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Maybe it's me, but it does not at all feel like 'Tha Carter III' was released on this date last year - Lil Wayne has easily given the American consciousness three years worth of crazy in just the last 12 months since his album finally dropped. This post will cover the sample material used by Wayne and his production cohorts for 2008's massive album 'Tha Carter III'.
The album's undeniable cut is the throbbing smash single 'A Milli' produced by Bangladesh. The song contains a sample from Norman Cook's remix of 'I Left My Wallet in El Segundo' from A Tribe Called Quest's 1989 UK version of the single. The Kanye produced track 'Comfortable' that posts Lil Wayne up with Babyface (uh?) includes a sample from another Kanye West produced track: 'You Don't Know My Name' from Alicia Keys' 2003 album 'The Diary of Alicia Keys'. As previously covered on this blog, Swizz Beatz produces a very un-Swizz sounding beat for Lil Wayne's 'Dr. Carter' by looping fragments of David Axelrod's 'Holy Thursday' bass and drum breakdown.Kanye West also produced the song 'Let the Beat Build' on 'Tha Carter III' using a sample from ex-Temptation Eddie Kendricks' 'Day by Day' from the 1972 album 'People... Hold On'. Probably the most well known use of another song on the album is Wayne's vocal interpolation of the Rolling Stones' 'Play with Fire' on his own track 'Playing with Fire' produced by StreetRunner. Since the interpolation was never licensed, the track has been removed from newer copies of 'Tha Carter III' and undoubtedly there is some kind of cash settlement (lesson: clear those samples). Finally, Rodnae and Moussa produce a scorcher for Lil Wayne, the nearly ten minute 'DontGetIt', by sampling Nina Simone's 1964 cover of 'Don't Let Me Be Misunderstood' from her classic album 'Broadway - Blues - Ballads'.
In a year when record sales were few and far between, Wayne managed to do the unthinkable: go platinum in one week (I'm going to date myself, but I remember when 'Doggystyle' did the same thing, and it was a HUGE deal - and that was when people actually bought CDs). So far, the album is three times platinum and Lil Wayne is showing no signs of slowing down with more albums planned and mixtapes released.The Lowdown:
Lil Wayne 'A Milli', 'Comfortable', 'Dr. Carter', 'Let the Beat Build', 'Playing with Fire', and 'DontGetIt'.
from 'Tha Carter III' (2008) (MP3/CD)
Clean Edits: 'A Milli', 'Comfortable', 'Dr. Carter', 'Let the Beat Build', and 'DontGetIt'.
A Tribe Called Quest 'I Left My Wallet in El Segundo' (Vampire Mix)
from 'I Left My Wallet in El Segundo' (1989) (MP3 not available/CD not available)
Alicia Keys 'You Don't Know My Name'
from 'The Diary of Alicia Keys' (2003) (MP3/CD)
David Axelrod 'Holy Thursday'
from 'Songs of Innocence' (1968) (MP3/CD not available)
Eddie Kendricks 'Day By Day'
from 'People... Hold On' (1972) (MP3 not available/CD not available)
The Rolling Stones 'Play with Fire'
from 'Out of Our Heads' (1965) (MP3/CD)
Nina Simone 'Don't Let Me Be Misunderstood'
from 'Broadway - Blues - Ballads' (1964) (MP3/CD)
Related Posts:
Producer Profile: David Axelrod (Part 2, 1968-1969)
Through the 70s, David Axelrod continued to record a series of albums and continued producing albums for Cannoball Adderley until his untimely death in 1975. This fourth look at Axelrod's career will cover his work with Adderley in the final part of his life, his work with Funk Inc., his solo work, and - as always - the artists who have sampled the songs from this era.Cannonball Adderley's albums from 1972 are crate digger fantasies: the difficult to track down 'Soul of the Bible' and 'Soul Zodiac' yielded producers with ample samplable music. Biz Markie used a sample from Adderley's 'Soul of the Bible' track 'Make Your Own Temple' for his 'Groovin'' from 1993's 'All Samples Cleared'. RZA sampled Adderley's 'Aries' from 'Soul Zodiac' for Genius/GZA's epic 'Gold' from the previously reviewed hip-hop classic 'Liquid Swords'.Following three jazz-funk albums in the early 70s overseen by Rudy Van Gelder, Funk Inc. turned to David Axelrod to produce their fourth album titled 'Superfunk' (which has recently been re-released by the fantastic BGP label, link below). 