GRRR! It's Betty Boo
Encyclopedia
Grrr! It's Betty Boo is the second album by Betty Boo
, released in 1992 via WEA Records
. The record is dedicated to her father.
in October 1992, Adam Sweeting thought that the album contained "more than its fair share of garish artificial charm", surmising that although Boo's songs "hang on a thread of absurdity", presenting critics with an easy target, "her kittenish raps – usually about boys and boy-trouble – bristle with winningly daft rhymes". Allmusic's William Ruhlmann noted that "Boo raps through the verses and sings the choruses (...) in an engaging enough manner, but she never threatens to be more than a cartoon". Speaking to Q Magazine in 1994, Madonna
made a surprising mention of this album by saying it was "sadly overlooked" and was keen to sign Betty Boo to her new record label, Maverick
.
Betty Boo
Alison Moira Clarkson better known as Betty Boo, is an English singer, songwriter and pop-rap artist...
, released in 1992 via WEA Records
Warner Music Group
Warner Music Group is the third largest business group and family of record labels in the recording industry, making it one of the big four record companies...
. The record is dedicated to her father.
Critical reception
Writing for The GuardianThe Guardian
The Guardian, formerly known as The Manchester Guardian , is a British national daily newspaper in the Berliner format...
in October 1992, Adam Sweeting thought that the album contained "more than its fair share of garish artificial charm", surmising that although Boo's songs "hang on a thread of absurdity", presenting critics with an easy target, "her kittenish raps – usually about boys and boy-trouble – bristle with winningly daft rhymes". Allmusic's William Ruhlmann noted that "Boo raps through the verses and sings the choruses (...) in an engaging enough manner, but she never threatens to be more than a cartoon". Speaking to Q Magazine in 1994, Madonna
Madonna (entertainer)
Madonna is an American singer-songwriter, actress and entrepreneur. Born in Bay City, Michigan, she moved to New York City in 1977 to pursue a career in modern dance. After performing in the music groups Breakfast Club and Emmy, she released her debut album in 1983...
made a surprising mention of this album by saying it was "sadly overlooked" and was keen to sign Betty Boo to her new record label, Maverick
Maverick Records
Maverick Recording Company is an American record label owned and operated by Warner Music Group, and distributed through Warner Bros. Records.-Company history:...
.
Track listing
All tracks written by Alison Clarkson/John Coxon, unless otherwise noted.- "I'm On My Way" (Alison Clarkson, John Coxon, John LennonJohn LennonJohn Winston Lennon, MBE was an English musician and singer-songwriter who rose to worldwide fame as one of the founding members of The Beatles, one of the most commercially successful and critically acclaimed acts in the history of popular music...
, Paul McCartneyPaul McCartneySir James Paul McCartney, MBE, Hon RAM, FRCM is an English musician, singer-songwriter and composer. Formerly of The Beatles and Wings , McCartney is listed in Guinness World Records as the "most successful musician and composer in popular music history", with 60 gold discs and sales of 100...
) – 3:22 - "Thing Goin' On" (Alison Clarkson, John Coxon, McCauley, Larry Young, L. Logan, P. Saunders) – 3:41
- "Hangover" – 3:49
- "Curly & Girly" – 4:22
- "Wish You Were Here" – 4:17
- "Let Me Take You There" (Alison Clarkson, John Coxon, Charles Dawes, Carl Sigman) – 3:58
- "Gave You The Boo" – 4:00
- "Skin Tight" (Alison Clarkson, Paul Myers, Dean Ross) – 3:38
- "Catch Me" (Alison Clarkson, Paul Myers, Dean Ross) – 3:47
- "Close The Door" – 3:38
- Track 1 contains a portion of "Lady MadonnaLady Madonna"Lady Madonna" is a song by The Beatles, primarily written by Paul McCartney . In March 1968, it was released as a single, backed with "The Inner Light." The song was recorded on 3 and 6 February 1968 before the Beatles left for India...
", written by John Lennon & Paul McCartneyLennon/McCartneyThe Lennon–McCartney songwriting partnership is one of the best-known and most successful musical collaborations in history...
. The saxophone "sample" is not taken directly from The BeatlesThe BeatlesThe Beatles were an English rock band, active throughout the 1960s and one of the most commercially successful and critically acclaimed acts in the history of popular music. Formed in Liverpool, by 1962 the group consisted of John Lennon , Paul McCartney , George Harrison and Ringo Starr...
' original version, but is a re-creation featuring the same session players (Ronnie ScottRonnie ScottRonnie Scott was an English jazz tenor saxophonist and jazz club owner.-Life and career:Ronnie Scott was born in Aldgate, east London, into a family of Russian Jewish descent on his father's side, and Portuguese antecedents on his mother's. Scott began playing in small jazz clubs at the age of...
, Harry KleinHarry KleinHarold 'Harry' Klein was an English jazz saxophonist. Despite a long career in jazz music, he is probably best known for playing with The Beatles....
