Greatest Songs #4:

De La Soul -- "Millie Pulled a Pistol On Santa" (1991, from De La Soul is Dead)

As I've earlier indicated, I'm not the biggest fan of rap, or hip-hop, or whatever term might be considered more "street" at this micro-juncture of time. There's too much splash and not enough true creativity; too much chest-pounding and not enough soul. I am fully aware that such can easily be charged against my favorite forms of music. This may be just a preference on my part; nevertheless, I think the criticisms valid, and certainly un-controversial, as they are shared by many.

That said, there are a few acts out there I do like, because they make the effort to step above the banal brutality and blingery of most and try to actually say something or tell a real story. You'd think a genre of music in which lyricism was considered the point would put a premium on thought, but alas, such is usually not the case. For the few for whom it is, I have great respect. A Tribe Called Quest is one such group. Public Enemy, much as I roll eyes at their politics, is another. De La Soul may be my favorite.

De La Soul Is Dead was the group's second album, and their answer to the more HARRDDDDcore acts that dissed the first. They gleefully attack the pretenses of their detractors both directly and subtly (check out "Johnny's Dead," the most hilarious send-up of strap'd ghetto boyz in tha hood and their presumed demises yet recorded, so completely off-center that the group itself can't get through it with a straight face), and demonstrate a capacity to move beyond Standard Rap Lyrics to bespeak something of real tragedy.

"Millie" tells the story of a social-worker named Dylan, who is beloved of the troubled kids he helps (the narrator included, who makes himself a character in the drama), and is sufficiently devoted to the community to serve as a mall Santa during the Christmas season. He's also an abusive parent who molests his daughter Millie. Hilarity ensues.

One of the treats of this song is the piano sample that carries the melody; it's hard to categorize by genre, as it jumps along, sounding as much like band music as anything else. The beat, by contrast, is softer, but not neutered, and is powerfully evident in the chorus sections. The effect of this is a mixture of brightness and repressed evil, a back-and-forth that mirrors the story.

In the end, Millie morphs from sweet victim to spirit of vengeance; one section of the song has Millie asking the narrator if he could find her a weapon. He asks what for, she tells him, and he refuses to believe her. This is the most affecting aspect of the story; as the narrator, without saying so, assumes his share of guilt for all those who see and do nothing. No matter, Millie gets her pistol, and heads for the mall, and confronts her father/victimizer with same before a crowd of suddenly terrified children. He begs for mercy, she guns him down, and "with the quickness it was over." Full stop.

Does anyone now require me to explain why I never thought much of Eminem?


#5