Us3
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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. Us3's debut album, Hand on the Torch, used samples from Blue Note songs produced by Lion.
History
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.
Wilkinson established Us3 with production partner Mel Simpson. One of the resulting demos, recorded in March 1992, was "Cantaloop (Flip Fantasia)", featuring UK trumpeter Gerard Presencer. It sampled Herbie Hancock's "Cantaloupe Island". Us3 went on a hiatus in 2014, during which Wilkinson went on to specialise in producing film and library music.
In 2025, Us3 released Soundtrack, a studio album consisting of a cinematic mix of trap rhythms with big band orchestration, including tracks inspired by Gil Evans and Don Ellis.
Discography
Albums
| Title | Year | Peak chart positions | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| UK | AUS | AUT | GER | NLD | NZ | SWI | US | US R&B/HH | ||
| 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
| Title | Year | Peak positions | Album | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| UK | AUS | AUT | BEL (FL) | GER | NLD | NZ | SWI | US | US R&B | |||
| "Cantaloop (Flip Fantasia)" | 1992 | 76 | 32 | 3 | 24 | 22 | 18 | 16 | 7 | 9 | 21 | Hand on the Torch |
| "Tukka Yoot's Riddim" | 1993 | 34 | 221 | 24 | — | 97 | — | 28 | 26 | — | — | |
| "Cantaloop (Flip Fantasia)" (UK reissue) | 23 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| "I Got It Goin' On" | 1994 | 52 | 189 | — | — | — | — | 39 | — | — | — | |
| "Eleven Long Years" | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| "Come on Everybody (Get Down)" | 1997 | 38 | 184 | — | — | — | — | — | 49 | — | — | Broadway & 52nd |
| "I'm Thinking About Your Body" | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| "You Can't Hold Me Down" | 2001 | 94 | 160 | — | — | — | 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. |
Other sources
- Radio interview with Us3 founder Geoff Wilkinson on Kiss FM February 1992
External links
- by Jared Pauley, ()