , Im Bad , Jack the Ripper and Ripper Strikes Back...By the way where is Sharon I mean Shan?
This is the version that L.L. Cool J stole beat from MC Shan... Thats why LL changed it later.... MC Shan retaliated with an attack song to LL and its dope... its called "Beat Biter"... Shan starts with..."Let me rock this rhyme only if I may, is dedicated to my man... L.L. Cool James, your brand new jam sure that sounds sweet.... You rock the bells but you stole my beat!"... Classic!
He also stole the beat from another MC Shan's song, LL's "I need a beat" original version... Later LL changed to the newer version that came out on wax...
Iv'e been trying to find this song for a couple of years. I haven't heard it in about 12 years and to this day its one of the most fierce raps ever recited.LL blew away all competitors with this lyrical assault. In the history of rap I rank this this lyrical tirade second best ever to Ambitions of a Rider.
Iv'e been trying to find this song for a couple of years. I haven't heard it in about 12 years and to this day its one of the most fierce raps ever recited.LL blew away all competitors with this lyrical assault. In the history of rap I rank this this lyrical tirade second best ever to Ambitionz of a Rider.
@cowboizfan4life You mean Ambitionz Az a Ridah from 2pac right?? Cause that happens to be my favorite 2pac song of all time!! But I admit, its a tough one to choose between this version of LL Cool J's Rock The Bells and Pac's Ambitionz Az a Ridah!!
one of three men in hip hop you cannot dis,LL will destroy you,Eminem and KRS-ONE are the other two,this is one of the best hip hop songs ever, remember after midnite nite club
'You studied like scholars to keep you right on your collars, you buy me try me before a million dollars......damn....'the mic sings like a humming bird'.. 'how u feel remorse coz u know who's BOSS....dont try to fight back coz u wont survive.....rhyme after rhyme...damn someone should chopp n screw this track...
Six people on ly know LL as the start of NCIS Los Angeles. Listen to the lyrics folks. LL does not get the props when they start talking whos top 5, stuff all the time
Shan has one style, same shit on all of his "2 " songs, LL has many styles and many singles off those albums that hit the charts... Wheres Shan? No contest LL Cool J is the G.O.A.T.
@KingLeroyDavid TLA Rock had a song called breaking bells....LL made this at the time when Run made Peter Piper first....Thats why this wasn't on the album...The bells are from a song called Take Me To The Mardi Gras. The song was nicknamed the Bells.
I dont think anybody did it better than this...He stole mc shans beat on this..Thats when Mc Shan came out with beat biter...I havent been able to fine that one yet on here...The song he got the beat from is called the Marley Scratch...check it out.
@ceedasme I remember Marley Marl use to cut the two records back and forth to show and prove the beat was identical....Shan got in L's ass too with beat biter...he only hit him with one verse but still...like he said "That's not really what this song is about/but if you steal my beat/i'm taking you OUT"
@MAJESTIcag7 Oh i beg to differ. Shan got in L's ass on more than that one verse. He said....Let me rock this rhyme only if i may, its a message to my man LL cool J...Your brand new jam sure does sound sweet, you rock the bells but you stole my beat! And then continued to smoothly crush all of cool j's credibility thoughout the song.. What a classic. I hope someone posts it soon.
I think this was the first REAL rap song I ever heard. I remember reading about him in a magazine saying that even though he was barely old enough to drive, he was a huge success. He never really did fade away(I think) and probably still rakes in a load of dough every year. -saw him in concert in Oakland in 1989, the Nitro Tour baby!
I am glad that this as well as "I need a Beat" were remixed before they were put on his album. While I like this version, it sucked compared to the remix. I don't think the album or the singles would have done well without a remix.
OUT OF ALL THE RAP SONGS MADE,CREATED, THOUGHT OF WANNA BE THOUGHT OF OR EVEN DREAMED. THIS IS TRULY WHAT I REMEMBER GROWING UP IN THAT FUNK CITY MEMPHIS. THAT BEAT THOSE WORDS ARE TRULY UNFORGETABLE. LL OUT DID HIMSELF WITH THIS RAP. HES NOT JUST RYHMING HE'S TELLING A STORY AND TELLING EM HE'S GOING FOR YOU GULGA VEIN DAM LL YOU KILLED EM.
Funny that in this version they are actually rocking the bells, the cow bells that is. Where as in the DJ version the "bells" they rock is really the rota-toms.
when i first heard this in the 80,s i could not believe that someone could do this with that kind of passion it was like a drug i listen over and over again ,and was blown away,,,
I'm 42 and when this ryme came out I was like "word!"... Now I'm sitting here listening to this and I didn't realize how hard I was gripping the arm of the couch! My wife walked by and asked why I was so tense.. Just listen to the lyrics!
@ddbreakdancer How about "your equilibruim is took from my propulsion".....bro, this mythological character rocked my high school years...and nobody, but nobody, save for Rakim himself, can put words together like a puzzle like LL.
@ddbreakdancer "The bells make your energy escalate"....lmfao...that's real talk...the agressiveness of the track and vocals is infectious for sure...
Imagine this, I was just watching a documentary on Jack The Ripper and those those immortal words began to ring around in my head: '...Jack The Ripper, King Hercules, Professor of Death in the Seven Seas...' I'm in my mid 40's now but when I heard this back in 85' I was like howda Fuck did he come up with dat. I was a bedroom emcee back then and was totally in awe! It remains one of the most devastating pieces of rapping to to ever hit vinyl. LL absolutely killed it!!!
Probably the rawest stuff ive ever heard from LL, i have this track when he rocks it from a concert back in 87 i believe , havent found it anywhere else until now , thx!!
To this day, I do not know how he was able to write the lyrics to this song. The metaphors are so profound and the passionate delivery is unmatched, not even by LL Cool J himself!!! Not even he himself has been able to duplicate the perfection in this song.
