Gravel Pit

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"Gravel Pit"
Single by Wu-Tang Clan
featuring Paulissa Moorman
from the album The W
ReleasedDecember 5, 2000
Recorded1999–2000
GenreEast coast hip hop
Length
  • 4:51 (album version)
  • 4:35 (single version)
  • 3:54 (radio edit)
Label
Producer(s)RZA
Wu-Tang Clan singles chronology
"Protect Ya Neck (The Jump Off)"
(2000) 		"Gravel Pit"
(2000) 		"Careful (Click, Click)"
(2001)

"Gravel Pit" is a single released by the Wu-Tang Clan featuring Paulissa Moorman and Dave Pendlebury for their album The W. It was not as popular in the U.S. as other Wu-Tang Clan singles like "C.R.E.A.M." and "Uzi (Pinky Ring)" [citation needed]. It did, however, receive major radio play, and topped the music video show 106 and Park for two weeks straight. It is also the Wu-Tang's only Top 40 hit in the UK, peaking at number six. In October 2011, NME placed it at number 116 on its list "150 Best Tracks of the Past 15 Years".[1]

The chorus of the song: "Back, back and forth and forth..." is taken from the funk group Cameo's single "Back And Forth". The hook of the song: "Check out my gravel pit..." is sung by Paulissa Moorman. According to The Wu-Tang Manual the beat for the track was sampled from Antoine Duhamel's soundtrack to a French TV miniseries entitled Belphegor.

RZA has stated that he originally wanted Aaliyah to record the song, however, was unable to arrange it before her death, leading to the Wu Tang Clan recording it.[2] The song features verses from three of the Wu-Tang Clan's MCs, Method Man, Ghostface Killah and U-God, as well as spoken bits from RZA and Raekwon.

Music video[edit]

The music video, directed by Joseph Kahn, features the Wu-Tang Clan arguing in their elevator-like time machine, and in argument accidentally sending themselves back to "2,000,000 BC", even though Method Man claimed they were going back to 2000 B.C. "2,000,000 BC" bears strong resemblance to the representation of the Stone Age in The Flintstones. The "gravel pit" is a large, fancy pit made from stone and bones. The "pit", a casino, contains a fountain, Stone Age cars, dancing women - including the actress Tamala Jones, credited as "Crystal Diamonds" - and large dinosaurs. It appears to be ruled by the Wu-Tang Clan (with the exception of Ol' Dirty Bastard, who was incarcerated at the time - he "appears" as a pair of enchained arms hanging out of a makeshift jail cell), who now have "stone age" personas and clothing. At the end of the video "Bo Rockhard" (Bokeem Woodbine), a rival ninja, challenges the Wu-Tang ninjas, RZA leads ninjas and fights off a horde of rival ninjas attacking the pit. The track's ending soundbite (as well as many found on the album) comes from the movie Short Eyes.

Each Wu-Tang member adopts a different name in the video. RZA becomes "Bobby Boulders", Meth is "Joe Quarry", Ol' Dirty Bastard becomes "Ol' Dirty Blocks", Ghostface is renamed "Frank Stoney", Raekwon is "Lex Rockhead", and U-God is "Stonefingers".

Samples[edit]

The song uses two samples. The trumpet introduction comes from "It's a Man's Man's Man's World" by James Brown, while the sample running along the whole song is taken from the French TV miniseries Belphegor's main titles. It also took samples from the films Enter the Dragon and Short Eyes.

Charts[edit]

Certifications[edit]

Region Certification Certified units/sales
Germany (BVMI)[31] Gold 250,000^
United Kingdom (BPI)[32] Gold 400,000‡

^ Shipments figures based on certification alone.
‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone.

