Stone Cold Rhymin' is the debut album by the American rapper Young MC. It was released in 1989 on Delicious Vinyl and was later re-issued by Rhino Records. The album reached No. 9 on the Billboard Top Pop Albums chart.[1] The third track, "Bust a Move", was Young MC's biggest hit and is his best-known song, reaching No. 7 on the Billboard Hot 100[2] and topping the charts in Australia.[3] His follow-up single, "Principal's Office", reached No. 33 on the Billboard Hot 100 and was also nominated for "Best Rap Video" at the 1990 MTV Video Music Awards.

Stone Cold Rhymin'
Studio album by
ReleasedSeptember 5, 1989
Recorded1988−89
GenreHip hop
Length47:24
LabelDelicious Vinyl
Producer
Young MC chronology
Stone Cold Rhymin'
(1989)
Brainstorm
(1991)
Singles from Stone Cold Rhymin'
  1. "I Let 'Em Know"
    Released: 1988
  2. "Know How"
    Released: 1988
  3. "Bust a Move"
    Released: May 22, 1989
  4. "Principal's Office"
    Released: 1989
  5. "I Come Off"
    Released: 1990
  6. "Pick Up the Pace"
    Released: 1990

Critical reception

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Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic     [4]
Chicago Tribune    [5]
Los Angeles Times     [6]
NME7/10[7]
Q     [8]
RapReviews6.5/10[9]
Record Mirror4/5[10]
The Rolling Stone Album Guide     [11]
Tiny Mix Tapes3.5/5[12]
The Village VoiceB+[13]

The Calgary Herald noted that Young MC possesses "perhaps the clearest enunciation in rap: every word comes through perfectly, and yet his delivery is more musical than most."[14]

Track listing

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All tracks composed by Marvin Young, Matt Dike, and Michael Ross except where otherwise noted. All tracks published by PolyGram Music except "Just Say No" published by PolyGram/Warner Chappell.

  1. "I Come Off" (feat. N'Dea Davenport)
  2. "Principal's Office"
  3. "Bust a Move"
  4. "Non Stop"
  5. "Fastest Rhyme" (M. Young)
  6. "My Name is Young" (M. Young/M. Dike)[a]
  7. "Know How" (M. Young/John "King Gizmo" King/Michael "E.Z. Mike" Simpson)
  8. "Roll with the Punches"
  9. "I Let 'Em Know"
  10. "Pick Up the Pace" (M. Young/M. Dike)
  11. "Got More Rhymes" (M. Young/M. Dike/M. Ross/J. King)
  12. "Stone Cold Buggin'" (M. Young/M. Dike)
  13. "Just Say No" (M. Young/Quincy Jones Jr.)
  1. ^ There are two versions of "My Name is Young". The lyrics are the same but the music is distinct.

Personnel

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  • Young MC – vocals, songwriting
  • Matt Dike – production, arrangement, mixing (all tracks except 7 and 13)
  • Michael Ross – production, arrangement, mixing (all tracks except 7 and 13)
  • The Dust Brothers – production, arrangement, mixing (track 7), co-production (track 11)
  • Quincy Jones Jr. – production, arrangement, mixing (track 13)
  • Mario Caldato Jr. – engineering
  • Brian Foxworthy – additional engineering
  • Salomon – photography, art direction
  • EMC-0 – production coordinator
  • Crystal Blake – vocals (tracks 1, 3 and 11)
  • Flea – bass (tracks 2 and 3)
  • Kevin O'Neal – bass (tracks 7 and 8)
  • John Dexter Steward Jr. – drums (tracks 2 and 4)

Charts

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Chart performance for Stone Cold Rhymin'
Chart (1990) Peak
position
Australian Albums (ARIA)[15] 38
New Zealand Albums (RMNZ)[16] 7
US Billboard 200[17] 9
US Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums (Billboard)[18] 8

References

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  1. ^ "Billboard 200™". Billboard. December 9, 1989. Retrieved May 16, 2024.
  2. ^ "Billboard Hot 100™". Billboard. October 14, 1989. Retrieved May 16, 2024.
  3. ^ "Young M.C. - Bust a Move (song)". Australian-charts.com. Retrieved May 2, 2010.
  4. ^ Erlewine, Stephen Thomas. "Stone Cold Rhymin' – Young MC". AllMusic. Retrieved June 18, 2018.
  5. ^ Kot, Greg (October 19, 1989). "Young M.C.: Stone Cold Rhymin' (Delicious Vinyl)". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved June 18, 2018.
  6. ^ Hilburn, Robert; Hunt, Dennis; Boehm, Mike; Cromelin, Richard; Gold, Jonathan; Hochman, Steve; Johnson, Connie; Lee, Craig; McKenna, Kristine; Lewis, Randy; Snowden, Don; Willman, Chris; Grein, Paul; Marlowe, Duff; Waller, Don (October 29, 1989). "The Record Industry's Big Push". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved May 16, 2024.
  7. ^ Fadele, Dele (December 9, 1989). "Young MC: Stone Cold Rhymin'". NME. p. 31.
  8. ^ Mulholland, Garry (June 2004). "Young MC: Stone Cold Rhymin'". Q. No. 215.
  9. ^ Juon, Steve "Flash" (November 9, 2021). "Young M.C. :: Stone Cold Rhymin'". RapReviews. Retrieved May 16, 2024.
  10. ^ Smith, Robin (December 16, 1989). "Young MC: Stone Cold Rhymin'". Record Mirror. p. 15.
  11. ^ Coleman, Mark (1992). "Young MC". In DeCurtis, Anthony; Henke, James; George-Warren, Holly (eds.). The Rolling Stone Album Guide (3rd ed.). Random House. pp. 797–798. ISBN 0-679-73729-4.
  12. ^ Holmes, Filmore Mescalito (April 23, 2009). "Young MC – Stone Cold Rhymin'". Tiny Mix Tapes. Archived from the original on April 24, 2009. Retrieved May 16, 2024.
  13. ^ Christgau, Robert (May 29, 1990). "Consumer Guide". The Village Voice. Retrieved June 18, 2018.
  14. ^ Mayes, Alison (Oct 26, 1989). "Discs". Calgary Herald. p. D3.
  15. ^ "Australiancharts.com – Young MC – Stone Cold Rhymin'". Hung Medien. Retrieved October 29, 2022.
  16. ^ "Charts.nz – Young M.C. – Stone Cold Rhymin'". Hung Medien. Retrieved October 29, 2022.
  17. ^ "Young MC Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved October 29, 2022.
  18. ^ "Young MC Chart History (Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved October 29, 2022.