[Classic FULL Promos] WU-TANG CLAN '94/'97

Any Wu-Tang related sites since the beginnings have had a FAQ about what that music that was played in the interlude to Spot Rusherz. Any even pretending Wu fanatic know by now that dope beat and rhymes was a RZA-produced Clan commercial commisionned in the first half of the '90s. Like the snakes these corporate business is, St. Ide's was at the time aiming for a big splash in the black and minirorities community. Think of it, what other product in 1992/1994 was marketed to blacks. Sure there were the Sprites and Mountain Dew commercials as we willll, but that was still a couple years down the road.

But back to the topic - although only one minute in length (barely), it's ovvious the grop didn't just see this as an easy paycheck but rather made sure they had some real hot, well thought out shit. RZA's production evokes outdoor neighborhood barbeques on a hot summer day. And there's no question that Meth Ghostace, Raekwon, U-God and RZA were taking their time to write their short verses to make sure this came out the right way. Just check this immaculate Ghost verse, delivered with his nasal power bars style of the '90s. "Call me the Wallabee Champ, stretched out, could never be Son/ Ricochet daily hit the deli for a cold one/ Naturally blessed, yes, my rap is like a laser beam/ That blows in the bushes, St. Ide's fill the canteen". A 30 second edit was aired on MTV, while the full 60 seconds joint appeared from time to time on radio. Thanks to the homie Cilvaringz for the first time we have "St. Ide's Commercial" not only in full, but for the first time in as good a quality as possible. This was given to him by RZA and taken straight from the ADAT so the quality is really superior to anything you heard before though it's not really mixed. Oh by the way, track is produced by The RZA with co-production by Method Man according to 'Ringz.

The St. Ide's commercial is relatively known after all, it had its TV spot and been all over the net. However only the real Wu heads know that RZA and the Clan was commisioned to do a Mountain Dew commercial somewhere between '96-'98 and a 30 second snippet used to to be available online around 2002, but I haven't seen it for YEARS (the actual collaboration was aborted I believe). Now, once again thanks to Cilvaringz, he has uploaded the full one minute song - which plays more like an interlude than a commercial. Produced by The RZA, it deifinitely got that "Wu-Tang Forever" sound and the five legendary emcees all sound like they did on that album (where they do me was at their absolute peak). Again, Ghostface steal the show for me, caught in between his stream-of-consciousness style and his more rugged street persona, while Deck is always Deck, Masta Killa does what he always does, etc. A must hear! And a big thank you goes out to Cilvaringz and the peeps at Wu-Corp. for these gems - but more people deserve to hear them imo!

01. Wu-Tang Clan - "St. Ide's Commercial" [1994] [prod. by RZA & Method Man]

02. Wu-Tang Clan - "Mountain Dew" [1997] [prod. by RZA 

WU-TANG CLAN - THE COMMERCIAL ANGLE

WAX TAILOR Ft. GHOSTFACE KILLAH - "Worldwide"

Damn this is a smooth track right here, really feeling this one - from Ghostface's vintage verses to the laid back beat, the Cuts and overall smooth hip hop vibe of it all. I don't know too much about Wax Tailor but i gather that he's a relatively new DJ / producer working on a long player called "By Any Means Necessary". I believe this is the first single from the project, and it certainly shows potential for the album (which drops October 14). Ghost comes through as always, so be sure to pump up that volume.

WU-TANG CLAN - Pre-"36 Chambers" Interview + Freestyles

Lurking the Wu-Tang Corp. forums (whcih is close to dead right now but there's still somee good heads representing) member Soob found and posted an absolutely excellent radio interview predating the release of "36 Chambers". Recorded and sent out through the airwaves on March 1, 1993 this is an absolute must hear for any hardcore Wu fans (and you know I'm one of them, as I know many of my readers are). Of course the real props for this shining gem goes to YouTube's Wu-Tang Messiah number #1, Mister Hezakayah who has uploaded the full 25 minutes segment on to the Tube for free streaming and enjoynment for heads all over the world. Hosted by legendary DJ's and hosts DJ Ritz and Steve Wildman this is like an extended skit from the "Enter The Wu-Tang" LP, with Ghostface, Raekwon, Method Man and U-God holding it down together with Ce Style and Kamal Bee of Total Pack. This been up for a few months but I and many with me has been sleeping so in the words of Sunz Of Man and Killarmy - Wake The Fuck Up!! As some interesting bonus footage check out this very rare clip from Prnce Rakeem doing a short freestyle for Music Video Box in 1990, now that's a Lost Tape. Again tahnks to Hezakaya, you're definitely the man!

