Mama Said (album)

Mama Said is the second studio album by American rock musician Lenny Kravitz, released in April 1991 by Virgin Records. Guns N' Roses guitarist Slash co-wrote and played on the song "Always on the Run". He also played on the song "Fields of Joy". The song "All I Ever Wanted" was co-written by Sean Lennon.

Mama Said
Studio album by
Lenny Kravitz
ReleasedApril 2, 1991
Recorded1990
Genre
Length52:38
LabelVirgin
ProducerLenny Kravitz
Lenny Kravitz chronology
Let Love Rule
(1989)		 Mama Said
(1991)		 Are You Gonna Go My Way
(1993)
Singles from Mama Said
  1. "Always on the Run"
    Released: March 8, 1991
  2. "It Ain't Over 'til It's Over"
    Released: June 6, 1991
  3. "Fields of Joy"
    Released: July 16, 1991
  4. "Stand by My Woman"
    Released: August 13, 1991
  5. "What the Fuck Are We Saying?"
    Released: September 28, 1991
  6. "Stop Draggin' Around"
    Released: December 27, 1991
  7. "What Goes Around Comes Around"
    Released: January 29, 1992
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[1]
Chicago Tribune[2]
Christgau's Consumer Guide[3]
Encyclopedia of Popular Music[4]
Entertainment WeeklyC−[5]
Record Collector[6]
Rolling Stone[7]
The Rolling Stone Album Guide[8]
Select4/5[9]

Although the album has sold enough copies to be certified double platinum, the RIAA still has it listed as platinum. In the UK, the album reached number 8 on the UK Albums Chart. In 2012, Virgin Records released an expanded, double-disc version of the album with a number of remixes and bonus tracks.[10]

Reception

Greg Kot of Chicago Tribune commented "Rather than building on the '60s influences that permeated his 1989 debut, Let Love Rule, Kravitz practically wallows in them on Mama Said... Kravitz`s taste is commendable, and Mama Said sounds admirably gritty and sexy, without big '90s production touches. But until Kravitz begins transforming his influences instead of just copying them, he'll remain a promising but minor artist."[2] Terry Staunton of Record Collector stated "The blanket praise that greeted Kravitz’s 1989 debut Let Love Rule might have made him a prime candidate for difficult second album syndrome, but if anything Mama Said, released two years later, was an even more accomplished set. Rarely had traditional guitar rock and sweet soul merged so confidently, so effortlessly: further proof that we were in the midst of a major talent."[6] Elysa Gardner of Rolling Stone wrote "Rather than synthesizing his influences in a way that allows him some personal expression, Kravitz seemingly aims to acknowledge as many of them as he can in the course of an hour; the result is a rather disjointed album that lacks freshness and distinction. Kravitz continues to demonstrate a talent for crafting and arranging engaging songs; unfortunately, up to this point it has proven less a creative talent than a recreative one."[7]

Track listing

All songs were written by Lenny Kravitz, except where noted.

  1. "Fields of Joy" (Michael Kamen, Hal Fredricks) – 3:57
  2. "Always on the Run" (Kravitz, Slash) – 3:53
    • Featuring Slash
  3. "Stand by My Woman" (Kravitz, Henry Hirsch, Stephen Mark Pasch, Anthony Krizan) – 4:19
  4. "It Ain't Over 'til It's Over" – 3:55
  5. "More Than Anything in This World" – 3:43
  6. "What Goes Around Comes Around" – 4:40
  7. "The Difference Is Why" – 4:48
  8. "Stop Draggin' Around" – 2:37
  9. "Flowers for Zoë" – 2:45
  10. "Fields of Joy (Reprise)" (Kamen, Fredricks) – 3:59
    • Arranged by Kravitz
  11. "All I Ever Wanted" (Kravitz, Sean Ono Lennon) – 4:04
  12. "When the Morning Turns to Night" – 2:58
  13. "What the Fuck Are We Saying?" – 5:13
  14. "Butterfly" – 1:50

Personnel
  • Lenny Kravitz – vocals, guitar, keyboards, bass, drums, electric sitar
  • Slash – guitar solos on tracks 1 and 2
  • Henry Hirsch – keyboards, bass
  • Karl Denson – saxophone on tracks 2, 3, 6 and 13
  • Butch Thomas – saxophone on track 2
  • Mike Hunter – trumpet on track 2
  • Phenix Horns – horns on track 4
  • Zoro – drums on track 6
  • Lebron Scott – bass on track 6
  • Adam Widoff – guitar on track 6
  • David Domanich – drums on track 8
  • Nancy Ives – cello on track 9
  • Sean Ono Lennon – piano on track 11

Production and design
  • Engineering by David Domanich and Henry Hirsch
  • Mastered by Greg Calbi at Sterling Sound Studios
  • Mixed by Henry Hirsch at Waterfront Studios
  • Art direction by Melanie Nissen
  • Artwork design by Tom Bouman
  • Photography by James Colderaro

Charts
Chart (1991) Peak
position
Australian Albums (ARIA)[11] 10
Austrian Albums (Ö3 Austria)[12] 12
Dutch Albums (Album Top 100)[13] 5
German Albums (Offizielle Top 100)[14] 20
New Zealand Albums (RMNZ)[15] 19
Norwegian Albums (VG-lista)[16] 4
Swedish Albums (Sverigetopplistan)[17] 14
Swiss Albums (Schweizer Hitparade)[18] 5
UK Albums (OCC)[19] 8
US Billboard 200[20] 39
Chart (2012) Peak
position
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Wallonia)[21] 143

