djzyonseven
I still remember the first time I heard this track.
The beat still sounds like it came from somewhere else.
And that was in 1982.
Imagine how far into the future it must’ve sounded. 🎧
Planet Rock by Afrika Bambaataa & The Soulsonic Force is one of those records where the production deserves your full attention.
The drums.
The electronic bass.🎶
That sharp, repeating melody.
Then those voices come in, calling everybody into the party. 🪩
It has so much going on, but it never loses the groove.
The original 12-inch version gives all of that room to breathe.
The recording linked below runs six minutes and twenty-three seconds.
Give that beat some room.
Let the record PLAY.▶️
Planet Rock came out on Tommy Boy in 1982, when I was thirteen. 🎶
Producer Arthur Baker and keyboard player John Robie helped build a record that brought electronic music and hip-hop together in a way that opened up possibilities for both.
A major part of that sound came from Kraftwerk.
Yes, the German electronic group.
The melody drew from Trans-Europe Express, while the rhythm drew from Numbers.
Those musical parts were recreated in the studio, rather than lifted directly from the original recordings.
Robie played the keyboard parts, and that rhythm was programmed into a Roland TR-808 drum machine. 🎹
Put that together with The Soulsonic Force, and you get this combination of mechanical precision and human energy.
Those drums keep their pattern.
The voices push against it.
That’s what makes it move. 🔥
And listen to the way the group delivers the words.
The calls.
The responses.
The little bursts of rhythm inside the rhythm.
Emcee G.L.O.B.E. developed an approach called MC popping, and you can hear how the delivery works with the track instead of just sitting on top of it.
Everybody sounds like they’re contributing to the same party. 🎤
The lyrics invite you to dance, move, and enjoy the music.
You can sit still if you want to.
That beat is going to keep asking. 😂
Planet Rock helped establish electro and became an important influence on the dance music that followed, including Miami bass.
That electronic low end had a whole lot of traveling left to do.
And the record reached beyond the dance floor.
These were its Billboard chart peaks in 1982.
For a record that sounded this different, that says something.
Hip-hop was still finding new ways to sound, and here was a record showing how much room there was to experiment.
The song later appeared on Planet Rock: The Album in 1986.
But the record we’re celebrating here started in 1982.
Four years earlier.
And when music was changing this fast, four years made a difference.
The longer arrangement gives you time to hear how the parts work together.
You can follow the percussion, hear the spaces between the voices, and appreciate how much movement they built into that repeating groove.
More time to hear the record.
More time to get caught in it.
And with Planet Rock, that beat has earned every minute. 💜
DJZ7
Direct Listening Links 🎧
Spotify: Original 12-inch Version, 6:23
YouTube: Audio link
YouTube: Official Music Video
Apple Music: Digital 45 single, shorter edit
#TheSoundtrackOfWhoIBecame, #PlanetRock, #AfrikaBambaataa, #SoulsonicForce, #ArthurBaker, #JohnRobie, #ElectroFunk, #80sHipHop, #TommyBoyRecords, #DJCulture, #MiamiBass, #OldSchoolHipHop
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