II is the second studio album by the American rock band The Presidents of the United States of America. It was released via Columbia Records on November 5, 1996, coinciding with the United States presidential election.
| II | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | November 5, 1996 | |||
| Recorded | Studio Litho, Seattle, Washington, August 1996 | |||
| Genre | ||||
| Length | 39:47 | |||
| Label | Columbia | |||
| Producer | Chris Ballew, Dave Dederer, Jason Finn, Craig Montgomery | |||
| The Presidents of the United States of America chronology | ||||
| ||||
| Singles from II | ||||
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| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |   [1] |
| The A.V. Club | (Unfavorable)[6] |
| Chicago Tribune | [2] |
| Entertainment Weekly | A−[3] |
| Los Angeles Times |  [4] |
| Rolling Stone | [5] |
Background edit
The album included a few songs that originally appeared on Froggystyle, a self-released cassette that was recorded before their debut album, The Presidents of the United States of America. These songs, which were re-recorded for this album, were "L.I.P", then known as "Little Indian Princess", "Lunatic to Love" and "Puffy Little Shoes". Also, "Twig" was re-recorded, as it was previously recorded as a B-side to a "Lump" single, where it was known as "Twig in the Wind". That version was later released on Rarities as "Twig (Semi Acoustic Version)".
Track listing edit
All songs by The Presidents of the United States of America.
- "Ladies and Gentlemen, Part 1" – 1:39
- "Lunatic to Love" – 2:57
- "Volcano" – 2:58
- "Mach 5" – 3:15
- "Twig" – 2:37
- "Bug City" – 3:05
- "Bath of Fire" – 2:57
- "Tiki God" – 2:58
- "L.I.P." – 3:20
- "Froggie" – 3:10
- "Toob Amplifier" – 1:22
- "Supermodel" – 2:49
- "Puffy Little Shoes" – 4:59
- "Ladies and Gentlemen, Part 2" – 3:03
- "Basketball Dream" – 0:55 (hidden track)
"Basketball Dream" features a boy, Tony Ballew (a relative of Chris Ballew), describing a dream he had about Magic Johnson - for this reason, the track is often mislabeled "Magic Johnson Dream". Chris Ballew can be heard faintly whispering the lyrics underneath the boy. The recording of Tony's voice, with a different musical backing, previously appeared on Feel Good, an album by Ballew's pre-PUSA band Egg, in 1987.
Personnel edit
- The Presidents of the United States of America
- Chris Ballew – basitar, bass, lead vocals, keyboards
- Dave Dederer – guitbass, guitar, background vocals
- Jason Finn – drums, percussion, background vocals
- Additional personnel
- Dave Thiele - piano, percussion
- Tony Ballew – baby voice on "Basketball Dream"
- Mark Sandman – tritar on "Froggie"
- S. Craig Montgomery – co-producing, engineering
- Wally Traugott – mastering
- Lance Mercer – photography
- Jerry Finn – mixing
- Doug Erb – art directing
- Tom Smurdon – assistant engineering
Charts edit
Weekly charts edit
| Chart (1996-1997) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Australian Albums (ARIA)[7] | 3 |
| Canada Albums (The Record)[8] | 5 |
| Finnish Albums (Suomen virallinen lista)[9] | 30 |
| French Albums (SNEP)[10] | 43 |
| New Zealand Albums (RMNZ)[11] | 20 |
| Norwegian Albums (VG-lista)[12] | 35 |
| Swedish Albums (Sverigetopplistan)[13] | 29 |
| Swiss Albums (Schweizer Hitparade)[14] | 50 |
| US Billboard 200) | 31 |
Year-end charts edit
| Chart (1996) | Position |
|---|---|
| Australia (ARIA) | 37 |
Certifications edit
| Region | Certification | Certified units/sales |
|---|---|---|
| Australia (ARIA)[15] | Platinum | 70,000^ |
| Canada (Music Canada)[16] | Gold | 50,000^ |
| United States (RIAA)[17] | Gold | 500,000^ |
|
^ Shipments figures based on certification alone. | ||
References edit
- ^ Erlewine, Stephen Thomas. "II - The Presidents of the United States of America". AllMusic. Retrieved February 4, 2010.
- ^ Kot, Greg (November 8, 1996). "Presidents of the United States of America II (Columbia)". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved February 25, 2013.
- ^ Browne, David (November 8, 1996). "No. 1 with a Ballot (Page 2)". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved February 25, 2013.
- ^ Scribner, Sara (December 8, 1996). "Presidents of the United States of America, 'II'". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved February 25, 2013.
- ^ Cohen, Jason (November 28, 1996). "Presidents of the United States of America: II : Music Reviews". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on November 13, 2007. Retrieved February 4, 2010.
- ^ Thompson, Stephen (March 29, 2002). "The Presidents Of The United States Of America: II". The A.V. Club. Onion, Inc. Retrieved February 4, 2010.
- ^ "Australiancharts.com – The Presidents of the United States of America – II". Hung Medien. Retrieved November 28, 2021.
- ^ "HITS OF THE WORLD". Billboard. March 9, 1996. Retrieved December 26, 2018.
- ^ "The Presidents of the United States of America: II" (in Finnish). Musiikkituottajat – IFPI Finland. Retrieved November 28, 2021.
- ^ "Lescharts.com – The Presidents of the United States of America – II". Hung Medien. Retrieved November 28, 2021.
- ^ "Charts.nz – The Presidents of the United States of America – II". Hung Medien. Retrieved November 28, 2021.
- ^ "Norwegiancharts.com – The Presidents of the United States of America – II". Hung Medien. Retrieved November 28, 2021.
- ^ "Swedishcharts.com – The Presidents of the United States of America – II". Hung Medien. Retrieved November 28, 2021.
- ^ "Swisscharts.com – The Presidents of the United States of America – II". Hung Medien. Retrieved November 28, 2021.
- ^ "ARIA Charts – Accreditations – 1996 Albums" (PDF). Australian Recording Industry Association. Retrieved November 28, 2021.
- ^ "Canadian album certifications – The Presidents of the United States of America – II". Music Canada. Retrieved November 28, 2021.
- ^ "American album certifications – The Presidents of the United States of America – Presidents II". Recording Industry Association of America. Retrieved September 11, 2022.