digitalphoenix Posted February 19 Report Share Posted February 19 DJ mixes Beatles, Jay-Z into 'Grey'Thursday, February 19, 2004 Posted: 1:37 PM EST (1837 GMT)Danger Mouse's "Grey Album" is a blend of unauthorized samples from Jay-Z's "Black Album" and the Beatles' "White Album." NEW YORK (Reuters) -- When rap great Jay-Z released his retirement opus "The Black Album" last year, a hip-hop remixer called Danger Mouse had an idea -- why not meld the blackness of rap with the Beatles' classic "White Album"? The resulting "Grey Album" -- an unlikely mix of the often explicit lyrics of Jay-Z with samples of music from the Beatles' 1968 classic -- has become an underground hit among hip-hop aficionados. But without permission from either the rapper or the Beatles, this is one album you can't buy in local stores. The album was produced by 26-year-old underground hip-hop disc jockey Brian Burton, aka Danger Mouse, who found modest fame last year as half of the hip-hop duo DM and Jemini. "It was an experiment. It was supposed to be an underground project, not playing in clubs," Burton said in a telephone interview about the buzz surrounding his latest work. Burton said the idea for "The Grey Album" came to him in December after hearing Jay-Z's latest release. The similarity in the two albums' names sparked an impulse to do the remix but Burton said he also relished the challenge. Over the course of two weeks filled with 12-hour days, he remixed Beatles favorites like "Helter Skelter," "Back in the U.S.S.R." and quirkier ditties like "Piggies," stripping out the vocals and creating samples and loops that often bore little resemblance to the original songs. After topping his new Beatles-inspired sounds with lyrics from Jay-Z songs like "99 Problems," Burton sent a few hundred copies of the hybrid to friends and music industry people. With only 3,000 copies of the album pressed, "The Grey Album" quickly became an underground hit. Cease and desistFew copies were available in specialty record stores for disc jockeys, but the album quickly became a club favorite and garnered acclaim and popularity among users of Internet file-sharing programs. Burton, as well as many of the music providers who were selling the album, have received "cease-and-desist" letters from EMI Group, the Beatles' record label, to stop production. "The (album's) already out there and there's nothing I can do about it," Burton said. "It's just going to make it a lot more difficult for people to find it." For a while it traded on Web site eBay for between $10 and $34 a copy, but it has been pulled from the site. Those who have been able to lay their hands on the album have been generally positive about its sound. New Yorker Julius Thorne, 18, said he downloaded "The Grey Album" out of curiosity and found it fun. "It's sorta like 'Charades,'" he said, adding, "It's not like you can really mess up Jay-Z anyway." Jermaine Daniel, 29, a regular of Los Angeles' hip-hop clubs, says the new school/old school mix isn't as jarring to young ears as might be expected. "You have to realize that a lot of the stuff nowadays is recycled beats from way back anyway," Daniel said. Indeed, ever since The Beastie Boys released their groundbreaking album "Paul's Boutique" in 1989 -- which mined samples from sources as diverse as Johnny Cash, Bob Marley and The Beatles -- sampling classic hooks from yesteryear in hip-hop has been as ubiquitous as Bentleys in rap videos. Paying homageJay-Z himself has dipped into the sampling pool repeatedly, legally borrowing beats and lyrics from his contemporaries like the late Tupac Shakur and Notorious B.I.G. "I haven't heard from Jay-Z but I think a lot of the people at (his record label) Roc-A-Fella like it." said Burton. Neither the rapper or Roc-A-Fella Records returned calls seeking comment. For Burton, the project was a labor of love intended to pay homage to both Jay-Z and the Beatles. Michael Donnelly, a New York-based Beatles fan who helped organize recent events to mark the 40th anniversary of the Fab Four's first trip to America, thinks he may have succeeded. "I think 'The Grey Album" is utterly fantastic and a real fresh way for the hip-hop generation to listen to the Beatles," he said. Donnelly singled out "99 Problems" and "December 4th" for special acclaim. The two tracks are set against the Beatles' "Helter-Skelter" and "Mother Nature's Son" respectively. "'99 Problems' exactly captures the energy of 'Helter-Skelter,"' said Donnelly, adding that the blend of "Mother Nature's Son" with "December 4th" turns the song from what he describes as "corny" to "warm and nostalgic." Robert Thompson, a professor of pop culture at Syracuse University, said "The Grey Album" comes at a time when the Beatles have re-emerged as "an avant garde band" for a new generation. "If you're a 16-year-old listening to the Beatles, it makes you really on the edge of cool," he said. All this acclaim has Burton more than a little bemused. "This wasn't supposed to happen," Burton said. "I just sent out a few tracks (and) now online stores are selling it and people are downloading it all over the place." Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fliptoniaaa Posted February 19 Report Share Posted February 19 its really genius if u think about it!!!!!!!!!!!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
digitalphoenix Posted February 20 Author Report Share Posted February 20 Originally posted by fliptoniaaa its really genius if u think about it!!!!!!!!!!!!! I think so too dude. I am currently looking for it. I know most of these guys hate on Hip-Hop & shit but when it comes down to creativity, I give props, I dont give a fuck what no one else says.I'll throw you a copy when I find it! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fliptoniaaa Posted February 20 Report Share Posted February 20 Originally posted by digitalphoenix I think so too dude. I am currently looking for it. I know most of these guys hate on Hip-Hop & shit but when it comes down to creativity, I give props, I dont give a fuck what no one else says.I'll throw you a copy when I find it! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
digitalphoenix Posted February 20 Author Report Share Posted February 20 Originally posted by fliptoniaaa GOT IT!!! It's pretty wicked! This guy Danger Mouse is good!Flip, email me your addy & I'll mail you a copy dawg. :D Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
treepwood728 Posted February 20 Report Share Posted February 20 Jay-Z The Brown Album Produced By Kev Brownis also damn good!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
digital7 Posted February 20 Report Share Posted February 20 I havent listened to it, but Im defenitely interested in doing so.. if you find a copy, send one my way also.. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
funketeer Posted February 20 Report Share Posted February 20 if anyone gets a copy of this, please pm a.s.a.p. thanksFunketeer Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
az-tec Posted February 20 Report Share Posted February 20 If anyone wants to send to me up in NYC...Id be forever grateful...comps to Spirit NY if your ever up here lol Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sleepfreeq Posted February 20 Report Share Posted February 20 its up on soulseek Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sleepfreeq Posted February 20 Report Share Posted February 20 its up on slsk Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
funketeer Posted February 20 Report Share Posted February 20 What Danger Mouse does is called Mash or Mashing (seeting vocals of one song to music of another song) it's the hottest thing in Europe nowdays...I heard some Mash tracks that just blew me away...Madonna's Ray of Light set to the backdrop of Sex Pistols' God Save the Queen, The Strokes' Someday with Genie in a Bottle, Destiny's Child Independent Women mixed with the music of Dreadlock Holiday...man, I really want to check this Gray Album out a.s.a.p. I'm a hardcore Beatles' fan and I have nothing but respect for Jay-Z, he's bad-ass!Danger Mouse actually distributed 3,000 promo-demos of the Gray Album, he can't claim to be innocent...leaving aside the geniality of his deed...he did brake every conceivable copyright law, from the moment he manipulated the music of both artists without their conscent, to distributing it so carelessly...someone must be really pissed right now and rightly so...not me, nuhu, I don't care, I do what I want!I want this shit right now! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sleepfreeq Posted February 20 Report Share Posted February 20 looks like something you can do on ACID (software) no pun intended Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sleepfreeq Posted February 20 Report Share Posted February 20 personally "The grey album" sounds like dog shit Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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