Following his incredible appearances on the Wu-Tang Clan's debut album Enter the Wu-Tang (36 Chambers), and all over Raekwon's Only Built 4 Cuban Linx... (which, yes, I will get to, but I wanted to do this one first), Dennis Coles, known to avid viewers of The World According To Pretty Toney as Ghostface Killah, started work on a project of his own. Him getting a solo album certainly made a lot of sense - he was easily one of the standout members on Enter the Wu-Tang (36 Chambers), and as Meth, ODB, Raekwon and GZA had all released classics so far, it was inevitable that an album from Ghostface would keep the Wu-Tang momentum going. Ghost already had a little hype around him, thanks to his songs appearing on a couple of soundtracks throughout 1996 - the song "Winter Warz" appeared on the soundtrack to the ridiculously titled film Don't Be a Menace to South Central While Drinking Your Juice In the Hood, released in January 1996, and the song "Motherless Child" featured on the soundtrack to the decidedly less ridiculously titled film Sunset Park, released in April 1996. These songs were both well-received, so much so that Ghost got himself a deal with the big-time Epic Records, which probably seemed like a good deal at the time, even though they would later go on to royally botch up his first three albums, the mistakes getting worse and worse each time. But that's a story for another day.
Ironman, led by the popular singles "All That I Got Is You", "Camay" and "Daytona 500", was released in October 1996 to critical acclaim from the fans and the critics, and the project begun what would prove to be easily the most consistently great solo catalogue of any of the Wu-Tang members. Not that this album should really be considered "solo" at all though - quite apart from the fact that Raekwon and Cappadonna are credited as features on the cover, and are both pictured, there are two songs on this project that Ghost doesn't even bother to show up on! Remove the last three tracks, and this could easily be mistaken for a collaborative album between Rae and Ghost. That's how much Corey Woods shows up on here. Despite this, the project was still incredibly well-received at the time. Today, though, there are more and more people who are rating this album lower in Ghost's catalogue, and saying it has aged poorly, and doesn't hold up as well as the pre-Wu-Tang Forever solo albums. So is this album really the classic that it was once unanimously considered to be? Let's take a look.
All songs are produced by The RZA, except where noted.
1. Iron Maiden (feat. Raekwon & Cappadonna)
After a fairly hilarious and not entirely unnecessary clip from a film is played, the RZA beat comes in, and we immediately know we're in for a banger. Raekwon's first verse is very impressive and memorable, even the quite hilarious line about sitting back "jollying", whatever that was supposed to mean. Obviously something important, as Rae repeats it many more times in the chorus. Speaking of which, the fact that Raekwon handles the first verse and chorus makes this seem much more like his track than Ghost's, even though Ghostface pops up with an incredibly impressive verse on here too. Cappadonna sounds pretty good, but he has better verses later. This is easily one of the best songs on the album though - that beat is just phenomenal.
2. Wildflower
Ghost is clearly quite pissed at his girl, who apparently cheated on him whilst he was on tour, and this shows through his incredibly angry and graphic verse that he spits here, which uses various slightly misogynistic terms throughout to express anger. Pretty much the polar opposite of the last song, which was just a chill banger, this aggressive rant at least feels like a Ghostface song, and a very good one at that. That beat is goddamn CLEAN as well.
3. The Faster Blade (feat. Raekwon)
Ghostface clearly became so angry at his (now ex) girlfriend's infidelity that he had to leave the studio for a lie down, leaving Rae to lay down vocals for this track all by himself. He does a good job, though, even if the xylophone beat is a tad underwhelming. The homophobic slur was unnecessary (but what else can we expect from an early Ghostface album?), but otherwise this track is still good. Time to get back up now, Dennis!
4. 260 (feat. Raekwon)
Thankfully, Ghost is back on here, spitting over what almost sounds like a slowed-down version of the "Iron Maiden" beat from earlier. This track is very good, and the first instance of many storytelling tracks that appear on Ghost albums ("Wildflower" was more of a rant, rather than a story). Raekwon's line "We need the shotties n-id-ow, when we get back, throw you a th-id-ou'" sounds stupid as hell, but the beat is nice, and Ghost kills it. Very good stuff.
5. Assassination Day (feat. Raekwon, The RZA & Inspektah Dek)
Ghostface once again has left the studio, probably to attack the person who messed up the track credits here - Masta Killa appears on this one, but goes without the credit, even though he has a full verse, and the hook also consists of his vocals. The hell? Whatever - this song is still incredible. This sinister and dark production is one of the best beats on what is one of the best produced albums I've ever heard, and everyone brings their best on here. Masta Killa might have the best verse, too, which further makes it annoying that he didn't get credited. RZA, Rae and INS (who's name is also misspelled here) all kill their verses too, though. However, Ghostface is sorely missed - ain't this supposed to be his album?
6. Poisonous Darts
Ghost returns from delivering a satisfying knuckle sandwich, and decides he actually wants a track all to himself! The nerve! This track is good, even though its being so short makes it almost feel like an interlude. Ghost's aggressive delivery over the intense beat is perfect, and Method Man actually delivers a pretty damn catchy hook. I liked the callback to his "Bring Da Ruckus" verse too - "goin' through mad phases, of all ages, Killa Beez locked the FUCK up behind cages!". Pretty great song.
7. Winter Warz (feat. Cappadonna, U-God & Masta Killa)
The aforementioned song from the soundtrack to the film I can't be bothered to type the name of again. This one is most remembered for Cappadonna's incredible verse, which is admittedly one of the best on the whole project. Sure, he has more screen time than the other MCs, but still - his flow and aggression is absolutely phenomenal - the line "and smoke a blunt and dial 9-1-7, 1-6-0-4-9-3-11" is a personal favourite. The beat on here deserves some credit as well - it's pretty low-key, but still sounds very intense. Also, Raekwon does the hook on here, because god forbid he goes too long without appearing on this album.