Last verse of this KILLS anything out right now! Roll the red carpet royalty's arrived, don't try to fight back 'cause you won't survive! LL's lyrics and delivery was a game changer back then! 24 years later and still on point!
'my tongue revolves like a rotor'- IF YOU'VE NEVER HEARD THIS.... This is a track that changed the game- PERIOD This launched all over NY and wasn't even pressed!! This is LL...
ALL TIME GREATEST PERIOD!!!!! CREATIVITY LONGEVITY ORIGINATOR AND BATTLER, BEFORE ALL THE PREETENDERS FOR 10 YRS LL BATTLED AND SINGLE HANDEDLY BEAT ALL COMERS. THEN FOR 5 YEARS CREATED NEW STYLES THAT EVERY ONE I MEAN EVERY ONE USEES NOW, THEN TURNED RADIO LOVE SONGS AND RB HIP FOR FREESTYLE RAPPERS, AND NOW FOR LAST FIVE YEARS HAS TO PROVE HIM SELFOVER AGAIN AS A DOMINATE FORCE, WHILE STILL PUTTING OUT HITS.COME ON NO WHERE ELSE ARE BLACKS MORE IGNORANT THEN NOT TO REMEMBER THERE OWN GREATS1
Man what can say about cool j he wrote rhymes for some great artist he is a true pioneer of the hip-hop world when i first heard it was a line that throw me for a loop and it said "cold crush use a line to make'em hush lover and taker faker lover of the lakers"...man i was like WTF!!! I had to hear it again
YEEEEEEEEEESSS!!!!! THIS IS TRULY BEST HIP HOP CUT IN HISTORY, HANDS DOWN!! I'VE BEEN SEARCHING THIS JAM FOREVER!! THANKS FOR THE POST!! TOOK ME LONG ENOUGH TO LOOK BACK HERE AGAIN! COOL J ROCKS THIS!
CAN'T NOBODY, NO WHERE, IN NO TIME FRAME OR DIMENSION, OR WORLD MATCH THE ARTISTIC, ARTICUALATE, "ELLA FITZGERALD" PROFESSIONALISM AND FLUACTION OF THIS 15 OR 16 YEAR OLD KID. LL COOL J IS THE G.O.A.T IN EVERY WAVE, SHAPE AND FORM. HE'S THE JOHNNY CARSON OF RAP. EVERYONE ELSE ARE IMITATORS.
@hector9211 his best track??? my nigga you obviously are a justin beiber fan or something cause you don't know what the fuck you are talking about....lol...BEAT IT!
@hiphoplegend1 from a lyrical standpoint there's no denying that this is without a shadow of a doubt his best track. The lyrical content, the flow, the delivery is unbelievable
@drlove1972 nah Cool J has a bunch of dope tracks...Rock The Bells (album version), Dangerous, You'll Rock, I'm Bad, Murdergram, No Airplay, Mr.Controversy, his verse on Rampage, Ahh Let's Get Ill, The Breakthrough, The Truth, Ill Bomb, Ringtone Murder, I mean I could keep on going for that man, you don't become a hip-hop legend from just one track my dude....lol
@hiphoplegend1 keep going all you want but none of the songs you mentioned even begin to approach the verbal skill and wordplay that he displays here. And I never said this was his only good song but once again from a purely lyrical standpoint it's his best.
@drlove1972 I hear you man, I disagree but I hear you though, I think he's been quite lyrical on a bunch of songs, thats why he's number 5 on my all-time list...it would surely take more than just showing me he can perform the lyrics on just this one cut, and I like this one too, but it's just a difference of opinion thats all...
@ASBURYPARK999 wut up Asbury Park this is Gary from Neptune, NJ! I wanted to invite you to come to the Deliverance Temple off Monroe-Prospect (Pine Street-Near Sewall). We're there Tuesdays 6PM-Bible Study, Fridays 7PM-Public Talks and Sundays 10AM Bible Study and 11:15AM Worship
I remember I was in L.A. when I first heard this. It was like the hottest joint out. Then I moved to Cleveland that same year and It was like the fuckn Anthem. Yo I didnt realize how OFFICIAL this shit was until I read the lyrics and come to find out that he wasnt just putting a bunch big words together. This dude was really saying something. And what makes it crazy is that he was only 16! These lyrics will forever stand the test of time. Only Check the Technique by Gang star comes close.
@shwncage THAT'S WHAT I'M SAYING!!!! It isn't just the vocabulary, it's the concepts and metaphors that show a vast knowledge of literature, history, science and other areas of specialized study. It is my guess that he had some help from someone,, somewhere. It is impossible for a 16 year old to achieve this... Besides, LL himself never even made a song like this again. Compare this to "Mama Said Knock you Out" The emotion is there but not the intelligence.
Niggas don't about this version of this song. This was the original version before the RADIO album came out. This was the single the help propel his career along with single call radio. "when i finish with you boy youll be suckin on soup"!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Canibus couldn't hold a candle to this dude. This rips any thing canibus ever wrote, rap or composed. This is hip hop at its highest level. Dont get it twisted whether you like LL or not, and he was very young and hungry. Give him his props all u haters. L is just killing it. Nonstop real rap. This is HIPHOP!
@chalo112 This is what Canibus thinks he is doing, but he isn't! There is a design to this that no one has ever been able to figure out... The other is the sonic quality of Teddy Riley's productions
To me this is hands down LL's best song ever. He murdered this track. Hella advance flow at the time that changes up, hella swagger...this shit blew minds when it came out.
Cant stop listening 2this. Been a long time since I heard this fire. Soundz like LL popped a lyrikal steroid on this. His beasting on this was and still is INCREDIBLE.
the only thing i can say is i hate the background, i find it hard to focus on him and not the ding dong in the background. Other than that great lyrics.
