California Love
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| "California Love" | ||
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| Single by 2Pac featuring Dr. Dre & Roger Troutman | ||
| From the album Greatest Hits | ||
| Recorded/Released | 1995/1996 | |
| Format | 12-inch single | |
| Genre | Rap | |
| Length | 4:45 | |
| Label | Death Row | |
| Writers | Joe Cocker, Woodrow Cunningham, Norman Durham, Mikel Hooks, Ronald Hudson, Christopher Stainton, Larry Troutman, Roger Troutman | |
| Producer | Dr. Dre | |
| Director | Hype Williams | |
| Certification | Double Platinum (August, 1998) | |
| Chart positions | #1(US Hot 100) #3 (EU) #4 (AUS) #6 (UK) #7 (GER) |
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| 2Pac singles chronology | ||
| "Temptations (1995) |
"California Love" feat. Dr. Dre (1996) |
"2 of Amerikaz Most Wanted" (1996) |
| Dr. Dre singles chronology | ||
| "Keep Their Heads Ringin'" (1996) |
"California Love" feat. 2Pac (1996) |
"No Diggity" feat. Blackstreet (1996) |
"California Love" is a rap song by 2pac Shakur featuring Dr. Dre and Roger Troutman. The song was released as 2Pac's comeback single upon his release from prison in 1995. A popular remix version of the song appeared on his 1996 double album All Eyez on Me. This is perhaps 2Pac's most well-known song and his most successful, reaching #1 on the Billboard Hot 100 for two weeks. The song was nominated for a posthumous Grammy Award as a Best Rap Solo Performance and Best Rap Performance by a Duo or Group (with Dr. Dre and Roger Troutman) in 1997. The song was actually written and performed by Roger Troutman in the Original Version of California Love, Tupac and Dr. Dre made a modern day version of the song.
The original version of the track was not available on any of Shakur's studio albums, but it can now be found on Shakur's compilation of Greatest Hits.
The tune was adapted from Joe Cocker's song "Woman to Woman", "California knows how to party" lines listing Los Angeles County neighborhoods are sung by Roger Troutman. The vocal "In the City of Compton" and "California knows how to party" is adapted from Ronnie Hudson and the Street People's "West Coast Poplock".The remix features sample from the song "Intimate Connection" by Kleeer written by Norman Durham and Woody Cunningham.
"California Love" was Shakur's only entry on Rolling Stone's 2004 list of the 500 Greatest Songs of All Time, ranked #346.
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[edit] Writing and background
Dr. Dre did not plan to include the recording in 2Pac's project. It was one of only two songs produced by Dre on All Eyez on Me namely "California Love" and "Can't C Me" and was originally going to be his single for his second album, as the original version has three verses featuring Dr. Dre's rapping. The only copy of this original version is now in the possession of DJ Jam, Snoop Dogg's personal concert DJ. Suge Knight's ideology was, "When it's time to work on a project, everybody needs to give everything to whoever's project it is"[citation needed] so he decided to put 2Pac on the remix, and it was made the single off his upcoming album. Dre's first version was unedited and home-studio recorded, and therefore differs to the version later included in 2Pac's Greatest Hits.[1]
2Pac later references the song in the last verse of the song "To Live & Die in LA" from his September 1996 album Don Killuminati: The 7 Day Theory. His entire last verse goes like this:
"This go out for 92.3, and 106 / All the radio stations that be bumping my shit / Making my shit sells katruple quitraple platinum, hehe / This go out to all the magazines that supported me / All the real motherfuckers / All the stores, the mom and pop spots / A&R people, all y'all motherfuckers / LA, California Love part motherfucking Two / Without gay ass Dre" [2]
Musically it is based on an Ultramagnetic MC's single Funky from their debut album Critical Beatdown where they use a Joe Cocker piano sample.
Tupac also alludes to The Jackson 5's song ABC, paralleling the line "shake it shake it baby" by using it in between the hook and verses.
[edit] Music video
Two different versions of video exist:
- The first video appears to have been inspired by the film Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome, and takes place in a desert. The casting includes singer George Clinton as the evil tribal chief, actor Chris Tucker[3] (then-known only for his role in the film Friday) playing the evil tribal chief's yes-man, Tony Cox as the dwarf soldier and Roger Troutman (from with the band Zapp, the original writers of the song) carrying a talk box. The shooting takes place in im the best man homike maaan maan why me dooowith a cliffhanger cut by a To be continued closing text. An alternative version, featuring the remix song re cut, removes the final caption and features 2Pac and Dre naming West Coast towns.
- The second video's intro shows a rapid succession of images taken from the first and second video. The premise is that the desert scenes of the previous videos were merely a nightmare 2Pac was having, and when he wakes up, he finds himself in his bed beside a woman who he had sexual intercourse with. And Dr Dre calls him and tells him to get over to his summer house because he's throwing a 'dope' party. The rest of the music video takes place as if it were a home video and features several cameos, notably Roger Troutman who is now playing the piano, and guest appearances from DJ Quik, Big Syke, Danny Boy, Jodeci, Deion Sanders, B-Legit, and E-40. The video was made for the remix of the song.
The first video was nominated for an MTV Video Music Award for Best Rap Video in 1996. It achieved #9 of the top 10 on MTV's 100 Greatest Videos Ever Made list in 1999. In April, 2005 it reached the Bronze medal spot on MTV2 and XXL's 25 Greatest West Coast Videos. It also achieved #1 on the French MTV's 100 Greatest Rap Music Videos in 2006 (featured from 23 till 30 of July).
[edit] Credits
- Keyboards - Sean 'Barney' Thomas
- Percussion - Carl 'Butch' Small
- Producer, Mixing, Featuring (Rap) - Dr. Dre
- Vocals, Talkbox - Roger Troutman
- Background vocals: Danette Williams, Dorothy Coleman, Barbara Wilson
- Engineer : Keston E. Wright
- Production Assistant: Larry Chatman
- Video Direction: Hype Williams
[edit] Cultural references
- In the South Park episode "Night of the Living Homeless," the boys advertise California to the homeless by singing an alternative version of "California Love."
- In the "Britney Spears" single "Gimme More," the phrase "We’ll keep on rockin" from the original 2pac song is referenced and used in the lyrics.
[edit] Covers
San Diego natives, My American Heart covered this song for the Punk Goes Crunk album.
[edit] Notes and references
- ^ "XXL", The making of the album All Eyez On Me / interview with Tommy Daugherty, Harris Publications, October, 2004. Retrieved on 2006-06-11.
- ^ 2PAC LYRICS - To Live & Die In L.A
- ^ Wilson, Elliott. "XXL", Pop Shots, Harris Publications, April, 2005, pp. 131-135.
[edit] External links
- Chart Data
- Music Video Database
- The original version's music video at YouTube
- The remix version's music video at YouTube
| Preceded by "Tha Crossroads" by Bone Thugs-N-Harmony |
Billboard Hot 100 number one single July 13, 1996 |
Succeeded by "You're Makin' Me High" / "Let It Flow" by Toni Braxton |
| Preceded by "Hey Girl" by CDB |
RIANZ (New Zealand) number one single 26 April 1996 |
Succeeded by "Killing Me Softly with His Song" by Fugees |
| Preceded by "You're Makin' Me High" / "Let It Flow" by Toni Braxton |
Billboard's Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Singles & Tracks number one single July 6, 1996 |
Succeeded by "I Can't Sleep Baby (If I)" by R. Kelly |
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