July 25, 1998
Say what you like about hip-hop's sampling, but the kids have taste. Sure, they're stealing breaks from other artists, but here's the key: they're stealing from great songs. Any compilation of the most-plundered tunes would have to include James Brown's "Funky Drummer", Funkadelic's "One Nation Under a Groove", and other gutbucket funk that is the bedrock of hip-hop.
But this compilation is different. Bypassing the obvious hits, the incomparable jazz label Blue Note has rifled their stacks to deliver the most popular original soul-jazz jams in their entirety. How did A Tribe Called Quest find that skankin bass line? Where'd Eric B locate that killer horn riff? Here you go.
This is the cream of 70's funky jazz. Richard 'Groove' Holmes (you know, the guy The Beastie Boys named a song after) lays down his gurgling organ, guitar phenom Grant Green tears out crisp lines with laser precision, and Lou Donaldson kicks back on his alto like a cool pimp daddy on "Whos Makin Love".
Soul jazz is a dangerous business, and sometimes the fusion doesn't quite work for 6 minute stretches - hence the break beat. A four-second flute loop is enough of "Harlem River Drive" for anyone. Gorgonzola is funky, but this is just cheese. Still, it's a minor quibble - the inclusion of Green's sublime "Sookie, Sookie" and Donald Byrd's "Weasil" redeem the set. This is soul jazz at its finest, with irresistible beats and punchy horns, as melodically satisfying as bop and as booty shaking as James Brown. This is perfect summer music.
- Jared O'Connor
the bedrock of hip-hop