James Brown “Super Bad” Samples in EDM
There’s nobody that is more super bad than James Brown! He’s the “hardest working man in show business”, he’s “the Godfather of Soul”, he’s “the Godfather of Funk”, he’s “Mr. Dynamite”, he’s “soul brother number one”, he’s “black and he’s proud”, he’s “a sex machine”, he’s “up for the down stroke”, and, of course, he’s “super bad”! James Brown “Super Bad” is a song he lives up to. James Brown “Super Bad” samples are in over 50 EDM and Hip Hop songs! It is an iconic song. James Brown himself is iconic. There is a very short list of people who influence music at his level!
His influence is still being felt sixty years later! He really did completely transform the face and direction of music. His stage presence is a cause of change in what it means to be a superstar. His vocals are a cause of change in what is acceptable to sing about. James Brown even is the cause of change in the very structure of music! Before James Brown, the main form of popular music was Jazz. In Jazz the accent is on the off beat to create an irregular sound to the meter.
James Brown’s Effect on Music
James Brown put the accent on the first beat, or the One. Switch from the accent on an off beat to the One and you dramatically impact the way a song feels. Rhythm is what drives music forward. A strong accent on the One beat makes a song foot-stompin and drives the listener forward. That new emphasis on the One is mimicked in Funk and Disco, and now EDM continues the tradition.
Nearly every EDM song has the One as the strongest beat. In fact, DJs match the Ones in two different songs together when they mix. It keeps the measures of music lined up and the mix sounds better. To further accent the One, horn stabs or strong synth noises are in place on the One. This pervasive aspect of modern dance music is a direct result of James Brown’s approach to music.
Who Is James Brown?
James Brown is famous for bucking the norm and it’s been that way since he was born. According to his official website, he was born “Nearly stillborn, then revived by an aunt in a country shack in the piney woods outside Barnwell, South Carolina, on May 3, 1933”. He grew up in Augusta, Georgia, raised by his great-aunt. His neighbors taught him how to play the drums, guitar, and piano. He grew up around gospel music and took some of his stage style from how preachers behaved at the pulpit. While incarcerated for 3 years when he was 18 he started his first gospel band.
After his release, he started his first secular band. The band caught the ear of veteran rock and roller, Little Richard. He recognized in Brown a unique talent. “Brown’s uncanny ability to “scream†on key, to sing soulful slow ballads as well as electrifying up-tempo tunes, to plumb the rhythmic possibilities of the human voice and instrumental accompaniment, and to blend blues, gospel, jazz, and country vocal styles together made him one of the most influential vocalists of the 20th century.” (Britannica).
“JAMES BROWN is a concept, a vibration, a dance,†James Brown recently said. “It’s not me, the man. JAMES BROWN is a freedom I created for humanity.†The freedom he brought to dance unencumbered by what people thought and to create music that is rich and powerful is monumental. He is a force that has a wide, sweeping effect on music, particularly dance music. James Brown is a massive hit maker!. One of his biggest hits is “Super Bad”.
James Brown “Super Bad”
James Brown “Super Bad” is a perfect example of a song with all the elements together that make his music so powerful. It has a catchy vocal, energized horn stabs, an infectious groove, strong push on the One beat, and a memorable riff. The song has an undeniable impact on Funk and even EDM. It plays an important role in creating the core vocabulary and grammar of Funk music! The part in it I find amazing is something all his hits share. In “Super Bad”, the horn section acts as a rhythm element, almost as if they are drummers.
Later bands mimic that approach of using stabs as dancefloor rhythmic ammunition. This is even true in EDM. Not only did “Super Bad” have a strong impact on the structure of dance music moving forward, but it is directly sampled and covered a host of times. James Brown “Super Bad” samples are in a total of 54 songs and covered in 5 songs. Two of the songs it is sampled by are both in my Top 10 songs to play at House parties!
