Description
These tracks, a combination of classics and obscurities, have all since become
legendary to breakdancers everywhere. First played at South Bronx block parties,
community halls and park jams in the 1970s and 80s, spun endlessly by the first
three major hip-hop DJs – Kool Herc, Grandmaster Flash and Afrika Bambaataa –
and found in the record crates of any DJ of note ever since. Seminal funk and soul tracks such as Dennis Coffeys Scorpio, The Jimmy Castor Bunchs Its Just Begun, James Browns Get on the Good Foot and The MohawksChamp sit side-by-side with the ground-breaking, classic electro of Afrika Bambaataas Planet Rock and Arthur Bakers own definitive Breakers Revenge. Breakdancing has come a long way from its New York roots to its respected position
as an art form today where, for the first time ever, it is to be featured in the Olympics
held in Paris this August 2024.
The breakbeat remains at the very heart of hip-hop – the mercurial funk, soul and
disco tracks, always 100% guaranteed to get B-Boys, B-Girls and breakdancers
moving at any block party, with the percussive breakdown of each track the pinnacle
to any dance / battle between breakdancers.
Similarly, these tracks have been sampled many times over by every hip-hop artist
and producer of note. KRS-ONE, Marley Marl, Kanye West, Jay-Z, Public Enemy,
Eric B, The Fugees, Outkast, Mos Def, Main Source, Jungle Brothers, LL Cool J, De
La Soul and, well, everyone.
Compiler Arthur Baker played a pivotal role in hip-hop history when, in 1982, he
produced Afrika Bambaataas seminal Planet Rock (as featured here), introducing
electronic instruments into hip-hop for the first time ever and in the process creating
electro. After Planet Rock, Arthur Baker went on to remix or produce every major
artist of note – from New Order to the Rolling Stones, Al Green to the Pet Shop Boys.
This vinyl release is presented as deluxe gatefold double vinyl with two bespoke
inner sleeves and digital download code and comes complete with an introduction by Arthur Baker and extensive sleevenotes, including a track-by-track breakdown by hip-hop historian JayQuan, and striking images from photographer Sophie Bramly.
What I truly loved about early hip-hop was that the music thrown down by Bam,
Grandmaster Flash, Jazzy Jay and Kool DJ Herc was genre-less, multi-cultural,
music from all ends of the world. This is the definitive collection, including all the
classics (other than a couple that alas we couldnt get the rights to), and some real
hard to find obscurities. – Arthur Baker
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