(and – is LL Cool J a philosopher?)

---

From The Beatles to Cypress Hill

Before getting into why simple is hard, we gotta discuss the Taxman. In Britain in 1966, the top marginal tax rate was 95% – which explains why George Harrison was a wee bit angry when he wrote ’Taxman’ – the opening track on Revolver.  Four years later and across the ocean, Taxman got a wholly different treatment – this time by the Delta blues legend, Junior Parker. Slowed down, soulful, and funky as hell, Junior sounds more resigned than angry – and unbelievably cool. So cool, in fact, that his version would later become the backbone of some West Coast hip hop gold – when Cypress Hill sampled it for their 1993 hit “I Wanna Get High.”

Which brings us to DJ Muggs. His production on ‘I Wanna Get High’ is a masterclass in simplicity. The beat is a one-bar sample from Junior Parker’s Taxman, combined with a vocal hook from Rita Marley. THAT’S IT. (OK, there’s a little decoration, but you get the point.) It’s beautifully simple – in the kind of way that makes me say (oozing with envy,) “I could’ve done that.” But the thing is, I didn’t. So…why didn’t I?  

---

Because simple is not easy to do. Simple is easy to grasp.

The job of the creator is to bridge these two experiences.

---

The Breakdown

Let’s see how it’s done:

You Gotta Trust

So why is simple hard to do? When asked about it on his radio show, LL Cool J put it like this: “Simple is the hardest thing to do because you gotta trust.” I’d never heard it put like that before.  It takes confidence to trust the simple elements you’ve laid down. I’ve experienced the opposite in my own creative process – overcomplicating a track in fear that it sounds too simple. But complexity isn’t what connects with the listener. It can, in fact, be a barrier to communication.

The list of “simple” hits is endless. Bill Withers’ ‘Lean On Me’ has a melody that could live in a beginner piano book. Ben E. King’s ‘Stand By Me’ can be played with the first four chords you’re ever taught on the guitar. What about ‘Louie Louie’ by Richard Berry and ‘You Really Got Me’ from The Kinks? They sound simple enough…but try to create something similarly iconic, and you start to see that achieving simplicity is deceptively difficult.

In his famous line about what makes a great country song, Howard Harlan gave us “Three chords and the truth.” Well, DJ Muggs might have found the hip hop equivalent: “Three sounds and a loop?” That’s all he needed.

Now, obviously, we’re not accounting for the intangible things like groove, feel, vibe, and all the mysterious alchemy that can occur when artists and producers get down to work. Breaking songs down into their component parts of melody, harmony, rhythm, lyrics, etc does risk becoming overly (ummm…) simplistic. However, these breakdowns do reveal the underlying truth that simple can be deceivingly hard to do. But when it’s done right, damn, is it beautiful.

If you’ve got something to say, don’t be afraid to say it simply. It’s a sign of clear thinking. It’s a sign of trust.

If you have other areas or artistic pursuits where you think this idea applies, please let me know. I’d love to hear from you.