Ghostface Killah: “Ghostdini: Wizard of Poetry in Emerald City”
Sach O’s R&B dick is on Thursdays (II).
If you think about it, Raekwon The Chef and Ghostface Killah just dropped a bizarro-world Speakerboxxx/Love Below on us highlighting the extremes of their respective personalities. While Rae spent the past few years crafting the thuggish if reflective narratives of Cuban Linx II, Ghost has been working on “his R&B album”– a purportedly more mature offering that he’s been hinting at ever since the promo run for Pretty Toney. The timing couldn’t have been better. While The Big Doe Rehab featured its share of highlights, it was also the first Ghostface album to feel like…just another Ghostface album. A well-versed fan of Dennis Coles is well aware of the man’s ear for classic soul and R&B guest spots and a return to the knowledge kicked earlier in Ghost’s career could be invigorating after a few years of crack rap. However, the same prospect of an R&B album also raises the specter of 14 “Back like that’s”: compromised label-pleasing songs that do more to highlight Def Jam’s R&B roster than Ghostface’s talent behind the mic. So what do we get, dope or dog food?
A little of both. As a whole, The Wizard of Poetry succeeds but it’s also impossible to listen to without the nagging doubt that it was compromised by poor A&Ring and industry constraints. The emceeing is never at fault and Ghost nails practically every verse on the album with the incredibly raunchy Stapleton Sex and the classic long-form storytelling rhyme on Guesthouse alone proving that he’s still the most consistently excellent MC in his age group. When paired with the right singer and hook such as Raheem DeVaughn on “Do Over,” a brilliant slice of soul that should have gotten the 7+ minute extended Isaac Hayes treatment, Ghost’s emotional rhymes mesh perfectly with the guest vocals making it clear that he’s just as adept on smooth tip as he is bagging crack with Rae. But while the rhymes remain stellar and the highlights rank with Ghost’s best, the proceedings are occasionally derailed by cheap production and budget-brand crooners.
It’s unsurprising that The Wizard of Poetry lacks the big name guest stars that a project of its caliber demands given that Ghost doesn’t move Jay-Z numbers; but with half the tracks suffering from second-rate collaborators, the results can sound like demos for rejected Def Soul album cuts. Forget about that potentially hilarious R Kelly collabo, that radio-ready T-Pain single, that heartfelt reunion with Mary J. Blige or even a chance to hear Ghost rhyming all-over an old soul track like Holla: instead you get MOR&B with Shareefa, Adrienne Bailon and Jack Knight. Ghost does what he can but too often one gets the impression that he needed Rick Ross’ budget to pull his vision off and on an album this commercial-minded, that’s fatal: does anyone think radio will REALLY pick up on these songs?
It’s to his credit that the whole thing remains front-to-back listenable but it makes me wonder who exactly The Wizard of Poetry is made for. The backpack set with Wu-Tang tattoos aren’t likely to be into slow jams while the pop mainstream probably won’t bite what amounts to adult-contemporary rap. And while it’s hard to care when Def Jam convinces Jadakiss or Fabolous to drop this kind of release, in Ghost’s case it’s particularly aggravating given that he could freak a whole record out of Delphonics samples if given the go-ahead. Ultimately though, while the album may not live up to it’s potential, it’s still a Ghostface release and that means that it’s better than nine out of ten rap platters by default. However, if Def Jam is going to support GFK with half-measures like this, it may be time to consider a change of label.
Download:
MP3: Ghostface Killah-”Stay” (Left-Click)
MP3: Ghostface Killah-”Stapleton Sex” (Left-Click)
Stumble It!
September 28th, 2009 at 6:34 am
I’m always reading about the “Great Apes.” What’s so great about them? How come we never hear about any “Paltry Apes”?
September 28th, 2009 at 9:30 am
Nice review. There was a video on Nah the other day where Ghost said he tried contacting Alicia Keys but she never returned his call!
September 28th, 2009 at 9:31 am
I’m a fan of Ghostface but this album just didn’t do it for me. The production is just weak, some of the singing is awful + I’ll go as far as saying that you can pick a random Ghostface album and it will be more soulful than this.
