R.I.P. David Axelrod
David Axelrod, the composer and producer who’s been sampled in about a million hip-hop songs, has died, Billboard reports. He was 83.
Born in Los Angeles in 1933, Axelrod produced his first album in 1959, and four years later, he was hired as an A&R man and in-house producer for Capitol Records. He went to produce albums for artists like Cannonball Adderley, the Electric Prunes, and Lou Rawls, in addition to releasing several solo albums.
His work, which combined jazz, rock, and R&B while utilizing heavy beats and baroque orchestration, was rediscovered and embraced by the world of hip-hop in the ’90s. His compositions have been sampled by DJ Shadow, Wu-Tang Clan, De La Soul, Lil Wayne, DJ Premier, Cypress Hill, Madlib, and more, and the main sample in Dr. Dre’s iconic 2000 hit “The Next Episode” comes from David McCallum’s Axelrod-produced track “The Edge.”
Listen to some of his work and read some tributes from the music community below.
Producer and composer extraordinaire David Axelrod has passed. Listening to "Songs Of Experience" on repeat for the remainder of the day.
— DJ Shadow (@djshadow) February 6, 2017
I'll never forget meeting him for the first time in 1998. We asked him to do a remix for "Rabbit In Your Headlights" off the Unkle album.
— DJ Shadow (@djshadow) February 6, 2017
David could be incredibly intimidating, & he did not suffer fools…but if he liked & respected you, he was the most loyal friend on earth.
— DJ Shadow (@djshadow) February 6, 2017
So honored to have known you David, you are a bonafide hero to an entire generation of hip-hop kids and musical dreamers. Miss you Axe!!!
— DJ Shadow (@djshadow) February 6, 2017