The 100 Best Wu-Tang Clan Songs

The Wu-Tang saga is a revolution that swarmed on the music industry like a pack of killer bees. The 100 Best Wu-Tang Clan Songs.

Not Available Lead
Complex Original

Image via Complex Original

Not Available Lead

The Wu-Tang saga is a revolution that swarmed on the music industry like a pack of killer bees. Straight out of the slums of Shaolin, the Clan created an often imitated but never duplicated sound comprised of eerie beats mixed with puzzling stanzas and clashing kung-fu swords. The collective powers of RZA the Abbot, GZA the Genius, Ol' Dirty Bastard, Raekwon Shallah, Ghostface Killah, Method Man, Inspectah Deck, U-God, Masta Killa, and Cappadonna have entertained and inspired legions with perplexing rhymes full of grit.

With this year's Rock the Bells line-up featuring Raekwon and Ghostface performing all of Only Built 4 Cuban Linx... and GZA doing Liquid Swords, it's a perfect time for Complex to enter all 36 Chambers to unmask The 100 Best Wu-Tang Clan Songs. Don't forget: Protect ya neck, kid.

Listen to Complex's Best Wu-Tang Clan Songs playlists here: YouTube/Spotify/Rdio

Written by Gabriel Alvarez of @egotripland

100. Ghostface Killah "Wild Flower" (1996)

Not Available Interstitial

99. Wu-Tang Clan "Protect Ya Neck (The Jump Off)" (2000)

Not Available Interstitial

Producer: RZA
Album: The W
Label: Loud

Production-wise, "Protect Ya Neck (The Jump Off)" is nothing like its predecessor, but rather a throwback to a bygone era in hip-hop when a beat could change direction without notice. The track's crazy squawk sounds were lifted from a do-or-die war between Godzilla and Rodan, while the drums are reminiscent of '80s percussion bliss. Meth lets you know they "bust shots at Big Ben like we got time to kill," and RZA, aka Bobby Digital, reassures that you may catch him in Polo Skippers or Havana Joes, "but you won't catch me without the ratchet, in the joint, smoked out, dead broke, or off point."

Ghost, meanwhile, has no shame in admitting he still sports his old Force MD furs. Not to be outdone, Cappa promises, "You might see me in a 6, that's not my style/You might see me with a bitch, that's not my child." Wu-Tang is still for the children, though.

98. Wu-Tang Clan "Shaolin Brew" St. Ides Commercial (1994)

Not Available Interstitial

97. SWV f/ Wu-Tang Clan "Anything (Old Skool Version)" (1994)

Not Available Interstitial

Producer: Allen Gordon Jr.
Album: SWV The Remixes
Label: RCA

Sisters With Voices called upon the talents of Staten Island's G-O-Ds Dirt McGirt, Method Man, and U-God for the real-damn-happy remix of their new-jack-swing smash "Anything." On paper (and computer screens) it sounds like the relationship would be all wrong. But guess what? The unlikely rendezvous is something special—a mainstream and underground combo that shouldn't work but does. The lightning-quick short blast of "C.R.E.A.M." during the Wu cameos is a cool effect that's right on the money.

96. Shyheim the Rugged Child "On and On" (1994)

Not Available Interstitial

95. Shaquille O'Neal f/ Method Man & RZA "No Hook" (1994)

Not Available Interstitial

Producer: RZA
Album: Shaq Fu: Da Return
Label: Jive

Sure, Shaquille O'Neal rapped about as well as he shot free throws during his NBA career. But team Shaq Fu up with RZA and Meth and he's suddenly passable. His outgoing personality helps a lot, as do Method's skills and the RZArector's verse, which sounds like he is freestyling for real on this spaced-out novelty jam.

94. Real Live f/ Cappadonna, Ghostface Killah, Killa Sin & Lord Tariq "Real Live Shit (Remix)" (1995)

Not Available Interstitial

93. Inspectah Deck, U-God, & Streetlife "Semi-Automatic: Full Rap Metal Jacket" (1996)

Not Available Interstitial

Producer: RZA
Album: High School High: The Soundtrack
Label: Atlantic

One of them joints that only the hardcore Wu fiends remember, "Semi-Automatic: Full Rap Metal Jacket" sounds like a war submarine sinking ships like crazy. U-God rides that oceanic connection: "A hundred-thousand leagues beneath the sea/Deep depths makes rappers salty." Giving you a chunk of the machine-gun funk, he then passes it off to Deck, who is posted up starboard, killing every motherfucker in sight. "MCs are shot down long-range with sniper aim..." he brags. "My flows explode like hand grenades through your parts." He vows that "pirates of the darkest water feel the aura." Streetlife wants to make everyone aware he's "not your basic street entrepreneur," so he unloads a "heat-seeker that be attackin' your speaker." Mission accomplished.

92. The Odd Couple (Ghostface Killah & Cappadonna) "WTC Pt. 2" (2002)

Not Available Interstitial

91. RZA "Sunshower" (1997)

Not Available Interstitial

90. Ghostface Killah "Charlie Brown" (2006)

Not Available Interstitial

89. Method Man f/ Streetlife & Cappadonna "Sweet Love" (1998)

Not Available Interstitial

Producer: True Master
Album: Tical 2000: Judgement Day
Label: Def Jam

Don't let the title fool you: "Sweet Love" dips into raunchiness with explicit erotic thoughts from this trio of filthy-minded, foul-mouthed rap Lotharios. Streetlife spits first, talking about getting ass in the whip and not crashing it. Cappadonna shoots straight as he admits to his dream lady, "But like, sex was on my mind like cum was in my pants." Johnny Blaze wraps things up with his bedroom lingo: "Pullin' hair and talkin' trash/'How you like it, slow or fast?'/She said, 'I like it when it last'/No doubt, you got the best trout there can be/Not an everyday, average Chicken of the Sea/Candidate for H.I.V./You'd rather deal with monogamy/Queen to be held, Black Mahogany." These horny hip-hop bastards tear up the stuttering track.

88. RZA as Bobby Digital f/ Jamie Sommers "Domestic Violence" (1998)

Not Available Interstitial

87. Ghostface Killah f/ Raekwon "Maxine" (2001) / "Maxine (Remix)" (2007)

Not Available Interstitial

Producer: RZA/Mathematics
Album: Bulletproof Wallets/Mathematics Presents Wu-Tang Clan & Friends Unreleased
Label: Epic/Nature Sounds
Ghostface Killah f/ Raekwon "Maxine"
Ghostface Killah f/ Raekwon "Maxine (Remix)
"Maxine" is one of Ghostface Killah and Raekwon's underappreciated tales from the 'hood. The character of "Maxine" is best friends with Pam, a junkie in the projects with a gang of neglected kids. Pam has swiped some packages of coke that belong to Moonie, and when he shows up, he's pissed.

Rae jumps in to describe the action: "Creepin' through the crib is Maxine/Pot holdin' down with the grits/Pam suckin' his dick/Maxine Al-Greened him/Screamin', slipped in piss." Ghost: "I felt sorry for him, the funny shit when bowlegged Keke hopped on him... You should've seen his motherfuckin' face fryin'/Half dyin'/They stuck a fork through his nuts." The whole thing is told over a heavy-duty 1970s experience. For the (unofficial) remix, Mathematics revisits the ghetto fable but smoothes it out considerably with an easy-like-Sunday-morning groove.

86. Method Man f/ RZA, Inspectah Deck, Streetlife, Carlton Fisk, & Blue Raspberry "Mr. Sandman" (1994)

Not Available Interstitial

Producer: RZA
Album: Tical
Label: Def Jam

The weird "Mr. Sandman" is a feverish dream that draws inspiration from the old 1954 song. This creepy composition (check the unnerving singing by Blue Raspberry) has the Ticallion Stallion bigging up the Five Percent Nation while sneakily telling nonbelievers to eat a dick: "Peace to the number 7/Everybody else get the 4-9-3-11." Wu affiliate Carlton Fisk damn-near steals the show, paraphrasing pulp hero the Shadow ("What evil lurks in the hearts of men?") before continuing with a vivid story about a shootout with Rastas. Unfortunately Fisk wasn't able to capitalize on his Tical appearances, as rumor has it he got locked up not too long after this.

85. Ghostface Killah f/ Raekwon, RZA, & Slick Rick "The Sun" (2001)

Not Available Interstitial

84. Ghostface Killah f/ Method Man, Raekwon, & Superb "Flowers" (Original Version) (2001)

Not Available Interstitial

83. Cappadonna f/ Raekwon "Love Is the Message" (2001)

Not Available Interstitial

Producer: Goldfinghaz
Album: The Yin and the Yang
Label: Razor Sharp Records

MFSB's "Love Is the Message" is one of dance music's beloved hits. The 1973 classic has rested safely in the collection of every self-respecting DJ since its release, and even today, spinning it at a party will guarantee a damn good time on the dance floor. Hearing Raekwon and Cappadonna flow over the gem is icing on the cake, a quick time travel to park-jam nirvana, and solid proof that Wu-Tang would sound great in any era.

82. Raekwon "Spot Rusherz" (1995)

Not Available Interstitial

Producer: RZA
Album: Only Built 4 Cuban Linx...
Label: Loud

"Spot Rusherz" is Raekwon doing dirt all by his lonely. The storytellin' rap Magellan takes us on a voyage chock-full of swinging diamond pendants and treacherous setups. "This nigga had mega ice on, Chips Ahoy," he says, and you start thinking about the cookies riddled with chocolate chips, and then visualize a dude rocking mad stones. Like most Wu narratives, this tale of robbery doesn't follow standard rules: First-, second-, and third-person accounts intermix. At any given time Rae is talking as himself or as another character in the story. In a standout moment, he tells the guy he just hijacked, "'Stop playin' Wu in the back,' smacked him wit the gat." To chastise a fictional figure for playing your group's music because you want to rob him is next-level MC thinking.

