While Stones Throw Records is responsible for some of the greatest hip-hop albums ever, to call it merely a hip-hop label is reductive. Peanut Butter Wolf started the imprint in 1996 to release records recorded with his friend, the late Charizma. The underground was soon abuzz about a string of releases that challenged perceptions of hip-hop and demonstrated how a scrappy indie could create lasting cultural impact. Explore these essential Stones Throw Records tracks.
Eclectic History
Peanut Butter Wolf’s tastes have always been varied. As a youngster, he was into everything from goth and punk to electro, funk, soul, and house. These sprawling musical interests have guided him to curate one of the most expansive catalogs in modern music.
Shortly after Stones Throw Records’ founding, Lootpack’s 1999 album Soundpieces: Da Antidote introduced the world to the crate-digging, sample-slicing production mastery of Madlib, the label’s unofficial in-house producer. A revolution of sound followed.
"With each catalog entry, Stones Throw Records confirmed its founder's ear for compelling left-of-center music."
In 2003, pioneering producer J Dilla teamed up with Madlib for Jaylib. 2004’s Madvilliany featuring the late MF Doom followed, and in 2006 came J Dilla’s swirling work of sample sorcery, Donuts. With each catalog entry, Stones Throw Records confirmed its founder’s ear for compelling left-of-center music.
Since then, the label has traversed the genre map. Artists like psychedelic funk outfit The Stepkids, genre-defying James Pants, Grammy-nominated singer-songwriter Aloe Blacc, and dusty soul crooner Mayer Hawthorne all found a home on Stones Throw. These eclectic sounds all blissfully align with Peanut Butter Wolf’s ethos of signing what moves him.
Playlist
Workinonit by J Dilla from Donuts
Dilla recorded Donuts during his last days at Cedars-Sinai Hospital in Los Angeles. Using a 45 rpm record player and a BOSS SP-303 sampler, Dilla manipulated samples from his vast record library into a classic of instrumental hip-hop. “Workinonit” is a testament to his creative skills. Masterfully blending samples from records spanning three decades, it moves from a menacing war cry to dark, shuffling soul. The manner in which J Dilla weaves samples and programs his drums is studied to this day. Yet, his was a singular genius.
I Need A Dollar by Aloe Blacc from Good Things
Many first heard this bluesy soul cut on the short-lived HBO show How to Make It in America. When Stones Throw released the 12” single, every copy contained one US dollar. It was the height of the recession, and Blacc’s inspiration for the song was the perilous financial and social times we all found ourselves in.
In 2013, he told The Telegraph that the catalyst for “I Need A Dollar” was being downsized at his job. “I was listening to field recordings of chain gangs,” the artist said. “And in my head, I was working on my own chain gang song. It’s someone down on their luck, a bare voice making a plea for help.”
Strange Ways by Madvillan from Madvilliany
The chemistry of the enigmatic artists Madlib and MF Doom was undeniable. Still, it’s interesting to note how divorced the duo was from the standard creative process while writing Madvilliany. MF Doom told Spin in 2008 that all the beats he wrote to already had a structure.
“I had to write a song around the existing chorus that was there and still have it feel like it made sense,” he said. “It was challenging to work with something that’s already in existence and bring out something in it that still sounds natural.” Throughout the track, Madlib’s twisted soul samples fit like a glove with MF Doom’s parable of the irony of the police state, religious wars, and the military-industrial complex.
Hood Pass Intact by Dam-Funk from Toeachizown
When Peanut Butter Wolf discovered the blistering G-Funk star Dam-Funk (whose noted fans and collaborators include Erykah Badu, Snoop Dogg, Hudson Mohawk, and Q-Tip) on MySpace, the Pasadena, California-born producer had five albums worth of music.
