Album Review: Raekwon- "Only Built 4 Cuban Linx, Pt. 2"

It's finally here and the years of fruitless rumors and speculation are officially over. Was "Cuban Linx 2" worth the wait, or another half-assed Wu solo album?

1. Return of the North Star (Feat. Papa Wu)

The album appropriately picks up where the last one ended. They even got the same dude from the original "North Star". You kind of have to wonder what he's been up to these last 15 years.

2. House of Flying Daggers (Feat. Inspectah Deck, Ghostface Killah, & Method Man)

I'm not a huge J Dilla fan like everyone else on the internets, but this is a heat rock. This probably has more of the classic, Wu-Tang sound then anything RZA, who invented that sound, has made in the last several years. Everyone goes in on this, too.

3. Sonny's Missing

I bet Pete Rock sold Rae this beat in like 2005 and just said fuck it and went and used it for that Royal Flush song. That or he just pulled a real jack move, but Pete seems like a stand-up guy so I sort of doubt that. For what it's worth, I think it fits this brief, story-telling track real well.

4. Pyrex Vision

This one uses the beat from O.C.'s "Jewelz". I approve. I mean that beat was fucking great and it's not like many people still listen to the Jewelz album anymore. Plus, it's just 55 seconds of Raekwon's most lazy cocaine raps, so its more of an interlude than a real song.

5. Cold Outside (Feat. Ghostface Killah & Suga Bang)

The majority of this song is this guy Suga Bang singing and sort of half singing half rapping and god damn is that shit annoying. It's not like the actual Rae and Ghost part is anything special anyway.

6. Black Mozart

This is grimy on some '94 Wu-Tang shit. I'm not sure what's up with the chorus, though. Or that part with RZA yelling about soldiers. I also have no idea who the second guy rapping is but he kinda killed it.

7. Gihad (Feat. Ghostface Killah)

This came out over a year ago, which is when I started becoming optimistic that this was a real album and not something Raekwon made up to piss off people on the internets. Even though it's old news, this song is pretty fuckin good. Ghostface's verse is just classic.

8. The New Wu (Feat. Ghostface Killah & Method Man)

The lead single. This is the closest thing we'll get to classic Wu-Tang in 2009. I don't know why they changed the "suuuu" from the original version, this one kind of sounds funny.

9. Penitentiary (Feat. Ghostface Killah)

This one has that sort of "Road to the Riches" piano vibe going. Ghostface breaks Raekwon out of jail in this their latest adventure.

10. Baggin' Crack

Another short one, this time with the most generic Erick Sermon beat evar. This is alright if not really nondescript. 

11. Surgical Gloves

The beat from Alchemist is killer. I don't really know what the fuck Rae is rapping about, but it sounds cool. I swear that guy speaks another language.

12. Broken Safety (Feat. Jadakiss & Styles P.)

This sounds like a Raekwon feature on a D-Block song. Except for the Kung-Fu shit at the end there. Styles P.'s verse stood out if only for its shitty-ness.

13. Canal Street

Jacking beats from one of those new AZ albums, as opposed to "Jewelz", maybe not such a great idea. Not that this beat is bad, but Raekwon just doesn't sound right over dramatic, theatrical shit like this.

14. Ason Jones

The tribute to ODB, over another Dilla beat. This is nice for what it is, but that "I understood love when I kissed the n****" part was a little strange.

15. Have Mercy (Feat. Beanie Sigel)

This is real low-key but I like it. The Beans feature is perfect for this track, too.

16. 10 Bricks (Feat. Cappadonna & Ghostface Killah)

Damn, this album might just change my perception of J Dilla altogether. This is one of those choppy, Donuts-style beats that I don't usually like but it hits hard and has the Asian thing going too. If anyone could listen to this album and not conclude that Ghostface is the best in the Wu then I don't know what to say. He murders every track he's on.

17. Fat Lady Sings

Another in this series of brief, story tracks. I kind of like these, if only because they are short.

18. Catalina (Feat. Lyfe Jennings)

The way the Dre beat kicks in after the guy in the intro (same source as the "Rainy Dayz" intro) says "Don't disturb the doctor" is the sickest shit evar. Raekwon's raps on this are good to, but I wonder what "lenses on Chips Ahoy" means.

19. We Will Rob You (Feat. Slick Rick, GZA, & Masta Killa)

This one's kinda crazy. Raekwon and GZA rap about getting arrested (I think) for robbing a buncha people and Slick Rick does the chorus and "Heeeere we go" thing. The only thing I don't understand is Masta Killa's verse, which seems awkwardly tacked on there.

20. About Me

This Dre track is a little more boring than the last one. Busta Rhymes makes a guest appearance and even does that Lil Wayne thing where he mispronounces something and corrects it in rap form. 

21. Mean Streets (Feat. Inspectah Deck & Ghostface Killah)

This beat was on the Tragedy Still Reportin' album. Underrated album. That's a lot of jacked beats at this point but it doesn't bother me so much. This has to be one of the weaker moments on this album. Inspectah Deck, once a master of the guest verse, is especially awful on this.

22. Kiss The Ring (Feat. Inspectah Deck & Masta Killa)

This is sort of low budget sounding compared to the rest of the album. It's not a terrible song, though. 

23. Walk Wit Me

Scram Jones has some heat, but this beat isn't much. Raekwon raps about his girl who happens to be incredibly rich. I almost lol'd when he said "this broad had a horse". I'm not sure what the point of the song was though, as I've already admitted my inability to follow Raekwon after a while.

24. Badland (Feat. Ghostface Killah) (Bonus Track)

This is classic Ghost and Rae but the beat gets kind of repetitive and annoying after a little.

Best Songs: "House of Flying Daggers", "The New Wu", "Catalina"

Comments:

Just a really solid album. I think the fact that there are 24 songs on this distracts you from the fact that there are like 9-10 really good songs on here, which is way more than most albums have. Raekwon (and Ghost and RZA) will never make anything the calibre of "Only Built 4 Cuban Linx". I doubt any rapper will. However, this is about as good of an album as he could've made in 2009, and for that fact this is a worthy sequel.