Rewind: Ice Cube 'AmeriKKKa's Most Wanted' (Part 3)

Welcome to our third and final look at Ice Cube's 'AmeriKKKa's Most Wanted' and its sample sources.

Da Lench Mob make an early appearance on Ice Cube's aptly titled 'Rollin' wit' the Lench Mob' produced by the Bomb Squad, Sir Jinx, and Cube. The team dips into Parliament's 'Motor-Booty Affair' again for the single 'Aquaboogie (Psychoalphadiscobetabioaquadoloop)'. Ice Cube rhymes over a barrage of heavily sampled breaks on the single 'Who's the Mack?' including Sly and the Family Stone's 'Sing a Simple Song', Marvin Gaye's 'T Stands for Trouble', The Honey Drippers' classic 'Impeach the President', and 'I Wanna Get Down' by Fred and The New J.B.'s. Sir Jinx and Ice Cube share production credits for Cube's duet with Yo-Yo: 'It's a Man's World'. The song samples and interpolates James Brown's breakthrough single 'It's a Man's, Man's, Man's World' and also samples Roy Ayers' 'Brother Green (The Disco King)' from his 1974 album 'Mystic Voyage'. Finally, the track 'The Bomb' seems like Sir Jinx and the Bomb Squad laying the groundwork for West Coast rap to come by sampling the Soul Searchers' 1974 cut 'Funk to the Folks' and Zapp's forever low rider banging 'More Bounce to the Ounce' from their 1979 self titled album.

'AmeriKKKa's Most Wanted' was only the start for Ice Cube, who released a series of popular and controversial albums throughout the mid-90s leading to burgeoning movie career and several attempts at a credible comeback including his 2008 album 'Raw Footage'.

The Lowdown:
Ice Cube 'Rollin' wit' the Lench Mob', 'Who's the Mack?', 'It's a Man's World', and 'The Bomb'
from 'AmeriKKKa's Most Wanted' (1990) (MP3/CD)
Parliament 'Aquaboogie (Psychoalphadiscobetabioaquadoloop)'
from 'Motor-Booty Affair' (1977) (MP3/CD)
Sly and the Family Stone 'Sing a Simple Song'
from 'Stand!' (1969) (MP3/CD)
Marvin Gaye 'T Stands for Trouble'
from 'Trouble Man' (1972) (MP3/CD)
The Honey Drippers 'Impeach the President'
from 'Impeach the President' 7" (1973) (MP3 not available/CD not available)
Fred and The New J.B.'s 'I Wanna Get Down'
from 'Breakin' Bread' (1974) (MP3 not available/CD not available)
James Brown 'It's a Man's, Man's, Man's World'
from 'It's a Man's, Man's, Man's World' (1966) (MP3 not available/CD not available)
Roy Ayers 'Brother Green (The Disco King)'
from 'Mystic Voyage' (1974) (MP3/CD)
Soul Searchers 'Funk to the Folks'
from 'Salt of the Earth' (1974) (MP3 not available/Import CD)
Zapp 'More Bounce to the Ounce'
from 'Zapp' (1979) (MP3/CD)

Related Posts:
Source Material: Marvin Gaye 'Trouble Man'

Rewind: Eric B. and Rakim 'Paid in Full'

One of the most important albums in hip-hop's history and one of the most stunning, fully realized debuts in the history of music is Eric B. and Rakim's 1987 album 'Paid in Full'. Produced entirely by Rakim and DJ Eric B. with production help from Marley Marl, 'Paid in Full' ushered in a new era of rap music, forever changing the landscape of the genre. The duo's groundbreaking debut single was 1986's 'Eric B. is President' which samples beats from James Brown's 'Funky President' and Mountain's 'Long Red' - now one of the most widely used breakbeats in hip-hop.

The hits kept coming after the album's release. 'I Ain't No Joke' and 'I Know You Got Soul' are even bigger hits than 'Eric B. is President'. Both tracks utilize James Brown productions for their basis, 'I Ain't No Joke' floats on top of the J.B.'s 'Pass the Peas' while 'I Know You Got Soul' contains beats and vocal snippets from Bobby Byrd's 'I Know You Got Soul' (and additionally contains segments of the J.B.'s 'The Grunt'). At the same time across the Atlantic Ocean, the DJ team of Coldcut were also looping and cutting up James Brown records for their debut renegade white label 'Say Kids, What Time Is It?'. At the end of 1987, the UK team was tapped to remix the title track to 'Paid in Full' leading to the giant UK hit 'Paid in Full' (Coldcut Remix), an all time classic extended reinterpretation that still rocks clubs everywhere. In addition to the use of the 'Ashley's Roachclip' break by the Soul Searchers which was looped for the original track, Coldcut famously laces the track with a vocal sample from Ofra Haza's 'Im Nin'Alu', a world music single that had some impact on the UK charts a few years previous. Also, Coldcut adds in some additional JB artillery by sampling James Brown's 'Hot Pants'. The results are devastating.

'Paid in Full' was proceeded by 'Follow the Leader' and two other fantastic albums, which will undoubtedly show up in later posts on this blog.

The Lowdown:
Eric B. and Rakim 'Eric B. is President', 'I Ain't No Joke', and 'I Know You Got Soul'
from 'Paid in Full' (1987) (MP3/CD)
James Brown 'Funky President (People It's Bad)'
from 'Reality' (1975) (MP3 not available/CD not available)
Mountain 'Long Red'
from 'Mountain Live' (1972) (MP3 not available/Import CD)
The J.B.'s 'Pass the Peas' and 'The Grunt'
from 'Food for Thought' (1972) (MP3 not available/Import CD)
Bobby Byrd 'I Know You Got Soul'
from 'I Need Help' (1970) (MP3 not available/CD not available)
Eric B. and Rakim 'Paid in Full' (Coldcut Remix)
Soul Searchers 'Ashley's Roachclip'
from 'Salt of the Earth' (1974) (MP3 not available/Import CD)
Ofra Haza 'Im Nin'Alu'
from 'Fifty Gates of Wisdom' (1983) (MP3/CD)
James Brown 'Hot Pants'
from 'Hot Pants' (1971) (MP3/CD not available)