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Michael Jackson - I Can't Let Her Get Away


Ornette

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Break name:

 

Artist: Michael Jackson

Track name: I Can't Let Her Get Away

Original release: Dangerous L.P.

Label: Epic

Cat number: 465802 2 (US CD?)

Year: 1991

Producer: Teddy Riley

 

Also available on:

 

Example:

D Livin' - Why (D-Livin', 1992)

Satin Storm - What D'Ya Do? (Satin Storm, 1992)

Technarchi - Flashback (Fokus UK, 1993)

 

Notes:

As the proliferation of sampling technology increased, so the remit for valid samples and break-beats became increasingly obscure...

 

Take this, for instance. Who in their right mind could have ever imagined that an ultra modern (then, that is), musical, R'n'B-stroke-pop song could ever have worked as the source for a drum loop? Surely no self-respecting breakbeat maestro would do that, right?

 

Well, beyond all incredulity, someone very well did. And it works. D-Livin's 1992 released "Why" was one of the most memorable, interesting and exciting pieces of hardcore drum'n'bass to have emerged that year. Pairing with a heavy dub-wise inspired bassline, a couple of well chosen hip-hop & reggae vocal lines, not to mention another Michael Jackson sample - the "...why?..." vocal snippet taken from "Human Nature" "Why You Wanna Trip On Me", and a well developed structure strong enough to deliver the tune away from the throw-away gimmick it could well have been, "Why" is certainly a forgotten classic that to many extents was ahead of its time.

 

This 'break' was instantly recognisable, to me at least, being taken from only about the best track out of the handful of really good songs on the year prior's "Dangerous" album. Produced by Teddy Riley, the break is slightly unusual in that it is quite musical, with a synth 'plucked guitar' riff running through the loop, and a 'band-hit' dropping on the kicks. Flipped on 45, the break does gain a worthy momentum to the grinding funk of the original.

 

Back in 1999 I actually had a guy I knew begging me for my copy of "Why". He wanted to drop it in with his UK Speed 2-Step Garage tunes when playing out, bringing back some of the old school tunes. Coincidentally I actually came across a white label of this whist digging out some 2nd hand shop - only realising what it was after scanning the etchings on the vinyl. Sold it to him for £20!

 

Returning back to 1992, and Satin Storm soon got in on the act using the break for the B-side to "Think I'm Going...". It didn't work nearly as well as the D Livin' track and the break was then forgotten all about...

...until late 1993 when a then unknown Optical decided to revisit the break for use in his track "Flashback", this time layering it as part of the mix rather than in its own right. Since then... well!

 

 

P.S. I asked this guy how it went with the "Why" track. He said it was too fast to mix in with his newer stuff, but in the end he dropped it as the last track of his sets, playing it in its own right for what it was. Went down well he reckoned!

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does that track have a line that goes " the back stabbers" in it??? if not a track by him that has that line in has a break clean in it that has been used a lot.

sorry I cannot give you much more info than that but only heard it when I was round a mates and his girl was playing a michael jackson album and I noticed it then, it was his greatest hits or something that came out a few years back and it had gold discs.

 

also "why" got repressed around 2000 on a one sided bootleg and it had DUB 1 on the cat no. as a mate had it and it really was to good quality to be recorded off vinyl and then bootlegged in the normal way they are.

Edited by blah
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  • 2 weeks later...
does that track have a line that goes " the back stabbers" in it??? if not a track by him that has that line in has a break clean in it that has been used a lot.

 

That one seems to be "Money" ... I've just listening to it now and beat sounds quite heavy. Not heard this track before! Can't spot any usage though

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  • 11 years later...

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