Treacherous Three - Yes We Can-Can

The 50 Best Rap Singles of 1982: Treacherous Three

The Treacherous Three's single finds Clifton “Jiggs” Chase’s Jigsaw crew turning the Pointer Sisters’ 70s chestnut into an electro groove.

Treacherous Three
“Yes We Can-Can” (Sugar Hill)

In 1982, Treacherous Three moved from Enjoy to Sugar Hill Records. Thanks to a guest vocal from Phillip Wynne, their debut single “Whip It,” an interpolation of Dazz Band’s electro-funk hit, had plenty of star power. But the follow-up, “Yes We Can-Can,” is arguably better. Released towards the end of the year, it finds Clifton “Jiggs” Chase’s Jigsaw crew turning the Pointer Sisters’ 70s chestnut into a loping electro groove. Meanwhile, Kool Moe Dee, LA Sunshine, and Special K offer message-style raps, trading bars with fluid rhythm. The latter offers, “The price of living’s going up/Wage increases going down/Reaganomics and atomics messing all of us around.”

Read More: The 50 Best Rap Singles of 1982

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