Happy 30th Anniversary to Nice & Smooth’s third studio album Jewel of the Nile, originally released June 28, 1994.
The success of Nice & Smooth is built upon contrast. Greg “Nice” Mays and Daryl “Smooth B” Barnes have markedly different rhyme styles and deliveries. But as I wrote in my tribute to Ain’t a Damn Thing Changed (1991), their sophomore album, it was the combination of the two that led the duo to be greater than the sum of its parts. The contrast helps bolster their third album, Jewel of the Nile, released 30 years ago.
Jewel of the Nile isn’t as strong as their previous two releases. The two seemingly peaked with Ain’t a Damn Thing Changed. However, the project is still pretty enjoyable. Its brevity (it runs a little under 40 minutes) works to its benefit, as it does not overstay its welcome, and most songs are economical in their execution. Lyrically, the duo’s “formula” keeps things consistent. As always, Greg Nice’s boundless energy and boisterous proclamations mesh well with Smooth B’s slicker vocal tones. Smooth B gives the decidedly stronger performance of the two this time out, sounding sharper on the mic and a little more focused overall.
The album’s production is interesting throughout Jewel of the Nile. The majority of the tracks on their previous releases were self-produced. This time, the duo reached out to numerous outside producers to give the project its distinctly mid-1990s feel. Much like the lyricism, the success of the beats is often driven by the contrast of disparate elements blending well together. The album possesses some really high highs, making it a worthwhile listen.
The album’s first single, “Old To the New,” is remarkably strong, standing as one of the best songs that Nice & Smooth ever recorded and one of the better hip-hop anthems of its era. Producer Luis “Phat Kat” Vega hooks up a sample of Three Dog Night’s “Easy To Be Hard,” pairing it with keys from George Benson’s “The Gentle Rain.” Greg Nice drops old school-influenced party rhymes and kicks a memorable hook, bubbling with the type of madcap energy he had been known for. Meanwhile, Smooth B takes it “back to the essence,” reflects on his past rolling to Park Jams in the Bronx, and how it has influenced his future as an emcee. “Now things are pretty much the same,” he reflects. “But I don't have to rhyme for free and that's the price of fame.”
Listen to the Album:
The album-opening “Return of the Hip-Hop Freaks” is another strong offering. In a creative production choice by Greg Nice, he pairs samples of the thunderous, echoing drums from Schoolly D’s “P.S.K. – What Does It Mean?” and the delicate vibraphone from KMD’s “Peachfuzz.” The song flows well into the exuberant “Sky’s the Limit,” where Greg blends a loop of Prince’s “I Wanna Be Your Lover” with blaring JB-esque horns. The song’s energy is infectious, and I’m surprised the duo didn’t officially release it as a single to promote the album.
Tracks like “Doin’ Our Own Thang” and “Do What I Gotta” are solid mid-tempo fare, again bolstered by their production. On the former, Mark hooks up a track that, in Smooth B’s words, is reminiscent of “Hansel and Gretel,” while Greg Nice beatboxes in the background. D.I.T.C.-producer Showbiz samples George Benson’s version of “White Rabbit” to give “Do What I Gotta” some Flamenco/Latin flavor. Greg Nice comes through with a stream of consciousness verse, proclaiming to “[come] to your rescue just like Link.” Smooth B contributes one of the strongest verses on the album, fashioning himself as a psalm-reading holy warrior, vanquishing pretenders and “dusting rappers off with the golden arm.”
Nice & Smooth include a couple of different tracks dedicated to getting trashed on either weed or alcohol or both. “Blunts” is the better of the two. Though the lyrical content is self-explanatory, the production, handled by Showbiz, is the star. The D.I.T.C. producer hooks up a sample of Jack Bruce’s “Born To be Blue,” coincidentally used right around the same time by Smif-N-Wessun for “Bucktown.” The subdued horn loop works well with the crispy drums from The Five Stairsteps’ “Don’t Change Your Love.”
Nice & Smooth’s collaborations with other emcees on Jewel of the Nile yield entertaining results. “Let’s All Get Down” is their bouncy team-up with label-mate Slick Rick. The song was not recorded during Rick’s flurry of studio sessions after his conviction for attempted murder in 1990, but rather after he had been granted work release earlier in 1994 to work on his forthcoming album Behind Bars (1994). The Ruler is in a particularly celebratory mood, hitting up clubs and concerts with the duo, getting wrecked on Moet, and “whoppin’ ’til my neck hurt.”
“Save the Children,” featuring House of Pain’s Everlast, is musically unorthodox but works far better than I would have expected. Greg Nice hooks up a beat powered by blistering guitar licks and echoing keys. For a pair that’s best known for rapping to smoother grooves, both acquit themselves admirably over a hard-rock inspired backdrop. Everlast sounds particularly inspired, giving a startlingly dope performance. “Run for the hills get off the dillz, split the mills,” he pronounces. “My name’s Everlast, I wipe my ass with $100 bills.”
Unfortunately, Jewel of the Nile ends with a whimper. The syrupy Smooth B solo “Cheri” is one of the worst tracks to appear on a Nice & Smooth album. Smooth B had an established connection to the world of R&B: he was longtime friends with Bobby Brown and had written all of the superstar’s raps on Don’t Be Cruel (1988). However, even with production from Prince Markie Dee (formerly of the Fat Boys) and back-up vocals courtesy of Jodeci’s Jo-Jo Hailey, the nearly six-minute song is remarkably dull. It’s as bad as any of the awful love songs that wasted entirely too much space on many a respectable rapper’s album during the late 1980s.
Jewel of the Nile was not as critically or commercially successful as their previous two long-players, and the duo broke up not too long after the album’s release. Greg Nice had an abbreviated solo career, resulting in one memorable single, “Set It Off,” produced by Salaam Remi. They reunited a few years later to release IV: Blazin’ Hot (1997); I’d hazard that even most seasoned hip-hop heads weren’t aware of the group’s break-up in the first place.
Jewel of the Nile faced a lot of competition for ears in what was the crowded market that was hip-hop in the middle of 1994. Though it wasn’t particularly ambitious, Nice & Smooth knew their strengths, and celebrated both where they came from and where they saw themselves going. There’s not much more hip-hop than that.
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