South Central Samples

Well, with the upcoming Straight Outta Compton hitting theaters in a fortnight or two I thought I'd wrap up my sample compilations with the record that started it all. Pulling the material for this one was a real beast; the first thing I learned is that Dr. Dre had a lot of records in his archives and secondly, he produced in a significantly different way then DJ Ready Red of the Geto Boys did. While Ready Red tended to use pretty big chunks of his sample songs, Dre (and I guess Yella to an extent) used only the tiniest snippets from records. Of course there are a few exceptions ("Parental Discretion Iz Advised", "Express Yourself" and "I Ain't Tha 1") but for the most part only a quick drum loop, sound effect or guitar lick was lifted from source songs. And Dre also wasn't against modifying some of the material, case in point the classic drum beat to "Straight Outta Compton" is a significantly slowed down bridge riff from the Winstons' "Amen, Brother." With that being said I don't know if I would have been able to figure a lot of these out (or track them down) without a plethora of assistance from various sample libraries on internet.

Still, it was a little iffy adding some of the songs to the compilation. Including Beastie Boys' "The New Style" simply because Adrock's solitary one-second "Puttin' it on wax!" lyric is used in "8-Ball" was a bit of a game-time decision. Unlike the Geto Boys who culled most of their spoken word from Scarface, Dre used a ton of different records for quick vocal clips. Hell, I probably could have included the entire Eazy-Duz-It and N.W.A. And The Posse LPs as source material as well. Interestingly, a choice few of the sample tunes I included I am not actually sure when they are used in the respective song but I figure someone out there does. There are also a couple that I question their legitimacy - Fishbone's "Lyin' Ass Bitch' for one. Yeah, there's a loud "Biiiitch" yelled in both "A Bitch Iz A Bitch" and at the close of Fishbone's track but is it the same one....?

Once again, here's the song-by-song breakdown, and yes I added "A Bitch Iz A Bitch" simply because it is such a classic fucking song:

1. Straight Outta Compton
        • "Amen, Brother" by The Winstons
        • "You'll Like It Too" by Funkadelic
        • "Engine Number 9" by Wilson Pickett
        • "West Coast Poplock" by Ronnie Hudson And The Street People
        • "Burn Rubber On Me (Why You Wanna Hurt Me)" by The Gap Band
        • "Take Me To The Mardi Gras" by Bob James
2. Fuck Tha Police
        • "It's My Thing" by Marva Whitney
        • "The Boogie Back" by Roy Ayers Ubiquity
        • "Funky Drummer" by James Brown
        • "Funky President (People It's Bad)" by James Brown
        • "Feel Good" by Fancy
        • "Engine Number 9" by Wilson Pickett
3. Gangsta Gangsta
        • "Weak At The Knees" by Steve Arrington’s Hall Of Fame
        • "Be Thankful For What You Got" by William DeVaughn
        • "N.T." by Kool And The Gang
        • "Funky Worm" by Ohio Players
        • "Troglodyte (Cave Man)" by The Jimmy Castor Bunch
        • "Impeach The President" by The Honey Drippers
4. If It Ain't Ruff
        • "A Star In The Ghetto" by Average White Band & Ben E. King
        • "Don't Believe The Hype" by Public Enemy
        • "Ain't We Funkin' Now" by The Brothers Johnson
5. Parental Discretion Iz Advised
        • "I Turned You On" by The Isley Brothers
6. 8-Ball (Remix)
        • "Let's Get It On" by Marvin Gaye
        • "Paul Revere" by Beastie Boys
        • "Fight For Your Right" by Beastie Boys
        • "Girls" by Beastie Boys
        • "Be Thankful For What You Got" by William DeVaughn
        • "Yes, We Can Can" by The Pointer Sisters
        • "It's My Beat" by Sweet Tee And Jazzy Joyce
        • "My Melody" by Eric B. & Rakim
        • "West Coast Poplock" by Ronnie Hudson And The Street People
        • "Too Much Posse" by Public Enemy
7. Something Like That
        • "Take The Money And Run" by Steve Miller Band
        • "I Think I'd Do It" by Z.Z. Hill
        • "Down On The Avenue" by Fat Larry's Band
8. Express Yourself
        • "Express Yourself" by Charles Wright & The Watts 103rd Street Rhythm Band
9. Compton's N The House (Remix)
        • "Take Me To The Mardi Gras" by Bob James
        • "Funky Beat" by Whodini
        • "It's My Turn" by Dezo Daz (featuring D.J. Slip)
        • "Cinderfella Dana Dane" by Dana Dane
10. I Ain't Tha 1
        • "The Message (Inspiration)" by Brass Construction
11. Dopeman (Remix)
        • "Funky Worm" by Ohio Players
        • "Dance To The Drummer's Beat" by Herman Kelly & Life
        • "My Posse" by C.I.A.
        • "Freestyle Live (Edit Version)" by Roxanne (Fly) Shanté (featuring Biz Markie)
        • "I'm Bad" by L.L. Cool J
12. Quiet On Tha Set
        • "Rock Creek Park" by The Blackbyrds
        • "I Get Lifted" by KC And The Sunshine Band
        • "The Unsafe Bridge" by Laura Olsher
        • "Funky Drummer" by James Brown
        • "Take The Money And Run" by Steve Miller Band
13. Something 2 Dance 2
        • "You're The One For Me" by "D" Train
        • "Dance To The Music" by Sly & the Family Stone
        • "'Mighty Mouse' Theme" by The Sandpipers
        • "Change the Beat (French Rap)" by Beside
        • "ORCH5" by David Vorhaus
14. A Bitch Iz A Bitch (bonus)
        • "Papa Was Too" by Joe Tex
        • "Lyin' Ass Bitch" by Fishbone