September 28th, 2009 at 5:19 pm
“but it’s also impossible to listen to without the nagging doubt that it was compromised by poor A&Ring and industry constraints”
Really? You listen to albums and think about A&Rs? Also, what “second-rate collaborators” are you referring to? Multi-platinum selling John Legend, or Raheem DeVaughn, who’s following and reputation can vouch for his first-rate singing, song-writing and consistency? The other ones you speak of–what makes them “second-rate”. I didn’t hear anyone falter here, other than Faboulus’ unconvincing party crashing.
September 28th, 2009 at 5:41 pm
I agree with Flowers. Just judging from the tracklisting, Def Jam supported Ghost with some big names and good talent. Haven’t heard the album yet but I’ll definately be picking this up.
September 28th, 2009 at 5:50 pm
Wasn’t Bullet Proof Wallets his R&b album?
September 28th, 2009 at 6:21 pm
When Ghost screws the pooch, its someone else’s fault. Yeah.
September 28th, 2009 at 6:55 pm
RE Flowers: You can’t honestly believe that an A-list star (Rhianna, Beyonce, Alicia) or even a talented up and commer/b-lister (Janelle Monae, Solange) would get within 50 feet of the production on tracks like Lonely or I’ll be that. What makes the collaborators second-rate is their distinct lack of personality and what makes the songs second rate is the distinct lack of catchy hooks, interesting production and attempt to do something beyond R&B-by-the-numbers.
I give Raheem DeVaughn his props, Do Over is a great song (and Baby’s alright) but this album lacks the kind of exciting twists and turns I’ve come to expect from Ghost and that’s in large part due to his being confined with collaborators who couldn’t see beyond the idea of simplistic rap & Bullshit collaborations.
And yeah, John Legend is A-List. He’s also sort of boring.
September 28th, 2009 at 9:41 pm
RE Sach: typically, R&B is, by default, “by-the-numbers”–which is why it’s one of the more palatable genres. Also, I’d bet that a Janelle Monae or a Solange would race their counterparts just to be on a Ghostface record just for bragging rights.
Furthermore, I’d be willing to bet that if Ghostface would have tried to take the “twist and turns” route, this album would have taken a few more years to see the light of day, which, in turn, could have potentially included Ghostface taking another retreat to Africa to compose a few illuminated, R&B versions of Nutmeg (however that would sound). No, we don’t want that. We wanted a sincere, easy approach to girl-boy stuff, as told by our favorite “Wizard of Poetry”.
To me, you were looking for “A Love Supreme Clientele”, and you didn’t get it, and now you’re cock-blocking.
September 29th, 2009 at 12:49 am
Whoa! Who said we didn’t want R&B versions of Nutmeg? I don’t really think Beyonce/Mary J/etc would have added anything much different than the rest of the Def Jam roster, but at the same time I’m not sure how this album would stand up against a compilation of older Ghostface/R&B collaborations which those artists were a part of. Guess time will tell. I like what I’ve heard of the album and I think its cool for Ghost to experiment with this type of record. Its pretty brave for someone with such a strong underground following. I actually can’t imagine anyone else doing this without suffering a monsterous backlash, which may have still happened if this album would have been released without warning.
September 29th, 2009 at 4:35 am
” typically, R&B is, by default, “by-the-numbers””
Really? Tell that to Isaac, Sly, George, James, Norman, Prince, Ronald, Stevie, R Kelly, Erykah, Mary, Aaliyah…Even at it’s most conventional, good R&B pushes forward musically while retaining the boy-girl subject matter (not that it’s in any obligation to do that)
You’re not wrong though, I thought the album could have been better and I am disapointed but given Ghostface’s track record, I don’t think that’s unfair. A Love Supreme Clientele? Maybe not. But a something to the level of The Pretty Toney album which is as soulful as this record but with more twists and turns? That’d have been nice.
September 29th, 2009 at 3:21 pm
I agree completely with Sach. The production didn’t do it for me, neither did the “who? Oh this is why I don’t know them” singers.
The best moment for me on this album is “Guest House”. It has a soulful feel and cuts out the vanilla singing completely.
I also have to agree that the whole thing has a low budget feel. If Ghost had those breezy, soul-sampled beats Rick Ross had on his last album? It would probably be a contender for best hip hop album of the year.
October 1st, 2009 at 7:54 pm
It’s true that Ghost nails every track–but I disagree that his fans won’t listen to–or be interested in slow jams filled with funktastik Ghost-tunes. This album is Ghost-Dini, after-all, right? Kind of like Bobby Steels, I mean, Bobby Digital on some crack-smack-oxycontin blend of beetle paste.