The Jungle Brothers are an American hip hop group who pioneered the fusion of jazz and hip-hop and also became the first hip hop group to use an in house producer. They began performing in the mid-1980s and released their first album, Straight Out the Jungle, in 1988 (see 1988 in music). With Afrocentric lyrics and innovative beats, the Jungle Brothers were critically acclaimed and soon joined the influential Native Tongues Posse. The trio is comprised of Michael Small (Mike Gee), Nathaniel Hall (Afrika Baby Bam) and Sammy Burwell (DJ Sammy B).
Their first album, "Straight Out the Jungle", was released on an independent label and featured a hip-hop/house collaboration "I'll House You" produced by Todd Terry. In spite of the commercial failure of Straight Out the Jungle, Warner Bros. Records soon signed the group and released Done By the Forces of Nature in 1989 (see 1989 in music). The album was a critical smash at the time, though it has since been largely ignored by hip-hop critics at the expense of the similarly acclaimed fusion of funk and rap 3 Feet High and Rising by De La Soul, released the same year. Following a four year break, the Jungle Brothers returned in 1993 with J Beez Wit the Remedy (1993 in music), another commercial disappointment. Their next album, V.I.P. was produced by Alex Gifford of Propellerheads and, during production, they found time to add their vocal stylings to the Propellerheads tracks "Take California (And Party)" and "You Want It Back". Their latest album to contain any new releases is 2002's All That We Do.
