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BASS HISTORY_________
Miami Gets Put On the Musical Map
In the late 1940's, music industry entrepreneur Henry Stone set up shop in South Florida, where he founded a recording studio, two music publishing companies, a number of assorted record labels in the region, and one of the most powerful distribution companies in the world. This was the genesis of Miami's contribution to the industry of Black music, as there were no others to do this before him in this region. Early on, most of the recordings he dealt with were Doo-Wop, R&B, and Blues, but as the 60's dawned, there became a notable Florida Soul sound within his camp, due to his ever-growing entourage that included teen-idol turned label mogul Steve Alaimo, and Soul singer/songwriter Clarence Reid. During the 70's, a strong Bahamian influence found its way into many of his artists' work, and the Junkanoo-Soul hybrid that came to be founded one of the cornerstones of the pre-electronic Disco sound; a sound Stone's TK Records is credited with helping form. Due to Stone's success and Criteria Studios becoming a mecca for the major labels to record from, Miami became one of the music capitals of the world. After TK grew to astonishing heights with the triumph of KC & The Sunshine Band, the end of the Disco era would fragment Stone's empire, and the shards that continued would have to individually rebuild into new, separate entities. The new industry cogs scurried for new hit songs to recreate Miami's past chart success. This is the sole reason Miami Bass existed.
The Birth of Electro and Miami's Response
After the towering success of George Clinton's Sci-Fi themed work in the 70's, the adoption of German Kraut experimentalists "Kraftwerk" by the New York Hip-Hop DJ culture became a barometer of Black music's audience appetite for robotic themes. The early 80's saw this dominate Soul, Funk, Rap, and Dance music's palette, much with the aid of E-Mu's Emulator sampler and inexpensive drum machines. South Florida was no exception, as area producers such as Pretty Tony, DXJ, Larry Dermer, Freddy Stonewall, Michael Sterling, Eugene Cooper, Noel Williams, and Dwayne Omarr joined the movement now termed Electro. Many of these producers created backing tracks for Clarence Reid's X-Rated alias, "Blowfly", who also was reborn an Electro artist -- although purely for comedic value. Blowfly would be cited as inspiration for the later exploits of 2 Live Crew, and their imitators.
Proto-Bass: Sustaining the 808
If Arthur Baker is credited with introducing Roland's TR-808 drum machine to the Hip-Hop lexicon via "Planet Rock" in 1982, then it must be noted that it was the NY team of DJ Jazzy Jay and Rick Rubin who first sustained the 808's kick drum on T La Rock's" 1983 Def Jam debut "It's Yours". Though the song made little impact that year, it became a template for bottom heavy rap songs after Arthur Baker re released it in 1984 on his "Streetwise/Partytime" label. As Rick Rubin would go on to reuse his successful formula with Run DMC, LL Cool J, and The Beastie Boys, other producers cashed in on this model in the mid-80's. Most notably were Miami producer Amos Larkin III, New York based Mantronix, and an unknown West Coast rap group named 2 Live Crew. The music that these artists produced in the year spanning 1984 and 1985 formed a new sound for Black music fans in the South and on the West Coast: Bass.
The 1st Wave: Cartoon Melodies and Ghetto-Style
"Royal Sounds" was a record Store within the Lauderhill Mall in Ft. Lauderdale Florida owned by Billy Hines, and his son Adrian was his ear to the ground and occasional in-store DJ. Out of this store, Billy began the 4-Sight Record label in 1984. Enlisting Frank Cornelius (member of the "Cornelius Brothers & Sister Rose" family) as the in house producer, 4-Sight released Electro and Rap records for assorted regional acts, mostly built on the 808 drum machine and the Emulator II keyboard sampler. Adrian knew that the newest generation of Black Music fans wanted Bass, so with that knowledge passed on to his father, Billy granted Adrian a present for his 16th Birthday; studio time allowing him to spearhead a song with lyrics about the bass itself. Enlisting Amos Larkin under the pseudonym "Leon Greene", the two created the monumental song "Bass Rock Express" in 1985 under Adrian's artist name, M.C. A.D.E. (Adrian Does Everything). Though this song was based on the same Electro pastiche of Kraftwerk's "Trans Europe Express" used in "Planet Rock", other South Florida and West Coast artists continued to take the lead of Rick Rubin's mid-tempo rap blueprint, but now began rapping about the bass itself - something none of the Rick Rubin produced artists did -- making Bass a genre claimed by the Southern and West Coast artists exclusively. Despite the relocating of 2 Live Crew from California to Miami by Floridian record promoter calling himself "Luke Skywalker", some of the remaining West Coast rap artists joined in immediately. As Egyptian Lover's Electro label "Egyptian Empire" hosted the rapper Rodney O's transformation from an up-tempo Electro artist to a mid-tempo Bass rapper, he became one of the 1st in a handful to create a song about Bass in 1986 with "Everlasting Bass".
