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Hip-hop history: deep roots

Lots of people like to toss around their opinions on how hip-hop got its beginnings, but few websites could have as thorough a timeline as HipHop City. Compiled by Professa RAP (a.k.a. Russell A Potter, Ph.D.), this "Working Hip-Hop Chronology" takes it from the top, with the Mamie Smith's 1920 "Crazy Blues"--the first time African American music was recorded for commercial purposes. As the timeline follows the major milestones in black music history, you see hip-hop's early forbears turning up in unlikely places--like the 1953 recording "Signifying Monkey" by Willie Dixon and the Big Three Trio. The "pre-fab" Sugarhill Gang gets the expected mention, but much more interesting are the references to groups like the Last Poets, Kraftwerk, Sequence, and others. A historical refernce you owe it to your love of music to check out.

Wed, 22 Dec 1999 09:44:08 -0800