| "I Need Love" | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
) | ||||
| Single by LL Cool J | ||||
| from the album Bigger and Deffer | ||||
| Released | July 13, 1987 | |||
| Recorded | 1987 | |||
| Genre | Golden age hip hop | |||
| Length | 5:23 | |||
| Label | Def Jam, Columbia, CBS Records | |||
| Songwriter(s) | James Todd Smith | |||
| Producer(s) | LL Cool J, L.A. Posse | |||
| LL Cool J singles chronology | ||||
| ||||
"I Need Love" is the second single from LL Cool J's second album, Bigger and Deffer.
Background
The drums were played with a Roland TR-808 and the keyboard tone was played with a Yamaha DX7 using the Fulltines patch.
Reception
It reached #1 on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs and #14 on the Billboard Hot 100 while becoming one of the first rap songs to enjoy mainstream popularity in the UK, reaching #8 in the UK Singles Chart. The single won a Soul Train Music Award for Best Rap Single in 1988 Soul Train Music Awards. The song ranked #13 on About.com's Top 100 Rap Songs.[1] It was Number 60 on VH1's 100 Greatest Songs of Hip Hop.
Track listing
A-side
- "I Need Love" – 5:23
B-side
- "I Need Love" (edit) – 4:15
- "My Rhyme Ain't Done" – 3:45
Charts
| Chart (1987) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Austrian Singles Chart | 13 |
| Dutch Top 40 | 3 |
| German Singles Chart | 6 |
| Swiss Singles Chart[2] | 6 |
| UK Singles Chart | 8 |
| US Billboard Hot 100[3] | 14 |
| US Billboard Hot Black Singles | 1 |
Covers and samples
The music, both melody and beats, were lifted from an instrumental by Brooklyn songwriter Jayson Dyall entitled "Zoraida's Heartbeat" which was written and recorded in 1984.[4] This song, along with other songs on a cassette tape of several raw recordings by Jayson Dyall, was presented to LL Cool J by an associate, who met Dyall through a music classifieds ad in early 1986 and told him he could get LL to listen to his music. Dyall never received any acknowledgment from LL Cool J or Def Jam Records for originally writing the music for this song.(You can listen to original instrumental recording of song at: https://www.reverbnation.com/jaydyallsongbook/song/24220571-zoraidas-heart-1984-instrumental)
- Irish singer-songwriter Luka Bloom recorded a cover version of the song on his 1992 album The Acoustic Motorbike.
- R&B group Blaque sampled the song on their track "Don't Go Looking for Love", which originally appeared on their 1999 self-titled debut album.
- Rapper Necro used the beat on his song "I Need Drugs", which was released on his 2000 album, I Need Drugs.
- Master P sampled this song on his single "I Need Dubs", featuring son Romeo, on his 2005 album Ghetto Bill.
- Amanda Blank sampled the song on "A Love Song" from her 2009 album I Love You.
- Krizz Kaliko copied lyrics of the song for the first few lines of his song "Anxiety", on his debut album Vitiligo by saying, "When I'm alone in my room, sometimes I stare at the wall/And in the back of my mind, I hear my conscious call/Telling me I need a gun."
- Yo Gotti sampled the song on his single "Let's Vibe" featuring Pleasure P.
- Rick Ross sampled the song on the single "Aston Martin Music" featuring Drake and Chrisette Michele from his 2010 album Teflon Don.
References
- ^ Henry Adaso. "100 Greatest Rap Songs". About.com Entertainment.
- ^ hitparade.ch
- ^ "LL Cool J Chart History (Hot 100)". Billboard.
- ^ Berry, Michael (14 June 2018). Listening to Rap: An Introduction. Routledge. ISBN 9781315315867 – via Google Books.