It Takes a Thief (album)

It Takes a Thief
Studio album by Coolio
Released	July 19, 1994
Genre	West Coast hip-hop gangsta rap G-funk
Length	59:14
Label	Tommy Boy
Producer	Paul Stewart, Bryan Wino Dobbs, Rashad Coles(Coes), Billy Boy, Crazy Toones, CS Coleman
Coolio chronology
It Takes a Thief (1994) Gangsta's Paradise (1995)
Singles from It Takes a Thief
"County Line" Released: October 5, 1993 "I Remember" Released: 1994 "Fantastic Voyage" Released: March 1994 "Mama, I'm in Love with a Gangsta" Released: 1994

It Takes a Thief is the debut studio album by American rapper Coolio. ^[1] It was released on July 19, 1994, on Warner Bros. Records. The album received praise for bringing a humorous and lighthearted perspective to the often violent and profane themes of typical gangsta rap.

"Fantastic Voyage," a hit from the early 1980s, returned to the charts after Coolio released a song of the same name from this album. The song received regular airplay on MTV and became his breakout hit, peaking at No. 3 in the US. Songs "Smokin Stix," "Can-o-Corn," and "Sticky Fingers" first appeared in the film Poetic Justice .

Critical reception

Professional ratings

Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic	[2]
Robert Christgau	[3]
Entertainment Weekly	B+ [4]
Los Angeles Times	[5]
NME	8/10 [6]
Rolling Stone	[7]
Select	[8]

The Los Angeles Times concluded that It Takes a Thief "may be one of the best hard-core Compton rap records since the first N.W.A. album." ^[5] USA Today wrote that the album "mixes hard-core themes with tongue-in-cheek attitude and funky, unflinching rhythms." ^[9]

Track listing

All tracks are written by Artis Ivey, unless otherwise noted.

No.	Title	Writer(s)	Length
1.	"Fantastic Voyage"	Artis Ivey; Bryan Wino Dobbs; Fred Alexander; Norman Beavers; Marvin Craig; Tiemeyer McCain; Thomas Shelby; Stephen Shockley; Otis Stokes; Mark Adam Woods	4:03
2.	"County Line"	Artis Ivey; Bryan Wino Dobbs; Allen Jones; Charles Allen; Clifton Chase; Ed Fletcher; Frank Thompson; Harvey Henderson; James Alexander; Larry Dodson; Lloyd Smith; Mark Bynum; Melvin Glover; Michael Beard; Sherman Guy; Sylvia Robinson; Winston Stewart	2:57
3.	"Mama, I'm in Love wit a Gangsta" (featuring LeShaun)	Artis Ivey; Chris Jasper; Ernie Isley; Marvin Isley; O'Kelly Isley Jr.; Ronald Isley; Rudolph Isley; Roy Ayers	4:09
4.	"Hand on My Nutsac"		3:28
5.	"Ghetto Cartoon"	Artis Ivey; Autry DeWalt; Freddie Perren; Willie Woods	3:13
6.	"Smokin' Stix"	Artis Ivey; Allan Felder; Talmadge Conway	3:20
7.	"Can-o-Corn"		3:40
8.	"U Know Hoo!" (featuring WC)	Artis Ivey; William Calhoun	3:51
9.	"It Takes a Thief"		5:06
10.	"Bring Back Somethin' fo da Hood"	Artis Ivey; Ralph MacDonald	3:11
11.	"N da Closet"	Artis Ivey; Frank Wilson; James Nyx Jr.; Kathy Wakefield; Marvin Gaye	3:51
12.	"On My Way to Harlem"		3:13
13.	"Sticky Fingers"	Artis Ivey; Bryan Wino Dobbs; Clifton "Jiggs" Chase; Ed Fletcher; Melvin Glover; Sylvia Robinson	2:59
14.	"Thought You Knew"		3:19
15.	"Ugly Bitches"	Artis Ivey; Ken Gold; Michael Denne	4:06
16.	"I Remember" (featuring J-Ro and Billy Boy)	Artis Ivey; Al Green; Kenneth Gamble; Leon Huff; Willie Mitchell	4:47

Charts

Weekly charts Chart (1994) Peak position US Billboard 200 [10] 8 US Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums (Billboard) [11] 5

Year-end charts Chart (1994) Position US Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums (Billboard) [12] 80

Certifications

Region	Certification	Certified units/sales
Canada (Music Canada) [13]	Gold	50,000^
United States (RIAA) [14]	Platinum	1,000,000^
^ Shipments figures based on certification alone.

References

1. Considine, J. D. "Coolio gets personal, mixing meaning with his infectious groove". The Baltimore Sun.
2. "It Takes a Thief Coolio". AllMusic .
3. "Coolio". Robert Christgau . Retrieved September 28, 2014.
4. "It Takes a Thief". Entertainment Weekly . Retrieved September 29, 2022.
5. Gold, Jonathan (July 24, 1994). "Coolio 'It Takes a Thief'". Calendar. Los Angeles Times . p. 65.
6. McCann, Ian (October 15, 1994). "Long Play". NME . p. 54. Retrieved November 3, 2023.
7. "Album Reviews, Ratings, and Best New Albums". Rolling Stone . Archived from the original on December 6, 2008. Retrieved September 28, 2014.
8. Hall, Matt (November 1994). "New Albums". Select . p. 100. Retrieved December 25, 2024.
9. Jones IV, James T. (September 19, 1994). "Two rappers outside the gangsta scene". USA Today. p. 4D.
10. "Coolio Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved November 8, 2020.
11. "Coolio Chart History (Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved November 8, 2020.
12. "Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums – Year-End 1994". Billboard. Retrieved November 8, 2020.
13. "Canadian album certifications – Coolio – It Takes a Thief". Music Canada.
14. "American album certifications – Coolio – It Takes a Thief". Recording Industry Association of America.

External links

• It Takes a Thief at Discogs (list of releases)