'Superfunk' is a source for Eric B. and Rakim's 'Keep 'Em Eager to Listen' which samples Funk Inc.'s cover of 'Message from the Meters'. Brand Nubian samples 'Goodbye, So Long' from 'Superfunk' for their single 'Hold On' from the 1994 album 'Everything is Everything'. Funk Inc. recorded one more album in 1974 with David Axelrod, the currently unavailable 'Priced to Sell', whose 'God Only Knows' was sampled by Black Sheep on their 'A Wolf in Sheep's Clothing' track 'La Menage' with Q-Tip. Q-Tip, Phife Dawg, Busta Rhymes, and Redman all appear on A Tribe Called Quest's 'Steppin' It Up' produced by Jay Dee which samples another Axelrod produced track: Cannonball Adderley's 'Leo: Rosebud' from his 1974 album 'Love, Sex and the Zodiac'.David Axelrod's out of print 1977 album 'Strange Ladies' is also a highly coveted piece of vinyl that's been sampled by hip-hop's finest. Lauryn Hill's 'Every Ghetto, Every City' from her 1998 album 'The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill' samples Axelrod's 'Tony Poem'. Two years later, Inspectah Deck sampled 'Terri's Tune' for Ghostface Killah's 'Stay True' from 'Supreme Clientele'.
Axelrod recorded three more albums following 'Strange Ladies' as his acclaim quietly grew in hip-hop production circles leading to a high profile release on Mo' Wax Records in 2001 and rediscovery of his work by a new audience. Look for further posts about Axelrod, his production work, and his sample credits on this blog.The Lowdown:
Cannonball Adderley 'Make Your Own Temple'
from 'Soul of the Bible' (1972) (MP3 not available/CD not available)
Biz Markie 'Groovin''
from 'All Samples Cleared' (1993) (MP3/CD not available)
Cannonball Adderley 'Aries'
from 'Soul Zodiac' (1972) (MP3 not available/Import CD)
Genius/GZA 'Gold'
from 'Liquid Swords' (1995) (MP3/CD)
Funk Inc. 'Message from the Meters' and 'Goodbye, So Long'
from 'Superfunk' (1973) (MP3 not available/Import CD)
Eric B. and Rakim 'Keep 'em Eager to Listen'
from 'Let the Rhythm Hit 'Em' (1990) (MP3/CD)
Brand Nubian 'Hold On'
from 'Everything is Everything' (1994) (MP3/CD not available)
Clean Edit: 'Hold On'
Funk Inc. 'God Only Knows'
from 'Priced to Sell' (1974) (MP3 not available/CD not available)
Black Sheep 'La Menage'
from 'A Wolf in Sheep's Clothing' (1994) (MP3/CD)
Cannonball Adderley 'Leo: Rosebud'
from 'Love, Sex and the Zodiac' (1974) (MP3 not available/CD not available)
A Tribe Called Quest 'Steppin' it Up'
from 'The Love Movement' (1998) (MP3/CD)
David Axelrod 'Tony Poem' and 'Terri's Tune'
from 'Strange Ladies' (1977) (MP3 not available/CD not available)
Lauryn Hill 'Every Ghetto, Every City'
from 'The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill' (1998) (MP3/CD)
Ghostface Killah 'Stay True'
from 'Supreme Clientele' (2000) (MP3/CD)
Bonus Beats:
Funk Inc.'s 'Message from the Meters' is, of course, a cover of 'Message from the Meters' by the Meters. The original Meters version is also a sampleworthy piece of 70s funk like much of the Meters discography: it was sampled by Matt Dike of the Dust Brothers and Michael Ross for Tone Loc's 'Loc'in on the Shaw' from 1989.
Related Posts:
Rewind: Genius/GZA 'Liquid Swords' (Part 1)
Rewind: Genius/GZA 'Liquid Swords' (Part 2)
Rewind: Ghostface Killah 'Supreme Clientele' (Part 1)
Rewind: Ghostface Killah 'Supreme Clientele' (Part 2)
Rewind: Ghostface Killah 'Supreme Clientele' (Part 3)
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After two of his most sought after albums, 'Song of Innocence' and 'Songs of Experience', David Axelrod released his final solo album for Capitol records in 1970: 'Earth Rot'. Like much of his output, this album is highly sought after by beat diggers and has been sampled by hip-hop's finest. This post will cover 'Earth Rot', as well as some of his production credits for Cannonball Adderley.
