I was watching Common perform “The Light” (video above) last night on MTV, and when he got to the chorus of the song, I knew he sampled from an old song I used to love but I couldn’t think of the name. A quick Google search led me to the legendary Bobby Caldwell which Common sampled from his hit song, “Open Your Eyes.” (video below)

Bobby Caldwell’s “Open Your Eyes”

Some of you might be too young to remember hearing “Open Your Eyes,” but you’ll surely know Bobby Caldwell’s “What You Won’t Do for Love,” (video below) which has been sampled by some of the most well known in rap and R&B:

• Aaliyah’s “Age Ain’t Nothin’ But a Number”
• Da Brat and Mariah Carey’s “Gotta Thing 4 You”
• 2Pac’s “Can I Get Your Number”, “Heaven Ain’t Hard 2 Find”
• Tatyana Ali’s “Boy You Knock Out”
• The Luniz’s “Playa Hata”
• Esham’s “24/7″
• Raheem DeVaughn and DJ Jazzy Jeff’s “My Soul Ain’t for Sale”

Bobby Caldwell’s “What You Won’t Do For Love”