Tricky – Maxinquaye

Another entry in the “most mind-blowing debuts of all time” category, this is a seminal release in the trip-hop canon, but more than that, it contains a track that, for my money, ranks as one of the ballsiest recordings ever made, period. And yes, I recognize that “ballsy” has gender’d connotations. Whatever, sorry about that. It’s just the right term.

Anyhow, the track is Tricky’s version of Public Enemy’s Black Steel, as sung by Martina Topley-Bird, when she was 20.

Yep, a 20-year-old English woman, taking on Chuck D.

And it’s awesome.

I’ve been writing recently about female musical heroes for my daughter. Here’s another one: Martina Topley-Bird. Total badass.