Sampling can be broadly defined as taking a portion of an original song and interpolating it as part of another song, whether it is the lyrics, chorus, opening riff, background music and such. It is usually done with a sampler, tape loops or vinyl records on a phonograph.
Here are ten of the most interesting samples to have been borne of recent years.
1. SOS by Rihanna
The sun-kissed beauty from Barbados has exploded on the pop music scene since her first hit Pon De Replay, and who could forget 2007’s monster summer anthem Umbrella? Taken off her A Girl Like Me album, SOS is an innovative reinterpretation Soft Cell’s Tainted Love, with samples of the original’s key section, bass line, drum beat and bell-like synth sounds.
2. Diamonds from Sierra Leone by Kanye West
This song, which won the 2006 Grammy Award for Best Rap Song, features a sample of Shirley Bassey’s Diamonds Are Forever from the James Bond movie of the same name. Bassey was said to be so impressed with West that she hoped they would have a chance to collaborate in future.
3. Bootylicious by Destiny’s Child
Featuring a sample from Stevie Nicks’ Edge of Seventeen, this song is a cheeky challenge to men who are intimidated by confident women. Nicks herself makes an appearance in the beginning of the music video. The term “bootylicious” has become so ubiquitous in pop culture that it has even been inducted into the Oxford Dictionary in 2006!
4. Hung Up by Madonna
Taken off Madonna’s Confessions on a Dance Floor album, this song uses a riff off Abba’s Gimme Gimme Gimme (A Man After Midnight). According to the Queen of Pop, who is a self-confessed Abba fan, she personally begged writers Benny Andersson and Björn Ulvaeus to use the song as a sample. It obviously paid off, becoming Madonna’s biggest selling single to date.
5. Stan by Eminem
One of rapper Eminem’s most powerful songs, Stan is about an obsessive fan who commits suicide because he could not get in touch with his idol. It samples Dido’s Thank You, and provided a springboard for her into public consciousness. Dido also appears in the music video as the fictional Stan’s pregnant girlfriend.
6. Lonely by Akon
The song features a sped-up sample of Bobby Vinton's Mr. Lonely, providing a high-pitched Chipmunk-like vocal sound, which was made famous by producers such as RZA of the Wu-Tang Clan and Kanye West. The verses are sung primarily by Akon, while Vinton’s sample was used as part of the chorus.
7. Angel by Shaggy featuring Rayvon
For this song, Reggae artist Shaggy put a new spin on Angel of the Morning by Juice Newton. From a song about one-night stands while aware of the consequences the next morning, this new version features a reworked tune and almost entirely new lyrics, turning it into an apology and homage to a lady love.
8. Our Song by M2M
Known for their radio-friendly tracks, the Norwegian teen pop duo sampled the chorus of Too Much Heaven by the Bee Gees for this song, found on their debut album Shades of Purple. It produced a surprisingly compatible result, and is one of the stand-out tracks because of its slightly moody feel in contrast to rest of the generally bubbly-sounding album.
9. Rock the Party by Five
For this song, British boyband Five sampled a riff off the title track of the musical motion picture Grease. Just like the opening credits of the movie, the music video for Rock the Party was entirely animated, featuring the members in a club competing with each other for the viewers’ attention.
10. I Think I’m in Love with You by Jessica Simpson
The third single released by the blonde bombshell before her MTV’s Newlyweds stint, this song contains a sample from John “Cougar” Mellencamp’s Jack and Diane. Simpson also recorded the song in Spanish, titled Talvez Es Amor.
For more instances of music sampling, check out http://www.popculturemadness.com/Music/Samples.html
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