, Bill Povey and Bill Jackman). - Track 2 contains a sample of "Turn Off the Lights", written by Young, Logan & Saunders and performed by Larry Young's Fuel.
- Track 6 contains a sample of "It's All in the Game", written by Charles Dawes & Carl SigmanCarl SigmanCarl Sigman was an American songwriter.-Biography:Born in Crown Heights, Brooklyn, New York, Sigman graduated from law school and passed his Bar exams to practice in the state of New York...
, as performed by The Four Tops. It peaked at #12 in the UK Singles ChartUK Singles ChartThe UK Singles Chart is compiled by The Official Charts Company on behalf of the British record-industry. The full chart contains the top selling 200 singles in the United Kingdom based upon combined record sales and download numbers, though some media outlets only list the Top 40 or the Top 75 ...
, where it stayed for 8 weeks. - Track 10 begins with an almost identical bass arrangement bearing similarities to Barry White's - Never Never Gonna Give You Up. Submitted by JetSetSkippy.
Additional musicians
- Ronnie ScottRonnie ScottRonnie Scott was an English jazz tenor saxophonist and jazz club owner.-Life and career:Ronnie Scott was born in Aldgate, east London, into a family of Russian Jewish descent on his father's side, and Portuguese antecedents on his mother's. Scott began playing in small jazz clubs at the age of...
– saxophoneSaxophoneThe saxophone is a conical-bore transposing musical instrument that is a member of the woodwind family. Saxophones are usually made of brass and played with a single-reed mouthpiece similar to that of the clarinet. The saxophone was invented by the Belgian instrument maker Adolphe Sax in 1846...
on track 1 - Harry KleinHarry KleinHarold 'Harry' Klein was an English jazz saxophonist. Despite a long career in jazz music, he is probably best known for playing with The Beatles....
– saxophone on track 1 - Bill Povey – saxophone on track 1
- Bill Jackman – saxophone on track 1
- Gary Plumbley – saxophone on track 8
- Guy BarkerGuy BarkerGuy Barker is an English jazz trumpeter and composer. Barker was born in Chiswick, London, the son of an actress and a stuntman. He started playing the trumpet at the age of twelve, and within a year had joined the National Youth Jazz Orchestra...
– flumpetFlumpetThe flumpet is a hybrid musical instrument blending qualities of the trumpet and flugelhorn.It was inspired by Art Farmer, a virtuoso jazz musician who traveled with both a trumpet and a flugelhorn in his baggage. He played with equal facility on both, but switched from one to the other to exploit...
on track 2 - Richard NilesRichard NilesRichard Niles is an American composer, arranger, producer, guitarist, broadcaster and journalist. He has lived in London since 1975. Because of his extensive work across many genres Sound on Sound magazine referred to him as "one of the most versatile men in modern music".-Early years:Niles was...
– string arrangement on track 3 - Roger Rettig – pedal steel on track 3
- Frank Ton Ton – drumsDrum kitA drum kit is a collection of drums, cymbals and often other percussion instruments, such as cowbells, wood blocks, triangles, chimes, or tambourines, arranged for convenient playing by a single person ....
on track 6 - Michael Rosenberg – guitarGuitarThe guitar is a plucked string instrument, usually played with fingers or a pick. The guitar consists of a body with a rigid neck to which the strings, generally six in number, are attached. Guitars are traditionally constructed of various woods and strung with animal gut or, more recently, with...
on track 8 - Sweet Paulino – percussionPercussion instrumentA percussion instrument is any object which produces a sound when hit with an implement or when it is shaken, rubbed, scraped, or otherwise acted upon in a way that sets the object into vibration...
on track 8 - Fenella Barton – strings on track 9
- Sian Bell – strings on track 9
- Sonia Shany – strings on track 9
- Jocelyn Pook – strings on track 9
Technical personnel
- John Coxon – producer, pre-production "Done Upstairs"
- Mads Bjerke – recording, engineer on tracks 1–7 & 10 at The Strongroom
- Streets Ahead – producer on track 2
- Dean Ross – producer on tracks 8–9
- Sweet Paulino – producer on tracks 8–9
- Jim Abyss – recording on track 8 at Metropolis StudiosMetropolis (disambiguation)A metropolis is a major city, defined in a variety of ways.-Type of city:Metropolis may refer to a variety of related concepts in urbanism:* Metropolis, a large city -- the most common current meaning...
, mix engineer on track 1 at Olympic StudiosOlympic StudiosOlympic Studios was a renowned independent commercial recording studio located at 117 Church Road, Barnes, South West London, England. The studio is best known for the huge number of famous rock and pop recordings made there from the late 1960s onward.... - Ren Swan – recording on track 9 at Sarm East Studios
- Gregg Jackman – mix engineer on tracks 2–10 at Sarm West Studios