How This Drum Beat Changed Hip Hop Forever

[@SoundFieldPBS]

That's right we are back! We are going to be releasing a lot more shorts and full-length episodes in the coming months all about Hip Hop music. So if there are any Hip Hop related topics you'd like us to cover please let us know.

[@philjacksonDP]

welcome back!

[@sonicgoo1121]

How about instrumental hiphop/plunderphonics? Or the practice of making your own samples?

[@FPOAK]

Can you do one about Jamaican sound system culture and the huge influence it had on the birth of hip hop

[@wormyworms6629]

I love your show! There can never be enough Sound Field. Glad to hear you’ll be making more 😃

[@spencergrant4742]

I love the way you spotlight genres, artists and movements. It would be awesome to spotlight underground hip hop movements from cities across the US. Looking at labels that have been created and what that does for local artists in a city. It's also awesome to learn about the past of artists who made it mainstream, and also those who didn't, but helped continue the movement in their community.

[@dlg5485]

I can't believe Clyde thought that beat was boring. The beauty is in its simplicity. Still one of my favorite beats after all these years!

[@ronniewall492]

kzbin.info/www/bejne/hIO2Z2WkmMiqo9k

[@DrJPhoenixx]

I think Clyde hated the beat because it came during a late night rehearsal when everyone was tired. He was just idling along on the drums, and a whole song was born around that drum beat. One more song came from that session: “She’s The One”.

[@Gogogoogle477]

It's deceptively tricky to play on drums

[@johnsmith-fz5pz]

because it is effing boring. clearly you are simple. simples ey. as a drummer. it is simple. (simple is usually boring)

[@johnsmith-fz5pz]

@@Gogogoogle477 simple*

[@ElDJReturn]

Big ups to Clyde Stubblefield for his contributions to the Breaks and Breakbeat genre. Without his talent music would be so different. Thank you Sound Field for spreading the word!

[@maccagrabme]

Without breakbeats and samples it would be like most modern hiphop nowadays, boring and sounding exactly like every other artist.

[@CorbCorbin]

Hear tha drummer get wicked…

[@cjaquilino]

10:40 People complain “there’s too many writers on records these days”. But Clyde Stubblefield (and countless people) getting little credit/compensation while being so widely sampled is a big reason I applaud the trend. Everyone deserves credit.

[@a52productions]

It's so cool that James Brown heard people we're sampling his music and responded by releasing a prelooped version of the part they liked the most! Really refreshing compared to modern copyright battles. Although, I guess he would be getting the money from record sales of that loop, so it's a bit different. I'm glad you brought up the Amen Break -- I'm super familiar with it because I make electronic music, and I immediately noticed Funky Drummer's rhythmic similarity. They've got a fairly similar groove, something with the snare or something.

[@sirfizz6518]

Pretty sure Funky Drummer is a close 2nd to Amen in some genres, mostly DnB and breaks.

[@a52productions]

@@sirfizz6518 Oh I'm sure I heard it before and misidentified it or something!

[@DullBull]

@@sirfizz6518 For jungle and DnB I would put the Think-break 2nd. Funky Drummer was usually more used for new-school, pop and electronica i believe.

[@DullBull]

@@a52productions Listening for the 16ths on the hi-hat may help distinguish them.

[@Artersa]

Funky drummer and amen basically have the same rhythm (and same for Think); they’re all funk breakbeats. What makes them especially useful are their timbres and how they were recorded (meaning, all the bits of glue and saturation from recording to input to recording) because they have a variety of timbres and textures as you pitch them up and down. Not all breaks are as easy to use when sampling.

[@kravvall4869]

Nice to see a new Sound Field video!

[@1ofthewizards330]

Another HUGELY influential drum break is the one from The Honey Drippers "Impeach the President". It's right up there with "Funky Drummer" and the "Amen" break. It's been sampled tens to hundreds of times and is the basis of a lot of Hip Hop songs.

[@Salaam71]

💯 And , Impeach the President is actually where "Eric B is President" comes from. Not funky drummer.

[@kevs8225]

Impeach is my favorite drum break !

[@1ofthewizards330]

@@Salaam71 Thanks for the correction. A lot of hits came from Impeach's drum break. Audio Two "Top Billin" , Biggie "Unbelievable", Nas "The Message", MC Shan "The Bridge", LL Cool J "Around the Way Girl" and more.

