Source Material: James Brown 'Black Caesar' (Part 1)

In the period of 1971 to 1974, James Brown had 25 top 100 charting singles and released 9 full length albums, all while extensively touring the country. Among some of his career defining releases is the soundtrack to 1973's 'Black Caesar', which was a nod to the film Little Caesar and not a nod to the 16th century pirate called Black Casear. The film helped launch former-football star Fred Williamson's career and also gave hip-hop some of its best ammunition. This two part blog arc will cover the contribution of 'Black Caesar''s samples to hip-hop.

The album's excellent opening track 'Down and Out in New York City' was Black Caesar's lone single. DJ Premier used it as the backing for Rakim's 'New York (Ya Out There)' from his 1997 solo album 'The 18th Letter'. James Brown's 'Blind Man Can See It' was used in 1990 by Diamond D for Lord Finesse's hip-hop landmark 'Funky Technician'. Two years later, Das EFX used the same song for their YO MTV Raps! staple 'They Want EFX'.

One of 'Black Caesar''s highlights, both on the soundtrack and in the film, is 'The Boss' - an overlooked classic in James' catalog. The beat is not overlooked in the world of hip-hop though: Ice-T used 'The Boss' for his 1989 track 'You Played Yourself'. In 2002, Salaam Remi produced Nas' 'Get Down', a hit from Nas' album 'God's Son' due to its throwback appeal.

Check back for part two of our look at 'Black Caesar'.

The Lowdown:
James Brown 'Down and Out in New York City', 'Blind Man Can See It', and 'The Boss'
from 'Black Caesar' (1973) (MP3/CD)
Rakim 'New York (Ya Out There)'
from 'The 18th Letter' (1997) (MP3/CD)
Lord Finesse and DJ Mike Smooth 'Funky Technician'
from 'Funky Technician' (1990) (MP3/CD)
Das EFX 'They Want EFX'
from 'Dead Serious' (1992) (MP3 not available/CD)
Ice-T 'You Played Yourself'
from 'The Iceberg' (1989) (MP3/CD)
Nas 'Get Down'
from 'God's Son' (2002) (MP3/CD)