This Is A Journey Into Sound…

...are possibly the most instantly recognisable words ever lifted from a piece of vinyl, familiar to generations of music fans.

They’ve been used in tracks by Eric B. & Rakim, Coldcut, Bomb the Bass, Public Enemy, Anthrax, Handsome Boy Modeling School, Digital Underground, Nas, Gotye, Jauz, Marshmello, Luke Vibert, Amen Andrews, Wagon Christ, J-Live, DJ Attack, Too Strong, Techmaster P.E.B., The Original Unknown DJs, The Architect, Dominator, S.R.B. and Sagopa Kajmer.

Spoken by British comic actor Geoffrey Sumner, they travelled around the world on a record called A Journey Into Stereo Sound, released by the Decca Record Company Ltd (UK) in late 1958.

The LP was designed and marketed as an introduction to the then brand new phenomenon of stereo vinyl recordings, because while stereo audio technology had been kicking around since the 1930s, it was experimental and/or high-end, very expensive and not commercially viable as a consumer product.

Mono turntables ruled the world and A Journey Into Stereo Sound was Decca’s gambit to change the landscape.

But Journey was not the first mass produced stereo LP. That honour belongs to the 1957 Compatible Stereophonic Demonstration Record, put out by Audio Fidelity (USA).

This ground-breaking LP was released to the public in a brash theatrical move, when Sidney Frey — Audio Fidelity’s owner — handed 500 copies out for free at press and dealer showcase at Times Auditorium in December 1957.

He did so against the wishes of the company who’d developed the technology — Westrex — who he’d charmed into cutting it. Obviously sensing Frey was up to something, they only cut fragments of his tracks and samples, assuming he wouldn’t release such a hatchet job to the public.

But Frey didn’t care, he had enough stereo sound to blow people’s minds and blow them he did, right under the noses of goliath record labels RCA and Columbia.

These two mega-corps dominated the then record market by respectively having developed 45 rpm and 33⅓ rpm standards and they were planning a polished roll out of stereo LPs, with inventory and catalogue and all the bells and whistles…once the Recording Industry Association of America [RIAA] had decided on which stereo format they would endorse as industry standard.

Frey’s act — and the subsequent public fanfare — forced RIAA to adopt Westrex’s 45/45 format, and he then released a barrage of sound effects albums, jazz, classical, and novelty recordings.

While RCA and Columbia played catch up, and Frey positioned Audio Fidelity as a high-end innovator for audiophiles and stereo enthusiasts, Decca UK smelled an opportunity and — borrowing liberally from the essence of Frey’s sampler — produced A Journey Into Stereo Sound (SKLA 4001), Decca (UK) 1958.

This album was aimed squarely at the mass market and was produced accordingly, with high-end production values, popular contemporary and classical music and a few instantly recognisable field recordings: a train, a racing car and the Tower of London’s Ceremony of the Keys.

It was held together by Geoffrey Sumner’s narration, whose plummy voice had become familiar to British audiences through his portrayals of pipe-smoking, bumbling authority figures on film and TV.

The record hit the spot, with over 50 versions released in almost every territory then pressing vinyl — including Venezuela and Peru — and was almost continually in production from 1958 all the way up to 1971.

From there it receded into obscurity, buried in the record collections of an aging generation and only once or twice re-issued as a novelty or curiosity.

Fast forward 30 years to 1988 and Hip Hop is already 15 years old.

Invented at a block party in the Bronx in 1973 when DJ Kool Herc used two turntables to extend the percussion breaks of funk records, Hip Hop rapidly spread the concept of sampling older recordings to new effect.

At first it was mostly breakbeats off vinyl with MCs rapping over the top, but the idea that you could cut up and manipulate samples took hold. The range of what you could do with records was limited however, so people began cutting and splicing reel-to-reel tape recordings to edit samples into whole new works.

New York’s Steinski and Double Dee were arguably at the forefront of this movement with their Lessons releases, which were hugely influential among producers and DJs. While groundbreaking, they were rather avant-garde and went mostly under the public’s radar.

Then came British producers Coldcut who, in 1987, dropped a track called Say Kids, What Time is It. Crucially, it wasn't done by splicing tape, but rather by using samplers and multitrack tape recorders and it was deliberately dancefloor oriented.

