Showing posts with label Lafayette Afro Rock Band. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Lafayette Afro Rock Band. Show all posts

Friday, March 20, 2009

Rewind: Wu-tang Clan 'Enter the Wu-Tang' (Part 2)



Welcome to part 2 of our look at 'Enter the Wu-Tang (36 Chambers)'.

'Wu-Tang Clan Ain't Nuthing ta F--- Wit' may not be an A-side single, but its one of Wu-Tang's most endearing and well known tracks. The track, produced by the RZA and Method Man, samples the break from Lafayette Afro Rock Band's 'Hihache', the opening break from the Honey Drippers' 'Impeach the President', and elements of Biz Markie's 'Nobody Beats the Biz'. The biggest single from 'Enter the Wu-Tang', maybe the biggest single of the Wu's career, is 'C.R.E.A.M.'. This classic uses a sample of the Stax single 'As Long as I've Got You' by the Charmels, written by Isaac Hayes and David Porter. Don't sleep on that download link, this track has never been easy to come by!




Method Man takes on a track solo for 'Method Man' which samples 'Sport' by Lightnin' Rod (featuring instrumentation by an early Earth, Wind and Fire), 'Sundown' by Gordon Lightfoot, and re-interpolates Hall and Oates' 'Method of Modern Love' from 1984's 'Big Bam Boom'. The Wu's first single, originally released independently but redone for the album, was 'protect Ya Neck' which contains samples of Lowell Fulsom's 'Tramp' and Albert King's 'Cold Feet'. Finally, 'Tearz' samples another Stax 7": Wendy Rene's 'After Laughter (Comes Tears)'.

Wu-Tang Clan, following the release of their debut, became a legacy with more albums as a group and dozens of solo releases from the Wu members. Look for more Wu-Tang Clan associated posts in the future of this blog.


The Lowdown:
Wu-Tang Clan 'Wu-Tang Clan Ain't Nuthing ta F--- Wit', 'C.R.E.A.M.', 'Method Man', 'Protect Ya Neck', and 'Tearz'
from 'Enter the Wu-Tang (36 Chambers)' (1993) (MP3/CD)
Lafayette Afro Rock Band 'Hihache'
from 'Soul Makossa' (1972) (MP3/CD not available)
The Honey Drippers 'Impeach the President'
from 'Impeach the President' 7" (1973) (MP3 not available/CD not available)
Biz Markie 'Nobody Beats the Biz'
from 'Goin' Off' (1988) (MP3/CD)
The Charmels 'As Long As I've Got You'
from 'As Long As I've Got You' 7" (1967) (MP3 not available/CD not available)
Lightnin' Rod 'Sport'
from 'Hustler's Convention' (1973) (MP3 not available/CD)
Gordon Lightfoot 'Sundown'
from 'Sundown' (1974) (MP3 not available/CD)
Hall and Oates 'Method of Modern Love'
from 'Big Bam Boom' (1984) (MP3/CD)
Lowell Fulsom 'Tramp'
from 'Tramp' (1967) (MP3 not available/Import CD)
Albert King 'Cold Feet'
from 'King of the Blues Guitar' (1969) (MP3/CD)
Wendy Rene 'After Laughter (Comes Tears)'
from 'After Laughter (Comes Tears)' 7" (1964) (MP3 not available/CD not available)

Bonus Cuts:
Wu-Tang Clan 'C.R.E.A.M.' (Acapella)

Wednesday, June 4, 2008

The Breaks: Manu Dibango 'Soul Makossa'



For the first in a series of posts related to classic hip-hop breaks and drum samples, I chose a rather overlooked break: 'Soul Makossa' by Manu Dibango. I've been on a heavy afrobeat kick in the past few weeks and this one is very recognizable, even among average music fans. There are numerous covers, from the funk heat of Afrique to the Arthur Baker produced electro b-boy cover by Nairobi and the Awesome Foursome. One of the best covers of 'Soul Makossa' is by Lafayette Afro Rock Band from their album titled 'Soul Makossa'. Lafayette Afro Rock Band will definitely show up later in my coverage of classic breaks, 'Hihache' is one of the most widely used drum beats in hip-hop and 'Darkest Light' has one of the most widely used saxophone samples.

One artist to sample directly from Manu Dibango's original is Jermaine Dupri on 'Money Ain't a Thang' with Jay-Z; check out the opening drum break of the original and 'Money' side-by-side. Far and away, the most recognized interpolation of the refrain of 'Soul Makossa' is the end chant from 'Wanna Be Startin' Somethin' by Michael Jackson, produced by Quincy Jones. Transitions between 'Soul Makossa' and the end of 'Wanna Be Startin' Somethin'' (or vice versa) are unstoppable floor killers.

The Lowdown:
Manu Dibango 'Soul Makossa'
from 'Soul Makossa'(1972) (MP3 unavailable/CD)
Lafayette Afro Rock Band 'Soul Makossa'
from 'Soul Makossa' (1973) (MP3/CD unavailable)
Jay-Z and Jermaine Dupri 'Money Ain't a Thang'
from 'Vol. 2... Hard Knock Life' (1998) (MP3/CD)
Michael Jackson 'Wanna Be Startin' Somethin'
from 'Thriller' (1982) (MP3/CD)