Labcabincalifornia (1995)

Labcabincalifornia is the second album by American hip-hop group the Pharcyde, released on November 14, 1995, three years after their debut Bizarre Ride II the Pharcyde. The production was handled by The Pharcyde themselves and Jay Dee, with additional help from Diamond D and M-Walk. After Labcabincalifornia was released, Fatlip left the group to concentrate on his solo career.

Content

The video for the album's first single, "Drop", was directed by Spike Jonze and used footage of the group performing the song backwards, replayed backwards, giving it a surreal quality. The song was a hit, as was the follow-up single "Runnin'," which peaked at #55 on the Billboard Hot 100. Overall, Labcabincalifornia is a more mellow and introspective affair than their debut and features more somber themes such as dealing with fame and success, drug abuse, and broken down relationships.

Critical and commercial success

Album sales compared to Bizarre Ride did not fare as well; the group was not able to reach Gold status.

Influenced by the changes in their lives brought on by their rising popularity, Labcabincalifornia featured a completely different style from their first album. Largely produced by then-unknown J Dilla, it was panned by music critics on release, with some critics feeling that it fell victim to the sophomore jinx. However, over the years, Labcabincalifornia received critical acclaim, which the author Andrew Barker linked to the increased popularity of J Dilla.

Sample credits

Unless otherwise indicated, information is based on the album's liner notes

"Bullshit"

• "Sing Me Softly of the Blues" as performed by The Gary Burton Quartet
• "Get Up, Stand Up" as performed by Bob Marley & The Wailers
• "What's Going On" by Les McCann

"Pharcyde"

"Spinning Wheel" by Lonnie Smith

"Groupie Therapy"

• "Ladies First" as performed by Queen Latifah and Monie Love
• "Inside Out" by Queen Latifah
• "The Bilbao Song" by Cal Tjader
• "Get Off...Come Here" by Ice Cube
• "Lyrics to Go" by A Tribe Called Quest

"Runnin'"

• "Saudade Vem Correndo" as performed by Stan Getz & Luiz Bonfá
• "Rock Box" as performed by Run-DMC
• "You Follow Me" by James Moody
• "Flying Easy" by Woody Herman

"She Said"

• "Down by the River" as performed by Buddy Miles
• "Baby That's What I Need (Walk Tall)" as performed by Cannonball Adderley
• Passin' Me By by The Pharcyde

"Splattitorium"

"Fly Me to the Moon" by Vince Guaraldi Trio

"Drop"

"Django" by Dorothy Ashby

"The New Style" by The Beastie Boys (vocal)

"Hey You"

• "In the Evening" as performed by Yusef Lateef
• "Hey You! Get Off My Mountain" by The Dramatics
• "Vitamin C" by Can

"Y?"

"Why Is That?" by Boogie Down Productions

"Moment in Time"

• "Keep My Heart Together" by Mass Production
• "You Can Fly" by Sons of Champlin

"The Hustle"

• "You Send Me" as performed by Roy Ayers & Carla Vaughn
• "(I'm a) Fool for You" by Freddy Robinson

"Devil Music"

• "Eric B. Is President" as performed by Eric B. & Rakim
• "Da Mystery of Chessboxin'" as written and performed by Wu-Tang Clan

"The E.N.D."

"Sunny" as performed by Earl Grant

"Emerald Butterfly"

"Anybody Needs a Big Man" by Cannonball Adderley Quintet

Additional personnel

Paul Arnold - Mix Engineer (2–4, 6, 8–12, 15–17)

Big Boy - Additional Lead Vocals (14)

• Rick Clifford - Recording Engineer
• Bryan Davis - Mix Engineer (7), Recording Engineer

Bob Durham - Keyboards (5)

Jay Dee - Drums (8)

• Tim Latham - Mix Engineer (1, 13), Recording Engineer
• M-Walk - DJ Scratches
• James Mansfield - Mix Engineer (14), Recording Engineer

Tim Nimitz - Mix Engineer (5)

Randy Mack - Additional Lead Vocals (14)

Farnando Pullum - Trumpet (17)

Justin Reinhardt - Fender Rhodes (17), Organ played by (8)

Schmooche Cat - Additional Lead Vocals (14)

• Madeline Smith - Sample Clearance Agent
• Mark Spier - Sample Clearance Agent
• Anthony "Biede" Walker - Recording Engineer
• Gary Wallis - Recording Engineer