81. Inspectah Deck "R.E.C. Room" (1999)

Not Available Interstitial

Producer: True Master
Album: Uncontrolled Substance
Label: Loud

Swinging through your town like your neighborhood Spiderman, the Rebel INS is on an unstoppable mission with his fantastic single that combines everything from savory comic-book imagery ("Hold the globe in my iron palm") to pioneering hip-hop references ("Cold Crush like the 4") to izm-induced lyricism ("worldwide on the Web without the dot com"). Deck is bringin' that "Killa Hill, 10304 style, kid," so suckers beware and watch the rap superhero "shine like a diamond in the true state of cold." True Master's track is a bouncy, frolicking fucking heck of a good time.

80. Ghostface Killah "Whip You With a Strap" (2006)

Not Available Interstitial

Producer: J Dilla
Album: Fishscale
Label: Def Jam

With J Dilla setting a perfect reflective mood with a teary-eyed soul sample, Ghost sadly laments the sting of parental punishment he experienced as a rowdy Bebe's Kid, doing dumb shit like pouring juice on his siblings' food and wetting the bed. Comparing back then to today's politically correct society, he offers up the real on how things done changed: "Nowadays kids don't get beat, they get big treats/Fresh pair of sneaks, punishment's like, 'Have a seat'/Back then when friends and neighbors would bust that ass/And bring you to your mama, yo, she got the switch in the stash/That's back-to-back beatings/Only went outside for free lunch/My welts on my legs still leakin', yo." Damn. These kids today got it easy, man.

79. Ghostface Killah "Cobra Clutch" (1998)

Not Available Interstitial

Producer: Mathematics
Album: RZA Presents Wu-Tang Killa Bees The Swarm Volume 1
Label: Priority

We all know that an agitated Ghostface Killah randomly lickin' off shots is more entertaining than most rappers' entire albums. Why GFK sounds so mad might be from the lack of airwave support. "Radio, stop shittin' on me!" he yells at the tail end of the chorus for "Cobra Clutch." The Wallabee Champ verbally attacks like the wicked wrestling move the song is named after as he flexes unconnected thoughts, metaphors, analogies, and other forms of insane speech that rush your brain cells rapidly. Mentions of Eddie Bauer, Gumby, Pert Plus, Milagro Beanfield, Kangols, Houdini, Rubik's Cube, and Peppermint Patties provide more randomness. Abstract rap harder than Chinese arithmetic.

78. Ol' Dirty Bastard f/ RZA "Cuttin' Headz" (1995)

Not Available Interstitial

Producer: RZA
Album: Return to the 36 Chambers: The Dirty Version
Label: Elektra

The low-budget feel of "Cuttin' Headz" is about 85 percent of its appeal. One can easily imagine ODB and RZA sitting in a basement making demos pre-Enter The Wu-Tang (36 Chambers) and the tracks coming out just like this scrappy little two-and-a-half-minute number. The production resembles the Abbot's early signature sound, and it's a fascinating peek into a well-rehearsed routine between the beatmaker and Ason, "comin' straight from the dirt." The duo fluidly exchange rhyme time like it's second nature. There's also a revelation from RZA that "I never liked the name I received for my proper." This is just raw basic Wu. In other words, great hip-hop. Protect ya neck, kid, 'cause Ason and the Abbot are cuttin' headz.

77. Charli Baltimore f/ Ghostface Killah "Stand Up" (1999)

Not Available Interstitial

Producer: RZA
Album: Cold as Ice
Label: Epic

Charli Baltimore had sex appeal, and for a hot minute she had a buzz with "Stand Up," which was produced by the RZA and featured Mr. Charisma himself, Tony Starks. Charli, best known for her association with the late Notorious B.I.G., and Ghost sparked some flirtatious chemistry themselves on this raucous standout punched up by sampled Lyn Collins' vocals and demands of "blow your whistle." "Ayo, Tony, you phony/We both signed to Sony/But for half your pub, I'll ride that dick like a pony," teases the sexy Philly chick also known as Chuck. "Yeah, put your money on my dick/Girls, all eyes on my dick," responds Starks, hilariously. Temperature is rising on this one.

76. Cappadonna f/ Method Man "Milk the Cow" (1998)

Not Available Interstitial

Producer: True Master
Album: The Pillage
Label: Razor Sharp/Epic Street

Cappadonna's underrated "Milk the Cow" might have thrown some off with the quirky title. Those that didn't sleep were treated to a passionate 'Donna daring to be all that he could be all for the sake of his family. "Strivin' for perfection/The only way I got my life back was through investin'/Devotion, movin' my soul toward the skit/Vocabulary, comin' out my ass like shit/To feed my babies," he raps. He ends the verse with some advice he remembers getting from his Ol' Earth: "My mother told me when I was so stressed out/'All you gotta do is just put your best out'/And I did it, milky." The royal sound rolls along like a never-ending red carpet, and Method Man is once again in charge of nailing a chorus like only he knows how. Chicka-POW!

75. Ghostface Killah f/ U-God "Cherchez LaGhost" (2000)

Not Available Interstitial

Producer: Carlos Bess
Album: Supreme Clientele
Label: Epic/Razor Sharp Records

Tony Starks took a nice dip into commercial waters on "Cherchez LaGhost." Teamed up with U-God, Ironman reinvents the Dr. Buzzard's Original Savannah Band's 1970s ode to Tommy Mottola's lost love. Nothing but Colgate smiles when this one dropped.

74. GZA & DJ Muggs "Those That's Bout It" (2005)

Not Available Interstitial

73. Raekwon f/ Lyfe Jennings "Catalina" (2009)

Not Available Interstitial

Producer: Dr. Dre/Mark Batson
Album: Only Built 4 Cuban Linx......Pt. II
Label: Ice H2O/EMI

Raekwon's sequel to his instant classic defied the odds. Usually, the notion that an artist can recapture past glory, especially almost a decade-and-a-half later, is ill-conceived. Rae is no regular rapper, though. The Chef, no longer that hungry street cat he repped in '95, was now a don tryin' to stay rich and fly, smellin' that money. "Brolic boots on, olive Goose/Calamari soups and noodles that spell out, 'Y'all niggas the truth'" was how he was livin' on "Catalina." The Dr. Dre-prescribed Caribbean-island steel drums made all the sense in the world for this Cuban revisit. Rae proved he was a dude built to last in this rap shit.

72. Wu-Tang Clan "The M.G.M." (1997)

Not Available Interstitial

Producer: True Master
Album: Wu-Tang Forever
Label: Loud

Nearly 20 years later, boxing fans are still in disagreement over the outcome of the welterweight mega-fight between Julio Cesar Chavez and Pernell Whitaker on September 10, 1993. But no matter what one thinks of the judges' scores or the fight itself, the unanimous decision is that "The M.G.M." is a knockout.

Chronicling the heavily hyped fight (as well as the goings-on in the star-studded crowd that night), Raekwon and Ghostface participate in a serious bout of people watching, pointing out the six dudes who walk in flashing gems, the "two Japanese birds with furs (look good, kid)," and the guy with the gun bulgin' out his sweatpants ("Look like my cousin Lance," remarks Rae).

Of course, when these two wordsmiths are on the scene, the slang can't be far behind, and Ghost doesn't disappoint with his "smash the Gilligan boat with ice" line. Toward the end, Rae and GFK provide alternating play-by-play, Rae going first: "10th round, Chavez tearin' 'em down/Sweet Pea get your shit off/It's like Blacks against the Germans/Gettin' hit off!" True Master presents the right ambience, creating a showy, big, Las Vegas–event feel for this two-minute bout.

71. Ghostface Killah f/ RZA "Nutmeg" (2000)

Not Available Interstitial

Producer: Black Moes-Art
Album: Supreme Clientele
Label: Epic/Razor Sharp Records

Can you respect the gangster of a song called "Nutmeg"? Yes, you fucking can. This whirling, energetic explosion stuffed with fortified free-association rhymes has GFK mouthin' off at his undeserving competition, facetiously boasting, "Shit, I studied under Bruce Lee, nigga. He was on the fourth [floor], I was on the third."

RZA's cameo is rapid-fire riddles, which get kinda nasty if you listen closely, but he also has some lines worth a chuckle, especially if you imagine the Zig Zag Zig Allah snapping his "fingers like the Fonz." Repeated listens will give the confused a slightly clearer interpretation of a few of the out-there lyrics (which Ghost has confessed aren't always meant to make sense), some of which are pretty damn cool, like, "See Ghost lampin' in the throne with the King Tut hat." Picture that shit. Ill, right?

70. Gravediggaz f/ Shabazz the Disciple & Killah Priest "Diary of a Madman" (1994)

Not Available Interstitial

Producer: RNS/RZA/Prince Paul
Album: 6 Feet Deep
Label: Gee Street

Composed of The Undertaker (Prince Paul), The Gatekeeper (Frukwan), The Grym Reaper (Too Poetic), and The Rzarector (RZA), the Gravediggaz were an ill mash-up of rap artists with proverbial chips on their shoulders (all had been written off by their respective groups or labels prior to joining forces). 

Unleashing their witty, unpredictable talent and supernatural game, the horror-core heroes got the goosebumps goin' with macabre music like "Diary of a Madman," in which each MC gives gruesome testimony during a mock trial.

Wu disciple Scientific Shabazz goes berzerk. See for yourself: "You try to haunt me nigga, I ain't trying to hear it/Buck buck buck, I'll give your ass a holy spirit." RZA's plight? Listen: "Visions of hell tormented my face," he says, "So I chewed my fucking arm off and made an escape." Cutting-edge, killer lyricism.

69. Ghostface Killah "Wisdom Body" (1995)

Not Available Interstitial

Producer: RZA
Album: Only Built 4 Cuban Linx...
Label: Loud

"I keep 'em looking good and pretty and all that, you know? But no dough… When I get a bitch, I got a bitch." That cold passage is from the '70s blaxploitation movie The Mack and is spoken by the gentleman of leisure Pretty Tony (played by Dick Williams). That name is familiar, of course, for being one of Ghost's aliases (Pretty Toney, not Dick Williams). Channeling the spirit of his cinematic alter ego, our Antonio jumps into the how-to-pick-up-chicks manifesto "Wisdom Body."

