Goin' Off is the debut studio album

Studio album

A studio album is an album made up of tracks recorded in the controlled environment of a recording studio. A studio album contains newly written and recorded or previously unreleased or remixed material, distinguishing itself from a compilation or reissue album of previously recorded material, or...

 by Biz Markie

Biz Markie

Marcel Theo Hall better known by his stage name, Biz Markie, is an American rapper, beatboxer, DJ, comedian, singer, reality television personality, and commercial spokesperson. He is best known for his single "Just a Friend", an American Top 10 hit in 1989...

, a US hip hop

Hip hop

Hip hop is a form of musical expression and artistic culture that originated in African-American and Latino communities during the 1970s in New York City, specifically the Bronx. DJ Afrika Bambaataa outlined the four pillars of hip hop culture: MCing, DJing, breaking and graffiti writing...

 musician. The album was released by Cold Chillin' Records

Cold Chillin' Records

Cold Chillin' Records was a record label that released some important music in the golden age of hip hop from the late 1980s to the early 1990s. A producer-and-crew label founded by manager Tyrone Williams and run by Len Fichtelberg Cold Chillin' Records was a record label that released some...

, and produced by Marley Marl

Marley Marl

Marlon Williams , better known as Marley Marl, is an American DJ and record producer, who is considered one of the most important and influential hip-hop producers in the history of hip hop.-Biography:...

. The album was praised for its wit and humor. Big Daddy Kane

Big Daddy Kane

Antonio Hardy better known by his stage name Big Daddy Kane, is an American rapper who started his career in 1986 as a member of the rap group the Juice Crew. He is widely considered to be one of the most influential and skilled MC's in Hip Hop...

 wrote the lyrics of the album's first five songs. The album also showcased Biz's talent as a human beatbox on the song "Make the Music with Your Mouth, Biz", and his skill in the game of dozens

The dozens

The Dozens is a game that has its origins in African American slavery. The game originates from the devaluing and bargaining off of deformed or defective slaves in auction houses. This element of the African American oral tradition in which two competitors, usually males, go head-to-head in a...

 on the track "Nobody Beats the Biz." His most widely known song, "Vapors", also features here.

A 1995 reissue replaced "Make the Music with Your Mouth, Biz"; "Biz Dance"; and "Nobody Beats the Biz" with Marley Marl remixes.

In 1998, the album was selected as one of The Sources 100 Best Rap Albums Ever.

In 2006, it was re-released by Traffic Entertainment Group with a bonus disc.

The album is broken down track-by-track by Biz Markie

Biz Markie

Marcel Theo Hall better known by his stage name, Biz Markie, is an American rapper, beatboxer, DJ, comedian, singer, reality television personality, and commercial spokesperson. He is best known for his single "Just a Friend", an American Top 10 hit in 1989...

 in Brian Coleman's book Check the Technique

Check the Technique

Check the Technique: Liner Notes for Hip-Hop Junkies is a book by music journalist Brian Coleman that covers the making of thirty-six classic hip hop albums, based on interviews with the artists who created them, also providing a track-by-track breakdown for each album entirely in the words of the...

.

Track listing

All tracks written by Marcel Hall

Biz Markie

Marcel Theo Hall better known by his stage name, Biz Markie, is an American rapper, beatboxer, DJ, comedian, singer, reality television personality, and commercial spokesperson. He is best known for his single "Just a Friend", an American Top 10 hit in 1989...

, Marlon Williams

Marley Marl

Marlon Williams , better known as Marley Marl, is an American DJ and record producer, who is considered one of the most important and influential hip-hop producers in the history of hip hop.-Biography:...

, and Antonio Hardy

Big Daddy Kane

Antonio Hardy better known by his stage name Big Daddy Kane, is an American rapper who started his career in 1986 as a member of the rap group the Juice Crew. He is widely considered to be one of the most influential and skilled MC's in Hip Hop...

, except where noted.

1. "Pickin' Boogers" – 4:42
2. "Albee Square Mall" – 4:43
3. "Biz is Goin' Off" – 4:50
4. "Return of the Biz Dance" – 3:59
5. "Vapors
   The Vapors (song)
   The Vapors is a song by American hip hop artist Biz Markie. It was released in 1988 from his debut album Goin' Off. The song is featured on the fictional radio station Playback FM in the video game Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas.-Background:...
   
