A.W.O.L. (album)

A.W.O.L. is the fifth studio album by rapper AZ, released on September 6, 2005. It was recorded after Final Call, which AZ declined to release because his label had pushed its release back two months—according to him, they were also the source of its early leak to the press and the internet. Garnering critical praise with production from highly regarded New York underground acts such as DJ Premier, Buckwild, and DipSet production duo the Heatmakerz, the rapper abandoned his previously money-oriented subject matter, stating that he "wanted it to be all street.[8] A.W.O.L. is the first album AZ released on his own Quiet Money Records imprint. A.W.O.L. 1.5 was released several months later, which included a bonus disc featuring a cappella and instrumental versions to the songs on A.W.O.L..

A.W.O.L.
Studio album by
AZ
ReleasedSeptember 6, 2005 (2005-09-06)
Recorded2005
GenreEast Coast hip hop
Length54:33
LabelQuiet Money, Koch
AZ chronology
Decade 1994–2004
(2004)		 A.W.O.L.
(2005)		 The Format
(2006)
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
Allmusic[1]
Cokemachineglow(70/100)[2]
HipHopDX[3]
IGN(8.0/10)[4]
PopMattersfavorable[5]
Rhapsodyfavorable[6]
StylusB[7]

Track listing
No.TitleProducer(s)Length
1."So Sincere (Intro)"Heatmakerz1:57
2."Never Change"Heatmakerz4:26
3."New York" (featuring Ghostface Killah & Raekwon)Emile3:45
4."Can't Stop"Frade4:15
5."Still Alive"Vinny Idol4:04
6."AZ's Chillin'"Fizzy Womack3:55
7."City of Gods"Disco D4:14
8."Street Life" (featuring Half-A-Mil & Begetz)J-Hen4:33
9."Bedtime Story"Baby Paul, Jimi Kendrix2:12
10."The Come Up"DJ Premier3:46
11."Envious" (featuring Bounty Killer)Moss2:57
12."A.W.O.L."Vinny Idol3:40
13."Live Wire*"Buckwild10:49
14."Magic Hour*" (featuring CL Smooth)Tone Mason3:08
15."The Truth*" (featuring Ralo)DJ Absolut4:29

note*:Track 13, 14 and 15 are the 3 tracks contained on track 13 which is 10:49 in length. It is one continuous track. All 3 tracks are available, separately, on his Final Call (The Lost Tapes) album.

Sample credits

Street Life

  • "Half Moon Serenade" by Naoka Kawai

Bedtime Story

The Come Up

A.W.O.L.

Magic Hour

Album singles
Single information
"The Come Up"
  • Released: July 26, 2005
  • B-Side: "Magic Hour"

Charts
Chart (2005) Peak
position
US Billboard 200 73
US Top R&B/Hip Hop Albums 17
US Top Rap Albums 10
US Top Independent Albums 5

References
  1. Allmusic review
  2. Cokemachineglow review Archived February 12, 2010, at the Wayback Machine
  3. "HipHopDX review". Archived from the original on 2010-07-27. Retrieved 2006-11-07.
  4. "IGN review". Archived from the original on 2010-12-16. Retrieved 2009-07-02.
  5. PopMatters review
  6. Rhapsody review Archived June 2, 2009, at the Wayback Machine
  7. Stylus review Archived August 1, 2009, at the Wayback Machine
  8. Kayser, Brian (1 August 2005). "DJ Premier Interview". Retrieved 25 March 2011.
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