Short Dog's in the House

Short Dog's in the House
Studio album by Too Short
Released September 11, 1990
Recorded 1989–1990
Genre Hip hop, West Coast hip hop, G-funk
Length 70:36
Label Jive Records, RCA
Producer Too Short, Sir Jinx, Pierre "The Beat Fixer" James, Keenan "The Maestro" Foster, Al Eaton, DJ Pooh
Too Short chronology
Life Is...Too Short
(1988)		 Short Dog's in the House
(1990)		 Shorty the Pimp
(1992)
Singles from Short Dog's in the House
  1. "Short But Funky"
    Released: 1990
  2. "The Ghetto"
    Released: October 8, 1990
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[1]
Entertainment WeeklyB−[2]
RapReviews(8.5/10)[3]
Robert Christgau[4]

Short Dog's in the House is the third studio album by Too Short on Jive Records, and his 6th studio album overall. The album was released on September 11, 1990. The CD contains a number of both socially conscious songs, as well as dirty rap and sexually-explicit songs that have made Too Short famous. The album's production samples a number of classic P-funk records, as well as the heavy use of the Roland TR-808 for instrumentation. The laid-back beats (which Shaw himself dubbed "dope fiend beats") would be a major influence in hip hop years later (and would help cement Too Short's legacy as a pioneer of West coast hip hop), and the album was key in the development of West Coast born G-funk that dominated the charts for the next few years. In fact, the album's cover (as well as Short's drawl-heavy delivery) was an influence for the cover art for Snoop Dogg's Doggystyle.[5] Upon release, the album received a number of positive reviews, making it one of Too Short's more well known albums.

The album featured a guest appearance by Ice Cube, and was the first time 2 major rap artists from Northern and Southern California collaborated on a song. The production of the album was handled mostly by a number of local Oakland-based producers (including Al Eaton, who was also known for his later work with Queen Latifah), but received production from two of Ice Cube's producers, Sir Jinx and DJ Pooh. The edited removes two songs and adds the song "What Rap?" On the edited version, "Ain't Nothin' but a Word to Me" was censored with bleep sound effects. Swearing is removed from others as well.

Background and Conception

Too Short had received critical acclaim with his release of Life Is... Too Short, which had transformed the Oakland emcee from an underground rapper to one of the West Coast's most notable faces. The album spawned an album-titled single, which had reached #7 on Billboard 200 Hot Rap Singles. The album itself peaked at 37 on the Billboard 200.

After the release of the album, there were a number of rumors that Too Short was killed in a crackhouse while smoking cocaine, and Too Short released this album partly as a response to those rumors,[6] and the rumors would later be addressed on the song "Dead or Alive".

Part of the direction of the album was influenced by Too Short's real surroundings in Oakland. The early 90s were the peak of the crack epidemic, and Oakland was one of the hardest hit cities. The back cover for the album also sponsored the Stop the Violence Movement.[7] Too Short released "The Ghetto" as a response to the plight of the inner cities, and the song would go on to receive a lot of radio airplay. Donnie Hathaway's friend Roberta Flack actually thanked Too Short for honoring Hathaway's single of the same name.[8]

Track listing

No.TitleWriter(s)Producer(s)Length
1."Short Dog's in the House"  Todd Anthony ShawPierre James6:02
2."It's Your Life"  Todd Anthony ShawKeenan Foster4:48
3."The Ghetto"  Todd Anthony Shaw, Al Eaton, Donny Hathaway, I. HutsonAl Eaton5:59
4."Short But Funky"  Dame Edwards, Keenan FosterKeenan Foster4:13
5."In Tha Oaktown"  Todd Anthony Shaw, Al EatonAl Eaton4:38
6."Dead Or Alive"  Todd Anthony ShawToo Short5:46
7."Punk Bitch"  Todd Anthony Shaw, Al EatonToo Short, Al Eaton6:01
8."Ain't Nothin' but a Word to Me" (featuring Ice Cube)Todd Anthony Shaw, O'Shea Jackson, Anthony WheatSir Jinx4:48
9."Hard on the Boulevard"  Todd Anthony ShawToo Short6:24
10."Pimpology"  Todd Anthony Shaw, Keenan FosterToo Short6:07
11."Paula & Janet"  Todd Anthony ShawDJ Pooh2:37
12."Rap Like Me"  Todd Anthony ShawPierre James, Too Short7:38
13."The Ghetto (Reprise)" (Instrumental) Too Short, Al Eaton5:36
Notes
Samples

Charts

Chart (1990) Peak
position
US Billboard 200[9] 20
US Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums (Billboard)[10] 3

References

  1. ↑ Alex Henderson (1990-08-27). "Short Dog's in the House - Too $hort | Songs, Reviews, Credits, Awards". AllMusic. Retrieved 2015-07-25.
  2. ↑ Browne, David (1990-10-19). "Short Dog's in the House". EW.com. Retrieved 2015-07-25.
  3. ↑ "Too $hort :: Short Dog's in the House :: Jive/Zomba". Rapreviews.com. 2002-07-05. Retrieved 2015-07-25.
  4. ↑ "CG: Too Short". Robert Christgau. Retrieved 2015-07-25.
  5. ↑ "Hip Hop in America: A Regional Guide - Mickey Hess - Google Books". Books.google.com. Retrieved 2015-07-25.
  6. ↑ Staley, Willy (2012-02-24). "Too $hort "Dead or Alive" (1990) - Too $hort Breaks Down His 25 Most Essential Songs". Complex. Retrieved 2015-07-25.
  7. ↑ http://www.rapmusicguide.com/amass/images/inventory/3040/%24hort%20Dog's%20In%20The%20House%20(Back).jpg
  8. ↑ Staley, Willy (2012-02-24). "Too $hort "The Ghetto" (1990) - Too $hort Breaks Down His 25 Most Essential Songs". Complex. Retrieved 2015-07-25.
  9. ↑ "Too Short – Chart history" Billboard 200 for Too Short. Retrieved October 23, 2014.
  10. ↑ "Too Short – Chart history" Billboard Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums for Too Short. Retrieved October 23, 2014.
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