It’s about a year ago now that I went to a very very rainy New York city to work with one of the most individual and talented rappers around, MC Paul Barman, to collaborate on a track for the second Young Punx album. At the time the recording session was not particularly an easy one – in retrospect I feel that I was accidentally doing more to put Paul off than to put him at his ease, which was an error on my part. I largely put this down to the challenges of getting rushed into an alien environment, not having time to really get to know everyone involved and how they like to work, then having the pressure of having to create, in the morning, at cost to me, against a ticking clock! It doesn’t make for a relaxed creative environment.

That said Paul is master of words and through a combination of prepared notes scribbled on napkins, and inventive freestyles he gave me plenty of gems to take home with me.

At the time I was really faced with the problem that great though his vocals were I wasn’t really sure how to place them within the album in a way that made them feel like they belonged in the same body of work. However, a year later as the album is nearing completion I feel that the problem is really solving itself. While Paul’s track remained unfinished, the rest of the album has very much been made in with an awareness that the finished work must have continuity with what Paul did with me and I am now confident that our collaboration will end up as one of my favorite moments on the album, along with the other recording I made on the same trip, the awesome “Ready for the fight” recorded with Count Bass D in Memphis, which has already been featured on several TV shows and computer games even prior to release.

I spent yesterday sifting though Paul’s multiple takes and freestyles picking out the optimum performances. The track is not yet in a state where I can play it to you here, but I thought I would warm you up with a couple of Paul’s classic moments, taking from his album “Paulleluyah”.

Firstly, the most articulate brag rhyme of all time… “Excuse You!”

And finally and unavoidably, Paul’s notorious scatological masterwork, “Cock Mobster”, responsible for the line “I would jizz early inside Liz Hurley”. If you find extreme lewdness entertaining you are about to enter heaven. If that’s not your cup of tea, you’ve been warned.