The Book of David is the eighth studio album by American rapper and producer DJ Quik, released April 19, 2011 on Mad Science and Fontana Distribution.[3]

The Book of David
Studio album by
ReleasedApril 19, 2011
RecordedDecember 2009–December 2010
GenreHip hop
Length61:01
LabelMad Science, Fontana
ProducerDJ Quik (also exec.), G-One
DJ Quik chronology
Blaqkout
(2009)
The Book of David
(2011)
The Midnight Life
(2014)
Singles from The Book of David
  1. "Luv of My Life"
    Released: March 8, 2011[1]
  2. "Real Women"
    Released: March 29, 2011[2]
  3. "Nobody"
    Released: April 19, 2011

The album debuted at fifty five on the US Billboard 200 chart, selling 10,000 copies in its first week in the United States.[4]

Background

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During an interview with Chuey Martinez for KIIS-FM in April 2010, DJ Quik had confirmed that he was done recording the album, but that he was just waiting for the samples to clear. In the interview he stated, "I figure how to come back to music I've done every Breakbeat every Drum pattern that you can possibly do and all the while I feel like I got away from the music that made me want to get into the industry from people like Prince, The Time, The Force M.D.s you know some of these 80's hip hop kind of records and even Michael Jackson used the Roland TR-808 drum machine so I kind of got back into raw drum machines going back to the old drums cause they all got character, so this record is kind of an old feel type of record. Me king of singing like Prince a little like this record I did with Suga Free this is me singing on that record it's just me trying new and fun things that people like me and around me like stating this is the reunion of me and Suga Free after our beef the past few years with many more songs to come also saying he's producing his next upcoming album."[5] On September 27, 2010 a track titled "G-Shit" featuring BlaKKazz K.K. was leaked.[6]

"The whole idea behind this project was not just to make another rap album, I wanted to focus on the overall musical performance process…not just the rapping part. It’s a smart album, it’s everything I wanted it to be."

DJ Quik[7]

In an interview with Mariel Concepcion from Billboard DJ Quik spoke about the album saying "Lyrically, I'm just kind of being defensive on this album; I'm pointing out some people that have really pissed me off along the way," he says. One of those people might be his sister, who put him in prison for assault in 2006. Rumors about Quik being on drugs or "afraid of the competition"—most specifically Dr. Dre and his forthcoming "Detox" album—have floated around in the past couple of years as to why he hadn't released music since 2005's "Trauma." But Quik, who learned how to play bass guitar in the interim, says that while those speculations might serve for a better story, the real reason is that a few years ago he was awarded custody of his daughter. Still, not all is drama on "David." First single "Luv of My Life" (featuring Gift Reynolds), soon-to-be-released second single "Real Women" (featuring Jon B.) (an accompanying video is currently being shot in Hawaii) and "Time Stands Still" (featuring Dwele) (about a long-distance relationship) all relate to matters of the heart. The marketing plan to roll out "David" carries the same personal theme, according to Rona Mercado, VP of marketing and strategy at the Cashmere Agency, which handles DJ Quik's marketing and publicity. While he does get personal on the album, Quik hopes, if nothing else, that fans will appreciate the workmanship he put into the album. "I know we're in a singles world with iTunes and all, but this record is an ode to the sonically genius," he says. "I hope to affect the industry again and I'm willing to work hard for it."[8]

Confirmed guests include Ice Cube, Bizzy Bone, Bun B, Jon B., Kurupt, Dwele and Gift Reynolds, along with the aforementioned Suga Free.[7][9]

Recording

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DJ Quik stated this was one of his quickest, fastest and smartest records he's ever done he stated in an interview that he started recording for the album in November 2009 and finished in February 2010 and he said a big reason for it being done so fast was his Co-writers from David Foreman getting the ideas out real quick and Jon B. helping with some of the greatest R&B hits they help me speed the album up faster being since I've been out of retail for 5 years If you don't come back in with something to offer and with something worth the wait then i would humbly get out of the game and get another gig,[5] He also stated he had recorded tracks with artists such as Bizzy Bone, WC, Bun B, Ice Cube, Jon B., Dwele and Suga Free he also stated the album is finished and ready to be released there's just a few samples that need to be cleared.[5]

DJ Quik revealed in March 2011 that the recording for the album had already been done for over a year now and the reason why it's taken so long was due to the legal work from clearing samples and guest collaborators signing off, He also revealed how he's one of the only artists to ever get a sample clearance from the 1978 musical film Grease and he also explained how his direction for the album was saying "I didn't approach it to try to do anything new as a matter a fact I tried to do everything old by doing antiquated music by artists such as El DeBarge, Curtis Mayfield, Luther Vandross."[10]

Singles

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"Luv of My Life" featuring Gift is the first official single from the album.[11] The song premiered on Power 106 LA on February 1, 2011.[12] The song was released to iTunes on March 8, 2011.[13] The music video was shot in a strip club on April 3, 2011, and released on April 21, 2011.[14][15]

"Real Women" featuring Jon B. is the second official single from the album.[16] The song was released to iTunes on March 29, 2011.

