Street Sounds: Kevin Saunderson

This edition of Street Sounds will round out our look at the Belleville Three. We previously had posts looking at the work of Juan Atkins and Derrick May, this third and final post looking at the first wave of Detroit Techno will cover Kevin Saunderson who achieved the most acclaim in the mainstream of the three forefathers of techno with his work with Inner City.

Following Atkins' early acclaim with Cybotron, Saunderson and Atkins worked on a project titled Kreem for Atkins' label Metroplex. The results are one of Detroit Techno's early essential singles: 'Triangle of Love' by Kreem rank with the seminal work of Model 500 and Rhythim is Rhythim.

While looking for a vocalist, Kevin Saunderson hooked up with Paris Grey in 1987 and Inner City was unofficially born. The duo scored major hits with 'Big Fun' and 'Good Life' (the latter is still a surefire party starter) and successfully released their full length album 'Paradise' in 1989 (the album was titled, confusingly, 'Big Fun' in North America). In the following years, Saunderson continued to produce under his own name and other pseudonyms like E-Dancer (which scored a club hit with 'Heavenly' in 1998).

The Lowdown:
Kreem 'Triangle of Love'
from 'Triangle of Love' 12" (1984) (MP3 not available/CD not available)
Inner City 'Big Fun' and 'Good Life'
from 'Paradise' (1989) (MP3/CD)
E-Dancer 'Heavenly'
from 'Heavenly' (1998) (MP3 not available/CD not available)

Bonus Cuts:
Recently, some of Saunderson's peers and some of the biggest names in dance contributed remixes to his past work. Some key cuts include Carl Craig's remix of Inner City's 'Till We Meet Again' and Simian Mobile Disco's remix of Inner City's hit single 'Big Fun'.

Related Posts:
Street Sounds: Juan Atkins
Street Sounds: Derrick May

Street Sounds: Juan Atkins

This is the first post in the new Street Sounds section of this blog, which will cover influential electronic music from the 80's that has impacted the state of hip-hop today. It'll also act as a great resource for pumping up b-boy sets for anyone looking for more music for breaking. Today, I'm covering the early releases by Juan Atkins, the most notable member of Belleville Three and the godfather of techno.

'Clear' by Cybotron, originally released as a single and on the album 'Enter' (which was later retitled 'Clear' after its biggest hit), was a smash hit (especially in the U.K.) and an essential song for any electro set. Cybotron was the pairing of Atkins and Rick Davis, who would split after the success of 'Clear'. Davis continued Cybotron without Atkins, though would never repeat 'Clear''s success. Atkins moved on to hone the new Detroit Techno sound that would make him famous.

'Clear' was sampled many times in the late 80's and early 90's, notably on Poison Clan's 'Shake Whatcha Mama Gave Ya'', which still sparks action on dancefloors today. Poison Clan's huge hit led to many knock offs, including Splack Pack's 'Shake That A-- B----' that also incorporates 'Clear''s electro bounce. Recently, 'Clear' was also used for Missy Elliott's club hit 'Lose Control' with Ciara and Fatman Scoop. The multiple revivals of 'Clear' makes it an even more devastating tool for dancefloors and house parties, people know this track even if they don't know exactly what it is.

Atkins would cement his legacy as techno royalty in 1985 with two legendary singles: 'Night Drive (Thru-Babylon)' and 'No UFO's. Both songs are foundations for the techno genre, but can easily be thrown into classic electro or breakdance sets. For added impact, consider using the instrumental for 'No UFO's' when playing a classic techno mini-set, it'll throw a knowledgeable crowd into a tizzy.

The Lowdown:
Cybotron 'Clear'
from 'Enter' (1983) (MP3/CD)
Poison Clan 'Shake Whatcha Mama Gave Ya''
from 'Poisonous Mentality' (1992) (MP3/CD)
Splack Pack 'Shake That A-- B----'
from 'Shake That A-- B----' 12" (1992) (MP3 not available/CD not available)
Missy Elliott 'Lose Control'
from 'The Cookbook' (2005) (MP3/CD)
Clean Edit: 'Lose Control'
Model 500 'Night Drive (Thru-Babylon)'
from 'Night Drive' 12" (1985) (MP3/CD not available)
Model 500 'No UFO's' and 'No UFO's' (Instrumental)
from 'No UFO's' 12" (1985) (MP3/CD not available)