Diary of a Mad Band
1993 studio album by Jodeci
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Diary of a Mad Band is the second studio album by American R&B group Jodeci. It was released on December 21, 1993, through Uptown Records and distributed by MCA Records. The album also featured the first-ever album appearances from Timbaland & Magoo, S.B.I, Missy Elliott (credited as Misdemeanor) and Sista, two years before the latter group became known in the music industry. New Jersey rapper Redman also makes a guest appearance on the album. It was Jodeci's second album to reach number one on the R&B album chart, where it stayed for two weeks. It spawned the number 1 R&B hit "Cry for You"; the number 2 R&B hit "Feenin'", and the Top 15 R&B hit "What About Us". Despite not being released as a single, the album's opening track, "My Heart Belongs to U", was also an urban radio hit with it peaking at number 55 and charting for 20 weeks on the Billboard R&B/Hip-Hop Airplay chart. To date, the album has sold over four million copies in the United States and six million worldwide.
- Hit Factory, New York City
- Chung King, New York City
| Diary of a Mad Band | ||||
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| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | December 21, 1993 | |||
| Recorded | July–November 1993 | |||
| Studio |
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| Genre | ||||
| Length | 66:03 | |||
| Label | ||||
| Producer | ||||
| Jodeci chronology | ||||
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| Singles from Diary of a Mad Band | ||||
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Critical reception
| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |   [1] |
| Chicago Tribune | [3] |
| Christgau's Consumer Guide |  [4] |
| Entertainment Weekly | B+[5] |
| Los Angeles Times | [6] |
| Music Week | [7] |
| Orlando Sentinel | [8] |
Dimitri Ehrlich of Entertainment Weekly wrote that at times bested the group's first, stating that the songs on their sophomore effort "often transcend the formulaic histrionics that marred their debut."[5] AllMusic critic Ron Wynn deemed the record "jarring" and "mismatched", preferring its sentimental love songs to the sexually explicit, hip hop-influenced "come-on numbers", which he found to be in poor taste.[1] Rohan B. Preston from the Chicago Tribune found the lyrics clichéd and Jodeci "certainly not as funky as H-Town nor as stirring as Boyz II Men at their best".[3] Robert Christgau was even less impressed and assigned it a "neither" symbol in his Consumer Guide book, indicating an album that "may impress once or twice with consistent craft or an arresting track or two. Then it won't."[4]
Track listing
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "My Heart Belongs to U" | Donald Earle DeGrate, Jr. | 5:02 |
| 2. | "Cry for You" | DeGrate | 5:01 |
| 3. | "Feenin'" | DeGrate | 5:10 |
| 4. | "What About Us" |
| 5:20 |
| 5. | "Ride & Slide" | DeGrate | 4:57 |
| 6. | "Alone" |
| 4:43 |
| 7. | "You Got It" (featuring Redman) |
| 5:56 |
| 8. | "Won't Waste You" (featuring Missy Elliott) | 4:55 | |
| 9. | "In the Meanwhile" (featuring Timbaland) |
| 4:22 |
| 10. | "Gimme All You Got" |
| 3:42 |
| 11. | "Sweaty" (featuring Missy Elliott) |
| 5:54 |
| 12. | "Jodecidal Hotline" | Dalvin DeGrate | 3:11 |
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 13. | "Success" |
| 7:41 |
Charts
Weekly charts
|
Year-end charts
|
Singles
| Year | Single | Peak chart positions[14] | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| U.S. Billboard Hot 100 | U.S. Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Singles & Tracks | U.S. Rhythmic Top 40 | |||||
| 1993 | "Cry for You" | 15 | 1 | 5 | |||
| 1994 | "Feenin'" | 25 | 2 | 16 | |||
| "What About Us" | — | 14 | — | ||||
"—" denotes releases that did not chart.
Certifications
| Region | Certification | Certified units/sales |
|---|---|---|
| United States (RIAA)[15] | 2× Platinum | 2,000,000^ |
|
^ Shipments figures based on certification alone. | ||
Personnel
Information taken from Allmusic.[16]
- arranging – Dalvin DeGrate, Cedric "K-Ci" Hailey, DeVante Swing
- recording engineer – Prince Charles Alexander
- assistant engineer – Steve Fitzmaurice
- creative director – Brett Wright
- scratches - Timbaland
- executive producers – Tim Dawg, Andre Harrell, Jodeci, Steve Lucas
- guitar – Darryl Pearson
- horn – Charles "Prince Charles" Alexander
- mastering – Chris Gehringer
- mixing – Charles "Prince Charles" Alexander, Bob Brockman, Dalvin DeGrate, Steve Fitzmaurice, Tony Maserati, DeVante Swing, John Wydrycs
- multi-instruments – Dalvin DeGrate, DeVante Swing
- talkbox - Mike "Funky Mike" Jackson
- photography – Daniel Hastings
- production – Mr. Dalvin, DeVante Swing
- production coordination – Dean "Mr. Magoo" Moodie
- vocal consultant – Kenny Hicks
- backing vocals – Jodeci
- guest vocals – Redman, Timbaland, Sista, Magoo, S.B.I. and Misdemeanor