   " – 4:33
6. "Make the Music with Your Mouth, Biz" (Hall, Williams) – 4:56
7. "Biz Dance, Pt. 1" (Hall, Williams) – 3:38
8. "Nobody Beats the Biz" (Hall, Williams) – 5:42
9. "This Is Something for the Radio" (Hall, Williams) – 5:14
10. "Cool V's Tribute to Scratching" (Hall, Williams) – 3:07

All tracks produced by Marley Marl

Marley Marl

Marlon Williams , better known as Marley Marl, is an American DJ and record producer, who is considered one of the most important and influential hip-hop producers in the history of hip hop.-Biography:...

Samples

• "Make The Music With Your Mouth,Biz" contains samples from
  • "Ike's Mood I" by Isaac Hayes
    Isaac Hayes
    Isaac Lee Hayes, Jr. was an American songwriter, musician, singer and actor. Hayes was one of the creative influences behind the southern soul music label Stax Records, where he served both as an in-house songwriter and as a record producer, teaming with his partner David Porter during the...
    
    
  • "Na Na Hey Kiss Him Goodbye" by Steam
• "Pickin' Boogers" contains samples from
  • "The Jam" performed by Graham Central Station
    Graham Central Station
    Graham Central Station is a funk band named after founder Larry Graham . The name is a pun on New York City's Grand Central Terminal, often incorrectly called Grand Central Station....
    
    
• "Albee Square Mall" contains samples from
  • "God Made Me Funky" performed by The Headhunters
    The Headhunters
    The Headhunters are an American jazz-funk fusion band, best known for their albums they recorded as a backing band of jazz keyboard player Herbie Hancock during the 1970s. Hancock's debut album with the group, Head Hunters, is one of the best-selling jazz/fusion records of all time.-History:Herbie...
    
    
  • "Reach out of The Darkness" performed by Friend and Lover
    Friend and Lover
    Friend and Lover were an American folk-singing duo composed of husband-and-wife team, Jim and Cathy Post. They are best known for their hit single "Reach Out of the Darkness", which reached number 10 on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 chart in the summer of 1968....
    
    
• "Biz is Goin' Off" contains samples from
  • "One-Man Band" performed by Monk Higgins
    Monk Higgins
    Milton Bland better known as Monk Higgins, was an American musician and saxophonist who was born in Menifee, Arkansas....
    
     and The Specialites
  • "Double Barrel" performed by Dave Collins and Ansel
• "Return of the Biz Dance" contains samples from
  • "Zimba Ku" performed by Black Heat
    Black Heat
    Black Heat was a 1970s funk band founded by King Raymond Green and discovered by Phillip Guilbeau. Their albums include Black Heat , No Time To Burn and Keep On Runnin. The group had one hit single, "No Time to Burn", which reached #46 on the U.S. Billboard Black Singles chart...
    
    
• "Vapors" contains samples from
  • "Papa Don't Take No Mess
    Papa Don't Take No Mess
    "Papa Don't Take No Mess" is a funk song performed by James Brown. An edited version of the song released as a two-part single in 1974 was Brown's final number one R&B hit and peaked at number thirty-one on the Hot 100...
    
    " performed by James Brown
    James Brown
    James Joseph Brown was an American singer, songwriter, musician, and recording artist. He is the originator of Funk and is recognized as a major figure in the 20th century popular music for both his vocals and dancing. He has been referred to as "The Godfather of Soul," "Mr...
    
    
• "Biz Dance, Pt. 1 [Marley Marl Remix]" contains samples from
  • "Do The Funky Penguin" performed by Rufus Thomas
    Rufus Thomas
    Rufus Thomas, Jr. was an American rhythm and blues, funk and soul singer and comedian fromMemphis, Tennessee, who recorded on Sun Records in the...
    
    
• "Nobody Beats the Biz [Marley Marl Remix]" contains samples from
  • "Fly Like an Eagle" performed by Steve Miller Band
    Steve Miller Band
    The Steve Miller Band is an American rock band formed in 1967 in San Francisco, California. The band is managed by Steve Miller on guitar and lead vocals, and is known for a string of mid-1970s hit singles that are staples of the classic rock radio format.-History:In 1965, Steve Miller and...
    
    
  • "Get Up (I Feel Like Being a) Sex Machine
    Get Up (I Feel Like Being a) Sex Machine
    "Get Up Sex Machine" is a funk song recorded by James Brown in 1970 and released as a two-part single on King Records....
    
