The Native Tongues were a collective of late 1980s and early 1990s hip-hop artists known for their positive-minded, good-natured Afrocentric lyrics, and for pioneering the use of eclectic sampling and jazz -influenced beats. Its principal members were the Jungle Brothers , De La Soul , A Tribe Called Quest , Monie Love , and Queen Latifah . The collective was also closely tied to the Universal Zulu Nation . Rolling Stone cites the track "Doin' Our Own Dang" as "the definitive Native Tongues posse cut".
66-431: The Native Tongues took their name from a line in the song "African Cry", by Motown-offshoot funk group New Birth , which features the lyric, "took away our native tongues". The New York City -based Native Tongues crew was a collective of like-minded hip hop artists who would help bring abstract and open-minded lyricism that addressed a range of topics—from spirituality and modern living to race, sex, and just having fun—to
132-568: A Long Time , which featured hits including the title track (No. 9 R&B) and their cover of the Skylark song " Wildflower ". After the release of their sixth RCA album, Comin' From All Ends , the group split from RCA, Fuqua and their management company and signed with Buddah . New Birth's Buddah debut, Blind Baby , featured the group's only number-one R&B single, a cover of the Jerry Butler classic " Dream Merchant ". By this time,
198-590: A chill through the industry that is still felt". In the Washington Post , Chris Richards wrote in 2018 that no case had exerted more influence on pop music, likening it to banning a musical instrument. Some have accused the law of restricting creativity, while others argue that it forces producers to innovate. Since the O'Sullivan lawsuit, samples on commercial recordings have typically been taken either from obscure recordings or cleared, an often expensive option only available to successful acts. According to
264-549: A commodity, and yet sampling has never been more risky". Sampling can help popularize the sampled work. For example, the Desiigner track " Panda " (2015) reached number one on the Billboard Hot 100 after Kanye West sampled it on " Father Stretch My Hands, Pt. 2 " (2016). Some record labels and other music licensing companies have simplified their clearance processes by "pre-clearing" their records. For example,
330-496: A few seconds in length, but this increased with improved memory . In 1988, Akai released the first MPC sampler, which allowed users to assign samples to pads and trigger them independently, similarly to playing a keyboard or drum kit. It was followed by competing samplers from companies including Korg , Roland and Casio . Today, most samples are recorded and edited using digital audio workstations (DAWs) such as Pro Tools and Ableton Live . As technology has improved,
396-496: A mainstream audience by the BBC Radiophonic Workshop , which used the techniques to produce soundtracks for shows including Doctor Who . In the 1960s, Jamaican dub reggae producers such as King Tubby and Lee "Scratch" Perry began using recordings of reggae rhythms to produce riddim tracks, which were then deejayed over. Jamaican immigrants introduced the techniques to American hip hop music in
462-518: A male vocal group, The Now Sound, which featured Bobby Downs, Ron Coleman, Gary Young (deceased 2018) and George "Slim" House and also a female vocal group, known as Mint Julep, which featured Londee Loren, Tanita Gaines, Janice Carter and Pam Swent, they brought them together with The Nite-Liters plus additional vocalist Alan Frye, calling the newly formed ensemble New Birth. The band came together in 1970 with their self-titled debut on RCA . Their second album, Ain't No Big Thing, But It's Growing , yielded
528-655: A minor hit with their cover of Armando Manzanero 's " It's Impossible ", in 1971. Later that year, Bullock discovered a group from Detroit , Michigan called Love, Peace & Happiness, which featured former Marvelettes singer Ann Bogan and brothers Leslie and Melvin Wilson. Finding that they had the spark that was missing from the New Birth ensemble, he paired them with the Nite-Liters and original members of New Birth, Londee Loren, Bobby Downs and Alan Frye. In 1972,
594-470: A piano by playing the recording back at different pitches. The result better resembled a real piano than sounds generated by synthesizers. Compared to later samplers, the Fairlight was limited; it allowed control over pitch and envelope , and could only record a few seconds of sound. However, the sampling function became its most popular feature. Though the concept of reusing recordings in other recordings
660-434: A single musical note (as is the case with sample-based synthesis ), or it can consist of longer portions of music (such as a drumbeat or complete melody), and may be layered, equalized , sped up or slowed down, repitched, looped , or otherwise manipulated. They are usually integrated using electronic music instruments ( samplers ) or software such as digital audio workstations . A process similar to sampling originated in