@digitalbeatsyndrome Don't get me wrong I love the song just feel that the bell noise in the back was annoying, and although I love Eminems album i also think most of the beats on there are pretty bad for Dre.
Straight Fire! I remember being pissed off cause this joint wasn't on my "Radio" cassette, and I couldn't find the 12" anywhere. He changed the game with this one. Moe Dee, Ice T & Canibus had to find out the hard way that Cool J was not to be "effed" wit'. Lol
Which 4 of you DICK SUCKERS gave this shit a 'Thumbs Down'?
If so, face it fool, YOU DO NOT LIKE HIP HOP. LL left a DENT IN THE GAME THAT REMAINS TO THIS DAY ON THIS TRACK ALONE! Even if he didn't do shit else... THIS IS A BENCHMARK FOR RIPPIN' SHIT!
Why am I explaining this shit? Fuck a fool giving this a thumbs down, you don't DESERVE to know shit. Go back to fucking with Asher Roth.
@MTXSHO9732vV8SHO man you couldnt have said it.........cool j rip this sone to pieces
omfg cool j was hard then and he's even harder now.........this man was putting remixes before niggas was doing remixes..... run dmc is cool but this nigga is a fucking God LL deserves to go down as the top rapper of all fucking time...wayne and the others are cool but this man fucked the world up...you talk about battling.OMFG long live Cool J
I love the old school LL. There is NO better. Too bad he couldn't keep up the good beats. Radio & Bigger & Deffer are two of the all time great albums. I never knew this version existed.......and its dope!!!! Anywhere I can download this version?
This is classic hip hop. That Bullshit that is out now cant compare to this. This is why Nas says hip hop is dead bcos of weak rapping mc's. Fuck i can't even call them mc's. New bs rappers are stealing money. Check out this rap and then listen to ur bullshit. We deserve better. LL was on top of his game with this no doubt. All haters eat a dick.
@chalo112 hiphop will never die. if you listen to it, it is no longer dead. it is very much alive, regardless if it is out now or not. there is so much hiphop i haven't heard yet and i've been listening to it for well over 20 years, and i've heard alot. don't worry, hiphop isn't dead, you just need to find it. google "red alert mixtape" and you will hear some awesome oldschool underground that rocks to death.
@fleaaccela Dude I was a DJ in the early 80's. I was refering to that bullshit thats out now. Red Alert is old school. Old school was real hip hop. LL did this at Aftermidnigh club in philly, I was there live.
I graduated HS in 1990- I am white and this was the shit! I was "down with the brothas" in the day....I had a buddy with an Impala and we would listen to LL, Public Enemy, NWA and all the cool metal at the time- skate stuff and punk mostly.
@fleaaccela on those 2 hrs. a week rap shows they used to have like it was contraband like LAVATHEGREATONE said. Rappers don't realize the pressure that was on these kids. Like Run says in Krush Groove "It could all be over tomorrow." If today's rap is what they started with, not just hoorah for me nary a curse, but foul language terrorism, I mean this showed an intelligence that intimidated White people and helped cast votes for Obama. Seriously.
@fleaaccela It was released in '86 as a 12"...but this is the original version of "rock the bells" before he dropped "radio"....i got this on a limited Def Jam 4 track w/label ep along wit a cople of Beastie Boys joints...Dope!
no drug sales no killing no mc crew just him and the dj's can you hear the hungry in him he was fight clearly for hiphop . when you did hear the songs un til 12 am we had to stay up late to here this on the radio as kids .
Once again I must remind everyone who the REAL KING OF NYC HIP HOP IS! Take a listen 2 what Jay Z, Nas, Biggie & Tupac all grew up on & were influenced by!
LEGEND!!!! I love this cut....LL was better back in tha day.......Both bells bang. And YES Mr Jiseph...NO ONE could even get close to his lyrical ability!!!
Run DMC clone.
Butteroux 1 hour ago
...the finest seven minutes of Cool J's long career.
DblJinx 2 weeks ago
hip hop is not dead, REAL HIP HOP that came out from the 80s is though, that era is looooong gone, which is very sad, because the stuff they play now on the radio, is complete shit.
sasquatch13ja 4 weeks ago
Shut Down Eminem!! Lil Wayne, ETC.........
web30mill 1 month ago
This version of Rock The Bells is even better than the other version that they normally play on the radio back then!! Both versions are absolute classics, but this version is more lyrical than the one they put out on the "Radio" album!!
rloco80 2 months ago
@rloco80 i remember both versions being rocked on the radio back in 85
germxv 1 month ago
@germxv Cool, but was this version released on the Radio album as well??
rloco80 1 month ago
this is hot,still!! Can anyone find "Jealous" from the Walking with a Panther album?
hchise22 2 months ago
I've just played this 6 times in a row and I'm still not tired of it!
tremble04 2 months ago in playlist tremble04's favorites 3
his flow is so ahead of time. a brilliant tune and those beats are DOPE
LittleBabyBum 3 months ago
Peruvian Rock, Coke, King of Quaalude!
OQUENDO1968 3 months ago
rated X born to snap necks, frm LL the mack backbone of this track.
rodney1b 3 months ago
Uncle L the future of the funk
davidgt5gt 3 months ago
It's like looking at the pictures of your 1st child when it was still in the womb of your wife or girlfriend!! Truly brings a tear to hear the rawest form of what we now know is Hip Hop. There should be a HIP HOP hall of fame! LL would be the 1st soloist to be inducted no doubt! Maybe Curtis before L but I don't think L would mind letting Curtis go before him.
EmceeLiveMics 3 months ago in playlist Cool J
This was the first track i heard by LL on the radio. I must have played it a 100 times. Hard to believe it was made by a 17 year old.
