Richard Spencer, one of the musicians responsible for one of the most sampled drum loops in modern music - but who never got a royalty cheque for his work - has been paid £24,000 (€34,000) after fans launched a crowdfunding appeal to reward him.

Spencer was frontman of American '60s funk and soul group The Winstons, whose song 'Amen, Brother' contained a drum solo performed by G.C. Coleman, who passed away destitute in 2006. It has been used by everyone from Oasis to NWA to The Prodigy to Slipknot since its 1969 release.

However, the band has never received any royalties for their work because they failed to launch a lawsuit within the sufficient window of time.

The story led to the launch of the crowdfunding campaign, which ended in March. After receiving the cheque in recent days, Spencer posted a video to Facebook thanking fans for their efforts. "Thank you so much for this great contribution to my life," he said. "Thank you very, very much. A-men!" 

The below video explains just how ubiquitous the Amen break has been over the last few decades.

 

Via NME