Not surprisingly, Ghost is talking just like a pimp: "Ayo peep it/I know you love Victoria's Secret/And lovin' all the marvelous slang on how I freaked it/Plus, see you're the type to make a nigga crash, far from trash/Your flesh's way softer than a baby's ass." The only thing missing from this otherwise excellent sex doctrine is the sound of panties droppin'.

68. Method Man f/ Raekwon "Meth vs. Chef" (1994)

Not Available Interstitial

Producer: RZA
Album: Tical
Label: Def Jam

Lore has it that the Clan's men would battle each other for RZA's beats, the victor getting their pick for their respective solo albums. "Meth vs. Chef" gives us a good idea of how those face-offs must have went down. Just the fact that they would craft a song out of a traditional one-on-one battle is noteworthy, but it's not unusual for the Wu, who often bring their own special concepts to the game.

Structuring the song like an actual boxing match, with a bell ringing to signal the start and end of verses (and a mock crowd cheering to boot), both hometown favorite Meth (it's his album) and challenger Shallah Raekwon go toe-to-toe, line-for-line. Notice how Rae seemingly stumbles during his 16 but, like a pro, stays cool and in control and gets back on track to finish strong. So who wins? The fans do.

67. Wu-Tang Clan "Clan in da Front" (1993)

Not Available Interstitial

Producer: RZA
Album: Enter the Wu-Tang (36 Chambers)
Label: Loud

GZA gets loose on the solo mission "Clan in da Front." The drunk monk with a quart of Ballantine demonstrates how to sober up fools who mistakenly think they can rap. Regulating with the wordplay ("Come frontin' hard then Bernhard Goetz what he deserves"), he hits his rivals with baseball metaphors ("I throw the rhymes to the mic and I strike 'em out"), describes himself using film references ("With the game and soul of an old-school flick/Like The Mack and Dolemite who both did bids/Claudine went to Cooley High and had mad kids"), and, when that's not enough, just demolishes opponents with a straight verbal shellacking: "The response while I bomb that ass/'You ain't shit!' your wack-ass town had you gassed... Throw your shitty drawers in the hamper/Next time come strapped with a fuckin' Pamper." The Genius rides the galloping, piano-heavy rhythm with ease and is in full command shouting a hook designed to move the crowd.

66. Jodeci f/ Ghostface Killah & Raekwon "Freek'n You (Mr. Dalvin's Freek Mix)" (1995)

Not Available Interstitial

Producer: Mr. Dalvin
Album: "Freek'n You" 12" Promo
Label: Uptown Records

By no means is it a stretch to suggest that R&B sangers Jodeci are harder than some of today's pansy urban crooners—hell, they're harder than a lot of current rappers. For one, Jodeci would never get pussy-whipped—ever. They were gangster enough to live Thug Life with 2Pac and real enough to duet with the Wu-Tang's Raekwon and Ghostface. The "Freek'n You" remix is not some lovey-dovey jam, but rather some goddamn real talk about sexing fine females. With lines like, "You had me harder than a roll of quarters," nobody could accuse 'Face and Rae of going soft.

65. Ghostface Killah f/ Streetlife & Method Man "Deadly Darts" (originally known as "Box in Hand") (1996)

Not Available Interstitial

Producer: RZA
Album: "Deadly Darts/Sunshower" 12"
Label: Wu-Tang Records

Slated to appear as track No. 8 on Ironman, difficulties beyond the Wonder Twin powers of the executive producers meant that this song, then called "Box in Hand," was pulled at the last minute and replaced by another cut. It was so late in the process that the CDs were shipped before the tracklist could be fixed. The song was renamed "Deadly Darts" and later released on wax, so the people got to hear what shoulda, coulda been. The upbeat, summer-time-y jam—featuring a strong sing-songy chorus and solid verses from Method Man and his man, Streetlife—stands up well against the LP's best material. Shame on the ninja who cock-blocked this from being on the album.

64. Wu-Tang Clan "Uzi (Pinky Ring)" (2001)

Not Available Interstitial

Producer: RZA
Album: Iron Flag
Label: Loud

"Face it, the Wu is back" wasn't exactly right—the Wu never left. Disagree if you want, but the Clan might be one rap group whose audience failed them before they failed their audience. Did we, the masses, move on and leave the rebels from the slums of Shaolin to the devoted disciples? Did these underground MCs, in essence, go back from whence they came? Whoa, sorry, didn't mean to go off on a tangent. "Uzi" is great. Plus, it's littered with neat tricks like the stealth "tssssss" sounds, the sudden transitions for Method's and Masta Killa's verses, and the turntable scratching colliding with the crew call of "suuuuuuu..."

63. Raekwon f/ Inspectah Deck, Ghostface Killah, & Method Man "House of Flying Daggers" (2009)

Not Available Interstitial

Producer: J Dilla
Album: Only Built 4 Cuban Linx...Pt. II
Label: Ice H2O

The Wu army is still unfuckwitable as the Killa Bees slip back into soldier mode and march together into lyrical war. Updating the chorus for "Clan in da Front," the God Squad detonate one verbal bomb after the other as the relentless, grinding production blasts on. As Ghostface lets it be known, "The team got to eat, seeds is hungry/That's why we ain't scared to dump on niggas, our guns is chunky." And as Method Man points out, their appetite for destruction keeps the faithful coming back more: "See, these fans can't resist the rush/They Wu-Tang for life, scarred for life, they can't forget the cuts."

62. Ghostface Killah "The Champ" (Original Version) (2006)

Not Available Interstitial

61. Cappadonna "Slang Editorial" (1998)

Not Available Interstitial

Producer: True Master
Album: The Pillage
Label: Razor Sharp/Epic Street

After blazing his guest spots on OB4CL, Ironman, and other assorted Wu joints, Cappadonna showed he could shine on his own as well with "Slang Editorial." Deeming himself a "writing wizard" and a "talk boss," he opens by declaring, "I came to the fork in the road and went straight/Right out the crack vile to the Golden Gate." 'Donna wasn't gonna let the opportunity pass him by, flipping more of the peculiar vernacular that got him noticed in the first place. "Protect my soul when the devil tried to get it/Seen my goal and stuck with it/Ever since a kid, early in a bid/Doin' things you never did," he flows, backed by the killer horns sprayed all over the True Master track. Cappa slays "Slang Editorial." Period. End of story.

60. Mariah Carey f/ ODB "Fantasy (Bad Boy Remix)" (1995)

Not Available Interstitial

Producer: Sean "Puffy" Combs
Album: "Fantasy" 12"/CD Single
Label: Columbia

From taking a limo to cash a welfare check to bumrushing the Grammys stage, Ol' Dirty Bastard's public life was unpredictable. Count his cameo on Mariah Carey's Diddy-tinkered "Fantasy" redux as one more who-would've-thunk-it moment.

Appearing under the sanitized moniker of ODB (Columbia execs must have been pissing their pants to learn their top money-earner was doing a duet with somebody named Ol' Dirty Bastard), the man born Russell Jones announces (tongue firmly in cheek) his presence by saying, "Keepin' it real, son."

For those questioning his appearance on an R&B princess' record, Dirt didn't give a fuck. Besides, he tore that shit up, rocking on the beat heavily based on the irresistible "Genius of Love" by Tom Tom Club (an offshoot of Talking Heads). In true Dirty style, he tones down his words, but still brings the realness to this popular "Fantasy."

59. Ghostface Killah "Child's Play" (2000)

Not Available Interstitial

Producer: RZA
Album: Supreme Clientele
Label: Epic/Razor Sharp Records

Glowing with the magnetic energy of his puppy-love memories, Ghost turns his Bic to the innocent phase of being a school kid on "Child's Play." It's all here, like when you first start liking girls and get engaged with candy rings (or get jealous and break her Chick-O-Sticks). Tony even mentions humping the bed, that embarrassing act from when those unruly hormones first kicked in.

Of course, young Tony must have been a bad-ass kid using "lines from Dolemite, few tips from Goines" to get the girls. "Wherever God go will be Mrs. Coles," summing up all those silly adolescent games perfectly. The writing is sentimental, but "Child's Play" explores some mature-ass observations of burgeoning sexuality: "Pretty lil' Sally sat up by the tree trunk/White mini-skirt with a Betty Boop bump/She had a ass like Deborah Cox/Face like Lauryn/Waist like a Coke bottle scorin'/Pretty young thing loved the swings/At times she got my ding-a-ling hard/When she said, 'Push hard'/She kept Vaseline/Open as she swung back/Couldn't help her dress flew back/Now I'm held accountable right for my actions."

Ghost then dips into KRS's Billy Joel-esque "It's Still Rock and Roll to Me" flow from BDP's "The Bridge Is Over" for a bit ("Everybody's talkin' 'bout Wu-Tang frontin' but you're still tellin' lies to me") for more nostalgia. And RZA should get a star by his name for the finely layered, dignified track. A-plus.

58. GZA f/ RZA & Masta Killa "Labels" (1995)

Not Available Interstitial

Producer: RZA
Album: Liquid Swords
Label: Geffen

For GZA, a song like "Labels" was more than just impressive wordplay using practically all the label names associated with rap music to construct an attack on wack MCs. This was personal. Dissatisfied with their prior experiences with Cold Chillin' and Tommy Boy, this cunning track is also a not-so-subliminal dis. "Tommy ain't my motherfuckin' Boy/When you fake moves on a nigga you employ... 'Cause I smother you Cold Chillin' motherfuckers/I still Warn a Brother" are lines directed specifically at their former record companies. (Cold Chillin' was picked up and distributed by Warner Bros.)

With the music industry currently in decline, the younger generation may not recognize all the references The Genius makes if they're not familiar with labels like Livin' Large, Ruthless, Sleeping Bag, Profile, Tuff City, Virgin, Mercury, Capitol, Epic, RAL, East West, Atco, Next Plateau, Wild Pitch, Uptown, MCA, 4th & Broadway, Island, Priority, First Priority, and A&M (which GZA cleverly flips to mean Abbot and the Master).

