Jungle Brothers
Jungle Brothers is an American hip hop trio composed of Michael Small (Mike Gee), Nathaniel Hall (Afrika Baby Bam), and Sammy Burwell (DJ Sammy B). Known as the pioneers of the fusion of jazz, hip-hop, and house music, they were the first hip-hop group to collaborate with a house-music producer. The trio released their debut album, Straight out the Jungle in July 1988. Their hip-house club hit single, "I'll House You" was added to the album in late-1988 reissues. Fostered by Kool DJ Red Alert, the Jungle Brothers success would pave the way for De La Soul, A Tribe Called Quest, and eventually the Native Tongues collective that they founded.
Jungle Brothers | |
|---|---|
 The Jungle Brothers visiting Hamburg, Germany in March 1999. | |
| Background information | |
| Origin | New York City, U.S. |
| Genres | Hip hop, electronic, hip house |
| Years active | 1987–present |
| Labels | Warlock Records Warner Bros. Records Gee Street/V2 Jungle Brother Records |
| Associated acts | Native Tongues |
| Website | http://www.junglebrothers4life.com |
| Members | Mike Gee Sammy B Afrika Baby Bam |
History
The group’s first album, Straight out the Jungle, was released on Warlock Records, an independent record label.[1] Soon after they were signed by Warner Bros. Records, with whom the group released Done By the Forces of Nature in November 1989.[1] In 1990, the Jungle Brothers contributed the song "I Get a Kick" to the Cole Porter tribute album "Red Hot + Blue" produced by the Red Hot Organization. Following a four-year break, the Jungle Brothers returned in 1993 with J Beez Wit the Remedy.
Jungle Brothers involved themselves with an emerging hip hop organization called Ill Crew Universal (ICU), which released worldwide compilation albums and supported independent hip hop artists.[2][3] Their fifth album, V.I.P. was produced by Alex Gifford of Propellerheads and, during production, they added their vocal stylings to the Propellerheads tracks "Take California (And Party)" and "You Want It Back". Their latest album to contain new releases is 2002's All That We Do.
In 2001, the group's song "What's the Five 0" was featured in the music video game FreQuency.
In 2004, the Jungle Brothers joined with British producer Mr On to produce "Breathe (Don't Stop)", a version of "Breathe and Stop" by Q-Tip of A Tribe Called Quest, combined with a sample of Michael Jackson's "Don't Stop 'Til You Get Enough" (the idea was taken from a bootleg remix combining vocals from "Breathe and Stop" and music from "Don't Stop 'Til You Get Enough").
In 2005, the Jungle Brothers released a greatest hits and classic remixes and rarities double album, This Is..., which included remixes by The Wiseguys, Urban Takeover, Natural Born Chillers, and Stereo MCs.
Discography
Albums
- 1988: Straight out the Jungle
- 1989: Done by the Forces of Nature
- 1993: J Beez wit the Remedy
- 1997: Raw Deluxe
- 2000: V.I.P.
- 2002: All That We Do
- 2003: You in My Hut Now
- 2006: I Got You
- 2020: Keep It Jungle
Compilations
- 2005: This Is... (greatest hits)
Singles
| Year | Single | Peak chart positions | Album | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| US Dance [4] |
US R&B [5] |
AUS [6] |
NZ [7] |
NED [8] |
GER [10] |
SWE [11] |
IRE | UK [12] | ||||
| 1987 | "Jimbrowski" (US only) | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | Straight Out the Jungle |
| 1988 | "Because I Got It Like That" | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 98 | |
| "On the Run" (US only) | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| "I'll House You" | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 22 | ||
| 1989 | "Black Is Black" | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 72 | |
| "Straight Out the Jungle" (US only) | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | |||
| "Beyond This World" (US/AUS only) | — | — | — | 42 | — | — | — | — | — | — | Done by the Forces of Nature | |
| 1990 | "What 'U' Waitin' '4'?" | 13 | — | — | — | 7 | 14 | — | — | — | 35 | |
| "Doin' Our Own Dang" | — | — | — | — | 40 | — | — | — | — | 33 | ||
| 1993 | "40 Below Trooper" | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | J. Beez wit the Remedy |
| "On the Road Again (My Jimmy Weighs a Ton)" (US only) | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1996 | "How Ya Want It (We Go It)" (US only) | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | Raw Deluxe |
| 1997 | "Brain" | — | 76 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 52 | |
| "Jungle Brother" | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 56 | ||
| 1998 | "Jungle Brother '98" | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 18 | Non-album singles |
| "I'll House You '98" | — | — | — | — | 84 | — | — | — | — | 26 | ||
| "Because I Got It Like That '98" | — | — | — | — | 68 | — | — | — | — | 32 | ||
| 1999 | "V.I.P." | — | — | — | — | — | — | 85 | 40 | — | 28 | V.I.P. |
| "Get Down" | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 52 | ||
| 2000 | "Freakin' You" | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 70 | |
| 2002 | "You in My Hut Now" (GER only) | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | You in My Hut Now / All That We Do |
| "Do Your Thing" (GER only) | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2004 | "Breathe Don't Stop" (as Mr. On vs. Jungle Brothers) | — | — | 33 | 30 | 56 | — | — | — | 26 | 21 | Non-album single |
| 2005 | "Beats on a String" (as Ali B vs. Jungle Brothers) (UK only) | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | I Got U |
| "—" denotes releases that did not chart or were not released. | ||||||||||||
References
- Strong, Martin C. (2000). The Great Rock Discography (5th ed.). Edinburgh: Mojo Books. p. 523. ISBN 1-84195-017-3.
- "April '98 Hip Hop News". Daveyd.com. Retrieved 7 August 2018.
- "Ill Crew Universal Returns - The Worlds Greatest HipHop Organization is Back and Ready to Take the HipHop Entertainment Industry by Storm". Prweb.com. Retrieved 7 August 2018.
- "Jungle Brothers - US Dance Club". Billboard.com. Retrieved 15 September 2014.
- "Jungle Brothers - US R&B/Hip-Hop Songs". Billboard.com. Retrieved 15 September 2014.
- "Jungle Brothers - Australian chart". Australian-charts.com. Archived from the original on 15 September 2014. Retrieved 15 September 2014.
- "Jungle Brothers - New Zealand Chart". charts.nz. Retrieved 15 September 2014.
- "Jungle Brothers - Dutch chart". top40.nl. 15 September 2014.
- "Jungle Brothers - Belgian Chart". Ultratop.be. Retrieved 15 September 2014.
- "Jungle Brothers - German Chart". Charts.de. Retrieved 15 September 2014.
- "Jungle Brothers - Swedish chart". Swedishcharts.com. Retrieved 15 September 2014.
- "Jungle Brothers - UK Chart". The Official Charts Company. Retrieved 15 September 2014.