Induna123 4 months ago
Damn LL went in.
Negativequity 4 months ago
7:00 of lyrical perfection i had this on tape back in the day and i always thought word for word that this is about as good as hip hop gets!!
MrTrill1970 4 months ago
Shan cant hold LLs jock , Beat Biter is one of the wackest , if u want to call it retaliating song I ever heard!!! Weak ass beat and lyrics...u make me LMAO!! LL ripped this beat up , content and delivery....NO MATCH. This cut Droppin 'em , Im Bad , Jack the Ripper and Ripper Strikes Back...By the way where is Sharon I mean Shan?
nixandi1 5 months ago 5
This is the version that L.L. Cool J stole beat from MC Shan... Thats why LL changed it later.... MC Shan retaliated with an attack song to LL and its dope... its called "Beat Biter"... Shan starts with..."Let me rock this rhyme only if I may, is dedicated to my man... L.L. Cool James, your brand new jam sure that sounds sweet.... You rock the bells but you stole my beat!"... Classic!
LALOMAN18 5 months ago
He also stole the beat from another MC Shan's song, LL's "I need a beat" original version... Later LL changed to the newer version that came out on wax...
LALOMAN18 5 months ago
@LALOMAN18 no LL had DJ marley marl so blame him
tateavery21 4 months ago
@LALOMAN18 blame marley marl
tateavery21 4 months ago
Iv'e been trying to find this song for a couple of years. I haven't heard it in about 12 years and to this day its one of the most fierce raps ever recited.LL blew away all competitors with this lyrical assault. In the history of rap I rank this this lyrical tirade second best ever to Ambitions of a Rider.
cowboizfan4life 5 months ago
@cowboizfan4life this is the best ove rida to me. too much versitility
tateavery21 4 months ago
Iv'e been trying to find this song for a couple of years. I haven't heard it in about 12 years and to this day its one of the most fierce raps ever recited.LL blew away all competitors with this lyrical assault. In the history of rap I rank this this lyrical tirade second best ever to Ambitionz of a Rider.
cowboizfan4life 5 months ago
@cowboizfan4life You mean Ambitionz Az a Ridah from 2pac right?? Cause that happens to be my favorite 2pac song of all time!! But I admit, its a tough one to choose between this version of LL Cool J's Rock The Bells and Pac's Ambitionz Az a Ridah!!
rloco80 2 months ago
The percussion scratch is from a record called Funk De Mambo by Karma.
neeksworld 6 months ago
one of three men in hip hop you cannot dis,LL will destroy you,Eminem and KRS-ONE are the other two,this is one of the best hip hop songs ever, remember after midnite nite club
TheMoose214 6 months ago
'You studied like scholars to keep you right on your collars, you buy me try me before a million dollars......damn....'the mic sings like a humming bird'.. 'how u feel remorse coz u know who's BOSS....dont try to fight back coz u wont survive.....rhyme after rhyme...damn someone should chopp n screw this track...
tuffty69 6 months ago
yall fom ny
feelme07 6 months ago
And he still is out and going strong. One of my favorite rappers of all time. ^_^
Krazkage 7 months ago
The best to ever come out of his mouth. All down hill afterward, but this is a classic example of great lyrics!!! Thanks for uploading this!
vancegreen1016 7 months ago
Why do folks constantly compare L to mere mortals. These dudes sat back and watched, then learned what to do
kb7254 7 months ago
The Woofers need Guarding!!!
kb7254 7 months ago
Six people on ly know LL as the start of NCIS Los Angeles. Listen to the lyrics folks. LL does not get the props when they start talking whos top 5, stuff all the time
kb7254 7 months ago
Shan has one style, same shit on all of his "2 " songs, LL has many styles and many singles off those albums that hit the charts... Wheres Shan? No contest LL Cool J is the G.O.A.T.
nixandi1 7 months ago
supposedly LL also stole a beat from t la rock
KingLeroyDavid 7 months ago
@KingLeroyDavid TLA Rock had a song called breaking bells....LL made this at the time when Run made Peter Piper first....Thats why this wasn't on the album...The bells are from a song called Take Me To The Mardi Gras. The song was nicknamed the Bells.
taylor4660 3 months ago
The G.O.A.T. bar none.
newcrestmarcelo 7 months ago in playlist ll cool j
Yo LL goes off on dis song. The beat and lic's are tight.
iamslam2012 7 months ago
LL is a beast, and one of the best rappers alive.
chostylish 8 months ago
I dont think anybody did it better than this...He stole mc shans beat on this..Thats when Mc Shan came out with beat biter...I havent been able to fine that one yet on here...The song he got the beat from is called the Marley Scratch...check it out.
ceedasme 8 months ago
@ceedasme I remember Marley Marl use to cut the two records back and forth to show and prove the beat was identical....Shan got in L's ass too with beat biter...he only hit him with one verse but still...like he said "That's not really what this song is about/but if you steal my beat/i'm taking you OUT"
Peace
MAJESTIC
MAJESTIcag7 8 months ago
@MAJESTIcag7 Oh i beg to differ. Shan got in L's ass on more than that one verse. He said....Let me rock this rhyme only if i may, its a message to my man LL cool J...Your brand new jam sure does sound sweet, you rock the bells but you stole my beat! And then continued to smoothly crush all of cool j's credibility thoughout the song.. What a classic. I hope someone posts it soon.
ceedasme 7 months ago
@ceedasme not
tateavery21 4 months ago
@tateavery21 so what do you disagree on?
ceedasme 4 months ago
Man, I've been looking for this song for years. To think I just found it by accident!! Thank you for posting this one. Real slaps here!
oompadoodledog 8 months ago
I think this was the first REAL rap song I ever heard. I remember reading about him in a magazine saying that even though he was barely old enough to drive, he was a huge success. He never really did fade away(I think) and probably still rakes in a load of dough every year. -saw him in concert in Oakland in 1989, the Nitro Tour baby!
zizwop 9 months ago
The best ever!
rockincp 9 months ago
ll cool j and t la rock...dam it could not get any better...can u say hype never get tired of this shit...
dealbamuzic 9 months ago
If someone would ask me what is the music of the hip hop culture. I would put this on.
rexboogie 9 months ago
I am glad that this as well as "I need a Beat" were remixed before they were put on his album. While I like this version, it sucked compared to the remix. I don't think the album or the singles would have done well without a remix.
