It Takes a Thief (album)

It Takes a Thief
Studio album by Coolio
Released	July 19, 1994
Recorded	1993-94
Genre	Gangsta rap, West Coast hip hop, G-funk
Length	59:14
Label	Tommy Boy/Warner Bros. Records
Producer	Paul Stewart, Dobbs The Wino, Rashad Coles, Billy Boy, Crazy Toones, CS Coleman
Coolio chronology
It Takes a Thief (1994) Gangsta's Paradise (1995)
Singles from It Takes a Thief
"County Line" Released: 1993 "I Remember" Released: 1994 "Fantastic Voyage" Released: March 8, 1994 "Mama I'm in Love Wit' a Gangsta" Released: 1994

It Takes a Thief is the debut studio album by American rapper Coolio. It was released on July 19, 1994 on Warner Bros. Records. The album received praise for bringing a humorous and lighthearted perspective to often violent and profane themes of typical Gangsta rap.

"Fantastic Voyage", a hit from the early 1980s, returned to the charts after Coolio released a song of the same name from this album. The song received regular airplay on MTV and became his breakout hit, peaking at #3 in the US. Songs "Smokin Stix", "Can-o-Corn" and "Sticky Fingers" first appeared in the film Poetic Justice.

Professional ratings
Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic	[1]
Entertainment Weekly	B+[2]
Robert Christgau	[3]
Rolling Stone	[4]

Track listing

1. "Fantastic Voyage (Timber mix)" 5:32
2. "County Line" 2:57
3. "Mama, I'm in Love wit a Gangsta" (feat. LeShaun) 4:09
4. "Hand on My Nutsac" 3:28
5. "Ghetto Cartoon (include's Cleo's Mood)" 3:13
6. "Smokin' Stix" 3:20
7. "Can-o-Corn" 3:40
8. "U Know Hoo!" (feat. WC) 3:51
9. "It Takes a Thief" 5:06
10. "Bring Back Somethin' fo da Hood" 3:11
11. "N da Closet" 3:51
12. "On My Way to Harlem" 3:13
13. "Sticky Fingers" 2:59
14. "Thought You Knew" 3:19
15. "Ugly Bitches" 4:06
16. "I Remember" (feat. J-Ro and Billy Boy) 4:47

Samples

• "Bring Back Somethin Fo Da Hood"
  • "Dem N****s Ain't Playin'" by The Watts Prophets
  • "Seven Minutes of Funk" by The Whole Darn Family
  • "Lover Jones" by Johnny Guitar Watson
  • "Genius of Love" by Tom Tom Club
• "Ghetto Cartoon"
  • "Cleo's Mood" by Willie Mitchell
• "Fantastic Voyage"
  • "Fantastic Voyage" by Lakeside
• "Hand On My Nutsac"
  • "Hihache" by Lafayette Afro Rock Band
• "It Takes a Thief"
  • "Good Ole Music" by Funkadelic
  • "2001" by The Cecil Holmes Soulful Sounds
• "I Remember"
  • "Cowboys to Girls" by The Intruders
  • "Tomorrow's Dream" by Al Green
  • "Synthetic Substitution" by Melvin Bliss
  • "One Man Band (Plays All Alone)" by Monk Higgins
• "Mama, I'm in Love wit a Gangsta"
  • "Mystic Voyage" by Roy Ayers
• "N Da Closet"
  • "Zimba Ku" by Black Heat
  • "Inner City Blues (Make Me Wanna Holler)" by Marvin Gaye
  • "Let 'Em In" by Wings
  • "Body Talk" by Eddie Kendricks
• "Sticky Fingers"
  • "The Payback" by James Brown
  • "Black Man, White Woman" by Richard Pryor
  • "It Feels So Good" by Grover Washington, Jr.
  • "Buffalo Gals" by Malcolm McLaren
  • "Throw Ya Gunz" by Onyx
• "Thought You Knew"
  • "Hobo Scratch" by Malcolm McLaren and World's Famous Supreme Team
• "Ugly B****es"
  • "Oh Honey" by Delegation
• "Smokin' Stix"
  • "You Got It I Want It" by B.T. Express
  • "Who Got Da Props" by Black Moon
• "County Line"
  • "Mango Meat" by Mandrill
  • "More Bounce to the Ounce" by Zapp
  • "Hit and Run" by Bar-Kays
  • "The Message" by Grandmaster Flash and The Furious Five
  • "Children's Story" by Slick Rick
• "Can-O-Corn"
  • "Everlasting Love" by Rufus & Chaka Khan

References