Cormega - Dead Man Walking (1997-2005) sampled Stanley Clarke - Got To Find My Own Place (1978)

Artist:  Cormega
Song:  Dead Man Walking
Year:  1997-2005
Album:  The Testament

I had this song on a cassette mixtape back in 1997 and played it constantly.  The song wasn't officially released until 2005.  This sample is also used on the Alternate Version of Dead Man Walking by Cormega.

Artist:  Jay-Z
Song:  Breathe Easy (Lyrical Exercise)
Year:  2001
Album:  The Blueprint

Jay-Z sounds best on beats like these.

Artist:  Akinyele
Song:  Niggas and Bitches
Year:  1999
Album:  Aktapuss

You have to be a dedicated Akinyele fan to know this album.  I don't remember Toronto's DJ's playing any of it on the radio.  People generally don't agree with my placement of Akinyele in the top 10 greatest Emcees.  Check out the guy near the end of the song, his verse starts with "From Jamaica I Come".

Artist:  Stanley Clarke
Song:  Got To Find My Own Place
Year:  1978
Album:  Modern Man

This is a cool tune.  Cormega sampled the two bars beginning at 0:00 and used variations of the first note throughout the song.  Jay-Z used the same loop but changed things up with sample pieces from 2:00 to 2:05.  Akinyele used the sample from 0:00 as well but for 14 beats.  Beats 15 and 16 are the same as beats 7 and 8.

Canibus - How We Roll (1998) sampled MFSB - Something For Nothing (1973)

Artist:  Canibus
Song:  How We Roll
Year:  1998
Album:  Can-I-Bus

In 1997 and 1998, Canibus was on top of the game.  He was the most sought after guest lyricist on songs.  This is my favourite track off his first album because of the lyrics, the well constructed beat and Panama P.I. makes an appearance!

Artist:  Tracey Lee
Song:  Keep Your Hands High
Year:  1997
Album:  Many Facez

This song is notable for several reasons:  First of all, the beat was well made.  Secondly, Tracey Lee is connected with The Reepz (one of my favourite obscure crews).  Finally, The Notorious B.I.G. makes an appearance here.

Artist:  Jay-Z
Song:  What More Can I Say
Year:  2003
Album:  The Black Album

This is my favourite track off The Black Album because of the beat.

Artist:  AG (Andre The Giant. A.G.)
Song:  Muddslide
Year:  1999
Album:  The Dirty Version

Andre the Giant only used the sample as a way to change things up, but I like when A.G. rhymes on strings and bass.

Artist:  MFSB
Song:  Something For Nothing
Year:  1973
Album:  MFSB

Something FROM Nothing is how I think of Hip Hop.  Something FOR Nothing could also describe Hip Hop.  MFSB stands for Mother Father Sister Brother.  Long before any of these songs, someone from Toronto looped up this song and rhymed over the sample for what seemed like 10 minutes.  Don't know who, but Toronto brought this to me first.

 

The first Canibus sample are the two notes that start at 0:30.  These appear at the beginning of each bar.  The next sample is an impressive chopping job using notes from 0:30 to 0:32 to create a two-bar loop that appears throughout the song.  With the changing speeds, this is a great production.

 

Tracey Lee's intro and occasional change is the sample from 0:27 broken up to cover the timespan of 2 bars.  During the verse, there is a two-bar loop made up of the sample from 0:30 repeated several times over the course of 6 beats.  The final 2 beats are either from 0:29 or 0:38, both are used at different points.  Both this and Canibus are great examples of using very little sample to create great songs.

 

Jay-Z used a more loop-based approach.  The song starts with the 2-bar loop from 0:27.  The next sample used is the two-bar loop from 0:39.  The first chorus uses the two-bar loop from 1:50 with some horn samples.

 

A.G. used the sample from 0:27 sparsely in his song.