Black Steel in the Hour of Chaos

The Work:
Black Steel in the Hour of Chaos

The Artist:
Public Enemy

Description:
A song about a young man who is given a draft letter but refuses to go fight for a "white" America. He is imprisoned for his defiance, and while in prison he hatches a plans a prison break with the help of a pre-VH1 Flava-Flav and the S1Ws, a paramilitary organization that was associated with Public Enemy at the height of their popularity.

Purpose:
It's a pop song; at the most basic level, its purpose is the same as any other commodity...to sell. However, Public Enemy, particularly Chuck D, have always maintained a certain amount of artistic credibility. You have to believe they were going for something more here. The message is about anger and despair in the African-American community. The song itself is like a story from a graphic novel; Chuck D uses vivid imagery throughout to convey a sense of wild bravado. It's a song about big acts committed by big personalities as they battle evil forces.

What Works:
Just about everything, from the piano sample to Flava-Flav's nonsensical ramblings (does he do anything else?), here muted and moved to the background so that they sound like the musings of Chuck D's insane alter ego. The images are particularly vivid: "The joint broke from the black smoke" or, "I got a raw deal, so I'm lookin' for the steel." Even the coda, repeated over a thumping, fuzzy baseline, has resonance, as it points to the song's ultimately hopeless ending: "death row, what would a brotha know?"

What Doesn't:
Nothing. Not a thing. Some think the Geto Boys' "Mind Playing Tricks on Me" is the greatest rap song of all time. I'll take this one.

Verdict:
A groundbreaking song from a groundbreaking group that sounds better now (not just becaue it's on your iPod) than it did back in the day when you bumped it in the cassette deck of your Ford Escort GT. Which, by the way, did have a spoiler.