I first heard Drum’n Bass music (also called Jungle) around 1995. I thought I had heard the next great musical movement. The concepts were fresh and startling. It was a new way to think about rhythm and, to me, most musical innovations, whether in jazz or hip hop, center around new musical thinking regarding rhythm. Back then I could not hear a bad drum’n bass track. They all seemed to point in new directions.

As time passed, the revolution I envisioned never happened (at least in America) and eventually the music became watered down as more and more people started making it. It’s probably true of any musical movement that catches fire and finds a greater audience. The pioneers that create the form produce the strongest music and set the benchmarks. This is not to say drum’n bass as a form of music is dead, far from it, but the early years were truly remarkable.

This video, posted on YouTube in 2006, is an exceptional discussion about a drum break that almost single-handedly launched the drum’n bass form. It is called the “Amen” break because it is a 6-second sample or break from a song recorded in 1969 by a group named the Winstons. The song is called “Amen Brother”.

The video is long at 18 minutes and it is not that interesting visually but it’s very well written with plenty of musical examples as well as many insightful cultural comments. If you have an interest in drum’n bass or are making electronic music, you owe it to yourself to watch this video.

Towards the end of the video the author also talks about how the drum’n bass music which was powered by the Amen break has never been challenged by the copyright owners of the song Amen Brother. He goes on to point out that this act, essentially putting the sample in the public domain, led to the creation of a new art form.

amen brother, drum n bass, electronic music, musical innovations, musical movement, youtube