[@Klos1neMN]

You can add the Skull Snaps, "It's A New Day" to that list, another sample that has been used by rap artists but also other genres of dance music.

[@1ofthewizards330]

@@Klos1neMN Thanks for that. I just checked it out and immediately recognized the drum pattern. Didn't know where it came from until now though :)

[@12tone]

I was just thinking the other day that it'd been a long time since I'd seen a new Sound Field video... Great to see you back, and with such an incredible episode too!

[@SoundFieldPBS]

Thanks for the support as always 12tone!

[@poserp]

The thing that does it for me in the Funky Drummer break, and something that doesn't really make it into the transcriptions, is the "bouncing ball" quality of the snare part. There are, essentially, five snare hits in a measure (sometimes there's a bit of a grace after the open hi-hat that sets up the next "one" which comes immediately after the fifth snare hit). Hit 1 lands, there's an open hi-hat, then 2 & 3 are closer together, then 4 & 5 are almost right on top of each other, with 5 getting an accent (Clyde plays all five notes as single-strokes, he's not bouncing the stick a-la "ghost" notes as many people interpret that these days).

[@blue_champignon5738]

Omg soundfield is back!

[@SoundFieldPBS]

that's right

[@djb903]

Finally some drum and bass!!!!! Respect! LTJ bukem 🔥

[@uzomanwosu]

It would be cool if they covered the crossover material and artists between hip hop and drum and bass in the early days. Grime for that matter.

[@leebatt7964]

I was the drummer in my high school stage band and would incorporate funky drummer into any and all the songs I could. The saints go marching in, funky drummer. Green onions, funky drummer , etc.. Our band teacher hated me.

[@cjbrown420]

😂😂😂 I used to play the tuba I was always playing some funky bass line man the jams we could of made lol

[@jahkmusic5729]

High school days were the days .... I played drums in a high school gospel choir. My thing was keeping it in the pocket every now and then a gogo vibe 😂😂 oh but the maturity I have makes me reminisce and laugh 😂😂😂😂

[@jorymil]

Man... high school teachers deserve more money. The history of the rhythm is important. Baby Dodds. Zutty Singleton. Danny Barcelona. Al Jackson, Jr. Hopefully you got hip to those guys.

[@TUAlum92]

😂😂

[@ingolfurarnar697]

Your band teacher was a dork

[@dyscotopia]

All credit to one of the GOATs. You hear that beat, it's like putting on a favourite old sweater. Just doesn't get old. So while he may not have reaped the rewards financially, he's left a timeless legacy that not even his passing can take away.. I wanna pay my bills, sure, but that kind of reward transcends cash money

[@Lunarbutterflytarot]

💯

[@jecoeur]

I kind of find it funny that you basically reinvented jungle with the song you made. A big part of that uk sound that pinkpantheress draws from can be traced back to overseas influence from both hip hop and house music. This episode was really good, I really appreciate that you took the time to highlight a very important drum break that wasn't just another amen break video. There's so many of these drum breaks that were (and still are) incredibly influential, like the think break, hot pants break, apache, worm, etc that deserve to have their own respective highlights. As someone that uses a break in almost every song I make, I can personally attest that these sampled drum loops can carry entire music movements from their mere existence. It's hard to oversell how important they are

[@Artersa]

I wouldn’t say he “reinvented jungle”, it was a straight up 2-step/routine DNB beat and tempo. Not that it was bad by any means, but I think the term “reinventing jungle” carries much larger expectations there.

[@DUNKIN_DEAN]

I stumbled across JB’s “In the Jungle Groove”, with Clyde Stubblefield’s breaks, and I was instantly hooked. It didn’t leave my turntable for a long time. That album also inspired me to search out more JB and Clyde. Thank you for a great documentary!

[@nettricegaskins1871]

Clyde Stubblefield is my favorite drummer and John Bonham (who studied Stubblefield) is a close second.

[@Toboqannn]

big props for choosing LTJ Bukem as an example for amen, he's not talked about enough now, one of the biggest dnb legends

[@uzomanwosu]

Agreed

[@ApriliaRacer14]

Truth!