Rather than telling him to cull down the material, Stones Throw released it all as a limited edition box set. When people see a box set, they think, “I may not know this guy, but he must be important because he has a box set.” It worked, and the box sets sold out. Dam-Funk’s unabashed revival of the synth-heavy funk sound that defined West Coast hip-hop isn’t a throwback. “I’m not no old-school guy. I’m not old school or new school. I’m timeless,” he told The Guardian in 2015.
I Need You by Mayer Hawthorne
Mayer Hawthorne originally pitched his beats for hip-hop, but Peanut Butter Wolf insisted they’d fare better as a soul album. That silky croon came from an untrained vocalist yet sounded smooth and clean. “I Need You” came after Mayer met Busta Rhymes producer Notzz at a J Dilla tribute in LA.
When Mayer sifted through a bunch of beats Notzz sent him, the backing for “I Need You” stood out. It had a similar progression to an obscure 45 by Otis Leville. While the track is a cover, Mayer said he had to make up some of the words as he couldn’t pinpoint what was being said in the original.
Great Day (Four Tet Remix) by Madvillian from Four Tet Remixes
Is it fair to list Madvillian twice in the same list? No, but usually, the only person to remix Madlib records is Madlib, so this one has particular importance in the catalog. A year after Madvilliany’s initial release, Stones Throw passed the stems to the genre-spanning electronic producer at the behest of their European partners.
“Great Day” flips the sunny beats of the original for darker glitched-out guitars and a dusty boom-bap beat that doesn’t kick in until nearly the last minute. In a stroke of genius, when MF Doom heard the Four Tet remixes, he sampled an interlude from the album, looped it, and recorded new lyrics for “Rhinestone Cowboy.”
Whenimondamic by Lootpack from Soundpieces: Da Antidote
A backpacker classic and the album that put the underground on to Stones Throw, Lootpack’s pivotal 1999 release introduced the world to stuttering basslines of Madlib. While “Whenimondamic” is a clear standout with Wildchild’s iconic sing-a-long double chorus and battle-ready bars, the entire album is a slice of hip-hop heaven. Madlib’s alter-ego, Quasimoto, first appears here with two features. While DJ Rome, Wildchild, and Madlib had a career that spanned a decade, Soundpieces was their only full-length release.
Basic Instinct by Quasimoto from The Unseen
Leave it to Madlib to produce a banger with a distorted bassline, smooth, jazzy vibes, and that off-the-wall hitch-pitched drawl from Quasimoto. Lord Quas was never meant for the recording booth. Madlib created him solely to rap on his early beats while living in Oxnard, CA.
In another stroke of creative genius, Peanut Butter Wolf convinced him to emerge from the ether for a full album in 2000. The Unseen also provided the inspiration for the yellow-snouted alien that eventually would become the visual representation of Quasimoto. While he was initially supposed to remain unseen, fans couldn’t get enough of the character drawn by DJ Design.
We’re Through by James Pants from Welcome
James Pants’ blend of early ’80s beats, obscure samples, and Deborah Harry-esque vocals make it difficult to put him in a box. “We’re Through” is a mid-tempo high school breakup song with a distorted bassline and sweaty swinging funk.
And while there is a tie that binds his freeform style, no two tracks are even remotely alike for James Pants. He regularly moves from frantic garage rock to ambient electronic to rubber duck bassline-driven funk. Pants was so determined to get signed to Stones Throw that he ditched his high school prom to meet Peanut Butter Wolf at a show in Austin, Texas.
Get Started ft. Talib Kweli by Strong Arm Steady from In Search of Stoney Jackson
Strong Arm Steady is a little-known California hip-hop crew steeped in West Coast history. Initially led by Xzibit, Mitchy Slick, Phil Da Agony, and Krondon came up in post-Death Row Records era LA slangin’ mixtapes. After X left the group, their decidedly East Coast vibe caught the ear of Talib Kweli, who signed the crew to his Blacksmith Records imprint. Their outing with Stones Throw features some of Madlib’s rawest beats and features Planet Asia and Talib Kweli. The latter comes out swinging “Get Started,” followed by solid lyrical trickery from Phil and Krondon.
