Blackstreet | ||||
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Studio album by | ||||
Released | June 21, 1994 | |||
Recorded | 1993–94 | |||
Studio | Future Recording Studios (Virginia Beach, Virginia, U.S.) | |||
Genre | ||||
Length | 73:06 | |||
Label | Interscope | |||
Producer |
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Blackstreet chronology | ||||
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Singles from Blackstreet | ||||
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Blackstreet is the debut studio album from American R&B group Blackstreet, released in 1994 on Interscope Records. The group was formed by Riley with Chauncey Hannibal after the dissolution of Teddy Riley's former group Guy. [3] The other members of Blackstreet - Joseph Stonestreet and Levi Little - were session singers alongside Hannibal on Bobby Brown's third album Bobby , an album that was mostly produced by Riley. [4] They recorded one song for the soundtrack of the Chris Rock film CB4 called "Baby Be Mine". [5] Before they could record an album, Stonestreet left the group [3] and was replaced by former Force One Network singer Dave Hollister. [6] When they re-recorded "Baby Be Mine" for their self-titled debut, Hollister's vocals were added on the album version of the song.
Hip hop producer Erick Sermon co-produced the first single "Booti Call", [3] which was a response to the rape trial and conviction of professional boxer Mike Tyson at the time of the album's release. [7] Riley, who was a close friend of Tyson, [7] referenced his incarceration in the album's liner notes: and to our main man Mike Tyson "we can't wait". [8] The song's opening was done by stand up comedian Bill Bellamy, who popularized his infamous saying on an episode of Russell Simmons' Def Comedy Jam . [9] The second single "Before I Let You Go" was released with a music video that featured appearances by actors Omar Epps [10] [11] and Shari Headley. [12]
Also on the album is former member of The Sylvers songwriter and producer Leon Sylvers III, who collaborated with Riley on the writing and production of several songs on the album. Riley's proteges The Neptunes make one of their earliest appearances on Blackstreet as well, with Pharrell Williams and Chad Hugo receiving a co-writing and assistant producer credit on the song "Tonight's the Night", [3] [13] while Hugo plays the saxophone on the ballad "Happy Home". [14] Singer Michael Jackson helped with the composition of "Joy"- a song that was originally intended for Jackson's 1991 album Dangerous . [3] [15] Blackstreet would be the first and last album with members Hollister and Little, who left the group at the end of 1995. [16] [17]
The album peaked at number fifty-two on the Billboard 200 chart. By April 1995, it was certified platinum in sales by the RIAA, after sales exceeding 1,000,000 copies in the United States. Blackstreet's cover of the Stevie Wonder song "Love's in Need of Love Today" was featured in the 1995 Harrison Ford film Sabrina , but it does not appear on the film's soundtrack. [18]
Review scores | |
---|---|
Source | Rating |
AllMusic | [2] |
Q | [1] |
The Rolling Stone Album Guide | [19] |
The Source | (favorable) [1] |
The album peaked at fifty-two on the U.S. Billboard 200 and reached the seventh spot on the R&B Albums chart. [20] The album was certified platinum by April 1995. [21]
While Stanton Swihart of Allmusic commented that some of the songs weren't fully formed and others sounded like new jack retreads, he did remark that the work included "some brilliantly catchy R&B tracks, songs that easily stood out in the mid-'90s urban soul crowd." [2]
No. | Title | Music | Producer(s) | Length |
---|---|---|---|---|
1. | "Intro (Blackstreet Philosophy) [Interlude]" | Riley, "Lil" Chris Smith | Teddy Riley, "Lil" Chris Smith | 0:56 |
2. | "Baby Be Mine" | Iverson, Riley, Stonestreet, Williams, "Lil" Chris Smith | Teddy Riley | 3:02 |
3. | "U Blow My Mind" | Hannibal, Hollister, Riley, Smith | Teddy Riley, "Lil" Chris Smith | 3:49 |
4. | "Hey Love (Keep It Real) [Interlude]" | Dickey, Riley, Sylvers | Teddy Riley, Leon Sylvers III | 1:11 |
5. | "I Like the Way You Work" | Graham, Hannibal, Little, Riley, Riley, Smith | Teddy Riley, Markell Riley | 4:44 |
6. | "Good Life" | Brown, Callis, Linzer, Riley, Wynn | Teddy Riley, David Wynn | 4:04 |
7. | "Physical Thing" | Drakeford, Hannibal, Little, Riley, Riley, Tex, Williams, Smith | Teddy Riley, Markell Riley | 4:38 |
