'They Ain't Got the Nerve to Say "We Stole This".'
Fundamental Insight: The Evolutionary Role of Sampling in Shaping Contemporary Music
Quotable Will Bradbury on the groundbreaking legacy of music piracy.
Hark back to the 1940s, when French reconstructor of sounds, Pierre Schaeffer birthed 'musique concrète' – a concept that revolved around gluing together tape snippets and creating a "symphony of noises." This radical technique set the stage for subsequent generations of artists to grab, twist, and transform music, affirming the idea that originality isn't about starting from scratch, but skillfully reimagining what already exists.
The late 80s marked the golden age of sample-based music, as machines capable of recording and manipulating sound burst onto the scene like the brilliant Akai MPC. This decisive shift allowed untrained artists and bedroom musicians to unleash their creativity, paving the way for modern-day idols like Billie Eilish.
During this pivotal period, a brigade of audacious artists redefined the rules of the game, flipping the script on traditional perspectives of music production. Enter De La Soul and their revolutionary album 3 Feet High and Rising. This game-changer packed an eclectic mix of samples from soul, funk, spoken word, and more, creating a mashup that left a lasting imprint on the hip-hop landscape, while remaining miles apart from the late 80s' prevailing gangsta rap scene.
Beastie Boys also earned their stripes as innovative choppers with their album Paul's Boutique. This audacious effort showcased an impressive roster of samples spanning a dizzying array of genres, setting a gold standard for sample-based production.
Meanwhile, DJ Shadow delivered a knockout punch to the conventional notion that samples were merely hip-hop beats with his masterpiece Endtroducing. Using primitive tools like an Akai MPC60 sampler, Turntables, and an Alesis ADAT tape recorder, Shadow plunged deep into the crates of music history, sampling brilliance from the likes of Björk and Tangerine Dream, forging a unique genre known as trip-hop, blending hip-hop with electronic tones and atmospheric textures.
A Tribe Called Quest, on the other hand, proved that jazz and hip-hop could coexist in perfect harmony, as they skillfully fused the two on their seminal work The Low-End Theory. Drawing on the essentials of vocals, drums, and bass to create an organic, minimalist sound, they paid homage to celebrated jazz greats like Art Blakey, Ron Carter, and Grant Green.
Fast forward to the digital age, as Aphex Twin, Radiohead, The Avalanches, Daft Punk, and Madvillain revolutionized the scene with their groundbreaking experiments in sampling. These trailblazers deliberately eschewed originality, embarking on explorations of found sounds and samples, pushing the boundaries of what music could be.
Other titans like Kendrick Lamar, FKA Twigs, Public Enemy, Nas, Wu-Tang Clan, J Dilla, Massive Attack, Portishead, The Prodigy, The Chemical Brothers, Boards Of Canada, Autechre, and Four Tet joined the ranks of musical pirates, adding their contributions to the rich tapestry of sampled music that continues to captivate audiences today.
As for copyright laws, they've played catch-up ever since the advent of sampling. A notable milestone came with the Grand Upright Music, Ltd. v. Warner Bros. Records Inc. court case in 1991, when Gilbert O'Sullivan went toe-to-toe with rapper Biz Markie over the suitability of using his song Alone Again (Naturally) in Just a Friend. The ensuing legal battle established the framework for sample clearance fees that continue to dictate the world of music to this day.
Ultimately, the impact of artists stealing and reimagining music has ushered in a new era where traditional notions of credit, ownership, and authorship seem less relevant – in a chaotic, copy-and-paste digital world, it's no longer about minesweeping original ideas; it's about tearing them apart and making them your own.
Take a spin through our curated Spotify playlist or check out our accompanying video on Instagram – you might just discover some of the most influential samples in the history of music.
In this era of music piracy, artists like De La Soul and Beastie Boys challenged traditional norms, creating groundbreaking albums such as 3 Feet High and Rising and Paul's Boutique that relied heavily on the sampling of various music genres, including soul, funk, and electronic sounds. Today, this rich tapestry of sampled music continues to captivate listeners, with modern artists like Billie Eilish building upon these innovative foundations, showcasing the transformative power of vinyl records in the entertainment industry.