As groups transitioned from the early days of Miami's Electro and Rap scene to the official moniker of Bass, a surprise influence came from leftfield. Tyrone Brunson's 1982 hit "The Smurf" lingered in the air when Doug E. Fresh's 1985 song "The Show" made use of the theme from "Inspector Gadget", and now Bass groups wanted in on this formula of rap music +cartoon melodies. Between 1985 and 1988, a large majority of Bass songs were founded on a cartoon melody or theme song of any given kitschy television show, making the genre a bit of a novelty in the eyes of more serious rappers form the Northeast, despite much of its own region partaking in the same actions. While these melodies were the driving forces behind many Bass records, Luke Campbell (who now altered the spelling of his pseudonym to "Luke Skyywalker") coached 2 Live Crew to become an X-Rated rap group, which differed greatly from the West Coast era of the act. If the misogynous lyrics were one factor in the group's initial success, the other was simply by focusing more on raw 808 beats, and picking up the tempo of Bass songs to match its Electro parent genre, making the songs much more danceable than its mid-tempo counterparts. These techniques created a branch of Bass their label's roster dubbed "Ghetto Style". Many would eventually imitate their formula for the genre to both gain an identity and a stigma, but more importantly, bridge the genre into its next wave.
The 2nd Wave: DJ Wars, Latin Bass, and the Introduction of "Booty"
As the well of cartoon melodies ran dry, the genre could've easily found itself stalled altogether had it not been for the invention of E-mu's SP-1200 drum machine style sampler, and the foresight of DJ Magic Mike. Much like Kooley C and KJ did with their 1986 classic "Let's Get This Party Started", Mike found himself in 1987 mimicking the production of 2 Live Crew's Mr. Mixx when producing the song "Creep Dog" for MC Cool Rock & MC Chaszey Chess. Along with Beatmaster Clay D, Mike continued to aid in the production for the rappers' soon to be released album that featured the tune "Boot the Booty", which was quite possibly the first in a trend that would eventually sweep the genre; rap songs to place the female posterior on a pedestal. Aside from aiding Clay D's efforts, Mike moonlighted with Edward Meriwether's "Suntown Records" to build a name for himself. He took his 1986 demo version of "Drop the Bass" to Suntown when he met Rod Whitehead of the group "Prime Time", and the two men began production on a track entitled "Give it All You Got (Doggy Style)". After Meriwether gave Mike his contract to review, Mike turned his back on the label and "Give It All you Got" due to the stipulations within. As the future of Rod and Mike lied uncertain with Suntown records, the song was given to the group "Afro-Rican" for completion. With a touch of reworking, "Give it All you Got" immediately become one of the genre's highlights, and Afro-Rican's signature song. DJ Magic Mike would continue as Beatmaster Clay D's DJ and co-producer through the middle of 1988, but when Mike took inventory of the fact that he never received credit for the bulk of his work, he returned to his hometown of Orlando and landed a deal with the virtually unknown "Cheetah Records" to be a front man as a DJ/Producer. During this era, Mike would find a great amount of competition in quality, but not much competition in terms of sales. Magic Mike and 2 Live Crew proved to be a select bunch to represent the genre on a nationwide scale, but Mike's true competition between 1989 and 1992 in terms of quality and style would be in groups such as "Boys from the Bottom" and the label "Cut It Up Def". Whereas many producers of the early 80's utilized a sample of scratching from the Emulator to represent a DJ, these artists and others during this wave brought real DJ's to the studio (or were real DJ's as artists) possibly inspired to "keep it real" by the example set by the Rick Rubin produced groups. The 2nd Wave of Bass saw scratching heightened to an immeasurable art form, preceding the popularized "turntablism" in today's underground Hip-Hop scene.
Another development of this era was a sound dubbed "Latin Bass"; the combining of Salsa music samples over Bass beats. The 1991 debut album of Power 96 radio personality "DJ Laz" was the beginning of this concept, and it has continued to infuse itself into the genre ever since. As the Miami Bass sound continued to evolve into its own, New York area producers abandoned the 808 based sound that inspired it, and a territorial war began. This directed the powers that be within the media to ignore the Miami Bass sub-genre altogether, and Hip-Hop artists and fans from the Northeast region would mock Miami's efforts for years to come.
Electro Bass: Robots Don't Die
All the while Bass grew into its own genre without ditching its roots in total. As MC A.D.E continued to make albums that only peppered its play lists with Vocoder driven Electro songs built on a solid foundation of Bass, Dynamix II and DXJ (including all of DXJ's aliases such as the seminous "Maggotron") would forge forward with the idea of Electro as the main fuel. Pretty Tony pumped out a few more releases under his primary alias, "Freestyle", but now grafted Bass onto his methods in the final years of his work. Joey Boy Records' in house producers known as "Rock Force" contributed to the sound as "Bass Patrol" in 1988 before the group's name was reallocated to another act within the label. Dynamix II alumni such as Lon Alonzo, Scott Weiser, and Phil "Bass Junkie" Klein produced enough material to carry the Electro-Bass sub-genre up to the present day. The fixed presence of Electro in Miami Bass proved to be an influence for all involved, no matter how much they necessarily drew from it directly.