726-623: A work, and gave the example of two artists both demanding more than 50%, a mathematical impossibility. He instead advocated for a process of clearing samples on a musicological basis, by identifying how much of the composition the sample comprises. According to Fact , early hip hop sampling was governed by "unspoken" rules forbidding the sampling of recent records, reissues, other hip hop records or non-vinyl sources, among other restrictions. These rules were relaxed as younger producers took over and sampling became ubiquitous. In 2017, DJ Shadow said that he felt that "music has never been worth less as
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#1732787311500792-501: Is a creative act. In the 1940s, the French composer Pierre Schaeffer developed musique concrète , an experimental form of music created by recording sounds to tape , splicing them, and manipulating them to create sound collages . He used sounds from the human body, locomotives, and kitchen utensils. The method also involved tape loops , splicing lengths of tape end to end so a sound could be played indefinitely. Schaeffer developed
858-695: Is an American funk and R&B group. It was originally conceived in Detroit , Michigan , by former Motown songwriter/producer Vernon Bullock and co-founded in Louisville, Kentucky , by him with former singer and Motown songwriter/producer Harvey Fuqua and musicians Tony Churchill, James Baker, Robin Russell, Austin Lander, Robert "Lurch" Jackson, Leroy Taylor, Charlie Hearndon, Bruce Marshall and Nathaniel "Nebs" Neblett (1946–2016). The group began with
924-551: Is another important early work of sampling, incorporating samples of sources including Arabic singers , radio DJs and an exorcist . Musicians had used similar techniques before, but, according to the Guardian writer Dave Simpson, sampling had never before been used "to such cataclysmic effect". Eno felt the album's innovation was to make samples "the lead vocal". Big Audio Dynamite pioneered sampling in rock and pop with their 1985 album This Is Big Audio Dynamite . Sampling
990-404: Is composed almost entirely of samples, most of which were cleared "easily and affordably"; the clearance process would be much more expensive today. The Washington Post described the modern use of well known samples, such as on records by Kanye West , as an act of conspicuous consumption similar to flaunting cars or jewelry. West has been sued several times over his use of samples. In 2000,
1056-416: Is incomplete. 1988 1989 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2010 2011 2012 2024 "the song is a ode to native tongues shouting out members like Jungle Brothers,A tribe called quest and De la Soul" New Birth (band) New Birth (also known as The New Birth )
1122-632: Is one of the foundations of hip hop , which emerged in the 1980s. Hip hop sampling has been likened to the origins of blues and rock , which were created by repurposing existing music. The Guardian journalist David McNamee wrote that "two record decks and your dad's old funk collection was once the working-class black answer to punk ". Before the rise of sampling, DJs used turntables to loop breaks from records, which MCs would rap over. Compilation albums such as Ultimate Breaks and Beats compiled tracks with drum breaks and solos intended for sampling, aimed at DJs and hip hop producers . In 1986,
1188-702: Is permitted. In Grand Upright Music, Ltd. v. Warner Bros. Records Inc (1991) and Bridgeport Music, Inc. v. Dimension Films (2005), American courts ruled that unlicensed sampling, however minimal, constitutes copyright infringement. However, VMG Salsoul v Ciccone (2016) found that unlicensed samples constituted de minimis copying, and did not infringe copyright. In 2019, the European Court of Justice ruled that modified, unrecognizable samples could be used without authorization. Though some artists sampled by others have complained of plagiarism or lack of creativity, many commentators have argued that sampling
1254-466: Is protected under American fair use laws, which grant "limited use of copyrighted material without permission from the rights holder". The American musician Richard Lewis Spencer , who owned the copyright for the widely sampled Amen break , never received royalties for its use as the statute of limitations for copyright infringement had passed by the time he learnt of the situation. The journalist Simon Reynolds likened it to "the man who goes to
1320-615: The 9:30 Club in Washington, D.C. launched an annual Native Tongues Festival to celebrate the musical legacy of the Native Tongues. † According to De La Soul interview on MuchMusic 's RapCity in 1996. †† According to Q-Tip interview the BBC Radio 1 special The Story Of Q-Tip. Collaborations involving the original members, those that could be considered true Native Tongues crew cuts , are in bold . Note that this list
1386-629: The E-mu Emulator , Akai S950 and Akai MPC . Sampling is a foundation of hip hop music , which emerged when producers in the 1980s began sampling funk and soul records, particularly drum breaks . It has influenced many other genres of music, particularly electronic music and pop . Samples such as the Amen break , the " Funky Drummer " drum break and the orchestra hit have been used in thousands of recordings, and James Brown , Loleatta Holloway , Fab Five Freddy and Led Zeppelin are among
