Friday Funk: Roy Ayers

As everybody from Tribe to The Beatnuts to Madlib knows, the Roy Ayers catalog is some of the most fertile loop-digging ground in existence. As evidence, I'd like to introduce to you exhibits "A" - a sick, sick, SICK battle of the vibes between Mr. Ayers and Dwight Gassaway (the chubby brutha) and "B" - one of my all-time favorites, "Funk in the Hole".

And seriously, even if you typically disregard this segment because funk isn't "your thing" (lamerz), I highly recommend at least checking out this first vid… it transcends the game:

Friday Funk: Classic Nuts Edition.

Psycho Les and JuJu. They join forces to become… The Beatnuts! And any discussion on the greatest beat-makers of all time means nothing without 'em. Know dat.

Sounds good without J. Lo and Jada pooping all over it, doesn't it?

Anyway, here's to a well-spent weekend… and, as always, keep it funky, Fools!

Friday Funk: Sample Roots Edition

A lot of the best R&B and Hip-Hop of the last thirty years owes a great debt to the funk, soul, and smooth grooves of its predecessors. So, I thought it would be fun to take a look at a few of these roots jams; songs you may not be familiar with in whole form, but that you've DEFINITELY heard broken down and re-served up in hot slices within other songs. Whether a drumbreak, keyboard run, or bass track, it had to come from somewhere. Here are just a few of the places it did.


1) Melvin Bliss - "Synthetic Substitution"
Sampled in: Method Man - “All I Need”, Naughty By Nature - “O.P.P.”, Ghostface Killah - "Mighty Healthy", Ice T - "Original Gangster", Public Enemy - "Don't Believe the Hype", Wu-Tang Clan - "Bring Da Ruckus", 2Pac - "The Streetz R Death Row", EPMD - "Scratch Bring it Back" and many more



2) James Brown - "Funky Drummer"
Sampled in: Eric B and Rakim - "Eric B is President", A Tribe Called Quest - "Show Business", Geto Boys - "Read These Nikes", Ice Cube - "Jackin' for Beats", KRS-One - "Outta Here", Public Enemy - "Fight the Power", Snoop Dogg - "Murder Was The Case", De La Soul - "Brain-Washed Follower", LL Cool J - "6 Minutes of Pleasure", Nas - "Get Down", and many more



3) Lyn Collins - “Think (About It)”
Sampled in: Rob Base & DJ EZ Rock - “It Takes Two”, Janet Jackson - “Alright”, Afrika Bambaataa - "Planet Rock", De La Soul - "Jenifa (Taught Me) (Derwin's Revenge)", Heavy D - "You Ain't Heard Nuttin' Yet", New Edition - "Hit Me Off", Public Enemy - "911 is a Joke", Slick Rick - "Slick Rick - The Ruler", Snoop Dogg - "Ain't No Fun", EPMD - "Da Joint", Biz Markie - "Road Block", Kool Moe Dee - "I Go to Work", and many more

Friday Funk: Genre Movie Edition

In the late '80s and early '90s, Hollywood discovered the newfangled "rap" thingy that all the kids seemed to be talking about. Faster than you can say "Sugarhill Gang" a hip-hop media bubble was born, fueling the popular misconception that anyone with even the faintest hint of rhythm and a pair of Wayfarers could be a rapper. Along with all the ill-advised Wendy's training videos, grandmothers, and exercise videos, rap flooded into pop culture though multiplexes and the endlessly repeated dregs of cable movie channels.

Here's a track from the obscure 1990 group The U-Krew, as seen in the Dolph Lundgren vs. Extraterrestrial Drug Dealers movie, I Come in Peace:




Especially in B-movies of the time, rap was treated as a gimmick, but more serious directors managed to find room for artists with more staying power. Staple New York auteur, Abel Ferrara cobbled together a formidable soundtrack for his Christopher Walken led gangster film King of New York, prominently featuring this track by Schooly D:

Even the blockbusters weren't willing to miss out on this trend. Most people forget that Die Hard was a Christmas movie, so here is some holiday cheer from the soundtrack to remind you.

Friday Funk: Outasight

One of the many artists that have basically cultivated a groundswell off little else but MySpace (and since shows in small clubs in NYC,) Outasight has dropped two free-for-download EPs and turned those into a soon-coming LP for Daily Grind Records.

The title track off his first EP, "Employee of the Year"


The first single off his 2008's Radio New York "Good Evening (Dream Big.)"


More. Myspace.com/iamoutasight

The DoF Friday Funk: Blak Twang

Blak Twang and Roots Manuva - "Shhhoosh"

Blak Twang - "Help Dem Lord"

Make way for the DoF Friday Funk!

A new feature meant to get you to 5 o'clock with a glide in your stride and a dip in your hip…the DoF takes you home on the mothership.

This Friday's installment was submitted by the long-haired space cadet, D-Nice. Good lookin', D.

Digable Planets - "Nickel Bag of Funk"