Saturday, January 5, 2008

Sample & Example: Charles Mingus & Gang Starr


Today is the 29th anniversary of the passing of Jazz legend and social activist Charles Mingus. One of the genre's most heralded bass players, Mingus has been sampled by the likes of Heavy D, 3rd Bass, Organized Konfusion, and of course, Gang Starr. DJ Premier snatched up this great bass line from Mingus' 'II B.S.', for the catchy, final beat to 'I'm the Man', an interesting track featuring three verses by three emcees over three different instrumentals.

A bit of trivia for the Hip-Hop heads out there:

'I'm the Man', the featured 'Example' in this S&E post, boasts the debuts of two very talented emcees: (1) Lil Dap from the Gang Starr Foundation's duo Group Home, and (2) Brooklyn's very own Jeru the Damaja. In this particular feature, Jeru raps over the looped and retooled Mingus sample. Enjoy:

Sample:
'II B.S.' by Charles Mingus
sample @ 00:28


Example:
'I'm the Man' by Gang Starr
(featuring Lil Dap & Jeru the Damaja)
sample @ 02:54
(but feel free to listen to the whole thing ;-P)