"Nobody" featuring Suga Free, and Ty$ was set to be the first single after appearing on KIIS-FM on March 15, 2011. The song was later released as the last single on April 19, 2011.

Promotion

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On June 10, 2011 to promote the album DJ Quik performed with The Roots on Late Night with Jimmy Fallon with guest stars Jason Lee and Emma Roberts.[17]

Critical response

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Professional ratings
Aggregate scores
SourceRating
Metacritic79/100[18]
Review scores
SourceRating
Allmusic     [19]
Pitchfork Media(8.4/10)[20]
RapReviews(8.5/10)[21]
Spin(7/10)[22]
The Washington Post(favorable)[23]
The Smoking Section     [24]
DJBooth.net     [25]

Spin magazine's Christopher R. Weingarten spoke on the album saying it's from an incredible year that never existed, blending baroque '80s roller jams, velvety '90s slow-rides, contemporary Dam-Funk swooshwave, and a breakdown with the late P-Funk guitarist Garry Shider. For every vintage Quik banger, there's a rhythmically unique implosion of backmasked "Paul Revere" drums and Madvillainous drone ("Poppin'"). Lyrically, he's back to his old tricks - shitting on haters, shouting out himself, somehow rhyming "orange" and having "diamonds like kablooie."[22]

Commercial performance

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The album debuted at number 55 on the US Billboard 200 chart, with first-week sales of 9,700 copies in the United States.[4] It also entered at number 5 on the Billboard Top Rap Albums chart, number 12 on the Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart, and number 4 on its Independent Albums chart.[26] As of August 17, 2012, the album has sold 27,000 copies in the United States.[27]

Accolades

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Pitchfork placed the album at number 29 on its list of the "Top 50 albums of 2011".[28] Rap Radar placed the album at number 2 on its list of "2011 Underrated Albums".[29] Yahoo music placed the album at number forty three of "The 100 Best Albums of 2011".[30]

Track listing

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The Book of David track listing[31]
No.TitleWriter(s)Producer(s)Length
1."Fire and Brimstone"David BlakeDJ Quik3:47
2."Do Today" (featuring Jon B. & BlaKKazz K.K.)Blake, Jonathan Buck, Kelton McDonaldDJ Quik4:21
3."Ghetto Rendezvous"BlakeDJ Quik3:34
4."Luv of My Life" (featuring Gift Reynolds)Blake, George ArchieDJ Quik, G-One4:08
5."Babylon" (featuring BlaKKazz K.K. & Bizzy Bone)Blake, Bryon Anthony McCane, Jr., McDonaldDJ Quik3:38
6."Killer Dope"BlakeDJ Quik4:50
7."Real Women" (featuring Jon B.)Blake, Angela Bofill, BuckDJ Quik4:03
8."Poppin'" (featuring BlaKKazz K.K.)Blake, McDonaldDJ Quik3:40
9."Hydromatic" (featuring Gift Reynolds & Jon B.)Blake, Buck, Jim JacobsDJ Quik2:57
10."Across the Map" (featuring Bizzy Bone & Bun B)Blake, Bernard Freeman, McCaneDJ Quik2:58
11."Nobody" (featuring Suga Free)Blake, Dejuan WalkerDJ Quik3:37
12."Boogie Till You Conk Out" (featuring Ice Cube)Blake, O'Shea JacksonDJ Quik3:07
13."Flow for Sale" (featuring Kurupt)Blake, Ricardo BrownDJ Quik2:54
14."So Compton" (featuring BlaKKazz K.K.)Blake, McDonaldDJ Quik3:39
15."Time Stands Still" (featuring Dwele)Blake, Andwele GardnerDJ Quik4:29
16."The End?" (featuring Garry Shider)Blake, Garry ShiderDJ Quik5:19
Sample credits

Personnel

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Credits for The Book of David adapted from Allmusic.[32]