[@BKaneNp8]

MUCH RESPECT!!! That beat shaped my life

[@klchu]

I've seen many breakdowns of this beat over the years, however, this is the best one. Sorry, everyone else, but this one nails it.

[@Wally-H]

He plays the bass kicks completely wrong though. Some of them are missing. if he'd analysed that vital part of the beat properly he might have realised he was nowhere near getting it right.

[@JeffTheGent]

I’ve always loved the way “Funky Drummer” is sampled on Sinéad O’Connor’s “I Am Stretched on Your Grave,” which she produced with Nellee Hooper. I’m glad it was mentioned here. It was never a single, but to me it’s a major standout on 1990’s _I Do Not Want What I Haven’t Got_ - the No. 1 album featuring the No. 1 single “Nothing Compares 2 U.”

[@digitaltrilling]

ya'll dope! thanks for sharing the history. RIP CS

[@cariboowho]

even though the shorts don’t have as much information, i really like having the more frequent doses of sound field in between the bigger projects. keep it up!!

[@SoundFieldPBS]

Glad you like that! We will keep releasing both shorts and full eps

[@ZeugmaP]

I'm glad you're back ! This beat is as important for hip-hop as the Amen break for drum'n'bass

[@tommytong2854]

Wow! A doc on Clyde stubblefield!.. 👍🏿 👍🏿

[@Fluffytriforce]

such a cool episode! i love deep dives about samples and how they influenced music throughout the years

[@Hedron-Design]

Not only were the break beats looped using two records but this is where the name for break dancing comes from. Dancing to break beats hence break dancing. I always love hearing about those early days with Cool Herc and the scene going down at the time.

[@MLHunt]

Great piece on an underappreciated bit of pop music history. You should follow up with a piece on the Amen break, arguably even more influential and also a very interesting story.

[@MLHunt]

Ah I see you did get a mention of the Amen break in as well lol

[@carrotman]

They got a quick mention in 7:35-8:00 I had that same thought. :P

[@SoundFieldPBS]

there was so much coverage of the amen break by other channels that we thought we'd focus on funky drummer so we could give a well deserved shout out to Clyde Stubblefield.

[@MLHunt]

@@SoundFieldPBS that's true and makes sense. Thanks for the explanation!

[@TheLibrarianUSA]

@@SoundFieldPBS that maybe true that others have done it. However, how you all explore a topic deeper then most. Please consider the amen break

[@yashkummar]

I learnt something new today about funky drumming. I play Indian drums and also acoustic 5 piece. I always from a young age listened to music in my dad's record shop. I was exposed to different genres which gave me a wider spectrum of the music. Clyde what a humble soul yet his legend continues 👏. This is how to find a true Guru who has no ego! Thank you for sharing. Peace ✌️

[@mistyburden5459]

The Winston's "Amen Brother" is also one of the most sampled drum beats .

[@rabinesque]

As is Billy Squier's "The Big Beat"

[@InfectiousGroovePodcast]

I am so glad I grew up in the era when hip hop was in it's infancy. It was an amazing time to learn so much about a whole different culture and side of the world I had no idea about previously with a fairly sheltered upbringing.

[@DocBolus]

I wouldn't want to live in a world without drummers like Stubblefield.

[@flymypg]

I want Linda, Nahre and LA together! Of course, I'll joyfully take EVERYTHING that appears on this awesome channel.

[@SoundFieldPBS]

I want that too BobC, we'll make it a goal in the future.

[@beatmania3rdmix]

I sampled "Funky Drummer" on a song I wrote a decade or so ago called "Circles (You Take Me 'Round)." It's one of those loops that just transcends everything. The song that made me go and want to sample "Funky Drummer" was George Michael's "Waiting for that Day" which was originally released back in 1990. There was a sort of otherworldly quality to George Michael's song - using a hip hop loop, and putting organic instruments such as a Hammond B3, bass, and acoustic guitar over it. Also Michael's vocals. And it's really quite a feat since it is perfectly timed. No fluctuations at all, making it really versatile and easy to sample and loop.

[@jonnylyden]

Funky Drummer definitely defined the sound for me💯

[@jaywatanabe4706]

So good to have you guys back and what a great video to kick it off! Can’t wait for more of Soundfield!

[@Drummasterjay]

Woooo! Been waiting on this. Arthur is the perfect host, an amazing musician and even better human being.

