Five On It: September 2009's Essentials

Welcome to our September installment of Five On It, the most essential five breaks and sample sources of the past month compiled in one easy to access section.

This month began with a classic in our look at Organized Konfusion's self titled debut album, the breakdance anthem 'The Mexican' from Babe Ruth's first album 'First Base'. In our second look at 'Organized Konfusion', we mentioned the huge drum break at the start of Herbie Hancock's famous 'Chameleon' from 1973's 'Headhunters'. Check out the link to 'Chameleon' - I don't think you'll find a cheaper download for the full album length track anywhere else! The David Axelrod produced album 'Release of an Oath' by the Electric Prunes covered here has the other-worldly 'General Confessional', which made its rounds as a digger's dream find in the 90s. From their 1968 debut album, Kool and the Gang's 'Give It Up' has been used numerous times in hip-hop sampling, sampled by Dr. Dre among others. Finally, during our producer profile of Mark the 45 King, we mentioned his use of the cut 'Soul Power 74' by Maceo and the Macks - a stirring J.B. inspired cut with a notable heavy sax solo that has seen its fair share of sampling in the past.

The Lowdown:
Babe Ruth 'The Mexican'
from 'First Base' (1972) (MP3/Import CD)
Herbie Hancock 'Chameleon'
from 'Headhunters' (1973) (MP3/CD)
Electric Prunes 'General Confessional'
from 'Release of an Oath' (1968) (MP3/CD)
Kool and the Gang 'Give it Up'
from 'Kool and the Gang' (1969) (MP3 not available/CD not available)
Maceo and the Macks 'Soul Power 74'
from 'Us!' (1974) (MP3 not available/Import CD)

Bonus Cuts:
Babe Ruth's 'The Mexican' was a building block for b-boy sets in the early days of hip-hop, but it was also a building block for one of hip-hop's earliest crossover hits: 'Planet Rock' by Afrika Bambaataa and the Soulsonic Force. Many people instantly think of Kraftwerk when 'Planet Rock' is mentioned, but a lengthy instrumental riff is lifted from 'The Mexican' as well. Another bonus download link: the 'Planet Rock' instrumental version!

Five On It: August 2009's Essentials

This month was brimming with excellent breaks, so it was difficult to pick just five for this month's edition of Five On It, but we have five sureshot house burners for your listening pleasure.

On the first part of our look at N.W.A.'s 'Straight Outta Compton', we mentioned the Ohio Players' essential 'Funky Worm' from their 1972 album 'Pleasure'. Early Ohio Players material has been rather hard to come by in the past few years, so it's great to see their early work, like this track, is now readily available. The 'Funky Worm' synthesizer sound, along with Parliament, is the foundation of G-Funk; don't miss out. In our second look at 'Straight Outta Compton', we covered Charles Wright and the Watts 103rd Street Rhythm Band's 'Express Yourself' from their 1969 album 'Express Yourself'. On our final look at 'Compton', Dre and Yella sampled Herman Kelly and Life's foundational b-boy break 'Dance to the Drummer's Beat', which still lights b-boy competition dancefloors on fire today. On our second look at Cypress Hill's debut album from this past month, we covered two huge beats: All the People's 'Cramp Your Style' (more info about this one below) and Rufus Thomas' 'The Breakdown', another essential Stax open break from Thomas that needs to be in every producer's sample bank.

The Lowdown:
The Ohio Players 'Funky Worm'
from 'Pleasure' (1972) (MP3/CD)
Charles Wright and the Watts 103rd Street Rhythm Band 'Express Yourself'
from 'Express Yourself' (1969) (MP3/CD)
Herman Kelly and Life 'Dance to the Drummer's Beat'
from 'Percussion Explosion' (1978) (MP3 not available/CD not available)
All the People 'Cramp Your Style'
from 'Cramp Your Style' (1972) (MP3 not available/CD not available)
Rufus Thomas 'The Breakdown'
from 'Did You Heard Me?' (1972) (MP3 not available/CD not available)

Bonus Cuts:
'Cramp Your Style' by All the People is a huge b-boy break, but it's also a popular sample for early hip-hop producers and beyond. One of the first notable uses of 'Cramp Your Style' is by KRS-One on Boogie Down Production's single 'Still #1'. Two years later, Marley Marl used the sample on LL Cool J's 'Mr. Good Bar' while Teddy Riley sampled it for Guy's sophomore album R&B track 'D-O-G Me Out'. In 1991, DJ Slip and the Unknown DJ sampled 'Cramp Your Style' on Compton Most Wanted's 'Growin' up in the Hood' while Howie Tee used the sample for Chubb Rock's 'Keep it Street'.

