Mr. Magic, R.I.P.

Another week, another major DJ passes. Wow.

John Rivas a/k/a Mr. Magic a/k/a Sir Juice was the first air personality to host a rap show on commercial radio, NYC's WBLS. If Magic hadn't been the first, someone else probably would have had that distinction, but his position and personality made him one of the defining figures in '80s rap music. He broke a ton of records, put on people like Marley Marl and Mr. Cee and set off some major beefs.

For people like me who lived outside the Tri-state area, he was mainly known for the Profile label Mr. Magic's Rap Attack compilations he put out and the many records that referenced him. This is a dub version of the first to do so:



Whodini: "It's All in Mr. Magic's Wand" (Jive, 1982)

Without Whodini's rapping, this is more or less a Thomas Dolby record-- he wrote, produced and played it. I'm not really a fan (sorry, Cosmo!), but I love the clap breakdowns and the Mr. Magic drop that starts off this version.

For folks who want to hear Mr. Magic in action, Will C did a remarkable series of features on Mr. Magic this April that included some classic radio shows.

There have also been some cool tributes to Magic. I caught a little bit of Marley Marl mixing live yesterday on WBLS ("Symphony" acapella, woot!). Mr. Cee also did a good tribute you can DL here.