[@lylyluvda916]

This content is mad dope. More like this please!

[@ignaciofuentes2642]

Another thing that makes this drum beat so popular and unique is the sound of the drums. All drummers tune their drums in different ways and use different equipment to get the sound they want. You probably couldn't even get your drums to sound like Stubblefield's drums unless you used a vintage kit with vintage drum heads. Plus the way they recorded and mixed it. The vintage studio equipment. You really can't duplicate the James Brown/Motown sound of those drums.

[@russelladams6517]

Brother thank you for saying this because this is exactly what I was thinking the way those drums hit that's why sample based producers like sampling drums from the 60s and 70s its because of that vintage sound

[@ignaciofuentes2642]

@@russelladams6517 Exactly. A lot of drummers can duplicate the beat. You can't duplicate the sound. You can try and try but you can't duplicate the sound. That's a big reason why early hip hop producers picked the samples they picked. The unique sound is what they wanted. I don't know it for a fact...but it wouldn't surprise me if they recorded those drums with just one microphone. Nobody does that anymore. You get a different sound with one mic than you do when you mic every drum the way they do now.

[@wallacegrommet9343]

Do love that musical snare sound

[@russelladams6517]

@@ignaciofuentes2642 yup I agree they probably used one mic to the way drums sound today it's plain and stale but there are groups who record with vintage equipment to get that 60s 70s sound like the daptones

[@oogiegoogie2826]

I wonder how much the name of the song contributed to its popularity as a sample. Imagine you’re digging through records looking for funky drum breaks and you see a song called “Funky Drummer.” Obviously you’re gonna play that one first.

[@SoundFieldPBS]

yeah that's a great point. If I'm crate digging and see a track called Funky Drummer i'm pulling that one for sure. But it has to deliver too, if you play it and it's not funky enough, it's not making it to the dance floor.

[@oogiegoogie2826]

@@SoundFieldPBS True, true. The title is apt.

[@andrij.demianczuk]

Yes, Stubs really was that good. A true legend!

[@therealdjap]

Great work! Long live The Funky Drummer.

[@cjthibeau4843]

Such a great episode to come back with!! I’ve missed y’all so much!! This is a great topic to cover, not surprising from one of my longtime favorite channels!

[@Koedean]

Very educational for both the people involved in the music industry and the general public.

[@sub-jec-tiv]

Used to go hear Clyde’s blues band every weekend. Amazing drummer, lovely guy.

[@LawrenceMarkFearon]

Priceless lesson in music history. Finally I can put a name on that beat in the soul of Hip Hop. We have to do justice for founding father musicians like Stubblefield upon which our culture was built.

[@CaapriceTube1]

Forever a Classic. ICONIC drum piece 🌟 3:40 - He was born on Apr.18, 1943 so he was actually 26.

[@MegaCadr]

The “parent’s record stash” part made me so happy :)

[@user-x4u6l]

Good stuff! I wish more people would talk about Gregory Coleman though. The guy who created the Amen break never got any recognition in his lifetime and died in poverty.

[@Wally-H]

Same as Clyde. He was so poor when he got sick that his friends had to have a whip-round to pay for his medical treatment. I well remember the appeal for money on the website he and Jabo had when they recorded a drum break album together.

[@caseycameron5370]

Dope video this hip hop head is very impressed pop has taken so much from hip hop

[@JarosawPays]

I've always called it "those 90s drums", it's great to finally be able to put a name and a face to that

[@Wally-H]

Used heavily from '86 in hip hop.

[@donaldwilliams4161]

I am 66 just starting my music career after alot of disruptions in my life. I always say listen to my funky drum beat and enjoyed the funky beat. Thanks for letting me know where I got that funky drummer beat from.

[@johngibson3799]

Clyde Stubblefield is one of the best drummers in music history. His grooves and samples of those grooves changed all areas of music. Clyde never really got his due.