Related Posts:
Five On It: January 2009's Essentials (Rufus Thomas appearance)

Five On It: July 2009's Essentials

Welcome to another installment of Five on It, the essential cuts covered in the last month. This month was brimming with excellent breaks, so it was hard to narrow it down to only five cuts; but all five of these tracks are sureshots that need to be in the arsenal of any good producer or DJ.

On our look at Nightmares on Wax's 'A Word of Science', we mentioned two classic breakbeats: Bob James' classic 'Take Me to the Mardi Gras' and Quincy Jones' 'Summer in the City'. Take a look at the original post for more info on Quincy Jones' song and the people who've sampled it throughout history. On the first part of our post about Pete Rock and C.L. Smooth's 'Main Ingredient', they used the breakbeat from Deodato's 'September 13' as a sample. Look below for more on samples from Deodatos' 1972 album 'Prelude'. On our first look at 'Black Sunday' by Cypress Hill, we mentioned Lee Dorsey's monumental open break intro to 'Get Out of My Life Woman'. Look for a two-part post next month on the people who've sampled this track - there were too many for only one post. Finally, in the same post, Billy Cobham's jazz-funk drum blast 'Stratus' was mentioned - check out the several minute intro of open drum sounds before the track falls into a bass and drum groove sampled by Massive Attack among others.

The Lowdown:
Bob James 'Take Me to the Mardi Gras'
from 'Two' (1975) (MP3/CD)
Quincy Jones 'Summer in the City'
from 'You Got it Bad Girl' (1973) (MP3/CD)
Deodato 'September 13'
from 'Prelude' (1972) (MP3/CD)
Lee Dorsey 'Get Out of My Life Woman'
from 'The New Lee Dorsey' (1966) (MP3 not available/CD not available)
Billy Cobham 'Stratus'
from 'Spectrum' (1973) (MP3/CD)

Bonus Cuts:
Dedoato's 'Prelude' album contains the break 'September 13', but this isn't the only song sampled from this album. Check out the cut 'Spirit of Summer' sampled by the Dilated Peoples for their early non-album track 'The Ruggedness' in 1997 and sampled again three years later by fellow West Coast rapper Nobody on 'For Those Who Never Dream'.

Related Posts:
Rewind: Massive Attack 'Blue Lines' (Part 1) (Billy Cobham appearance)

Five On It: June 2009's Essentials

Welcome to our latest installment of Five On It, the five essential beats covered in the last month that you need to add to your library of samples. Five On it has been running strong, every month I worry about picking five new breaks that haven't been given Five On It status before, but we always easily come up with five more, June being no exception.

This track is the second early hip-hop joint given Five On It status, but it's huge: Kurtis Blow's 'The Breaks'. Whether it's the opening handclap shout outs or its many breakdowns, 'The Breaks' is full of samples and still rocks the party hard. This track was sampled by DJ Premier for KRS-One. Next is another big 80s tune that still resonates with kids who were born after the 80s: Mtume's 'Juicy Fruit', famously sampled by the Notorious B.I.G. and Warren G. Lil Wayne's 'Tha Carter III' is responsible for breathing a little more life into Nina Simone's already amazing read of 'Don't Let Me Be Understood'. Look below for more on this classic song. Dilla sampled the hitting song 'I Got Some' by Billy Garner, one of my favorite funk cuts which has a solid intro break and a memorable sample. Finally, we had a post dedicated to Edwin Starr's 'Easin' In'. More blaxploitation bangers are sure to follow, we've covered a few, but there are plenty more to talk about.

The Lowdown:
Kurtis Blow 'The Breaks'
from 'Kurtis Blow' (1980) (MP3 not available/CD)
Mtume 'Juicy Fruit'
from 'Juicy Fruit' (1983) (MP3/CD)
Nina Simone 'Don't Let Me Be Understood'
from 'Broadway - Blues - Ballads' (1964) (MP3/CD)
Billy Garner 'I Got Some'
from 'I Got Some' 7" (1971) (MP3 not available/CD not available)
Edwin Starr 'Easin' In'
from 'Hell Up In Harlem' (1974) (MP3 not available/CD not available)

Bonus Cuts:
Even though Nina Simone was the first person to record the song 'Don't Let Me Be Misunderstood', the recording is probably best known for its versions by the Animals (1965) or Joe Cocker (1969). I'm usually not into disco songs and especially disco covers, but Santa Esmeralda delivered a quality version of 'Don't Let Me Be Misunderstood' in 1977. Bonus, a new re-release of the single features instrumental and acapella versions of Santa Esmeralda's cut.

