Documenting The Tremendous Influence Of The 1970s Funk Rock Band Lafayette Afro Rock Band's Tune "Hihache" On Hip Hop & Some Other American Music Genres

Edited by Azizi Powell

This is Part I of a two part pancocojams series about Lafayette Afro Rock Band, a highly influential French 1970s Funk Rock group that was first formed in the United States.

Part I presents information about the American/French funk music band Lafayette Afro Rock Band that was formed in the United States in 1970. This post also showcases a YouTube sound file of that band's 1973 tune entitled "Hihache".

Selected comments from that YouTube sound file's discussion thread are included in this post. Most of these comments focus on the use of samples from the record "Hihache" can be found in songs from multiple United States music genres.

Click https://pancocojams.blogspot.com/2019/04/what-is-afro-hairstyle-and-youtube.html for Part II of this series. Part II presents my definition of an afro and my notes about the significance of afro hairstyles for African Americans in the 1960s and 1970s.

This post also documents selected comments from a YouTube discussion thread for Lafayette Afro Rock Band's record "Hihache". These comments focus on the album cover- a photograph of a young Black woman with a big afro (hair style)- which was mistakenly used for that YouTube sound file. That photograph was actually used as the cover for Lafayette Afro Rock Band's album entitled "Malik".

Brief explanatory notes are given after some of these comments.

The content of this post is presented for socio-cultural, entertainment, and aesthetic purposes.

All copyrights remain with their owners.

Thanks to Lafayette Afro Rock Band for their musical legacy. Thanks also to all those who are quoted in this post and thanks to the publisher of this YouTube sound file.

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INFORMATION ABOUT LAFAYETTE AFRO ROCK BAND
From https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lafayette_Afro_Rock_Band
"Lafayette Afro Rock Band was an American funk rock band formed in Roosevelt, Long Island, New York in 1970 and soon relocating to France. Though little-known in their native United States during their recording period, they have since become celebrated as one of the standout funk bands of the 1970s and are particularly noted for their use of break beats.[1] The band also recorded under the names Ice, Crispy & Co. (Krispie & Co. in Europe), Captain Dax, and others.[2]

Upon their relocation to Paris, the local music scene influenced the group's work, inspiring the addition of rock and African elements. They recorded their debut album as Ice and then adopted the name Lafayette Afro Rock Band. The band's next two albums, Soul Makossa and Malik, included the songs "Hihache" and "Darkest Light" which would be sampled in numerous culturally significant hip-hop compositions. They broke up in 1978.

[...]

Upon deciding that the funk scene in the United States was too saturated for them to viably compete, they relocated to France in 1971. When Boyd split from the group and returned to America, the remaining band members briefly renamed themselves Soul Congress and then settled on the name Ice.[5]

After regular performances in Paris's Barbès district, an area made up primarily of North African immigrants, they caught the eye of producer Pierre Jaubert and became the house session band at his Parisound studio.[4] The influence of their surroundings led Ice to increasingly weave African rhyme schemes, textures, and beat tendencies into their established funk style. The album Each Man Makes His Own Destiny was released in 1972 under the name Ice, after which the band changed their name to Lafayette Afro Rock Band to reflect their expanded influences.[3]

Now under the name Lafayette Afro Rock Band, they released the album Soul Makossa (also known as Movin' and Groovin' in the United States) in 1973.[3] The title track was a cover version of Manu Dibango's international hit, "Soul Makossa". Though it failed to chart, the album made an impact years later. Its standout song, the oft-covered "Hihache", has been widely sampled by artists as diverse as Janet Jackson, Biz Markie, LL Cool J, De La Soul, Digital Underground, Naughty by Nature, and Wu-Tang Clan.[5]"...

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SHOWCASE YOUTUBE EXAMPLE (sound file)
Lafayette Afro Rock Band - Hihache



dravmasta, Published on Sep 26, 2010

Lafayette Afro Rock Band was a French funk rock band formed in Roosevelt, Long Island, New York in 1970. Though almost unknown in their native United States, they are now universally celebrated as one of the standout funk bands of the 1970s and admired for their use of break beats. Wiki.

Song: Hihache
Artist: Lafayette Afro Rock Band
Album: Soul Makossa
-snip-
Several commenters noted that the album cover that is used for this YouTube sound file is actually the cover for that band's album entitled "Malik". Click https://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=5893219718076521675#overview for a photograph of the cover for the band's "Soul Makossa" album.
-snip-
Statistics as of April 15, 2019 9:43 AM EST
total views - 13,929,895

total likes - 103,000

total dislikes - 1,900

total number of comments - 2,099

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SELECTED COMMENTS FROM THE DISCUSSION THREAD OF THIS YOUTUBE SOUND FILE
This compilation isn't all of the comments from that discussion thread about the song "Hihache". I didn't read all of the comments in that discussion thread, but I did read A LOT of them.

Numbers are added for referencing purposes only.

