Us3
Us3 | |
|---|---|
| Origin | London, England |
| Years active | 1992–2025 |
| Labels | Blue Note Us3 |
| Past members | Geoff Wilkinson Mel Simpson (deceased) Rahsaan Kelly Kobie Powell Tukka Yoot KCB Shabaam Sahdeeq Michelob Alison Crockett Reggi Wyns Mpho Skeef Akil Dasan Gaston Adeline Brook Yung Sene Oveous Maximus Akala |
| Website | us3 |
Us3 is a British jazz rap group founded by London-based producer Geoff Wilkinson in 1992.
The name was inspired by Us Three, a Horace Parlan album produced in 1960 by Alfred Lion, the founder of Blue Note Records.[1] Us3's debut album, Hand on the Torch, used samples from Blue Note songs produced by Lion.
History
[edit | edit source]In the early 1990s, London-based producer Geoff Wilkinson produced two recordings under the name Us3. The first was 1990's "Where Will We Be in the 21st Century", a limited-edition white label 12" release. It drew the attention of independent label Ninja Tune, resulting in NW1's 1991 12-inch single "The Band Played The Boogie", featuring UK rapper Born 2 B.[2]
Wilkinson established Us3 with production partner Mel Simpson.[2] One of the resulting demos, recorded in March 1992, was "Cantaloop (Flip Fantasia)", featuring UK trumpeter Gerard Presencer.[2] It sampled Herbie Hancock's "Cantaloupe Island".[2] Us3 went on a hiatus in 2014, during which Wilkinson went on to specialise in producing film and library music.[3]
In 2025, Us3 returned with a new studio album titled Soundtrack that focused on instrumental works.
Discography
[edit | edit source]Albums
[edit | edit source]| Title | Year | Peak chart positions | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| UK [4] |
AUS [5] |
AUT [6] |
GER [7] |
NLD [8] |
NZ [9] |
SWI [10] |
US [11] |
US R&B/HH [12] | ||
| Hand on the Torch | 1993 | 40 | 51 | 11 | 29 | 81 | 28 | 21 | 31 | 21 |
| Broadway & 52nd | 1997 | 93 | 90 | 28 | 80 | 91 | 39 | 48 | — | 90 |
| An Ordinary Day in an Unusual Place | 2001 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Questions | 2004 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Schizophonic | 2006 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Say What!? | 2007 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Stop. Think. Run. | 2009 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Lie, Cheat & Steal | 2011 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| The Third Way | 2013 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Soundtrack | 2025 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
Singles
[edit | edit source]| Title | Year | Peak positions | Album | ||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| UK [4] |
AUS [13] |
AUT [6] |
BEL (FL) [13] |
GER [7] |
NLD [8] |
NZ [9] |
SWI [10] |
US [14] |
US R&B [15] | ||||
| "Cantaloop (Flip Fantasia)" | 1992 | 76 | 32 | 3 | 24 | 22 | 18 | 16 | 7 | 9 | 21 | Hand on the Torch | |
| "Tukka Yoot's Riddim" | 1993 | 34 | — | 24 | — | 97 | — | 28 | 26 | — | — | ||
| "Cantaloop (Flip Fantasia)" (UK reissue) | 23 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | |||
| "I Got It Goin' On" | 1994 | 52 | — | — | — | — | — | 39 | — | — | — | ||
| "Eleven Long Years" | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | |||
| "Come on Everybody (Get Down)" | 1997 | 38 | — | — | — | — | — | — | 49 | — | — | Broadway & 52nd | |
| "I'm Thinking About Your Body" | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | |||
| "You Can't Hold Me Down" | 2001 | 94 | — | — | — | — | 98 | — | — | — | — | An Ordinary Day in an Unusual Place | |
| "Get Out" | 2002 | 174 | — | — | — | — | 97 | — | — | — | — | ||
| "Say You Belong to Me" | 2007 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | Say What!? | |
| "—" denotes releases that did not chart or were not released. | |||||||||||||
References
[edit | edit source]- ^ Hand on the Torch booklet remark by Bruce Lundvall, President of Blue Note Records
- ^ a b c d Lua error in Module:Citation/CS1/Configuration at line 2172: attempt to index field '?' (a nil value).
- ^ Lua error in Module:Citation/CS1/Configuration at line 2172: attempt to index field '?' (a nil value).
- ^ a b Lua error in Module:Citation/CS1/Configuration at line 2172: attempt to index field '?' (a nil value).
- ^ Lua error in Module:Citation/CS1/Configuration at line 2172: attempt to index field '?' (a nil value).
- ^ a b Lua error in Module:Citation/CS1/Configuration at line 2172: attempt to index field '?' (a nil value).
- ^ a b Lua error in Module:Citation/CS1/Configuration at line 2172: attempt to index field '?' (a nil value).
- ^ a b Lua error in Module:Citation/CS1/Configuration at line 2172: attempt to index field '?' (a nil value).
- ^ a b Lua error in Module:Citation/CS1/Configuration at line 2172: attempt to index field '?' (a nil value).
- ^ a b Lua error in Module:Citation/CS1/Configuration at line 2172: attempt to index field '?' (a nil value).
- ^ Lua error in Module:Citation/CS1/Configuration at line 2172: attempt to index field '?' (a nil value).
- ^ Peaks on the Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart:
- Hand on the Torch: Lua error in Module:Citation/CS1/Configuration at line 2172: attempt to index field '?' (a nil value).
- Broadway & 52nd: Lua error in Module:Citation/CS1/Configuration at line 2172: attempt to index field '?' (a nil value).
- ^ a b Lua error in Module:Citation/CS1/Configuration at line 2172: attempt to index field '?' (a nil value).
- ^ Lua error in Module:Citation/CS1/Configuration at line 2172: attempt to index field '?' (a nil value).
- ^ Lua error in Module:Citation/CS1/Configuration at line 2172: attempt to index field '?' (a nil value).
Other sources
[edit | edit source]- Radio interview with Us3 founder Geoff Wilkinson on Kiss FM February 1992 Us3 Founder Geoff Wilkinson and Born 2 B, Kiss FM London 1992 - Play on N1M
- Ninja Tune - Two decades of mixes and mash-ups
External links
[edit | edit source]- Official website
- The Us3 YouTube channel
- Us3 on Instagram
- Innerviews' 2025 audio interview with Geoff Wilkinson
- Innerviews' 2009 interview with Geoff Wilkinson
- "Jazz and Hip-Hop: Can They Really Mix?" by Jared Pauley, (Jazz.com)
Lua error in Module:Authority_control at line 153: attempt to index field 'wikibase' (a nil value).