J Dilla - JOHNDENVERLOUD (1997 Rare Cassette)

Happy Dilla Day 2025! Here is a cassette that Dilla himself made sometime circa '96-'97. It contains a mix of beats, productions and demos of released productions... the demo of "Ital (The Universal Side)" is particularly impressive, I'm not sure who changed it to the version that's on The Roots' album but I think this version is more effective, it also appeared on DJ Head & MC Proof's "W.E.G.O. N!gg# Whuddd!".

The source files I had came from a poor transfer, there was a loud hum throughout as well as cassette clicks in the high end and the tape deck's azimuth wasn't calibrated which caused darker sound than there should've been. I removed the hum, the clicks and did some restorative EQ to the tape as a whole. I considered doing noise reduction but decided not to because even a small amount had a negative effect of high-end detail, I would reconsider if I had a higher resolution transfer.

Tracklist:
00:00 01. Long Lost
00:51 02. Ill Vibe (Jay Dee Remix) (feat. Q-Tip)
04:24 03. Trashy
05:13 04. The Rhyme (Remix)
09:09 05. Beat
09:34 06. Fort & Back (Alternate Version)
10:52 07. Estimate
12:13 08. Beat
12:27 09. Ital (The Universal Side) (feat. Q-Tip) (Demo Version)
16:29 10. Me and Those Dreamin' Eyes of Mine (Jay Dee Remix)
21:10 11. Interlude
21:26 12. It's a Party (The Ummah Remix)
25:37 13. Beat
26:16 14. Dangerous Ground (feat. 50 Grand)
29:55 15. Purple (A Tribe Called Quest Remix) (Demo Version)
33:08 16. Sometimes (The Ummah Remix) (Demo Version)
37:20 17. Grab The Money and Dip
39:01 18. Beat
40:09 19. Rockin The Shit (Freestyle)
41:35 20. Beat
42:43 21. Dynamite (Instrumental)
42:56 22. Beat
44:06 23. Fat Cat (Remix) (Alternate Version)

Runtime 00:47:18

j dilla, jay dee, rare, 90s, hip-hop, cassette, tape, mixtape, slum village, 1990, 1997, 1996, beats, instrumental, demo,