John Robie

From HitStory, the pop encyclopedia of School of Rock · Artist

John Robie is an American keyboardist, producer and songwriter. His career began in the early 1980s in New York, when hip hop and club music there were seeking new forms. Robie was the man behind the synthesizers and had an experimental view of electronic music.

Music and breakthrough

In 1982 he co-wrote Planet Rock by Afrika Bambaataa & the Soulsonic Force, which he made together with producer Arthur Baker. Robie provided the synthesizers and was called a wizard on that instrument in the press. The song borrowed melodies and rhythms from the German group Kraftwerk and put a hard electronic beat beneath them. He then produced Looking for the Perfect Beat and Renegades of Funk for the same group; the latter was later covered by Rage Against the Machine. With songs such as One More Shot by C-Bank and Body Mechanic by Quadrant 6, which he wrote and produced, he helped shape a new genre: electro. Later he worked for artists such as Chaka Khan, New Order, UB40 and Boy George.

Influence

The New York Times wrote in 1984 that Robie and Baker had reinvented the dance record, with sharp synthesizer sounds, rattling electronic percussion and electronically distorted voices. Producer Rick Rubin called Planet Rock one of the most influential songs ever. Robie's electro became a building block for hip hop, house and techno, and his songs were later sampled by Snoop Dogg, LL Cool J and Calvin Harris, among others.

Listening

In School of Rock

The chapters, maps and magazine stories of School of Rock are currently available in Dutch only.

• Mixtape 8: Electronic Music^NL Reader

Mentioned in other articles

• Electro GenreIn 1982 he recorded Planet Rock with Arthur Baker and John Robie: the melody from Trans-Europe Express and a rhythm modelled on Kraftwerk's Numbers, programmed on the Roland TR-808.