MPA2000 9 months ago
This song is by far the greatest LL ever instituted...It makes me want to just get my box on...southpaw homie..! Actually even handed!
eosaph123 9 months ago
ThE original !
hEOheNbklyn 10 months ago
i guess 5 people dont own a bell :(
51dumbdumb 10 months ago 2
HE WENT IN ON DIS ONE!
chief7567 10 months ago
This is what being a MC is about! He needs to make a rock the bells 2011. LL would leave most new rapppers "suckin on soup" (not Canibis lol)
rexboogie 10 months ago 16
@rexboogie cannihoe is cooked
tateavery21 4 months ago
@tateavery21 I don't know what you are referring to but he still got LL in that battle.
rexboogie 4 months ago
Comment removed
rexboogie 10 months ago
i always liked this version better....was so hard to find back then
xpoondiggy 10 months ago
LEGEND!
therealraybaby 10 months ago
these kids nowadays are even bitin his joint I NEED LOVE...
ATACXGYM 11 months ago
OUT OF ALL THE RAP SONGS MADE,CREATED, THOUGHT OF WANNA BE THOUGHT OF OR EVEN DREAMED. THIS IS TRULY WHAT I REMEMBER GROWING UP IN THAT FUNK CITY MEMPHIS. THAT BEAT THOSE WORDS ARE TRULY UNFORGETABLE. LL OUT DID HIMSELF WITH THIS RAP. HES NOT JUST RYHMING HE'S TELLING A STORY AND TELLING EM HE'S GOING FOR YOU GULGA VEIN DAM LL YOU KILLED EM.
MsSchoolglue 11 months ago
Funny that in this version they are actually rocking the bells, the cow bells that is. Where as in the DJ version the "bells" they rock is really the rota-toms.
NathanCarson81 11 months ago
@NathanCarson81 Run stopped him from dropping this as the single..L heard Peter piper and Run was like NO WAY.
taylor4660 6 months ago
To those who don't know....That's Trouble Funk playing this beat....live. a Washington D.C. Go-Go band. One of the OG bands.
NathanCarson81 11 months ago
"Wild Style decorder/the cranium of Yoda"
LMFAO...L.L was ill for sure...
PurpleTyrant777 11 months ago
@PurpleTyrant777
It's "Whilst I decode-a that cranium of Yoda"
otosurgeon 11 months ago
@PurpleTyrant777 ...it's "Whilst I decode-a the cranium of Yoda"
otosurgeon 11 months ago
you can even hear the needle drop on this track.....truly a youtube classic!!
otosurgeon 1 year ago
receiving ovations from the "Bells Association".....omg. Too genius.
otosurgeon 1 year ago
LL you made def jams with out you never would have bought shittt....and now this
dealbamuzic 1 year ago
when i first heard this in the 80,s i could not believe that someone could do this with that kind of passion it was like a drug i listen over and over again ,and was blown away,,,
dealbamuzic 1 year ago
I'm 42 and when this ryme came out I was like "word!"... Now I'm sitting here listening to this and I didn't realize how hard I was gripping the arm of the couch! My wife walked by and asked why I was so tense.. Just listen to the lyrics!
ddbreakdancer 1 year ago 11
@ddbreakdancer Absolutely! He builds the intensity so high in this rap. Quite possibly his finest work!
dokokai 1 year ago
@dokokai Like LL said: "Upon a plateau no motor can go / mythological characters stand below..." Who now days would of thought some sh*t like that?
ddbreakdancer 1 year ago
@ddbreakdancer How about "your equilibruim is took from my propulsion".....bro, this mythological character rocked my high school years...and nobody, but nobody, save for Rakim himself, can put words together like a puzzle like LL.
otosurgeon 1 year ago
@otosurgeon Yoooo!... Rakim? That's another beast within itself!
ddbreakdancer 11 months ago
@ddbreakdancer I think you mean "Upon a plateau no MORTAL can go"
Peace
MAJESTIC
PurpleTyrant777 11 months ago
@PurpleTyrant777 Simple typo my friend... My hands were still sore from grippin' the arm of da couch!
ddbreakdancer 11 months ago
@ddbreakdancer "The bells make your energy escalate"....lmfao...that's real talk...the agressiveness of the track and vocals is infectious for sure...
PEACE
MAJESTIC
PurpleTyrant777 11 months ago
man i wish LL would comw out with more stuff like this!
sarahsoriano17 1 year ago
Imagine this, I was just watching a documentary on Jack The Ripper and those those immortal words began to ring around in my head: '...Jack The Ripper, King Hercules, Professor of Death in the Seven Seas...' I'm in my mid 40's now but when I heard this back in 85' I was like howda Fuck did he come up with dat. I was a bedroom emcee back then and was totally in awe! It remains one of the most devastating pieces of rapping to to ever hit vinyl. LL absolutely killed it!!!
Ademerckx 1 year ago 2
ain't nuttin like the old school!
NACROPOSSE 1 year ago
fun w/ bob james, i like this version . this era , the original demo tapes were always almost always way cooler.
fossilfuelmusic 1 year ago
Probably the rawest stuff ive ever heard from LL, i have this track when he rocks it from a concert back in 87 i believe , havent found it anywhere else until now , thx!!