'Earth Rot' is divided into two concept album sides and is not as widely known for its beats. In 1994, No I.D. sampled Axelrod's 'The Signs (Part 2)' on the title track single to Common's sophomore album 'Resurrection'. The same track would be sampled by Madlib among many others (including other Axelrod tracks) on 'Return of the Loop Digga' as Quasimoto, whose album 'The Unseen' is reviewed in depth here, here, and here. In 1999, Diamond D and Mos Def would use another sample from 'Earth Rot', 'The Warnings (Part 2)' for the track 'Hip Hop' from Mos Def's breakthrough album 'Black on Both Sides' (which will be reviewed in depth soon in a future post on this blog).
In addition to producing his own material, Axelrod continued his role as producer on much of Cannonball Adderley's 70s output. Among the many Adderley albums that have been sampled is 1970's 'The Price You Pay to Be Free' whose song 'Exquisition' was sampled for the Pharcyde's 'Pack the Pipe' produced by J-Swift. 'Soul Virgo' from the same album is one of the samples used by A Tribe Called Quest on 'Bonita Applebum' from their debut 'Peoples' Instinctive Travels and the Paths of Rhythm'. Six years later, Tribe would sample another Cannonball Adderley track. An untitled track from Adderley's 'Black Messiah' album was sampled by Jay Dee (J Dilla) and the Ummah for Tribe's '1nce Again' from 'Beats, Rhymes, and Life'.
Check back for our next look at David Axelrod's production career.The Lowdown:
David Axelrod 'The Signs (Part 2)' and 'The Warnings (Part 2)'
from 'Earth Rot' (1970) (MP3/CD)
Common 'Resurrection'
from 'Resurrection' (1994) (MP3/CD)
Quasimoto 'Return of the Loop Digga'
from 'The Unseen' (2000) (MP3/CD)
Mos Def 'Hip Hop'
from 'Black on Both Sides' (1999) (MP3/CD)
Cannonball Adderley 'Exquisition' and 'Soul Virgo'
from 'The Price You Pay to Be Free' (1970) (MP3 not available/CD not available)
The Pharcyde 'Pack the Pipe'
from 'Bizarre Ride II The Pharcyde' (1991) (MP3/CD)
A Tribe Called Quest 'Bonita Applebum'
from 'Peoples' Instinctive Travels and the Paths of Rhythm' (1990) (MP3/CD)
Cannonball Adderley 'Untitled'
from 'Black Messiah' (1972) (MP3 not available/CD not available)
A Tribe Called Quest '1nce Again'
from 'Beats, Rhymes, and Life' (1996) (MP3/CD)
Following the success of Main Source's debut album 'Breaking Atoms', Large Professor's production work became sought after and, although there would be long breaks in his work, he'd go on to produce some stunning tracks.
In 1993, he contributed the beat for 'Keep it Rollin'' on A Tribe Called Quest's album 'Midnight Marauders'. The beat is pinned by a sample of Roy Ayer's Ubiquity era track 'Feel Like Making Love' from his 1974 album 'Change Up the Groove'. Large Professor's next high profile work would come on the debut of Nas, who made his debut appearance on 'Breaking Atoms'. Large Professor produced three of 'Illmatic''s tracks including the single 'It Ain't Hard to Tell'. The track contains a drum sample from Kool and the Gang's 'N.T.' and also contains a clever sample of Michael Jackson's 'Thriller' album cut 'Human Nature'.Through 1995 and 1996, Large Pro worked on his solo album titled 'The LP', but it was shelved in 1996 (it was later released as a promo in 2002). This major label limbo led to a brief dead spot in his career with scant production for Common, Organized Konfusion, and a handful of underground acts until the turn of the century. One of those production credits is for X-Ecutioners DJ Rob Swift who tapped Large Professor for his 1999 single 'Dope on Plastic'. 'Dope on Plastic' incorporates samples from Quincy Jones' 'Ironside' and a huge beat from Grand Funk Railroad's surprisingly huge 'Nothings the Same' from 1969's 'Closer to Home'.
