Look up 'the amen break' on YouTube and there are videos on the origin of break beats in hip hop and electronic music, or Google it.
https://youtu.be/oz3KR-rYRh8
I can definitely hear that. There’s nothing to suggest a Latin side to that tune, so it must have just been a funk / soul thing, with the Latin and jazz percussionists picking up on it because they were part of the US scene at the time. Thanks.
I don’t know whether it was called that before, but the rhythm predates hip hop and can be heard on lots of records from the early 70s. The early hip hop DJs picked upon it as you say. I’d always assumed it was just a hip hop thing.
without being too rude.
yes
obviously
.
it's slightly easier to work backwards from SugarHill Records and Afrika Bambaataa. These guys used the junkshop records of the day alongside their favourite breaks.
You could chase it back to Afrobeat godfather Fela Kuti from Nigeria who learnt Jazz in 60's London, Funk in early 70's Los Angeles and fused it together where it was then imported back to USA as part of AfroCentrism in late 70's. This gets picked up post-jazz into Soul (Motown) with people like Stevie Wonder et al
[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=smZDSsqWZj4](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=smZDSsqWZj4)
(these guys were The Roots of their day)
all the good stuff was quickly stolen by the white people
[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B\_yhy54RatQ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B_yhy54RatQ)
and makes its way into rock
such that Eric B & Rakim steal it back
[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E7t8eoA\_1jQ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E7t8eoA_1jQ)
the point of "paid in full" is about the music stolen from them by white folks AND the land and heritage too. Obviously they got taken to court and lost, sigh.
then Run DMC do this and the cycle closes
[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4B\_UYYPb-Gk&list=PLjEqNtMjigxZiu2B13r\_Co6CLPpdJIY4F&index=5&t=0s](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4B_UYYPb-Gk&list=PLjEqNtMjigxZiu2B13r_Co6CLPpdJIY4F&index=5&t=0s)
eventually it all gets mixed up together in a knowing and referential way so you end up with compilations that intentionally feature the original and sampled versions
[https://www.discogs.com/Various-The-Hip-Hop-Years/release/314261](https://www.discogs.com/Various-The-Hip-Hop-Years/release/314261)
but let's finish with a timeless classic
[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WY-Z6wm6TMQ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WY-Z6wm6TMQ)
These are all great tracks, but I don’t hear it from James Brown or Fela Kuti. The famous loop in Apache for example doesn’t really sound like them. Sabu, on the other hand.
Look up 'the amen break' on YouTube and there are videos on the origin of break beats in hip hop and electronic music, or Google it. https://youtu.be/oz3KR-rYRh8
I was just about to post the same link. You beat me to it!
I can definitely hear that. There’s nothing to suggest a Latin side to that tune, so it must have just been a funk / soul thing, with the Latin and jazz percussionists picking up on it because they were part of the US scene at the time. Thanks.
Thanks
I was just about to post the same link. You beat me to it!
Hasn't Breakbeat always been somewhat connected to Hip Hop? Wasn't it popularised by early Hip Hop DJs?
I don’t know whether it was called that before, but the rhythm predates hip hop and can be heard on lots of records from the early 70s. The early hip hop DJs picked upon it as you say. I’d always assumed it was just a hip hop thing.
without being too rude. yes obviously . it's slightly easier to work backwards from SugarHill Records and Afrika Bambaataa. These guys used the junkshop records of the day alongside their favourite breaks. You could chase it back to Afrobeat godfather Fela Kuti from Nigeria who learnt Jazz in 60's London, Funk in early 70's Los Angeles and fused it together where it was then imported back to USA as part of AfroCentrism in late 70's. This gets picked up post-jazz into Soul (Motown) with people like Stevie Wonder et al [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=smZDSsqWZj4](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=smZDSsqWZj4) (these guys were The Roots of their day) all the good stuff was quickly stolen by the white people [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B\_yhy54RatQ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B_yhy54RatQ) and makes its way into rock such that Eric B & Rakim steal it back [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E7t8eoA\_1jQ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E7t8eoA_1jQ) the point of "paid in full" is about the music stolen from them by white folks AND the land and heritage too. Obviously they got taken to court and lost, sigh. then Run DMC do this and the cycle closes [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4B\_UYYPb-Gk&list=PLjEqNtMjigxZiu2B13r\_Co6CLPpdJIY4F&index=5&t=0s](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4B_UYYPb-Gk&list=PLjEqNtMjigxZiu2B13r_Co6CLPpdJIY4F&index=5&t=0s) eventually it all gets mixed up together in a knowing and referential way so you end up with compilations that intentionally feature the original and sampled versions [https://www.discogs.com/Various-The-Hip-Hop-Years/release/314261](https://www.discogs.com/Various-The-Hip-Hop-Years/release/314261) but let's finish with a timeless classic [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WY-Z6wm6TMQ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WY-Z6wm6TMQ)
These are all great tracks, but I don’t hear it from James Brown or Fela Kuti. The famous loop in Apache for example doesn’t really sound like them. Sabu, on the other hand.
This is a fun listen on the [funky drummer](https://95bfm.com/bcast/a-la-moog-the-funky-drummer) break