8. Box In Hand (feat. Method Man & Street)
This song is the most obvious mistake made on this particular tracklist, mainly because this song is not actually "Box In Hand". The track is actually titled "Wu Will Survive", and features Method Man and Raekwon, not Streetlife as the liner notes state. This is apparently because the label changed things at the last minute, but it was too late for the art to be changed. Still, better than fucking up the whole damned tracklist, I suppose. This song samples Blue Raspberry's vocals from Method Man's "Release Yo' Delf" at the start, and the beat at that point sounds quite incredible. The track gets weaker after the beat change though (the sample appears throughout), and normally I'm more interested by the story surrounding it than the song itself.
Also, the original "Box In Hand" did get released eventually on a later compilation, which we'll cover when we get to it.
9. Fish (feat. Raekwon & Cappadonna) (prod. True Master)
The only non RZA beat on this album, and it's surprisingly incredible. The chords in the instrumental are pretty powerful, as are the drums. This song is sadly not actually about fish, but rather, predictably, drugs - using "fish" to describe cocaine is something Ghost did more frequently on later albums Fishscale and More Fish, both of which came out 10 years after this album. The rapping on here outside of Ghost's first verse isn't too interesting, but I do think the beat is enough to make this one a standout.
10. Camay (feat. Raekwon & Cappadonna)
11. Daytona 500 (feat. Raekwon & Cappadonna)
Released on the same 12" single as "Camay", this track is certainly a lot more energetic, the type of celebratory single that Ghost would do quite a bit in the future (see "Apollo Kids"). When I first listened to this, I hated (and still hate) the SHIT out of Force MD's opening acapella vocals, but thankfully they're removed on the single version. Sampling vocals from and/or about the MC spitting the next verse was creative, and this beat is musically very impressive. Verses are predictably excellent, too. I wish it didn't cut off so abruptly, but otherwise this is a great track.
12. Motherless Child (feat. Raekwon)
13. Black Jesus (feat. Raekwon & U-God)
Raekwon's last credited feature according to the liner notes, but you should know to never trust those when it comes to Ghostface Killah albums. After an annoyingly long intro from the infuriating Popa Wu, who later would go on to appear on the offensively horrific "Wu-Revolution", the disastrous intro to Wu-Tang's second group album Wu-Tang Forever, the beat comes in, and it's easily the worst on this whole album. The rapping on here is solid, but this beat is just... well, a bit shit. A shame, really, as the lyrics aren't terrible. Still, you'd be better off skipping through this.
14. After the Smoke Is Clear (feat. The Delphonics)
I don't know how the Wu managed to get an old, apparently dead (even at the time) soul group on a song, but they did. The beat on here, and angelic chorus, all sounds excellent, and Ghost delivers a great verse, but then the second verse is delivered by... Raekwon and The RZA? Why the hell are they not credited? That's that shit I DON'T like. This song is still excellent, but is it so hard to get the credits right, guys? Why is this such an issue in hip-hop? AAARGGHHH!!!
Ahem.
15. All That I Got Is You (feat. Mary J. Blige)
16. The Soul Controller (feat. The Force MD's)
This track was removed from most later pressings of this album due to sample clearance issues, but I made sure to pick up the original pressing when I bought this CD on Discogs. And that was a good decision, as this song is simply EPIC. The beat is unsettling and weird, but it works well for Ghost to spit on, and the way it frequently changes up throughout the song makes things that much more interesting. Force MD's deliver the only good performance they ever did, and it's definitely a hell of a lot better than what they could have cooked up (we'll discuss more of that when I get to a certain song on RZA's debut album). The film samples at the end put the cherry on the cake as well, and are arguably the best film samples used on a rap song ever. Full stop.
The following is a bonus track only included on the CD.
17. Marvel
Even though he is uncredited, RZA actually does more rapping on this track than Ghost, but that isn't saying much. After about two minutes of rapping from the pair, the vocals stop, and the instrumental plays out alone for the remaining three minutes of the track, with the occasional sample playing out in the background. This track is still very good though, and the beat is one of the best on the whole album. Ghost and RZA deliver some nice verses, too. Pretty good way to end the album, all in all.
Overall, despite what Max of Hip Hop Isn't Dead, Ghostface Killah himself, and I'm sure many others say, Ironman is easily a classic album to me. The instrumentals are almost uniformly exceptional, with the exception of a couple of beats, such as "Black Jesus" and "The Faster Blade", and the rapping is absolutely incredible throughout. This album was definitely the most experimental (musically at least) of the first wave of Wu-Tang albums, and the experimentation almost always works, making this an incredibly entertaining and exciting listen. I think it was a mistake to condense all of the non-rap features right into the final third of the album, and the errors made inside the booklet do piss me off a lot (although that is something that will become a lot worse with Ghost albums). There's too much Raekwon here too - damn, is Ghost not allowed more than 50% of screen time on his own album? Overall, however, I see little wrong with this effort. It's definitely worth a listen, and the fact that Ghost was able to match this with subsequent releases is testament to the man's phenomenal talent at putting together albums. This is an excellent project.
Best Tracks: Iron Maiden, 260, Assassination Day, Winter Warz, Camay, Motherless Child, After the Smoke Is Clear, All That I Got Is You, The Soul Controller, Marvel
Worst Tracks: Black Jesus
You may also enjoy:
Wu-Tang Clan - Enter the Wu-Tang (36 Chambers)
Image for "Motherless Child" single taken from: Discogs
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