Mind Blowin'

For the Smooth song, see Mind Blowin' (Smooth song).
Mind Blowin'
Studio album by Vanilla Ice
Released March 22, 1994
Recorded 1992-1994
Genre Rap, funk, g-funk
Length 47:14
Label SBK
Producer Tha Hit-Men
Vanilla Ice
Vanilla Ice chronology
To the Extreme
(1990)		 Mind Blowin'
(1994)		 Hard to Swallow
(1998)
Singles from Mind Blowin'
  1. "Roll 'Em Up"
    Released: February 9, 1994
  2. "The Wrath"
    Released: August 17, 1994
  3. "Get Loose"
    Released: March 27, 1995

Mind Blowin' is the second studio album by American rapper Vanilla Ice. Released on March 22, 1994, it is the rapper's final release on SBK Records. The album did not chart, and received unfavorable reviews. It has since received some degree of cult status in the hip hop community. Songs from the album made up one third of Vanilla Ice's tours during 1992-2010.

Ice followed up this album with 1998's Hard to Swallow, which involved a switch to the record label Republic Records.

Production

In late 1991, Ice started talking about his second album, which then had the working title 'Ice Capades'. While writing and recording new songs, Ice premiered three of them in 1992 during his tours, including The Wrath, Now & Forever and Iceman Party. The original version of The Wrath was heavily changed for its album release after the departure of Ice's regular disc jockey Earthquake. The album was recorded throughout 1992 to 1994 and was eventually named 'Mind Blowin' which was a nod to Ice's rhyming skills.

Lyrics

The Wrath, one of the album's singles, was a reply to the single Pop Goes the Weasel by 3rd Bass.

Mark Wahlberg, then in the rap group Marky Mark and the Funky Bunch had made negative remarks on Ice in one of his songs. Ice answered back in the song Hit 'em Hard which was almost in its entirety a dis song aimed at Mark, but Ice also included 3rd Bass and MC Hammer. Neither 3rd Bass nor Marky Mark and the Funky Bunch responded.[1]

A lot of the lyrics were drug influenced and featured references to smoking marijuana, especially in the single Roll 'em Up. The song I Go Down pays tribute to Gang Starr, Mary J. Blige and Tupac Shakur.

Reception

Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
Allmusic[2]
Entertainment Weekly(D)[3]

Reviews were unfavorable. Entertainment Weekly reviewer James Bernard called the album "more clunky than funky".[3] Rolling Stone reviewer Danyel Smith called the song "Get Loose" "snappy", writing that although the lyrics are "inane", "the song is a thumping party, one of the few places where Ice loosens up. He sounds solid at the beginning of 'The Wrath' as well [...] He sounds easy and unaffected – close to sexy. But he doesn't keep it up: In 'Now and Forever,' a wet dream kind of song, Ice goes back to goofy lyrics [...] and his dry Max Headroom style."[4] AllMusic reviewer Stephen Thomas Erlewine wrote that "There isn't a single moment that establishes a distinct musical identity, and the whole thing is rather embarrassing."[2]

Vanilla Ice's cannabis-oriented lyrics were questioned by some, including Primus bassist Les Claypool, who stated in an interview for High Times, "He's got dreadlocks and he's got this song about smoking pot and basically he uses every little catch phrase he can think of that has to do with pot in his rap. That's all fine and dandy and cute, but it could be misconstrued and manipulated by the wrong people."[5] The album was named the "Least Essential Album Showcasing An Image Makeover" in The A.V. Club's list of the "Least Essential Albums of the '90s," cited as "an album that inspired almost no one to roll up the hootie mack, as instructed in its first single."[6]

Track listing

All tracks written by Vanilla Ice and Zero unless otherwise noted. All songs produced by DJ Zero and Vanilla Ice unless otherwise noted. 

No.TitleWriter(s)Producer(s)Length
1."Live Intro"   DJ Zero, Tha Hit Men and Vanilla Ice0:51
2."Fame"   DJ Zero, Tha Hit Men and Vanilla Ice4:15
3."Get 'Em Now"    0:08
4."The Wrath"    4:20
5."Roll 'Em Up"  Vanilla Ice, Rod Johnson and Patrick Rollins 4:30
6."Hit 'Em Hard"    3:10
7."Smooth Interlude"    0:31
8."Now And Forever"    3:40
9."Iceman Party"  Vanilla IceTha Hit Men and Vanilla Ice3:34
10."Oh My Gosh"    3:25
11."Minutes Of Power"  Vanilla IceTha Hit Men and Vanilla Ice3:50
12."I Go Down"    3:27
13."Bullet On The Chart"    0:28
14."Phunky Rhymes"    3:47
15."Blowin' My Mind"    3:18
16."Son Of A Gun"    0:07
17."Get Loose"    3:41
Total length:47:14

Samples

Fame

The Wrath

Roll 'Em Up

Hit Em Hard

Smooth Interlude

Now & Forever

Iceman Party

Oh My Gosh

Minutes of Power

I Go Down

Phunky Rhymes

Blowin My Mind

Get Loose

Personnel

Musicians

Additional personnel

References

  1. ↑ The Wrath Lyrics. "The Wrath Lyrics". MetroLyrics. Retrieved 2011-01-01.
  2. 1 2 Erlewine, Stephen Thomas. "Mind Blowin'". AllMusic. Retrieved 2008-06-30.
  3. 1 2 Bernard, James (March 25, 1994). "Mind Blowin'". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved March 7, 2009.
  4. ↑ Smith, Danyel (May 5, 1994). "Review of Mind Blowin". Rolling Stone. Retrieved 2009-03-07.
  5. ↑ Kenneally, Tim (July 1994). "The Secret Life of Primus". High Times (227): 49. ISSN 0362-630X.
  6. ↑ Phipps, Keith; Rabin, Nathan; Thompson, Stephen (December 22, 1999). "Least Essential Albums of the '90s". The A.V. Club. Retrieved 2008-03-28.
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