8. | "Make U Wet" | Barber, Davidson, Hannibal, Riley, Sylvers | Teddy Riley, Michael "Flip" Barber | 4:59 |
9. | "Booti Call" | Clinton, Dickey, Riley, Riley, Sermon, Shider, Spradley, Sylvers, Troutman | Teddy Riley, Markell Riley, Erick Sermon | 4:26 |
10. | "Love's in Need" | Wonder | Teddy Riley | 4:41 |
11. | "Joy" | Riley, Lucas, Jackson | Teddy Riley | 4:55 |
12. | "Before I Let You Go" | Hannibal, Hollister, Riley, Riley, Sylvers | Teddy Riley | 4:59 |
13. | "Confession [Interlude]" | Hollister, Riley, Riley, Williams | Teddy Riley, Markell Riley | 0:54 |
14. | "Falling in Love Again" | Hannibal, Hollister, Little, Riley, Riley | Teddy Riley, Markell Riley | 4:34 |
15. | "Candlelight Night [Interlude]" | Taliaferro, Riley | Teddy Riley | 0:54 |
16. | "Tonight's the Night" | Hugo, Lucas, Riley, Riley, Williams | Teddy Riley, Markell Riley | 4:18 |
17. | "Happy Home" | Davis, Hannibal, Riley, Riley | Teddy Riley, Markell Riley | 5:38 |
18. | "Wanna Make Love" | Riley, Stonestreet, Watkins | Teddy Riley | 5:00 |
19. | "Once in a Lifetime [Interlude]" | Taliaferro, Riley | Teddy Riley, Markell Riley | 1:02 |
20. | "Givin' You All My Lovin'" | Riley, Riley, Smith, Sylvers | Teddy Riley, Leon Sylvers III | 4:12 |
Weekly charts
| Year-end charts
|
Year | Single | Peak chart positions [27] | |||
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U.S. Billboard Hot 100 | U.S. Hot Dance Music/Maxi-Singles Sales | U.S. Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Singles & Tracks | U.S. Rhythmic Top 40 | ||
1993 | "Baby Be Mine" | — | 20 | — | — |
1994 | "Booti Call" | 34 | 3 | 14 | 19 |
"Before I Let You Go" | 7 | 7 | 2 | 2 | |
1995 | "Joy" | 43 | 13 | 12 | 23 |
""Tonight's the Night" (Blackstreet song)" | 80 | 12 | 27 | — |
"—" denotes releases that did not chart.
Information taken from AllMusic. [28]
Blackstreet is an American R&B group founded in 1991 by record producers Chauncey "Black" Hannibal, and Teddy "Street" Riley. The group has released four albums with Interscope Records until 2003. They achieved relative success leading up to the single "No Diggity", which peaked at number 1 for four weeks in November 1996.
New jack swing, new jack, or swingbeat is a fusion genre of the rhythms and production techniques of hip hop and dance-pop, and the urban contemporary sound of R&B. Spearheaded by producers Teddy Riley, Bernard Belle, Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis, new jack swing was most popular from the late 1980s to early 1990s.
Guy is an American hip hop, R&B and soul group founded in 1987 by Teddy Riley, Aaron Hall, and Timmy Gatling. Hall's younger brother Damion Hall replaced Gatling after the recording of the group's self-titled debut album. The group released their debut album, which went on to sell over a million copies and was certified double platinum. In following their success, the group released their second album The Future in 1990, which also charted with successful singles and received platinum as well. Following their nearly decade long split, the group returned with their third album before the 2000s millennium, which charted with their hit single "Dancin'".
Edward Theodore Riley is an American singer, songwriter, and record producer credited with the creation of the new jack swing genre. Riley credits Barry Michael Cooper with giving the genre its name.
Faith is the debut studio album by American singer Faith Evans. It was released by Bad Boy Records on August 29, 1995, in the United States. A collaboration with the label's main producers The Hitmen, including members Sean "Puff Daddy" Combs and Chucky Thompson, as well as Mark Ledford, Herb Middleton, and Jean-Claude Olivier, among others.
"No Diggity" is a song by American R&B group Blackstreet as the first single for their second studio album, Another Level (1996), featuring Dr. Dre and Queen Pen. Released on July 29, 1996, the song reached number one on the US Billboard Hot 100 and in Iceland and New Zealand. "No Diggity" ended "Macarena"'s 14-week reign atop the Billboard Hot 100. In the United Kingdom, the song peaked at number nine. "No Diggity" was the final number-one single of Cash Box magazine. The track sold 1.6 million copies in 1996 and won the 1998 Grammy Award for Best R&B Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocals. It uses samples from Bill Withers's "Grandma's Hands".
