9th Wonder – Santa Claus Ain’t Real (Mix) [Download]

While reminiscing the other day about how I got into blogging and the first few scraggly posts I made my bones with, this mix instantly came to mind. Listening to it then and now, still speaks to the #samplehead #cratedigger in me.

Originally created by 9th Wonder while an Artist-In-Residence at his Alma Mater of NCCU as a demonstration in the “Art of Sampling” for the class he was co-teaching, the craftsmanship of the audio speaks volumes about how some of the industries best DJs and Producers have what undoubtedly must be “Omega Level Mutant Hearing” to be able pick out the best parts of old soul tracks, then loop them and add the perfect bassline to.

Starting out with The Sylvers “Through The Love In My Heart” which has long been a staple on my my greatest songs list based on just melody alone, the mix progresses through several decades of classics, ranging from DeBarge’s “Stay With Me“, Tom Scott’s seminal “Today“, Aretha Franklin’s instantly recognizable “One Step Ahead” b-side, not to mention Jerry Butler’s uber-soulful “Mechanical Man” and the irreplaceable Samba Jazz staple from Stan Getz and Luiz Bonifa, “Saudade Vem Correndo“.

9th never leaves the listener to guess what artist of today benefited most from the sample, as each source track is backed by the Hip-Hop or R&B/Soul track that helped make today’s listening audience more conscious of  the veritable gold mine their parents have had stashed away in a few Milk Crates out in the garage all these years.

Regardless of whether you are or aren’t that deep into the samples behind the melodies, you are sure to find something within this mix that you will immediately recognize and when you find yourself loudly exclaiming, “Hey! I didn’t know that was a sample! I thought (insert producer name here) made that from scratch”, don’t panic.

You’re merely feeling the “Santa Claus Ain’t Real” effect.

[Download]

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