Robstadamuz 1 year ago
To this day, I do not know how he was able to write the lyrics to this song. The metaphors are so profound and the passionate delivery is unmatched, not even by LL Cool J himself!!! Not even he himself has been able to duplicate the perfection in this song.
phix01 1 year ago
Rock the bells copies the drum pattern of Marley marl - scratch released in 1985
But ...............
Did any djs notice that Marley marl scratch at 4.09 mins copies the scratch patterns from ...
Grandmaster Melle Mel & The Furious Five - step off released in 1984 ? performed by vicious lee..
you can hear the same scratch pattern around 6 .30...
ll cool j got found out but marley marl was overlooked....
tygaelement 1 year ago
THIS SONG JUST FUCKED ME IN MY EARS
SuperYung92 1 year ago
Last verse of this KILLS anything out right now! Roll the red carpet royalty's arrived, don't try to fight back 'cause you won't survive! LL's lyrics and delivery was a game changer back then! 24 years later and still on point!
steelbillxl 1 year ago
its 2010 this is better than any rap joint that came out this year and its december. WHAT!!!!
MrKendallkay 1 year ago
'my tongue revolves like a rotor'- IF YOU'VE NEVER HEARD THIS.... This is a track that changed the game- PERIOD This launched all over NY and wasn't even pressed!! This is LL...
69RedRooster 1 year ago
Now this is RAP F^&% the BULLSH&! of today, Rap needs to go back to this....
GorillasNdaMidst 1 year ago
my son would not have been born if not for this song....
Ckissxox 1 year ago
I was right in the middle of the 9th grade when this joint came out during late winter/early spring in March 1986.
oldschoolbx1970 1 year ago
srry but this rip's through 98 % of all hip hop
rodney1b 1 year ago
WOW!!!!! L went Ape @#$% on the original!!! Dooooooppppeee
soultheinterrogator 1 year ago
THANKS FOR THIS VERSE;G.O.A.T i told people about l listen to his old $hit
DJFRESH1988 1 year ago
NI@@aS DIDNT WANT IT WITH L BACK THEN NOBODY WITH SENSE STEPPED TO HIM FOR REAL
GIANTYANKEE12 1 year ago
this is the era of real hip hop.....Fuck Solja boy and lil Payne
Retrosigns1 1 year ago
he made eminem fell like rapping
DaAznSk8rz 1 year ago
This is raw as fuck. BEAST MODE MUSIC!!
MrCbwTV 1 year ago 2
ALL TIME GREATEST PERIOD!!!!! CREATIVITY LONGEVITY ORIGINATOR AND BATTLER, BEFORE ALL THE PREETENDERS FOR 10 YRS LL BATTLED AND SINGLE HANDEDLY BEAT ALL COMERS. THEN FOR 5 YEARS CREATED NEW STYLES THAT EVERY ONE I MEAN EVERY ONE USEES NOW, THEN TURNED RADIO LOVE SONGS AND RB HIP FOR FREESTYLE RAPPERS, AND NOW FOR LAST FIVE YEARS HAS TO PROVE HIM SELFOVER AGAIN AS A DOMINATE FORCE, WHILE STILL PUTTING OUT HITS.COME ON NO WHERE ELSE ARE BLACKS MORE IGNORANT THEN NOT TO REMEMBER THERE OWN GREATS1
art1716 1 year ago
4 people need to be shot
elreydenappyville23 1 year ago
ah the era of lyricism....Russell Simmons and Rick Rubin wouldnt even bother with you if you didnt have skillz....
noirnoticvibe 1 year ago
the mic sings like a humming birrrd...grrraaaaa
tuffty69 1 year ago
"Wild Style decoder/the crainium of Yoda"
WOW!!!!
Majestic Allah
MAJESTIcag7 1 year ago
This joint Is toooo SICK!!.. Cool J J Jay only Dj's should know about that"
rodney1b 1 year ago
Man what can say about cool j he wrote rhymes for some great artist he is a true pioneer of the hip-hop world when i first heard it was a line that throw me for a loop and it said "cold crush use a line to make'em hush lover and taker faker lover of the lakers"...man i was like WTF!!! I had to hear it again
DevinWilliams36 1 year ago
YEEEEEEEEEESSS!!!!! THIS IS TRULY BEST HIP HOP CUT IN HISTORY, HANDS DOWN!! I'VE BEEN SEARCHING THIS JAM FOREVER!! THANKS FOR THE POST!! TOOK ME LONG ENOUGH TO LOOK BACK HERE AGAIN! COOL J ROCKS THIS!
OQUENDO1968 1 year ago 3
CAN'T NOBODY, NO WHERE, IN NO TIME FRAME OR DIMENSION, OR WORLD MATCH THE ARTISTIC, ARTICUALATE, "ELLA FITZGERALD" PROFESSIONALISM AND FLUACTION OF THIS 15 OR 16 YEAR OLD KID. LL COOL J IS THE G.O.A.T IN EVERY WAVE, SHAPE AND FORM. HE'S THE JOHNNY CARSON OF RAP. EVERYONE ELSE ARE IMITATORS.
