Diary of a Mad Band

Diary of a Mad Band is the second studio album from American R&B group Jodeci, released December 21, 1993, on Uptown Records and distributed through MCA Records. The album also featured the first-ever album appearances from Timbaland, 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 #55 & 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.

For the album by the band Down, see Diary of a Mad Band: Europe in the Year of VI.
Diary of a Mad Band
Studio album by
Jodeci
ReleasedDecember 21, 1993
RecordedJuly–November 1993
Studio
Genre
Length66:03
Label
Producer
Jodeci chronology
Forever My Lady
(1991)		 Diary of a Mad Band
(1993)		 The Show, the After Party, the Hotel
(1995)
Singles from Diary of a Mad Band
  1. "Cry for You"
    Released: November 23, 1993
  2. "Feenin'"
    Released: March 8, 1994
  3. "What About Us"
    Released: August 2, 1994

Release and reception
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[1]
Chicago Tribune[3]
Christgau's Consumer Guide(neither)[4]
Entertainment WeeklyB+[5]
Los Angeles Times[6]
Orlando Sentinel[7]

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.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."My Heart Belongs to U"Donald Earle DeGrate, Jr.5:02
2."Cry for You"DeGrate5:01
3."Feenin'"DeGrate5:10
4."What About Us"
  • DeGrate
  • Devell Moore
5:20
5."Ride & Slide"DeGrate4:57
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"
  • DeGrate
  • Joel Hailey
  • Cedric Renard Hailey
  • Dalvin DeGrate
3:42
11."Sweaty" (featuring Missy Elliott)
  • DeGrate
  • Dalvin DeGrate
  • Elliott
5:54
12."Jodecidal Hotline"Dalvin DeGrate3:11
Jodeci-CD bonus track
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
13."Success"
  • K-Ci Hailey
  • Dalvin DeGrate
7:41

Charts

Singles
Year Single Peak chart positions[13]
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 CertificationCertified units/sales
United States (RIAA)[14] 2× Platinum 2,000,000^

^ Shipments figures based on certification alone.

Personnel

Information taken from Allmusic.[15]

  • 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 and Misdemeanor

See also

Notes
  1. Wynn, Ron. "Jodeci – Diary of a Mad Band". AllMusic. All Media Network. Retrieved August 6, 2016.
  2. "8. Jodeci, Diary of a Mad Band - The 50 Best R&B Albums of the '90s". Damien Scott, Brendan Frederick, Craig Jenkins, Elena Bergeron, Justin Charity, Ross Scarano, Shannon Marcec of Complex. July 10, 2014. Archived from the original on October 18, 2016. Retrieved October 17, 2016.
  3. Preston, Rohan B. (February 10, 1994). "Diary of a Mad Band (Uptown)". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved September 21, 2016.
  4. Christgau, Robert (2000). Christgau's Consumer Guide: Albums of the '90s. Macmillan. pp. xvi, 150. ISBN 0312245602.
  5. Ehrlich, Dimitri (December 24, 1993). "Music Review: Diary of a Mad Band (1993) -fidello22 Jodeci". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved April 10, 2010.
  6. Hunt, Dennis (January 9, 1994). "In Brief". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved January 21, 2023.
  7. Gettelman, Parry (January 21, 1994). "Jodeci". Orlando Sentinel.
  8. Ryan, Gavin (2011). Australia's Music Charts 1988–2010 (PDF ed.). Mt Martha, Victoria, Australia: Moonlight Publishing. p. 146.
  9. "Jodeci Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved May 3, 2021.
  10. "Jodeci Chart History (Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved May 3, 2021.
  11. "Top Billboard 200 Albums – Year-End 1994". Billboard. Retrieved May 3, 2021.
  12. "Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums – Year-End 1994". Billboard. Retrieved May 3, 2021.
  13. "allmusic ((( Diary of a Mad Band > Charts & Awards > Billboard Singles )))". Allmusic. Retrieved March 25, 2010.
  14. "American album certifications – Jodeci – Diary of a Mad Band". Recording Industry Association of America. August 14, 1996. Retrieved July 13, 2022.
  15. "allmusic ((( Diary of a Mad Band > Credits )))". Allmusic. Retrieved March 24, 2010.
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