The World Is a Ghetto
| The World Is a Ghetto | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
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| Studio album by War | ||||
| Released | November 1972 | |||
| Recorded | 1972 at Crystal Industries Los Angeles, California | |||
| Genre | Soul, funk | |||
| Length | 43:49 | |||
| Label | United Artists Records | |||
| Producer | Jerry Goldstein with Lonnie Jordan and Howard E. Scott | |||
| War chronology | ||||
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| Professional ratings | |
|---|---|
| Review scores | |
| Source | Rating |
| Allmusic |   |
| Rolling Stone | (favorable) |
The World Is a Ghetto is the fifth album by the band War, released in late 1972 on United Artists Records. The album attained the number one spot on Billboard, and was Billboard magazine's Album of the Year as the best-selling album of 1973.
In addition to being Billboard's #1 album of 1973, the album is ranked number 444 on Rolling Stone magazine's list of the 500 greatest albums of all time. The title track became a gold record.
All tracks composed by War (Papa Dee Allen, Harold Brown, B. B. Dickerson, Lonnie Jordan, Charles Miller, Lee Oskar, Howard E. Scott).
In 2012 the album was re-released on CD in a 40th anniversary expanded edition with 4 previously unreleased bonus tracks.
The cover illustration, a lighthearted drawing showing a Rolls Royce with a flat tire in a ghetto, was drawn by Howard Miller, with Lee Oskar credited with album concept. Alternative cover interpretation: The older white man who owns the Rolls is the landlord, there to collect rent, evict, or whatever. Plenty of parking,but he parks in front of a fire plug. By the time he returns to his car, the tow truck is already hooked up, supervised by the neighborhood cop. A kid s about to kick the landlord in the butt,as the whole block watches the scene..
The album was also made available in a 4-channel surround sound (quadraphonic) mix in the 8-track tape format (United Artists UA-DA178-H).
Singles from the album include "The World Is a Ghetto" backed with "Four Cornered Room", and "The Cisco Kid" backed with "Beetles in the Bog".
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Wikipedia