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The Earliest Rap Song (1968)?

Big_StacksBig_Stacks "I don't worry about hittin' power, cause I don't give 'em nuttin' to hit." 4,670 Posts
edited August 2015 in Strut Central
Hey,

Here it is:





Peace,

Big Stacks from Kakalak

  Comments

  • HarveyCanalHarveyCanal "a distraction from my main thesis." 13,234 Posts
    Dixie Cups - Iko Iko. Not just for the sing-song lyrics but the bassline.
  • Big_StacksBig_Stacks "I don't worry about hittin' power, cause I don't give 'em nuttin' to hit." 4,670 Posts
    HarveyCanal said:
    Dixie Cups - Iko Iko. Not just for the sing-song lyrics but the bassline.

    Hey Harvey,

    So, you consider it a rap song without rhyming?

    Peace,

    Big Stacks from Kakalak
  • HarveyCanalHarveyCanal "a distraction from my main thesis." 13,234 Posts
    They are rapping. In a schoolgirl, double dutch sort of way. In fact, they are snapping on what their Indian gang will do to your Indian gang. Pre Cold Crush.
  • HarveyCanalHarveyCanal "a distraction from my main thesis." 13,234 Posts
    Okay, compared to Pigmeat, the Dixie Cups are definitely singing. But I stand by the bassline as a clear precursor to hip-hop production.
  • JimsterJimster Cruffiton.etsy.com 6,997 Posts
    Didn't we chat about this before and the conclusion was Joan Baez "Time Rag"?

    Although I hear the scrawling on the caves of Altamira can be interpreted as mad flow, yo.
  • OkemOkem 4,617 Posts
    Euroman invented teh raps!!!11

  • LaserWolfLaserWolf Portland Oregon 11,517 Posts
    HarveyCanal said:
    Dixie Cups - Iko Iko. Not just for the sing-song lyrics but the bassline.

    Harvey don't we have recordings of Indian rhymes/songs with rhythm that pre-date Dixie Cups?
    PL Big Chief? Some Folkways recordings of Mardi Gras Indian tribes?

    So the question to me is what is rap?
    I think the first rap song has to come out of the NYC block party scene of the 1970s.
    Otherwise we get some Edison cylinder of a nursery rhyme.
  • HarveyCanalHarveyCanal "a distraction from my main thesis." 13,234 Posts
    Dixie Cups Iko Iko is a cover of a Sugarboy Crawford song from the 50's. They say he combined the chants of 2 warring Indians. But his version is straight r-n-b whereas the same application of marching band tuba to modern bassline that makes Big Chief such a landmark was continued with the Dixie Cups Iko Iko. The foundation for both funk and hip-hop to come.

    Then there's this as well:



    Again, straight r-n-b, but still.
  • LaserWolfLaserWolf Portland Oregon 11,517 Posts
  • sticky_dojahsticky_dojah New York City. 2,138 Posts
    I don't care which one it was, as long as we can all agree that it wasn't "Subterranean Homesick Blues". Rockists used that one alot to "look down" on rap...
  • Otis_FunkmeyerOtis_Funkmeyer 1,321 Posts
    If Pigmeat was first in July '68, maybe James was next in Aug '68 with "Say It Loud".

    Or, there's "The Preacher and the Bear" from 1937:
  • Otis_FunkmeyerOtis_Funkmeyer 1,321 Posts
    This website says "Butterballs" was 1967, but I'm not sure where he got that info.

    http://www.musicalepisode.com/post/111933264170/butterball-butterballs-part-1-fast-eddie
  • batmonbatmon 27,574 Posts
    My pops used to sing Here Comes The Judge when I was growing up.
  • LaserWolfLaserWolf Portland Oregon 11,517 Posts
    Flip Wilson stole that routine and brought it to mainstream TV.
    There must be some kind of story there.

    Is it common for comedians to lift routines, characters, bits from other comedians?
    Do comedians or gag writers ever claim copyright infringement?
    Shorty Long did a thing on Motown with HCTJ too.
    Perhaps HCTJ is like Jody, just part of the folk tradition.

    Discuss.
  • batmonbatmon 27,574 Posts
    All those variety shows did covers of popular songs.
  • SPlDEYSPlDEY Vegas 3,375 Posts
    Otis_Funkmeyer said:
    If Pigmeat was first in July '68, maybe James was next in Aug '68 with "Say It Loud".

    Or, there's "The Preacher and the Bear" from 1937:

    Dude thanks for that. This thread is highly entertaining.

    - spidey
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