Cypress Hill IV

IV
Studio album by Cypress Hill
Released	October 6, 1998
Recorded	1997-1998
Genre	Latin hip hop, hardcore hip hop, west coast hip hop, rap metal, nu metal
Length	73:17
Label	Ruffhouse Columbia Records
Producer	DJ Muggs
Cypress Hill chronology
III: Temples of Boom (1995) IV (1998) Skull & Bones (2000)
Singles from Cypress Hill IV
"Dr. Greenthumb" Released: 1998 "Tequila Sunrise" Released: 1998 "Audio X" Released: 1998

IV is the fourth album by the rap group Cypress Hill. It was released on October 6, 1998. It was certified Gold by the RIAA.^[1] It is one of their most varied releases and one that DJ Muggs is most fond of. The skeletons on the cover are posing as the three wise monkeys. This is Cypress Hill's first album to have any heavy metal influence. Also, is notable that 7 songs of the album were recorded with the rapper Barron Ricks.

Reception

Professional ratings
Review scores
Source	Rating
Allmusic	[2]
NME	(7/10)[3]
Robert Christgau	[4]
RapReviews	(7.5/10) [5]
Yahoo! Music	(favorable) [6]

IV received mixed reviews from critics, with Allmusic giving it a strongly negative review.

Rolling Stone - 3.5 Stars (out of 5) - "Cypress Hill's most bangin' LP since their 1991 debut.… Cypress Hill still name-check firearms, threaten rivals and smoke more weed than a congregation of Rastas. But the obsessions are means to an end."^[7]

The Wire - "…they come out fighting. Red eyed, rabid and slobbering with skunk-fueled menace.… gangsta rap's future as a musical force is secure."^[8]

Rap Pages - 4 (out of 5) - "Like previous albums…IV's fabulous formula of speakerphone tones by B-Real and sporadic comments by Sen Dog resembles 'How I Could Just Kill A Man'."^[9]

Track listing

• All tracks produced by DJ Muggs.

No.	Title	Writer(s)	Length
1.	"Looking Through the Eye of a Pig"	Freese, Muggerud	4:06
2.	"Checkmate"	Freese, Muggerud, Reyes	3:35
3.	"From the Window of My Room"	Freese, Muggerud, Reyes	5:00
4.	"Prelude to a Come Up" (featuring MC Eiht)	Freese, Grinnage, Johnson, Karrer, Leopold, Malave, MC Eiht, Muchita, Muggerud, Wilson, Zauner	3:24
5.	"Audio X" (featuring Barron Ricks)	Freese, Muggerud, Ricks	3:19
6.	"Steel Magnolia" (featuring Barron Ricks)	Freese, Muggerud, Ricks	3:30
7.	"I Remember That Freak Bitch (From the Club) / Interlude Part 2" (featuring Barron Ricks)	Freese, Muggerud, Ricks	5:22
8.	"(Goin' All Out) Nothin' to Lose"	Freese, Muggerud, Reyes	3:53
9.	"Dead Men Tell No Tales"	Freese, Muggerud	2:47
10.	"Feature Presentation" (featuring Barron Ricks, Chace Infinite)	Chace Infinite, Freese, Muggerud, Ricks	3:45
11.	"Dr. Greenthumb"	Freese, Muggerud	4:24
12.	"High Times"	Freese, Fritz, Muggerud	4:13
13.	"Clash of the Titans / Dust"	Freese, Muggerud	4:45
14.	"Lightning Strikes"	Freese, Muggerud, Reyes	5:54

CD bonus tracks
No.	Title	Writer(s)	Length
18.	"Case Closed"	Freese, Muggerud	2:00
19.	"Rags to Riches" (featuring Barron Ricks)		4:07

Australian release bonus track
No.	Title	Length
18.	"Champions" (featuring PMD)	2:37

Mexican release bonus track
No.	Title	Length
18.	"Tequila Sunrise" (Spanish edition)	3:57

Sample credits

• "Looking Through the Eye of a Pig" Contains a sample of "The Rill Thing" by Little Richard
• "Checkmate" Contains a sample of "Crackdown" by The 25th of May
• "From the Window of My Room" Contains a sample of "Midnight Theme" by Manzel
• "Prelude to a Come Up" Contains a sample of "Kismet" by Amon Düül II
• "Dead Men Tell No Tales" Contains a sample of "La Huella De Mi Amor" by Los Angeles Negros
• "Feature Presentation" Contains a sample of "Fantastic Freaks at the Dixie" by DJ Grand Wizard Theodore
• "Dr. Greenthumb" Contains a sample of "Roller Coaster" by Henri Rene
• "16 Men Till There's No Men Left" Contains a sample of "A Divine Image" by David Axelrod
• "High Times" Contains a sample of "Winter's Child" by Charles Kynard
• "Clash of the Titans / Dust" Contains a sample of "Pacified" by Rita Jean Bodine

Personnel

• B-Real - Vocals
• Sen Dog - Vocals
• DJ Muggs - Arranger, Producer, Mixing
• Eric "Bobo" Correa - Bass, Percussion, backing Vocals
• MC Eiht - Vocals
• Chace Infinite (of Self Scientific) - Vocals
• Barron Ricks - Vocals
• Mike Sims - Bass, Guitar
• Troy Stanton - Engineer
• Reggie Stewart - Bass
• Sean Evans - Art Direction
• Dean Karr - Photography
• Manuel Lecuona - Mastering

Charts

Album - Billboard (North America)

Year	Chart	Position
1998	The Billboard 200[10]	11
1998	Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums	11

Kingpin: Life of Crime Soundtrack

The soundtrack for Kingpin: Life of Crime was provided by Cypress Hill, and featured three tracks from IV. They were:

• "16 Men Till There's No Men Left"
• "Checkmate"
• "Lightning Strikes"

Alongside the full versions of these tracks, instrumental versions with the vocals removed were used as backing tracks. Cypress Hill also provided some of the voice acting for the game.

References

1. "American certifications – Cypress Hill IV". Recording Industry Association of America.
2. Gallucci, Michael. "Cypress Hill: IV" at AllMusic. Retrieved 20 October 2011.
3. "Cypress Hill IV". NME. 12 September 2005. Retrieved 16 September 2014.
4. Christgau, Robert. "Cypress Hill". RobertChristgau.com. Retrieved 20 October 2011.
5. DJ Fatboy (October 1998). "Cypress Hill :: IV". RapReviews.com. Retrieved 20 October 2011.
6. Everett, Vic (6 October 1998). "Cypress Hill IV". Yahoo! Music. Retrieved 20 October 2011.
7. "Cypress Hill IV". Rolling Stone (Straight Arrow). 15 October 1998. p. 130. ISSN 0035-791X. Retrieved 20 October 2011.
8. "Cypress Hill IV". The Wire. January 1999. p. 57. ISSN 0952-0686. Retrieved 20 October 2011.
9. "Cypress Hill IV". Rap Pages (Beverly Hills: LFP). December 1998. p. 140. ISSN 1063-1283. Retrieved 20 October 2011.
10. "Cypress Hill - IV > Charts & Awards > Billboard Albums" at AllMusic. Retrieved 20 October 2011.

External links

• Cypress Hill IV at Discogs (list of releases)