Kool & the Gang – ‘Winter Sadness’
taken from Spirit Of The Boogie (De-Lite, 1975)
(This post is dedicated to Travis as I know he’ll be feeling it. Can you hear me, yo?!)
I stumbled upon this track whilst embarrassing myself on The Breaks’ request forum and it’s been helping me keep things on a smooth tip on virtually every Sunday afternoon since. ‘Winter Sadness’ can be found on their 1975 release Spirit Of The Boogie, although you’ll have to be prepared to shell out if you want a physical copy on CD as this is long out of print and seems to be generally sought after.
Although this may not be classified as one of the group’s biggest releases it is very enjoyable, although I prefer Light Of Worlds and Wild & Peaceful. ‘Winter Sadness’ ends up being a bit of an anomaly on the album as the remainder of the songs are much funkier and harder hitting but I always tend to prefer the mellow, downtempo material from the legendary Jersey outfit anyway. Winner!
Treat yourself to this aural candy and indulge in that guilt-free chilling that you can only truly enjoy on a Sunday. Papers on the table, cup of tea in hand and a chicken in the oven: I’m killing it right now people.
Filed under: Sneaker Spot
Check out Nice Kicks’ recent feature on the hybrid phenomenon
Given that FDB is really all about the music, I’m going to resist the temptation of drilling out a 1000 word diatribe on the current trend of Nike and Jordan Brand to fuse old models from their archives to create new kicks and attempt to keep this brief. The shoe you see pictured above has spurred the sneaker fiend in me into action in no uncertain terms: I’m begging you Nike, don’t do this.
Now it’s not even like fusions/hybrids have to necessarily go awry. Off the top of my head I can think of several shoes in the Swoosh’s history where the concept of bringing together design elements from a number of different sources has worked well (see Huarache Lights Bursts as one example), but this latest planned concoction is nothing short of a travesty. For those not in the know, court legend Andre Agassi held a long-standing relationship with Nike during his career that proved incredibly fruitful in terms of great kicks. Having recently retroed both the Air Tech Challenge II and the ATC III, I was understandably hopeful of a similar treatment for the ATC IV in the coming months. It’s the black/purple/white model that has always lit the fires in my belly, an undeniably fabulous combination of colours that was set off with the use of suede and a loud yet tastefully executed tie-dye effect on the rear of the upper.
Is describing footwear as sexy wrong? Most probably. Does that stop me feeling a genuine sense of arousal when gazing at this vintage ATC IV advertisement? Absolutely not.
Current outlook for release? Not good. Instead it looks like Nike will be combining elements of the two recently retroed shoes with key components of the IV in a release scheduled for the beginning of 2009. The result is a bastardisation of the aesthetics of all three kicks in no uncertain terms and a shoe that looks, quite frankly, hideous. I can only hope at this stage that Nike also plan on bringing back the ATC IV in its original form alongside this release but something in my gut tells me that this isn’t going to happen.
As regular visitors to FDB, I guess that ultimately you may not care. Sneakers may be a part of hip hop, but they certainly ain’t the music. However, when you spend at least half of your waking hours looking at, discussing and obsessing over sneakers then this sort of thing becomes a serious issue. Very serious.
Somebody please help me.
Junior M.A.F.I.A. – ‘Player’s Anthem’
taken from Conspiracy (Big Beat, 1995)
New Birth – ‘You Are What I’m All About’
taken from Birth Day (RCA, 1972)
Doug E. Fresh & The Get Fresh Crew – ‘La Di Da Di’ ft. MC Ricky D
taken from The Show VLS (Reality, 1985)
1995. Ah, those heady days: The Infamous, Only Built 4 Cuban Linx, Liquid Swords, Lifestylez Ov Da Poor & Dangerous… Conspiracy? Not so much. However, I’ll happily admit to having a bit of a soft spot for Biggie’s chums-from-around-the-way’s debut album given that it was one of a small selection of relatively random cassette tapes that I treasured during the infantile stages of my love affair with hip hop music. The unwavering power of nostalgia strikes again.