Phew, what a list. Almost 4 hours of stuff. Y'know when I started writing this blog I was sure it was my swansong compilation but I gotta tell ya, after typing this all out I'm now sort of itching to do Eazy-Duz-It. But until then, sit back, crack a 40 or two of Old E and enjoy.

Part I                                        Part II                                        Part III

Industrial Rap Rock Rollins

Here's a quirky oddity from the early 1990's, sounding exactly like something that could only come from that era. Henry Rollins paired up with frequent bandmate bassosaurus Andrew Weiss and cut a strange EP showcasing an amalgam of twanging bass-heavy industrial drum-machine rap rock which can only be described as "unique". Rollins alternates between his best Mike Patton "Epic" imitation and a more typical "Low Self Opinion" forceful snarl. The overly synthetic backbeats are strangely poppy, when overdubbed with Weiss's effect-laden bass it sounds positively surreal. The hypnotic wall of flanging noise at the end of "Right To Life" would seriously fuck up any acidhead's mind if listened to mid-trip. "The Whole Truth" is the closest thing to a single on this one, white-boy pseudo hip-hop that was all the rage back then and I have to imagine Hank and Andrew cracking up in the studio at the silliness of it all. You gotta see the video as well - especially Rollins hamming it up on the beach in a parody of Madonna's "Cherish" video, fucking priceless. It all wraps up with an absolutely unrecognizable Grateful Dead cover to boot.

Check Out The Gap

Who The Fuck Is Fred?

Nothing like a one-trick pony, right? No sooner did I finish my Geto Boys sample post then I got some info on the background material for Akshen/Scarface's incredible 1991 solo debut Mr. Scarface Is Back. Nursing a sore throat and with a little time on my hands, I culled the sample tracks for this record and here ya go, another amazing 2+ hour collection of 70's funk and soul. Not as much James Brown this time (and there are a few hold overs from the Geto Boys comp as well, sorry) but finally hearing "Synthetic Substitution" by Melvin Bliss and "Thinking" by the Meters is enough to deserve a listen. Half of these tracks are a who's who of legendary sample beats - wonderful to hear the full songs behind the scenes.

