Muddy Waters was met with generally favourable reviews from music critics. Steve Huey of AllMusic, though critical of the album's numerous interludes, stated that "lyrically, Redman is as strong as ever", and of the overall work, remarked that "Muddy Waters solidifies Redman's growing reputation as one of the most consistent rappers of the '90s".[2]
Redman has stated that he had planned on releasing a sequel to the album entitled Muddy Waters 2, considering it is his most classic work.[8]
Commercial performance
In the United States, the album debuted at number 12 on the Billboard 200 on the week of December 28, 1996 and stayed on the chart for 17 weeks. On the BillboardTop R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart, Muddy Waters repeated the success of his predecessor, Dare Iz a Darkside, also debuting at number-one. A little more than 2 months later, on February 12, 1997, the album received gold status from the RIAA for selling half a million units. As of October 2009, the album has 767,000 copies sold in the US alone.[9]
The album's lead single, a reunion duet with former Hit Squad group-mate K-Solo "It's Like That", peaked at number 95 on the Billboard Hot 100. A follow-up single from the album, "Whateva Man", reached number 42 on the same chart. The third and final single off of the project, "Pick It Up", did not made it to the Hot 100, however, it found mild success on R&B/Hip-Hop and Rap Songs charts.
In the United Kingdom, the album managed to debut only on the Hip Hop and R&B Albums Chart at number 27. The album repeated its success twice, again climbing to the 27th spot on this chart in the weeks ending January 25 and February 1, 1997. None of its singles went charted.
The album eventually debuted in Germany at number 100 on the chart in the week of February 10, 1997, becoming the rapper's first album to break through in the country.