Check back for part 3 of Large Professor's producer profile where we'll cover his production credits from after the year 2000.The Lowdown:
A Tribe Called Quest 'Keep it Rollin''
from 'Midnight Marauders' (1993) (MP3/CD)
Roy Ayers Ubiquity 'Feel Like Making Love'
from 'Change Up the Groove' (1974) (MP3 not available/CD)
Nas 'It Ain't Hard to Tell'
from 'Illmatic' (1994) (MP3/CD)
Clean Edit: 'It Ain't Hard to Tell'
Kool and the Gang 'N.T.'
from 'Live at PJ's' (1971) (MP3/CD not available)
Michael Jackson 'Human Nature'
from 'Thriller' (1982) (MP3/CD)
Rob Swift 'Dope on Plastic'
from 'Dope on Plastic' (1999) (MP3/CD not available)
Quincy Jones 'Ironside'
from 'Smackwater Jack' (1970) (MP3/Import CD)
Grand Funk Railroad 'Nothings the Same'
from 'Closer to Home' (1969) (MP3/CD)BONUS CUTS:
Get your remix on: Rob Swift's 'Dope on Plastic' (Instrumental) and 'Dope on Plastic' (Acapella).
Dilla, along with Q-Tip and Ali Shaheed Muhammad, continued their production as the Ummah by producing A Tribe Called Quest's 1998 album 'The Love Movement'. The lead single 'Find a Way' barely made a dent into the top 100 and although 'The Love Movement' peaked as #3 on the Billboard album charts, it didn't make much of a mark on the ever-changing landscape of hip-hop. 'Find a Way' begins a trend of odd, recent sample choices for Dilla - it nicks from Towa Tei's solo hit 'Technova (La Em Copacabana)' from only three years earlier. An album track from 'The Love Movement', 'His Name is Mutty Ranks', samples Aswad's 'Not Guilty'. A year later, Q-Tip would drop his solo album 'Amplified' with a heavier hitting single produced by Tip and Dilla: 'Vivrant Thing' (which samples portions of the Barry White produced 'I Wanna Stay' by the Love Unlimited Orchestra).The Ummah lent production to Heavy D's second and final solo album in 1999 titled 'Heavy' (does production from the Ummah seem like the kiss of death to anyone else?). 'Listen' from 'Heavy' is typical of the Ummah style from the era. After the dissolution of the Ummah, both Q-Tip and J Dilla joined the loosely defined production collective known as the Soulquarians. Another artist from the collective is the Roots' ?uestlove. The link led to Dilla's production credit on the Roots' 'Dynamite!' from their critically acclaimed 1999 album 'Things Fall Apart'.Check back for part 4 of our look at Dilla's career, including production work for Common, Erykah Badu, and De La Soul.The Lowdown:
A Tribe Called Quest 'Find a Way' and 'His Name is Mutty Ranks'
from 'The Love Movement' (1998) (MP3/CD)
Towa Tei 'Technova (La Em Copacabana)'
from 'Future Listening!' (1995) (MP3 not available/CD)
Aswad 'Not Guilty'
from 'Live and Direct' (1983) (MP3 not available/CD)
Q-Tip 'Vivrant Thing'
from 'Amplified' (1999) (MP3 not available/CD)
Love Unlimited Orchestra 'I Wanna Stay'
from 'Music Maestro Please' (1975) (MP3 not available/CD not available)
Heavy D 'Listen'
from 'Heavy' (1999) (MP3/CD not available)
The Roots 'Dynamite!'
from 'Things Fall Apart' (1999) (MP3 not available/CD)
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Collapsing under the pressure of hit albums, number one singles, and rampant drug use, Sly Stone delivered his 1971 album 'There's a Riot Goin' On' to anxious label executives. Though billed as Sly and the Family Stone, the album was produced almost entirely by Sly Stone himself who played many of the instruments on the album himself in overdub sessions and, mythically, recorded some of the album vocals from his bed. The dark sound of 'Riot' matched the gleeful optimism of the late 60s fading into the harsh realities of the early 70s. The lead single, 'Family Affair', would be Sly and the Family Stone's final number one record and the density of 'Riot' surprised fans and critics upon it's release. Through the album's audible turmoil, it has become one of the most highly acclaimed and heavily sampled albums in funk history.