Upon more mature reflection Conspiracy is by no means a bad album, with several great tracks nestled in amongst a host of unimaginative skits and overt attempts at crossover appeal, but there’s little doubt for me that ‘Player’s Anthem’ holds its head above the rest of LP’s offerings by a country mile. I mean, if after thirteen years I still can’t resist grabbing my delicates and imagining softly fondled mammary glands during the listening experience then something must be right here, mustn’t it? Don’t misconstrue me though. It’s a great song and I’m not that shallow. Much.
All joking aside, the beat here is beautifully executed and a testament to Clark Kent’s ear for a great sample. With Kent now assuming a dominant media persona as shoe connoisseur and fashion tastemaker, it’s often easy to forget that during his time he’s produced some truly great records and although he may not be the most imaginative of producers in terms of flips and chops the man can put together a great beat. ‘Player’s Anthem’ is a case in point, with a simple loop and drums formula combining to create an end product that is infectiously bangin’ and beautifully simple. The loops in question are lifted from New Birth’s ‘You Are What I’m All About’ from their 1972 release Birth Day and can be found at the very opening of the song. My suspicion is that the percussion and vocal sighs that run throughout the Junior M.A.F.I.A. track come from the opening two bars, whilst the warm bass line that complements them is the result of a low pass filter over the first four bars of bass groove thus eliminating the superfluous vocal ‘moans’ that would otherwise complicate the track’s stripped down aesthetic. Yes, I really am that geeky. Throw in the subtle layer of melody provided by a few other samples to the mix and you’re onto a winner.
Although I usually avoid commenting on the scratched samples found in chorus hooks (you’ve got to call an end to completism at some point when you’re blogging purely for the love), I can’t resist the temptation to throw up ‘La Di Da Di’ for the hell of it. Without traversing ridiculously tired ground, there’s such a charm to the simplicity of this song that I will never grow tired of… indulge yourself people. Can you believe this thing is 23 years old?!
Ultimately, I guess that ‘Player’s Anthem’ ends up being a bit of a guilty pleasure for me. It’s certainly not the sort of thing I’d play to someone who I was trying to convert to the genre due to its played out gangster posturing and misogyny, although Biggie’s verse still sounds great, but it endures for me as a highly enjoyable cut from the era that still sounds fresh (sorry Robbie). Ill, grown folk music it ain’t. And it’s all the better for it.
Filed under: Producers
Charles Hamilton – ‘Stay On Your Level’
So I just came across the latest bit of Pete Rock production at 2 Dope Boyz via the PR Forum. Having recently voiced my concerns over the Chocolate Boy Wonder’s current direction, this nonsense only serves to take another swipe at the already withered shreds of my optimism when it comes to contemporary Soul Brother material.
Pete, I’m still there for you, but there’s only so much one man can take.
Filed under: Miscellaneous
So I’ve been meaning to get my arse in gear for a proper beat deconstruction, but I’m struggling to find the inspiration. I’m blaming the change in season and that pesky credit crunch.
Here are some folk who seem to be weathering the storm just fine:
Brandon completes his notes on post-lyricism.
Zilla wants to be schooled on Slick Rick.
Jeff interviews Bishop Lamont.
Eric already starts cracking on with his top 100 of the year.
Ivan keeps on killing it with the sample sets with A Wolf In Sheep’s Clothing.
Robbie drops a new Sadat X track that’s been growing on me.
Kanye rocks a new colourway of the Yeezy. Oh, and premiers ‘Love Lockdown’.
Go give Jaz a hand with his requests.
Dart pays homage to the bloggerverse like no other.
Filed under: Slice Of Soul
Marc Moulin – ‘Aria’
taken from Placebo Years 1971 – 1974 (EMI , 1999)
It’s Sunday. I’m feeling lazy. Is there any better accompaniment to lethargy than this?
Filed under: Breaks
Power Of Zeus – ‘Sorcerer Of Isis’
taken from The Gospel According To Zeus (Rare Earth, 1970)
Having stuck simply to funk for fodder for this series so far, I thought I’d mix it up a little today and throw a rock joint at you for your percussive consumption. However, in terms of supplementary info on this particular break I’m afraid it’s going to be a little light on this occasion, as Power Of Zeus are a group who I know next to nothing about and wouldn’t ever profess to.
