They wanted to build a machine that was relatively durable, movable, and affordable to the average musician. That demand ultimately inspired Roland to create the 808. These songs inspired an early demand for a stage-ready drum machine. One of the machines that started appearing in recordings was a predecessor to the 808 - a drum machine called the CR-78.Īnd here’s the CR-78 in Phil Collins’ In the Air Tonight. Paul McCabe: They started to become used more in live performance in a situation where either an acoustic drummer wasn't available or to enhance a rhythm section, and then they started to appear in recordings. These drum machines slowly morphed from family novelty instruments into something professionals were using. It’s here in the 70s when electronic rhythm machines started to catch on. Paul McCabe: They built their own instruments so they were playing some of the earliest electronic rhythm instruments that you could play and strike. They helped introduce new, weird technology to popular music. Paul McCabe: Kraftwerk is one of the founding fathers of techno. This is “The Robots HQ” by Kraftwerk, a four piece band from Germany. By the 1970s, many songwriters would program a drum beat and write to it - a practice Phil Collins used often…īut as people found uses for drum machines, early versions of electronic music were starting to go mainstream.
And so there would be a kick drum and a snare drum and cymbals and tom toms.ĭrum machines were used for casual purposes and weren’t that useful to professional musicians.īut in time, musicians did start to find uses for Drum Machines. Paul McCabe: So they have typically, particularly the earliest drum machines were really working to try to recreate the sound of a small acoustic drum kit. Paul McCabe: If you see photos of some of the earliest drum machines, in fact you'll even see drum machines that are designed to sit on top of an organ where the music rest would normally be. As you can imagine, people wanted a rhythmic instrument that wasn’t as big or loud as a live drum kit. They’d possibly have a guitar, maybe a piano or a home organ. A high percentage of the population was playing music.Īnd though families were hanging out in the living room playing music, they typically didn’t have a drum kit laying around. So families would often gather around and they would play music, people would play music as a pastime. And television hadn't taken over the living room quite yet. Paul McCabe: We have to remember in the '70s, the '60s, the '50s music being played in the home was still a very popular thing. For 20 or 30 years, they had been used mostly in the home. When they released the 808 in the early 80s, drum machines weren’t exactly sought after. Roland is a company that makes electronic instruments. Paul McCabe: The Roland TR-808 is a drum machine. He’s a world renowned DJ, musician, and one of the early innovators of Hip Hop.ĭJ Jazzy Jeff: There was nothing that was more distinctive and more sought after than an 808. And even if you don’t know it by name, you have definitely heard it before.ĭJ Jazzy Jeff: I laugh because if I listen to the radio for an hour, there's not one record that you hear that's not an 808. You're listening to Twenty Thousand Hertz, I'm Dallas Taylor. Go to /20k for your $5 complete hair kit. To get your 20K referral link and earn rewards, visit 20k.org/refer.Ĭonsolidate your credit card debt today and get an additional interest rate discount at /20k. If you know what this week's mystery sound is, tell us at. Twenty Thousand Hertz is produced out of the studios of Defacto Sound, and hosted by D allas Taylor.īecome a monthly contributor at 20k.org/donate. Just One of Those Days by DJ Jazzy Jeff and Fresh Prince Scorpio by Grandmaster Flash & The Furious Five
Planet Rock by Afrika Bambaataa & The Soul Sonic Forceįunk Box Party, Part 1 by The Masterdon Committee
He's The DJ, I'm The Rapper by DJ Jazzy Jeff and Fresh Prince I Know (No Oohs and Aahs) By Red Licorice Featuring DJ Jazzy Jeff and Paul McCabe from Roland. In this episode, we try to understand how that happened and follow the unlikely path of the 808. It’s in dozens of hit songs - from Usher to Marvin Gaye, Talking Heads to The Beastie Boys - and its sounds have quietly cemented themselves in the cultural lexicon. Even if you’ve never heard of it, you’ve definitely heard it. The 808 is arguably the most iconic drum machine ever made. This episode was written and produced by Fil Corbitt.