Steinski

Godfather of some of the zanier aspects of turntablism, Steinski created a succession of extra-legal works of studio art -- "Lesson One: The Payoff Mix," "Lesson Two: The James Brown Mix," "Lesson 3: The History of Hip-Hop" -- that quickly became DJ landmarks and some of the most valued bootlegs in rap history. Steinski, born Steve Stein, was a DJ and record collector when he wasn't working as an ad writer. After hearing in 1983 of a nationwide competition to remix G.L.O.B.E. & Whiz Kid's "Play That Beat Mr. DJ" sponsored by <a href="spotify:search:label%3A%22Tommy+Boy+Records%22">Tommy Boy Records</a> (official title: "Hey Mr. DJ Play That Beat Down by Law Switch the Licks Mastermix Contest"), he hooked up with Double Dee (Doug Di Franco, a studio engineer) to produce "Lesson One: The Payoff Mix," a track that sprinkled the usual funk breakbeats with a parade of samples from feature films and cartoons, including all manner of pop culture references. A panel including <a href="spotify:artist:7cg61q8kK8jlFi8TKKw70p">Afrika Bambaataa</a>, <a href="spotify:artist:5YzGCkGA6XEGKs2C9KRVKA">Arthur Baker</a>, and <a href="spotify:artist:6GOmlO6wisWSbBzBbCCaWv">Shep Pettibone</a> awarded it first prize after one listen, and the remix gained even more airplay than the original.

Soul Brother Number One was next on the docket, and "Lesson Two: The James Brown Mix" introduced <a href="spotify:artist:5NfaORyb548xmt85LGHYFV">Clint Eastwood</a>, Bugs Bunny, and instructional LPs into the mix. By the time of "Lesson 3: The History of Hip-Hop," the third record released by <a href="spotify:search:label%3A%22Tommy+Boy%22">Tommy Boy</a>, offended sample victims began demanding its removal from retail shelves, and for most hip-hop fans, Double Dee & Steinski entered the realm of the legendary. While Di Franco went back to his engineering job, Steinski continued recording with "The Motorcade Sped On," a <a href="spotify:artist:76NiAsCnFL6eHb04zphoH6">JFK</a> tribute featuring samples from radio broadcasts, <a href="spotify:artist:64Wnj17jSebJtX2k9VmW2M">Walter Cronkite</a>, the killing of Lee Harvey Oswald, and <a href="spotify:artist:76NiAsCnFL6eHb04zphoH6">JFK</a> himself. Subsequent records provided commentary on television ("We'll Be Right Back") and the Gulf War ("It's Up to You"), and Steinski also remixed for <a href="spotify:artist:1mZu3rO7qSD09GdDpePHhY">Frankie Goes to Hollywood</a>. He also spent considerable time with his day job, but the duo's enormous influence on sampladelic hip-hop finally convinced him to release another mix, produced for the London-based, <a href="spotify:artist:5wnhqlZzXIq8aO9awQO2ND">Coldcut</a>-affiliated Solid Steel radio program. That record, Nothing to Fear: A Rough Mix, appeared in 2002 on the <a href="spotify:search:label%3A%22Soul+Ting%22">Soul Ting</a> label. ~ John Bush, Rovi