Burning The Ground Exclusive 1983
“White Lines (Don’t Don’t Do It)” is a song by Melle Mel, released as a 12″ in 1983 on Sugar Hill Records. The song, which warns against the dangers of cocaine, addiction, and drug smuggling, is one of Melle Mel’s signature tracks. The bassline is taken from a performance of the Sugar Hill house band (featuring bassist Doug Wimbish) covering “Cavern”, a single by New York City band Liquid Liquid.
When originally released on Sugar Hill Records, the record was credited to Grandmaster & Melle Mel (some international issues carried the credit Grandmaster Flash & Melle Mel). By this time, Grandmaster Flash had already stopped touring with Mel and was suing Sugar Hill Records for back royalties. The animosity between the two artists continued well into the future.
“White Lines” peaked at No. 47 on the Billboard Hot Black Singles chart in 1983. The song fared better in the United Kingdom, reaching number 7 on the UK Singles Chart in July 1984, spending 17 consecutive weeks in the top 40. It was the 13th best-selling single of 1984 in the UK, selling more than several number one hits that year.
The song was co-written by Melle Mel and Sylvia Robinson. Originally, it was intended to be an ironic celebration of a cocaine-fueled party lifestyle, but it was abridged with the “don’t do it” message as a concession to commercial considerations.
The lines “A businessman is caught with 24 kilos / He’s out on bail and out of jail and that’s the way it goes” refers to car manufacturer John DeLorean, who in 1982 became entrapped in a scheme to save his company from bankruptcy using drug money. Some of the lyrics in “White Lines” (“something like a phenomenon”) echoed lyrics from the song “Cavern” by Liquid Liquid (“slip in and out of phenomenon”), in addition to the note-by-note appropriation of the bass line from “Cavern” with a rapping track overlaid. Sugar Hill did not get proper clearance to use “Cavern,” resulting in years of lawsuits, ultimately in Liquid Liquid’s favor. As a result of the $600,000 judgment against Sugar Hill, the label declared bankruptcy to circumvent paying the judgment.
**The two tracks on the b-side are listed as seperate tracks on the record label. However they are one continuos track. To keep the integrity of the original vinyl I did not seperate them.
SIDE A:
White Lines (Don’t Don’t Do It) 7:36
White Lines (Don’t Don’t Do It) (Bonus) 2:19
SIDE B:
White Lines (Don’t Don’t Do It) (Bonus Break)/
White Lines (Don’t Don’t Do It) (Short Version) 6:57
VINYL GRADE:
Vinyl: Near Mint
Sleeve: Near Mint
U.S. CHART HISTORY:
| Year | Single | Chart | Position |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1983 | White Lines (Dn’t Do It) | U.S. Billboard Hot Black singles | #47 |
| 1983 | White Lines (Dn’t Do It) | U.S. Billboard Hot Dance Music/Club Play | #9 |
RELEASE INFORMATION:
Label: Sugar Hill Records – SH 465
Format:
Vinyl, 12″, 33 ⅓ RPM
Country: US
Released: 1983
Genre: Hip Hop
Style: Hip Hop
CREDITS:
Arranged By –Reggie Griffin
Engineer, Mixed By –E.T. Thorngren*
Engineer, Mixed By, Producer, Written-By – Sylvia Robinson (Sylvia Inc.)*
Mastered By – Pa*
Producer –Joey Robinson, Jr., Melle Mel
Written-By – Melvin Glover
Find the 12″ at DISCOGS
VINYL TRANSFER & AUDIO RESTORATION:
-DjPaulT
burningtheground.net
THE GEAR:
Turntable: Pro-Ject Debut Carbon (DC)
Cartridge/Stylus: Ortofon 2M Black
Turntable Isolation Platform: ISO-Tone™ Turntable Isolation Platform
Platter: Pro-Ject Acryl-It platter
Stabilizer: Pro-Ject Record Puck
Phono Pre-amp: Pro-Jec Tube Box DS2
DAC: Alpha Design Labs GT40a USB DAC
Record Cleaning: VPI HW 16.5 Record Cleaning Machine
Artwork Scans: Epson Workforce WF-7610 Professional Printer/Scanner
SOFTWARE:
Recording/Editing: Adobe Audition 3.0 (Recording)
Down Sampling/Dither: iZotope RX Advanced 2
Artwork Editor: Adobe Photoshop CS5
Click Removal: Manual
FLAC/MP3 Conversion: dBpoweramp
M3U Playlist: Playlist Creator
RESTORATION NOTES:
All vinyl rips are recorded @ 32bit/float
FLAC (Level Eight)
Artwork scanned at 600dpi
**24Bit FLAC Only Available For Seven Days!
Password: burningtheground
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