Crate Logic

THREE,TWO,ONE
A Final Say with Bob James......


“I’m flattered to be a part of hip-hop’s history,” says Bob James nonchalantly. “But I believe we’re still at the beginning of understanding how young people make music.”


Bob James’s career developed during a time when radio ruled, records sold, and Roberta Flack had the country’s number one song. Things were different then. Popular music was changing, and over in New York, kids were priming themselves for a burgeoning hip-hop scene. James was thirty-five by 1974 and had just released his first solo album on CTI Records. His subsequent projects for the label were both commercially successful LPs and unsung flops. Regardless of units sold, it was those very records that would lay the foundational sound for some of hip-hop’s most coveted records. It was those kids in New York who initially took James’s music and adapted it for themselves to use and the world to see.

James’s first three CTI releases—One, Two, and Three—are amongst the most sampled records ever. And if we’re truly beginning to grasp how younger generations make music, it’s safe to assume that James’s catalogue is a resource that’ll be continually sifted through and sampled from.

In this three-part interview, he talks in-depth regarding details of his career: The first part of the interview touches on colorful names that are intermingled with his history, its development and legacy. Next, he reflects back on his first three CTI releases, breaking down the most sampled songs on each album. In the interview’s final component, Bob James explains the process of sample requests throughout the years, its affect on him, and why he’s “flattered to be a part of hip-hop’s history.”

I. Quincy, Creed, and the Biz:

What role did Quincy Jones have in developing your career?

Everyone talks about the history of our field and Quincy Jones has a lot to do with my history. You could even say he discovered me. He was very influential at several key stages in my career. He was a judge at a jazz competition that I did when I was still in college, and my group ended up winning the whole thing. Quincy then signed me to do a record called Bold Conceptions in the ’60s. That, of course, was very important to me. Ten years later when I moved to New York, I met Quincy again, and it was Quincy that introduced me to Creed Taylor. This launched my career with CTI. Those two things are extremely important to me, and how my career played out. Quincy was definitely pivotal.

You were with CTI for a few years before your own project debuted. When did Creed Taylor interject and aid in the progression of things?

Well, I was working a lot with Creed at the time for CTI. But I was working primarily as an arranger and would play piano on other jazz artists’ records. After doing this for about two or three years, on a fairly stable basis, and being on the support staff for other artists like Grover Washington, finally Creed asked me if I wanted to do my own album. So of course I said yes. One ended up being my first for CTI.

What specifically was Creed Taylor’s influence during those years? Is there anyone else you’d credit in aiding your career?

Well, Creed’s whole outlook on production was very influential to me. He always believed in hiring the best musicians possible and he put a lot of emphasis into the mixing and production value. He always used a fantastic engineer named Rudy Van Gelder. I can say that Rudy was very important in my development also. He cared about the way things sounded more than any engineer I’ve worked with. He also had a very identifiable sound. I’ve never thought that much about the recording process, just the composing and playing. But together, Rudy and Creed had a definite personality in all their projects. The combination of Creed’s ears, how he listened to things, combined with Rudy’s engineering style made them a great production combo. I’d always try to keep that same feeling going into my works for many, many years after first working with Rudy and Creed.

Strangely enough. Biz Markie is another name that’s attached to your legacy. He claims to have a 12-inch of “Take Me to Mardi Gras.” Can you confirm or deny this once and for all?

I couldn’t really tell you one way or the other. [laughs] It’s definitely possible that a 12-inch of “Take Me to Mardi Gras” exists. I wasn’t personally involved in making the 12-inch edits. Often times, it was made by the engineer. I assume some of these versions are legit and some aren’t. I’ve never physically seen any or heard other versions besides what’s on my LP.

Well, adding to the rumor, Biz says his version doesn’t contain the bells at the beginning.

That intro with the bells sticks out in the front of the arrangement, so I’m sure it would be possible to take chunks and make edits. What I think is very doubtful is that anybody did. Someone would’ve had to go into the masters, and the multitrack tape, and manually take the bells out—or any other individual elements for that matter. There’s a small window of opportunity that an engineer during the time could have taken out the bells after our recording session. But I wouldn’t know why someone would do that. Especially if it was a promotional 12-inch for the LP. The possibility of a 12-inch single could certainly exist. But a version without the bells seems unlikely to me.