References[edit]

  1. ^ "150 Best Tracks Of The Past 15 Years". NME.
  2. ^ "Wu-Tang Clan Wanted to Work with Aaliyah". CLASH. 14 August 2013.
  3. ^ "Wu-Tang Clan – Gravel Pit". ARIA Top 50 Singles. Retrieved February 4, 2020.
  4. ^ "Issue 576" ARIA Top 40 Urban Singles. National Library of Australia. Retrieved February 27, 2022.
  5. ^ "Wu-Tang Clan – Gravel Pit" (in German). Ö3 Austria Top 40. Retrieved February 4, 2020.
  6. ^ "Wu-Tang Clan – Gravel Pit" (in Dutch). Ultratop 50. Retrieved February 4, 2020.
  7. ^ "Wu-Tang Clan – Gravel Pit" (in French). Ultratop 50. Retrieved February 4, 2020.
  8. ^ "Eurochart Hot 100 Singles" (PDF). Music & Media. Vol. 17, no. 49. 2 December 2000. p. 13. Retrieved 9 June 2020.
  9. ^ "Wu-Tang Clan – Gravel Pit" (in French). Les classement single. Retrieved February 4, 2020.
  10. ^ "Wu-Tang Clan – Gravel Pit" (in German). GfK Entertainment charts. Retrieved February 4, 2020.
  11. ^ "Eurochart Hot 100 Singles" (PDF). Music & Media. Vol. 17, no. 49. 20 January 2001. p. 13. Retrieved 9 June 2020.
  12. ^ "Íslenski Listinn (03.05. 2001)". Dagblaðið Vísir (in Icelandic). May 3, 2001. p. 10. Retrieved October 5, 2019.
  13. ^ "Nederlandse Top 40 – week 52, 2000" (in Dutch). Dutch Top 40. Retrieved February 4, 2020.
  14. ^ "Wu-Tang Clan – Gravel Pit" (in Dutch). Single Top 100. Retrieved February 4, 2020.
  15. ^ "{{{artist}}} – Gravel Pit". VG-lista. Retrieved February 4, 2020.
  16. ^ "Official Scottish Singles Sales Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved July 25th, 2022.
  17. ^ "{{{artist}}} – Gravel Pit". Singles Top 100. Retrieved February 4, 2020.
  18. ^ "Wu-Tang Clan – Gravel Pit". Swiss Singles Chart. Retrieved February 4, 2020.
  19. ^ "Official Singles Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved February 4, 2020.
  20. ^ "Official Hip Hop and R&B Singles Chart Top 40". Official Charts Company. Retrieved June 19, 2023.
  21. ^ "Wu-Tang Clan Chart History (Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs)". Billboard. Retrieved February 4, 2020.
  22. ^ "Wu-Tang Clan Chart History (Hot Rap Songs)". Billboard. Retrieved February 4, 2020.
  23. ^ "Wu-Tang Clan Chart History (Rhythmic)". Billboard. Retrieved February 4, 2020.
  24. ^ "Jaaroverzichten 2001". Ultratop. Retrieved February 4, 2020.
  25. ^ "Canada's Top 200 Singles of 2001". Jam!. Archived from the original on July 26, 2002. Retrieved March 28, 2022.
  26. ^ "Eurochart Hot 100 Singles 2001 p.14" (PDF). Music & Media. Retrieved September 12, 2022.
  27. ^ "Top 100 Single-Jahrescharts". GfK Entertainment (in German). offiziellecharts.de. Retrieved February 4, 2020.
  28. ^ "Top 100-Jaaroverzicht van 2001". Dutch Top 40. Retrieved February 4, 2020.
  29. ^ "Jaaroverzichten – Single 2001". dutchcharts.nl. Retrieved February 4, 2020.
  30. ^ "Schweizer Jahreshitparade 2001 – hitparade.ch". Hung Medien. Retrieved February 4, 2020.
  31. ^ "Gold-/Platin-Datenbank (Wu-Tang Clan; 'Gravel Pit')" (in German). Bundesverband Musikindustrie. Retrieved 8 October 2018.
  32. ^ "British single certifications – Wu-Tang Clan – Gravel Pit". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved August 23, 2019.
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