Sheldon Taylor's Souls of Black Notes

  Am I eternal or eternalist? Rakim's rhetorical reflection from 1988's Follow The Leader finds the God MC pondering his place in hip-hop history. While Ra's legacy is solidified, rap's historical highlight reel moves at the speed of light, omitting major players of the game. Jalil Hutchins is one of those major players. Many don't know the name but they know at least one of the classics that sprang from  his mighty pen and fertile mind that are part of the Great American Rap and Black Music Songbook.  To put things in perspective; to all the outsiders reading this essay---think Gershwin and Berlin. For those in the know--- think Sly Stone. Smokey Robinson. Gamble and Huff.  Many emcees had hot lines. Jalil had hot songs: " Friends". "One Love". "Freaks Come Out At Night". "Five Minutes of Funk". These songs inspired two decades of R&B and hip-hop samples,  remakes, and interpolations.  Go to whosampled.com  and sip from J...