DJ Sigma presents 79: A mix of Hip-Hop tracks released in 1979

In the sea of mixes out there, rarely (besides The History of Hip Hop by year mixes done very well by The Rub) do we get a mix that is specifically a look at a particular time or year. This year in particular, 1979 was a turning point in music. There was no Hip Hop genre as we know it today. There were people like Kool Herc, Grand Master Flash, Africa Bambaata, and Grand Wizard Theodore who were busy inventing the genre from the mid 70’s through their back spinning, cutting and mixing of multi-genre records, extending the drum break and eventually scratching these same records (in an earliest form of what we know as scratching). “Hip hop was set out in the dark, They used to do it out in the park” as MC Shan much later noted on “The Bridge”, was where these updated versions of Sound Clashes and Sound Systems took place, where B-Boys started break dancing and the block party was where everyone got their groove on. The MC later became the rapper, and well, in a nut shell, that was the condensed version of how Hip Hop was born. What I have today is a mix that you don’t get every day. It’s a perfect blend of Hip Hop records from 32 years ago. That, for all you people who think that Weezy is a grandfather of this Hip Hop game or Wocka Flocka is Old School, DJ Sigma is about to take you back to class. If you don’t know who Spoonie G is (please say you do) or you think that the Funky Four Plus One More is a wrestling team, let Sigma educate you a bit. Another great mix that educates as well as entertains. Here’s a bit about Sigma:

“Sigma is a hip-hop DJ from central England. He began collecting records in 1979 and got into hip-hop and electro through the Street Sounds Electro compilations. After honing his baby scratching skills on his parents’ Amstrad home hi-fi and being a member of one or two rap groups that were legends in their own minds, he abandoned his dreams of becoming the next Jam Master Jay to focus on mixing and scratching. Influenced by early multitracked mixtapes by DJs such as Babu and Qbert, Sigma’s mixes are aimed at listeners that can appreciate the technical side of DJing as well as those that just want to hear some banging tunes.”

Sigma: 79 Track List

01 – Imhotep Gary Byrd – 79 Intro
02 – Family – Family Rap
03 – Spoonie Gee – Spoonin Rap
04 – Scoopy – Scoopy Rap
05 – The Sequence – Funk You Up
06 – Troy Rainey – Tricky Tee Rap
07 – Dr. Love & Sister Love – Doctor Love & Sister Love Rap
08 – Paulett & Tanya Winley – Rhymin’ & Rappin’
09 – Willie Wood & Willie Wood Crew – Willie Rap
10 – David Lampell – I Ran Iran
11 – Steve Gordon & The Kosher Five – Take My Rap… Please
12 – The Younger Generation – We Rap More Mellow
13 – Sugarhill Gang – Rapper’s Delight
14 – Xanadu & Sweet Lady – Rappers Delight
15 – Sicle Cell & Rhapazooty – Rhapazooty In Blue
16 – Kurtis Blow – Christmas Rappin’
17 – Funky Four Plus One More – Rappin & Rocking The House
18 – P.J. LaBoy – Baya Latinos
19 – Funky Constellation – Street Talk (Madam Rapper)
20 – T.J. Swan – And You Know That
21 – Lady B – To The Beat Y’all
22 – Dr. Superman & Lady Sweet – Can You Do It (Superman)
23 – Lady D – Lady D
24 – M.C. Tee – Nu-Sounds
25 – Ron Hunt – Spiderap
26 – Ronnie G. & The S.M. Crew – A Corona Jam
27 – Grandmaster Flash & The Furious Five – Superappin’
28 – First Class – Rappin It Up
29 – Jocko – Rhythm Talk
30 – Mr. Q. – D.J. Style
31 – Wackie’s Disco Rock Band – Wack Rap
32 – Joe Bataan – Rap-O Clap-O
33 – Fatback – King Tim III (Personality Jock)
34 – Neil “B” – Body Rock
35 – Bramsam – Move Your Body
36 – Eddie Cheba – Lookin’ Good (Shake Your Body)
37 – Uno – Boogie Beat
38 – Jazzy 4 MC’s – MC Rock
39 – Little Starsky – Gangster Rock
40 – Grandmaster Flash – 79 Outro
41 – Sigma – Dedication