List of Depeche Mode sample sources by album/Some Great Reward

Glossary Terms used in this article

In audio production, sampling refers to the use of a portion (or sample) from a sound within another recording. As pioneers of the electronic music genre, Depeche Mode were among the most prolific acts to make use of sampling technology within a traditional pop music format. Among the many original samples recorded and utilized by Depeche Mode to enhance the atmosphere of their musical output are many that originated elsewhere, including brief passages of musical recordings by other artists, snippets of audio from television shows, radio broadcasts, films, environmental sounds, and more. Analysis of these sample sources and how they are manipulated is a popular topic of discussion amongst fans of the group.

Key
Official	The sample is confirmed to have been used in the specified song by a past/present member of Depeche Mode, an individual involved in its production, or band archivist Daniel "BRAT" Barassi.
Confirmed	The sample is independently confirmed to have been used in the specified song.
Likely	The sample is likely to have been used in the specified song but has not yet been confirmed.
Unconfirmed	The sample is not yet confirmed to have been used in the specified song.
Disproven	The sample is confirmed to not have been used in the specified song.
Unknown	It is unclear if the sample was used in the specified song.

Information

This page aims to document all verifiable sound sources for many of the musical parts used by Depeche Mode in the production of their 1984 album Some Great Reward.

Due to the manipulated nature of the samples described in this article, there is unavoidable potential for error or sample misattribution. To ensure accuracy, this article strives to use verified quotes from band members and recording personnel with citations wherever possible, audio examples, and independent research voluntarily contributed by Depeche Mode and Recoil fans worldwide. This article provides an interesting document on this topic in a tabular format that is organized, well-researched, and reasonably accurate. Please bear in mind that due to the limited number of relevant quotes for each sample from band members or associates involved in producing the music described on this page, audio samples that lack official confirmation are not guaranteed to be accurate.

This article differentiates samples by origin: Self-made samples, which describe any material initially recorded by Depeche Mode or Recoil, and Sourced samples, which describe samples not initially recorded by either group. In addition to confirmed samples, this article also covers samples commonly misreported as having been used but directly refuted by a member or associate of Depeche Mode or Recoil.

If you notice an error or wish to contribute or request the removal of information contained within this article, please feel free to contact us.

Some Great Reward (1984)

1. "Something To Do"

"Something To Do" - Depeche Mode 1984
	Sample sources
	Sample	Source	Status	Notes
	Synthesizer elements	Yamaha DX7 factory ROM #3 Bank B: "CELESTE"	Confirmed	The Music For The Masses tour arrangement of "Something To Do" employs a bell-like sample derived from the Yamaha DX7 factory ROM #3 program "CELESTE". The sample is performed as a rhythm part throughout the song.

2. "Lie To Me"

"Lie To Me" Depeche Mode 1984
	Sample sources
	Sample	Source	Status	Notes	Audio
	Lead melody	Synclavier II Timbre Directory Diskette #2 - 2263 Oboe Source	Confirmed	The lead melody heard throughout "Lie To Me" is derived from the "Oboe Source" timbre of Synclavier II timbre directory diskette #2. Notably, similar edits of this timbre are also used throughout "Blasphemous Rumours" and the middle eight section of "It Doesn't Matter Two".	Click to display/hide audio example Note: In this example, a section of the intro as heard in the center channel of the 2006 5.1 reissue containing the relevant synth line is compared to the source sound as produced by the Arturia Synclavier V, a Synclavier VST emulation (patch "2263 OBOE SOURCE" courtesy of Synclavier co-inventor Cameron Jones via "Timbre Share" Facebook group).

3. "People Are People"

"People Are People" is not yet known to contain samples from any identifiable sources.

4. "It Doesn't Matter"

"It Doesn't Matter" - Depeche Mode 1984
	Sample sources
	Sample	Source	Status	Notes
	Kalimba	Synclavier II Timbre Directory Diskette #1 - 2136 Calimba #2	Confirmed	The kalimba instrument audible throughout the verse sections of "It Doesn't Matter" is derived from the "Calimba #2" timbre of Synclavier II timbre directory diskette #1. Notably, this timbre is also used during the chorus sections of "Love, In Itself" and the middle eight of "If You Want".

5. "Stories Of Old"

"Stories Of Old" is not yet known to contain samples from any identifiable sources.

6. "Master And Servant"

"Master And Servant" - Depeche Mode 1984	Self-made samples
	Sample	Notes
	Middle eight melody	In May 2020, fan "DMK" kindly provided DM Live Wiki with documentation for a series of Emulator II floppy disks that accompanied a collection of restored studio equipment used by Music For The Masses producer Dave Bascombe during the production of music albums for artists other than Depeche Mode in the mid to late eighties. One floppy disk, labeled "Glass (10)", features an untitled preset ("NULL PRESET"), which contains a bell-like sample. This bell element is used to play a G♯ octave, which is subsequently sampled and layered with a manipulated piano sound to form the melody played on every second bar during the middle eight of "Master And Servant" as it was performed on the Music For The Masses and World Violation tours. Notably, this sound is also used as a melodic accent throughout the Music For The Masses tour arrangement of "Just Can't Get Enough".
	Sample sources
	Sample	Source	Status	Notes
	Middle eight melody	Yamaha DX7 factory ROM #1 Bank B: "TOY PIANO"	Confirmed	A metallic bell-like melody performed during the middle eight section of "Master And Servant" as it was performed on the Music For The Masses tour is derived from the Yamaha DX7 factory ROM #1 program "TOY PIANO".