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#17327873115001452-501: The Guardian , "Sampling became risky business and a rich man's game, with record labels regularly checking if their musical property had been tea-leafed." For less successful artists, the legal implications of using samples pose obstacles; according to Fact , "For a bedroom producer, clearing a sample can be nearly impossible, both financially and in terms of administration." By comparison, the 1989 Beastie Boys album Paul's Boutique
1518-458: The I'm Back album, Leslie Wilson had left the group to replace Jeffrey Osborne in L.T.D. , whilst Jerry Bell departed in 1983 to become lead vocalist for Motown 's Dazz Band . The Wilsons resumed touring with a new quartet ensemble adding two new female vocalists: Barbara Wilson and Danette Williams in 1994, and released an album. Drummer Robin Russell released a solo CD entitled Drum Beats in 2004. New Birth's lead vocalist Leslie Wilson
1584-734: The Okayplayer crew, the Soulquarians and Odd Future . Chris Lighty was a member of the Native Tongues-affiliated street crew the Violators and began his career carrying records for Zulu Nation DJs , and later as the Jungle Brothers' roadie . Until his death in 2012 he ran the successful Violator Management company, which represented Busta Rhymes and Q-Tip, among other high-profile clients. In 2019,
1650-457: The Phonogene , which played loops at 12 different pitches triggered by a keyboard. Composers including John Cage , Edgar Varèse , Karheinz Stockhausen and Iannis Xenakis experimented with musique concrète, and Bebe and Louis Barron used it to create the first totally electronic film soundtrack, for the 1956 science fiction film Forbidden Planet . Musique concrète was brought to
1716-444: The golden age of the late 1980s–early 1990s. A Tribe Called Quest and De La Soul 's albums of this time are considered among the best and most important in the hip hop genre. If you’re old enough, recall the naive early-'90s moment when young rappers from Nassau County and so forth were so brave they considered mellow and humorous a righteous path as well as a commercial ploy. — Robert Christgau , 2019 The song "Scenario"
1782-590: The 1940s with musique concrète , experimental music created by splicing and looping tape . The mid-20th century saw the introduction of keyboard instruments that played sounds recorded on tape, such as the Mellotron . The term sampling was coined in the late 1970s by the creators of the Fairlight CMI , a synthesizer with the ability to record and playback short sounds. As technology improved, cheaper standalone samplers with more memory emerged, such as
1848-411: The 1969 track "Amen, Brother", known as the Amen break , became popular with American hip hop producers and then British jungle producers in the early 1990s. It has been used in thousands of recordings, including songs by rock bands such as Oasis and theme tunes for television shows such as Futurama , and is among the most sampled tracks in music history. Other widely sampled drum breaks came from
1914-635: The 1970 James Brown song " Funky Drummer "; the Think break , sampled from the 1972 Lyn Collins song " Think (About It) ", written by Brown; and Led Zeppelin 's 1971 recording of " When the Levee Breaks ", played by John Bonham and sampled by artists including the Beastie Boys , Dr. Dre , Eminem and Massive Attack . In 2018, the Smithsonian cited the most sampled track as " Change
1980-515: The 1970s. Holger Czukay of the experimental German band Can spliced tape recordings into his music before the advent of digital sampling. The Guardian described the Chamberlin as the first sampler, developed by the English engineer Harry Chamberlin in the 1940s. The Chamberlin used a keyboard to trigger a series of tape decks, each containing eight seconds of sound. Similar technology
2046-549: The 1980s, samples were incorporated into synthesizers and music workstations , such as the bestselling Korg M1 , released in 1988. The Akai MPC , released in 1988, had a major influence on electronic and hip hop music, allowing artists to create elaborate tracks without other instruments, a studio or formal music knowledge. Its designer, Roger Linn , anticipated that users would sample short sounds, such as individual notes or drum hits, to use as building blocks for compositions; however, users sampled longer passages of music. In
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2112-823: The American producer Frank Dukes , has been used by artists including Drake , Kanye West , Kendrick Lamar , and J. Cole . In 2020, the US Library of Congress created an open-source web application that allows users to sample its copyright-free audio collection. Instead of sampling, artists may recreate a recording, a process known as interpolation. This requires only the musical content owner's permission, and creates more freedom to alter constituent components such as separate guitar and drum tracks. Sampling has influenced many genres of music, particularly pop, hip hop and electronic music. The Guardian journalist David McNamee likened its importance in these genres to
