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The Wu-Tang Clan released their critically acclaimed “Enter the 36 Chambers” in 1993, followed by what are considered some of the best solo rap albums of all time — Method Man’s “Tical,” GZA’s “Liquid Swords,” Ghostface Killah’s “Ironman” and, most notably, Raekwon’s “Only Built 4 Cuban Linx …” Relating street and organized crime in his writing, Raekwon single-handedly crafted the Mafioso Rap subgenre, emulated extensively throughout the late ’90s.
Despite positive critical reception for his next two albums, Raekwon was largely eclipsed by the success of other Clan members and drifted into the cold place between obscurity and irrelevance. By the mid 2000s, the genre he created was overdone and outmoded, and the follow-up he began to write for “Cuban Linx” floundered in production purgatory for the better part of four years. Owing to the extensive time Raekwon has had to rework “Only Built 4 Cuban Linx … Vol. II,” it can be considered his labor of love, and it shows.
The opening notes set the tone for “Cuban Linx … Pt. II;” violins gently wave over spoken words and suddenly you’re in a warm, welcome place. In stark contrast to the now-commonplace electronic neutrality of modern rap, Raekwon beckons you to enter his world and you can almost see it. Better than any of his talents is his ability to create images directly — where noted metaphor rappers like Lil’ Wayne are concerned with line-by-line wit, Raekwon wants to tell you a cohesive story. “Sonny’s Missing” tells the tale of a botched job, filled with film noir horns that seem thicker than the cigarette smoke surrounding the interrogation. The production on “Penitentiary” is jagged and neurotic, the lone evidence of brutality only foreshadowed in the song’s lyrics.
The album’s strongest moments start six tracks in with “Black Mozart.” A kitschy take on the Godfather theme, it serves as the broadest portrait of the morally complicated universe that Raekwon has created. As the beat fades out, we’re left only with Inspectah Deck’s call to “keep it true,” no matter what you do — presumably even criminals have a code to abide by. The chanting of “Gihad” fills in the emptiness — easily the best-produced track on the album. The song’s only mis-step — perhaps the biggest on the album — is Ghostface Killah’s guest verse. While Raekwon reminisces about the ‘90s, Ghostface writes a misguided, long-winded fellatio rap that never reaches a discernible climax. “Nu Wu,” the album’s first single, quickly recovers as Method Man leads the song into familiar territory. The production is RZA’s return to form, some of his finest work following internal critique of his spacey, experimental beats on Wu-Tang’s “8 Diagrams.”
Even the skits — typically the weakest point on Wu-Tang albums — are bearable enough that they don’t seem to mar the album in any way. “Only Built 4 Cuban Linx … Pt. II” showcases what Raekwon does best — create alternate realities by telling stories — and he’s clearly at the crest of his talent. Considering the legacy he created with the first installment of “Only Built 4 Cuban Linx … Pt. II” is nothing short of a masterpiece.
Grade: A
Bangor Daily News