The recording's drum break, performed by Clyde Stubblefield, is one of the most frequently sampled rhythmic breaks in hip hop and popular music.

And after the chorus comes the real payoff: a huge rhythmic break, with a staccato keyboard line that echoes the tune she sang.

His hit tune, "Pine Top's Boogie Woogie," featured rhythmic "breaks" that were an essential ingredient of ragtime music.

"Reflections" (Mute), the recent album by this German progressive-house producer and D.J., is a rather banal collection of pop songs interrupted by slightly less banal rhythmic breaks.

He is both a cheerleader and a patient teacher, often repeating a particularly toothsome rhythmic break a few times to show us how he thinks.

Though an accomplished performer, he seemed a bit slow to warm up in the Bach and the Piazzolla, with some uneven tone and a few rhythmic breaks for breath.

"Reflections" (Mute) is a new album that finds Mr. van Dyk collaborating with a wide range of vocalists; the result is a rather banal collection of pop songs interrupted by slightly less banal rhythmic breaks.

Since rhythm is perceived only as a regular pulse, any rhythmic break knocks the breath out of the listener because it so unexpected - so visceral.

The 1970's classics sound great (especially the thunderous groove of "Just Got Paid" and the unexpected rhythmic breaks in "I'm Bad, I'm Nationwide") and the synthesizer-embellished hits from the 1980's have held up surprisingly well.

The following plan shows the rhyming scheme in two stanzas; the spaces show the usual rhythmic breaks (not shown in writing).