GaryColinGATEX2418 1 year ago 11
@GaryColinGATEX2418 well said homy well said .your a hip hop scholar and a ghetto gentleman
ARMONI555 11 months ago
@GaryColinGATEX2418 I'll give L Props and respect Due But cDont Sleep On Chris Parker AKA K. R.S. ONE
Arimanthael 10 months ago
@GaryColinGATEX2418 YEAH THIS IS B4 HE SOLD HIS SOLD TO THE ILLUMINATI
gradymorrrowjr37 8 months ago
@gradymorrrowjr37 hes not involved with that fool
omeganaphtali 8 months ago
@gradymorrrowjr37 Dumb ass comment
kidsonthebloke 8 months ago
@GaryColinGATEX2418 He's not all that! This was his best track! G.O.A.T. he is not.
hector9211 6 months ago
@hector9211 his best track??? my nigga you obviously are a justin beiber fan or something cause you don't know what the fuck you are talking about....lol...BEAT IT!
hiphoplegend1 6 months ago
@hiphoplegend1 from a lyrical standpoint there's no denying that this is without a shadow of a doubt his best track. The lyrical content, the flow, the delivery is unbelievable
drlove1972 5 months ago
@drlove1972 nah Cool J has a bunch of dope tracks...Rock The Bells (album version), Dangerous, You'll Rock, I'm Bad, Murdergram, No Airplay, Mr.Controversy, his verse on Rampage, Ahh Let's Get Ill, The Breakthrough, The Truth, Ill Bomb, Ringtone Murder, I mean I could keep on going for that man, you don't become a hip-hop legend from just one track my dude....lol
hiphoplegend1 5 months ago
@hiphoplegend1 keep going all you want but none of the songs you mentioned even begin to approach the verbal skill and wordplay that he displays here. And I never said this was his only good song but once again from a purely lyrical standpoint it's his best.
drlove1972 5 months ago
@drlove1972 I hear you man, I disagree but I hear you though, I think he's been quite lyrical on a bunch of songs, thats why he's number 5 on my all-time list...it would surely take more than just showing me he can perform the lyrics on just this one cut, and I like this one too, but it's just a difference of opinion thats all...
hiphoplegend1 5 months ago
people tend to sleep on L because he had that "sex symbol" thing going on. but, the boy could rap is ass off. one of the best ever!
ASBURYPARK999 1 year ago 27
@ASBURYPARK999 - real talk
dinotduda 1 year ago
@ASBURYPARK999 wut up Asbury Park this is Gary from Neptune, NJ! I wanted to invite you to come to the Deliverance Temple off Monroe-Prospect (Pine Street-Near Sewall). We're there Tuesdays 6PM-Bible Study, Fridays 7PM-Public Talks and Sundays 10AM Bible Study and 11:15AM Worship
GaryColinGATEX2418 9 months ago
@ASBURYPARK999 i agree.
quincee33 9 months ago
THis is hard hip hop.
rexboogie 1 year ago 2
wow, its so freakin raw i love it!
fleetwoodbrawm 1 year ago
16 YRS OLD THIS IS RIDICULOUS...THA BEST RAP FROM A TEENAGER EVA
DRDEF7 1 year ago 2
@DRDEF7 damn i forgot he was so young
toofargone68 1 year ago
real ole skhool hip hop
mauriceslf 1 year ago
I remember I was in L.A. when I first heard this. It was like the hottest joint out. Then I moved to Cleveland that same year and It was like the fuckn Anthem. Yo I didnt realize how OFFICIAL this shit was until I read the lyrics and come to find out that he wasnt just putting a bunch big words together. This dude was really saying something. And what makes it crazy is that he was only 16! These lyrics will forever stand the test of time. Only Check the Technique by Gang star comes close.
shwncage 1 year ago
@shwncage THAT'S WHAT I'M SAYING!!!! It isn't just the vocabulary, it's the concepts and metaphors that show a vast knowledge of literature, history, science and other areas of specialized study. It is my guess that he had some help from someone,, somewhere. It is impossible for a 16 year old to achieve this... Besides, LL himself never even made a song like this again. Compare this to "Mama Said Knock you Out" The emotion is there but not the intelligence.
phix01 1 year ago
diz iz iight but da otha version betta
mrseximix 1 year ago
Niggas don't about this version of this song. This was the original version before the RADIO album came out. This was the single the help propel his career along with single call radio. "when i finish with you boy youll be suckin on soup"!!!!!!!!!!!!!
melvinweed 1 year ago
Tutorial: How to make minced meat out of beef
solliebollie78 1 year ago
Canibus couldn't hold a candle to this dude. This rips any thing canibus ever wrote, rap or composed. This is hip hop at its highest level. Dont get it twisted whether you like LL or not, and he was very young and hungry. Give him his props all u haters. L is just killing it. Nonstop real rap. This is HIPHOP!
chalo112 1 year ago
@chalo112 This is what Canibus thinks he is doing, but he isn't! There is a design to this that no one has ever been able to figure out... The other is the sonic quality of Teddy Riley's productions
phix01 1 year ago
To me this is hands down LL's best song ever. He murdered this track. Hella advance flow at the time that changes up, hella swagger...this shit blew minds when it came out.
theyoungcommander 1 year ago
ho....ly....
SamKalirai 1 year ago
Cant stop listening 2this. Been a long time since I heard this fire. Soundz like LL popped a lyrikal steroid on this. His beasting on this was and still is INCREDIBLE.
Nit2winnit 1 year ago 2
@Nit2winnit
word
Troimah 1 year ago
Comment removed
Ob5erV3r 1 year ago
the only thing i can say is i hate the background, i find it hard to focus on him and not the ding dong in the background. Other than that great lyrics.
ChappersLaNoCry 1 year ago
@ChappersLaNoCry
I respect your opinion, but I disagree. Different strokes for different folks.
Not everyone was sampling to death yet. SImplistic beats from the DMX drum machine reflect an early time and place of hip hop history.
digitalbeatsyndrome 1 year ago
@digitalbeatsyndrome Don't get me wrong I love the song just feel that the bell noise in the back was annoying, and although I love Eminems album i also think most of the beats on there are pretty bad for Dre.
ChappersLaNoCry 1 year ago
Straight Fire! I remember being pissed off cause this joint wasn't on my "Radio" cassette, and I couldn't find the 12" anywhere. He changed the game with this one. Moe Dee, Ice T & Canibus had to find out the hard way that Cool J was not to be "effed" wit'. Lol
maximerlin 1 year ago
Which 4 of you DICK SUCKERS gave this shit a 'Thumbs Down'?
