That Eric Alper

The drum break – usually a short, but very sweet, part of a song where the drummer lets loose, is one of the greatest gifts music producers could hope for. Ever since sampling became widespread, drum breaks were used extensively in producing some of the greatest hits of all time. Down below we prepared a short list of some of the most widely sampled drum breaks in history.

1. The Winstons – Amen, Brother

Who would’ve thought, back in 1969, that a simple, 6-second long drum segment, would have so much impact on the music industry in the next 4 decades? Gregory Sylvester Coleman and The Winstons probably didn’t. But the fact remains that this short break found its way into many different genres, transformed in a variety of different ways. It is the single most sampled drum break in history, and you’ll find it everywhere, from N.W.A’s “Straight Outta Compton”., over Drum N’ Bass, to “D’ You Know What I Mean” by Oasis. If you’re a music producer, don’t miss out on a free sample pack that includes this iconic drum break and many more.

2. Billy Squier – The Big Beat

Simple, yet effective – these words best describe the break in “The Big Beat”. Extremely popular with pop and rap stars, and especially in the 00s (almost 20 years, how time flies!), this beat allowed Billy Squier to forever be engraved in the history of music. Some of the most popular songs which sampled “The Big Beat” include “99 problems” by Jay Z and “Berzerk” by Eminem.

3. The Honey Drippers – Impeach The President

The 70s were a wild time. The Watergate break-in and the ensuing scandal were forever engraved in the hearts and minds of the American people. It is, therefore, not strange that many songs were written about the scandal, but the most famous one had to have been “Impeach the President” by The Honey Drippers. The drums in “Impeach the President” formed one of the bases of rap, with many famous rappers (like 2Pac, The Notorious B.I.G., just to name a few), using the specific drum sample from the song for their beats.

4. Melvin Bliss – Synthetic Substitution

“Synthetic Substitution” is one of those songs that were breathed in new life thanks to DJs who were snooping around looking for new sounds to sample. There’s no doubting that, when you hear this break for the first time in its original form, you’ll instantly recognize it. Released all the way back in 1973 as a B-Side track, it found its way on Wu Tang Clan’s “Bring Da Ruckus” and “Clan in Da Front”, as well as many other rap tracks.

5. James Brown – Funky Drummer

James Brown, also known as “The Grandfather of Soul”, was without a doubt, one of the greatest musicians of our time. Many of his songs and beats were sampled numerous times, but “Funky Drummer” has to have one of the most widely sampled breakbeats in history. “You don’t have to do no soloing, brother” as James would say to his drummer, instructing him how to stay on the beat, thus creating an almost perfect breakbeat, used widely by hip-hop legends such as Dr. Dre, Public Enemy and others.

Being a musician on tour isn’t always as glamorous as it seems, being whisked through one backstage fire exit to the next, via a stinking tour bus or sterile airport lounge.

It’s no wonder that many artists struggle to write when they’re on the road and sometimes that frustration can spill over, with all the excesses that the rock and roll lifestyle is known for. To keep themselves on the straight and narrow, modern artists are now frequently turning to games to wile away the lost hours spent on the road or in the air.
Here are some of the big names of past and present who fell in love with the games that kept their brains ticking, no matter where they found themselves in the world.

Once the mic’s dropped at the end of a set, all that’s left to do is game

The Eagles – Poker
Members of The Eagles made no secret of their love of card games, whether they were on tour, backstage or just enjoying some leisure time.
The two main protagonists were Glenn Frey and his song writing partner Don Henley. Such was their love for the game that Frey even claimed he invented Eagle Poker, a derivative of Acey Deucey or Red Dog as it’s also known.

During the 1970s Frey even turned his own house nestled in the Hollywood Hills into something of an after-hours poker den, hosting celebrities long after LA’s clubs and bars shut for the night. Further proving their devotion to the game, the band recorded songs such as Out of Control and Desperado both whose lyrics paid homage to the vagaries of the game.

The Eagles couldn’t resist a late-night game of Texas Hold’em

Drake – Fortnite
While The Eagles were too old to have witnessed the online revolution during the height of their careers, that certainly isn’t the case for Drake, who while taking the recording world by storm has also found time to develop a deep appreciation for multiplayer online blaster Fortnite.
Always open to a good business deal, Drake has even appeared alongside the most famous Fortnite player and streamer in the world Ninja, with both playing the game side-by-side on Ninja’s Twitch channel. We’re sure that the fact Ninja has 15 million subscribers had no influence on Drake deciding to make the link-up.

When he’s not pulling in the viewers and listeners, Drake and his crew like nothing more than to kick back in the recording studio and rack up their respective kill-counts.

Jack Black – Minecraft
Jack Black went from being part of comedy rock outfit Tenacious D, which he formed with Kyle Gass, to being one of the premier Hollywood funny men. Never one to shy away from his slightly nerdy side, Black has even done voiceover work for the game Brutal Legend and has previously bragged about completing Project Gotham Racing.
His most recent foray into gaming was with the online sensation that is Minecraft, with not even his hectic acting career being allowed to get in the way of him and his button bashing.

Ronnie Jones – Video Games in General
Ronnie Jones was an American soul crooner who eventually moved to sing in Italy. He first went to Europe as part of the US Airforce, but never stopped recording tunes. Perhaps it was his time holed up in barracks that led him to record the song Video Games, which featured on his album, Games.

Whatever did inspire Jones to write the song, it has stood the test of time, being made famous in contemporary music by Daft Punk who sampled Video Games on their smash hit Technologic in the mid-2000s.

Justin Bieber – Pokémon Go
That’s right beliebers, the Canadian dreamboat himself is a gaming nut, loving nothing more than hunting Pokémon wherever he goes. Some of his haircuts and outfits could one day see him become a Pokémon himself.When not poking Pikachu, Beiber also enjoys a spot of Call of Duty and Halo.