Image via Complex Original
One of the standout tracks from The Weeknd’s Beauty Behind The Madness is the Kanye West-produced “Tell Your Friends.” The songs sees Abel move away from the brooding synths and dark, downtempo drum production of his signature sound, towards a classic soul sample flip that has Yeezy’s fingerprints all over it. It’s an interesting juxtaposition when you introduce Abel’s prototypical after hours croon to the College Dropout formula, but when the pre-chorus drops, the instrumental starts to sound familiar.
Where have we heard this before?
As it turns out, Kanye West didn’t have to dig too deep in his crates to find the sample for “Tell Your Friends,” because he’d already used it before—over 15 years ago. Before that, No I.D. flipped it, and since, it’s been reworked by the likes of Madlib, Just Blaze, and many more.
Let’s back up a bit, and look at the song that inspired “Tell Your Friends,” along with countless others: “Can’t Stop Loving You” by Soul Dog.
Soul Dog was the brainchild of Carl Marshall, a funk guitarist born in Independence, LA and active from the mid-’60s to the late-’70s New Orleans scene. After handling axe duties for a group called Sam & the Soul Machine for over 7 years, Carl branched out on his own with Soul Dog, releasing the debut LP, Movin’ On, in 1976. Marshall would follow it up in 1980 with an album under the moniker Carl Marshall & The SDs, but his musical legacy wouldn’t be solidified until years later, when some of the greatest hip-hop producers of our generation discovered the tranquil Nawlins soul vibes of “Can’t Stop Loving You.”
Thanks to our crate digging friends at WhoSampled, we’re able to take a look back at some of the songs that have borrowed bars from Soul Dog’s “Can’t Stop Loving You.”
Common “Hungry” (1997)
Producer: No I.D.
Common teamed up with day one collaborator No I.D. on this gritty cut from his third LP, One Day It’ll All Make Sense. Common spits two and a half minutes of uninterrupted bars on top of this Soul Dogs sample, which sees No I.D. grab a couple ring outs and stabs from the intro, and speed them up under a subtle breakbeat. Whether he knew it or not at the time, No I.D. was the first to flip a record that would influence many of his contemporaries.
The Madd Rapper “Not The One” (2000)
Producer: Kanye West
Fifteen years before Kanye sampled “Can’t Stop Loving You” on The Weeknd's “Tell Your Friends,” he chopped a section of it for a song featured on the debut album by The Madd Rapper. The Madd Rapper happens to be the alias of Bad Boy Records in-house producer D-Dot, who twisted the knobs on many legendary releases, including "Hypnotize" and "It's All About The Benjamins." Not The One” is one of the earliest placements Kanye earned, and he owes much of this early success to the source material by Carl Marshall. Funny enough, this flip doesn’t seem all too different from the one Kanye gifted Abel with. Could it be that ‘Ye fired up his old MPC 15 years later, and found these Soul Dog samples lying around?
Reflection Eternal “Move Somethin’” (2000)
Producer: Hi-Tek
The union of Cincinnati-born producer Hi-Tek and Brooklynite Talib Kweli resulted in Train Of Thought, the debut LP from a collaborative project they dubbed Reflection Eternal. Already accustomed through their work together on the Black Star record, Train Of Thought built on the conscious-meets-classic niche they’d received acclaim for creating. “Move Somethin” is one of the most aggressive reinterpretations of the Soul Dog sample, using its staccato brass stabs as the bones to an energetic instrumental.
Declaime “The Movement” f/ Lootpack (2001)
Producer: Madlib
Declaime, a.k.a. Dudley Perkins, is a Stones Throw Records staple, with a rich history of collaborating with legendary underground hip-hop beatsmith Madlib. Fired-up Soul Dog-sampling cut “The Movement” is a precursor to A Lil' Light, a Stones Throw release by Perkins entirely produced by Madlib. "The Movement" is a perfect example of how Madlib can breathe new life into a song that’s nearly been sampled to death.
GZA “Intromental” (2008)
Producer: Dreddy Kruger
Even GZA the Genius couldn't’ resist the smooth tones of Soul Dog—Wu-Tang affiliate Dreddy Krueger chopped the sample for the intro of his 2008 solo effort Pro Tools. The sample plays virtually unedited, and without any lyrical support, letting “Can’t Stop Loving You” exist as initially intended, from one genius to another.
O.C. & A.G. “Alpha Males” (2009)
Producer:Davel "Bo" McKenzie & Lord Finesse
The pedigree of this sample continued to elevate well into the late-oughts, given that O.C. and A.G.—core members of New York’s Diggin’ In The Crates crew—snapped it up for a track. D.I.T.C. producers Davel "Bo" McKenzie and Lord Finesse speed up the original, adding a psychedelic organ lead and a boom-bap beat for a slice of timeless New York hip-hop.
The Game “Undefeated” f/ Busta Rhymes & Marsha Ambrosious (2009)
Producer: Just Blaze
This mixtape cut from The Game’s vast discography sees Soul Dog get the Just Blaze treatment. No one is more adept than Just Blaze at marrying a choppy sample with a monster drum loop, and “Undefeated” belongs in the Criterion Collection of neo-classic hip-hop instrumentals. A vocal hook from English singer-songwriter Marsha Ambrosius brings it all together, making it sound like Carl Marshall’s “Can’t Stop Loving You” was destined for this arrangement.
Has-Lo & Castle “Famished” (2014)
Producer: Castle
Criminally underlooked hip-hop duo Has-Lo & Castle took on the sample on their 2014 LP Live Like You're Dead, and the track’s producer Castle seems to be the only one who thought to pitch the sample down, making this version much heavier than any other interpretation.
The Weeknd “Tell Your Friends” (2015)
Producer: Kanye West, Che Pope, and Carlos Garcia
Nearly 40 years after it was initially recorded, and 18 years after it was first sampled by No I.D., The Weeknd’s “Tell Your Friends” has given Soul Dog’s “Can’t Stop Loving You” a mainstream look in 2015. Kanye West plunged into his back catalogue, and re-flipped one of the first sample sources he ever blessed with the Midas touch. So, when “Tell Your Friends” comes on at the club, and that feeling of musical déjà vu starts to creep in, you’ll know that it’s because years ago, Soul Dog caught the ears of Kanye West, Madlib, Just Blaze, and No I.D.—and that’s why The Weeknd’s new single is catching your ear in 2015.