Complex 75 Greatest Tunnel Bangers

Hands down, this is probably the best post from any website this year. Yeah, I said it. Complex and Hot 97’s Cipha Sounds compiled a list of the 75 greatest records from the famed Tunnel night club. The New York hot spot closed its doors in 2001. Included with each entry are anecdotes from Cipha who opened up for Funkmaster Flex. Some of them are new to me. Read ’em below and peep the list here. Can someone make this into a mixtape?


Notorious B.I.G. & 2Pac “Budweiser Freestyle”
“Mister Cee had pressed this up and put it out on bootleg because he’s the one that actually recorded it at the Garden at the Budweiser Superfest. We used to always play Biggie’s verse and cut it off when he says ‘smacking babies at they christening.’ Right there was a perfect spot to throw in another record, ’cause there’s a little gap. One night, Mister Cee was DJing, and he kept playing the record to the 2Pac verse—which some of us didn’t even know was there. And the crowd went fuckin’ crazy. From that point on, the 2Pac verse always played.”

Black Rob “I Love You Baby”
“This record was only on the Puffy album vinyl, so the sound quality was low. The soundman used to hate when we played this record because we had to turn up the master volume but always forgot to turn it down for the next one. Flex used to bring it back to the top a million times. And Black Rob used to hop out of a Dominican gypsy cab whenever he came to the Tunnel—with two Spanish girls, every time.”

CNN “Bang Bang”
“This is when Capone first got out of jail and it was the album-release/Capone-home-from-jail party at the Tunnel. This is the song they came out onstage to, ’cause it had an extra-long intro. The crowd went crazy. Capone had on a mink hoodie with the hood on. The hook starts playing—’we’re gonna thug this shit out’—and I don’t know if somebody threw a drink on Capone or if there was so much excitement that a drink fell on him, but Capone jumped into the crowd and got into a huge fight. Then there was about a 45-minute riot with all the customers and Tunnel security. And then the Tunnel was shut down for like six months. They didn’t even get to perform.”

Notorious B.I.G. & Jay-Z ” Brooklyn Finest”
“I’ve seen so many fights—inside and outside of the Tunnel, physical fights—about who ripped this more, Biggie or Jay-Z. Me? I don’t know, it depends on your mood. Me and Jay have had long talks about this record, and it literally depends on your mood of the day. It could change every time.”

The Lox “Wild Out”
“This record was tailor-made for the Tunnel. After the Bad Boy era and the Ruff Ryders album, that’s when the Lox was the most anticipated for their next album. When they did the album release party for We Are The Streets at the Tunnel, they performed a couple of songs, then they started to do ‘Wild Out’ and the club went crazy. It was so many people wildin’ out—like 2,500 people in the club—that this dude in a wheelchair was getting shook around a lot. And he was getting nervous, so he went to pull out his gun, and shot himself in the leg. We heard gunshots, like pop-pop-pop, even though the music was so loud. Once we heard the gunshots, everybody started running. And that shut down the Tunnel for a couple of months.”

UPDATE: DJ Masta Lee blessed you.

Tags:
Rate This:
5
Submit No Ratings
0
  1. RJ says:

    Yo, straight up, fuck Complex and their click-75-different-links to see the whole list bullshit. Mad annoying.

  2. reythehussein says:

    I like how they had “Jigga That Ni**a” and “Wild Out” right after each other on the list. Fitting, considering they sounded EXACTLY alike.

  3. aveboogie says:

    I’m willin to bet most of your readers aint even old enough to remember the tunnel….Even fewer have partied there. Can’t argue with #1, the gold standard for a freestyle beat. Get at me dog should’ve been #2 tho. Just the fact that the video was filmed at the tunnel should’ve given it the edge.

  4. thehoodnerd says:

    ^lol. “The game is the game.”

    More pageviews = more cash for ads.

    B.Dot aint lie though it’s a dope post.

  5. Just Dizle says:

    Did this into a mixtape already, if you want it B.Dot holla

  6. Harlem1Der says:

    @Just Dizle: if you really got it, I want it. I’m out here in Afghanistan and music is hard to come by. Classic joints like this would be a gem out here

  7. CBH says:

    Love this post RR– Bring us more like this!

  8. Post no billz says:

    What yall newbies know bout the tunnel.. Thats some real hip hop shit right there.. Dont get a buck 50 cross the face like omar frm the wire lol..

  9. Mr. G says:

    Biggie smalls classic tunnel shit!!! I think he had more joints on there than
    any one else!!! B.I.G the G.O.A.T!!

  10. Gilad says:

    I’m not really good at mixing and whatnot, but I can definetly make a compilation of all the songs if y’all are interested.

  11. Ben says:

    Yo the tunnel was ghetto.

  12. JERZZZ says:

    After reading that list all i have to say is. R.I.P. Hip Hop.

  13. Chargers_87 says:

    Is ironic how 95% of the songs in this list were not mention on VH1 sorry ass greatest hip hop songs. But then again,VH1 is own by MTV, the channel that puts out the annaul stupid irelevent “Hottest MC’s” list…

  14. DIGGSY!!! says:

    they finally did a good job on this list. whenever they make list of shit thats from the south they always fuck it up. example: the top 25 no limit songs

  15. tysonz says:

    Word Complex be reaching most of the times with their list, I guess this was better becuase it was Cipha sounds doing the list.
    SMh at the clicking every page stuff tho

  16. JocKIn_JC says:

    link the mix

  17. Black By Popular Demand says:

    i went through a lot of bottles, blunts, and bitches in the unisex bathrooms at the tunnel. it’s hands down the best hip-hop club ever… 2nd to union square… but y’all yung’nz don’t nuttin’ about dat!!

  18. jeanioso says:

    Yo Gilad you should make it bro no need for mixing just compile them.. and put it on your site

  19. Gilad says:

    Yo jeanioso, working on uploading it right now. I’ll post a link here as soon it’s done.

  20. bigjay2501 says:

    damn, i need to go get my hands on some of these songs…this is hip hop people!!!

  21. NY STAND UP says:

    CLASSIC SHIT. this post kills me tho i really miss hip hop like that back in the 90s. damn

  22. Post no billz says:

    ^ i miss that shit too.. Hip hop was incredible back then.. Even what we cosidered wack still shits on most of todays music…

  23. Gilad says:

    I got the rapidshare links up on my site NOW!!

  24. unconform_normality says:

    Mannnnn…..Cipha…I got nostalgia like a motherfucker…shit was crazy back then…all dem songs you droppin were and are bangers. Damn what happen to “this thing of ours”?

    Big Ups to:

    Ben, Post No Billz and Black by Poular Demand…yall know what it is.

    @ Aveboogie….you right about “Get at me Dog”
    Man…. when get at me dog came on… you already knew….real nigga in the front fake nigga in the back! And hide your fucking jewels because a nigga like me was easing out the pack for them.

    But that was a decade ago…So im rehabilitated ppl,

  25. […] real music. And about those attendees: Generation X played cool older sibling, representing the Tunnel Banger era in Timbalands and puffy Gore-Tex winter-fresh vests; white students bobbed along politely, […]

Leave a Reply