Certifications and sales
Region CertificationCertified units/sales
Argentina (CAPIF)[22] Gold 30,000^
Australia (ARIA)[23] Gold 35,000^
Austria (IFPI Austria)[24] Gold 25,000*
Canada (Music Canada)[25] 2× Platinum 200,000^
France (SNEP)[26] none 339,600 [27]*
Germany (BVMI)[28] Gold 250,000^
Netherlands (NVPI)[29] Platinum 100,000^
Sweden (GLF)[30] Gold 50,000^
Switzerland (IFPI Switzerland)[31] Gold 25,000^
United Kingdom (BPI)[32] Platinum 300,000^
United States (RIAA)[33] Platinum 1,880,000[34]

*sales figures based on certification alone
^shipments figures based on certification alone

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References
  1. Erlewine, Stephen Thomas. "Mama Said – Lenny Kravitz". AllMusic. Retrieved June 13, 2016.
  2. Kot, Greg (April 4, 1991). "Lenny Kravitz: Mama Said (Virgin)". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved June 13, 2016.
  3. Christgau, Robert (2000). "Lenny Kravitz: Mama Said". Christgau's Consumer Guide: Albums of the '90s. Macmillan Publishers. ISBN 0-312-24560-2. Retrieved May 6, 2012.
  4. Larkin, Colin (2011). The Encyclopedia of Popular Music (5th concise ed.). Omnibus Press. ISBN 0-85712-595-8.
  5. Farber, Jim (April 12, 1991). "Mama Said". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved May 6, 2012.
  6. Staunton, Terry (August 2012). "Lenny Kravitz – Mama Said: 21st Anniversary Deluxe Edition". Record Collector (404). Retrieved June 13, 2016.
  7. Gardner, Elysa (April 18, 1991). "Lenny Kravitz: Mama Said". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on November 4, 2007. Retrieved May 6, 2012.
  8. Appleford, Steve (2004). "Lenny Kravitz". In Brackett, Nathan; Hoard, Christian (eds.). The New Rolling Stone Album Guide (4th ed.). Simon & Schuster. p. 470. ISBN 0-7432-0169-8.
  9. Kirsch, Michele (May 1991). "No Hippy Schtick". Select (11): 74.
  10. "Official Lenny Kravitz page for the expanded version". Archived from the original on March 28, 2014. Retrieved March 19, 2014.
  11. "Australiancharts.com – Lenny Kravitz – Mama Said". Hung Medien. Retrieved July 20, 2020.
  12. "Austriancharts.at – Lenny Kravitz – Mama Said" (in German). Hung Medien. Retrieved July 20, 2020.
  13. "Dutchcharts.nl – Lenny Kravitz – Mama Said" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved July 20, 2020.
  14. "Offiziellecharts.de – Lenny Kravitz – Mama Said" (in German). GfK Entertainment Charts. Retrieved July 20, 2020.
  15. "Charts.nz – Lenny Kravitz – Mama Said". Hung Medien. Retrieved July 20, 2020.
  16. "Norwegiancharts.com – Lenny Kravitz – Mama Said". Hung Medien. Retrieved July 20, 2020.
  17. "Swedishcharts.com – Lenny Kravitz – Mama Said". Hung Medien. Retrieved July 20, 2020.
  18. "Swisscharts.com – Lenny Kravitz – Mama Said". Hung Medien. Retrieved July 20, 2020.
  19. "Official Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved July 20, 2020.
  20. "Lenny Kravitz Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved July 20, 2020.
  21. "Ultratop.be – Lenny Kravitz – Mama Said" (in French). Hung Medien. Retrieved July 20, 2020.
  22. "Discos de oro y platino" (in Spanish). Cámara Argentina de Productores de Fonogramas y Videogramas. Archived from the original on July 6, 2011. Retrieved July 10, 2019.
  23. "1991 - Aria Album Chart". Aria Charts. Retrieved June 7, 2020.
  24. "Austrian album certifications – Lenny Kravitz – Mama said" (in German). IFPI Austria.
  25. "Canadian album certifications – Lenny Kravitz – Mama said". Music Canada.
  26. "French album certifications – Lenny Kravitz – Are you gonna go my way" (in French). Syndicat National de l'Édition Phonographique.
  27. http://infodisc.fr/Ventes_Albums_Tout_Temps.php?debut=1050
  28. "Gold-/Platin-Datenbank (Lenny kravitz; 'Mama said')" (in German). Bundesverband Musikindustrie.
  29. "Dutch album certifications – Lenny kravitz – Mama said" (in Dutch). Nederlandse Vereniging van Producenten en Importeurs van beeld- en geluidsdragers. Enter Mama said in the "Artiest of titel" box.
  30. "Guld- och Platinacertifikat − År 1987−1998" (PDF) (in Swedish). IFPI Sweden.
  31. "The Official Swiss Charts and Music Community: Awards (Lenny kravitz; 'Mama said')". IFPI Switzerland. Hung Medien.
  32. "British album certifications – Lenny Kravitz – Mama said". British Phonographic Industry. Select albums in the Format field. Select Platinum in the Certification field. Type Mama said in the "Search BPI Awards" field and then press Enter.
  33. "American album certifications – Lenny Kravitz – Mama said". Recording Industry Association of America. If necessary, click Advanced, then click Format, then select Album, then click SEARCH. 
  34. Basham, David (August 27, 2001). "Calling All Chart Freaks: Michael, Lenny, Bush Under The Microscope". Mtv. Retrieved September 1, 2018.
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