Time Zone

Taking the same approach to hip-hop that funk maverick <a href="spotify:artist:2GVBp7QyHckoOg7rYkLvrA">George Clinton</a> took to his own projects, <a href="spotify:artist:7cg61q8kK8jlFi8TKKw70p">Afrika Bambaataa</a> created the Time Zone project in the early '80s as another outlet for his projects. Despite the different name, their singles were essentially just <a href="spotify:artist:7cg61q8kK8jlFi8TKKw70p">Bambaataa</a> productions, with various collaborators like <a href="spotify:artist:5RISqKCcrhGITX2TQAPGPL">Bill Laswell</a> and <a href="spotify:artist:7GaxyUddsPok8BuhxN6OUW">James Brown</a> included on certain tracks. Their first release was "Wild Style," a breakdancing single that employed the futuristic synth lines and tight funk instrumentation that he had pioneered on the massive "Planet Rock" 12". Next came the six-part "Unity" single, in which <a href="spotify:artist:7GaxyUddsPok8BuhxN6OUW">James Brown</a> delivered verses while <a href="spotify:artist:7cg61q8kK8jlFi8TKKw70p">Bambaataa</a>, bassist <a href="spotify:artist:19l1pnOM9X4cSf8QhuRGwT">Doug Wimbish</a>, guitarist <a href="spotify:artist:2nWwuMA3fFPzKiI0x4Xhrd">Skip McDonald</a>, and drummer <a href="spotify:artist:49ySrJrkirH0D0I6sEVBpD">Keith LeBlanc</a> put together one of the funkiest beats of his career. The last '80s Time Zone project was World Destruction, a rap/punk crossover that utilized <a href="spotify:artist:70MMkLXtue3Edj3RJhJkYp">Public Image Ltd.</a>'s Album lineup -- producer <a href="spotify:artist:5RISqKCcrhGITX2TQAPGPL">Bill Laswell</a>, organist <a href="spotify:artist:3vB7T6czx1Jh89YEnzM0UF">Bernie Worrell</a>, guitarist <a href="spotify:artist:1s60MqDAKcVrTFxHM3w2Z0">Nicky Skopelitis</a>, and drummer <a href="spotify:artist:3PzPi0PPr7iJKftbCcZ78u">Aiyb Dieng</a> -- to deliver <a href="spotify:artist:7cg61q8kK8jlFi8TKKw70p">Bambaataa</a>'s angry duet with singer <a href="spotify:artist:3qeZ2Y7fOYRAVJzOJxp1e2">John Lydon</a>. Although the track was a groundbreaking effort, <a href="spotify:artist:7cg61q8kK8jlFi8TKKw70p">Bambaataa</a> retired the Time Zone name for almost ten years. In the fall of 1995, a number of <a href="spotify:artist:7cg61q8kK8jlFi8TKKw70p">Bambaataa</a>'s late-'80s/early-'90s singles and several new tracks were put together on Warlocks and Witches, Computer Chips, Microchips and You, a compilation credited to a new all-star version of Time Zone. Featuring many members of <a href="spotify:artist:7cg61q8kK8jlFi8TKKw70p">Bambaataa</a>'s Zulu Nation as well as several outside collaborators, it did share the same apocalyptic message and <a href="spotify:artist:4jbdFVscwgzbzxNFmCHjGY">P-Funk</a>-inspired music that made the original Time Zone singles so powerful, but it had a hard time connecting with rap audiences and proved to be the last release to use the Time Zone moniker. ~ Bradley Torreano, Rovi