Five On It: September 2008's Essentials

Wow, September has already come to a close, and that means another installment of Five On It, the five tracks you need most from the last month (though, honestly, this month was a killer and you do need to check out more than five).

Isaac Hayes' gigantic drum drop on 'Walk on By' was mentioned in this blog's first entry to a review of Biggie's 'Ready to Die'. 'Walk on By' will be covered extensively in at least one future post on this blog, but it's an absolutely necessary download if you don't already have it (and if you don't - why not?). Biggie's 'Ready to Die' was laced with another high profile sample: The Isley Brothers' 'Between the Sheets'. 'Between the Sheets' (and the instrumental on the single) are easy selections for sliding into 'Big Poppa' and winding down a night (or building up a party). 'Between the Sheets' was mentioned in the second 'Ready to Die' post, check out the other samples you may have missed.

Our blog covered 'Cavern' by Liquid Liquid in depth for it's post in the Breaks section. I've personally got a mini-mix cooking with 'Cavern' playing a prominent role - it's the perfect 'I know it but I don't know it' track for dancefloors. Eric B. and Rakim's 'Paid in Full' was covered in full on this blog and one of the many James Brown related tracks sampled on 'Paid in Full' is the J.B.'s burner 'The Grunt', perhaps best utilized by the Bomb Squad for Public Enemy. In any case, it's a classic break you need to have. In this blog's extensive producer profile for David Axelrod, his production for David McCallum's 'The Edge' was among the many breaks mentioned. That blog post alone is thick with beats, but 'the Edge' is one of the most notable because of it's use on a gigantic Dr. Dre hit.

The Lowdown:
Isaac Hayes 'Walk on By' (Radio Edit)
from 'Hot Buttered Soul' (1968) (MP3/CD)
The Isley Brothers 'Between the Sheets'
from 'Between the Sheets' (1982) (MP3/CD)
Liquid Liquid 'Cavern'
from 'Optimo' (1982) (MP3 not available/CD not available)
The J.B.'s 'The Grunt'
from 'Food for Thought' (1972) (MP3 not available/Import CD)
David McCallum 'The Edge'
from 'Music: A Bit More of Me' (1967) (MP3 not available/CD not available)

BONUS CUTS:
'Between the Sheets' is far from the only sample from the Isley Brother's 80s album 'Between the Sheets' that has been used by hip-hop artists. The Jay-Z and Too Short cut 'A Week Ago' samples the album cut 'Ballad for the Fallen Soldier' while the DJ U-Neek produced 'Buddah Lovaz' by Bone Thugs-n-Harmony samples the single 'Choosey Lover' by the Isleys (which was also notably coverd by Aaliyah). Don't overlook this album as another 80s outing by a band past their peak - 'Between the Sheets' has beats!

Producer Profile: David Axelrod (Part 1, 1966-1968)

David Axelrod first entered the recording industry as an A&R man in 1963, though major label production work soon followed when he helmed Lou Rawls' 'Live' album in 1966. Axelrod's minimal, funky production style has made his records a commodity among beat diggers and producers. This first post in a two post arc will cover Axelrod's early production work, from 1966 to 1968, and the artists who have sampled his tracks.

'Trouble Down Here Below' by Lou Rawls from his 1966 'Carryin' On' album was sampled on Justin Warfield's 'Teenage Caligula' produced by Warfield and QD III (Quincy Jones' son). The track is from Warfield's debut 'My Field Trip to Planet 9', a highly underrated, unconventional hip-hop album with psychadelic elements. He would follow with a string of unusual projects including the Justin Warfield Supernaut and One-Inch Punch before becoming half of the rock band She Wants Revenge. 'My Field Trip to Planet 9' will be covered in a future post on this blog.

One of 1993's inescapable summer jams owes some credit to Axelrod. The Joe Zawinul penned '74 Miles Away' by Cannonball Adderley from the 1967 album of the same name is the source for Naughty By Nature's 'Hip Hop Hooray', which was arguably Naughty By Nature's last hurrah on the charts. Call it what you like, it's an obvious sell out track, but it's immaculately produced and is seemingly cut with sunshine. Six years later, Dr. Dre would have his own summer anthem via another David Axelrod produced sample, but not without some hip-hop controversy. 'The Edge' by David McCallum was sampled by Missin' Linx for their track 'M.I.A.' in 1998, but a year later would be sampled again by Dre on 'Next Episode'. Whether it was a beat bite or a coincidence, 'Next Episode' blew up into the stratosphere while Missin' Linx is a footnote in hip-hop history. Another tidbit about this beat is McCallum himself, who was an actor from the television show The Man from U.N.C.L.E. who was given a two album deal (both of which are fully instrumental and produced by Axelrod). Another coincidence in sampling circles around two West Coast crews and a sample of Lou Rawls' open drum and vocal track 'Lifetime Monologue' from the Axelrod produced 'You're Good for Me' from 1968. Both the Beatnuts and Dilated Peoples sampled the break in 1997, the Beatnuts on their 'Stone Crazy' album track 'Thinkin' Bout Cash' and the Dilated Peoples on their Alchemist produced debut single 'Third Degree'.

Check back for part 2 of David Axelrod's producer profile, with tracks by DJ Shadow, Madlib, Lil' Wayne, and more.

The Lowdown:
Lou Rawls 'Trouble Down Here Below'
from 'Carryin' On' (1966) (MP3 not available/CD not available)
Justin Warfield 'Teenage Caligula'
from 'My Field Trip to Planet 9' (1993) (MP3/CD not available)
Cannonball Adderley '74 Miles Away'
from '74 Miles Away' (1967) (MP3 not available/CD not available)
Naughty By Nature 'Hip Hop Hooray'
from '19 Naughty III' (1993) (MP3/CD)
David McCallum 'The Edge'
from 'Music: A Little Bit More of Me' (1967) (MP3 not available/CD not available)
Dr. Dre 'Next Episode'
from '2001' (1999) (MP3/CD)
Clean Edit: 'Next Episode'
Lou Rawls 'Lifetime Monologue'
from 'You're Good for Me' (1968) (MP3 not available/CD not available)
The Beatnuts 'Thinkin Bout Cash'
from 'Stone Crazy' (1997) (MP3 not available/CD)
Dilated Peoples 'Third Degree'
from 'Third Degree' (1997) (MP3/CD not available)

BONUS CUTS:
Loads of instrumental cuts this time: Naughty By Nature 'Hip Hop Hooray' (Instrumental), Dr. Dre 'Next Episode' (Instrumental), and Dilated Peoples 'Third Degree' (Instrumental).