Five On It: May 2009's Essentials

Here it is, this month's Five On It: the most necessary breaks of the past month distilled for maximum usability / listenability. This month had some burning hot cuts and also had some big tracks from our James Brown week. Check out what we've got for you.

UGK's 'Hard to Swallow' review was full of classic breaks, two of which we'll highlight this month. Bill Withers' 'Still Bill' is a classic album and no cut is more useful for slo-mo tracks than the hit 'Use Me'. Also, other 'Superfly album cuts have been previously featured as Five On It picks, but this month highlights the single 'Freddie's Dead' for its usefulness to producers. James Brown week featured a look at James Brown's 1974 album 'Hell' and featured the big cut 'My Thang', which may not be the first break one would pick from J.B.'s archive, but is a heavy one. Also featured during our look at James Brown was Myra Barnes' 'Message from the Soul Sisters' when we looked at the numerous songs that sampled that break. Finally, during our look at Ice Cube's 'AmeriKKKa's Most Wanted', we mentioned Funkadelic's heavy 'Standing on the Verge of Getting It On' from the album of the same title. It's no secret that P-Funk samples make up a large part of West Coast hip-hop history, and this song is no exception.

The Lowdown:
Bill Withers 'Use Me'
from 'Still Bill' (1972)(MP3/Import CD)
Curtis Mayfield 'Freddie's Dead'
from 'Superfly' (1972) (MP3/CD)
James Brown 'My Thang'
from 'Hell' (1974) (MP3/CD)
Myra Barnes 'Message from the Soul Sisters'
from 'Message from the Soul Sisters' 7" (1970) (MP3 not available/CD not available)
Funkadelic 'Standing on the Verge of Getting It On'
from 'Standing on the Verge of Getting It On' (1974) (MP3/CD)

Bonus Cuts:
Bill Withers' 'Use Me' intro drums have always been a popular sampling source, but that shouldn't take away from the impact of the song itself, which was covered many times by great artists. Esther Phillips delivered a version of 'Use Me' as did Isaac Hayes who played a live version of 'Use Me' at the Sahara Tahoe. In 1981, Grace Jones had a spooky version of 'Use Me' as only Grace Jones could. The original was recently sampled by Kanye West for Nas' track 'Still Dreaming'.

Five On It: April 2009's Essentials

Welcome to the latest installment of Five On It, where we look at the best breaks of the month. There was a lot to choose from since April was full of great albums, so these five are all sureshots.

Unbelievably, this track has not gained Five On It status, but Isaac Hayes' 'The Look of Love' is both a soul classic and a hip-hop necessity. It was one of the sources from our review of Mary J. Blige's 'My Life', but it is also the basis for many other notable hip-hop tracks. This blog's review of Massive Attack's 'Blue Lines' yielded three of our breaks of the month: 'Sneakin' in the Back' by Tom Scott and the L.A. Express, the Donald Byrd produced 'Rock Creek Park' by the Blackbyrds, and the opening break of 'I'm Glad You're Mine' by Al Green. On our review of DOOM's 'Born Like This', MF Doom sampled Galt MacDermot's 'Princess Gika'. Look below for some more on MacDermot and the artists that have sampled him.

The Lowdown:
Isaac Hayes 'The Look of Love' (Radio Edit)
from '...To Be Continued' (1969) (MP3/CD)
Tom Scott and the L.A. Express 'Sneakin' in the Back'
from 'Tom Scott and the L.A. Express' (1973) (MP3/CD not available)
The Blackbyrds 'Rock Creek Park'
from 'City Life' (1975) (MP3/CD)
Al Green 'I'm Glad You're Mine'
from 'I'm Still in Love with You' (1972) (MP3/CD)
Galt MacDermot 'Princess Gika'
from 'Woman is Sweeter' (1969) (MP3/CD not available)

Bonus Cuts:
Galt MacDermot's 'Woman is Sweeter' is a highly sought after crate digger pick (and available from Amazon in MP3 format - score) and the source for some of hip-hop's finest. Rashad Smith sampled MacDermot's 'Space' for Busta Rhymes' breakout single 'Woo-Hah! Got You All in Check' from 1996. MF Doom also sampled 'Space' for his Metal Fingers track 'Cinquefoil'.

Five On It: March 2009's Essentials

Welcome to March's Five On It: the top five breaks we mentioned over the last month for your downloading ease.

