Kool G Rap - In Too Deep (2011) sampled The True Reflection - Whisper (1973)

Artist:  Kool G Rap
Song:  In Too Deep
Year:  2011
Album:  Riches, Royalty, Respect (also known as Riches, Royalty & Respect)

Kool G Rap has been getting my close attention for 20-plus years now.  Even though in 2011 he doesn't have the funny jokes and punchlines, I still like this older and wiser version.  He sounds great on this beat.

Artist:  9th Wonder
Song:  Third Person
Year:  2005
Album:  Dream Merchant Volume 1

I saw 9th Wonder and Little Brother do a question and answer session live many summers ago when they were just beginning to become popular.  They all made a good impression and I have been enjoying the music they have all made since.  9th Wonder is one of my top 10 producers of all time, the others are (in no particular order):  Madlib, DJ Premier, Pete Rock, The Alchemist, J Dilla, Dr. Dre, Da Beatminerz, Large Professor and The Bomb Squad.  How about 11-20?  Beatnuts, Lord Finesse, Q-Tip, DJ Quik, Havoc, Sir Jinx, Erick Sermon, RZA, K-Def and Marley Marl.  I hope to get all 20 on this blog.

Artist:  The True Reflection
Song:  Whisper
Year:  1973
Album:  Where I'm Coming From

Kool G Rap's intro is some singing that begins at 1:05.  The remainder of the song is a 4-bar loop that starts at 3:39.  9th Wonder took a different sample.  He created a 2-bar loop that begins with the sample from 2:20 - 2:23, takes a pause and then follows with the sample from 2:18 - 2:20 (which naturally connects with the beginning of the 2-bar loop).

Tha Alkaholiks - WLIX (1995) sampled Freddie Hubbard and Ilhan Mimaroglu - Interlude II (1971)

Artist:  Tha Alkaholiks
Song:  WLIX
Year:  1995
Album:  Coast II Coast

This might be a world premier.  Obscure samples are really exciting to find.  Madlib digs deep in the crates and that's why he's a top-10 producer.  I found the supporting sample (appears in WLIX at 1:25, 2:21, etc.) and I suspect the main sample is also from the same "song".

Artist:  Freddie Hubbard and Ilhan Mimaroglu
Song:  Interlude II
Year:  1971
Album:  Sing Me A Song Of Songmy - A Fantasy For Electromagnetic Tape

Freddie Hubbard's trumpet is distinctive, almost like it's his voice.  I dig Freddie Hubbard so much that I listened to this abstract record.  Here is some experimental jazz, more sound effects than music.  The supporting sample appears at 2:21.  The main sample is more difficult to prove because I think Madlib mapped it to a keyboard and played it.  The source note appears at 3:10.

Black Moon - I Got Cha Opin (1993) sampled Ten Wheel Drive With Genya Ravan - Come Live With Me (1970)

Artist:  Black Moon
Song:  I Got Cha Opin
Year:  1993
Album:  Enta Da Stage

"All We Do Is Spark Mad Izm" takes me back to how 1993 felt.  I like how this song sounds like a smoky jazz lounge.

Artist:  Flipmode Squad
Song:  We Got U Opin (Part 2) Featuring Buckshot
Year:  1998
Album:  The Imperial

I appreciate Busta Rhymes more now than I did back then because he put way more effort than most Emcees into how the lyrics were delivered.  This version is more polished than Black Moon's.

Artist:  Ten Wheel Drive With Genya Ravan
Song:  Come Live With Me
Year:  1970
Album:  Brief Replies

There are many artists who have recorded a good song with "Come Live With Me" in the title:  Isaac Hayes, Dorothy Ashby and Marvin Gaye to name a few.  Here is one more with the sample located at 1:54.

The Alchemist - Tick Tock (2003) sampled Side Effect - The Loneliest Man In Town (1981)

Artist:  The Alchemist
Song:  Tick Tock (Featuring Nas)
Year:  2003
Album:  Insomnia - 1st Infantry Mixtape Vol. 2

Although there are too many to choose from, I think that this is my favourite song by The Alchemist.  I like this version with Nas because it feels like a mixtape cut due to its length, mix and Slick Rick at the beginning.  Also, the mixtape cover is pretty funny.