As far as I can tell ‘Sorcerer Of Isis’ is taken from their only studio album The Gospel According To Zeus which saw a release on Motown offshoot label Rare Earth. I’m yet to hear the LP in its entirety but ‘Sorcerer Of Isis’ is pretty cool for what it is, although bear in mind that this is coming from somebody who knows next to nothing about psychedelic ’70s rock. It’s also easy to see why it’s been adopted by beatmakers, as the beautifully clean hats, kicks and snares during the opening passage of the song are divinely ripe for the chop.
This only covers a fraction of it. Keep those ears trained for the snare hits in some of your favourite beats and ignore the fact that snare-spotting is pretty much as geeky as it gets: embrace it. I know I have.
Beatnuts – ‘Straight Jacket’
taken from Street Level (Relativity/Violator, 1994)
The Sons – ‘Boomp Boomp Chop’
taken from Sons (Capitol, 1969
Harry Nilsson – ‘Rainmaker’
taken from Harry (RCA, 1969)
Wu-Tang Clan – ‘Da Mystery Of Chessboxin”
taken from Enter The Wu-Tang: 36 Chambers (Loud/RCA, 1993)
Having been heavily back into the first Beatnut’s full-length over the last fortnight or so, I realised that I’ve actually rarely touched upon their work here at FDB. This strikes me as somewhat bizarre because despite only coming around to their material after devouring the more obvious production big-hitters, they still hold a special place in my heart as one of my favourite crews to ever do it behind the boards. OK, so they’ve ended up falling off post-2000 (who hasn’t?), but I still generally find their more recent music to be more enjoyable and imaginative than other outfits who have managed to maintain that same balance between underground respectability and mainstream success (see Dilated Peoples), and that’s saying something given that the inaugural Intoxicated Demons EP dropped in 1993. It’s probably no surprise to you that Street Level has endured as my favorite album from their back catalogue, and so it is that ‘Straight Jacket’ finds itself under the figurative digital microscope today.
What I’ve learned to appreciate about the Nuts since getting into the sample side of things is that those boys dug deep in the quest for funky musical fodder (perhaps that should be ‘dig’: there’s supposedly an album coming next year). Although looking over some of their sample credits reveals a lot of familiar names and breaks, there are also a few bits and pieces nestled in there that demonstrate an individual, artistic approach to the art of digging that is made even more impressive by a handful of songs that will be immortalised as their own unique find (here’s a decent example). Of course this is a quality shared by pretty much all of the production greats, but there’s something enjoyably kooky about some of the Beatnuts’ samples choices that I find endearing as it seems to communicate a passion for unearthing something truly original before transforming it into a very different beast (see corresponding example).
Although in terms of aesthetic The Sons’ ‘Boomp Boomp Chop’ may not seem that obscure a choice – it does after all conform to the standard smooth jazz formula that so many producers turned to during the era – the record itself has proven incredibly difficult to research. It’s not helped by the fact that the album is self-titled and that the name of the group is particularly generic, but I can’t help but feel that this is also an indication of this record’s scarcity and therefore highlights the Beatnut’s originality in its discovery. And the reason for the difficulty turns out to be down to a swift name change by psychedelic west-coast rock outfit Sons of Champlin for their second LP (shouts to reader eons for the info). The sample is easy to spot as it serves as the opening four bars of the main groove in the source material, a beautifully atmospheric mix of electric piano and guitar licks, and despite being pitched-down a little this is just a straight loop. I feel like I’ve said it hundred times before by now, but if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it. Any information on The Sons or the record from which this is lifted would be much appreciated.