57. Wu-Tang Clan "Careful (Click, Click)" (2000)

Not Available Interstitial

Producer: RZA
Album: The W
Label: Loud

An eccentric piece of work from Wu-Tang. Is this a prehistoric demolition or a futuristic explosion? Careful—that errant beat escaped from the sanitarium and there's no telling what it will do. Unexpected shifts in the beat and a bloody rainfall of background noises hypnotize with help from the Wu's decisive repetition of the ever-changing, custom-made hook. The track is slashed to its core by box cutters and sharpened swords. Something in the street went "Bang! Bang!" and left your mind melting.

56. Ghostface Killah f/ Raekwon & Cappadonna "Camay" (1996)

Not Available Interstitial

Producer: RZA
Album: Ironman
Label: Razor Sharp/Epic Street

Older-woman crushes get spoke on in the out-to-seduce "Camay." Nothin' like a lady who, like fine wine, gets better with time. Ghost seems to be the most open, asking his womanly friend, "You sexy motherfucker, damn, what's the recipe?" The ingredients, as provided by Rae, Cap, and Starks, are nourishing helpings of grown-folk bedroom talk ("Your hairdo way more class than Halle Berry") intermingled with that Wu style of randomness ("Sweet as carrot cake, plus, you don't eat turkey bacon"). On top of that, calling on Teddy Pendergrass for the musical backup is the right, smooth choice.

55. GZA f/ Killah Priest & Res "Beneath the Surface" (1999)

Not Available Interstitial

Producer: Inspectah Deck
Album: Beneath The Surface
Label: MCA

There's a powerful serenity to the title track from GZA's third album. Engulfed by the soothing aural waves, both GZA and Killah Priest get their thinking caps on and share some personal thoughts about the universe. The cryptic verses are up to those listening to decipher, but an (apparently) obvious line, like when GZA says, "Success is freedom," is the type of lesson you hope you learn before it's too late. While it may be called "Beneath the Surface," this thoughtful poem set to music will leave you feeling like you've been to the stars and back.

54. Ghostface Killah f/ Raekwon "The Watch" (2001)

Not Available Interstitial

53. Cappadonna f/ Ghostface Killah "'97 Mentality" (1997)

Not Available Interstitial

Producer: RZA
Album: "'97 Mentality" 12" Promo
Label: Razor Sharp Records

What we have here is Cappadonna out of control on a ticking time bomb. "'97 Mentality" is some mixtape steez where bone-crushing rap after spleen-crumbling rap ricochets off snapping, whiplash-causing production. If you dare, fall under the spell of the Staten Island street preacher who brings his burial ground sound and heavyweight lyrics that never lost one calorie. "I came to make ladies out of bitches," says 'Donna in that unmistakable almost-whine of his. For added good measure, Ghostface shows up to do the message-to-the-black-man hook: "To the year Born God, all the Gods strike hard/Fast from the swine, hold down your boulevard/Father U to Cee Cipher, start the revolution/Middle finger in the air for slang prostitution." '97 was a good year.

52. Ghostface Killah f/ Inspectah Deck, RZA, Raekwon, & Masta Killa "Assassination Day" (1996)

Not Available Interstitial

Producer: RZA
Album: Ironman
Label: Razor Sharp/Epic Street

Dialogue from The Usual Suspects ("You heard me you dumb fuck, there's no coke!") is the introduction to this slow-burning drama with menacing guitar strums that, due to Deck's verse, takes on the sinister imagery of a covert midnight invasion in a violence-ridden third world island (Rae's "final destination Haiti" reinforces that notion). Everyone is as sharp as they can be (RZA's "I stop producers' careers, their weak spot was their ears" only tells half the story; he's always been nice on the mic), but Masta Killa's methodical threats fit the gloomy mood to a tee.

51. Wu-Tang Clan "I Can't Go to Sleep" (2000)

Not Available Interstitial

Producer: RZA
Album: The W
Label: Loud

Ghost and RZA cannot catch any ZZZ's. Probably because they are on the verge of tears contemplating all the ills of the world. Ghost worries about Feds jumpin' out of Jeeps, the babies in Africa with flies on their faces, his friend who crapped out gambling. RZA is distraught that major Black leaders like Malcolm X and Martin Luther King were murdered. During all this, the liberal dose of Isaac Hayes' immortal "Walk on By" plays on, with Black Moses basically saying to man up. What does it all mean? Is it a call to move on from the past? Is this a reminder of why problems still exist in the 'hood? Whatever the reasoning behind this display of hurt from the Wu's two biggest risk-takers, all we know is that now we can't go to sleep either without a proper explanation.

50. Ghostface Killah f/ Cappadonna & Raekwon "Fish" (1996)

Not Available Interstitial

Producer: True Master
Album: Ironman
Label: Razor Sharp/Epic Street

"We eat fish, toss salads, and make rap ballads" remains one of Ghostface Killah's most quotable opening lines, uttered here on the atmospheric "Fish," which pulsates with lush, laidback production. In an effort to find out who is the flyest, Starks, Cappa, and Rae spend their time on this one letting you know how they get down. "Every day is like a video shoot," claims Ghost, who goes on to say that "Primatene Mist is afraid of my lungs" and that his rhymes are as iconic as Afro picks, shish kabobs, and dashikis. 'Donna compares himself to '70s TV commercial feline Morris the Cat, while the Chef's closing tongue-twister promises fake haters that he will block their goals like hockey. All in all, the trio cook up some marvelous shit that's mighty healthy.

49. Mobb Deep f/ Ghostface Killah, Raekwon & Big Noyd "Right Back at You" (1995)

Not Available Interstitial

Producer: Havoc/Schott Free
Album: The Infamous
Label: Loud

Rae and Ghost come to the Queensbridge projects to drop murderous flows with the duns Mobb Deep and Big Noyd. The cruel, pummeling beat is the only motive these masked avengers and kids that's lifeless need to catch a body or two. This cold, hard collabo was probably a result of the two crews being Loud labelmates, but whatever the reason for them meeting up, they sure as hell made damn good co-D's. The 'Bridge and the Island together, now you know you in trouble.

48. Raekwon f/ Method Man, RZA, Masta Killa, & Ghostface Killah "Wu-Gambinos" (1995)

Not Available Interstitial

Producer: RZA
Album: Only Built 4 Cuban Linx...
Label: Loud

The expansive use of The Killer throughout OB4CL provides not only a theme for the album (Rae and Ghost's characters are going to make one last run on the streets, just like Chow Yun Fat's assassin is going to do one last hit), but delivers some humorous moments at the start of "Wu-Gambinos" as well. Instead of sampling the film to create another interlude, Rae and fam are sitting at the crib actually watching The Killer during a well-executed skit. Ghost chastising the guest who's put his feet on his mother's glass table is priceless—it just comes out of nowhere.

The roll call of Wu aliases is a reminder of how influential the unit was, as having an alias became common practice in hip-hop afterwards. As for the song itself, it's another unified beatdown, with each MC displaying a distinct style over a marching beat as the Clan rallies around Method Man's cry of "I call my brother sun because he shine like one."

47. Ghostface Killah f/ Raekwon "Apollo Kids" (2000)

Not Available Interstitial

Producer: Hassan
Album: Supreme Clientele
Label: Epic/Razor Sharp Records

For those who thought the Wu-Tang reign was weakening at the start of the millennium, Supreme Clientele proved them wrong. The victorious burst of energy that is "Apollo Kids" finds Tony Starks soaring above the competition, confidence in no short supply. In case anyone had forgotten, Ghost was here to remind them who the fuck he was: "Since the 'Face been revealed, the game got real/Radio been gassin' niggas, my imposters screamin', 'Ill!'/I'm the inventor, '86 rhymin' at the Center/Debut '93 LP told you to Enter."

The "face revealed" line is an ill flashback to the early public appearances of GFK in which his grill was always covered up to hide his identity. Yup, Ghost was back and his vocabulary was as intriguing and strange as ever. But that's the thing. Whether you understand him or not doesn't matter—he can tell you his rap is like ziti and you believe him. Raekwon's fired-up cameo is mandatory, as the two rhyme partners have the chemistry and catalog to establish them as Wu's finest two-man partnership.

46. Ol' Dirty Bastard f/ Raekwon & Method Man "Raw Hide" (1995)

Not Available Interstitial

Producer: RZA
Album: Return to the 36 Chambers: The Dirty Version
Label: Elektra

The Brooklyn Zoo madman starts with perhaps the most stable mental state he ever demonstrated on any song he ever recorded. "I never put doubt in my mind/'Cause I know when I touch the mic there's the rhyme," he says confidently. Soon though, he starts to slip into the drunken homeless man persona that made him famous, contemplating that "I came out my mama's pussy, I'm on welfare/Twenty-six-years old, still on welfare."

Method Man comes in to do the chorus, based on the '60s TV show Rawhide, but Dirty keeps rhyming. Now belligerent, he starts raising his voice, "I wanna see blood/Whether it's period blood or bustin' your fuckin' face—some blood!/I'm goin' out of my fuckin' mind/Every time I get around devils [breathes heavy]/Then I calm down." Well, he's calm for only a sec, before calling himself a goblin. Then, in a true flash of madness, he threatens, "Imagine you get shot up with Ol' Dirty insulin/You bound to catch AIDS or somethin'/Not sayin' I got it/But, nigga, if I got it, you got it!/WHAT!!!"

45. Wu-Tang Clan "Wu-Tang: 7th Chamber" (1993) / Wu-Tang Clan "Wu-Tang: 7th Chamber—Part II" (1993)

Not Available Interstitial

Producer: RZA/RZA
Album: Enter the Wu-Tang (36 Chambers)
Label: Loud
Wu-Tang Clan "7th Chamber"
Wu-Tang Clan "7th Chamber Part II"
Skits always were an integral part of the Wu-Tang arsenal. More like slices of their daily lives, these compelling and often amusing audio peepshows showcased the lively personalities of the Clan folk. Take the "Yo, Meth where my Killer tape at?" from the start of "Wu-Tang: 7th Chamber." The argument between Rae and Meth over the missing John Woo film (obviously the Chef needed it for the upcoming OB4CL) is interrupted by the sudden news that Shymeek from 212 just got bust in his head.