2178-465: The Beat " by Fab Five Freddy , which appears in more than 1,150 tracks. According to WhoSampled , a user-edited website that catalogs samples, James Brown appears in more than 3000 tracks, more than any other artist. The Independent named Loleatta Holloway as the most sampled female singer in popular music. Her vocals were sampled in house and dance tracks such as " Ride on Time " by Black Box ,
2244-678: The Bridgeport judgement was decided in an American Federal court of appeal , lower courts ruling on similar issues are bound to abide by it. However, in the 2016 case VMG Salsoul v Ciccone , the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit ruled that Madonna did not require a license for a short horn sample in her 1990 song " Vogue ". The judge Susan Graber wrote that she did not see why sampling law should be an exception to standard de minimis law. In 2019,
2310-527: The Dove proclaimed, "That native shit is dead." The collective would, however, reunite in 1996 for the Jungle Brothers’ "How Ya Want It We Got It (Native Tongues Remix)"; collaborators in this period, such as Common , The Roots , Truth Enola, DJ S.T.R.E.S.S. , Da Bush Babees , and Mos Def , could be seen as latter-day additions to the crew. In 1998 on A Tribe Called Quest's album The Love Movement ,
2376-530: The Los Angeles record label Now-Again Records has cleared songs produced for West and Pusha T in a matter of hours. The owner of sampled material may not always be traceable, and such knowledge is commonly mislaid through corporate mergers, closures and buyouts. For example, Eddie Johns, the author of a song sampled in the 2000 Daft Punk track " One More Time ", has never been located. As of 2021, he
2442-447: The Nite-Liters had so merged with the New Birth that the instrumental cut that opened the album was solely credited to New Birth. A move to Warner Bros. Records produced several minor hits and the release of the 1977 album, Behold The Mighty Army , the Wilson brothers left following disagreements in the group. The group including Baker, Churchill and Lander returned on Ariola in 1979 with Jerry Bell as their lead vocalist. By 1982 with
2508-530: The Secret Life of Plants may have been the first album to make extensive use of samples. The Japanese electronic band Yellow Magic Orchestra were pioneers in sampling, constructing music by cutting fragments of sounds and looping them. Their album Technodelic (1981) is an early example of an album consisting mostly of samples. My Life in the Bush of Ghosts (1981) by David Byrne and Brian Eno
2574-416: The album until the song was removed. The journalist Dan Charnas criticized the ruling, saying it was difficult to apply conventional copyright laws to sampling and that the American legal system did not have "the cultural capacity to understand this culture and how kids relate to it". In 2005, the writer Nelson George described it as the "most damaging example of anti-hip hop vindictiveness", which "sent
2640-509: The art and a natural love for each other on how we put stuff together. So we invited [the Jungle Brothers] to a session, and when they hooked up with us, we happened to be doing "Buddy." It wasn't business; it wasn't for a check. It was just trading ideas and just seeing what you're doing. Bottom line, it was just having fun." According to Q-Tip of A Tribe Called Quest: "I remember Afrika [Baby Bam] called me that night, like, two in
2706-474: The band that played as The Crawlers with Chicago artist Alvin Cash on his R&B No. 1 1964 hit, "Twine Time". The Nite-Liters had a few hits before the formation of New Birth proper, including "K-Jee" (No. 17 R&B & No. 39 Pop), in 1971. In 1969, Vernon Bullock had thought of creating an ensemble of groups for a touring company and Harvey Fuqua and Tony Churchill soon took an interest. After discovering
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2772-564: The bestselling single of 1989 in the UK. The orchestra hit originated as a sound on the Fairlight, sampled from Stravinsky's 1910 orchestral work Firebird Suite , and became a hip hop cliché. MusicRadar cited the Zero-G Datafiles sample libraries as a major influence on 90s dance music, becoming the "de facto source of breakbeats, bass and vocal samples". To legally use a sample, an artist must acquire legal permission from
2838-401: The copyright holder, a potentially lengthy and complex process known as clearance. Sampling without permission can breach the copyright of the original sound recording, of the composition and lyrics, and of the performances, such as a rhythm or guitar riff. The moral rights of the original artist may also be breached if they are not credited or object to the sampling. In some cases, sampling
2904-552: The first album created entirely from samples. The E-mu SP-1200 , released in 1987, had a ten-second sample length and a distinctive "gritty" sound, and was used extensively by East Coast producers during the golden age of hip hop of the late 1980s and early 90s. Commonly sampled elements include strings, basslines, drum loops, vocal hooks or entire bars of music, especially from soul records. Samples may be layered, equalized , sped up or slowed down, repitched, looped or otherwise manipulated. A seven-second drum break in
2970-466: The focus on individualism in hip hop. The innovations of the Native Tongues have been credited with facilitating the emergence of artists such as OutKast , Kanye West , and Pharrell Williams . There are several collectives today—with overlapping membership—that can be seen as the spiritual heirs to the Native Tongues crew: the Spitkicker crew (founded by De La Soul's Trugoy and Posdnuos in 2000),
3036-464: The hip hop group N.W.A . were successfully sued for their use of a two-second sample of a Funkadelic song in the 1990 track " 100 Miles and Runnin' ". The United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit ruled that all samples, no matter how short, required a license. A judge wrote: "Get a license or do not sample. We do not see this as stifling creativity in any significant way." As
3102-525: The importance of the guitar in rock. In August 2022, the Guardian noted that half of the singles in the UK Top 10 that week used samples. Sampling is a fundamental element of remix culture . Using the Fairlight, the "first truly world-changing sampler", the English producer Trevor Horn became the "key architect" in incorporating sampling into pop music in the 1980s. Other users of the Fairlight included Kate Bush , Peter Gabriel and Thomas Dolby . In
3168-570: The instrumental outfit The Nite-Liters , which was formed in 1963 in Louisville, Kentucky by Tony Churchill and Harvey Fuqua. In its heyday, besides Churchill on tenor sax and vibes, the band featured Charlie Hearndon on guitar, James Baker on keyboards, Robin Russell on drums, Robert "Lurch" Jackson on trumpet, Austin Lander on baritone sax, Leroy Taylor on bass, and, later, Carl McDaniel on guitar. Earlier members included Johnny Graham, later of Earth, Wind & Fire , and Jerry Bell on lead and background vocals. Some sources identify The Nite-Liters as
3234-509: The jazz flautist James Newton filed a claim against the Beastie Boys' 1992 single " Pass the Mic ", which samples his composition "Choir". The judge found that the sample, comprising six seconds and three notes, was de minimis (small enough to be trivial) and did not require clearance. Newton lost appeals in 2003 and 2004. In the 2005 case Bridgeport Music, Inc. v. Dimension Films ,
3300-407: The last track ("Rock Rock Ya'll") features Jane Doe, Mos Def, Punchline & Wordsworth. Q Tip states near the track's end that "this right here is a family". The Native Tongues are regarded as one of the first alternative hip hop movements; by diverging from popular models of hard-edged braggadocio, pursuing more experimental subject matter, and sampling more diverse types of music, they renewed
3366-464: The mainstream. Together with the use of eclectic samples that would take on an increasingly jazzy sound, they would be pioneers of so-called conscious hip hop , alternative hip hop , and jazz rap . De La Soul's Trugoy the Dove recalled: "The Native Tongues came about where, basically, we had a show together in Boston. [De La Soul], Jungle [Brothers] and we linked from there. We had a natural love for
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#17327873115003432-463: The morning. "Yo these kids, De La Soul, you gotta meet ’em! I swear we're just alike!" I went there, met them, and it was just fuckin' love at first sight. It was disgusting. In hip hop, it praises individualism. I think that's the main achievement of the Native Tongues. It just showed people could come together." Fostered by Kool DJ Red Alert , the success of the Jungle Brothers would pave
3498-438: The most sampled artists. The first album created entirely from samples, Endtroducing by DJ Shadow , was released in 1996. Sampling without permission can infringe copyright or may be fair use . Clearance , the process of acquiring permission to use a sample, can be complex and costly; samples from well-known sources may be prohibitively expensive. Courts have taken different positions on whether sampling without permission
3564-423: The performance he wanted out of Londee on their next hit, " Until It's Time for You to Go ", it featured, instead of the group members, future Supremes member Susaye Greene as lead vocalist, with Fuqua and Carolyn Willis of Honey Cone doing the spoken intro. However, Londee more than met the challenge in live performances and her voice matured on future releases. In 1974, the group issued their album It's Been
3630-482: The possibilities for manipulation have grown. Samples are distributed in sample libraries, also known as sample packs. In the 1990s, sample libraries from companies such as Zero-G and Spectrasonics had a major influence on contemporary music. In the 2000s, Apple introduced "Jam Packs" sample libraries for its DAW GarageBand . In the 2010s, producers began releasing sample packs on online platforms such as Splice . The Kingsway Music Library, created in 2015 by