On our review of Scarface's debut album 'Mr. Scarface is Back', we mentioned the rarer break 'Sexy Coffee Pot' by Tony Alvon and the Belairs. Check out the breakdown two-thirds of the way into this one - it's a breakbeat bonanza for producers. In our first look at Madlib and MF Doom's 'Madvillainy', the Dramatics slo-mo 'In the Rain' from 'Whatcha See is Whatcha Get' was mentioned - a classic Volt/Stax side. In the second part of our look at 'Madvillainy' we mentioned 'PSK (What Does It Mean)' by Schoolly D. 'PSK' is the first classic hip-hop break to make it to the Five On It list, but its echoey drum machine boom bap is necessary for producers and DJs. During our exhaustive look at 'I Want You' by Marvin Gaye, we mentioned the often sampled single 'After the Dance'. Finally, during our look at the Wu's debut album 'Enter the Wu-Tang', we mentioned the essential breakbeat 'I Got the (Blues)' by Labi Siffre. Check out our bustling bonus cuts section below for more uses of 'I Got the (Blues)'.

The Lowdown:
Tony Alvon and the Belairs 'Sexy Coffee Pot'
from 'Boom-Boom-Boom' 7" (1969) (MP3 not available/CD not available)
The Dramatics "In the Rain'
from 'Whatcha See is Whatcha Get' (1971) (MP3/CD)
Schoolly D 'PSK (What Does It Mean)'
from 'Schoolly-D' (1985) (MP3 not available/CD not available)
Marvin Gaye 'After the Dance'
from 'I Want You' (1976) (MP3/CD)
Labi Siffre 'I Got the (Blues)'
from 'Remember My Song' (1975) (MP3/Import CD)

Bonus Cuts:
'I Got the (Blues)' is probably best known for its use (let's be real... its unadorned loop) on Eminem's 'My Name Is' produced by Dr. Dre, but it's been used plenty of times before and after. Two years before Eminem, Ski used the beat for Jay-Z 'Streets is Watching' which, of course, spawned the independent movie of the same name (bringing "f--- out of here" to the mouths of every rap fan within a 300 mile radius of Brooklyn). In 1998, Erick Sermon sampled 'I Got the (Blues)' for the Def Squad's 'Countdown'. In 1999, the beat was used by the Beatnuts for the Violator compilation track 'Beatnuts Forever' and Irv Gotti and Lil' Rob for Foxy Brown's 'Hot Spot'.

Five On It: February 2009's Essentials

Thanks for tuning into our look back at the breaks of the month, this month we'll be covering the hottest samples mentioned during the month of February.

This months bangers starts with Cerrone's 'Rocket in the Pocket' (more on 'Rocket' is below) from this blog's review of 'Special Herbs vol. 1 and 2' by Metal Fingers'. On the first post of our review of 'College Dropout' by Kanye West, we mentioned the dreamy soul single 'Distant Lover' from Marvin Gaye's classic album 'Let's Get it On'. The Larry Mizell produced 'Think Twice' by Donald Byrd was one of the samples used by Dilla on our fifth look of J Dilla's producer profile. Primo, on our look at Premier's production discography used the godfather of soul James Brown's 'Get on the Good Foot'. Finally, one of the samples used on Mos Def's 'Black on Both Sides' is Roy Ayers' solid break 'We Live in Brooklyn, Baby' with Ubiquity.

Keep it locked here, there are tons of great breaks this coming month.

The Lowdown:
Cerrone 'Rocket in the Pocket'
from 'Cerrone IV - The Golden Touch' (1978) (MP3 not available/Import CD)
Marvin Gaye 'Distant Lover'
from 'Let's Get It On' (1973) (MP3/CD)
Donald Byrd 'Think Twice'
from 'Stepping Into Tomorrow' (1974) (MP3/CD)
James Brown 'Get on the Good Foot'
from 'Get on the Good Foot' (1972) (MP3/CD not available)
Roy Ayers Ubiquity 'We Live in Brooklyn, Baby'
from 'He's Coming' (1972) (MP3 not available/CD not available)

Bonus Cuts:
'Rocket in the Pocket' is a classic break used by old school DJs and breakers and was an essential sample used by hip-hop's pioneers. Russell Simmons and Rick Rubin are credited as the producers of 'Raising Hell' and 'Hit It Run' by Run DMC. Dr. Dre and DJ Yella used the break for Eazy-E's 'Radio'. Finally, the King of Chill used the break for MC Lyte's 'Cha Cha Cha'.

