Jewelz

Jewelz is the second album by the rapper O.C.. Unlike his debut, 1994's Word...Life, Jewelz features a wider number of guest producers and rappers. Producer DJ Premier (who also oversaw and mixed other parts of the album) lends his hand on four songs, while Buckwild, Da Beatminerz and O.Gee all drop three songs each. D.I.T.C. members Showbiz and Lord Finesse each contribute one number and as the album was released the production was highly praised for its clean, crispy but at the same time dark and menacing sound.

This article is about the album by O.C. For the artist who recorded under the moniker Jewelz, see Allen Iverson.
Jewelz
Studio album by
O.C.
ReleasedAugust 19, 1997
Recorded1996–1997
StudioUnique Studios
D&D Studios
New York City, New York
GenreHip hop
Length61:18
Label
Producer
O.C. chronology
Word...Life
(1994)		 Jewelz
(1997)		 Bon Appetit
(2001)

O.C. plays with a wide array of styles on the album, from the war-metaphor battle song "War Games" to abstract stories on the haunting "The Crow" and a very special history on a mystique woman that enters Credle's life in "Stronjay". Though the differences between O.C.'s two first efforts are very noticeable many fans are constantly, and still, arguing which was the better album out of them.

This album, like his first, received strong reviews, but lacked in sales. He made his first appearance on the Billboard 200 album chart with the album, and also made his first appearance on the Billboard Hot 100 singles chart, with the single "Far From Yours". The album is now out of print.

As part of the concept for Jewelz, the CD was sold with different colored disc art inspired by the color palette of various jewels.

Critical reception
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[1]
HipHopPlus
Sputnikmusic3.5/5[2]
Vibepositive[3]

Matt Conaway from AllMusic praised O.C. for maintaining his "street-based" musicianship by having top-notch New York producers and rappers contribute quality work throughout the record and delivering strong lyricism of his own, highlighting "My World" and "Dangerous" as examples.[1] Vibe contributor Noah Callahan-Bever also gave praise to the album's production team for emitting an aura of "melodic contentment" for O.C.'s more naturalistic flow to deliver solid rhymes on "Dangerous" and the title track, despite "Far From Yours" being the only dud, concluding that: "[T]hankfully, O.C. is still concerned with the decline of rap music, only now he's stopped criticizing and has started to lead by example, unveiling one of his most finely polished Jewelz this year has seen."[3]

Track listing
# Title Songwriters Producer(s) Performer (s)
1 "Intro" *Interlude*
2 "My World" O. Credle, C. Martin DJ Premier O.C.
3 "War Games" O. Credle, C. Martin DJ Premier O.C., Organized Konfusion
4 "Can't Go Wrong" O. Credle, G. Scott DJ Ogee O.C.
5 "The Chosen One" O. Credle, A. Best Buckwild O.C.
6 "Dangerous" O. Credle, W. Dewgarde,
L. Coleman, R. Lapread		 Mr. Walt of Da Beatminerz O.C., Big L
7 "Win the G" O. Credle, C. Martin,
J. Campbell		 DJ Premier O.C., Freddie Foxxx
8 "Far from Yours" O. Credle, A. Best,
M. Bryant, G. Johnson,
L. Johnson, E. Barrier,
W. Griffin		 Buckwild; intro interlude by DJ Premier O.C., Yvette Michele, Roc Raida
9 "Stronjay" O. Credle, W. Dewgarde Mr. Walt of Da Beatminerz O.C.
10 "M.U.G." O. Credle, C. Martin,
J. Campbell		 DJ Premier O.C., Freddie Foxxx
11 "The Crow" O. Credle, R. Lemay Showbiz O.C.
12 "You & Yours" O. Credle, G. Scott DJ Ogee O.C.
13 "Hypocrite" O. Credle, A. Best,
W. Garfield, C. Clay		 Buckwild O.C.
14 "It's Only Right" O. Credle, W. Dewgarde,
C. Ward		 Mr. Walt of Da Beatminerz O.C.
15 "Jewelz" O. Credle, R. Hall Lord Finesse; intro interlude by DJ Premier[4] O.C.
Samples credits [5]

Album singles
Single information
"Far From Yours"
  • Released: July 28, 1997
  • B-Side: "My World"
"Can't Go Wrong"
  • Released: December 16, 1997
  • B-Side: "Dangerous"

Personnel

Adapted credits from the liner notes of Jewelz.[8]

Album chart positions
Chart (1997) Peak
position
US Billboard 200[9] 90
US Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums (Billboard)[10] 16

Singles chart positions
Year Song Chart positions
Billboard Hot 100 Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Singles & Tracks Hot Rap Singles Hot Dance Music/Maxi-Singles Sales
1997 "Far From Yours" 81 43 12 23
"My World" – – – 15
1998 "Can't Go Wrong" – 90 – –

References
  1. Conaway, Matt. "Jewelz - O.C." AllMusic. Retrieved May 20, 2012.
  2. Robertson, Alex (February 24, 2013). "Album Review - O.C.: Jewelz". Sputnikmusic. Retrieved February 26, 2013.
  3. Callahan-Bever, Noah (September 1997). "Revolutions: O.C. 'Jewelz'". Vibe. New York: Vibe Media. 7 (5): 232. ISSN 1070-4701. Retrieved January 4, 2015.
  4. Mr. Walt [@Beatminerz] (8 November 2013). "@stuntmanflip Preemo did that beat" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
  5. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RhKeVBmBDHM
  6. https://www.whosampled.com/O.C./The-Crow/
  7. https://www.whosampled.com/O.C./Jewelz/
  8. Jewelz (liner notes). O.C. Payday. FFRR. 1997. 314-524 399-2.CS1 maint: others (link)
  9. "O.C. Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved April 28, 2016.
  10. "O.C. Chart History (Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved April 28, 2016.
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