KILLAH PRIEST x GHOSTFACE KILLAH - "Wu Goo"

If there's one thing I've learned from being a hardcore Wu-Tang head for the last 19 years or so is to not pay much attention to whatever projects these hip-hop generals announce. So when Killah Priest and Ghostface Killah, two of my favorite rappers of all times as well as being two very different emcees, revealed that they were working on a full-length album together I chalked it up to empty talk. Their somewhat recent collaborations "Purified Thoughts" ("Apollo Kids", 2012; with GZA) and "Devotion to the Saints" ("Physical World Of Walter Reed", 2013; also featuring Inspectah Deck) have both been tremendous achievements of pure unadeltered rawness, exactly the type of shit Wu-Tang fans want to hear. However it now seems that this project might become a reality after all as they have released a straight up banging single called "Wu Goo" which works partly as a bizaree music video and partly as an hilarious advertisment for a THC vape cartridge they are developing called... you guessed it, Wu Goo. Check out the video up top, peep an alternative version below and keep your fingers crossed that this is only the first of many songs from this power house duo to be released in 2016. Oh and also check out this hilarious coke prank that Ghostface, Dr. Zodiak (who also produced the "Wu Goo" joint) and a bunch of pranksters pulled on the Murderous Priest.

DOOMSTARKS - "Lively Hood"

That's what's up - a new DOOM / Ghostface Killah collaboration to make sure we don't forget that these two legendary figures are supposed to drop an album sometime in the future. Well, we will see about that but given that there's actually been some loose tracks like this popping up every now and then suggests at least a few recording sessions have taken place. I hope they don't scrap the older material from the original sessions though as none of them deliver their finest performances on this new track "Lively Hood" - still DOOM and Ghost on a day off are more entertaining to listen to than 90% of rappers out there. The production work (probably from DOOM I am guessing) knocks hard too though...

While you're at it also check out the new Shabazz Palaces that also dropped as part of the Adult Swim 2015 singles series - "The Mystery of Lonnie The Don".

[Stream] GHOSTFACE KILLAH - "12 Reasons to Die II"

 With the help of super ill composer/producer/instrumentalist Adrian Younge, Wu-Tang Clan's most shining star Ghostface Killah delivered his best album in several years with 2012's "12 Reasons to Die". Now the duo team back together for more of the same formula - following the concept of their first meeting so closely they have choosen to call it a proper sequel. While the album isn't released to stores in another week, the New York Times have been given exclusive rights to stream the project to listeners for free so be sure to head over to the link below and press play.'

01. "Powerful One (Intro)"

02. "Return Of The Savage" (Ft. Reakwon & RZA)

03. "King Of New York" (Ft. Raekwon)

04. "Rise Up" (Ft. Scarub)

05. "Daily News"

06. "Get The Money" (Ft. Vince Staples)

07. "Death's Invitation (Interlude)" (Ft. RZA)

08. "Death's Invitation" (Ft. Scarub, Chino XL & Lyrics Born)

09. "Let The Record Spin: Interlude" (Ft. RZA)

10. "Let The Record Spin" (Ft. Raekwon)

11. "Blackout" (Ft. Raekwon)

12. "Resurrection Morning" (Ft. Raekwon & Bilal)

13. "Life's A Rebirth" (Ft. RZA)

STREAM @ NYTIMES.COM

GHOSTFACE & ADRIAN YOUNGE Ft. Vince Staples - "Get The Money"

Adrian Younge is by far one of the illest producers out there, I'm just amazed at how he and his band Venice Dawn uses all live instrumentation but he uses a sampler to program every instrument into it just like if he was sampling records. People have complained that Ghostface isn't bringing his A game on his last few albums but "Twelve Reasons to Die" was easily my favorite LP of that year. Even if Ghost isn't rapping like on "Ironman" or "Supreme Clientele", he's hardly spitting Young Thug flows and he's still got one of the illest voices in the game and keeps his flow in pocket. Today the third single from "Twelve Reasons to Die Pt. II" dropped and it's another sure shot winner, and I'm stoked they included a feature from Vince Staples, easily one of the more interesting emcees to come out as of late. The second Younge/Ghost album drops on July 10 and features 13 songs + instrumentals, pre-order @ iTunes.

