Tricks of the Shade | ||||
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Studio album by | ||||
Released | 1992 | |||
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Label | Ruffhouse | |||
Producer |
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The Goats chronology | ||||
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Tricks of the Shade is the debut album by American hip hop group the Goats, released in 1992 though Columbia Records sub-label Ruffhouse Records. [2] It was produced by OaTie Kato and Joe "The Butcher" Nicolo. The artwork was done by Oatie's brother and former Goats member Vinnie Angel. [3]
Two singles were released from the album, "¿Do The Digs Dug?" and "Typical American", [4] the latter of which appeared on Ruffhouse Records' final release in 1999, the greatest hits compilation Ruffhouse Records Greatest Hits. "¿Do the Digs Dug?" was included on the 1992 Columbia Records Zebrahead soundtrack. [5]
Although largely touted as a theme album with a backstory following the two characters Chicken Little and Hangerhead as they make their way through Uncle Scam’s Federally Funded Welfare & Freakshow to find their mother who was jailed for attempting an illegal abortion, Tricks of the Shade features politically charged lyrics. It takes aim at such figures as then-US President George H. W. Bush, [6] Christopher Columbus, and Daryl Gates. [4] [7] Criticism and observations were made upon topics such as militarism, police brutality, patriotism, classism, and racism. Other persons mentioned in songs include Nelson Mandela, Willie Horton, Yusef Hawkins, Minnesota Fats and Leonard Peltier. [4] [3]
Review scores | |
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Source | Rating |
AllMusic | [8] |
Chicago Tribune | [9] |
Robert Christgau | A [1] |
Rolling Stone | [7] |
Tricks of the Shade earned some critical acclaim, including 4 of 5 stars in its review by Rolling Stone, [7] and an A from Robert Christgau. [1] The Chicago Tribune opined that "the bulk of the collection features some hard-hitting music, freshened by the presence of five distinct rap voices." [9]
A Place in the Sun is the second studio album by the American rock band Lit, released on February 23, 1999.
Irresistible Bliss is the second studio album by the American electronic music group Soul Coughing, released in 1996. The band initially planned for Tchad Blake, producer of their first album Ruby Vroom, to produce the album, but the death of a family member in a car accident caused Blake to take a hiatus. Over the objections of his bandmates and his record label, Slash Records/Warner Bros., frontman Mike Doughty hired producer David Kahne ; he was intent on following up the wild sonics of Ruby Vroom with a tightly wound, trembly, New Wave–inspired record.
Pretzel Logic is the third studio album by American rock band Steely Dan, released on February 20, 1974, by ABC Records. It was recorded at the Village Recorder in West Los Angeles, California, with producer Gary Katz. The album was Steely Dan's last to be made and released while the group was still an active touring band, as well as the final album to feature the band's full quintet-lineup of Becker, Fagen, Denny Dias, Jim Hodder, and Jeff "Skunk" Baxter, though it also features significant contributions from many prominent Los Angeles-based studio musicians.
Can't Buy a Thrill is the debut studio album by American rock band Steely Dan, released in November 1972, by ABC Records. It was written by band members Walter Becker and Donald Fagen, and recorded in August 1972 at the Village Recorder in Los Angeles with producer Gary Katz. The album is one of Steely Dan's most stylistically eclectic, encompassing the sounds of soft rock, folk rock, jazz rock and pop, alongside philosophical, elliptical lyrics.
Wildflowers is the second solo studio album by American musician Tom Petty, released on November 1, 1994, by Warner Bros. Records. It was the first album released by Petty after signing a contract with Warner Bros., where he had recorded as part of the Traveling Wilburys. It was the first of three of his albums produced with Rick Rubin. Wildflowers was very well-received by critics upon release and was certified 3× platinum in the United States by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA). In 2020, Wildflowers was ranked at number 214 on Rolling Stone's list of the "500 Greatest Albums of All Time".
Cypress Hill III: Temples of Boom is the third studio album by Latin-American hip hop group Cypress Hill. It was released on October 31, 1995, by Ruffhouse and Columbia Records. It was the first album to feature Eric Bobo as an official member of the group. The album featured a stylistic change, as the group turned towards a darker, tranquil, slower, and spookier sound with their beats. The album went Platinum in the U.S. with 1 million units sold.
The End of Everything is the second studio album by Voodoo Child, a pseudonym of American electronica musician Moby. It was released in July 1996 by record labels Trophy, Mute and Elektra.
Zebrahead is a 1992 American romantic drama film produced by Oliver Stone, written and directed by Anthony Drazan and starring Michael Rapaport and N'Bushe Wright. The film also stars Kevin Corrigan, Ray Sharkey, and Lois Bendler.
Made in the Shade, released in 1975, is the fourth official compilation album by the Rolling Stones, and the first under their Atlantic Records contract. It covers material from Sticky Fingers (1971), Exile on Main St. (1972), Goats Head Soup (1973) and It's Only Rock 'n' Roll (1974).
The Goats were an American alternative hip hop trio from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
Nobody's Angel was an American girl group of the late 1990s and early 2000s. The group consisted of four members Alitzah Navarro, Stacey Harper, Amy Sue Hardy, and Sarah Smith, and later, Jennie Kwan and Tai-Amber Hoo as replacements when Harper and Hardy left the group. The band was put together after they became friends and discovered they had something in common: a shared taste for music, dancing, and acting.
Down with the King is the sixth studio album by American hip hop group Run-D.M.C., released on May 4, 1993, by Profile Records. The album was produced by Run-D.M.C., Pete Rock, Q-Tip, EPMD, KayGee of Naughty by Nature, Jam Master Jay, the Bomb Squad, Daniel Shulman, Chyskills, Jermaine Dupri and Clifton "Specialist" Dillon.
"Halftime" is a song by American rapper Nasty Nas, who would change his name to Nas after the release of the song. The song was released as his debut single, the sole single from the Zebrahead soundtrack album and the lead single from his debut album Illmatic, on October 13, 1992. "Halftime" was produced by Large Professor, Remixed by Joe "The Butcher" Nicolo and features samples of drums and vocals from "Schoolboy Crush" by Average White Band, horns from "Soul Traveling" by Gary Byrd, and the bassline from "Dead End" from the Japanese cast recording of the musical Hair. The song was the first song created for Illmatic, and was released circa one and a half years earlier than the album.
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Zebrahead (Soundtrack From the Original Motion Picture) is the soundtrack to Anthony Drazan's 1992 drama film Zebrahead. It was released on October 13, 1992 via Ruffhouse Records and Sony Music Entertainment. The soundtrack is best known for containing Nas's debut single "Halftime".
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Andy Kravitz is an American drummer and percussionist, audio engineer, record producer, and songwriter. He has been nominated for 14 Grammy Awards, winning several. He lives near Venice Beach in Los Angeles, California.
Rucyl is a new media and sound artist, singer, musician, and producer. Her interests involve experimentation and process as performance, time-based analog effects systems, and using sound to represent concepts that are non-tactile. Her earlier experimental works incorporated vocal improvisation and computer generated algorithmic music in tandem with generated visual projections, using Max MSP and VJ software. Rucyl improvises during her live performances using MIDI controllers, loopers, diy software and hardware, and effects processors.