Charts

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References

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  1. ^ "iTunes - Music - Luv of My Life - Single by DJ Quik". Itunes.apple.com. 2011-03-08. Retrieved 2012-01-17.
  2. ^ "iTunes - Music - Real Women (feat. Jon B.) - Single by DJ Quik". Itunes.apple.com. 2011-03-29. Retrieved 2012-01-17.
  3. ^ https://www.facebook.com/#!/DJQuik/posts/192756424090563 [user-generated source]
  4. ^ a b Jacobs, Allen (2011-04-27). "Hip Hop Album Sales: The Week Ending 4/24/2011 | Get The Latest Hip Hop News, Rap News & Hip Hop Album Sales". HipHop DX. Archived from the original on 2011-04-27. Retrieved 2012-01-17.
  5. ^ a b c tffhthewriter (2010-04-17). "DJ Quik Readies New Solo Album". Hip-Hop Wired. Retrieved 2012-01-17.
  6. ^ "// DJ Quik Feat. KK - G-Shit (Audio) // West Coast News Network //". Dubcnn.com. Retrieved 2012-01-17.
  7. ^ a b "// DJ Quik Set To Release "The Book Of David" on 4/20 // West Coast News Network //". Dubcnn.com. 2011-03-03. Retrieved 2012-01-17.
  8. ^ "DJ Quik: Kids Should 'Join the Army,' Not Gangs". Billboard. 21 March 2011.
  9. ^ Paine, Jake (2011-03-21). "DJ Quik's "Book Of David" Cover Art & Tracklisting Revealed | Get The Latest Hip Hop News, Rap News & Hip Hop Album Sales". HipHop DX. Retrieved 2012-01-17.
  10. ^ "Video: DJ Quik Explains Book Of David Delay". The Source. Archived from the original on 2011-07-24. Retrieved 2012-01-17.
  11. ^ "Twitter / DJ Quik: My official 1st single off". Twitter.com. 2011-01-28. Retrieved 2012-01-17.
  12. ^ "Aanmelden". Facebook. Retrieved 2012-01-17.
  13. ^ "Twitter / DJ Quik: Next week 3/8 "Luv Of My L". Twitter.com. 2011-03-01. Retrieved 2012-01-17.
  14. ^ "Behind The Scenes: DJ Quik "Luv Of My Life"". Rap Radar. 2011-04-05. Retrieved 2012-01-17.
  15. ^ "DJ Quik Music Video, The Luv of My Life, from The Book of David - Music Videos - Red Bull". Redbullusa.com. Retrieved 2012-01-17.
  16. ^ http://www.shockhound.com/albums/798169-dj-quik-mp3s-real-women--feat--jon-b-- [dead link]
  17. ^ "Late Night - All Videos : Newest - Videos - NBC.com". Latenightwithjimmyfallon.com. Retrieved 2012-01-17.
  18. ^ The Book of David Reviews – Metacritic
  19. ^ Jeffries, David (2011-04-19). "The Book of David - DJ Quik". AllMusic. Retrieved 2012-01-17.
  20. ^ Greene, Jayson (2011-04-28). "DJ Quik: The Book of David | Album Reviews". Pitchfork. Retrieved 2012-01-17.
  21. ^ "DJ Quik :: The Book of David :: Mad Science/Fontana Distribution". Rapreviews.com. 2011-04-26. Retrieved 2012-01-17.
  22. ^ a b Weingarten, Christopher R. (2011-04-19). "DJ Quik, 'The Book of David' (Mad Science/Fontana)". SPIN.com. Retrieved 2012-01-17.
  23. ^ "Album review: DJ Quik's 'The Book of David'". The Washington Post. 2011-04-18. Retrieved 2012-01-17.
  24. ^ TC (2011-05-16). "Review Of DJ Quik's The Book Of David | The Smoking Section". Smokingsection.uproxx.com. Archived from the original on 2011-08-15. Retrieved 2012-01-17.
  25. ^ Nathan S. "DJ Quik - The Book of David - Hip Hop Album Review". Djbooth.net. Archived from the original on 2012-01-15. Retrieved 2012-01-17.
  26. ^ a b c d https://www.billboard.com/artist/dj-quik/chart-history/
  27. ^ Jacobs, Allen (2012-08-17). "DJ Quik's The Book of David sales". Retrieved 2013-03-02.
  28. ^ "Staff Lists: The Top 50 Albums of 2011". Pitchfork Media. December 15, 2011. Retrieved January 8, 2012.
  29. ^ "'11 Underrated Albums: #2 DJ Quik the Book of David".
  30. ^ "The Best Albums of 2011: #41 through #50". Yahoo music. December 22, 2011. Retrieved August 23, 2013.
  31. ^ "The Book Of David [Explicit] [+Digital Booklet]: DJ Quik: MP3 Downloads". Amazon. Retrieved 2012-01-17.
  32. ^ "The Book of David - DJ Quik". AllMusic. 2011-04-19. Retrieved 2012-01-17.
  33. ^ "Top Rap Albums Chart". Billboard.
  34. ^ https://www.billboard.com/artist/dj-quik/chart-history/tastemaker-albums