April 8

Yesterday was a great day for me: day off from work, got back on the commonwealth's good side, hung with the kids, did some spring cleaning, got something off the ice cream van, and discovered an old, awesome movie ("Following" by Christopher Nolan, if you'll accept a suggestion).
Even my messups were blessings; I couldn't run videoclips for my original choice for today (let me save it for another year), but discovered two birthdays that made me change my mind. Today's Buddha's birthday, a big deal in several Asian countries. Today also happens to be an old friend's birthday, whose family I haven't seen in a long time. Given that this may be the first time in a while they'll hear from me, I found a better artist to feature...

The Biz Markiealbum I Need a Haircut is a collector's item, for historical reasons. The album itself is so-so by Markie standards, but its significance stems from the track Alone Again, which sampled Gilbert O'Sullivan's "Alone Again (Naturally)". Nobody asked Gilbert O'Sullivan, and he took Biz to court. The court found in favor of Sullivan, and all copies were pulled from shelves. Now, music with samples (75% of today's music, it seems) pay the original artist a share of the proceeds. Unless it's leaked to the internet for free. Like that ever happens...
We still love this Buddha-built MC, anyway. In the interest of karma, let's feature a special version of his biggest hit, "Just a Friend." Have you seen those 'literal video' versions? Somebody resings the lyrics of a music video classic to serve as commentary on said video? Here's a 'literal' version of the "Just a Friend" video: