Bob James Is The Shit
June 6, 2008
Yesterday I stumbled across a record that I hadn’t thought about in a while. That record was Bob James’ Two, which includes the classic track “Take Me To the Mardi Gras.” The breakbeat that appears in the beginning can be easily recognized by most heads as the main sample for Run DMC’s “Peter Piper.” However, if you’re a fan of Bob James or any of the hip-hop artists he’s influenced, then you may also be familiar with some of his earlier work. Most notably, “Nautilus” from the album One.
The amount of producers and MC’s that have sampled from Bob James is staggering. That being said, I’d like to give Mr. James a little well-deserved shine on Bass Rocks. I’ve comprised a nice collective, which includes some of the famous artists who recognized Bob James as the musical mastermind he is. Check it out:
Bob James: “Nautilus”
Ghostface Killah: “Daytona 500″
Main Source: “Live at the BBQ”
Pete Rock & C.L. Smooth: “Take You There”
A Tribe Called Quest: “Clap Your Hands”
Ultramagnetic MC’s: “Ced-Gee”
Consequence: “Job Song”
And that’s not even half the list for songs that sampled “Nautilus”…
Bob James: “Take Me To the Mardi Gras”
Run DMC: “Peter Piper”
LL Cool J: “Rock The Bells”
Beastie Boys: “Hold it Now”
Missy Elliots: “Work It”
Common: “I Want You”
WHOA…It’s pretty obvious that hip-hop owes Bob James for his brilliance. And those were only two tracks! I think it’s safe to say that without Mr. James, some modern day rap classics would never have existed at all…Props to you Bob James.