James Brown “Super Bad” has quite a bit of live performances you can watch, but here we are using the official release. That is the one that people sample. Feel free to explore live videos though cause his stage presence is impressive! “His extraordinary dance routines featuring deft deployment of microphones and articles of clothing as props, acrobatic leaps, full-impact knee landings, complex rhythmic patterns, dazzling footwork, dramatic entrances, and melodramatic exits redefined public performance within popular music and inspired generations of imitators!”. (Britannica). That being said, the crisp, sharp tones of the release version are a dream for sampling. Here, take a listen:
The vinyl album is available on Discogs:
https://www.discogs.com/master/65234-James-Brown-Super-Bad
Songs Sampling “Super Bad”
James Brown “Super Bad” samples are in some amazing tunes! As I said, some of my favorite tunes to DJ at House parties use James Brown “Super Bad” samples. One such song is by Information Society. Under the name, Think Tank, they released a song called “Hack One”. What a bruiser of a party jam it is! It samples the horn stab hook and riff to have that “jump up” vibe. It also samples vocal snippets. All together, Information Society made a near perfect dance tune! It is from 1990. Here’s take a listen!
The 12-inch single is available on Discogs:
https://www.discogs.com/master/119177-Think-Tank-A-Knife-And-A-Fork
The next example that uses a James Brown “Super Bad” sample is a song that mixes amazingly well with “Hack One” from above. It is the second song I mentioned that is on my Top 10 House party tunes! Once again, it samples the horn stab hook and riff. It also samples the bassline. The song is “Bring Forth the Guillotine” by Silver Bullet. It is a busy House party gem that is pure musical mayhem! The record is from 1989. It is a prime example of Hip House. Take a listen:
You can purchase the 12-inch single on vinyl at Discogs. The other song on it is great too!
https://www.discogs.com/release/174994-Silver-Bullet-Bring-Forth-The-Guillotine
James Brown “Super Bad” Samples in Drum N Bass
The first two songs that sample “Super Bad” are both early in the history of EDM and are Hip House party jams! It is only fair we show that “Super Bad” has a wider, longer reach. “Super Bad” is sampled in Hip Hop, House, Breaks, and even Drum-N-Bass. The song we are showing next is a DnB song from 1996. In the early 1990s, the Rave scene birthed the new sound of Drum-N-Bass and Jungle. It is full of fast, syncopated breakbeats and raw, aggressive bass. DnB is normally a very fast tempo, often hitting 170 BPMs. This particular song is a DnB remix by the well respected DJ Zinc. It uses the horn riff and hook sped up and a lot of vocal snippets. The song is by Bonafide and it is “Super Bad (Zinc remix)”. It starts off with a sample of James Brown speaking. Take a listen!
The vinyl of this song is available as a 12-inch single on Discogs:
https://www.discogs.com/release/76980-Bonafide-Super-Bad
Covers of “Super Bad”
While there are many more songs that sample the original than songs that try to cover it, it is worth looking at what a cover sounds like! A song as good as “Super Bad” is going to invite imitation. Doing a cover is precarious work. If you’re doing the cover of an especially good song or movie, you have two choices if you want to be successful. You can either make it similar in style but better, or you can make it much different so it stands alone.
The song we’re looking at took the latter approach. The song is by 8 Bit Arcade and their version definitely reflects their name. It copies the riff of the music and is clearly “Super Bad”, but it sounds like it was made as the soundtrack for an Atari game. It is a really fun song! 8 Bit Arcade’s “Super Bad” is a 2021 release, so it’s quite recent. It bleeps, zips, and boings its way along! Take a listen!
The song is available for download but it is not on CD or vinyl.
Wrap Up
There’s nobody as “Super Bad” as James Brown, but it is “Super Bad” that “Super Bad” was remade so “Super Bad” so many times! I’m pretty impressed how great some of the songs it birthed are! They’re unique, catchy, pumping, and just plain fun! Always remember that songs by James Brown such as “Super Bad” changed the very structure of how dance music was arranged. The emphasis moved to the One beat and other instruments took on a rhythmic role! We can thank James Brown’s vision for that.
I hope you enjoyed this episode. Hope you learned interesting things about the music and scene we love! There is so much to learn and as you learn more, your love and appreciation for EDM music and culture deepens! Never lose your curiosity. Remember there is a new episode every week. Feel free to go back and read any articles you missed. Check out the new page on the main site, Explanation of EDM. It’s packed full of great information and a totally fun exploration of EDM.
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Take a listen to this DJ mix by Chris Sick. It uses two songs we talk about that sample James Brown “Super Bad”!
