Maps of Music
The Iceberg/Freedom of Speech... Just Watch What You Say! (1989)
Where the lyrics of The Iceberg/Freedom of Speech... Just Watch What You Say! take you, and where it was really made.
The cover shows a B-boy with a shotgun in his mouth and two pistols at his head, a picture meant to reflect Ice-T's experience with freedom of speech.
Place unknown
Do you know where this album was recorded, or where its cover was shot? Tell us and we will add it to the map.
Tell us the placeAlbum story
Overview
- Third studio album by American rapper Ice-T
- Released 10 October 1989 by Sire Records
- Uncharacteristically gritty sound, with some of the darkest tracks Ice-T ever released
- Contains the recorded debut of heavy metal band Body Count, who perform on three songs
Background
- Ice-T encountered censorship problems on tour before the album was released
- The rapper said he was told what he could not say onstage in Columbus, Georgia
- Cover concept reflects Ice-T's experience with freedom of speech
- Cover text frames it as: go ahead and say what you want, but the government and parents are ready to destroy you
Recording
- Recorded at Syndicate Studios West and Wide Tracks, Los Angeles
- Mixed at Soundcastle and Milagro Studios, Los Angeles
- Mix engineers were Mark Wolfson and Vachik Aghaniawtz
- Afrika Islam programmed all songs except the title track, which Johnny (Sleepy John) Rivers programmed
- Ice-T served as main artist, executive producer and producer
- Jello Biafra appears courtesy of Alternative Tentacles Records
Sources: en.wikipedia.org · www.discogs.com
Tracklist
| 1 | Shut Up, Be Happy | 2:36 |
| 2 | The Iceberg | 4:22 |
| 3 | Lethal Weapon | 4:34 |
| 4 | You Played Yourself | 4:15 |
| 5 | Peel Their Caps Back | 3:42 |
| 6 | The Girl Tried to Kill Me | 4:08 |
| 7 | Black ’n’ Decker | 1:17 |
| 8 | Hit the Deck | 3:46 |
| 9 | This One’s for Me | 4:33 |
| 10 | The Hunted Child | 4:27 |
| 11 | What Ya Wanna Do? | 8:58 |
| 12 | Freedom of Speech | 4:11 |
| 13 | My Word Is Bond | 5:07 |
Sources: musicbrainz.org
Artist
Career
- Tracy Lauren Marrow (born February 16, 1958), known as Ice-T, is an American rapper and actor active in both hip-hop and heavy metal.
- Began as an underground rapper in the 1980s; signed to Sire Records in 1987 and released debut album Rhyme Pays.
- Founded Rhyme $yndicate Records in 1988; Power (1988) is his only platinum-certified album from the RIAA.
- Co-founded heavy metal band Body Count in 1990; the self-titled debut came out in 1992.
- The controversy over "Cop Killer" led to his departure from Warner Bros. Records; Home Invasion was released via Priority Records.
- Has played Odafin "Fin" Tutuola on Law & Order: Special Victims Unit since 2000.
- Won a Grammy for "Back on the Block" and, with Body Count, the Best Metal Performance Grammy in 2021.
- Released the album Criminal Migraine in 2026.
Sources: en.wikipedia.org
Reception
Reappraisal
- AllMusic reviewer Alex Henderson gave the album five out of five stars
- Henderson called it possibly the hip-hop product closest to George Orwell's 1984
- Henderson wrote that Ice-T creates the First Amendment as the album's dominant theme, rather than focusing mainly on gangsta rap
- Henderson said the opening track Shut Up, Be Happy sets the album's sound, with Jello Biafra imagining an Orwellian America where government controls every aspect of citizens' lives
- Henderson noted that a couple of first-class gangsta rap examples remain on the record
- Henderson described the album's main concern as censorship and what he sees as a widespread attack on freedom of expression in the United States
- Robert Christgau gave the album an A-
- Christgau wrote that the new gangster artistic direction was drawing attention from the PMRC
- Christgau wrote that street stories bite harder than facts, and summed the record up in two words: violent and funny
Sources: it.wikipedia.org
Trivia
- The VHS The Iceberg was released with the album, mixing footage of Ice-T's gigs with his own commentary
- The VHS includes footage from the Dope Jam tour, with Doug E Fresh, KRS-One and Kool Moe Dee
- The VHS's first section says some footage was shot on equipment from a pawnbroker or stolen from a mall
- Shut Up, Be Happy samples Black Sabbath's Black Sabbath, and The Hunted Child samples Public Enemy's Bring the Noise
- Hit the Deck samples Scatman Crothers' Coonskin No More, and My Word Is Bond samples Slick Rick's La Di Da Di
Sources: en.wikipedia.org