When asked if he's dead, Ghost memorably bursts out, "Is he fuckin' dead? What the fuck you mean is he fuckin' dead?" sounding like a Stapleton projects version of Goodfellas. Commencing with a hearty "Good morning, Vietnam," as inspired by the Robin Williams flick of the same name, the brolic remix is a resurrection that's even meaner, with evil fuzzbox vibrations and phantasmic "ooohhh" chants. The awesome usage of chop-socky sound effects over a bare-bones beat is pure hardcore rap, no holds barred.

44. GZA f/ Masta Killa, Inspectah Deck & Ol' Dirty Bastard "Duel of the Iron Mic" (1995)

Not Available Interstitial

Producer: RZA
Album: Liquid Swords
Label: Geffen

Master swordsmen give a demonstration of microphone-wrecking sophistication on this GZA-commandeered combat strike. Every move is calculated, two to three steps ahead of the nearest challenger. Deck goes Chester Himes in his eloquent verse, noting, "Building lobbies are graveyards for small-timers." The extended use of various kung-fu movie samples leaves impressions, as do the flows that injure any contender.

43. Ghostface Killah f/ Raekwon "Motherless Child" (1996)

Not Available Interstitial

Producer: RZA
Album: Ironman
Label: Razor Sharp/Epic Street

Originally appearing on the Sunset Park soundtrack, the grim "Motherless Child" is another heavily descriptive account from the Wallabee Champ, recounting how a wild dude from the streets gets caught slippin' ("Money had slept like a nightgown," as Ghost says). The story of retribution begins one night when the kid decides to rob the wrong people.

GFK: "Seen him at the flicks, he pulled out on Duke, Hez, and Lateef/But he fucked up, he shoulda kept it real and went for kill/'Cause if he don't, these niggas with black barrels will." Making the mistake of letting his enemies live, payback happens shortly after in BK when "he rolled up in the Albee Square, relaxed like he lived there/Two kids was beamin' him, them niggas from the movie theatre."

After seeing their target purchase "a King Tut piece about the size of Lil' Maurice," they approach the guy: "Remember me? The nigga from the UA and you pulled out?" Mayhem erupts, and the former victor is shot a total of 11 times and stripped of his new chain. "Shit is horrible," Ghost comments in an overwhelmed voice after his verse. Horrible indeed. As for the song, it couldn't shine more brightly.

42. Method Man & Redman "Da Rockwilder" (1999)

Not Available Interstitial

Producer: Rockwilder
Album: Blackout!
Label: Def Jam

A two-minute mugging that leaves microphones abused, Method Man and his brother from another mother, Redman, black out on a hyperactive beat sure to give Pokemon seizures. The amigos give direct and indirect shout-outs to the movies Clash of the Titans, Breakin' ("Suckers break like Turbo and Ozone," says the Funk Doc), and Blue Lagoon, concluding this quickie by paying their respects to Cypress Hill with a paraphrase of "Hand on the Pump." It's always time for some action when it comes to these two lyrical beasts.

41. Wu-Tang Clan "Impossible" (1997)

Not Available Interstitial

Producer: 4th Disciple/RZA
Album: Wu-Tang Forever
Label: Loud

On the bleak "Impossible," RZA's vision of a New World Order nightmare is engrossing: "Babies gettin' pierced with microchips stuffed inside their earlobes/Then examinated, blood contaminated, vaccinated, lies fabricated/Exaggerated authorization/Food & Drug Administration test poison inside the prison population." U-God holds his own with inspired thoughts about "the last days and times."

But the real rapture here is Ghostface Killah's emotionally driven performance, which ranks as one of his greatest. "Call an ambulance, Jamie been shot," he begins at the scene, taking us through his best friend's final minutes. "He pointed to the charm on his neck/With his last bit of energy left, told me, 'Rock it with respect'/I opened it, seen the God holdin' his kids/Photogenic, tears just burst out my wig/Plus, he dropped one—oh shit, here come his Old Earth/With no shoes on, screamin', holdin' her breasts with a gown on/She fell and then lightly touched his jaw, kissed him/Rubbed his hair, turned around the ambulance was there." The intensity with which he expresses the brilliantly written material confirmed, once and for all, the many talents of one Dennis Coles.

40. Mobb Deep f/ Nas & Raekwon "Eye for a Eye (Your Beef Is Mines)" (1995)

Not Available Interstitial

39. Ghostface Killah f/ Raekwon "260" (1996)

Not Available Interstitial

Producer: RZA
Album: Ironman
Label: Razor Sharp/Epic Street

One of the most entertaining aspects of the Wu repertoire is their unprecedented slang that turns their verses into secret and exotic excursions written with an alternate alphabet. For the drug-den invasion "260," Rae and Ghost paint a storytelling masterpiece composed of Five Percent teachings, proper names, and no distinction between the POVs of all the characters.

Ghost spends the first verse scouting their intended targets and trying to secure a rifle from somebody named Daddy-O. (Tony finds time to do a little flirting on the side: "Peace Kiana, what's up with your girlfriend Wanda?/She drive a green Honda with legs like Jane Fonda.")

In the second verse, Rae and Ghost don masks that make them look like terrorists and barge into the apartment in search of the O's they heard were for sale. Shit gets hectic, and Rae has to pull out on a dealer: "I shot him in the neck, it ricocheted and hit Carolyn." Who's Carolyn? Apparently some unlucky chick with a coke habit who's at the wrong place at the wrong time.

In Wu World, figuring out the who, what, why, when, and where is half the fun. Excellent use of Al Green's impressionable "You Ought to Be With Me" is the final layer in this remarkable account of criminal-on-criminal violence.

38. Wu-Tang Clan "Hollow Bones" (2000)

Not Available Interstitial

Producer: RZA
Album: The W
Label: Loud

The tortured wailing of Syl Johnson's "Is It Because I'm Black?" all over "Hollow Bones" signifies literal pain on these three verses that deal with getting shot. Rae is on the corner getting lifted when "something told me duck/Folding me up, my shoulder's struck/Out of luck"; he tries to jump in a cab to get to the hospital. Elsewhere, Deck is heard "Fleeing the crime scene speeding/Beefing, leaving behind C.R.E.A.M./Not even peeping that I was leaking."

Ghostface hits the check cashing at the wrong time—five dudes try to rob him. "I thought for a second then chose/Rather than froze/Had the Gem Star in my hand/'Yo, what the fuck, yo?'/That's when I ripped Timothy." Shots ring, bullets fly...Tony doesn't finish talking. It's the hook ("That splash against my hollow bones") that lets us know exactly where the bullets end up.

37. Ghostface Killah "Shakey Dog" (2006)

Not Available Interstitial

Producer: Lewis Parker
Album: Fishscale
Label: Def Jam

Years after "260," Ghostface is pulling another heist. His partner this time around is "Frank," and they're hitting an Uptown stash spot. No detail is too small as Starks recounts everything leading up to and during the juks. He relays how he's eating "fish from 125th," "hitting baseball spliffs," and getting tartar sauce on his S. Dot kicks.

'Face knows his victims he's about to rob, so he breaks things down for Frank: "See that lady with the shopping cart?/She keep a shottie cocked in the hallway/'Damn, she look pretty old, Ghost'/ She work for Kevin, she about 77/She paid her dues when she smoked his brother-in-law at his boss' wedding." The rest of the story is fun as fuck—no need to give away spoilers. Just look out for the pit with shark teeth, the dudes watching Sanford and Son, and the bullets bouncing off the Frigidaire.

36. Wu-Tang Clan "Older Gods" (1997)

Not Available Interstitial

Producer: 4th Disciple
Album: Wu-Tang Forever
Label: Loud

4th Disciple pieces together slot-machine ka-chings, high-pitched keys, and climaxing fireworks for one of the more slanged-out exercises from the Clan. "Older Gods" is to some degree based on Five Percent ideology, mostly in the chorus: "Yo, the older God put me on and had to rock this/Maintain 360, Lord live prosperous/It only takes a lesson a day just to analyze life/One time in the respectable mind." (The song ignores the standard verse-chorus-verse structure and sticks the twice-repeated hook in between the second and final stanza.)

There are easier-to-understand moments within the coded language, like Ghost saying, "Might walk up in your studio time, slap your engineer." Rae's rhyme is also complex, but does give us bits like, "Money be longer than triple life" and "holdin' my nuts fuckin' thousand-dollar lesbians." For the finale, the GZA drops a doozy of an observation: "Copycats are finicky without skills, they mastered the art of mimicry."

35. Raekwon f/ Inspectah Deck, Ghostface Killah, & GZA "Guillotine (Swordz)" (1995)

Not Available Interstitial

Producer: RZA
Album: Only Built 4 Cuban Linx...
Label: LoudWhether it's RZA's menacing choice of violin that pulsates with the rhythm of a rattlesnake's tail, the friendly competitive rivalry amongst the crew, or the cess that's undoubtedly in the air, each MC is truly inspired to show out with sick, battle-tested styles on "Guillotine (Swordz)." The lethal skills of Shaolin are on full display, with Deck famously jump-starting this 4 a.m. murder spree with "Poisonous paragraphs smash your phonograph in half." The assault never slows down after that.

Big Ghost goes 100 percent ape-shit crazy, talking about "gorillas injected with strength for 80 midgets" and raunchily boasting, "Pens and gear like Shakespeare/When I fuck, I grab hair, collect drawers as souvenirs." Rae keeps it gully as usual, shouting out convicts ("peace to jail niggas with charges"). GZA, in full elder statesman role, is honored with rhyming last and effortlessly closes the show by "catchin' bodies with cordless shotties." The on-point martial-arts movie samples ("I've got so many styles...forgive me") kill.

34. Wu-Tang Clan "Tearz" (1993)

Not Available Interstitial

Producer: RZA
Album: Enter the Wu-Tang (36 Chambers)
Label: Loud

RZA goes all out with his performance on "Tearz," a hard lesson of what goes around comes around. Rakeem is on the stoop with the homies enjoying 40s, blunts, and girl-watching while he boasts of the kid he bust not too long ago. Little does he know that at that same moment his younger sibling, sent to the store for bread, is gunned down in the street by a heartless knucklehead.

