Get Off Your Dead Ass and Sample!

September 24, 2004 9:43 PM

Three Notes and Runnin' has decided to protest the recent court decision that cited N.W.A. with illegally sampling a snippet of Funkadelic's Get Off Your Ass and Jam that had been modified to the point of unrecognizability. So in the tradition of online civil disobedience such as Grey Tuesday, Downhill Battle has issued a challenge to sample-based artists to create 30-second remixes that consist of nothing but the disputed 1.5-second Funkadelic sample.
posted by jonp72 (10 comments total)

Thanks!
posted by dobbs at 2:11 AM on September 25, 2004

Hm. I'm pretty sure I've heard that same Funkadelic sample used MUCH more prominently and recognizably in a Public Enemy song. Anybody know which one I'm thinking of?
posted by sklero at 3:08 AM on September 25, 2004

I'm pretty sure I've heard that same Funkadelic sample used MUCH more prominently and recognizably in a Public Enemy song. Anybody know which one I'm thinking of?

According to this, Get Off Your Ass and Jam was sampled in Public Enemy's Bring the Noise. I just remember that when that song came out in '88 or so during high school, it was so badass. Given that a lot of rap my white suburbanite peers were exposed to was of the DJ Jazzy Jeff & the Fresh Prince variety, this blew more than a few minds. In fact, somebody handed me the cassette and said, "Jon, this ain't no happy rap."
posted by jonp72 at 6:09 AM on September 25, 2004

I never realized that sampling without getting permission from the original artist was illegal... I'm having trouble seeing both sides of the argument--it seems very clear that this sort of law would stifle creativity. So much of rap and hip-hop, not to mention dance and electronic music is about recycling musical riffs and re-presenting them. It's almost like tipping your hat to your predecessors.
posted by mert at 7:56 AM on September 25, 2004

i think they should outlaw influences all together
posted by Satapher at 3:32 PM on September 25, 2004

also, the sample in the NWA song is not beyond recognition, obviously.... so whatchoo talkin about?
posted by Satapher at 3:40 PM on September 25, 2004

in fact, if your samples are truely beyond recognition, you dont have anything to worry about right?
posted by Satapher at 8:42 PM on September 25, 2004

Satapher, the whole point (as previously discussed) is that the samples now don't have to be recognizable. You could take a fraction of a second of a sample, muck about with it untill it's completely unrecognizable, but if someone tells the original copyright owner what you've used you are still in trouble.
posted by Jimbob at 9:07 PM on September 25, 2004

but if its not recognizable how would they recognize it?
posted by Satapher at 12:02 AM on September 26, 2004

whos gonna tell?
posted by Satapher at 12:06 AM on September 26, 2004