Synthetic Substitution

The record

Melvin Bliss, born Melvin McClelland, recorded “Synthetic Substitution” in 1973 after meeting songwriter Herb Rooney in Queensbridge, Queens, who wrote and produced both sides of the single. Sunburst Records issued it as catalog SU-527, with “Reward” as the A-side and “Synthetic Substitution” on the flip. Bliss later said the song was only ever meant to be a B-side. Sunburst was a sister company of Opal Productions, and when Opal went bankrupt in 1974 the label went down with it, ending Bliss' recording career.

The break

The drums were played by session musician Bernard Purdie. The song opens with a two-bar break, a crisp, heavy pattern with a loose swing in the hi-hat and a hard snare, before the band enters. Because the break comes at the top of the record with nothing else playing, producers could take it cleanly. Purdie was one of the busiest session drummers in New York, and the single's credits name him directly: “vocal by Melvin Bliss and drums by Bernard Purdie”. On the 45 the song runs 3:30, with the drums carrying the groove from start to finish beneath Bliss's vocal and the rest of the band.

Into hip hop

The first well-known use came in 1986, when Ultramagnetic MC's built “Ego Trippin'” on it, and the record later appeared on Ultimate Breaks and Beats. Ultramagnetic returned to it on “Watch Me Now”, and from there it spread quickly. Ice-T used it on “O.G. Original Gangster” and Naughty by Nature on “O.P.P.” and “Yoke the Joker”, all in 1991. Wu-Tang Clan put it under “Bring Da Ruckus” and “Clan in Da Front” on their 1993 debut, Enter the Wu-Tang (36 Chambers), Vanilla Ice used it on “Fame” in 1994, and Cypress Hill, Pusha T and Kanye West used it later. Its reach also extended to pop, with uses credited to Eminem, 50 Cent and Adam Levine.

Legacy

One early count documented at least 94 hip hop tracks built on “Synthetic Substitution”, and later tallies put the total at more than 800 songs, making it one of the most used breaks of the late 1980s and early 1990s. He died in 2010, and a documentary, Synthetic Substitution: The Life Story of Melvin Bliss, produced by Earl Holder, followed in 2011. Original Sunburst copies are sought-after collector's items.