SAMPLED: Action Bronson - "Bird on a Wire" feat. Riff Raff

by Jeremy Mersereau

September 13, 2012

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SAMPLED is a column that examines the production of a contemporary Rap/R&B/Hip-Hop or Pop song. From where did a loop, sample, or chopped up vocal originate? This week, the sample comes from Dexter Wansel's 1976 track "Rings of Saturn."

SAMPLED is a column that examines the production of a contemporary Rap/R&B/Hip-Hop or Pop song. From where did a loop, sample, or chopped up vocal originate? We look at the original song with some historical context, and then review the modern-day production that samples the original. For better or worse, this is the process by which a huge portion of contemporary pop music is assembled. On a weekly basis, SAMPLED aims to approach it case-by-case, and examine the dividing practice of using samples in the creation of music. This week’s edition guest written by preeminent Riff Raff scholar Jeremy Mersereau.

This week’s sample comes courtesy of keyboardist and Philadelphia native Dexter Wansel, from his 1976 track “Rings of Saturn”:

Dexter Wansel’s been a producer, songwriter, bandleader and eventual solo artist over the course of his career, which spans pretty much the entire heyday of Philadelphia soul throughout the 1970s. A major architect of what would come to be known as “Philly Soul” or just “Sweet Philly,” Wansel worked with legendary soul producers Kenneth Gamble and Leon Huff, and went on to write and produced many hits from this era, including Patti Labelle’s 1981 #1 R&B hit “If Only You Knew.” ‘Rings of Saturn’ is from his debut solo album, 1976’s “Life on Mars,” and it shows off the production style that put Philadelphia International Records on the map and anointed Philadelphia Soul a subgenre unto itself. In a nutshell, make everything sound lush, full, and above all, smooth. Going by classic Philadelphia International records like “If You Don’t Know Me By Now” and “The Sound of Philadelphia” (the Soul Train theme!), the most overused phrase during studio sessions was probably “Make it smoother” or maybe “up the smoothness by 20%”. Today, Wansel and Philly soul are seen as instrumental in the development of soul, R&B, disco, and even hip-hop, with a Wansel composition being featured on Ultimate Breaks and Beats, the seminal breakbeat compilation series.

No wonder then that Wansel’s “Rings of Saturn” is sampled extensively (read: looped for 6 seconds with some 808s on top) on “Bird on a Wire,” from world’s biggest (literally) Ghostface impersonator Action Bronson and G-to-Gent-to-G Riff Raff. Producer Harry Fraud is no unknown quantity; his first major hit was French Montana’s “Shot Caller,” which caught the ears of rap game heavyweights like, um, Rick Ross (nah, not gonna go for it, too easy) and Juicy J, who were soon beating down Fraud’s door for more of those sweet, sweet radio hits. Listening to productions like “Stoner’s Night Pt. 2” or “New York Minute,” Fraud’s M.O. is clear: smooth soul and R&B samples overlaid with crisp drum programming. Yeah, not the most groundbreaking style, but it’s classic for a reason: it bangs. It’s a powerful formula, to be sure, and to his credit, Fraud’s use of the Wansel track here doesn’t even sound like a sample; and that’s the true mark of a master producer at work.

Tags: Music, action bronson, Dexter Wansel, RiFF RAFF

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