Artist:  The Alchemist
Song:  Tick Tock (Featuring Nas and Prodigy)
Year:  2004
Album:  1st Infantry

Some beats are so good that they demand a new version with another Emcee:  Enter Prodigy.  The song now sounds like an album cut with a little more work put into it.  Unfortunately, Nas's mic sounds better than Prodigy's.

Artist:  Side Effect
Song:  The Loneliest Man In Town
Year:  1981
Album:  Portraits

The Alchemist was pretty clever in creating a four-bar loop for both versions of his song.  The sample from 0:08 - 0:18 is played to make up around 3 of the 4 bars and the final bar is the sample from 0:11 - 0:15 (a subset of the larger sample).  The reason why I like this is because he alternates two different notes at the beginning of bar 1 and bar 3 and two different sounds at the 3rd beat of bars 1 and 3.  The sample at 0:00 is used only in the album version of the song at the beginning and also when Prodigy's verse ends.

Action Bronson - Shiraz (2011) sampled Brother Jack McDuff - The Shadow Of Your Smile (1967)

Artist:  Action Bronson
Song:  Shiraz
Year:  2011
Album:  Dr. Lecter

Happy Birthday to my good friend RGH.  I need to thank him for introducing me to Action Bronson's music last year.  Action reminds me of Ghostface Killah with his laser-beam vocals.  I think he's my favourite new Emcee of the decade.

Artist:  Da King & I
Song:  Ghetto Instinct
Year:  1993
Album:  Contemporary Jeep Music

I remember seeing ads in The Source magazine for Rowdy Records that were marketing Da King & I with Y'all So Stupid.  Those groups seem like an odd pairing now.  I always felt like these guys didn't get their due recognition because this is a good album from the Golden Era of Hip-hop.

Artist:  Brother Jack McDuff
Song:  The Shadow Of Your Smile
Year:  1967
Album:  Tobacco Road

Brother Jack McDuff is the man who gave "Scenario" to A Tribe Called Quest and "Son Get Wrec" to Black Moon (thanks for the knowledge Tim!)  The Shadow Of Your Smile is one of those songs that multiple jazz artists have played.  I have never heard a version that I didn't like.  Da King & I used the loop at 0:00 and filtered the flute out for most of the song.  Action Bronson used more samples: the same one as Da King & I, followed by the samples at 0:05 and 0:15.

No I.D. - State To State (Pimp Remix) (1998) sampled The Brothers Johnson - Thunder Thumbs And Lightnin' Licks (1976)

Artist:  No I.D.
Song:  State To State (Pimp Remix)
Year:  1998
Album:  State To State (Remixes) 12-Inch Single

Happy one-year anniversary of this blog.  Hope you're looking forward to year 2.  Here we have some of Chicago's finest.  I've always considered No I.D. to be grown-man rap, especially when Common and Dug Infinite are on the track.

Artist:  The Reepz
Song:  Take The Train
Year:  1998
Album:  U-N-I VS. ALL featuring the UNIVERSAL emcees

Universal Records put out U-N-I VS. ALL, clever.  Does anyone remember an Emcee named Pirate?  He brought the first verse here, was associated with Tracey Lee, sounded a little like Q-Tip and wore a patch over his left eye.  The Reepz was his crew and the video for this song was amusing.  It's too bad I never heard much more from Pirate, I'd like a solo album.  This is a decent compilation, where else would you find Panama P.I., Canibus and Rakim together?

Artist:  The Brothers Johnson
Song:  Thunder Thumbs And Lightnin' Licks
Year:  1976
Album:  Look Out For #1

This album cover rocks!  The first time I heard this song, I was just casually listening and then the sample just hit me over the head when it dropped at 2:07.

Street Smartz - Metal Thangz (Remix) (1997) sampled Deniece Williams - I Believe In Miracles (1982)

Artist:  Street Smartz
Song:  Metal Thangz (Remix)
Year:  1997
Album:  Tru Criminal Records EP

More Street Smartz!  This blog is becoming a shrine to F.T.  I still recite parts of these verses while walking down the street 14 years later.  These are classic lyrics that still hold up today.  F.T. kills it.

