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'.

Rewind: Wu-tang Clan 'Enter the Wu-Tang' (Part 1)

Following a couple early singles by GZA (The Genius) and RZA (aka Prince Rakeem) and a self-released single, the Wu-Tang Clan signed to a major label deal and released one of hip-hop's classics in 1993: 'Enter the Wu-Tang (36 Chambers)'. This two part post will cover the sample sources of the Wu's debut album.

The opening track 'Bring Da Ruckus' uses one of RZA's go to drum samples throughout the album: Melvin Bliss' break-fueled freak out 'Synthetic Substitution'. ODB's first appearance comes in full style on the track 'Shame on a N----' which samples both Thelonius Monk's cover of Duke Ellington's 'Black and Tan Fantasy' and the break from Syl Johnson's 'Different Strokes'. 'Clan in Da Front' uses the 'Synthetic Substitution' break with a sample of New Birth's 'Honey Bee'.



The Wu's posse cut 'Wu-Tang: 7th Chamber' samples Lonnie Smith's 'Spinning Wheel' from his 1970 album 'Drives'. RZA gets a hand in production from 4th Disciple for the single 'Can it Be All So Simple'. 'Simple' samples Gladys Knight and the Pips' 1974 cut 'The Way We Were / Try to Remember' and the beat from Labi Siffre's 'I Got The (Blues)' from his 1975 album 'Remember My Song'.

Check back for the second part to our look at 'Enter the Wu-Tang'.

The Lowdown:
Wu-Tang Clan 'Bring Da Ruckus', 'Shame on a N----', 'Clan in Da Front', 'Wu-Tang: 7th Chamber', and 'Can It Be All So Simple'
from 'Enter the Wu-Tang (36 Chambers)' (1993) (MP3/CD)
Melvin Bliss 'Synthetic Substitution'
from 'Reward' 7" (1973) (MP3 not available/CD not available)
Thelonius Monk 'Black and Tan Fantasy'
from 'Plays Duke Ellington' (1955) (MP3/CD)
Syl Johnson 'Different Strokes'
from 'Is It Because I'm Black?' (1970) (MP3 not available/CD not available)
New Birth 'Honey Bee'
from 'It Ain't No Big Thing But It's Growing' (1971) (MP3 not available/CD not available)
Lonnie Smith 'Spinning Wheel'
from 'Drives' (1970) (MP3 not available/CD not available)
Gladys Knight and the Pips 'The Way We Were / Try to Remember'
from 'I Feel a Song' (1974) (MP3 not available/CD not available)
Labi Siffre 'I Got the (Blues)'
from 'Remember My Song' (1975) (MP3/Import CD)

Related Posts:
Rewind: GZA/Genius 'Liquid Swords' (Part 1)
Rewind: GZA/Genius 'Liquid Swords' (Part 2)