Napoleon Ft. Ghostface Killah - "Game"

 Virginia spitter Napoleon, of Wu-Syndicate fame, joins up with Tony Starks The Ghostface Killah for the powerful single "Game" from his solo album "Ring Of Power" which also features cameos by Pusha T, Crooked I, Killah Priest, Jim Jones, Joe Mafia, and many more. It seems like a digital album only, you can purchase it @ iTunes.

GHOSTFACE & ADRIAN YOUNGE - "Let The Record Spin"

On various, especially Wu forums, a lot of people have been dissing Ghostface and his recent albums a lot which to me is just fucking crazy. Okay "36 Seasons" was kind of mediocre, but "12 Reasons to Die" and "Sour Soul" was excellent to me. Not every album need to have super intricate rhyme scemes, and the production is so cinematic so you don't really need that much more than Ghost's amazing voice and flow though his lyrics is a bit dumbed down. As you know I put "12 Reasons..." as my #1 record of 2012, which I still stand by and the word that a sequel to this immaculate project is soon to arrive (July 6th if i'm not mistaken) is really something to look forward to. Especially as both singles so far has been absolutely excellent - the latest one is called "Let The Record Spin" and features GFK's long time P.N.C. Raekwon The Chef. So blast this one LOUD on some good speakers or your favorite headphones. In case you missed the first single, I'm posting that one too. Salute!

[Comp] ADRIAN YOUNGE / LINEAR LABS - "Los Angeles"

This baby has been out for some time by now, at least a few weeks, but being that Adrian Younge quickly has become one of my favorite producers doing it at the moment I'm taking this opportunity to post this up for anyone who might have missed it since I've been slacking heavily on updates lately. "Los Angeles" is a 10 tracks deep official compilation by Younge's Linear Labs Studios/label, featuring previously released material and exclusive tracks produced by Younge for artists like Ghostface, Laettitia Sadler, Bilal, Venice Dawn, Ali Shaheed Muhammad, Toni Scruggs, Souls Of Mischief, and more. Highlights include the first single from "Twelve Reasons to Die Pt. 2" (you might remember its predecessor being my favorite LP of 2012) which features Raekwon and RZA and goes HARD, and the first joint from the Ali Shaheed/Younge joint production LP. And more than that it plays very well as a front-to-back listen, going through alot of Younge's brilliant funk/soul renaissance sound. "Twelve Reasons.. Pt. 2" drops July 10... TURN IT UP!!

GHOSTFACE & ADRIAN YOUNGE Ft. Raekwon & RZA - "Return Of The Savage"

While I've heard some people put down Adrian Younge's collaboration with Ghostface on 2013's "Twelve Reasons to Die", this has always been absolutely crazy to me. You might remember that I put that album as my number one pick of the best hip-hop albums released of its year, and I absolutely loved how it all came together and the chemistry displayed between GFK, Adrian Younge and the many incredible guest emcees, and while the story was quite generic it was still a very fascinating listen no matter what and GFK did a great job conveying the emotions. So when I found that the MC/producer duo (who also includes Younge's live band Venice Dawn) has been working on a sequel to that excellent album sporting an ill tracklist (on paper) and a great cover I was hyped to say the least (i wasn't at all crazy about "36 Seasons" which was a dissapointment to me, though the BadBadNotGood joint is solid, especially beatwise).

The first single is now here and is titled "Return Of The Savage" and features RZA and Raekwon. Real Wu heads will love the fact that Raekwon, who did not appear on the first installment, is all over this baby. Check out the single below along with the official tracklist and turn that motherfucker up! Cop the album in various packages directly from Linear Labs Music store and receive it for its 10th of July release. TURN THIS ONE UP (I absolutely love this one)!!

01. Powerful One 
02. Return Of The Savage (feat Raekwon & RZA) 
03. King Of New York (feat Raekwon) 
04. Rise Up (feat Scarub) 
05. Daily News 
06. Get The Money (feat Vince Staples) 
07. Death's Invitation (RZA Interlude) 
08. Death's Invitation (feat Lyrics Born, Scarub & Chino XL) 
09. Let The Record Spin (RZA Interlude) 
10. Let The Record Spin (feat Raekwon) 
11. Blackout (feat Raekwon) 
12. Resurrection Morning (feat Raekwon & Bilal) 
13. Life's A Rebirth (feat RZA) 

[Live Set] RAE & GHOST - Live @ Cochaellla 2015

This brings me back to the number of times I've seen Wu or their solo members life, though I have yet to catch Raekwon in concert. Mr.WorldPremiereTV posted a 15 minute HQ video of the dynamic duo's performance on Day 1 @ this years Cochaella performance. It seems they performed the entire "Cuban Linx..." album this Sunny day, looks like good show. Also props to Pyrex Visionist for putting me on to this. Enjoy and throw them W's up!