Artist:  Rob-O
Song:  World Premier
Year:  2006
Album:  Rhyme Pro

I believe Rob-O created this song well before 2006, but I heard it first on this album.  Rhyme Pro is a compilation of some of Rob-O's older material which I recognize from the late 1990's.  Some good Pete Rock production appears elsewhere on this album.

Artist:  Deniece Williams
Song:  I Believe In Miracles
Year:  1982
Album:  Niecy

There is quite a gap between the lyrics of Deniece Williams and those of F.T.  The Street Smartz sample is a two-bar loop starting at 0:08.  Occasionally, the two-bar loop at 0:17 can be heard.  Rob-O used four-bar loops in his song.  The verse loops start with two bars from 0:08, then one bar from 0:05 repeats twice.  The chorus loop starts with two bars from 0:17 and is followed by a mix of two samples: the one bar from 0:05 and the one bar from 0:22 repeat twice.

Heltah Skeltah - Prowl (1996) sampled Lalo Schifrin - Danube Incident (1967)

Artist:  Heltah Skeltah
Song:  Prowl
Year:  1996
Album:  Nocturnal

In the summer of 1996, I thought that the Boot Camp Clik was at the top of the Hiphop hierarchy, especially since they had Da Beatminerz making great music for the past 4 years.  Heltah Skeltah were my favourite Emcee's in the crew.  Rock (Da Rockness Monstah) had the voice and Ruck (Sean Price) had the lyrics.  This song also has an appearance from Louieville Sluggah.

Artist:  CRU
Song:  Straight From L.I.P.
Year:  1997
Album:  Da Dirty 30

I think that this is one of the best album covers in Hiphop because it is a careful arrangement of photos to produce the letters CRU.

Artist:  Portishead
Song:  Sour Times
Year:  1994
Album:  Dummy

This is where I first heard the sample back in 1994.  This post was birthed recently when I was at the bar with my buddies and this came on.  It took me a second to remember where the sample was from.  They did a great job of taking the samples and seamlessly integrating them into their additional instrumentation.

Artist:  Lalo Schifrin
Song:  Danube Incident
Year:  1967
Album:  More Mission: Impossible

This song also appears on rereleases such as Music From Mission: Impossible Anthology and Mission: Impossible ... And More!  Heltah Skeltah kept it simple by looping the 4-bar sample at 0:00 and keeping it slow.  CRU and Portishead both sped up that sample and used the sample at 1:33 for an intro.  Portishead also switched between the 2 samples at various points in their song.

Capone -N- Noreaga - Driver's Seat (1997) sampled Willie Hutch - Do The Thing That's Best For You (1974)

Artist:  Capone -N- Noreaga
Song:  Driver's Seat
Year:  1997
Album:  The War Report

C.N.N. Network, Channel 10.  What!  What!  This is my favourite song from Capone -N- Noreaga, it triggered me to buy the album the next day.  It has always seemed odd to me that Busta Rhymes jumps on the song at the end to bark.  It would have been nice to have a verse from Busta.  On a side note, I think that Akinyele makes a brief appearance in this song's video.

Artist:  Willie Hutch
Song:  Do The Thing That's Best For You
Year:  1974
Album:  The Mark Of The Beast

I listened to this song many times and didn't make the connection to Capone -N- Noreaga. One day, I listened to the song and finally heard it.  Funny how the brain works.  This Willie Hutch album isn't as good as "Foxy Brown" or "The Mack", but it's the next best thing.  The samples used by Capone -N- Noreaga break down like this:  In the intro to the song, the sample is just a vocal and piano sample from the 0:20 mark played repeatedly.  The main sample is a bass and vocal sample for 2 bars.  The first bar (plus a little bit into the second bar) is at 0:19.  The remainder of the second bar is made up of the sample at 0:21 played twice.

