DJ Shadow - Insight: Rarities

So a friend was telling me about a compilation he picked up in a record shop that sounded almost too good to be true, and upon further examination that sentiment was found to be accurate. That compilation, the Best Of Mo'Wax 12's: The DJ Shadow Collection, can be viewed at discogs and is a fully manufactured bootleg CD, and upon investigating the spectral data and tracks featured, several of them are clearly MP3 sourced and others have been edited, destroying the reason to include them in the first place. What would motivate someone to shorten a track on an unofficial compilation dedicated to compiling rare tracks? On top of that, there are lots of mislabeled cuts and even an early Lyrics Born track that has NOTHING to do with Shadow apart from being issued on one side of a split 12" with him. It's just bad bootlegging, and while it was released several years ago in 2007, it's still strange that someone poured the money into this when most people could get these tracks online. I suppose some people might want it on the premise that they're receiving the packaging and probably a mastered CD, but buying an accurately re-created bootleg of the Brainfreeze mix is different from picking up someone's idea of a rarities collection that isn't terribly rare or even accurate.

With all of this said, I told my friend that I could do a better compilation and make it lossless to boot, or at least openly acknowledge what tracks aren't lossless. My friend was intrigued so I put together a rough comp and, after getting all my tracks together, found myself with three CDs worth of tracks, two being purely lossless and one being MP3 sourced. I'm going to post all three here, but I'm not going to post the lossless versions until I've gotten to the third comp, the one that is lossy. For today though, I present the first one, a collection of tracks all sourced from lossless files, for your enjoyment. I'll either post the lossless versions at the end of the week or at some point next week all in one big post. Let me know if you have any questions about these tracks or their sources. Enjoy!


DJ Shadow - Insight

01 Depeche Mode - Painkiller (Kill The Pain Mix)
Shadow's remix for Depeche Mode. It was initially rejected for release due to sample clearance problems, but Shadow ended up issuing it on a 12" alongside the original edit of Cut Chemist's remix of The Number Song. Since then it has gained an official release in several places, though it's not clear whether any samples were removed or not.

02 In/Flux (Alternative Interlude '93 Version)
Despite the title, this sounds more like an early version of In/Flux than an alternative edit. Most of the vocals are missing and one of the samples from Best Foot Forward is featured prominently, whereas it isn't in the regular version. This appeared on the first Headz compilation.

03 Lifers Group - Real Deal (Shadow Remix)
One of Shadow's first tracks to ever receive an official release, this was issued on Hollywood BASIC, a hip-hop oriented subsidiary of Disney's Hollywood Records. One of Shadow's mentors, Dave Funken Klein, was responsible for getting him the work. It's worth noting that there is a lot of anti-homosexual vitriol being dispersed here, which is thoroughly politically incorrect these days, and even more shocking when you realize this was issued on a Disney subsidiary, though if you take into perspective that the Lifers Group consisted entirely of convicts serving time at the Rahway Prison, all with life sentences no less, and that they were trying to scare their listeners into staying out of prison, I guess it changes the perspective somewhat. I am in no way condoning the statements or opinions of the rappers on this track, but it's important to understand their perspectives and the environment they came from. On a related note, I have a lifelong friend who served about seven years for some white collar crimes that has said, despite having no ill will towards anyone based upon their sexuality, in prison it's truly an issue that rears its head far too frequently. In his words, "I can't watch Oz, it's way too real. Yeah, there is a lot of bullshit on that show, but everyday someone is getting propositioned or used, often against their will, and they got that part of the show totally accurate."

04 89.9 Megamix
This appeared on a split single with DJ Krush.

05 Devil's Advocate (Heaven v. Hell - Bonus Beat)
Weird track from the High Noon EP, featuring a preacher railing against rock music over a remix of High Noon. This is much more a legitimate track than a mere bonus beat.

06 Lesson 4
Shadow's tribute to Double Dee & Steinski's infamous Lesson tracks was his first recording issued strictly under his name, although it was credited simply to Shadow rather than DJ Shadow. This was issued on a promotional version of the Lifers Group 12" for Real Deal due to it being filled with expensive or unclearable samples and is extremely hard to find, at least as a non-bootleg. Shadow issued a slightly different version of this on one of his 4-Track Era compilations, although those are similarly difficult to find.

07 Lost and Found (S.F.L.)
Issued on another split single with DJ Krush, this is cut from the same vein as What Does Your Soul Look Like and Endtroducing. This has appeared on a Mo'Wax comp or two but is no longer available.

08 Shadow's Legitimate Mix
Often credited as a remix for Zimbabwe Legit, an African rap duo that was signed to Hollywood BASIC, this is actually an original Shadow track that did not feature the group. It appeared on their self-titled EP and later on one of the Headz comps. Like Lesson 4, a slightly different version of this also appeared on one of the 4-Track Era compilations.

09 BASIC Mega-Mix
A megamix of early Hollywood BASIC tracks, this appeared on that label's BASIC beats sampler, an excellent compilation featuring tracks from Organized Konfusion, Raw Fusion, Zimbabwe Legit, Lifers Group and two Queen remixes, one from Rick Rubin and the other by Phase 5. I'll have to post the whole thing soon because it's really exceptional. The Phase 5 remix of Queen's Another One Bites The Dust is incredible!


One more thing, I "borrowed" the image in this post from Napalm filled tires' flickr page. There is some really great photography there so go check it out!