Monday, December 16, 2013

"Rush" (Big Audio Dynamite II)

I remember hearing "Rush" by Big Audio Dynamite on the radio in mid-1991.  It was in heavy rotation on John Garabedian's Open House Party radio show that summer, which--for my pre-pubescent friends and I--was the closest thing we were getting to "nightlife" in those days.
The song was just so odd and clever: ex-Clash member Mick Jones singing over a pastiche of samples that ranged from the organ intro on The Who's "Baba O'Riley" to the breakbeat from "Sweet Pea" by 70s bubblegum pop star Tommy Roe.  It also strangely had the beat stop right in the middle of the song for this comedic interlude featuring Peter Sellers before suddenly kicking this funky sample from comedian Pigmeat Markham's "Here Comes the Judge" (ostensibly the first ever rap song, recorded in 1968).
The song had "summer party" written all over it, despite some pretty reflective and personal lyrics (Jones basically is looking back on his career).  In any case, it remains a favorite example of a mood-boosting song with sampling done well.


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