Another Level is the second album by American R&B group Blackstreet. Released in September 10, 1996, it was the first album with new members Eric Williams and Mark Middleton. They joined the group after replacing departed members Dave Hollister and Levi Little. Another Level was also the first Blackstreet album released under Interscope Records' new distribution deal with MCA Music Entertainment, Inc. after the company was dropped by Time Warner several months before the release of the album.
Level II is the fourth album by R&B group, Blackstreet, released on March 11, 2003. It was their first and only album released on record label DreamWorks Records. The album's title was a reference to its members' best known line-up during their most successful album, 1996's Another Level. Two of the members returned for the recording of Level II. Mark Middleton returned to the fold after he was replaced by Terrell Phillips on 1999's Finally to launch a gospel music career. Dave Hollister returned on the song "Bygones", as he also left the group to start his solo career.
Bobby is the third studio album by American singer Bobby Brown, released in 1992 by MCA Records. The album continued the R&B/new jack swing sound of its predecessor, Don't Be Cruel. Babyface, L.A. Reid, and Daryl Simmons returned as producers and songwriters, however, Brown also worked with other producers, most notably Teddy Riley, who was considered a pioneer of the new jack swing genre. Riley also co-wrote and produced the majority of the album. Brown had more creative input and control of the album, becoming an executive producer and co-writing seven of the album's thirteen songs. The album received mixed reviews from music critics.
"The City Is Mine" is the second single from rapper Jay-Z's second album In My Lifetime, Vol. 1. It was released on February 3, 1998. It features vocals from Blackstreet and production from Blackstreet member Teddy Riley. Riley samples "You Gonna Make Me Love Somebody Else" by The Jones Girls for the song's beat, while Blackstreet interpolates "You Belong to the City" by Glenn Frey and Jack Tempchin for the song's chorus. In addition, a young Chad Hugo plays saxophone on this song. The first verse is dedicated to the memory of his friend, The Notorious B.I.G.
Guy is the 1988 debut studio album by American R&B band Guy. Released on June 14, 1988 by Uptown Records. It was produced by group founder Teddy Riley and manager Gene Griffin. The album peaked at number 27 on the Billboard 200 chart. In July 1994, it was certified double platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America, for shipments of two million copies in the United States. In 2007, to commemorate the 20th anniversary of the album, Geffen Records reissued the recording complete with a remastered version of the original album and a second CD of remixes.
My Melody is the debut album by American rapper Queen Pen, released on December 16, 1997 by Lil' Man Records, a distribution by Interscope Records and was executive produced by Teddy Riley. The album went to number 78 on the Billboard 200, number 13 on the Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums and number one on the Top Heatseekers, and had three charting singles "Man Behind the Music", "All My Love" and "Party Ain't a Party".
"Rump Shaker" is a song by American hip-hop group Wreckx-N-Effect. It was released in August 1992 as the lead single from their second album, Hard or Smooth (1992). It features production and guest vocals from Teddy Riley, brother of former Wreckx member Markell Riley.
Personal is the debut studio album by the American vocal group Men of Vizion. It was released on June 18, 1996, via Michael Jackson's record label, MJJ Music, after a demo tape was played to him by producer Teddy Riley. The album has been described as a "sumptuous blend" of vocal R&B and "90s production techniques", that alternates between smooth ballads and new jack swing.
“Heaven Can Wait" is a song recorded by Michael Jackson, originally released on his 2001 studio album Invincible. The song was written by Jackson, Teddy Riley, Andreao Heard, Nate Smith, Teron Beal, Eritza Laues and Kenny Quiller.
Guy III is the third and most recent studio album from American R&B group Guy, released January 25, 2000 on MCA Records. The album reached number five on the R&B Albums chart and peaked at number thirteen on the Billboard 200 chart.
"Booti Call" is a song by American R&B group Blackstreet, recorded for the group's self-titled debut album (1994). The song was released as the second single for the album in July 1994.
"Before I Let You Go" is a song by American R&B group Blackstreet, recorded for the group's self-titled debut album (1994). The song was released as the third single for the album in November 1994. The song was notable for featuring lead vocals from Dave Hollister who joined the group upon the album's release.
"Joy" is a song by American R&B group Blackstreet. The song was written by Michael Jackson, Teddy Riley, and Tammy Lucas it was released as the fifth single for the group's self-titled debut album Blackstreet (1994).
Aqil Davidson, sometimes socially referred to as A-Plus or Empra, is an American lyricist, hip-hop artist, and record producer. He is known for being front man and lead rapper of hip-hop / new jack swing brand Wreckx-n-Effect and writing, producing, and being featured on songs by Michael Jackson, Bobby Brown, MC Hammer, MC Lyte, and Guy.
rolling stone blackstreet album guide.