Pete Rock - Markd4Death (2003) sampled Norman Connors - Butterfly Dreams (1973)

Artist:  Pete Rock
Song:  Markd4Death
Year:  2003
Album:  Hip Hop Underground Soul Classics

This one is a bit confusing.  Pete Rock was not able to release the InI "Center Of Attention" album or the Deda "The Original Baby Pa" album back in 1995/1996 when I was looking forward to both projects.  Fortunately, my friend RGH acquired a cassette of the InI album and that satisfied me for years before this album finally gave me the Deda record.  Both albums are classics if you like Pete Rock.  The strange thing is that this song is on the Deda album but he doesn't appear on it, instead it seems to be a song by a group called Ex Cons.

Artist:  Norman Connors
Song:  Butterfly Dreams
Year:  1973
Album:  Dark Of Light

This is a great jazz album and very different from his later work.  The Pete Rock song put in some labour.  The intro is a small sample that occurs at 0:12 for a half bar, repeated 4 times at increasing pitches.  During the main part of the song, this same sample serves as the final half bar of the two-bar loop.  The first bar and a half comes from the sample starting at 0:06.

Ras Kass - Life & Bullshit (2005) sampled Leon Ware - Instant Love (1976)

Artist:  Ras Kass
Song:  Life & Bullshit
Year:  2005
Album:  Institutionalized

I heard this song for the first time in the summer of 2005 and loved it, but the same beat was used that same summer by another artist.  Years earlier, Ras Kass put out a song called "Home Sweet Home" and Jadakiss released the same beat with "We Gonna Make It".  I heard that Alchemist initially produced "Home Sweet Home" for Ras Kass but later sold it to Jadakiss because Ras Kass's label didn't pay up.

Artist:  Tragedy Khadafi
Song:  The Game
Year:  2005
Album:  Thug Matrix

I don't know the story for why Tragedy Khadafi also put out a song with the same music around the same time.  It may be a coincidence in this case because Havoc produced this gem (Havoc is one of the most underrated producers in the game).  Ras Kass's version is produced by someone else but it sounds almost identical.

Artist:  Leon Ware
Song:  Instant Love
Year:  1976
Album:  Musical Massage

I consider this to be the Marvin Gaye album that should have been.  Leon Ware could have given any of these tracks to Marvin Gaye but he instead chose to sing over them himself.  I recommend this album for baby-making.  The Ras Kass and Tragedy Khadafi songs both use the same three elements: an introduction sampled from the 1:54 mark, a main verse loop from 1:20 and an alternative verse loop from 1:43 (includes some singing - "instant love, like we're feeling".

Pete Rock - Strange Fruit (1998) sampled David Axelrod - The Smile (1968)

Artist:  Pete Rock
Song:  Strange Fruit
Year:  1998
Album:  Soul Survivor

Continuing the Pete Rock and Sticky Fingaz collaboration from my last post, here is another jewel.  Pete Rock assembled a diverse and interesting cast for this haunting beat:  Tragedy Khadafi, Cappadonna and Sticky Fingaz (sounds great here).

Artist:  Lord Finesse
Song:  Actual Facts
Year:  1995
Album:  The Awakening (Hidden Bonus Track)

Three years earlier, Lord Finesse assembled an All-Star team on a similar beat:  Sadat X, Large Professor and Grand Puba.

Artist:  Royce Da 5'9"
Song:  Shake This
Year:  2009
Album:  Street Hop

There is some good music in the David Axelrod song outside of the piano samples and Royce Da 5'9" took advantage of that.

Artist:  David Axelrod
Song:  The Smile
Year:  1968
Album:  Song Of Innocence

David Axelrod is responsible for some of the greatest Hiphop samples.  I also admire him for the concepts he brings to his albums (i.e. religion, environmentalism, etc.).  Pete Rock used two samples:  The two note piano sample located at 3:08 and the other piano at 3:13.  Lord Finesse used the 2-bar loop starting at 3:07 and added to that foundation.  Royce Da 5'9" used 4 samples.  The first is for his chorus, it appears at the 1:16 mark, but he also uses the note at 1:27 to start subsequent loops.  The verse uses three samples as it builds, located at 2:01, 2:09 and 2:19.

