Bow Down

Bow Down
Bow Down
Studio album by Westside Connection
Released	October 22, 1996
Recorded	1995–96
Studio	Westside Studios (California); Treehouse Studios (South Africa);
Genre	West Coast hip hop; gangsta rap; G-funk;
Length	48:12
Label	Priority
Producer	Ice Cube (also exec.); Binky Mack; Bud'da; QDIII; Cedric Samson;
Westside Connection chronology
Mack 10 chronology
WC chronology
Ice Cube chronology
Singles from Bow Down
	"Bow Down"; Released: August 28, 1996; "Gangstas Make the World Go Round"; Released: January 24, 1997;

Bow Down is the debut studio album by American West Coast hip hop supergroup Westside Connection. It was released on October 22, 1996, through Priority Records. The recording sessions took place at Ice Cube's house studio, Westsiiiiide Studios, in California, except for the song "Gangstas Make the World Go Round", which was recorded at Treehouse Studios in South Africa. The production was handled by Bud'da, Quincy Jones III, Binky Mack, and Ice Cube, who also served as executive producer. It features guest appearances from Allfrumtha I and the Comrads.

The album peaked at number two on the Billboard 200 and topped the Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums, shipping 145,000 units.^[1] It went on to sell 1.7 million copies in the United States receiving Platinum certification status by the Recording Industry Association of America on January 10, 1997.^[2] It was also certified Gold by Canadian Recording Industry Association for selling 50,000 units in Canada.

Its singles, a title track and "Gangstas Make the World Go Round", made it to the Billboard Hot 100, landing at number 21 and 40, respectively. The songs "King of the Hill", "Cross 'Em out and Put a 'K" and "Hoo Bangin' (WSCG Style)" are diss tracks towards hip hop group Cypress Hill, Q-Tip and rapper Common.

Critical reception

Professional ratings
Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic	^[3]
Robert Christgau	D+^[4]
Entertainment Weekly	C^[5]
Los Angeles Times	^[6]
Muzik	^[7]
RapReviews	9/10^[8]

The Indianapolis Star called the album "one of the strongest gauntlet-throw-downs on disc, but it may well be a last gasp from the gangsta style that is suffering from Tupac Shakur's murder."^[9]

Track listing

No.	Title	Writer(s)	Producer(s)	Length
1.	"World Domination" (Intro)			1:16
2.	"Bow Down"	O'Shea Jackson Dedrick Rolison William Calhoun Stephen Anderson	Bud'da	3:27
3.	"Gangstas Make the World Go Round"	Jackson Rolison Calhoun Cedric Samson Thom Bell Linda Creed	Ice Cube Cedric Samson (co.)	4:33
4.	"All the Critics in New York"	Jackson Rolison Calhoun Ryan Garner	Binky Mack Ice Cube (co.)	5:35
5.	"Do You Like Criminals?" (featuring K-Dee)	Jackson Rolison Calhoun Kelly Garmon S. Anderson	Bud'da	5:01
6.	"Gangstas Don't Dance" (Insert)		Binky Mack	0:22
7.	"The Gangsta, the Killa and the Dope Dealer"	Jackson Rolison Calhoun S. Anderson Trent Reznor	Bud'da	4:15
8.	"Cross 'Em Out and Put a 'K"	Jackson Rolison Calhoun S. Anderson	Bud'da	4:56
9.	"King of the Hill"	Jackson Rolison Quincy Jones III	QDIII	4:17
10.	"3 Time Felons"	Jackson Rolison Calhoun S. Anderson	Bud'da	5:10
11.	"Westward Ho"	Jackson Rolison Calhoun Jones III	QDIII	5:12
12.	"The Pledge" (Insert)			0:14
13.	"Hoo-Bangin' (WSCG Style)" (featuring The Comrads and Allfrumtha I)	Jackson Rolison Calhoun Garmon Terrell Anderson Garner Marcus Moore	Ice Cube	3:58
Total length:				48:12

Sample credits

Track 3 contains an interpolation of "People Make the World Go Round" written by Thom Bell and Linda Creed
Track 7 contains a sample from "Hurt" written by Trent Reznor as recorded by Nine Inch Nails
Track 10 contains an interpolation of "With a Little Help from My Friends" written by Lennon-McCartney

Personnel

O'Shea "Ice Cube" Jackson – main performer, producer (tracks: 3, 13), co-producer (track 4), engineering, mixing, executive producer
Dedrick "Mack 10" Rolison – main performer
William "WC" Calhoun Jr. – main performer
Kelly "K-Mac" Garmon – featured artist (tracks: 5, 13)
Terrell "Gangsta" Anderson – featured artist (track 13)
Ryan "Binky Mack" Garner – featured artist (track 13), producer (track 4)
Marcus "Squeak Ru" Moore – featured artist (track 13)
Jonathan Hyde – vocals (track 1)
Stephen "Bud'da" Anderson – producer (tracks: 2, 5, 7, 8, 10)
Quincy Delight Jones III – producer (tracks: 9, 11)
Cedric Samson – co-producer (track 3)
Keston Wright – engineering
Art Shoji – art direction, design
Manuel J. Donayre – art direction, design
Michael Miller – photography
Steven Wills – logo artwork
Marvin Watkins – A&R

Charts

Year-end charts

Chart (1996)	Position
US Billboard 200^[13]	171
US Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums (Billboard)^[14]	48

Chart (1997)	Position
US Billboard 200^[15]	64
US Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums (Billboard)^[16]	36

Certifications


Region	Certification	Certified units/sales
Canada (Music Canada)^[17]	Gold	50,000^{^}
United States (RIAA)^[18]	Platinum	1,000,000^{^}
^{^} Shipments figures based on certification alone.

References

External links

Westside Connection – Bow Down at Discogs (list of releases)

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