Five On It: January 2009's Essentials

January was a burner on this blog! On some months, it's a no-brainer to pick five essential beats, but this month we covered so many heavy beats that it was hard to pick a top five. That being said, this months Five On It is all killer.

For our review of James Brown's classic blaxploitation soundtrack 'Black Caesar', we mentioned the influence of James' 'The Boss', a career defining bad ass anthem. During our review of the samples used on Spice 1's 'Spice 1', we mentioned the classic Funkadelic cut 'One Nation Under a Groove' that should already be a part of your party rocking playlist. James couldn't be confined by one beat on is month's list: 'Funky President (People It's Bad)' was mentioned in our second look at DJ Premier's production work and coincidentally during the month of the inauguration of America's funky president. A happy coincidence, I assure you.

During our first look at Ghostface's 'Supreme Clientele', we mentioned the breakbeat party starter 'Do the Funky Chicken' by Rufus Thomas, one of the many serious Stax breaks by the king of dances that will no doubt be covered in future blog posts. Finally, from the second look at 'Supreme Clientele' is the Curtis Mayfield produced 'Hard Times' by the Living Legend Baby Huey. Look below for more Baby Huey breaks.

The Lowdown:
James Brown 'The Boss'
from 'Black Caesar' (1973) (MP3/CD)
Funkadelic 'One Nation Under a Groove'
from 'One Nation Under a Groove' (1978) (MP3 not available/CD not available)
James Brown 'Funky President (People It's Bad)'
from 'Reality' (1975) (MP3 not available/CD not available)
Rufus Thomas 'Do the Funky Penguin'
from 'The Crown Prince of Dance' (1973) (MP3 not available/CD not available)
Baby Huey 'Hard Times'
from 'The Living Legend' (1970) (MP3/CD)

BONUS CUTS:
'The Living Legend' by Baby Huey is full outstanding breaks used regularly by producers. 'Listen to Me' was sampled for both Eric B. and Rakim's 'Follow the Leader' and Public Enemy's 'Revolutionary Generation' while the wah guitar squall and heavy drums of 'Runnin'' and the full out funk party of 'Mighty Mighty' are ripe for the plucking. 'The Living Legend' is the lone album by Baby Huey, released after his untimely death. One can only imagine the albums he could've made if his career wasn't cut so short.

Five On It: December 2008's Essentials

Welcome to the final Five On It of the year, a review of the hottest sample sources covered during December.

In our review of Notorious B.I.G.'s 'Life After Death, Herb Alpert's 'Rise' was mentioned as the source for 'Hypnotize''s bassline. Luckily, 12" copies of 'Rise' are fairly easy to find, but if your using Serato - hit the download for the full length album cut and set those cue points for the break. Also mentioned in our review of 'Life After Death' is the trippy 'Space Talk' by Asha Puthli. Though not the most used sample in our review of Marvin Gaye's 'Trouble Man', it's my personal favorite: Marvin's laid back instrumental 'T Plays it Cool'. 'T' is waiting for a proper a flip, anyone up to the challenge?

On our review of Dr. Dre's immortal 'The Chronic', we covered Leon Haywood's 'I Wanna Do Something Freaky To You', the basis of 'Nuthin' But a G Thang'. The extra long intro to 'Freaky' is perfect for teasing the dancefloor before dropping 'G Thang'. Finally, also from the 'Chronic' review is the opening breakbeat from Led Zeppelin's 'When the Levee Breaks'. Gigantic drums that have been used a lot more than you may think (see below).

The Lowdown:
Herb Alpert 'Rise'
from 'Rise' (1979) (MP3/CD)
Asha Puthli 'Space Talk'
from 'The Devil is Loose' (1978) (MP3/CD not available)
Marvin Gaye 'T Plays it Cool'
from 'Trouble Man' (1972) (MP3/CD)
Leon Haywood 'I Wanna Do Something Freaky to You'
from 'Come and Get Yourself Some' (1979) (MP3 not available/CD not available)
Led Zeppelin 'When the Levee Breaks'
from 'Led Zeppelin IV' (1971) (MP3/CD)

BONUS CUTS:
'When the Levee Breaks' is a popular drum sample for hip-hop on both sides of the Atlantic, but it has also showed up in some odd places in pop history. In 1987, Depeche Mode used 'Levee' for the drums on their single 'Never Let Me Down' to great effect. In 1992, Sophie B. Hawkins used the 'Levee' break on the adult contemporary hit 'Damn I Wish I was Your Lover' (soccer moms stand up). A year later, the break was used on Enigma's biggest U.S. hit fueling interest in 'Pure Moods' compilations for years on 'Return to Innocence'. I can only wonder how much Led Zeppelin has made on just the opening few seconds of one of their lesser known album tracks!

