Guide Note:

A musical pioneer, DJ Grandmaster Flash (real name Joseph Saddler) and his group, the Furious Five, created much of the style and sound we currently think of as "hip-hop," even coining the phrase "hip-hop." The group members were the first hip-hop artists to be inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.

Fast Facts:

1. Born January 1, 1958 in Bridgetown, Barbados
2. Label: Sugar Hill Records
3. Learned to cut albums with his father's extensive record collection
4. Owns clothing line G.Phyre
5. Inducted in Rock and Roll Hall of Fame by Jay-Z

1. The Message (1982)
2. The Said It Couldn't Be Done (1985)
3. The Source (1986)
4. Ba-Dop-Boom-Bang (1987)
5. On the Strength (1988)
6. Salsoul Jam 2000 (1997)
7. The Official Adventures of Grandmaster Flash (2002)
8. Mixing Bullets and Firing Joints (2005)

Many of the DJing techniques utilized by Grandmaster Flash have become standard in hip-hop and rap music, including cutting, back-spinning and phasing. In 1977, he began to collaborate with rappers, including Kurtis Blow and eventually including the Furious Five: Mellie Mel, Cowboy, Kid Creole, Mr. Ness and Rahiem.

The group, already legendary in New York City, recorded their first album after the success of the Sugar Hill Gang's "Rapper's Delight." "The Adventures of Grandmaster Flash on the Wheels of Steel" was released in 1981, and showcased Flash's groundbreaking mixing skills, combining elements of Blondie's "Rapture," Michael Viner's Incredible Bong Band's "Apache," Queen's "Another One Bites the Dust" and Chic's "Good Times." It is considered the first time the sound of record-scratching had actually been professionally recorded as music.

Shortly after recording "The Message," Flash split from the Furious Five, and started to appear in films and produce his own projects. (The group reunited in 1987 and in 1994).

Other heavily influential songs would follow from The Furious Five, including "The Message" in 1982 and "White Lines (Don't Do It)," though these songs did not feature Grandmaster Flash.