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Media Type: CD
Artist: BAMBAATAA,AFRIKA
Title: LOOKING FOR THE PERFECT BEAT
Street Release Date: 03/20/2001
Domestic
Genre: RAP/HIP HOP

Afrika Bambaataa, one of hip-hop's progenitors, was known as a talented DJ before his single Planet Rock came out in 1982 on Tommy Boy. The song, which sampled (actually re-recorded in the studio) elements of Kraftwerk's Trans-Europe Express and was the first R&B track to use an 808, helped define a new movement in music, electro, which then inspired Miami bass and Detroit techno, and pushed the musician's status toward near iconic. Planet Rock: The Album, a collection of singles that came out four years later, captures Bambaataa's energy and innovation. This is his work with Soulsonic Force, which means his collaborations with James Brown (Unity) and John Lydon (World Destruction) are missing, but it's a good collection, the equally interesting Renegades of Funk (in remix form) and Searching for the Perfect Beat also present. There are also three previously unreleased tracks, which although not quite having the impact of the first half of the record, are much more than filler, and include guest appearances from famed Furious Five rapper Melle Mel on Who You Funkin' With? and D.C.'s Trouble Funk, appropriately, on Go Go Pop. The original 12 inch version of the title track is enough to make Planet Rock: The Album a worthwhile purchase, but the inclusion of the other material pushes that to necessary. - by Marisa Brown, All Music Guide

Originally released in 1986 this is actually a collection of 12"" singles and songs dating back as far as 1982, the year that the absolute, stone classic, Planet Rock 12-inch was released. One of the most important singles in the history of hip-hop, it incorporates elements of Kraftwerk's Trans Europe Express and is the first documented use of an 808 drum machine in hip-hop/R&B. The rest of the record is no slouch either, including the classic single Searching For The Perfect Beat and collaborations with Melle Mel and D.C.'s Trouble Funk. 180 gram vinyl reissue.

First time on CD for this 1985 debut album release from Afrika Bambaataa. Urban street beats with Techno-Pop futurism inspired by Kraftwerk.