    " performed by James Brown
  • "Hihache" performed by Lafayette Afro Rock Band
    Lafayette Afro Rock Band
    Lafayette Afro Rock Band was a French funk rock band formed in Roosevelt, Long Island, New York in 1970. Though almost unknown in their native United States, they are now universally celebrated as one of the standout funk bands of the 1970s and admired for their use of break beats.Upon their...
    
    
  • An interpolation
    Interpolation (music)
    Interpolation in music refers to an abrupt change in musical elements from the main theme.-In classical music:In music and musical composition, especially 20th century and later, interpolation is an abrupt change of elements, with continuation of the first idea...
    
     of the TV commercial of the electronics store Nobody Beats the Wiz
    Nobody Beats The Wiz
    The Wiz was a chain of electronic stores in the northeastern United States, located primarily in New York, Pennsylvania and New Jersey. Some locations were in Canada as well. The chain was founded by four brothers, Douglas, Lawrence, Marvin, and Stephan Jemal, in New York City in 1977...
    
    
• "This is Something for the Radio" contains samples from
  • "Change le Beat" performed by B-Side and Fab Five Freddy
    Fab Five Freddy
    Fred Brathwaite , more popularly known as Fab 5 Freddy, is an American Hip hop historian, Hip hop pioneer and former graffiti artist...
    
    
• "Cool V's Tribute to Scratching" contains samples from
  • "Synthetic Substitution" performed by Melvin Bliss
  • "What's on Your Mind (Expression)" performed by Brass Construction
    Brass Construction
    Brass Construction was an American funk group formed in Brooklyn, New York in 1968. They were originally known as Dynamic Soul, and went on to record a string of hit singles and albums through to 1985.-Career:...
    
    
  • "Ike's Mood I/You've Lost That Lovin' Feeling" performed by Isaac Hayes
    Isaac Hayes
    Isaac Lee Hayes, Jr. was an American songwriter, musician, singer and actor. Hayes was one of the creative influences behind the southern soul music label Stax Records, where he served both as an in-house songwriter and as a record producer, teaming with his partner David Porter during the...
    
    
  • "Take Me to the Mardi Gras" performed by Bob James
    Bob James (musician)
    Robert McElhiney James is a jazz keyboardist, arranger and producer.-Biography:During the 1970s, Bob James played a major role in establishing the smooth jazz genre. "Angela", the instrumental theme from the sitcom Taxi, is probably Bob James' most well-known work to date...
    
    
  • "Do What You Gotta Do" performed by Eddie Drennon

Personnel

Contributors
Producers
Producer(s)	Marley Marl Marley Marl Marlon Williams , better known as Marley Marl, is an American DJ and record producer, who is considered one of the most important and influential hip-hop producers in the history of hip hop.-Biography:...
Executive Producer(s)	Marley Marl
Performers
Lead vocals and rhyming	Biz Markie Biz Markie Marcel Theo Hall better known by his stage name, Biz Markie, is an American rapper, beatboxer, DJ, comedian, singer, reality television personality, and commercial spokesperson. He is best known for his single "Just a Friend", an American Top 10 hit in 1989...
Additional and background vocals
Technicians
Mixing	Marley Marl
Engineering	Marley Marl
Mastering	Marley Marl
Photography	George DuBose
Design	George DuBose/small>

Singles

Singles
Title	B-Side	Release Date
"Vapors"
"Make The Music With Your Mouth, Biz" "The Biz Dance" "They're Coming To Take Me Away Ha-Haa"	"A One, Two" "The Biz Dance [Dub Version]" "Make The Music With Your Mouth, Biz [Instrumental]"	1986
"Nobody Beats The Biz"	"A One, Two" "Nobody Beats The Biz [Dub Version]"	1987
"Pickin' Boogers"	"A One, Two" "Pickin' Boogers [Dub Version]	1987
"Biz Is Goin' Off" "The Do Do (Bonus Beats)"	"A One, Two" "Biz Is Goin' Off [Dub Version]"	1988
"This Is Something For The Radio"	"This Is Something For The Radio [Dub Version]" "This Is Something For The Radio [Dub-Acapella]"	1988

Chart positions

Billboard Music Charts (North America) - Goin' Off
Year	Chart Name	Peak Position
1988	Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums	No. 19
1988	The Billboard 200	No. 90

Billboard Music Charts (North America) - "Make The Music With Your Mouth, Biz"
Year	Chart Name	Peak Position
1987	Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Singles & Tracks	No. 84

Billboard Music Charts (North America) - "Vapors"
Year	Chart Name	Peak Position
1988	Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Singles & Tracks	No. 80