Eazy-E

Died On This Date (May 1, 2012) Charles “Skip” Pitts / Prominent Guitarist On “Shaft”

themusicsover May 1, 2012 No Comments

Charles Pitts
April 7, 1947 – May 1, 2012

Charles Pitts was a Memphis guitarist whose style of playing has prompted many sources to include him on the list of the architects of funk and soul guitar. By the time Pitts was just 11 years he had picked up the guitar and was learning on the street corners around his Washington DC neighborhood. One of his early teachers was none other than neighbor, Bo Diddley, who offered the boy tips on how to play. His other early sources of inspiration came from the likes of James Brown and Otis Redding who he saw perform at the Howard Theater which sat next door to a hotel his uncle owned. Pitts eventually became a session player for Stax Records, playing on records and/or performing live with Wilson Pickett, Gene Chandler, the Isley Brothers, and Rufus Thomas, to name s few. In 1971, Pitts came up with the iconic “wah wah” guitar sound that helped make Isaac Hayes‘ “Theme From Shaft” one of the most iconic songs of all time. He went on to play with Hayes for nearly 40 years. In later years, his riffs were been sampled by the Beasite Boys, Eazy-E, Massive Attack, and Dr. Dre. Charles Pitts died of cancer on May 1, 2012. He was 65.

Thanks to Paul Bearer for the assist.

R&B Singer

Died On This Date (July 26, 2010) Melvin Bliss / Heavily Sampled ’70s Soul Singer

themusicsover July 26, 2010 No Comments

Melvin Bliss
DOB Unknown – July 26, 2010

Born in Chicago, Melvin Bliss began his career in music at the age of six, first performing gospel and then moving on to jazz. In 1973, he released “Synthetic Substitution” a soul record that went on to become one of the most sampled songs in music history even though it was an obscure b-side. Below is a partial list of songs that borrowed elements from Bliss’ recording. Melvin Bliss was 75 when he passed away on July 26, 2010.

Where You’ll Hear Melvin Bliss Samples

From the-breaks.com

3XDope – “Funky Dividends”
Alkaholiks – “Bullshit”
Alkaholiks – “Turn the Party Out”
Almighty RSO – “One in the Chamba”
Big Daddy Kane – “Just Rhymin’ with Biz”
Big Daddy Kane – “Looks Like a Job for. . .”
Biz Markie – “Cool V’s Tribute to Scratching”
Blessed Union of Soul – “Let Me Be the One”
Boss – “Comin’ to Getcha”
Brotha Lynch Hung – “24 Deep”
Brothers Like Outlaw – “The Real McKoy”
Chubb Rock – “My Brother”
Chubb Rock – “The Night Scene”
Coolio – “I Remember”
Criminals at Large – “Times are Getting Hard”
Da King & I – “Flip Da Scrip”
De la Soul – “Millie Pulled a Pistol on Santa”
De la Soul – “Potholes in My Lawn”
De la Soul – “Sh.Fe.MC’s”
Deee-Lite – “I Won’t Give Up”
Def Jef – “Black to the Future”
Depeche Mode – “In Your Room”
Digital Underground – “Tie the Knot”
DJ Honda – “Out for Cash”
DJ Jazzy Jeff & the Fresh Prince – “Groove”
DOC – “Mind Blowin'”
Dr. Octagon – “A Visit to the Gynecologyst”
Dr. Octagon – “Wild and Crazy”
Eazy-E – “Eazy Street”
En Vogue – “Hold On”
EPMD – “Mr. Bozack”
EPMD – “Scratch Bring it Back”
Gang Starr – “Code of the Streets”
Gang Starr – “Dwyck”
Ghostface Killah – “Deck’s Beat”
Ghostface Killah – “Mighty Healthy”
Goats – “Do the Digs Dug”
Gravediggaz – “Bang Your Head”
Gravediggaz – “Nowhere to Run, Nowhere to Hide”
Group Home – “So Called Friends”
Guru – “Take a Look (At Yourself)”
Guru – “Transit Ride”
Ice Cube – “2 N the Mornin'”
Ice T – “Depths of Hell”
Ice T – “Original Gangster”
Imani Coppola – “It’s All about Me, Me and Me”
King & I – “Flip Da Scrip”
Leaders of the New School – “Bass is Loaded”
LL Cool J – “Crossroads”
MadKap – “Here Comes the Break”
Masta Ace – “Saturday Nite Live”
MC Lyte – “Never Had Nothing Like This”
Mellow Man Ace – “Silly Rabbit”
Method Man – “All I Need”
Naughty by Nature – “O.P.P.”
Naughty by Nature – “On the Run”
Naughty by Nature – “Yoke the Joker”
Nice & Smooth – “Cake & Eat it Too”
Nice & Smooth – “Pump it Up”
Nikki D – “The Beauty Shop”
NWA – “Alwayz into Somethin'”
NWA – “Real Niggaz Don’t Die”
ODB – “Cuttin’ Headz”
Onyx – “Nigga Bridges”
Onyx – “Throw Ya Gunz”
Orb – “Supernova at the End of the Universe”
Papa Chuk – “Make Way for the Rudeboy”
Peanut Butter Wolf – “I Will Always Love H.E.R.”
Penthouse Players Clique – “P.S. Phuk U2”
Pharcyde – “Ya Mama”
PM Dawn – “On a Clear Day”
Public Enemy – “Don’t Believe the Hype”
Public Enemy – “Miuzi Weighs a Ton”
Redman – “I’m a Bad”
Redman – “Jam 4 U”
Run-DMC – “Wreck Shop”
Scarface – “For Real”
Scarface – “Murder by Reason of Insanity”
Schoolly D – “Saturday Night”
Slick Rick – “Venus”
Sloan – “Stove”
Souls of Mischief – “A Name I Call Myself”
Special Ed – “5 Men and a Mic”
Tim Dog – “I Ain’t Takin’ No Shorts”
Tone Loc – “On Fire”
Too $hort – “Hoes”
Tupac – “The Streetz R Death Row”
Tupac – “When I Get Free II”
Ultramagnetic MCs – “Ego Trippin'”
Ultramagnetic MCs – “Pluckin Cards”
WC & the Maad Circle – “A Crazy Break”
Wu-Tang Clan – “Bring Da Ruckus”
Wu-Tang Clan – “Clan in Da Front”
Wu-Tang Clan – “Method Man”

Hip Hop Musician Rap Record Label Singer Songwriter

Died On This Date (March 26, 1995) Eazy-E / N.W.A.

themusicsover March 26, 2010 2 Comments

Eazy-E (Born Eric Wright)
September 7, 1963 – March 26, 1995

Eazy-E was a groundbreaking rapper who, along with his group, N.W.A. was a pioneer of the gangsta rap genre. During the mid ’80s, Eazy-E co-formed N.W.A. while also starting his own label, Ruthless Records, through which he released the group’s records. In 1988, N.W.A. released their landmark album, Straight Outta Compton, which made a massive impact on both music and pop culture in general. With its hard hitting lyrics strewn with violence and profanity, it offered a glimpse of the inner city life, appealing to both urban kids and those from the suburbs alike. The album sold over three million copies and is often cited as one of the most important albums of all time. Shortly after the release of it, Eazy-E released his own Eazy-Duz-It which also sold in the multi-million copy range. N.W.A. group broke up in 1991, reportedly over money issues. Eazy-E continued to release solo albums through the early ’90s. On March 16, 1995, Eazy-E went to the hospital complaining of what he assumed were asthma-related issues. But to the shock of friends, family and fans, he was diagnosed with AIDS and died as a result of it just ten days later. He was 31 years old.