Both 'Brave and Strong' and 'Poet' were used as sample sources for the Dust Brothers produced Beastie Boys sample-laced sophomore album 'Paul's Botique' on '3 Minute Rule'. The drum machine darkness of 'Family Affair' was stripped away for the early Black Eyed Peas party jam single 'Weekends' with Esthero. The ominous sound was added back to Ghostface Killah's 'Fishscale' Pete Rock produced album track 'Dogs of War' featuring, as the sample title would imply, Ghostface's son Sun God. 'Riot''s second single 'Runnin' Away' is famously the source for A Tribe Called Quest's 'Description of a Fool' from their 1990 debut album 'People's Instinctive Travels and the Paths of Rhythm'.
Increasing drug-fueled paranoia, overblown egos, money matters, and a possible murder-for-hire plot broke the band apart in 1972. Although Sly and the Family Stone would ever reach the heights of success beyond 'Riot', they would release six more albums which provide a salvo for samplers worldwide.The Lowdown:
Sly and the Family Stone 'Poet', 'Family Affair', 'Brave and Strong', and 'Runnin' Away'
from 'There's a Riot Goin' On' (1971) (MP3/CD not available)
Beastie Boys '3 Minute Rule'
from 'Paul's Boutique' (1989) (MP3/CD)
Black Eyed Peas 'Weekends'
from 'Bridging the Gap' (2000) (MP3/CD)
Ghostface Killah 'Dogs of War'
from 'Fishscale' (2006) (MP3/CD)
Clean Edit: 'Dogs of War'
A Tribe Called Quest 'Description of a Fool'
from 'People's Instinctive Travels and the Paths of Rhythm' (1990) (MP3 unavailable/CD)
BONUS CUT:
Between the recording of the albums 'Stand!' and 'There's a Riot Goin' On', Sly Stone formed the short lived Stone Flower label under the Atlantic umbrella and produced the label's lone four singles. During this time, he produced two top 10 hits for Little Sister, 'Somebody's Watching You' and 'You're the One'. The third and final song by Little Sister (who, maybe not surprisingly, is Sly Stone's actual sister) is the a-side to 'Somebody's Watching You', the not-often heard 'Stanga'.
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In 1992, after early cassette tape noodling and the formation of the rap group Slum Village, James Yancey (better known as J Dilla, though then known as Jay Dee) met veteran Detroit producer Amp Fiddler who let Yancey use his equipment to make beats. Only three years later, Dilla had production credits on over a third of the Pharcyde's sophomore album 'Labcabincalifornia'.
'Labcabincalifornia''s most notable single was the sublimely low-key Dilla produced 'Runnin''. Though it was largely ignored at the time of it's release, 'Runnin'' is one the Pharcyde's undisputed classics, thanks in large part to the way Dilla flipped samples from 'Saudade Vam Correndo' by Stan Getz and Luiz Bonfa. The brazilian samba sample adds a hazy touch that works perfectly with Pharcyde's laid-back West Coast style. Dilla also produced the album's first single, 'Drop', which appears on the b-side of 'Runnin'', making for a double loaded and infinitely necessary vinyl single.
One of the most oddball footnotes in Yancey's career, circulated widely the day after his untimely death in 2006 via email, is his beat for modern rock artist Poe. 'Fingertips' from Poe's 'Hello' features a deep and echoey drum track from Dilla, matched with a distant big band sample.
In 1996, Amp Fiddler would introduce Yancey to Q-Tip, leading to production for A Tribe Called Quest's 'Beats, Rhymes, and Life' and the formation of the Ummah. Keep it locked here as I look at more of Dilla's history in a future installment of his Producer Profile on this blog.
The Lowdown:
The Pharcyde 'Runnin'' and 'Drop'
from 'Labcabincalifornia' (1995) (MP3/CD)
Stan Getz and Luiz Bonfa 'Saudade Vem Correndo'
from 'Jazz Samba Encore!' (1963) (MP3/CD)
Poe 'Fingertips'
from 'Hello' (1995) (MP3/CD)
BONUS CUT:
'Runnin'' by the Pharcyde was remade in 2003 by Mýa and the Pharcyde and retitled
'Fallen', which failed to break the top 40. I hope Dilla got his money for this one.
