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Source of an all-time 'Breaks and Beats' classic, Mr Bongo reissue Herman Kelly's timeless 1978 album Percussion Explosion! Immortalised in hip-hop folklore, when the anthemic 'Dance To The Drummer's Beat' was featured on the infuential Ultimate Breaks & Beats compilation series in 1986. Percussion Explosion! was the brainchild of drummer, percussionist, producer and arranger, Herman Kelly and his percussive disco-funk group from Miami, 'Life', that featured Aaron McCarthy, Oliver Well, John DeMonica, Michal Cordoza and Travis Biggs. The album houses a collection of disco, funk and Latin-inspired cuts that were destined for greatness. Nestled within the grooves is the B-Boy and B-Girl's anthem, 'Dance To The Drummer's Beat', which contains a now legendary break. A cursory glance at Whosampled will show that it has been sampled in over 125+ songs. These include Double Dee & Steinski on their groundbreaking 1985 production 'Lesson 3 (History Of Hip Hop Mix)', as well as by DJ Shadow, N.W.A, Masters At Work, Run D.M.C. and a whole host of heavyweights across hip-hop, dance and pop music.
When the album was released in 1978 it came out on two different labels, Alston Records and Electric Cat. Each label pressed different versions of 'Dance To Drummer's Beat', with the former featuring a 4:12 version and the latter a longer 5:09 version that has a different structure, crowd noise at the start and overdubbed percussion.
Tracklist
Dance To The Drummer's Beat
Time After Time
A Refreshing Love
Who's The Funky D.J.?
Share Your Love
Do The Handbone