II (Boyz II Men album)
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| II | ||||
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| Studio album by Boyz II Men | ||||
| Released | August 30, 1994 (Release history) |
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| Recorded | December 1993—May 1994 | |||
| Genre | R&B, hip hop soul, pop, Soul, New jack swing | |||
| Length | 57:31 | |||
| Language | English | |||
| Label | Motown | |||
| Producer | Babyface, Tim & Bob, Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis | |||
| Boyz II Men chronology | ||||
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| Singles from II | ||||
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II is the second studio album by boy band Boyz II Men, released in August 1994 on Motown Records. It contained the #1 singles "I'll Make Love To You" and "On Bended Knee", the latter of which replaced the former at the top of the Billboard Hot 100, making the group the third artist to replace themselves at #1 in the US after Elvis Presley and The Beatles and the first to achieve the feat in 30 years.
"I'll Make Love to You" also spent 14 weeks at the top of the Hot 100 making them the first artist to achieve consecutive double digit runs at the top, with their prior single "End of the Road" topping the charts for 13 weeks and also equaled the record set by Whitney Houston's "I Will Always Love You" for the longest run at the top, a record which they held previously with "End of the Road". Other singles released achieved major success, including "Water Runs Dry", which reached #2, and "Thank You", which reached #21. "Vibin'", however, only reached #52.
The spoken track produced by Tim & Bob "Khalil (Interlude)" is a tribute to their road manager Khalil Roundtree who was shot in Chicago, Illinois while the band was opening for MC Hammer's Too Legit to Quit tour.
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[edit] Reception
| Professional ratings | |
|---|---|
| Review scores | |
| Source | Rating |
| Allmusic |   [1] |
| Robert Christgau |  [2] |
The album debuted at #1 in the Billboard 200 with 350,000 copies sold. It spent a total of five weeks at #1 and was the third best-selling album in 1995 in the United States and sold 12 million copies in the United States.
It did not make a huge impact in the UK, where it only made #17 on the UK Albums Chart. A Spanish language version, II: Yo Te Voy a Amar, was also issued. The album also won Best R&B Album at the 37th Grammy Awards.
[edit] Track listing
- "Thank You" (Michael S. McCary, Nathan Morris, Wanya Morris, Shawn Stockman, Dallas Austin) – 4:34
- "All Around the World" (James Harris III, Terry Lewis, Michael S. McCary, Nathan Morris, Wanya Morris, Shawn Stockman, Daddy-O) – 4:56
- "U Know" (Michael S. McCary, Nathan Morris, Wanya Morris, Shawn Stockman, Tim Kelley, Bob Robinson) – 4:46
- "Vibin'" (Michael S. McCary, Nathan Morris, Wanya Morris, Shawn Stockman, Tim Kelley, Bob Robinson) – 4:26
- "I Sit Away" (Tony Rich) – 4:34
- "Jezzebel" (Wanya Morris, Shawn Stockman, The Characters: Troy Taylor & Charles Farrar) – 6:06
- "Khalil (Interlude)" (Nathan Morris, Shawn Stockman Tim Kelley, Bob Robinson) – 1:41
- "Trying Times" (Wanya Morris, Tim Kelley, Bob Robinson) – 5:23
- "I'll Make Love to You" (Babyface) – 4:07
- "On Bended Knee" (James Harris III, Terry Lewis) – 5:29
- "50 Candles" (Shawn Stockman, Tim Kelley, Bob Robinson) – 5:06
- "Water Runs Dry" (Babyface) – 3:22
- "Yesterday" (Paul McCartney, John Lennon) – 3:07
- "Falling" (Brian McKnight & Brandon Barnes) – 4:09
[edit] Charts
| Chart (1994) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Australian Albums Chart | 4 |
| Dutch Albums Chart | 7 |
| German Albums Chart | 18 |
| New Zealand Albums Chart | 1 |
| Swedish Albums Chart | 20 |
| Swiss Albums Chart | 21 |
| UK Albums Chart | 17[3] |
| U.S. Billboard 200 | 1 |
| U.S. Billboard Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums | 1 |
[edit] End of decade charts
| Chart (1990–1999) | Position |
|---|---|
| U.S. Billboard 200[4] | 13 |
| Preceded by The Lion King (soundtrack) by Various artists From the Cradle by Eric Clapton Monster by R.E.M. The Hits by Garth Brooks |
Billboard 200 number-one album September 17–30, 1994 October 8–14, 1994 October 29 - November 4, 1994 March 11–17, 1995 |
Succeeded by From the Cradle by Eric Clapton Monster by R.E.M. Murder Was the Case by Various artists Greatest Hits by Bruce Springsteen |
[edit] Release history
| Region | Date | Label | Format | Catalog |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| United States | August 30, 1994 | Motown Records | Cassette, CD | |
| United Kingdom | September 12, 1994 | Motown Records | Cassette, CD |
[edit] See also
- List of best-selling albums in the United States
- List of number-one albums of 1994 (U.S.)
- List of number-one albums of 1995 (U.S.)
- List of number-one R&B albums of 1994 (U.S.)
[edit] References
- ^ Stephen Thomas Erlewine. "II". Allmusic. http://www.allmusic.com/album/r203236. Retrieved January 11, 2012.
- ^ "CG: Artist 182". Robert Christgau. http://www.robertchristgau.com/get_artist.php?id=182. Retrieved 2012-01-11.
- ^ "Boyz II Men - II". Chart Stats. http://www.chartstats.com/albuminfo.php?id=12716. Retrieved 2012-01-11.
- ^ Geoff Mayfield (December 25, 1999). 1999 The Year in Music Totally '90s: Diary of a Decade - The listing of Top Pop Albums of the '90s & Hot 100 Singles of the '90s. Billboard. http://books.google.co.kr/books?id=9w0EAAAAMBAJ&lpg=PP1&lr&rview=1&pg=RA1-PA4#v=onepage&q&f=false. Retrieved October 15, 2010.
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