Car Audio Bass: The Science of Car Show Accessories
Another development in 1991 occurred when a Bass artist named Techmaster P.E.B. signed to Tampa's "Newtown Records" and established success with his 2nd album. He single handedly invented a new sub-genre of Bass by removing all of the DJ and MC aspects from the music, and centering the focus on the Bass itself. Although artists such as Magic Mike had the occasional slow-tempo song centered on bass alone, the car show guys would skip through CD's and tapes to isolate the most bass heavy portions for the sake of showing off their car's audio system. Techmaster created a whole album for their needs. Initially, the album went gold without anyone imitating it, but as the 1990's continued, many artists were developing secondary aliases to release albums with this philosophy in mind. It would be safe to say that even the artists and fans of Car Audio Bass feel their branch of Bass sounds sterile as it elevated Bass frequencies to a science, standing in stark contrast to the Ghetto roots of Bass music. Eventually, Car Audio Bass and the development of "Booty Bass" would eclipse everything the genre had previously built, leaving behind the complex sample collages and competitive DJ'ing.
The 3rd Wave: Full Fledged Booty Music
Whereas the song "Boot the Booty" introduced the idea of a female's posterior being subject matter in 1987, it may be reasonable to say that only 1/3 of the genre's output revolved around it until the 90's, garnering the term "Booty Music" to define the 3rd Wave. The elements that characterize this sound began to rumble under the radar during what seemed to be the midst of the 2nd Wave's prime.
Devastator was an artist whose song "Cold Blooded" failed to make much of an impression on Suntown Records in 1988, but he reemerged in the early 90's first performing background vocals, then as a producer producing Luke's solo hit "I Wanna Rock" in 1991. The song featured no rapping, scratching, nor car audio bass tricks, but rather just excessively fast moving dense beats combined with easy to recite, semi-explicit vocal chants. The following year, he combined his production skills and background vocal work while appropriating Big Ace's oral trademarks in Poison Clan's hit "Shake Watcha Mama Gave Ya". Big Ace was one of the founding members of a Ft. Lauderdale based DJ collective known as "Jam Pony Express", who was famous throughout the Southeast for their Hip-Hop mixtapes focusing greatly on Miami Bass and their overdubbed vocals. Whereas Jam Pony DJ Slick Vic improvised lyrics to rhyme with the original lyrics of any given song in the mix, Big Ace would improvise primal grunts, moans, and shrieks over artist's songs. Despite Big Ace's vocal work being well documented and received by the public, everyone from Devastator to 95 South to Crazy Leg's (not the same as the famed "Rock Steady Crew" member) chose to mimic it without giving credit to the sound's originator during the 3rd Wave.
Another producer to lay the foundation of this sound was CC Orange, also known as CC Lemonhead. The native of Jacksonville Florida found very little success with his group "Chill Deal", but when retooled into 95 South, they hit big with their song "Whoot, There It Is". CC continued this sound with groups such as "69 Boyz", "Dis-N-Dat", and "Quad City DJ's", creating national hits such as "Tootsie Roll" and "Come on Ride the Train". This also would be the time when Bass artists from Georgia would no longer need to travel to Florida to get a record deal, but rather Atlanta and Augusta became highly notable cities in the Bass scene promoting their take on the sound independently at large. As the 90's evolved, tempos increased from 125 bpm to 140 bpm, and rappers further exaggerated their Southern dialects to help define this era, creating fuel for some, and an annoyance for others.
Miami Bass Revival: Ravers, Hipsters, and Beyond
Into the new millennium, Booty music seemed to have overstayed its welcome as releases dwindled, and car audio bass saturated the market to the point of no new sales. While this could've been seen as the death of Miami Bass, ultra-hip DJ's and the audience who previously snubbed the genre in whole began looking back with respect. Adding Miami Bass classics to their playlists, Bass became a notch in hipsters' belts, even in the Northeast region of the U.S where it was asphyxiated during its heyday. In 2003, the Brooklyn based group named "Fannypack" emerged with a decidedly Miami Bass sound, being reminiscent of bass girl-groups such as L'Trimm or J.J. Fad. As the Florida Rave circuit continued in the 90's, the new crop of producers behind the genre known as "Florida Breaks" began to cite Miami Bass as an inspiration, even incorporated some of its aspects in their songs and DJ mixes. Outside of the U.S., the Mo' Wax group "U.N.K.L.E." built their track "Celestial Annihilation" entirely on the beat of the 1986 Bass classic "Now Dance" by "Byron Davis & The Fresh Krew", and in England, Ed DMX produced a tribute to DXJ under his primary alias of DMX Krew in 1999 entitled "Back to the Bass" as well as a cover version of
Dynamix's "Just Give the DJ a Break" (albeit, as a lo-fi thrash metal tune). The trend even infiltrated the center of Hip-Hop as early Florida Electro tunes would be sampled and reinterpreted by groups such as "Black Eye Peas", "Prince Paul", and "Busta Rhymes".
In 2000, the first official Miami bass History Yahoo group appeared online to acutely document the fine details of the genre, and a book by the founder is said to be on the way. More recently, Miami Bass newsgroups have turned up in both Brazil and Germany, two countries quickly becoming recognized for their appetite of collecting classic Miami Bass records.
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