[@Musicalmane]

Clyde was a friend of a family friend of mine, and I met him a couple dozen times. This was when I was pretty young, so I don't remember a lot of things he talked about, but I remember him talking about how wild James was sometimes and how James would constantly be shouting at him trying to make things perfect as heard at 9:24. I got to see Clyde play solo, and for some small bands, he was a cool dude and one of the best drummers I've seen. :)

[@tonychopper9142]

I remember riding somewhere with my late uncle James when i was about 11 or 12 and he had the radio on, and Funky Drummer came on. Once I heard the "1, 2, 3, fo, hit it! " and the break kicked in, I nearly jumped outta the seat like "WHAT!!" I had no idea at the time. I had already heard various songs like "It's a Demo" and "Runs House" using that break. That just cracked my dome open hearing that. Helluva drummer

[@cloudbloom]

I love finding a channel like this about music history

[@maddog2314]

Vandy C's bit about taking different parts of songs and putting them together during a live set and making a "gumbo" is a game changer. Idk if I haven't noticed it at edm sets before, but having just started djing, this is huge for me.

[@elquebi]

Most top tier DJs back in the day would cover or scratch out the name of the song and artist on the record labels to keep rival DJs from sneaking a peek and learning the ingredients going into their special gumbo.

[@nebstaism]

its not just the actual break pattern and groove thats so appealing ..... its the sound of that recording on the old analog gear that makes it sound so good as well. the engineers of that record and most of the fat drum breaks recorded in the 70s need props too .....

[@tobydrums1]

The beat we used to play on the school desk. Good demo of beat by drummer.

[@HipHopfan_]

When I read the title I already knew about which drum break it was. Such a classic

[@djknat]

born in 1990, I was growing up with edm as my primary music genre. Because that's what my parents listened to, instead of pop, hip-hop, alt/classic rock, jazz/classical, I would here chemical breaks, trance, and chicago house as a kid. Once I got into DnB in my early teens, I realized they had the same beat. I heard some hip-hop do that too! What was that beat?! I looked it up back in the early shit days of the internet and found the "amen break" first. It all clicked in my brain and I looked up everything. I know all this history in this video, but as a white boy growing both rich and broke depending, I love the broad coverage of this and I love that it celebrates and features mostly black people. You tackled every aspect and it was a pleasure to see people honoring those classic breaks! P.L.U.R.

[@FrankDeMarco]

So Glad to see you back!

[@camiamproducer]

Been waiting for y’all 💯

[@whitesky38]

So glad that Sound Field is back !

[@krono5el]

Stubblefield is the literal funkmaster : D

[@Beryllahawk]

WOOOOO! Even before I watch this - I AM SO HAPPY TO SEE Y'ALL UPLOAD!!!! Edit: okay now that I've watched it - This was great! It's fascinating to realize how this same beat is kinda everywhere, quietly forming the backbone of some truly iconic tracks. A little bit sad that the industry didn't give back to the drummer as it could and should have done, but at the same time realizing that specific artists did try is touching. Such a catchy beat and such a wonderful story that goes with it - and once more you've created a great track too! Man, I missed y'all

[@cooldebt]

Makes me think of the Lizzie E and Fresh 4 version of Wishing on a Star. It never gets old - I have been addicted to that beat for more than 30 years!

[@miguelvillagomez3720]

Proud to be an owner of that funk'd out 45 👏🏼🔥

[@deepzone31]

Love that Bukem got a mention for the amen sample. There is a head somewhere in the producers room.

[@mae__]

Great video thanks !!! What a legacy

[@steveglover6411]

Great breakdown and analysis of this iconic beat. Don’t know if it’s the microphones used to record your drums or if the hats are bronze instead of brass but they sound harsh and unlike the subtle sound of the Funky drummer beat.

[@lazkennedy]

This is the ubiquitous beat that fits in just about every genre and song everywhere and at any time. My memory of it is always attached to the Powerpuff Girls theme as they mentioned in the video, but watching this made me realise just how widely spread it is. Music is amazing.

[@jonnyboy1001]

To any hip hop head from the '80's "rebel without a Pause' is the most important use of this break. That song changed music period.

[@100BlaQRaok.el_1]

That 'Fat Back'❤️👑🔥

[@franknord4826]

Yeee boi, LTJ Bukem.

[@rightrightrightuhhuhuhhuh6516]

I'm a Berklee School drummer and the first thing as a drummer that I recognize with the Funky Drummer loop is that it is 96 Beats Per Minute and double time at 192 BPM. So it's a slow walking speed beat in straight time and just a little too quick in double but both speeds have a kind of unique presence in terms of personality. Because the straight time is slow, Stubblefield inserted the lazy snare hand "ghost notes" that live in the pocket of the time which gives it the signature "funk" that doesn't feel rushed

[@Alex-fu3mi]

🔥🔥 Sound Field is BACK! 🔥🔥 welcome back! you've been missed!

