Prince Paul
Talking All That Jazz
[Verse 1]
Well here's how it started, heard you on the radio
Talking 'bout rap, saying all that crap
About how we sample, giving examples
Think we'll let you get away with that?
You criticize our method of how we make records
You said it wasn't art, so now we're gonna rip you apart
Stop, check it out my man
This is the music of a hip-hop band
Jazz, well you can call it that
But this jazz retains a new format
Point, where you misjudged us
Speculated, created a fuss
You've made the same mistake politicians have
Talkin' all that jazz

[Verse 2]
Talk, well I heard talk is cheap
But like beauty, talk is just skin deep
And when you lie and you talk a lot
People tell you to step off a lot
You see, you misunderstood, a sample's just a tactic
A portion of my method, a tool, in fact it's
Only of importance when I make it a priority
And what we sample's loved by the majority
But you a minority in terms of thought
Narrow minded and poorly taught
About hip-hop, playing all the silly games
To erase my music so no one can use it
You step on us and we'll step on you
Can't have your cake and eat it too
Talkin' all that jazz
[Verse 3]
Lies, that's when you hide the truth
It's when you talk more jazz than proof
And when you lie and address something you don't know
It's so wack that it's bound to show
When you lie about me or the band we get angry
Whip out our pen, start writing again
And the things we write are always true
Sucker, get a grip, now we talking 'bout you
Seems to me that you have a problem
So we can see what we can do to solve them
Think rap is a fad? You must be mad
Cause we're so bad we get respect you never had
Tell the truth, James Brown was old
'Til Eric and Ra came out with "I Got Soul"
Rap brings back old R&B
And if we would not, people could've forgot
We wanna make this perfectly clear
We're talented and strong and have no fear
Of those who choose to judge but lack pizazz
Talkin' all that jazz

[Verse 4]
Now we're not trying to be a boss to you
We just wanna get across to you
That if you're talking jazz, the situation is a no-win
You might even get hurt, my friend
Stetsasonic, the hip-hop band
And like Sly and the Family Stone, we will stand
Up for the music we live and play
And for the song we sing today
For now, let us set the record straight
And later on we'll have a forum and a formal debate
But it's important you remember though
What you reap is what you sow
Talkin' all that jazz