1. BasementDwellaz, 2013
"every funk head and hip hop junky should know of this group.............. break beats are legendary"

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2. Glenn Havens, 2013
"Sad news. Arthur Young, one of the founding members of Lafayette Afro Rock Band passed away on December 24, 2013 in Brooklyn, NY after a long battle with cancer. He was 66 years old.
Although the band never made it big here, they were popular in France (even though all the members were from the U.S.). Their music has been sampled over 100 times by various artists including Public Enemy, Britney Spears, De La Soul, Wu-Tang Clan, LL Cool J and Jay Z."

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REPLY
3. buru44, 2013
"RIP, thank you for updating us friend."

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4. Thomas Johnson Jr, 2014
"One Of The Most Sampled Brake Beats In Hip Hop, Back In The Days Of A1 Record Store, They Would Have This Album On Their Wall For $80 Or More!!!!!!

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5. Michael Burke, 2014
"I have no idea what a break beat is. Anyone?"

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REPLY
6. oskamadison, 2014
"OK...Mike, a break beat is a section of a song that is usually just a drum beat with little to no instrumentation over it. The first 20 or so seconds of this song is an example. A breakbeat is usually found at the beginning of a song but can be in the middle. DJ's used to backspin 2 copies of records with breakbeats to extend the beat, during which time the B-Boys would dance, hence the term "breakdancing". MC's would usually rap over the breakbeats as well. Break beats can be found in any genre of music but is most commonly found in soul, funk, jazz or rock records. This is the truest definition of the term. I hope that helps."

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7. Michael Burke, 2014
"That's it? I expected some technical term. I can dig it."

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8. William P Scott, 2015
"Often sampled but never duplicated.....Lafayette Afro Rock Band from my hometown of Roosevelt Long Island NY"

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9. Jorge Luis S, 2016
"Hi William! Could you give me names of other bands of that era that made this style of music (HIHACHE) , instrumental??
I Listen Hihache, Malik and Azeta almost every day in Spotify, here in Buenos Aires, Argentina! and I search and search but dont find anything like this! :)"

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10. The House of Kush, 2016
"He means what he said: 'sampled', because the opening drumbeat to this track has been by hundreds of artists and used as the basis for new songs."

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11. topiacos, 2018
"@Jorge Luis S maybe you will find with artists of "afro beat" style, like fela, & his sons also ; ebo taylor, orchestre poly rythmo, etc etc ......"

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12. topiacos, 2018
"@Jorge Luis S , here's a good list : Afro Funk, Afro Social Club, Akido, Akoya Afrobeat, Alemayehu Eshete, Anthony Joseph & The Spasm band, Tony Allen, Amala2, Aphrodesia , Antibalas, NMB Afrobeat Experience, Assagai, Bantous Jazz, Budos Band, Bukky Leo & Black Egypt, Cymande, Manu Dibango, Ghetto Blaster, Franck Biyong & Massak, Funkees, Funk Ark, Lafayette Afro Rock Band, Osibisa, Professor Wouassa Fanga, Kokolo, Fela Anikulapo Kuti, Femi Kuti, Seun Kuti, Lagbaja, Nomo, Délé Sosimi, Orchestre Poly-Rythmo, Ebo Taylor, The Souljazz Orchestra, Kèlè Kèlè Afrobeat, Whitefield Brothers, Rytmetix, Oghene Kologbo, Segun Damisa, Ernesto Djédjé, Herléo Muntu, Abomey Afrojazz Orchestra & Gbedossou, Newen Afrobeat.
enjoy ;)"

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13. theoldschooloriginal, 2015
"@ 0:03 Biz Markie sampled, chopped and looped this drum beat for the song called Nobody Beats The Biz."

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14. Roberto Ginsburg, 2019
"Actually their producer Marley Marl was , who is knowed like the father of sampling era in Hip Hop."

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15. Glen Boyle, 2015
"hit me with that fat bassline and funky hornlines,"

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16. Sal Presti, 2015
"The crackling of the record adds to the coolness of it IMO"

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17. PrinceEnki2112, 2016
"Wow...have no clue how I got here but this album is off the hook. Fantastic chops by all, thanks for the upload!"

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18. Chris Sandoval, 2016
"man, grew up in the era but never heard of this great band before, thanks for turning me on to something awesome."

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19. Christina Collier, 2016
"How can you NOT like this?! Ahhhh the artists who've sampled this.... I bet these dudes are rolling in dough now"

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20. George Bennett, 2016
"I wouldn't be so sure. Amen Brother's the most sampled drum break of all time the genre of Jungle's practically built around it and up until last year (or early this year I don't remember) they never saw a penny :("

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21. William P Scott, 2016
"Christina Collier Unfortunately they are not! Most of the group members are deceased and the ones that are still alive are fighting to get there just do"

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22. DeadheadYates, 2016
"funk transcends race, age, or gender. easily some of the best music on the planet, a gorgeous blend of soul, jazz, and rock music. gets me off my ass and jammin!"

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23. DealReal12, 2016
"You're absolutely right Sir! Right on Brother! Right on Sisters Everywhere."

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24. Karol, 2016
"The internet is such a blessing, being able to find musical gems so easily."