While it only had a limited release, Say Kids laid the ground work for sample-based dance music which — just a year later — exploded onto the global stage with M|A|R|R|S' Pump Up the Volume (August, ‘87), and COLDCUT's Seven Minutes of Madness remix of US Rappers Eric B & Rakim’s Paid In Full  (October ’87).

These two tracks infected dancefloors and imaginations around the world.

The mostly instrumental Pump up the Volume, with it’s slick video collage, lollypop baseline and retro sci-fi vibe was the pop-chart hit, but it was very straight, with a four to the floor beat and machine-like quality.

Seven Minutes of Madness was the certified club monster, with a well-fattened breakbeat carrying Erik B’s funk-infused bassline and Rakim’s smooth flow to a whole new level. The prominent use of a vocal from the track Im Nin' Alu, by Yemeni/Israeli singer Ofra Haza lent it a truly global vibe.

It blew up so hard in the UK that the NY rappers were flown to London to appear on the weekly British TV show Top of The Pops.

Only thing was, Eric B & Rakim didn’t even know of the remix’s existence until hearing it in the car on the way to record the show — they thought thery were going to do the original!

It seems that the A&R guy from 4th & Boadway (Erik B & Rakim’s US label) — without seeking permission from his bosses or the band — gave Coldcut the masters to do a remix to help break the US rappers into the UK club charts.

This it did, and you have to give maaad respect to Erik B & Rakim for going through with the show, only ever having heard the remix once, that same day.

Perhaps it was because of record label shennanigans like this that Top of The Pops producers insisted artists mime to pre-recorded tracks … just check out Eric B struggling on the decks …

In later interviews Rakim (MC) revealed that he loved Coldcut’s version, and some reports have him referring to it as the “greatest remix of all time”.

Erik B (DJ/Producer), wasn’t impressed, however, calling it “girly disco music’”. He felt that the remix dimished the seriousness of the original track and stated bluntly: “Sorry, But This Just Isn’t Music”.

Coldcut took his ‘compliment’ and ran with it, using the words as the tagline of their then label: Ahead of Our Time.

Eric B did later acknowledge the impact the track had both comercially and culturally, as well as the effect it had on lifting their profile internationally.

Coldcut only ever got paid £700 for their effort and never received a single cent in royalties. This is possibly why they bootlegged themselves on a 2002 release called Cold Cut Outs, re-releasing the remix under the not so subtle name: Not Paid Enough.

Ironically, it seems Erik B & Rakim were not only not paid in full, but not paid at all and — according to a 2003 article published on allhiphop.com, sued their label Def Jam on those grounds.

Where this all ties into Decca’s 1958 stereo sampler LP, is Geoffrey Sumner’s fruity introduction to Side A’s opening Train Sequence.

This is a journey into sound,

a journey which, along the way, will bring to you new colour

new dimension

new values

and

a new experienece …

These now immortal words feature prominently at the start of Coldcut’s Seven Minuted of Madness remix where, if you listen carefully, you can hear the sound of a train in the background over his first few words

While Coldcut were only paid £700, it did launch their career, so spare a thought for dear old Geoffrey Sumner who never saw a penny from Seven Minutes of Madness, or any of the tracks he was subsequently sampled on.

Passing away in 1989, he probably never even knew what impact his vocal had on the world of sample-based music. This legacy has been uncovered and documented widely by fans and trainspotters, but as far as I can make out, Geoffrey Sumner was never once formally credited by any of the artists on any of the tracks he was sampled on.

This essay is my small way of paying respect to Mr Sumner, because I, too, have sampled his voice without permission — cloning it using Eleven Labs’ large language model — so that he could read aloud the words describing my history of Sydney’s early ‘90s raves: CRAZE.

You can hear them in the video below.

Crazy Journey Into Sound

Video edit : DJ Matrix. Audio Collage : pH (author). Samples used listed below.

Stephan Győry

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Article References:

Classic Tracks: Coldcut ‘Paid In Full’ (Seven Minutes Of Madness)
https://www.soundonsound.com/techniques/classictracks-coldcut-paid-in-full

Coldcut Featuring Junior Reid And The Ahead Of Our Time Orchestra – Stop This Crazy Thing:
https://www.discogs.com/release/679928-Coldcut-Featuring-Junior-Reid-And-The-Ahead-Of-Our-Time-Orchestra-Stop-This-Crazy-Thing

Geoffrey Sumner Image Ref: The Move Database
https://www.themoviedb.org/person/39392-geoffrey-sumner