 Towards the end of the 1980’s, hip hop had taken on a much more upbeat and danceable persona, with various rappers featured on many pop singles and several crossover hits. Prince Paul and Daddy-O from Stetsasonic were two producers who were behind many of these. They especially had a knack for finding funky, obscure samples that brought the music from the stage and onto the dance floor.
One group that found their way to Daddy-O’s mixing desk was London’s Cookie Crew. They had won a rapping contest and found some regional success with their “Rok da House” single. Enter Daddy-O and their first full length album Born This Way! “Born This Way” was the title track from the record. It was released in 1989 and contains two brilliant samples from jazz bassist Jonny Pate and the funk band Pleasure. It was a truly fun number and charted in the UK, but as the hip hop trends in the states were already changing yet again, it was poorly received on this side of the Atlantic.  Happy Mother’s Day! :)
 Aside from the Eagles, the Band, and for a time Genesis, drummer led rock bands are few and far between. To begin with, it’s a physically difficult instrument to play while singing, and even harder to connect with the audience tucked behind a wall of rockstar hair, keyboardists, and guitarists.
Highway Robbery was a Redondo Beach, California group that featured one such talented singer / drummer, and “Mystery Rider” was the lead track from their only album For Love or Money, recorded and released on RCA in 1972. It’s a heavy psychedelic number, with a stunning washed-out guitar solo that showcased the potential of this power trio. Sadly, RCA didn’t know how to market them and they were soon dropped. But this song and album still stand the test of time and deserve much more attention. |
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