Goin' Off
{{Use mdy dates|date=May 2025}}
{{Infobox album
| name = Goin' Off
| type = studio
| artist = Biz Markie
| cover = GoinOff.jpg
| alt =
| released = {{Start date|1988|2|23}}
| recorded = July–November 1987
| venue =
| studio =
| genre = Golden age hip hop
| length = 45:24
| label = {{hlist|Cold Chillin'|Warner Bros.}}
| producer = Marley Marl
| prev_title =
| prev_year =
| next_title = The Biz Never Sleeps
| next_year = 1989
| misc = {{Singles
| name = Goin' Off
| type = studio
| single1 = Vapors
| single1date = April 1988
}}
}}
Goin' Off is the debut studio album by American hip hop musician Biz Markie. The album was released by Cold Chillin' Records, and produced by Marley Marl. Big Daddy Kane 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 on the track "Nobody Beats the Biz". One of his most widely known songs, "Vapors", was on the album.
Some reissues from 1995 onwards replace the Marley Marl remix of "Make the Music with Your Mouth" with the original 12" version, the album version of "Vapors" with the remix, and the original "This Is Something for the Radio" with the remix. In 2006, the album was re-released by Traffic Entertainment Group with a bonus disc. It restores the original album versions of "Vapors" and "This Is Something for the Radio" as well as the Marley Marl remix of "Make the Music" that appeared on the original LP. As of 2025, the album is not available on any streaming services.
Critical reception
{{Music ratings
| rev1 = AllMusic
| rev1score = {{Rating|4.5|5}}{{cite web|url=https://www.allmusic.com/album/goin-off-mw0000651934|title=Goin' Off – Biz Markie|publisher=AllMusic|access-date=January 8, 2018|last=Bush|first=John}}
| rev2 = Los Angeles Times
| rev2score = {{Rating|2|4}}{{cite news|url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1988-09-11-ca-2503-story.html|title=The World of Hard Rap|newspaper=Los Angeles Times|date=September 11, 1988|access-date=June 12, 2023|last=Gold|first=Jonathan|author-link=Jonathan Gold}}
| rev3 = NME
| rev3score = 8/10{{cite magazine|title=Biz Markie: Goin' Off|magazine=NME|date=March 12, 1988|last=O'Hagan|first=Sean|author-link=Sean O'Hagan (journalist)|page=31}}
| rev4 = RapReviews
| rev5 = The Rolling Stone Album Guide
| rev5score = {{Rating|4|5}}{{cite book|chapter=Biz Markie|last=Sarig|first=Roni|title=The New Rolling Stone Album Guide|title-link=The Rolling Stone Album Guide|editor1-last=Brackett|editor1-first=Nathan|editor1-link=Nathan Brackett|editor2-last=Hoard|editor2-first=Christian|editor2-link=Christian Hoard|publisher=Simon & Schuster|edition=4th|year=2004|isbn=0-7432-0169-8|pages=[https://archive.org/details/newrollingstonea00brac/page/72 72–73]}}
| rev6 = The Village Voice
| rev6score = B{{cite news|url=https://robertchristgau.com/xg/cg/cgv788-88.php|title=Christgau's Consumer Guide|newspaper=The Village Voice|date=July 26, 1988|access-date=January 8, 2018|last=Christgau|first=Robert|author-link=Robert Christgau}}
}}
Reviewing for The Village Voice in July 1988, Robert Christgau highlighted "This Is Something for the Radio" and "Pickin' Boogers", which he called "timeless", but suggested the other singles had less "life".
In 1998, Goin' Off was selected as one of The Source{{'}}s 100 Best Rap Albums.{{cite journal |url=http://www.rocklistmusic.co.uk/source.htm#100albums |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060214200158/http://www.rocklistmusic.co.uk/source.htm#100albums |url-status=usurped |archive-date=February 14, 2006 |title=100 Best Rap Albums |accessdate=November 24, 2007 |magazine=The Source |issue=#100 |date=January 1998 |location=New York |issn=1063-2085}}
The album is broken down track-by-track by Biz Markie in Brian Coleman's book Check the Technique.Coleman, Brian. Check The Technique: Liner Notes For Hip-Hop Junkies. New York: Villard/Random House, 2007.
Track listing
- All tracks produced by Marley Marl.
{{Track listing
| all_writing =
| title1 = Pickin' Boogers
| length1 = 4:42
| title2 = Albee Square Mall
| length2 = 4:43
| title3 = Biz is Goin' Off
| length3 = 4:50
| title4 = Return of the Biz Dance
| length4 = 3:59
| title5 = Vapors
| length5 = 4:33
| title6 = Make the Music with Your Mouth, Biz
| note6 = featuring TJ Swan
| length6 = 4:56
| title7 = Biz Dance (Part One)
| length7 = 3:38
| title8 = Nobody Beats the Biz
| length8 = 5:42
| title9 = This Is Something for the Radio
| length9 = 5:14
| title10 = Cool V's Tribute to Scratching
| length10 = 3:07
}}
Personnel
| cellpadding="3" align="all" border:3px solid;"
|align="center" bgcolor="honeydew" colspan="2"|Contributors |
| align="center" bgcolor="oldlace" colspan="2"|Producers |
|---|
| Producer(s)
|Marley Marl; Co-Producer(s) Biz Markie, DJ Cool V |
| Executive Producer(s)
|Benny Medina |
| align="center" bgcolor="oldlace" colspan="2"|Performers |
| Lead vocals and rhyming |
| Additional and background vocals |
| align="center" bgcolor="oldlace" colspan="2"|Technicians |
| Mixing
|Marley Marl, Big Daddy Kane, DJ Cool V |
| Engineering
|Marley Marl, Andre Booth |
| Mastering
|Carlton Batts |
| Photography
|George DuBose |
| Design
|George DuBose |
Singles
| cellpadding="3" align="all"
|align="center" bgcolor="honeydew" colspan="5"|Singles |
| align="center" width="125" bgcolor="oldlace"|Title
!align="center" width="175" bgcolor="oldlace"|B-Side !align="center" width="125" bgcolor="oldlace"|Release Date |
|---|
| bgcolor="beige"|"Vapors"
| |bgcolor="beige"| |
| bgcolor="beige"|"Make the Music with Your Mouth, Biz" "The Biz Dance" "They're Coming To Take Me Away Ha-Haa" |"A One, Two" |bgcolor="beige"|1986 |
| bgcolor="beige"|"Nobody Beats the Biz"
|"A One, Two" |bgcolor="beige"|1987 |
| bgcolor="beige"|"Pickin' Boogers"
|"A One, Two" |bgcolor="beige"|1987 |
| bgcolor="beige"|"Biz Is Goin' Off" "The Do Do (Bonus Beats)" |"A One, Two" |bgcolor="beige"|1988 |
| bgcolor="beige"|"This Is Something for the Radio"
|"This Is Something for the Radio [Dub Version]" |bgcolor="beige"|1988 |
Charts
| class="wikitable sortable plainrowheaders" style="text-align:center" |
| scope="col"| Chart (1988)
! scope="col"| Peak |
|---|
| {{album chart|Billboard200|90|artist=Biz Markie|rowheader=true|accessdate=March 4, 2017}} |
| {{album chart|BillboardRandBHipHop|19|artist=Biz Markie|rowheader=true|accessdate=March 4, 2017}} |