Lost and Found and Sampled - 8 octubre 1971 by Cortex (1975)

Cortex sits in that weird niche category of rediscovered bands a bit too ahead of their time for the market when they came out—but found their moment decades later. Formed by pianist Alain Mion, they played a blend of jazz, funk, psychadelic, and something else (prog?)—something loose-limbed and low-lit that doesn’t quite fit any one genre. There might even be some Shuggie Otis (more Inspriration Information, less Strawberry Letter 23) or Hancock comparisons on this album, by way of dusty Paris basements.

Troupeau Bleu is their first and best-known record, and a cult classic in French jazz-funk circles.

More music every Monday! I like finding unusual French tracks.

huit octubre 1971 – Cortex (1975)

Since the 2000s, it’s been heavily sampled in hip-hop, especially the eerie, gorgeous track Huit Octobre 1971.

That’s where you’ll hear the voice of Mireille Dalbray, the group’s original vocalist, set the tone for the entire album. It’s my favorite track on a solid album, although the title track, Tropeau Bleu, shows up on more French compilations.

This might be defined as Prog now, but was tougher to classify back then, but it gets into jazz, some sounds like Weather Report, some sounds like deep Anatolian psychedelia. Dalbray’s vocals on this record are ghostly and weightless—part lullaby, part séance. Tragically, she died not long after its release, and the next few Cortex records were noticeably different without her.

Dalbray’s absence was immediately felt in Cortex’s next records, which, while still compelling, lacked the haunting vocal quality that Dalbray brought to their debut.

The track Sans Toi from their 1978 album Pourquoi serves is a tribute to her, it’s sticky synth riffs underscoring the profound impact she had on the band's sound and legacy.

Somebody’s gonna think this is cool too!

whole album Tropeau Bleu (1971)

Sampled, Looped and touring again

The album, Tropeau Bleu, barely made waves when it came out in 1975, but in the early 2000s, it was rediscovered by crate diggers and beatmakers. It sold about 7,000 copies when it came out and the limited re-release nearly 30 years later sold over 10,000.

Though Cortex only had a short original run, their music was rediscovered in the 2000s by crate diggers and producers. Artists like MF DOOM and Tyler, the Creator sampled them, reviving their legacy.

Troupeau Bleu has been a sample source for a lot of hip hops songs, including somewhat discordant uses of Mireille Dalbray’s voice on like MF Doom also sampled this huit Octubre 1971 on One Beer with Madlib, and that whole album is amazing.

In terms of samples, this album is getting to be almost as sampled as The Show by Doug E. Fresh, a track that redefined DJing entirely.

This obscure French record was echoing through a new generation of headphones.

One Beer MF Doom

And they’re not just a sample source. Cortex is performing again (they’re in Belgium next motnh). Alain Mion is still playing.

This strange little prog psychedelic trippy 70s jazz band now gets the love it should’ve had fifty years ago.

If you have any other discoveries or hidden gems, let me know!

Go on for some of the samples and tracks made from Cortex beats.

Odd Toddlers by Tyler, the Creator:

Here’s a breakdown of samples and sources in that song, which is the type of video I think I’d really enjoy making.