#138 Double Dee & Stenski

In 1983 the production duo of Doug DeFranco and Steve Stein produced a "mastermix" called Lesson One: The Payoff a song that cut and pasted dozens of soul, hip-hop, pop and vocal samples into the G.L.O.B.E. & Whiz Kid tune Play That Beat (Mr. DJ). Their musical tour de force never saw a commercial release (due to legal concerns) but still managed to spawn two sequels, Lesson Two: The James Brown Mix and Lesson Three: The History of Hip Hop.

The influence of these three tracks can't be stressed enough. DJ Shadow and Cut Chemist, obvious acolytes of the duo, have both created works directly inspired by the seminal songs.

The 1985 article by rock critic Robert Christgau "Down By Law: Great Dance Records You Can't Buy," tells the tale of Double Dee and Stenski fairly definitively. Particularly interesting to me is the author's enlightening of a particular vocal sample that the pair grabbed from Buchannan and Goodman's "The Flying Saucer." The 1956 song, which peppered an kitchy alien invasion narrative with bits of popular rock and roll songs, is another example of contemporary art beleagured by rights issues.

Reading this Village Voice story is a reminder that salvos have been fired in the battle between copyright holders and post-modern artists long before the birth of the mash-up.

In 2003 Waxy.org blogged about Double Dee and Stenski, gratiously providing links to the three tracks. Mirrors can still be found at their site.