The third (final?) Ghostface Killah album to appear in this list is The Pretty Toney Album, which he released without the Killah title. It may seem controversial picking this one above Fishscale, which received all the plaudits and was widely considered his best work since Supreme Clientele. The thing is...I love the Pretty Toney Album. It came at a time when the extended Wu-Tang were at their lowest ebb, most members had a failed album behind them, and it had been years since the Wu had collaborated as a group. Ghost's previous effort Bulletproof Wallets had been dogged by sample clearance issues, and the resulting release was a compromised effort, and sold poorly. Pretty Toney then represented the moment when Ghost would step out from the shadows of the Wu, and begin to seem more important as a solo act than with his RZA helmed group. Importantly this time Ghost would bring along his own producers and rap crew the Theodore Unit (in true crap hip-hop acronym fashion, apparently meaning The Open Door). Only two RZA productions would feature and no Wu members.
Ghost had always featured 70's deep soul and Philly samples on his tracks, and this style was now amped up, and made as Ghost's own (Meth had blunted dusty beats, RZA had digital noise, Raekwon had the gangsta mafioso thing, GZA had chess and kung-fu, who knows what U-God had!). Pretty Toney kept our interest in all things Wu during these lean times. He also showed a new found maturity in subject matter, as along with the stream of conscious slang and ghetto brutality were feelings rarely expressed in hardcore hip hop; of male weaknesses, failure and at one point he even begs a woman to take him back, a brave move for a self proclaimed don-king who rocks a six inch high solid gold eagle on his arm, and a king tut piece about the size of 'lil Maurece.
So sit back, kick off your blue and cream wallabies, and get your mouth watered on some marvelous shit.
Biscuits kicks off proceedings with it's Sam & Dave sample. Ghost introduces his main foil for this and the subsequent
718 album, Trife Diesel. The track begins with Ghost admonishing some poor dude for getting him chocolate instead of a banana nutriment, and eager to succeed Ghost threatens, '
We gon get our money, If he front, They gon read about the rocks in his tummy'.
Kunta Fly Shit is one of two RZA productions, and is a short track containing pure aggression,
'Flambey his brains, Hanging out his onion'
Beat The Clock features Ghost rapping three verses in quick succession (hence: beat the clock), It's amazing the variety of different rhythms and flows he puts together on this, using sing song stylings and double time maneuvers. Among Ghosts free association wordplay he claims that '
feeds dolphins', and that he has a diamond encrusted condom
'for pussies that's golden'!
Metal Lungies is slang for bullets, as in '
ask the clique yo, they spit metal lungies'. This provides the metaphor for guest rappers Styles P and Sheek Louch.
We then have to endure a skit whereby we hear Ghost bathed by a woman, whilst The Delphonics play in the background. It's what they invented a skip button for.
Save Me Dear's lengthy Freddie Scott soul sample runs dangerously long, then Ghost starts rapping, and you realise, he's just gonna rhyme straight over it, as you imagine he would have when learning how to rap by just putting on a record and rapping in time over it. Ghost's, grown man approach makes itself known here, when he raps the usual list of desirable female attributes, cooking, not snitching to cops, good in bed etc.. However added to the list this time are, being a friend as well as a lover, talking down his low moods and stupid ideas and making up following arguments. A Killah that can communicate might just be a dangerous proposition.
It's Over expands on this new found maturity, and finds Ghost noting that when everything seems to be going so well, the world can crash around you. Verse one is reminiscing over the peak Wu-Tang era, with money no object, Ghost is in a daze of drugs and girls and is too preoccupied enjoying himself to notice that he is being watched. The murder of some crew members and a drug bust is the result. Verse two, tells of a girl that Ghost trusted who had access to personal data and robbed him.