I can't find where to Embed from the DailyMotion site, but just click the link below and be sure to change your settings to view the video in 720 because both sound and video is excellent.

RAE & GHOST - "LIVE @ COCHAELLA"

[Video] GHOSTFACE Ft. AZ, KOOL G RAP & TRE WILLIAMS - "The Battlefield"

While Ghostface's "36 Seasons" seriously lacked any replay value in my book, it did feature some great performances from everyone involved, and never as much as on the powerful album opener "The Battlefield". Supplied by the excellent crooning of The Revelations' original singer Tre Williams, three of the hip-hop games finest storytellers and all around emcees each paints a vivid introduction of the characters they are playing for the audio film. Produced by the great Fizzy Womack with Brooklyn based The Revelations providing the instrumentation.

[Classic Clips] GHOSTFACE / FRANK DUKES - "Purified Thoughts" (OG)

As I just posted my review and album stream of Ghostface Killah and BadBadNotGood's new album "Sour Soul", which is entirely produced by Frank Dukes, I wanted to bring it back to the essence of Dukes and GFK. From their first collaborations on Ghost's "Apollo Kids" album they have been responsible for plenty of bangers together, including "Different Time Zone", "Rivers Of Blood" and "Six Directions Of Boxing". But in fact it all started in 2010 when a young, unknown and striving producer named Frank Dukes put in work and tried every way to put his name out there, including entering the Red Bull Big Tune competition. Right then and there he not only got his name out, but as he won the entire competition he got a chance to record with one of his favorite emcees - Ghostface Killah. The resulting track was "Purified Thoughts", a song that was originally recorded as a solo song by GFK, but would end up in remixed form on Ghost's 2012 album "Apollo Kids", adding verses from Killah Priest and GZA/Genius. The full original version that was originally recorded at the Red Bull studios has never been leaked in full but you can hear a good chunk of it in the video above, so just press play up top, and for the album version click here.

[Review/Stream] GHOSTFACE - "SOUR SOUL"

There's been some serious lack of updates over here at The Lost Tapes which I apologize to my trusted readers for. Sometimes life just gets in the way, you know, and I always want to give you the best. For those who know me or follow the site, you might be familiar with my top three all time great emcees - which are none other than Rakm, Ghostface Killah and Nas. Not only are they great writers, or have memorable voices, but they all have the total package - from the flow, to the writing, from the cadence, to the delivery, from the catalouge to the live shows, to the originality, and so on. As legendary they are they have never either felt the need to do what is expected from them. Albums like "Wizard Of Poetry", "The Seventh Seal" and "NIGGER" might not have been what the fans expected from these guys at the given time, but nontheless it was what was on their respective minds as artists and therefore they should have all the credit in the world for expressing that to the fullest. But this post is about Ghostface Killah, and more specifically about his new collaboration with young Canadian jazz trio BadBadNotGood and producer Frank Dukes which dropped last week.

I kind of view "Sour Soul" as the third installment in a trilogy that begun a couple of years back when Ghostface teamed up with LA multi-instrumentalist Adrian Younge and his band Venice Dawn for "12 Reasons to Die". Barely a year later The Masked Killer unleashed a full-length project produced and performed by Brooklyn based live band The Revelations who, under the supervision of RZA and Lil' Fame, did an excellent job in producing "Chamber Music" and "Legendary Weapons". Both aforementioned albums was plot driven albums that told a story from point A to B, and especially on the latter you could hear that Ghost didn't feel as excited or free in creating his lyrial poems. The result was an album with a decent storyline that lacked any real suprises or slanged out goodies which in turn made the replay value real lacking. Listening to "Sour Soul" for the first time it's easy to see that "36 Seasons" was a small mistep in the wrong direction. Instead of the imitation type '70s soul and funk beats we got on the latter, BBNG and Frank Dukes takes mad inspiration from the type of gritty, psychadelic funk that was all over blaxploatation soundtracks of its heyday - back when Curtis Mayfield and Marvin Gaye created cinematic masterpieces to screen over bad ass flicks like "Super Bad" and "Trouble Man". This is the type of powerful shit the quintet has cooked up for the duration of the LP, and trust me when I say that it's not boring for a second.