Arriving frantically on the scene, he says, "I picked him up and I held him by his head/His eyes shut that's when I knew he was..." RZA doesn't finish, but we know the missing word is "dead." "I taught him all about the bees and birds/But I wish I had a chance to say these three words..." Again, we are left to fill in the blanks, knowing damn well he means he wants to tell his fallen brother, "I love you."

The pounding oldies beat haunts Ghostface's verse, a safe-sex plea about his friend who refuses to wear rubbers. The consequences are chilling to the bone: "Both tried to be down with O.P.P./Ain't nothin' wrong, but he got caught with the H.I.V./Now no life to live, doc says two more years/So after the laughter, I guess comes the tears."

33. Gang Starr f/ Inspectah Deck "Above the Clouds" (1998)

Not Available Interstitial

Producer: DJ Premier/Guru
Album: Moment of Truth
Label: Noo Trybe/Virgin

This eternal hip-hop testament feels like it originates from an ancient Far Eastern paradise in the sky. Gifted Unlimited Rhymes Universal, all-knowing, flows deep from where the sounds are original. At the time of its release in '98, the consensus was that "Above the Clouds," which features Inspectah Deck getting "wild like rock stars who smash guitars," was one of the best compositions of that year. Today, it has rightfully earned its legendary status. R.I.P. Guru.

32. Wu-Tang Clan "Shame on a Nigga" (1993)

Not Available Interstitial

Producer: RZA
Album: Enter the Wu-Tang (36 Chambers)
Label: Loud

Early Wu-Tang flexing their superpowers was something to behold. The bumpin' "Shame on a Nigga," like most of the Clan's cuts, followed no rules, fucking around with the catchy chorus (Rae jumps on it the first time it's spit, but then doesn't for the rest of the song; OBD, who pops up all over the track, cuts it short the second time around with an unexpected "blow!"). They even flipped football signals (hut!).

As good as Method Man ("I'm better than my competor/You mean competitor/Whatever, let's get together") and Raekwon ("So when you see me on the real, formin' like Voltron/Remember I got deep like a Navy Seal") are on this one, this is a sizzling showcase for Ol' Dirty Bastard. His drunken style is live and uncut, saying shit you never heard any other MC say before: "Got burnt once, but that was only gonorrhea/Dirty, I keep shit stains in my drawers so I can get so funky for you." The energetic performance had you open like fallopian tubes.

31. Ghostface Killah f/ Raekwon & Cappadonna "Iron Maiden" (1996)

Not Available Interstitial

Producer: RZA
Album: Ironman
Label: Razor Sharp/Epic Street

As Ironman's opening track, the urgently paced thriller "Iron Maiden," with its strategically placed police sirens and tongue-twisting lingo that gives praise to immigrants livin' trife ("Drug Somalians pollyin'"), is reminiscent of the rush you felt the first time you heard Only Built 4 Cuban Linx... The saga continues here as Ghostface shows that, sho' nuff, he's ready to once again strive for perfection. "Michael Bolton magazine quote, I'm too potent/Louisville mix painkill rap, fuck Benadryl/The violin in 'Knowledge God' sounded ill," he says, bridging the gap between OB4CL and Ironman even further with that stamp of approval. Cappadonna, who shares billing on the album's cover, keeps it "PLO TKO every day" and tells us that "Every evening I have a by-myself meeting." Memo to self: Time to listen to the sample from The Education of Sonny Carson  at the start one more time.

30. Wu-Tang Clan "It's Yourz" (1997)

Not Available Interstitial

Producer: RZA
Album: Wu-Tang Forever
Label: Loud

Wu-Tang returned with their own anthem for packed stadiums. RZA's call-and-response chorus, part of which is a distant nod to T La Rock & Jazzy Jay's "It's Yours," rocks: "It's yours!/The world in the palm of your hand/It's yours!/Twenty-three million of useful land/It's Yours!/The seed and the black woman/It's yours!/Double LP from Wu-Tang Clan/It's yours!" The larger-than-life chant-a-long came littered with the usual wide array of references, including an interesting list of celebrities: Santa Claus a.k.a. Kris Kringle, Saddam Hussein, Raphael Saadiq, wrestler Edward "Wahoo" McDaniel, and Sade all get name-checked.

29. Ghostface Killah "One" (2000)

Not Available Interstitial

Producer: Juju
Album: Supreme Clientele
Label: Epic/Razor Sharp Records

"To glorious days," says GFK early on "One," and you can feel him on that. This celebratory hymn is like picturing the heavens opening up and sunbeams escaping towards Earth. Juju from the Beatnuts blesses Supreme Clientele with this magnificent track that compels Ghost to spit one of his most entertaining and insightful choruses: "Ayo, the Devil planted fear inside the black babies/Fifty cent sodas in the 'hood, they goin' crazy/Dead meat placed on the shelves, we eat cold cuts/Fast from the hog, y'all, and grow up!" Starks' synergy continues, this time braggin' about bizarre shit like "dickin' down Oprah" and having fun with the recurring "One" sample ("How many girls you got fucked, yo?" "One!" "That's it?").

28. Raekwon "Knowledge God" (1995)

Not Available Interstitial

Producer: RZA
Album: Only Built 4 Cuban Linx...
Label: Loud

WTC's greatest slang editorialist has always been Raekwon. "Knowledge God" mixes together the Wu's use of diff'rent racial identities (Colombians, Africans, Italianos, etc.), the appearance of random folks with proper names (store owner Mike Lavonia), unusual catch phrases and descriptions (Mike named his pet piranha "Marijuana"), and Five Percent enlightenment ("What's today's mathematics, son?").

The narrative, fractured as always, is a lurid account of chains getting snatched at clubs and people snorting coke by the piles (the heavy-duty sniffing at the start is startling the first time you hear it) before it suddenly shifts into a private letter from Rae to somebody who is locked up: "Stay tuned, word up, I hope to see you in June/By the way, I seen your bitch, she was up in this cat's room/Skied up, weed the fuck up, to top it off/Look beat up, with two crack fiends huggin' your seed up/I took care of that, though, but don't worry 'bout it." (P.S. Like Ghost said in "Iron Maiden," the violin used in "Knowledge God" sounds ill.)

27. Wu-Tang Clan "Wu-Tang Clan Ain't Nuthing ta Fuck Wit" (1993)

Not Available Interstitial

Producer: RZA
Album: Enter the Wu-Tang (36 Chambers)
Label: Loud

With references to Dr. Doom, Underdog, and Annie, the Wu-Tang shows off a bit of their nerdy side on "Ain't Nuthing ta F Wit" without losing an ounce of credibility. Lazy castanets and '60s TV kiddie shows meet head-on, and the results are splendid. The Clan, armed to the teeth with rhymes, dare you step to them one more time. Tiger style be takin' them all out.

26. The Notorious B.I.G. f/ Method Man "The What" (1994)

Not Available Interstitial

Producer: Easy Mo Bee
Album: Ready to Die
Label: Bad Boy

Regardless of any beef that might have existed between Biggie and the Wu's Raekwon and Ghostface while the Brooklyn rapper was still alive, it was all love between B.I.G. and Method Man. "The What" is on the same level with Big and Jay-Z's "Brooklyn's Finest," a "can't lose" collaboration between rap titans in which both rappers are at their peak. Verse two consists of the MCs trading lines, unloading a can of ass-whippin' over Easy Mo Bee's grimy production. Big: "Deep like the mind of Farrakhan/A motherfuckin' rap phenomenon/Plus..." Meth: "I got more Tecs than you." Big: "I make it hot." Meth: "Niggas won't even stand next to you." This pair of rap superstars stand tall on this one.

25. Wu-Tang Clan "Reunited" (1997)

Not Available Interstitial

Producer: RZA
Album: Wu-Tang Forever
Label: Loud

Forever was released four years after 36 Chambers. "Reunited" is specifically designed to commemorate the group's long-anticipated return as a unit. As GZA succinctly states in his opening verse, "Reunited/Double LP, world excited/Struck a match to the underground/Industry ignited." This is a concise summary of the Wu story up to that juncture. The group did kick hip-hop in the ass, and the bidding wars to sign members to solo deals were proof they were a hot commodity.

Production-wise, the strings on "Reunited" sounded far more clean than previous RZA tracks, but the rhyming was raw as ever. This is one of the last times Ol' Dirty sounded like he was an actual part of the group. His various legal and personal problems kept him away from future WTC efforts, yet here he sounds determined and focused. But he's still that lovable lunatic, talking about "I don't walk, I get carried."

24. Raekwon f/ Ghostface Killah & Masta Killa "Glaciers of Ice" (1995)

Not Available Interstitial

Producer: RZA
Album: Only Built 4 Cuban Linx...
Label: Loud

The cheeba-laced chamber music punctuated by escalating screaming/singing from Blue Raspberry on "Glaciers of Ice" leaves a haunting impression. An excited Raekwon, the underrated Masta Killa (who sneaks in long enough to murder the track), and the always engaging Ghostface drop more of their patented jewels, not the least of which is Ironman's philosophy on the musical empire him and his cronies are building. "My seeds run with his seeds, marry his seeds, that's how we keep Wu-Tang money all up in the family," he says, ensuring us that the Clan saga will continue for generations to come.

It's also worth mentioning how memorable the classic skit that kicked off "Glaciers" was. It featured Ghostface animatedly explaining how he was dying Clarks Wallabees different colors, and it surely was the inspiration for his solo debut album cover, on which he, Cappa, and Rae are surrounded by pairs of the stylish shoes.

23. Ghostface Killah f/ Mary J. Blige "All That I Got Is You" (1996)

Not Available Interstitial

Producer: RZA
Album: Ironman
Label: Razor Sharp/Epic Street

It takes a special kind of grown-ass man to dedicate a song to his "mommy," but Mr. Dennis Coles is probably the only street cat in rap that can get away with it. Ghostface gives a masterful performance ringing with so much genuine emotion, you're a heartless bastard if you try to front on it.

He details the trials and tribulations of a "youth sharper than cleats" and conjures up vivid childhood memories of "pluckin' roaches out the cereal box" and having to borrow food from neighbors ("So embarrassing I couldn't stand to knock on their door, friends might be laughin'").

