Big Shots is a studio album by American hip hop duo Charizma & Peanut Butter Wolf.[1] Recorded between 1991 and 1993 for Hollywood BASIC, it was released on Stones Throw Records in 2003, 10 years after Charizma's death.[2] It peaked at number 2 on CMJ's Hip-Hop chart,[3] as well as number 27 on the CMJ Radio 200 chart.[4] The first single from the album, titled "My World Premiere", was originally released in 1996.[5]

Big Shots
Studio album by Charizma & Peanut Butter Wolf
Released	November 18, 2003 (2003-11-18)
Recorded	1991–1993
Studio	Studio Apogee, San Jose, California
Genre	West Coast hip hop
Length	46:24
Label	Stones Throw Records
Producer	Peanut Butter Wolf
Charizma & Peanut Butter Wolf chronology
Big Shots (2003) Big Shots Bonus EP (2004)
Singles from Big Shots
"My World Premiere" Released: 1996 "Devotion" Released: 2000 "Here's a Smirk" Released: 2003 "Jack the Mack" Released: 2003

Critical reception

Professional ratings

Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic	[6]
The A.V. Club	favorable[7]
CMJ New Music Monthly	favorable[8]
Dusted Magazine	favorable[5]
East Bay Express	favorable[9]
HipHopDX	4.0/5[2]
Metro Silicon Valley	favorable[10]
RapReviews.com	6/10[11]
Spin	favorable[12]
XLR8R	favorable[13]

Sam Samuelson of AllMusic gave the album 3 stars out of 5, calling it "a treasure that should be cherished by hip-hop fans the world over."[6] Todd Inoue of Metro Silicon Valley said, "Charizma sounds like MC Shan blessed with youthful lung capacity while PB Wolf makes like Marley Marl programming beats in DJ Premier's lab."[10] Ross Hogg of XLR8R said, "Charizma's voice brims with eagerness, enthusiasm and earnestness; Wolf's textured, jazzy beats epitomize boom bap and are a sign of great things to come."[13]

Nathan Rabin of The A.V. Club said, "while Big Shots is one of those charmed debuts where nearly every song sounds like a terrific single, it wouldn't be without Wolf, whose gorgeously constructed tracks, flawless ear for melody, and extensive sonic quotations anticipate Madlib."[7] Rachel Swan of East Bay Express said, "had Charizma not been shot and killed in '93, he might've turned into another Pharoahe Monch or J-Live."[9]

In 2003, East Bay Express included it on the "Best Music of the East Bay" list.[14] In 2007, The A.V. Club included it on the "10 Unjustly Overlooked Hip-Hop Classics" list.[15]

Track listing

Personnel

Credits adapted from the CD liner notes.

• Charizma – vocals
• Peanut Butter Wolf – production, executive production
• Peter Stanley – recording
• Dave Cooley – mastering
• Jeff Jank – design, photography
• Theresa Castro – photography
• Egon – label management

References

Further reading

• Gillespie, Blake (June 19, 2014). "The story of Charizma & Peanut Butter Wolf". Impose. Archived from the original on September 12, 2015.

External links

• Big Shots at Discogs (list of releases)