If there’s one thing every junglist knows, it’s this: no breakbeats, no Jungle. Simple as that. The genre’s wild, rolling, unpredictable energy comes straight from the art of sampling — and resampling — dusty funk and soul records from the ’60s and ’70s. These weren’t just drums. They were moments, ripped from vinyl, chopped to bits, stretched, pitched, and rearranged into something entirely new.
Producers in the early ’90s would dig deep into crates, searching for those golden drum breaks. Once found, they’d be fed into samplers — often chunky, hardware boxes with limited memory but massive character. The Akai S950 was a go-to for many, known for its gritty, textured output that gave beats an undeniable edge. It wasn’t just about recreating a rhythm — it was about reimagining it.
Fast forward to now, and while most of us aren’t wrestling with rack-mounted gear anymore, the spirit lives on. Plug-ins like the Amigo Sampler by PotenzaDSP are keeping that aesthetic alive, allowing producers to mimic the warbled stretch and dirt of old-school hardware without needing a second mortgage.
Before everything went digital, Propellerhead’s ReCycle was the software of choice. It let producers take full control of break manipulation — slicing drum loops into usable chunks and sending them off to Reason, or exporting to .REX files for mash-up mayhem. If you were messing with beats in the early 2000s, ReCycle was a rite of passage.
But let’s not get too buried in production talk — because the real question is: what were the breaks that built the Jungle?
The Winstons – “Amen, Brother”
Ah, the Amen break. The godfather of all breakbeats. A six-second drum solo that somehow became the backbone of thousands of tracks across Jungle, hip-hop, hardcore, and beyond. The original track — a B-side, no less — was never supposed to be this monumental. But it changed everything. Tragically, neither drummer Gregory Coleman, who performed the break, nor bandleader Richard Spencer ever saw a penny in royalties. It wasn’t until 2015 — thanks to a GoFundMe by two British DJs — that Spencer received a £24,000 donation. Better than nothing, sure. But considering how widely the break’s been used, it’s a drop in the ocean.
Lyn Collins – “Think (About It)”
Coming in hot at number two: the Think break. Taken from Lyn Collins’ James Brown-produced funk bomb, this one had been sampled long before Jungle came knocking. Rob Base & DJ EZ Rock used it in It Takes Two, and it only gained steam from there. That high-pitched “Yeah! Woo!” — originally shouted by Bobby Byrd and James Brown — became an unmistakable stamp in countless rave records. Even now, if you hear that chipmunk vocal slicing through the mix, you know what time it is.
James Brown – “Funky Drummer”
This break lives in both hip-hop and Jungle lore. Played by the legendary Clyde Stubblefield, it’s funky, loose, and impossibly tight all at once. Ironically, James Brown compiled it on an album called In The Jungle Groove, not knowing how prophetic that title would be. Brown once said sampling felt like having pieces ripped from his favourite coat. But without that coat, a whole universe of music might never have existed.
These breaks — and others like them — are woven into Jungle’s DNA. Even today, you’ll catch them recontextualised in everything from drum & bass to Jersey club, garage, grime, footwork… the list goes on. Their impact is borderless and timeless.
And let’s be real — sampled breaks aren’t going anywhere. Whether it’s dusty vinyl, floppy disks, or high-res digital packs, the breakbeat will always be a rite of passage for producers chasing that raw, unpredictable swing. Jungle was built on that hunt. And the legacy continues, one chopped loop at a time.
Because at the end of the day, the breakbeat is the beat.
Written by Saul Mountford
https://solomansarchive.com/
https://www.instagram.com/solomansarchive/
Producers in the early ’90s would dig deep into crates, searching for those golden drum breaks. Once found, they’d be fed into samplers — often chunky, hardware boxes with limited memory but massive character. The Akai S950 was a go-to for many, known for its gritty, textured output that gave beats an undeniable edge. It wasn’t just about recreating a rhythm — it was about reimagining it.
Fast forward to now, and while most of us aren’t wrestling with rack-mounted gear anymore, the spirit lives on. Plug-ins like the Amigo Sampler by PotenzaDSP are keeping that aesthetic alive, allowing producers to mimic the warbled stretch and dirt of old-school hardware without needing a second mortgage.
Before everything went digital, Propellerhead’s ReCycle was the software of choice. It let producers take full control of break manipulation — slicing drum loops into usable chunks and sending them off to Reason, or exporting to .REX files for mash-up mayhem. If you were messing with beats in the early 2000s, ReCycle was a rite of passage.
But let’s not get too buried in production talk — because the real question is: what were the breaks that built the Jungle?
The Winstons – “Amen, Brother”
Ah, the Amen break. The godfather of all breakbeats. A six-second drum solo that somehow became the backbone of thousands of tracks across Jungle, hip-hop, hardcore, and beyond. The original track — a B-side, no less — was never supposed to be this monumental. But it changed everything. Tragically, neither drummer Gregory Coleman, who performed the break, nor bandleader Richard Spencer ever saw a penny in royalties. It wasn’t until 2015 — thanks to a GoFundMe by two British DJs — that Spencer received a £24,000 donation. Better than nothing, sure. But considering how widely the break’s been used, it’s a drop in the ocean.
Lyn Collins – “Think (About It)”
Coming in hot at number two: the Think break. Taken from Lyn Collins’ James Brown-produced funk bomb, this one had been sampled long before Jungle came knocking. Rob Base & DJ EZ Rock used it in It Takes Two, and it only gained steam from there. That high-pitched “Yeah! Woo!” — originally shouted by Bobby Byrd and James Brown — became an unmistakable stamp in countless rave records. Even now, if you hear that chipmunk vocal slicing through the mix, you know what time it is.
James Brown – “Funky Drummer”
This break lives in both hip-hop and Jungle lore. Played by the legendary Clyde Stubblefield, it’s funky, loose, and impossibly tight all at once. Ironically, James Brown compiled it on an album called In The Jungle Groove, not knowing how prophetic that title would be. Brown once said sampling felt like having pieces ripped from his favourite coat. But without that coat, a whole universe of music might never have existed.
These breaks — and others like them — are woven into Jungle’s DNA. Even today, you’ll catch them recontextualised in everything from drum & bass to Jersey club, garage, grime, footwork… the list goes on. Their impact is borderless and timeless.
And let’s be real — sampled breaks aren’t going anywhere. Whether it’s dusty vinyl, floppy disks, or high-res digital packs, the breakbeat will always be a rite of passage for producers chasing that raw, unpredictable swing. Jungle was built on that hunt. And the legacy continues, one chopped loop at a time.
Because at the end of the day, the breakbeat is the beat.
Written by Saul Mountford
https://solomansarchive.com/
https://www.instagram.com/solomansarchive/