[@SoundFieldPBS]

It feels good to know we were missed

[@bradbell4022]

I think it's cuz it's funky, ie. instead of the last 2 beats perfectly mirroring the first two, the kick is delayed by half a beat. Funk is essentially Call and Response where the response is funky, usually by being delayed. It plays with expectations and breaks the mechanical repetition

[@aricohen283]

It’s amazing to see so much old school hip hop-related content on KZbin these days. Digging the Greats just did a similar video on this subject as well about how James Brown “incepted” hip hop in the mid ‘80s

[@2nd3rd1st]

Is Fight the Power: How Hip Hop Changed the World blocked outside the US? Says Video unavailable here in Europe.

[@SoundFieldPBS]

Unfortunately right now it’s only available in the U.S. im sorry!

[@TheImage3320]

Clyde Stubblefield rocks

[@OhanaFilms]

For me, Amen Brother is the all time best break but Funky Drummer is a super close second.

[@aminecougar6160]

I think the band who made that drum beat globally famous is SNAP with the song I’ve got the power.being from Africa, the first time I heard that, it was in that song which were all over the world

[@mellow-jello]

Remember my math days with my classmate, drumming this rhythm and beats with our pens, and pencils. Guess we both had good taste, and picked up this beat in the 90s, thanks.

[@OguzDemirelli]

Money is not the only way to honor this man.

[@melllvar4262]

Public Enemy also sampled it in Rebel without a pause

[@Jal2446]

at 9:27, it seems like Arthur's describing a game of children playing jump rope. The artist's talent in rhythm suggests he's generous in allowing others to "jump in" giving it a welcoming quality. In relation to time, is it possible that some of the extra umpffhh could be that it was recorded in the 1970's so the recording equipment would have to be analog? The samples would have also be played on analog equipment (record players, tapes...etc) which were recorded and transferred to digital in modern times. These are just thoughts I had on after watching and listening to the video. It's a great video and I learned a lot of cool stuff. James Brown's a generous man that in that one action, gave a generation of young artists some seasoning to work with.

[@sl3102]

Very interesting! This video needs a mix though.

[@joshuacabonce]

RIP Clyde

[@GrassLion85]

It was also used by Sublime in their version of Scarlet Begonias

[@Artersa]

Awesome video. Would love to see one on the Think Break (if you haven’t already), Apache Break, and Scorpio Break. Of course you’ll attract a lot of smug Junglists (such as myself), but it’d be great.

[@vistalite-ph4zw]

Both Clyde and Jabbo were vocal about not getting paid for their contributions to hip hop. Not sure about Purdie, however from a business perspective they did get paid for their time and contributions to James Brown. Why James didn't credit them on the albums I have no idea. So when the 80s came around and everybody sampled "Funky Drummer " the royalties went to JB because he is credited for the song. One thing for sure Clyde Stubblefield will be always known as the Funky Drummer and that legacy will live on forever....

[@planetclay]

where might we hear the full version of your lovely creation at the end? that was sounding really good.

[@JerzyFeliksKlein]

So basically James Brown released it as a 3 minute loop, DJs of the era picked it up because it saved them work and they could just play it without any work, couple of first MCs used it on their singles because it was popular and familiar and everybody after that used it because it was a "classic" and they wanted to appear like they had some roots in the music. Don't overhype or overcomplicate things.

[@hwizell7478]

Sound of the funky drummer

[@n34z3r]

Prince, the best to ever do it, I can see why he is still my fav and glad he saw the reason to pay it back that helped him get to where he landed

[@davidbartz2900]

thanks for making this video

[@jasontsh]

Nice video! You're playing the beat slightly wrong though. There's a very important snare ghost note just before the 2nd main snare hit on 4. So, that 2nd main snare backbeat is buh-BAH, with the ghost note on the 16th note before it. :)

[@groove.professor]

yeeeeah! sound field is back!!!

[@bluetannery1527]

love to see y'all again :-)

[@MichaelFG]

A beat to revolutionize the industry that's a beat worth producing