7. "If You Want"

"If You Want" - Depeche Mode 1984
	Sample sources
	Sample	Source	Status	Notes
	Middle eight kalimba melody	Synclavier II Timbre Directory Diskette #1 - 2136 Calimba #2	Likely

8. "Blasphemous Rumours"

"Blasphemous Rumours" Depeche Mode 1984	Self-made samples
	Sample	Notes			Audio
	Verse snare	The snare heard during the verse sections of "Blasphemous Rumours" was produced by recording the sound of a hammer smashing against a concrete floor. Alan Wilder states in the November 1984 issue of International Musician and Recording World: We sampled some concrete being hit for what turned out to be the snare sound. All that entailed was us hitting a big lump of concrete with a sampling hammer. The engineer / producer we use, Gareth Jones, has got this brilliant little recorder called a Stellavox which we use with two stereo mikes and it's as good as any standard 30ips reel-to-reel but this is very small and therefore very portable. So we just took the Stellavox out into the middle of this big, ambient space and miked up the ground and hit it with a big metal hammer. The sound was... like concrete being hit. I can't really put it any other way.			✖
	Sample sources
	Sample	Source	Status	Notes	Audio
	Synthesizer, oboe elements	Synclavier II Timbre Directory Diskette #2 - 2263 Oboe Source	Confirmed	The atmospheric oboe melody heard throughout "Blasphemous Rumours" is derived from the "Oboe Source" timbre of Synclavier II timbre directory diskette #2. Wilder comments on the composition of this sound in the Shunt "The Singles 81-85" editorial: Musically too, [Blasphemous Rumours] stood out from the crowd and once again proved that only a group like [Depeche Mode] (with a track whose opening bars featured the unlikely combination of a backwards oboe against a hammer crashing onto concrete) could subvert the pop charts and still have a hit record on their hands.	✖
	Synthesizer elements	Yamaha DX7 factory ROM #1 Bank B: "TOY PIANO"	Confirmed	A metallic, bell-like sound derived from the Yamaha DX7 factory ROM #1 program "TOY PIANO" is used to perform a melody during the first middle eight section of "Blasphemous Rumours" as it was performed on the Music For The Masses tour.	✖
	Synthesizer elements	Yamaha DX7 factory ROM #2 Bank A: "SAX BC"	Confirmed	The metallic saxophone-like synth melody following the first and second chorus sections of "Blasphemous Rumours" as it was performed on the Music For The Masses tour is comprised of a sample derived from the Yamaha DX7 factory ROM #2 program "SAX BC".	✖
	Synthesizer elements	Yamaha DX7 factory ROM #2 Bank A: "LOG DRUM"	Confirmed	A synthesizer element audible throughout "Blasphemous Rumours" is derived from the Yamaha DX7 factory ROM #2 Bank A program "LOG DRUM".	✖
	Drum elements, hi-hats	Roland Corporation - Roland TR-808 Rhythm Composer - 1980	Confirmed	A series of hi-hat drum elements audible during the chorus and outro sections of "Blasphemous Rumours" are derived from the Roland TR-808 drum machine.	✖

B-sides, bonus tracks and remixes

"Master And Servant" (Slavery Whip Mix)

"Master And Servant" (Slavery Whip Mix) - Depeche Mode 1984
	Sample sources
	Sample	Source	Status	Notes
	Drum elements	Frankie Goes To Hollywood - "Relax" - 1983	Disproven	Magazine The Face reported in February 1985: Alan Wilder: No, I don't mind admitting it. We nicked a beat off one of Frankie's records and stuck it on our 12-inch. But I mean the actual sound, not the idea. It's not a drum sound that sells a record anyway, it's the whole song and the musical ideas. [...] In 1986, Electronics & Music Maker magazine reported: "In response to a complaint that Depeche Mode stole a Frankie Goes To Hollywood drum sound, Frankie's engineers replied that the Frankie drum sound was actually a Linn - itself a recording!" Wilder directly refutes this claim in response to a fan question during a Q&A on Shunt, the official Recoil project site: Q: [Is there] any truth behind the section in Dave Thompson's book (Depeche Mode: Some Great Reward) that says (around the time of "Master And Servant") that [Depeche Mode] sampled a Frankie Goes To Hollywood drum loop? If so, what track was it used on? A: Surprisingly, no truth whatsoever.

"People Are People" (Are People People? Mix)

"People Are People" (Are People People? Mix) - Depeche Mode 1984
	Sample sources
	Sample	Source	Status	Notes
	Doo-wop vocal sample	The Citadels - "When I Woke Up This Morning" - 1964	Official	Credit to Daniel Barassi for this discovery.

"(Set Me Free) Remotivate Me (Release Mix)"

"(Set Me Free) Remotivate Me (Release Mix)" - Depeche Mode 1984
	Sample sources
	Sample	Source	Status	Notes
	Drum elements	E-mu Systems - E-mu Drumulator - 1983	Confirmed	A series of drum elements derived from the E-mu Drumulator programmable drum machine are utilised throughout the "Release Mix" of "(Set Me Free) Remotivate Me".