Sampling was a happier and easier technique back in the 80s. Copyright laws weren’t as stringent and while that may not excuse musicians taking without asking permission, it wasn’t as much of a money-making exercises as it was appreciation and making good music.
Fatboy Slim (real name Norman Cook) was one of many to sample whilst a member of Beats International and he spoke about his opinions on sampling in a 1989 interview for VOX POP. He likened the technique to quoting from an author and said it was fine as long as credit was given but drew a line at “stealing an idea”. His example of changing one note from a bassline sounded a lot like a certain sample we featured on Throwback Thursday a few months ago. Interesting…
Stream it above and watch the full interview on VOX POP’s YouTube channel.