If so, face it fool, YOU DO NOT LIKE HIP HOP. LL left a DENT IN THE GAME THAT REMAINS TO THIS DAY ON THIS TRACK ALONE! Even if he didn't do shit else... THIS IS A BENCHMARK FOR RIPPIN' SHIT!
Why am I explaining this shit? Fuck a fool giving this a thumbs down, you don't DESERVE to know shit. Go back to fucking with Asher Roth.
MTXSHO9732vV8SHO 1 year ago
@MTXSHO9732vV8SHO man you couldnt have said it.........cool j rip this sone to pieces
omfg cool j was hard then and he's even harder now.........this man was putting remixes before niggas was doing remixes..... run dmc is cool but this nigga is a fucking God LL deserves to go down as the top rapper of all fucking time...wayne and the others are cool but this man fucked the world up...you talk about battling.OMFG long live Cool J
jaz2k2k 1 year ago 2
Damn!!! L ripped it back in '85!!!!!!!!!!!!
JASOFLY32 1 year ago
The GREATEST HIP HOP LYRICS ever recorded!!! Listen to the REAL LL in RAW form.
phix01 1 year ago
@phix01 INDEED!!! I totally agree...
phix01 1 year ago
Where can I find this original version? A 12" single?
JumpinJackAJ 1 year ago
whatever happen 2 hiphop,check out my video
projectking360 1 year ago
5:20 - "Exterminating crews with my manuscript. And the best thing you wrote was a bunch of bullshit!" I love it!!!
newkidd2k3 1 year ago
I love the old school LL. There is NO better. Too bad he couldn't keep up the good beats. Radio & Bigger & Deffer are two of the all time great albums. I never knew this version existed.......and its dope!!!! Anywhere I can download this version?
nufcpoke 1 year ago
LL did his thing on this one. Always has been underrated
tdigglerful 1 year ago
just listen!
chalo112 1 year ago
This is classic hip hop. That Bullshit that is out now cant compare to this. This is why Nas says hip hop is dead bcos of weak rapping mc's. Fuck i can't even call them mc's. New bs rappers are stealing money. Check out this rap and then listen to ur bullshit. We deserve better. LL was on top of his game with this no doubt. All haters eat a dick.
chalo112 1 year ago
@chalo112 hiphop will never die. if you listen to it, it is no longer dead. it is very much alive, regardless if it is out now or not. there is so much hiphop i haven't heard yet and i've been listening to it for well over 20 years, and i've heard alot. don't worry, hiphop isn't dead, you just need to find it. google "red alert mixtape" and you will hear some awesome oldschool underground that rocks to death.
fleaaccela 1 year ago
@fleaaccela Dude I was a DJ in the early 80's. I was refering to that bullshit thats out now. Red Alert is old school. Old school was real hip hop. LL did this at Aftermidnigh club in philly, I was there live.
chalo112 1 year ago
I graduated HS in 1990- I am white and this was the shit! I was "down with the brothas" in the day....I had a buddy with an Impala and we would listen to LL, Public Enemy, NWA and all the cool metal at the time- skate stuff and punk mostly.
displaced7 1 year ago
this wasn't on radio. where did this track come from? a 12"?
fleaaccela 1 year ago
@fleaaccela on those 2 hrs. a week rap shows they used to have like it was contraband like LAVATHEGREATONE said. Rappers don't realize the pressure that was on these kids. Like Run says in Krush Groove "It could all be over tomorrow." If today's rap is what they started with, not just hoorah for me nary a curse, but foul language terrorism, I mean this showed an intelligence that intimidated White people and helped cast votes for Obama. Seriously.
drasticwillb 1 year ago
@fleaaccela This was on hip hop segments on radio in NY back in 85. Dude was beasting like this on the mike @the age of 17.
Nit2winnit 1 year ago
@Nit2winnit
I remember taping this joint off the cool dj red alert show on 98.7 kiss FM along with Dear Yvette, and rock the bells.
digitalbeatsyndrome 1 year ago
@fleaaccela It was released in '86 as a 12"...but this is the original version of "rock the bells" before he dropped "radio"....i got this on a limited Def Jam 4 track w/label ep along wit a cople of Beastie Boys joints...Dope!
nptrock 1 year ago
no drug sales no killing no mc crew just him and the dj's can you hear the hungry in him he was fight clearly for hiphop . when you did hear the songs un til 12 am we had to stay up late to here this on the radio as kids .
LAVATHEGREATONE 1 year ago
after midnight this joint was crazy thats in philly if u did'nt know
johnn2sexy4you 1 year ago
@johnn2sexy4you Power 99 hoooooooooooo
drasticwillb 1 year ago
@drasticwillb no doubt my brother
johnn2sexy4you 1 year ago
Once again I must remind everyone who the REAL KING OF NYC HIP HOP IS! Take a listen 2 what Jay Z, Nas, Biggie & Tupac all grew up on & were influenced by!
therealraybaby 1 year ago
That when ll was on his bull shit.
avonmacray2000 1 year ago
LEGEND!!!! I love this cut....LL was better back in tha day.......Both bells bang. And YES Mr Jiseph...NO ONE could even get close to his lyrical ability!!!
Retrosigns1 1 year ago 2
@Retrosigns1 Not EVEN CLOSE!!! You can say that again.... F--k it, I said it for you.
phix01 1 year ago
Yes young people this is real rapping and poetry with the beats to back it up. K.L.A.S.S. back to the streets, check it out.
iaintdoinit 1 year ago
Yes!
MegaLaidback 1 year ago
the lover and the taker, faker lover of the laker???
ednoroirika