For drums the selection is similarly astute. Although Harry Nilsson isn’t exactly a small player in the history of music, he doesn’t come to mind immediately when you think of hard-hitting snares, and yet it is from his song ‘Rainmaker’ that the Beatnuts source the percussion that propels ‘Straight Jacket’ forwards with such ferocity. As with The Sons’ groove this also appears to be looped, although extra snares add the necessary detailing and the step up in pace makes this a break to be reckoned with: in some ways I’m surprised that it hasn’t been used a little more widely. The album from which it is taken entitled Harry comes from the earlier stages of his career, released on RCA in 1969, and although I’d like to make some comment about how this work fits into the Nilsson catalogue in all honesty I haven’t got a clue. Yet another musical avenue to explore at some stage…
The ODB vocal sample as hook works wonderfully well, but there are so many other small nuances to comment on here that certify this is a masterfully executed chunk of mid-’90s hip hop music. The running water that disappears after the first eight bars makes the drop into drums all the more glorious, and the use of an unidentifiable high-pitched chirp that intermittently appears throughout the song adds another layer of interest which despite being relatively subtle adds real character to the beat. Then you got the switch in the main groove into the bass heavy riff and some tastefully placed sax to take into account and what you’re left with a beat that is at once perfectly simple whilst masking an underlying complexity.
I’m on a serious Beatnuts tip at the moment so I wouldn’t be surprised if they crop up again in the near future. They have got the funk, after all.
Filed under: Breaks
Dexter Wansel – ‘Theme From The Planets’
taken from Life On Mars (Philadelphia International, 1976)
Given that I’m lacking a bit of time today and am in some serious discomfort (knee cartilage is officially the bane of my life), it seems the perfect opportunity to continue my new series that focuses on everybody’s favourite part of good hippity-hoppity music, the drums. Today’s percussive treat comes in the shape of Dexter Wansel’s ‘Theme From The Planets’, a great slice of space-inspired downbeat funk that offers a hell of a lot more than just three bars of particularly crispy hats, kicks and snares.
So here’s my brief, entirely ripped–off summary of Wansel just to set you on your way into further exploration. A keyboardist raised in Philly, Wansel made his name alongside Gamble & Huff at Philadelphia International Records during the ’70s, eventually collaborating with artists such as MFSB, Grover Washington Jr. and Lou Rawls amongst many others. ‘Theme From The Planets’ comes from his most successfully commercial album Life On Mars which will now set you back a few bob if you hanker after original vinyl as a result of the presence of the track offered to you here: diggers love it. There’s little point in me regurgitating much more info, so follow the links and fill in the gaps yourselves.
As a brief aside, although whipping out the Spock costume does inevitably increase the inherent joy of the listening experience, it’s far from a necessity. However, if you do choose to take the plunge then be wary: those fake pixie ears can be a bitch to remove.
Filed under: Slice Of Soul
El Michels Affair – ‘Too Late To Turn Back’
taken from Sounding Out The City (Truth & Soul, 2006)
Despite lurking within the outer edges of my consciousness for a significant period time, it’s only within the last month or so that I’ve taken the plunge and actually decided to part with some hard cash and check out Brooklyn’s El Michels Affair for real. Up until this point I’ve only heard bits and pieces from their live Wu-Tang collaboration, the root of said lurk, so I was pleased when I received my copy of their first studio outing to find that it was brimming at the edges with the kind of beautifully executed retro soul/funk that has managed to find its place in a more commercial market over the last few years whilst staying admirably pure.
Not being any kind of aficionado means that I’ve really enjoyed listening to Sounding Out The City, although I can easily see how long-standing funk/soul heads may despise how blatantly derivative it is given that it is essentially an exact replica. It’s a damn good one though, and despite the band not really being able to maintain my interest over the course of an album that only just exceeds half an hour, plucking tracks out and enjoying them on their own merit is an easily achieved and joyful task. ‘Too Late To Turn Back’ is one of my current favourites and is representative of the album’s aesthetic as a whole, so if you dig it make sure to pick up the complete LP for more of the same sun-blissed musical goodness. Get me a late pass whilst you’re at it, will ya?
Just a shame the summer’s over. Oh wait, it’s OK, we didn’t have one anyway. I need to get my arse of this miserable island.
FROM DA BRICKS 