Here is the LP track breakdown:

A1. Mr. Scarface

        • "Gimme What You Got" by Le Pamplemousse

        • "Different Strokes" by Syl Johnson

        • "Sexy Coffee Pot" by Tony Alvon & The Belairs

A2. The Pimp

        • "Sportin' Life" by James Brown

        • "Impeach The President" by The Honey Drippers

A3. Born Killer

        • "Theme From 'Buck & The Preacher'" by The Nite-Liters

        • "Amen, Brother" by The Winstons

        • "The Assembly Line" by Commodores

        • "Funky Drummer" by James Brown

A4. Murder By Reason Of Insanity

        • "Synthetic Substitution" by Melvin Bliss

        • "UFO" by ESG

        • "Untitled Instrumental" by James Brown

A5. Your Ass Got Took

        • "Sing A Simple Song" by Please

        • "Down On The Avenue" by Fat Larry's Band 

        • "The Traffic Cop (Dance)" by Bloodstone

        • "Four Cornered Room" by War

A6. Diary Of A Madman

        • "The Payback" by James Brown

        • "Atomic Dog" by George Clinton

B1. Body Snatchers

        • "Soul Power Pt. 1" by James Brown

B2. Money And The Power

        • "Love Serenade (Part II)" by Barry White

        • "UFO" by ESG

B3. P D Roll 'Em

        • "I've Been Watching You" by Southside Movement 

        • "Blind Alley" by The Emotions

B4. Good Girl Gone Bad

        • "Do Like I Do" by Smokey Robinson

        • "Good Old Music" by The Parliaments

B5. A Minute To Pray And A Second To Die

        • "Inner City Blues (Make Me Wanna Holler)" by Marvin Gaye

        • "What's Going On" by Marvin Gaye

        • "Kissing My Love" by Bill Withers

B6. I'm Dead

        • "Thinking" by The Meters

        • "Down On The Avenue" by Fat Larry's Band

        • "Mango Meat" by Mandrill

On a final note, I never really liked the cover I did for The Geto Boys sample comp so I updated that one and used what I had before for this one. Makes a lot more sense - and I sourced the photo from the original Mr. Scarface negative before they "browned" out DJ Ready Red. Enjoy.

Part I                                                                     Part II

Grrrrrr...

There's that part of me who can't help but chuckle when I come upon some of the more contrived black metal names. And what's the allure of the whole goat thing? Yeah, I get it's a Sabbatic Goat/Baphomet reference but let's be slightly more original guys. Black Goat, Goat Anus, Black Anal Goat Vomit, Goatwhore, Goateatgod, blah blah bluh. Which brings us to Oregon's Weregoat and their verbose debut EP Unholy Exaltation Of Fullmoon Perversity. I just don't get it. Who sits around a kitchen table and comes up with the name Weregoat? Were they in the middle of playing Dungeons & Dragons? Save for the few lupophobics out there it doesn't come off as anything but cheesy. Which is a real shame because this trio is no joke when it comes to their sound and image. Clad in Slayer-esque rusty-nail armbands as well as necklaces of raw meat, they play a solid hybrid of black metal and grindcore recorded in wonderfully scratchy lo-fi. All members (both past and present) are true veterans of the Northwest metal scene with dozens of bands under their belt (the drummer owns Parasitic Records as well) and their experience shows. Blistering fast blastbeats and wicked guitar work - effortless switching from thrash grooves to heavy riffage. There are a few intros that drag on a little too long at times but my only real complaint is the muddy background echo effect on the lyrics. Yeah, I know it's kind of a black metal standard but I wish they were a bit cleaner, angrier and up front. Still, a great introduction to a band still churning out records - keep up with 'em here.

Invoke The Black Oblivion

It's On

Not sure where or when I got this bootleg CDr but it doesn't have anything from the Cocktails era (and beyond) so I'd guess around 1994. Most of the tracks are culled from Get In Where You Fit In and Shorty The Pimp but "Freaky Tales" makes an appearance from Born To Mack as well as a few from Life Is... and the epic Ice Cube duet "Ain't Nothin' But A Word To Me" from Short Dog's In The House. All in all the mix is just what you'd expect from a Too $hort greatest hits collection - slow plodding bass lines with some overtly dirty lyrics but the addition of "Hoochie" and "Gotta Get Some Lovin'" speed the bpm up nicely. My favorite song on the record is the "Glove Compartment" mix of Shorty The Pimp's "In The Trunk" - an already great tune is remixed with a huge beat and stand up bass. Too bad it's a radio cut but oh well, awesome shit.

BTW, I just checked out $hort's new video - it's pretty solid for a guy who's been doing the same thing for a quarter of a century.

Where They At?