The revelations that his father left when Ghost was six and that he has two brothers with muscular dystrophy made fans connect with the vulnerable side of Ironman Tony Starks. The Queen of Hip-Hop Soul Mary J. Blige is the perfect choice to add on to the Jackson 5's "Maybe Tomorrow"-sampling track. "All That I Got Is You" is one of the few rap songs that can bring a tear to your eye.

22. Ghostface Killah "Mighty Healthy" (2000)

Not Available Interstitial

Producer: Mathematics
Album: Supreme Clientele
Label: Epic/Razor Sharp Records

"Mighty Healthy" is that rare post–Golden Age hip-hop song that is densely structured with various sampled bits from more than one source, including the often-used "Synthetic Substitution" drum break, not to mention an interpolation of Divine Force's "Holy War" ("Don't fuck with Ghost you'll feel sorry/That's word, I'm not the herb, understand what I'm sayin'?").

The rap Derek Jeter chews up the atmospheric track, letting it be known that "You goddamn right, I fuck fans." (In case you were wondering.) The prolific rapper goes on to point out he that hits mics like Ted Koppel and that his writing is cinematic, "every script's like Miramax." Most of all, as witnessed here on this eerie track, his music truly is in the best shape of its life.

21. Ghostface Killah f/ Raekwon, U-God, Masta Killa, & Cappadonna "Winter Warz" (1996)

Not Available Interstitial

20. GZA f/ Method Man "Shadowboxin'" (1995)

Not Available Interstitial

Producer: RZA
Album: Liquid Swords
Label: Geffen

"Shadowinboxin'" is officially a GZA track, but it's Method Man who gets to drop two of the three verses. "All in together now/Things are gettin' good, lookin' better now," raps Meth, echoing one of the earliest Wu-Tang routines created by cousins RZA, GZA, and ODB back in the mid-'80s. The phrase has been mentioned by nearly all Wu members at some point in their respective catalogs. "Protect ya neck, my sword still remains Imperial/Before I blast a mic, RZA scratch off the serial," spits GZA in the second stanza, which is partially a reference to Force of the Imperial Master, the unit that would later be renamed the All In Together Now Crew.

19. Wu-Tang Clan "Bring da Ruckus" (1993)

Not Available Interstitial

Producer: RZA
Album: Enter the Wu-Tang (36 Chambers)
Label: Loud

Enter the Wu-Tang (36 Chambers) blasts out the gate with not so much a song but a recreation of a war zone. RZA took the concept of back-in-the-day banging-on-the-school-lunchroom-table and substituted shell-shocked sound effects in its place, then released a gang of famished beasts from their cages to eat up the minimal track of horror. The MCs show no mercy ("Wu-Tang slang'll leave your headpiece hangin'," warns Deck), demonstrating that a don't-give-a-fuck attitude played a major part in the group's genetic makeup. Listen close to when Ghost appears out of nowhere and starts rapping—it sounds like a bad edit. But you know what? It fits the rawness of the W sound.

18. GZA f/ Ghostface Killah, Killah Priest, & RZA "4th Chamber" (1995)

Not Available Interstitial

Producer: RZA
Album: Liquid Swords
Label: Geffen

The eerie screeching and lurching beat of "4th Chamber" is thrilling and scary at the same time, and the rhymes get deep. "Why is the sky blue?/Why is water wet?/Why did Judas rat to Romans while Jesus slept?" is a monumental scripture spoken by Ghostface, who be "sippin' rum out of Stanley Cups." Word.

Killah Priest went about it the right (and righteous) way in building a name for himself on GZA's second LP by not only doing the song "B.I.B.L.E.," but appearing here and kicking otherworldly stanzas such as "I'm lively, my dome piece is like building stones in Greece/My poems are deep, from ancient thrones I speak."

RZA's testimonial is filled with religious imagery of impending doom, but he ends his 16 by saying "peace" in his own unique way: "Protons, Electrons Always Cause Explosions." Once again, the GZA shuts shit down in the final slot of "this unprecedented, opium-scented, dark-tinted" track that begins with a lengthy sample from the dark, ultraviolent sword-and-guts motion picture Shogun Assassin.

17. Ol' Dirty Bastard "Brooklyn Zoo" (1995)

Not Available Interstitial

Producer: True Master
Album: Return to the 36 Chambers: The Dirty Version
Label: Elektra

There really was no father to Ol' Dirty Bastard's style, and no one has even come close to filling his shoes since his tragic death in late 2004. Takin' all types of medicines and comin' at you with rhymes as good as a tasty cake mix, ODB's "Brooklyn Zoo" is in-your-face Tourette's rap. He rips the track with humorous hostility, infamously stating: "Niggas catchin' headaches/What? What? You need aspirin?/This type of pain you couldn't even kill with Midol/Fuck around get sprayed with Lysol/In your face like a can of mace, baby/Is it burnin'? Well, fuckin' now you're learning!" Maybe if Biz Markie and Bushwick Bill somehow spawned a kid, he'd grow up to be as ill as Dirt McGirt. Maybe. R.I.P. ODB.

16. Raekwon f/ Ghostface Killah, Cappadonna, & Method Man "Ice Cream" (1995)

Not Available Interstitial

Producer: RZA
Album: Only Built 4 Cuban Linx...
Label: Loud

Wu-Tang may be for the children, but they proved they're also for the ladies with the sexually charged "Ice Cream," which may be the only "love song" in the universe vaguely inspired by an Eddie Murphy comedy routine ("The ice cream man is coming!"). Specially served up for all the tasty Chocolate Deluxes, Butter Pecan Ricans, Caramel Sundaes, and French Vanillas, the Wu brothers sling pick-up lines to dimes.

Ghost amusingly gets distracted in the middle of spitting game ("I'm high-powered, put Adina Howard to sleep/Yo pardon, that bitch been on my mind all week"). Rae then describes the type of fly colored Asian that turns his head: "Freaks [that] be movin' in fly sneaks, two finger rings and gold teeth, and ain't afraid to hold heat." Then there's the oozing charm of newcomer Cappadonna: "Call me if you wanna get dug like the pockets/I jism like a giant, break wombs out of the sockets." "Ice Cream" is eXXXcellent.

15. Ghostface Killah f/ Raekwon, Cappadonna, & The Force M.D.s "Daytona 500" (1996)

Not Available Interstitial

Producer: RZA
Album: Ironman
Label: Razor Sharp/Epic Street

"Daytona 500" kept it 100 on a traditional level, incorporating the cherished and often-used "Nautilus" by Bob James as its primary sample and scratching in old Clan material for the intros of each verse ("Ghost...Face...Killlllllaaahhh!"). That wasn't all. Bringing back the Force M.D.s was not only classy, but a wise choice. The old-school crooners spin their melodic magic and help give the song a vintage feel, which was a nice alternative to going for the obvious hottest-R&B-star-of-the-moment. The animated video, which expertly jacked footage from the 1960s cartoon Speed Racer, received favorable feedback from the fans. "Daytona 500" found Ghost, Rae, and Cappa in the winner's circle one more time.

14. Wu-Tang Clan "Da Mystery of Chessboxin'" (1993)

Not Available Interstitial

Producer: RZA
Album: Enter the Wu-Tang (36 Chambers)
Label: Loud

On "Da Mystery of Chessboxin'," U-God lays down what is arguably his most potent penmanship: "Raw I'm a give it to ya/With no trivia/Raw like cocaine straight from Bolivia/My hip-hop will rock and shock the nation/Like the emancipation proclamation." Actually, everyone on this one reps hard. Deck: "Steamrollin' niggas like an 18-wheeler with a drunk driver drivin', there's no survivin'." Rae: "Rough like Timberland wear, yeah!/Me and the Clan and the Land Cruisers out there." Dirty: the "Rappin' is what's happenin'" line. Ghost: "Speakin' of the Devil—psych!/No, it's the God, get your shit right!" and "So grab your 8+1." And Masta Killa: "We have an APB on an MC Killer/It looks like the work of a Masta/Evidence indicates that his stature/Merciless like a terrorist hard to capture." The Clan was always one step ahead of the comp.

13. Raekwon f/ Ghostface Killah "Criminology" (1995)

Not Available Interstitial

Producer: RZA/BT
Album: Only Built 4 Cuban Linx...
Label: Def Jam

"Criminology," the blazing sure shot from OB4CL, comes complete with hard-rocking drums, echoey chiming, and the angry words of Tony "Scarface" Montana. Capturing the super-aggressiveness of early '90s Rotten Apple hip-hop, Ghost unloads: "Extravagant, RZA baked the track and it's militant/Then I react like a convict and start killin' shit," while the always-reliable Rae spits that "witty unpredictable live shit, drive-by shit, do-or-die shit." These guys were on one. Case in point: Rae contemplates makin' C.R.E.A.M. like Julio Iglesias.

12. Method Man "Bring the Pain" (1994)

Not Available Interstitial

Producer: RZA
Album: Tical
Label: Def Jam

Catch an adrenaline rush as southpaw Mr. Meth attacks with the vigor of an undefeated world-champion boxer on this out-of-left-field hit. While not as weird as the rest of Tical, the neck-snapping "Bring the Pain" still has unorthodox things going on, like the touches of dancehall on the bridge, zooming car-crash sound effects, and nasty snaps like "I'll fuckin' cut your eyelids off and feed you nothin' but sleeping pills," reminiscent of the time that Ticalian Stallion and Raekwon hurled threats at each other at the beginning of "Method Man." "Bring The Pain" is a first-round knock-out.

11. Wu-Tang Clan "Can It Be All So Simple" (1993) / "Can It Be All So Simple (Remix)" (1995)

Not Available Interstitial

Producer: RZA/RZA
Album: Enter the Wu-Tang (36 Chambers)/Only Built 4 Cuban Linx...
Label: Loud
Wu-Tang Clan "Can It All Be So Simple"
Raekwon f/ Ghostface Killah "Can It All Be So Simple"
Raekwon and Ghostface Killah's first duet takes you on a journey to the "good ol' days" when they were "ignorant and mad young" and tells of how they eventually ended up in a life of crime. They use mad slang and various dope methods to describe shit, like when Rae confesses, "Pops was a fiend since 16/Shootin' that 'that's that shit!' in his bloodstream."