3696-489: The reorganized group (as a 17-piece ensemble) reached the Billboard R&B top 10 (No. 4 R&B & No. 35 Pop) with their cover of Bobby Womack and The Valentinos ' " I Can Understand It ", which paved the way for the band's future success. By the time the song hit the stores, however, Ann had left to devote time to her family, leaving Londee Loren as the only female member. When Fuqua reportedly could not get
3762-456: The sperm bank and unknowingly sires hundreds of children". Clyde Stubblefield , the performer of the widely sampled drum break from " Funky Drummer ", also received no royalties. DJ Shadow said that artists tended to either see sampling as a mark of respect and a means to introduce their music to new audiences, or to be protective of their legacy and see no benefit. He described the difficulty of arranging compensation for each artist sampled in
3828-476: The tracks " South Bronx ", " Eric B. is President " and " It's a Demo " sampled the funk and soul tracks of James Brown , particularly a drum break from " Funky Drummer " (1970), helping popularize the technique. The advent of affordable samplers such as the Akai MPC (1988) made looping easier. Guinness World Records cites DJ Shadow 's acclaimed hip hop album Endtroducing (1996), made on an MPC60, as
3894-633: The way for De La Soul and A Tribe Called Quest ; together, these three groups would form the core of the crew and continue the spirit of Afrika Bambaataa and the Zulu Nation . By 1989 they had been joined by Queen Latifah and the United Kingdom's Monie Love , and soon by the Black Sheep & Chi-Ali . Collectively, the members of the Native Tongues had a huge effect on the style and trends of hip hop during its most important period,
3960-408: The words of Greg Milner, author of Perfecting Sound Forever , musicians "didn't just want the sound of John Bonham's kick drum, they wanted to loop and repeat the whole of ' When the Levee Breaks '." Linn said: "It was a very pleasant surprise. After 60 years of recording, there are so many prerecorded examples to sample from. Why reinvent the wheel?" Stevie Wonder's 1979 album Journey Through
4026-554: Was a chief influence on soul artist Reggie Sears and Temptations lead singer Ali "Ollie" Woodson . James Baker died on October 24, 1993, and Leroy Taylor died on January 17, 2012. Robin Russell died in 2021. Melvin Wilson died on March 31, 2023, from pancreatic cancer. Sampling (music) In sound and music , sampling is the reuse of a portion (or sample ) of a sound recording in another recording. Samples may comprise elements such as rhythm, melody, speech, or sound effects. A sample can be brief and only incorporate
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#17327873115004092-561: Was not new, the Fairlight's design and built-in sequencer simplified the process. The Fairlight inspired competition, improving sampling technology and driving down prices. Early competitors included the E-mu Emulator and the Akai S950 . Drum machines such as the Oberheim DMX and Linn LM-1 incorporated samples of drum kits and percussion rather than generating sounds from circuits. Early samplers could store samples of only
4158-521: Was owed an estimated "six-to-seven-figure sum" based on streams. In 1989, the Turtles sued De La Soul for using an unlicensed sample on their album 3 Feet High and Rising . The Turtles singer Mark Volman told the Los Angeles Times : "Sampling is just a longer term for theft. Anybody who can honestly say sampling is some sort of creativity has never done anything creative." The case
4224-496: Was popularised in the 60s with the Mellotron . In 1969, the English engineer Peter Zinovieff developed the first digital sampler, the EMS Musys . The term sample was coined by Kim Ryrie and Peter Vogel to describe a feature of their Fairlight CMI synthesizer, launched in 1979. While developing the Fairlight, Vogel recorded around a second of piano performance from a radio broadcast and discovered that he could imitate
4290-502: Was settled out of court and set a legal precedent that had a chilling effect on sampling in hip hop. In 1991, the songwriter Gilbert O'Sullivan sued the rapper Biz Markie after Markie sampled O'Sullivan's " Alone Again (Naturally) " on the album I Need a Haircut . In Grand Upright Music, Ltd. v. Warner Bros. Records Inc , the court ruled that sampling without permission infringed copyright. Instead of asking for royalties, O'Sullivan forced Markie's label Warner Bros . to recall
4356-543: Was the final track on A Tribe Called Quest's album The Low End Theory and featured the fledgling Leaders of the New School —Dinco D, Busta Rhymes , and Charlie Brown. While featuring an extensive discography, the collaborations of the Native Tongues have been fairly limited: the collective never recorded anything under that name, and the number of notable crew cuts can be counted on one hand. The various groups grew distant with time, and, by 1993, De La Soul's Trugoy
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