Onyx - Shout (Pete Rock Remix) (1996) sampled Hubert Laws - Tryin' To Get The Feeling Again (1976)

Artist:  Onyx
Song:  Shout (Pete Rock Remix)
Year:  1996
Album:  Not officially released

I don't know much about this song's history.  What I do know is that I first heard it on a Chubby Chub mixtape from 1996 called "Get Dirty".  I'm assuming it is an unreleased song that has been later unofficially released.  Nice beat from Pete Rock.

Artist:  Onyx
Song:  Shout (Album Version)
Year:  1995
Album:  All We Got Iz Us

I like when a song and its remix are sampled from the same source.  The album version of Shout sounds similar to the remix.

Artist:  Ras Kass
Song:  Drama
Year:  1996
Album:  Soul On Ice

A Coolio appearance on the blog!  Ras Kass invites Coolio to rhyme on his classic album and I think that Coolio never sounded better.  It goes without saying that Ras Kass is in my Top 10 Emcees of all time.

Artist:  Hubert Laws
Song:  Tryin' To Get The Feeling Again
Year:  1976
Album:  Romeo & Juliet

A member of the Creed Taylor crew, Hubert Laws has been sampled a lot.  The Pete Rock Remix of "Shout" uses the sample located at 5:37 and repeats it before letting the rest of the loop play.  The album version of "Shout" uses the loop at 5:35, you can hear flute at the beginning, and I think they played the bassline, copying the notes from the sample at 1:47.  Finally, the Ras Kass used the loop at 1:38.

Redman - Bobyahed2dis (1994) sampled Hamilton, Joe Frank & Reynolds - Fallin' In Love (1975)

Artist:  Redman
Song:  Bobyahed2dis
Year:  1994
Album:  Dare Iz A Darkside

November 1994 was the "Month of the Man" when Def Jam released Redman and Method Man albums.  I still remember hearing this song for the first time in my friend JOS's studio.  I like how this song muddies the sample and makes it fit with the concept of this album.  I think Redman enhanced the bass.

Artist:  Downtown Science
Song:  Room To Breathe
Year:  1991
Album:  Downtown Science

More Def Jam goodness.  I slept on this album when it came out but I shouldn't have because I knew it was Sam Sever's group.  The exact same sample as Redman but it can be heard more clearly in this song.

Artist:  Drake
Song:  Best I Ever Had
Year:  2009
Album:  So Far Gone

Can-Con!  The CRTC did not force me to add Canadian Content to the blog, I'm proud to say that Drake is Canadian.  Only a handful of Toronto artists have ever had American exposure, but none like Drake.  I always thought that Kardinal Offishall and Saukrates would be the chosen ones.  Drake used a different sample from the same source and chopped it.

Artist:  Hamilton, Joe Frank & Reynolds
Song:  Fallin' In Love
Year:  1975
Album:  Fallin' In Love

I was in a bar in 1996 and this song was playing in the background.  That's when I realized that music played in bars, grocery stores and elevators is pretty good.  The Redman and Downtown Science sample occurs at 0:18.  Drake's intro occurs at 0:09.  The rest of the Drake song follows this pattern:  3 hits of the sample at 0:00, 4 hits of the sample at 0:03, 3 hits of the sample at 0:06 and 3 hits of the sample at 0:09.

Mic Geronimo - Masta I.C. (1995) sampled Gene Harris - Rebato Summer (1974)

Artist:  Mic Geronimo
Song:  Masta I.C.
Year:  1995
Album:  The Natural

I remember when a local university radio station host left his show, he put this song on and set it to repeat until the next host showed up.  It looped for hours.  I enjoyed it because commercial radio won't do that.

Artist:  Gene Harris
Song:  Rebato Summer
Year:  1974
Album:  AstralSignal (also known as Astral Signal)

Here is one of the few jazz album covers without the artist's name written on it.  Come to think of it, not many jazz musicians play interludes between songs.  This is an interlude and you can hear one song fading out at the beginning and another song starting as the interlude ends.  The sample starts at 0:06.