sample-archaeology

name	sample-archaeology
description	Trace sample chains across records — identify original sources, who sampled whom, and production lineage
triggers	["sample","sampled","what song is this from","original sample","sample chain","production lineage","where did this beat come from","who sampled"]
tools_priority	["whosampled","genius","musicbrainz","websearch","discogs","wikipedia","bandcamp"]

Workflow

1. WhoSampled search_whosampled — find the track on WhoSampled
2. WhoSampled get_track_samples — retrieve full sample graph (samples_used + sampled_by)
3. For each sample found, use get_track_samples on the source to trace deeper chains
4. Genius get_song — retrieve song relationships, lyrics context, production annotations
5. MusicBrainz get_recording_credits — production credits, engineer credits
6. Discogs get_release_full — original release details, pressing info, production notes
7. Wikipedia context on the original sample source artist/recording
8. WhoSampled get_artist_connections — artist-level sampling overview for broader context

Chain Building

• Build the chain backward: start from the known track, find what it sampled
• Then check what the source track sampled (and so on)
• Also build forward: find who else sampled the same source
• Note whether samples are direct (audio lifted), interpolations (re-recorded), or references

Synthesis Order

target track details → direct samples used → source recordings with year/artist → deeper chain (samples of samples) → forward chain (who else sampled these sources) → production context (who produced, what equipment/era) → cultural significance

Presentation

• Use arrow chain notation: Source (1970) → Sampled by (1995) → Re-sampled by (2010)
• Include timestamps when available (e.g., "sampled the drum break at 1:32")
• Link to Genius annotations for each connection
• Group by sample type: drums/breaks, vocal hooks, melodic phrases, bass lines
• Highlight the most-sampled breakbeats and sources (Amen break, Funky Drummer, etc.)