The lenght of the album, clocking in at only 32 minutes at 12 tracks, and 9 songs featuring vocals at that, might have knuckleheads screaming foul and "EP hustle!" but they are completely missing the point. This is how it used to be done, cut all the fillers, make sure there's a red line running throughout the disc, and if it doesn't fit - no matter how good - save it for another project. I got to give props to the quintet involved here for doing just that as this plays exactly like an album in its truest sense and unlike "36 Seasons" it is truly a worthy sequel to the equally brilliant "Twelve Reasons to Die". Over dark, agressive funk with soul vibes, Ghostface sounds rejuvinated; ditching the predictable gangster slang for psychadelic rainbow slang and ghetto alien speak. In other words there's plenty of rewind worthy material throughout, and it's kind of funny that three very young Canadian caucasians brings some of the darkest, most afro-centric, jazz fusion blues that Ghost has sunk his teeth into for quite a few years. There's horns, Fender basses, vibraphones, kicking drum patterns, strings, and guitars - and all without the use of samples. Yet, Frank Dukes, who has a great track record with Ghost, clearly knows how to get that crisp sound imitating a sampler. And there's no question about it - these gentlemen were having a hell of a lot of fun recording this gem. Last but not least, it's a collaborative effort in every sense of the word - it's just as much a BadBadNotGood / Frank Dukes album as it is a Ghostface album, and I think everyone involved should get the highest props for their hard work on this. I can only hope this is the first of many volumes to come. "Sour Soul" is another highlight in Ghostface's catalouge - a discography that is quickly becoming perhaps the finest in all of hip-hop. Personally I'd rate this album four out of five.

Stream the entire album below to get a taste of what to expect, but you should of course grab it on either iTunes or better yet a physical copy and support the real. Grab it @ iTunes or UGHH.

GHOSTFACE KILLAH - "Tone's Rap"

Ghostface & jazz trio BadBadNotGood lets go of "Tone's Rap", the fourth leak from their upcoming collaboration LP called "Sour Soul". This is an excellent jam and with a third of the record out there I don't see how this will dissapoint any fan of this quintet (Frank Dukes is co-producing everything and his track record with Ghost is on point too). "Sour Soul" hits stores on February 24.

[DVD RIP] GHOSTFACE KILLAH - "Live in NYC"

I saw Ghostface Killah perform live in Sweden back in 2008 and to this day it is one of the sickest, most energetic concerts I've attended. Backed up by his Theodore Unit mates he ripped through an unusally large chunk of his huge catalouge of classics, killing both Wu cuts as solo songs. A couple of years before I witnessed Starks mighty stage presence he released a concert from an undisclosed location in NYC on both CD, 2xLP and DVD through his own Stark Enterprises label. Recorded on October 9, 2005, the one hour set is a great watch and/or listen for any Ghostface fan - and if you're not into Ghost you're pretty damn suspect in my book. Ocassionally joined by GZA, Cappadonna, Killah Priest and his son Sun God, Ironman here works his way through classics such as "Holla", "Run", "Be This Way", "Mighty Healthy", "Criminology", "Nutmeg", "Apollo Kids", etc, etc. Many thanks goes out to BacoTV for making this available on YouTube for free streaming!

GHOSTFACE KILLAH / DOOM - "Ray Gun"

Ghostface Killah is not only one of the top emcees of all time but he's also undoubtedly one of the hardest working men in hip-hop. Since last month he has released his excellent solo album "36 Seasons", appeared on roughly half the tracks of Wu-Tang Clan's reunion LP, and prepared the second collaboration with Sheek Louch and a host of guest emcees from both camps under the Wu Block banner (that "Hidden Gems" album should've dropped this Tuesday but seems to have been pushed back - what's the deal?). As if that wasn't enough Tony Starks is already getting ready to drop yet another full-length project. Following his storytelling over live instrumentation projects with Adrian Younge and The Revelations, respectively, Starks now taps Canadian jazz trio BadBadNotGood to provide the backdrops. I'm not too familiar with the group save for some scattered tracks (including "Rivers of Blood" with Ghost, G Rap and Raekwon which they co-produced) and an interview in Bonafide, but what little I've heard sounds good and Ghost is notorious for picking ill sounds to rhyme over. "Sour Soul" is out via LEX Records on February 24, is completely produced by BBNG in collaboration with Frank Dukes, and sports guest features from Danny Brown, DOOM, eLzhi and Tree. Check out the new video for the DOOM assisted single "Ray Gun" up top.

[Shelved Classic] TEKITHA - "Wisdom Body EP"