Rewind: Jay-Z 'Vol. 2... Hard Knock Life'

Released on September 29th of 1998, Jay-Z's third full length, 'Vol. 2... Hard Knock Life' dropped following the breakout hit of its lead single. This post will look at the producers and the artists sampled for Jay-Z's hit album.

'Hard Knock Life (Ghetto Anthem)' was the polarizing lead single from the album, featuring Mark the 45 King flipping the song 'It's a Hard Knock Life' from Peter Gennaro's 1977 version of the broadway musical 'Annie'. No one could have foreseen the impact of sampling such a strange song, or the terrible knockoffs it would produce (I'm looking at you 'Anything'). On the J-Runnah produced 'A Week Ago', Jigga and Too Short rhyme over the Isley Brothers deep album cut 'Ballad for the Fallen Soldier' from their own hit album 'Between the Sheets' from 1983. The Erick Sermon produced 'Reservoir Dogs' features Jay-Z, Beanie Sigel, and innexplicably the Lox on the rhythm of Isaac Hayes' 'Theme from Shaft'. The song also features a sample of '24 Carat Black (Theme)' from 24 Carat Black's lone Stax album 'Ghetto: Misfortune's Wealth' from 1973, which has since been a highly coveted beat tool by producers. Jay-Z's 'It's Like That' finds Kid Capri sampling the rock song 'Beggar's Song' from Wet Willie's eponymous 1971 album. Finally, Jermaine Dupri and Jay-Z team up for the bonus track 'Money Ain't a Thing' which has Dupri sampling Steve Arrington's hit 'Weak at the Knees' and has the stuttered drum shuffle of Manu Dibango's African crossover hit 'Soul Makossa' from his 1972 album of the same title.

The Lowdown:
Jay-Z 'Hard Knock Life (Ghetto Anthem)', 'A Week Ago', 'Reservoir Dogs', 'It's Like That', and 'Money Ain't a Thing'
from 'Vol. 2' (1998) (MP3/CD)
Clean Edits: 'Hard Knock Life (Ghetto Anthem)', 'A Week Ago', 'Reservoir Dogs', 'It's Like That', and 'Money Ain't a Thing'
Peter Gennaro 'It's a Hard Knock Life'
from 'Annie' (1977) (MP3 not available/CD)
The Isley Brothers 'Ballad for the Fallen Soldier'
from 'Between the Sheets' (1983) (MP3/CD)
Isaac Hayes 'Theme from Shaft'
from 'Shaft' (1971) (MP3/CD)
24 Carat Black '24 Carat Black (Theme)'
from 'Ghetto: Misfortune's Wealth' (1973) (MP3 not available/CD)
Wet Willie 'Beggar's Song'
from 'Wet Willie' (1971) (MP3 not available/CD not available)
Steve Arrington 'Weak at the Knees'
from 'Steve Arrington Hall of Fame I' (1983) (MP3/CD not available)
Manu Dibango 'Soul Makossa'
from 'Soul Makossa' (1972) (MP3 not available/Import CD)

Rewind: Ghostface Killah 'The Big Doe Rehab' (Part 1)

In 2007, Ghostface Killah delivered his 7th major label solo album 'The Big Doe Rehab'. This two part arc will cover the sample sources, producers, and guests of Ghost's latest album to date.

Beanie Sigel and Styles P appear on Ghost's heavy hitting album cut 'Toney Sigel A.K.A. the Barrel Brothers' produced by the Hitmen production teams' LV and Sean C. Similar to the team's work on Jay-Z's 'American Gangster', this track relies on a deep crate sample: Al Wilson's 1971 single 'Falling in Love with You'. The team used a much more well known sample for the album's opening single 'We Celebrate' with Kid Capri. They use Rare Earth's huge 1971 hit 'I Just Want to Celebrate' from the album 'One World'. On 'Walk Alone', Anthony Acid uses Little Milton's 'Packed Up and Took My Mind' as a backing for Ghostface, Trife Da God, and Sun God. Scram Jones and Frequency provide the beat for Ghost's bizarre celeb-obsessed 'White Linen Affair (Toney Awards)' which lifts a sample from 'That's the Way It's Got to Be (Body and Soul)' from the Soul Generation's 1972 album 'Beyond Body and Soul'.

Check back for more tracks from 'The Big Doe Rehab' and their sources.

The Lowdown:
Ghostface Killah 'Toney Sigel A.K.A. The Barrel Brothers', 'We Celebrate', 'Walk Around', and 'White Linen Affair (Toney Affair)'
from 'The Big Doe Rehab' (2007) (MP3/CD)
Clean Edits: 'Toney Sigel A.K.A. The Barrel Brothers', 'We Celebrate', 'Walk Around', and 'White Linen Affair (Toney Affair)'
Al Wilson 'Fallin' in Love with You'
from 'Fallin' in Love with You' 7" (1971) (MP3 not available/CD not available)
Rare Earth 'I Just Want to Celebrate'
from 'One World' (1971) (MP3 not available/CD not available)
Little Milton 'Packed Up and Took My Mind'
from 'Tin Pan Alley' (1974) (MP3/CD)
Soul Generation 'That's the Way It's Got to Be (Body and Soul)'
from 'Beyond Body and Soul' (1972) (MP3/Import CD)

Related Posts:
Rewind: Ghostface Killah 'Ironman'
Rewind: Ghostface Killah 'Supreme Clientele' (Part 1)
Rewind: Ghostface Killah 'Supreme Clientele' (Part 2)
Rewind: Ghostface Killah 'Supreme Clientele' (Part 3)
Rewind: Jay-Z 'American Gangster' (Part 1) (Hitmen production work)
Rewind: Jay-Z 'American Gangster' (Part 2) (Hitmen production work)