Born Dead

Born Dead
Studio album by Body Count
Released	September 6, 1994
Recorded	1994
Genre	Rap metal [1] crossover thrash
Length	47:16
Label	Virgin
Producer	Ernie-C, Ice-T
Body Count chronology
Body Count (1992) Born Dead (1994) Violent Demise: The Last Days (1997)
Singles from Born Dead
"Hey Joe" Released: 1993 [2] "Born Dead" Released: 1994 [3] "Necessary Evil" Released: 1994 [4]

Professional ratings

Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic	[5]
Christgau's Consumer Guide	[6]
Entertainment Weekly	B [7]
The Guardian	[8]
Kerrang!	[9]
NME	7/10 [10]
Q	[11]
Rolling Stone	[12]
The Rolling Stone Album Guide	[13]
Spin Alternative Record Guide	5/10 [14]

Born Dead is the second studio album by American heavy metal band Body Count. The album was released on September 6, 1994.

Lyrical subject matter includes war ("Shallow Graves"), drugs ("Street Lobotomy"), death ("Surviving the Game"), murder ("Last Breath") and the mosh pit ("Killin' Floor").

Among other tracks, the album features a cover of Billy Roberts' "Hey Joe," performed in the style of Jimi Hendrix' recording of the song, as originally featured on the Are You Experienced album. Body Count's cover of the song was first featured on the Hendrix tribute album Stone Free: A Tribute to Jimi Hendrix .

In the liner notes, Ice-T dedicates the album "to all the people of color throughout the entire world: Asian, Latino, Native American, Hawaiian, Italian, Indian, Persian, African, Aboriginal and any other nationality that white supremacists would love to see born dead." ^[15] Born Dead peaked at #74 on the Billboard 200. ^[16]

It's the last album to feature Mooseman on bass, since he left the band prior the recording of their next album, Violent Demise: The Last Days , and he was murdered in 2001 on a drive-by shooting.

Track listing

No.	Title	Writer(s)	Length
1.	"Body M/F Count"	Ice-T, Ernie-C	2:14
2.	"Masters of Revenge"	Ice-T, D-Roc	5:20
3.	"Killin' Floor"	Ice-T, D-Roc	2:21
4.	"Necessary Evil"	Mooseman	3:59
5.	"Drive By"	Ice-T, Mooseman	1:26
6.	"Last Breath"	Ice-T, Ernie-C	5:18
7.	"Hey Joe"	Billy Roberts	4:28
8.	"Shallow Graves"	Ice-T, Ernie-C, D-Roc	4:12
9.	"Surviving the Game"	Ice-T, Ernie-C, Mooseman	5:41
10.	"Who Are You"	Ice-T, Ernie-C	3:48
11.	"Street Lobotomy"	Ice-T, D-Roc	2:24
12.	"Born Dead"	Ice-T, Ernie-C, D-Roc, Mooseman	5:59
Total length:			47:16

Personnel

• Ice-T – lead vocals
• Ernie C – lead guitar, acoustic guitar
• D-Roc the Executioner – rhythm guitar
• Mooseman – bass
• Beatmaster V – drums
• Sean E Sean – sampler, backing vocals
• Sean E. Mac – hype man, backing vocals

Charts

Weekly charts Weekly chart performance for Born Dead Chart (1994) Peak position Australian Albums (ARIA) [17] 5 Austrian Albums (Ö3 Austria) [18] 5 Dutch Albums (Album Top 100) [19] 27 German Albums (Offizielle Top 100) [20] 5 Hungarian Albums (MAHASZ) [21] 7 New Zealand Albums (RMNZ) [22] 16 Portuguese Albums (AFP) [23] 19 Scottish Albums (OCC) [24] 22 Swedish Albums (Sverigetopplistan) [25] 24 Swiss Albums (Schweizer Hitparade) [26] 10 UK Albums (OCC) [27] 15 US Billboard 200 [28] 74

Year-end charts 1994 year-end chart performance for Born Dead Chart (1994) Position German Albums (Offizielle Top 100) [29] 61

References

1. Metcalf, Metcalf. Turner, Will (ed.). Rapper, Writer, Pop-Cultural Player: Ice-T and the Politics of Black Cultural Production. Ashgate Publishing Company. p. 109. Moreover, the band's second album, 'Born Dead,' released on Virgin Records in September 1994, peaked at a lowly 74. Upon its release, the Los Angeles Times remarked that 'it's time to pull the plug on this genre [of rap-metal]. The novelty has worn off.'
2. "Body Count Hey Joe (Single)". Spirit of Metal. Retrieved January 27, 2015.
3. "Body Count Born Dead (Single)". Spirit of Metal. Retrieved January 27, 2015.
4. "Body Count Necessary Evil". Spirit of Metal. Retrieved January 27, 2015.
5. Stephen Thomas Erlewine. "Born Dead - Body Count | Songs, Reviews, Credits, Awards". AllMusic. Retrieved July 28, 2015.
6. "CG: Artist 2562". Robert Christgau. Retrieved July 28, 2015.
7. Sinclair, Tom (September 23, 1994). "Born Dead". Entertainment Weekly . No. 241. p. 70. Archived from the original on April 12, 2015. Retrieved April 26, 2024.
8. Sullivan, Caroline (September 30, 1994). "Your essential guide to the week's CDs". The Guardian . p. A12.
9. Elliott, Paul (September 10, 1994). "Rekordz". Kerrang! . No. 511. EMAP. pp. 44–45.
10. "Review of Born Dead". New Musical Express. September 3, 1994.
11. "Review of Born Dead". Q Magazine. October 1, 1994.
12. Evans, Paul (November 3, 1994). "Rollin' & Tumblin'". Rolling Stone . No. 694. p. 98.
13. Kot, Greg. "Body Count". In Brackett, Nathan; Hoard, Christian (eds.). The New Rolling Stone Album Guide (4th ed.). Simon and Schuster. p.  90. ISBN   9780743201698.
14. Sandow, Greg (1995). "Ice-T". In Weisbard, Eric; Marks, Craig (eds.). Spin Alternative Record Guide. Vintage Books. pp. 190–191. ISBN   0-679-75574-8.
15. Body Count (1994). Born Dead. Liner notes. Virgin Records. UPC   724383980222
16. "Charts and Awards for Born Dead". Allmusic . Retrieved November 3, 2007.
17. "Australiancharts.com – Body Count – Born Dead". Hung Medien. Retrieved January 16, 2021.
18. "Austriancharts.at – Body Count – Born Dead" (in German). Hung Medien. Retrieved January 16, 2021.
19. "Dutchcharts.nl – Body Count – Born Dead" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved January 16, 2021.
20. "Offiziellecharts.de – Body Count – Born Dead" (in German). GfK Entertainment Charts. Retrieved January 16, 2021.
21. "Album Top 40 slágerlista – 1994. 39. hét" (in Hungarian). MAHASZ. Retrieved November 25, 2021.
22. "Charts.nz – Body Count – Born Dead". Hung Medien. Retrieved January 16, 2021.
23. "Portugal" (PDF). Music & Media . October 22, 1994. p. 22. Retrieved May 27, 2022.
24. "Official Scottish Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved January 16, 2021.
25. "Swedishcharts.com – Body Count – Born Dead". Hung Medien. Retrieved January 16, 2021.
26. "Swisscharts.com – Body Count – Born Dead". Hung Medien. Retrieved January 16, 2021.
27. "Official Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved January 16, 2021.
28. "Body Count Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved January 16, 2021.
29. "Top 100 Album-Jahrescharts". GfK Entertainment (in German). offiziellecharts.de. Retrieved January 16, 2021.