Who? | ||||
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Studio album by | ||||
Released | April 18, 1988 | |||
Studio | Moon Studios, Sacramento | |||
Genre | R&B, new jack swing, soul [1] | |||
Length | 44:26 | |||
Label | Wing, Mercury | |||
Producer | Denzil Foster, Thomas McElroy | |||
Tony! Toni! Toné! chronology | ||||
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Singles from Who? | ||||
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Who? is the debut album by American R&B band Tony! Toni! Toné! It was released on April 18, 1988, by Wing Records and produced by Foster & McElroy, friends of the band from their hometown of Oakland, California. The album was recorded at Moon Studios in Sacramento.
The album received mixed reviews from critics and was a modest commercial success, reaching number 69 on the Billboard Top Pop Albums, on which it charted for 44 weeks. Its lead single, " Little Walter", became a number-one R&B hit. Who? was eventually certified gold by the Recording Industry Association of America and reached 700,000 copies sold by 1993.
Tony! Toni! Toné! recorded Who? at Moon Studios in Sacramento. [2] with producers Foster & McElroy, who were friends of the band from their hometown of Oakland. [3] Foster & McElroy's production used contemporary hip hop and new jack swing sounds that accompanied the band's older soul music background. [1] On "Baby Doll" and "For the Love of You", Tony! Toni! Toné! sang harmonies over the producers' drum machine tracks. [4]
The band also incorporated more eccentric elements to the music. For "Little Walter", they appropriated the melody from Ramsey Lewis' 1966 pop-jazz instrumental hit " Wade in the Water". [5] The lyrics to "261.5" were written with reference to California Penal Code Section 261.5, the state's statutory rape law. [6]
Who? was released on April 18, 1988, [1] by Wing Records. [3] A modest success, [3] it charted for 44 weeks on the Billboard Top Pop Albums, peaking at number 69. [7] The lead single " Little Walter" became an R&B hit and also received considerable pop airplay. [1] On December 5, 1989, the album was certified gold by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA), for shipments of 500,000 copies in the United States. [8] By August 1993, it had sold over 700,000 copies in the US. [9]
Review scores | |
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Source | Rating |
AllMusic | [1] |
Encyclopedia of Popular Music | [10] |
The Philadelphia Inquirer | [5] |
The Rolling Stone Album Guide | [11] |
Reviewing for The Philadelphia Inquirer in May 1988, Ken Tucker appraised Who? as "fairly conventional pop rhythms attractively crooned", but applauded the music's "odd influence". [5] Joe Brown from The Washington Post found the group's voices unimpressive and said, "while their very basic harmonizing over the spartan drum-machine patterns on 'Baby Doll' and 'For the Love of You' are probably serviceable on the dance floor, they'd be deadly dull from a concert seat". [4]
In a retrospective review, AllMusic editor Ron Wynn believed the group "made a quick and lasting impact with" the album, particularly with its single "Little Walter". [1] In The Rolling Stone Album Guide (2004), Fred Schuers said "Little Walter" and " Born Not to Know" revealed the group's "wit", but "these moments are so pointed they leave the disc's love ballads sounding flat". [11] Yahoo! Music's Scott Wilson commented that it was "a very solid debut, with the groundwork for what would follow, but they're just getting their bearings. Did spawn a number one R&B hit with 'Little Walter', but not the juggernauts their later work would be". [12]
All songs were written by Denzil Foster, Thomas McElroy, Timothy Christian Riley, Raphael Wiggins and D'Wayne Wiggins, except where noted. [2]
Credits are adapted from the album's liner notes. [2]
Chart (1988) [7] | Peak position |
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US Billboard Top Pop Albums | 69 |
US Billboard Top Black Albums | 14 |
Song | Chart (1988–1989) | Peak position |
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"Little Walter" | US Billboard Hot 100 [13] | 47 |
US Billboard Hot Black Singles [13] | 1 | |
" Born Not to Know" | US Billboard Hot Black Singles [14] | 4 |
"Baby Doll" | US Billboard Hot Black Singles [15] | 5 |
US Billboard Hot Dance Club Play [15] | 44 | |
"For the Love of You" | US Billboard Hot Black Singles [16] | 6 |