Five On It: November 2008's Essentials

This one is a killer, we covered some serious beats this past month and I've whitled them down to the best of the best for November's edition of Five On It.

We start with a cross-generation party starter: George Clinton's bugged out canine anthem 'Atomic Dog' (which originally appeared on our Halloween post covering 'We Can't Be Stopped' by the Geto Boys). In our second look at Large Professor's production work, we covered Grand Funk Railroad's rock funk break track 'Nothings the Same' from their album 'Closer to Home'. Grand Funk have a bad rep, but they have some serious beats in their back catalog. 'Apache' by the Incredible Bongo Band was covered in an in depth two part post on this blog. 'Apache' is as essential as it gets, you have to get this one if its not part of your DJing arsenal. The J.B.'s 'Pass the Peas' is just one of the J.B.'s breakbeat necessities produced under the Godfather of Soul, James Brown (this break was mentioned on the first part of our look at 'Bizarre Ride II the Pharcyde). In the third part of 'Bizarre Ride II the Pharcyde', we first mentioned Skull Snaps' huge 'It's a New Day', another absolutely critical beat for producers.

The Lowdown:
George Clinton 'Atomic Dog'
from 'Computer Games' (1982) (MP3 not available/CD)
Grand Funk Railroad 'Nothings the Same'
from 'Closer to Home' (1969) (MP3/CD)
Incredible Bongo Band 'Apache'
from 'Bongo Rock' (1973) (MP3/CD)
The J.B.'s 'Pass the Peas'
from 'Food For Thought' (1972) (MP3 not available/Import CD)
Skull Snaps 'It's a New Day'
from 'Skull Snaps' (1973) (MP3 not available/Import CD)

BONUS CUTS:
Skull Snaps' self-titled, hard to find album is not limited to 'It's a New Day', it's full of quality samples. A young Pharoahe Monch and Prince Po as Organized Konfusion (with a guest spot from O.C.) rap over Skull Snaps' 'Tresspassin'' on 'Fudge Pudge'.

Five On It: October 2008's Essentials

Welcome to October's Five On It - the most essential breaks of the past month in one place.

It should be no surprise that James Brown is the most tagged artist name on this blog and with beats like 'Hot (I Need to Be Loved Loved Loved Loved)' from our first post about Above the Law's 'Livin' Like Hustlers', you can be sure that we'll keep covering the godfather of soul. On the second part of our look at 'Livin' Like Hustlers', we covered Isaac Hayes' album track 'Hyperbolicsyllabicsesquedalymistic' from his classic 'Hot Buttered Soul'. Along with 'Walk on By', 'Hot Buttered Soul' is an essential album for both music lovers and producers looking for beats.

Nina Simone's 'Sinnerman' was featured on this blog's second Kanye West Producer Profile post along with two bonus reggae covers. Check out our review of Das EFX's 'Dead Serious' for our mention of the Emotions' break on 'Blind Alley'. The same post contains the first mention of ESG's essential breakbeat track 'UFO'. Check below for some bonus ESG treats.

The Lowdown:
James Brown 'Hot (I Need to Be Loved Loved Loved Loved)'
from 'Hot!' (1976) (MP3 not available/CD not available)
Isaac Hayes 'Hyperbolicsyllabicsesquedalymistic'
from 'Hot Buttered Soul' (1968) (MP3/CD)
Nina Simone 'Sinnerman'
from 'Pastel Blues' (1965) (MP3/CD)
The Emotions 'Blind Alley'
from 'Untouched' (1971) (MP3/CD)
ESG 'UFO'
from 'ESG' (1981) (MP3 not available/CD not available)

BONUS CUTS:
Emerald, Sapphire, and Gold - shortened to ESG - was made of three Bronx sisters from the Scroggins family with an additional guitarist and bassist (later replaced by even more Scroggins family members). Their United States debut was 1981's self titled 6-track EP, but their first recordings were for the UK's Factory Records. Martin Hannett (best known for his work with Joy Division, New Order, and the Happy Mondays) produced three tracks for ESG's debut single 'You're No Good' which features 'UFO', 'You're No Good', and the amazing dance track 'Moody'. All three tracks made up the A-side of the US release of 'ESG' with three new tracks on the B-side.

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!