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25. Court Laszlo, 2016
"The Lafeyette Afro Rock Band had to go a long way to become this celebrated. Formed on Long Island in 1970, they left the US after deciding (probably correctly) that the funk scene was too saturated. Saxophonist Leroy Gomez linked up with the band in Paris, writing and producing ‘Hihache’ and playing the sax solo ‘Darkest Light’, both iconic breakbeats and samples, respectively. Gomez would go on be the vocalist for Santa Esmeralda, whose cover of ‘Don’t Let Me Be Misunderstood’ would be a disco hit.

‘Hihache’ heard in:
Biz Markie, ‘Nobody Beats the Biz‘ (1988)
LL Cool J, ‘Jingling Baby‘ (1989)
Masters at Work, ‘Get Up‘ (1991)
Wu-Tang Clan, ‘Wu-Tang Clan Ain’t Nuthing Ta F&ck Wit‘ (1993)
Flying Lotus, ‘Vegas Collie‘ (2007)

http://www.factmag.com/2014/02/04/sample-the-funk-10-legendary-samples-and-the-stories-behind-them/4/"

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26. Kim B, 2016
"also sampled by Beatnuts, Naughty By Nature, Shai (with Jay Z), Jurrasic 5, Amy Winehouse, Public Enemy, Tribe Called Quest, Channel Live (with KRS 1), De La Soul, Mary J Blige and Biggie Smalls, Ice Cube, Gravediggaz, Aphex Twin, Nice and Smooth, Janet Jackson, Madonna, Kriss Kross, Souls oF Mischief, Funkmaster Flex, Black Moon, Eric B and Rakim, Moby, Slick Rick, Nas, Peter Gabriel, Stezo, The Pharcyde etc etc the list goes on and on and on. its been sampled in everything from pop to hip hop"

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27. Sven Croon, 2016
"thx for the info!!! You CLEARLY know your stuff. I'm wondering, did these artists that used samples, know and love the original artist? Or were they simply taking cool samples off of a sample CD anonymously? I would hope they were using samples of their own heroes, rather than just using samples that sounded cool but had no clue where they came from..."

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28. Bruce Mitchell, 2017
"Some cases they had parents that played it when they were kids and it sunk in, in other cases they just listened to songs for beats without actually delving into the meat of the musical matter. The latter are the djs from the late 90s to 2000s. [I started DJing in 68, mobile DJing in '75."

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29. TONY STORM, 2017
"Ty"
-snip-
"Ty" = "thank you"

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30. Fuzzard Frames, 2017
"Court Laszlo
Props some of this I did not know,...love and respect"

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31. Andreas T., 2018
"Santa Esmeralda & Leroy Gomez were huge in late seventies. But someone must be older than fifty to know that :))"

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32. J Garth Jr, 2019
"Can hear where The Doors found sound wave for Riders on the Storm. Lafayette Afro Rock Band the inspiration!"

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33. brooklynstudent73, 2015
"This is one song where I see images of Puerto Rican brothers playing the congas in Spanish Harlem or the Lower East Side, Manhattan, and the militant Red, Black and Green flag African-American/Asiatic brothers playing congas and djiembe's in Mt. Morris Park in Harlem, Tompkins/Von King Park in Bedford-Stuyvesant, Brooklyn or Brower Park in Crown Heights, Brooklyn, or Roy Wilkins Park in St. Albans, Queens. It perfectly captures Afrikan-Fela Kuti-Manu Dibango-type funk, with that straight up-hip-hop/B-Boy funk out of NYC, spun by Afrika Bambattaa, Kool Herc, and Grandmaster Flash. Zulu Nation, 5 Percent Nation, Black Spades, Casanovas, Tomahawks, Jolly Stompers, Savage Skulls, Savage Nomads, 7 Crowns stand up!! Brooklyn stand up!!"

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34. EMAN, 2018
"EXACTLY"

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35. Rob Lopez, 2018
"On point"

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36. PAKposse, 2019
"Wow that’s is one stream of consciousness line there… As one of the 3 blooded island boyz who came to NYC along the immigrant path I first felt I could exhale, the music and food fell into place… rice n peas with yam balls with an extra plate for the ol’ country ancestors.
Wow thanks for kicking off that memory with your comment"

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37. steampump 1912, 2018
"Pure 70's groove."

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38. Chris Ventura, 2018
"Funk was the orgins of hip hop and breaking in NY."

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39. Tree City Cowboy, 2018
"Now this is a jam"

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40. Ed Claypoole, 2018
"This is why i love youtube. Good stuff like this! Get your funk on people!"

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41. natres rug, 2019
"Beautiful tunes from the best music era ever. It changed the world"

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42. Sambo Rambo, 2019
"FUNK IS LIFE"
-snip-
This comment was written in bold font on that discussion thread.

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43. Pay Me No Mind, 2019
"Boy, you look up one sample... and go down a helluva rabbit hole! Reappear like a day later - FUNKED UP!!! The band era's extinction signaled a loss of so much more than just great music."

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44. Tryezz Official Music, 2019
"Groovin'. Big respect."

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This concludes Part I of this two part pancocojams series about Lafayette Afro Rock Band.

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