The unstoppable duo take time to give shout-outs to Jeeps, Land Cruisers, MPVs, and "niggas who do drive-bys," all while a relentless, thumping bassline and choice vocals from "The Way We Were" by Gladys Knight & the Pips keep listeners enthralled. The remix featured all-new lyrics, an amped-up reworking of the original track, and another well-made cinematic skit on top, this time recounting the early '90s incident when GFK was supposedly shot in the neck and arm for real.

10. Wu-Tang Clan "Triumph" (1997)

Not Available Interstitial

Producer: RZA
Album: Wu-Tang Forever
Label: Loud

The second Wu wave after the many solo shots began with the release of "Triumph," a daring pick for a single considering it ran nearly six minutes and didn't even bother with a chorus. The lack of a hook can probably be attributed to the sheer volume of MCs involved. In a rare instance, all 10 core members' voices are heard on the winning track, with ODB doing the intro and Cappadonna going for his with usual gusto. To begin, Deck bombs atomically, and the rest of the click follows up impressively, each throwing bull's-eye darts. Now firmly established vets, WTC returned, calling their own shots.

9. Ol' Dirty Bastard "Shimmy Shimmy Ya" (1995)

Not Available Interstitial

Producer: RZA
Album: Return to the 36 Chambers: The Dirty Version
Label: Elektra

It's just one fuckin' verse! Ol' Dirty Bastard's rockin' "Shimmy Shimmy Ya" is only one loony verse repeated twice, with a slice of it played backwards in case you can't get enough of it. "For any MC in any 52 states/I get Psycho Killaaaa Norman Bates!" he says, and even with such insane claims, in actuality, this is ODB kinda subdued and toned down. It's a testament to his greatness that with less he gives more. The staticky voice of Richard Pryor ("What the fuck, you can't even sing”) feels right at home, and the World's Famous Supreme Team radio-show sample ("I like the way you talk") is a nice touch to go with the schizo piano keys.

8. Raekwon f/ Ghostface Killah & Nas "Verbal Intercourse" (1995)

Not Available Interstitial

Producer: RZA
Album: Only Built 4 Cuban Linx...
Label: Loud

Nas was the first ever non–Wu Gambino to infiltrate the Clan, on the song "Verbal Intercourse," and the respect shown wasn't lost on him: The invited guest delivers one of his greatest verses, reflecting on, amongst various crime-related things, the loyal wives and girlfriends of incarcerated scarfaces: "Rooster-heads profile on the bus to Riker's Isle/Holdin' weed inside their pussies with their minds on the pretty things in life/Props is a true thug's wife."

Ghostface Killah, seemingly stirred by the strangely nostalgic, busted-up Emotions loop, also partially raps about prison, providing lurid descriptions of a dude getting bashed for trying to turn the channel on the TV inside the dayroom. His ability to weave in and out of first-, second-, and third-person narrative is a Wu trait he excels at, acting out scenarios with different voices ("Infirmary niggas are screamin', 'I got juxed!'"). As Rae promises, there's "no tricks" in this episode, just the realness.

7. Method Man & Redman "How High" (1995)/"How High (Remix)" (1995)

Not Available Interstitial

Producer: Erick Sermon/Erick Sermon
Album: "How High" 12"
Label: Def Jam
Method Man & Redman "How High"
Method Man & Redman "How High (Remix)"
The long-lasting alliance between the buddha-smokin' brothers Clifford Smith and Reggie Noble really took off with "How High," which, coincidentally, was also the name of their pretty-damn-funny blunted big-screen comedy. The hard-snapping remix is a sick-ass outbreak of their chronic rhyming skills that complement each other like identical twins. Upon close examination, this dusted duet is really a me-then-you-then-me-then-you-again raw cipher session that somehow is turned into a song with a chorus that references Jimi Hendrix and Superman. Meth and Red definitely soar above the competition on this '90s favorite.

6. GZA f/ RZA "Liquid Swords" (1995)

Not Available Interstitial

Producer: RZA
Album: Liquid Swords
Label: Geffen

"Liquid Swords" is what the Genius and Prince Rakeem probably sounded like back in the day performing together—only updated. Reincarnated as the GZA and RZA, they utilize their past experience as crew members to deliver an entertaining number based on old-school fundamentals and their own trademark techniques (RZA's incessant background hiss-like sound effects and GZA's throat-clearing breakdown two-thirds in sounds like a human beatbox on the fritz).

They call out rival MCs throughout the song, taunting them for their dependence on cocaine in order to "act insane." "I put mad pressure on phony wack rhymes that get hurt/Shit's played like Zodiac signs on sweatshirt/That's minimum and feminine like sandals," says GZA, once again showing the ability to drop zingers in a serious (and sharp) fashion.

5. Raekwon "Incarcerated Scarfaces" (1995)

Not Available Interstitial

Producer: RZA
Album: Only Built 4 Cuban Linx...
Label: Loud

This is vintage Raekwon in quote-machine mode, spillin' out figures of speech that leave long-lasting impressions. Some of Lex Diamond's vocab: "Guess who's the black Trump?"; "Get your meat lumped"; "You got guns, got guns, too/What up son, do you wanna battle for cash and see who Sun Tzu?"; "Under pressure like Lou Ferrigno on coke"; "Africans denyin' niggas in yellow cabs"; "I seen it like a 27-inch Zenith, believe it." Shit, put this on repeat. Politic ditto.

4. Method Man f/ Streetlife "All I Need" (1994) / Method Man f/ Mary J. Blige "I'll Be There for You/You're All I Need to Get By (Puff Daddy Mix)" (1995)

Not Available Interstitial

Producer: RZA/Puff Daddy
Album: Tical/"I'll Be There for You/You're All I Need to Get By" 12" Single/CD Single
Label: Def Jam/Def Jam
Method Man f/ Streetlife "All I Need"
Method Man f/ Mary J. Blige "I'll Be There for You/You're All I Need to Get By (Puff Daddy Mix)"
Method Man's endearing ode to his girl has a hook that does a great job of toeing the line so that it appealed to both females ("You're all that I need, I'll be there for you...") and males ("On top of that you got the good Power U"). Figuring out what Power U means is something you can sorta guess. While predecessors like LL Cool J and Big Daddy Kane alienated part of their fan base by catering too much to the ladies, Meth managed to keep the balance. "Back when I was nothin'/You made a brother feel like he was somethin'" were never far from macho sentiments like "Never ever give my pussy away and keep it tight, aight."

It also helped that RZA's track sounds like a deranged video game and not some sappy tune. The pumped-up Diddy remix was like a brand-new song. Gone was Streetlife's chorus, replaced by Mary J. Blige's presence, which elevated this keep-it-real joint to royal R&B status. Throwing in Biggie's "Lie together, cry together, I swear to God I hope we fuckin' die together" from "Me & My Bitch" gave the remix a touch of gangster.

3. Wu-Tang Clan "Method Man" (1993)

Not Available Interstitial

Producer: RZA
Album: Enter the Wu-Tang (36 Chambers)
Label: Loud

Method Man established himself as Wu-Tang Clan's first breakout star not just by appearing on the most tracks on 36 Chambers, but with the help of the incredibly fun "Method Man" single. Overflowing with charisma, Meth was able to showcase his plentiful talents on this quirky-yet-accessible show-stopper loaded with tons of pop-culture references, including Fat Albert, Sugarhill Gang's "Rapper's Delight" ("Super sperm!"), and Hall & Oates (the "M-E-T-H-O-D" is inspired by their song "Method of Modern Love"). His name derived from Shaolin slang for weed, Method Man's career went sky-high thanks in large part to this multidimensional performance.

2. Wu-Tang Clan "Protect Ya Neck" (1993) / Wu-Tang Clan "Protect Ya Neck" (Bloody Version) (1992)

Not Available Interstitial

Producer: RZA/RZA
Album: Enter the Wu-Tang (36 Chambers)/"Protect Ya Neck" 12" Single
Label: Loud/Wu-Tang Records
Wu-Tang Clan "Protect Your Neck"
Wu-Tang Clan "Protect Your Neck (Bloody Version)"
The first Wu-Tang song was raw as hell, boiling with the excitement that NYC hip-hop was searching for in the wake of Dr. Dre and friends' G-Funk dominance. The hungry eight MCs dared anybody to step to them, warning in the process that the game was about to change. The inventiveness (Meth's "The smoke from the lyrical blunt makes me *cough*"), morbid humor (Ol' Dirty warning, "I'll be stickin' pins in your head like a fuckin' nurse"), and outrageous claims ("Flowin' like Christ when I speaks the gospel," says RZA) made the music industry take notice.

And that was the added beauty. "Rejects" of the biz, Prince Rakeem and The Genius' startling comeback was something resembling the plot from one of the beloved kung-fu films the Clan adopted for their signature sound. GZA closes by taking shots at mountain-climbing, guitar-playing A&Rs: "The Wu is too slammin' for these Cold Killin' labels" (a shot at his former bosses, Cold Chillin'). The single's "Bloody Version" keeps all the curses and ends with a mock beatdown; the nicely edited album cut features the radio interview.

1. Wu-Tang Clan "C.R.E.A.M." (1993)

Not Available Interstitial

Producer: RZA
Album: Enter the Wu-Tang (36 Chambers)
Label: Loud

Dollar dollar bill, y'all. "C.R.E.A.M." (Cash Rules Everything Around Me) became another way for rappers and rap listeners to describe their riches, but the song itself was far from an anthem about poppin' bottles or makin' it rain.

Rather, the hard look at economic depression sees Raekwon complain about the shortcomings of being a stick-up kid ("My life got no better/Same damn 'Lo sweater/Times is rough and tough like leather") and decide that "the only way I begin to G off is drug loot," while Inspectah Deck laments a troubled childhood, memorably noting, "Life as a shorty shouldn't be so rough."

Mesmerizing keys and tortured wailing backed by Method's authoritative voice on the choppy hook still command your attention 18 years later as the financial gap in this country widens between the haves and have-nots.

Latest in Music