Tush is underrated and is the lead single from the album. Featuring Missy Elliot as a perfect match for Ghost, and is a funky sexy P Diddy production, similar to prime Biggie or Ma$e productions. It's basically a sex track, but funny and as gritty as you'd imagine a tryst between Ghost and Missy would be. It's unusual for Missy to do sexual subject matter, as she says in the track '
you would think it was Lil Kim's lips ugggghhh', It is also a pleasure to Missy twist her syllables,
'Now shush, in my bush, And I can give you what you want, make a whoosh, Just throw it, i'll show you how to push, Kinky sex, tie ropes round your wroosts'.
Last Night contains Ester Williams, The 900 number and some pure filth.
Holla expands upon Save Me Dear's extended sample by just playing the whole of La La La Means I Love You by The Delphonics and letting Ghost run rampant over the top, a brilliant idea which has now been copied so many times. Keeping it real like '77,
'all we need is a drum, like fuck it he can rhyme, I'll sing'.
Ghostface is an attempt to repeat the success of Cherez La Ghost from Supreme Clientele, and uses a very similar palette of sounds.
Be This Way is a thumping soul stomper, Ghost paints vivid pictures of grimey Staten Island ghettos and corrupt cops getting backhanders from dealers. He then flips this on the second verse to a first person account of a crack dealer doling out fear and murder with the clinical coldness of a hardened gangster, '
We could do magic, splatter faggots in lobbies, the heat burn off their eyelashes, real tragic, forensic scientists called in to display graphics, the brain and spleen is left all over a fiends mattress'. A pained Billy Stewart sample loops in the background unable to decide between 'it's gonna always be this way', and 'It doesn't have to always be this way'. My gosh!
The Letter is a skit of Ghost choking up as he reads a letter; this then leads to
Tooken Back, as Ghost and Jackie O in turn ask and beg to be taken back and forgiven their weaknesses. Ghost finishes with the advice, '
Don't be afraid to ask', I can't think of another hip hop album where this could happen.
Run was the big hitter, the track Westwood played. And although it featured a banging RZA beat and prime hip hop subject matter (running from the cops), it also addressed the subject in a way that felt un-glamorous and real. Whilst running from the cops Ghost drops his drugs, loses his trainers '
If you getting chased with no shoes on', and running on pure adrenaline hastly decisions are contemplated. Jadakiss who provides an excellent asthmatic verse (why are so many rappers asthmatic?) considers whether shooting at the cops is a good idea, whilst Ghost is running into all the wrong places '
If you see me coming get the fuck out the entrance'. Alongside these factors they hardly seem like successful criminals '
If you selling drugs in the school zone'.
Love finishes the album with some uplifting soul, but it's too little too late and we still can't wash that metallic taste from our mouths.
Alongside Pretty Toney came an album from Ghost's new crew The Theodore Unit called 718. The tracks were all recorded during the Pretty Toney sessions, the highlights of which are worthy of your consideration.
Ghost's verses on 718 are less thematic, just rapping, like he feels less pressured to find a concept and can loosen up. Which is Ghost's art really, and he can be heard at his best sometimes when freestyling nonsense and bragging over tough beats.
Guerrilla Hood sets out 718 promise to deliver '
Big stupid bangers'
'88 Freestyle puts Ghost over Big Daddy Kane's super fast Set It Off.
The Drummer is the only Ghost tune of this era to feature another Wu-Tang member, Method Man. Features a nice scratchy vinyl loop, and Meth quite rightly (and touchingly) raps to Ghost, '
The most important MC in the whole wide world is you, and you hardly even know it'.
Who Are We contains a shouty Bonecrusher chorus (exactly the reason why MF Doom said
'rappers shouting all in our ear like we're deaf!') over a punishing stomp.
Paychecks is a 'back when I was broke' rookie crime saga, whereby the Theodore Unit threaten young pretenders and entry level rappers with '
back then we was beatin the shit outta niggas, shaking niggas upside down on some cartoon shit'
Of the Theodore Unit, Trife is always worth a listen, but as for the others, basically skip any track that doesn't feature Ghost.
