Bob James - One

Jazz keyboardist Bob James' debut solo LP, "One", was released in April 1974. It reached #2 on the Billboard Top Jazz Albums chart and even crossed over to the US pop chart, where it peaked at #85. CTI released three singles from the album - James' take on Russian composer Modest Mussorgsky's 'Night On Bald Mountain', his version of Johann Pachelbel's 'In The Garden' and a cover of Eugene McDaniels' 'Feel Like Making Love' - the latter was the only chart entry, peaking at #88 on the Billboard Hot 100. Although he went on to enjoy success with subsequent albums, "One" had an enduring appeal. The advent of hip-hop saw producers and artists like Public Enemy and A Tribe Called Quest sample and incorporate James' composition 'Nautilus' into their own songs. It is now one of the most sampled tracks in American music history.

Bob James's debut as a bandleader, recorded in early 1974 and produced by Creed Taylor, who had been deliberately building a bridge between jazz sophistication and r&b groove across the entire CTI roster. With session players Steve Gadd and Idris Muhammad on drums, Grover Washington Jr on soprano saxophone, Ralph MacDonald on percussion, Thad Jones and company on horns, and James's own Fender Rhodes at the centre, it's an atmospheric jazz record grabbing from fourth world elements and cosmic funk. From Slick Rick to Run-DMC to Ghostface Killah, virtually every loopable section of its five minutes found its way into the hip-hop canon across the following two decades.