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The Grunt - The JBs
A famous funk tune, sampled by many including Public Enemy & Renegade Soundwave.
Stone cold funk at its best.
Tags: 1970, breakbeats, breaks, funk, James Brown, ultimate
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Lesson 1 - Double D & Steinski
Known as the ‘Payoff Mix’ this 12″ is from 1986 though the mix itself is from 1983.
Double D & Steinski are Douglas DiFranco and Steve Stein and are, if you didn’t know already, the original cut ‘n’ paste artists.
Their 3 lessons are truly the ‘history of hip hop’.
Enjoy your 1st lesson!
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Say Kids What Time Is It? - Coldcut
Coldcut’s first release, in 1987, this track began as a limited edition of only 500 pressings.
I paid £20 or £25 (a fortune for me in 1987) at Spin Offs in Hammersmith which was possibly the only place to stock it.
Its scarcity caused the value to rocket and copies were soon changing hands for £75 or more.
It was re-pressed at some point, and probably bootlegged too, with some copies including a stamp of the artist & title.
My copy is actually an off yellow colour with no writing at all except ‘Cut It up’ and ‘DGO1′ etched in the run out groove which, according to Discogs, makes it the original original!
See Wikipedia for a run down of all the samples.
Only Americans had done this type of thing before, most famously Double Dee Steinski, and Coldcut were British!
This shot Coldcut onto the scene, instantly establishing them as innovators and a force to be reckoned with.
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Kick Out The James - Coldcut ft. Floormaster Squeeze
Early Coldcut featuring the awesome Floormaster Squeeze (named after a mop?)
No date on the label but I think it’s from around 1987.
The EP has 5 tracks with ‘Kick Out The James’ being my favourite.
Samples include ‘Seven Minutes Of Funk’ & ‘Rock Steady’.
Old school UK rapper Overlord X features on ‘Switzch’ on the other side.
Raw Coldcut beats from way back in the day…
Tags: 1987, breakbeats, breaks, coldcut, uk
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Pump Me Up - Trouble Funk
The most scratched record ever?
Certainly one of, along with Al-Naafiysh and ‘Change The Beat’ by Fab 5 Freddy.
DJ Cash Money famously scratched it (to the funk) but Jazzy Jeff was my favourite to rip it up!
The other side is the excellent ‘Drop The Bomb’, another Go-Go masterpiece from Washington.
Every DJ should have one.
Tags: 1982, breakbeats, breaks, funk, go go, turntablism
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Shack Up - Banbarra
I first heard this break on Coldcut’s ‘Say Kids What Time Is It?’ megamix and it also turned up on the Ultimate Breaks & Beats collection.
Apart from the great break the tune itself is pretty funky with a wicked guitar thrown in too.
Tags: 1975, breakbeats, breaks, funk, ultimate
