Disco de Ol' Dirty Bastard: “Return to the 36 Chambers”

Some people are just not ready for Ol' Dirty Bastard.

NO ONE was ready for him when this album came out. They only knew him as the guy who did a little screaming and a little rapping on "Enter the 36 Chambers." Little did they know that Russell Jones would go on to become the next Clown Prince of Hip-Hop. "Return to the 36 Chambers: The Dirty Version" is bangin', offensive, noisy and hilarious all at the same time.

Almost entirely RZA-produced, the tracks on this album are unlike any other. Melodies shift and mutate into one another, sometimes changing into totally different entities. Some beats roll along; others are choppy and distorted. Similarly, Dirty's flow goes from sing-songy to balls-out roaring in seconds.

He pays homage to soul-crooners of the past on "Drunk Game (Sweet Sugar Pie)," name-checking Gladys Knight, the Temptations and Marvin Gaye while he rants and raves and practically has an orgasm mid-song. He leads insane sing-along chants in songs like the single, "Shimmy Shimmy Ya" and the BANGIN' "Brooklyn Zoo," where he lets you know, "Shame on you/When you step through to/The Ol' Dirty Bastard/BROOKLYYYYYN ZOO!"

There are plenty of great songs here. "Baby C'mon" shifts from hardcore and grimy to a slick bass loop midway through, and "The Stomp" is just what its title suggests: a hardcore, concrete-breaking beat and some typical Ol' Dirtyisms: "Baby girl/Tell me why, tell me so/I ask you to go hiiiigh, you ask me to go low/So I go low/*SLURRRRP*/Taste the sheeeeit/*SLURRRRP*/Taste it again, I like it!" ...what do you say about lyrics like that??

Some of the best songs pair Dirty with fellow Clan members, however. On the nasty "Damage," ODB mixes it up with Raekwon and Method Man. He gets with Meth again on one of my favorite tracks, the short and low-key "Dirty Dancin'." And he teams up with the RZA on the "Clan In Da Front"-in-reverse, "Cuttin' Headz," tag-teaming some great lines with the Clan's uber-producer.

There are a couple of low moments, where either the production could use a little shoring up, but for the most part, "Return to the 36 Chambers" is an off-kilter, offensive, chauvinistic, mysogynistic, hilarious album, and well worth your money if you like hip-hop, comedy and skills.

I remember buying this C.D in in April 1995 and upon my initial listen, thinking to myself,"What the hell did I just waste my money on?" But flashforward 14 years and I still play it regularly, much more so than some recently purchased albums. There is something here that sticks with you. Seldom has an artist imprinted his whole personality on a record as O.D.B has here. This is an amazing record with some slammin' jams, but his whole f'd up personality takes center stage. Someone once described him as the Richard Pryor of rap. They might not have been too far off as he was definately, dare I say it, a troubled genius. For the sake of his 13 children, I wish he was still here. However, I recognize someone with demons when I see them and I believe this cat is better off at peace. Rest in peace and thanks for the 2 great solo albums and all the Wu Tang jams. You've earned your rest, Ol' Dirty Great One.

I'm going to be honest here. I won't pretend (like a lot of people might) that I've been a loyal, die-hard ODB fan ever since the Wu-Tang's inception, because I haven't. I won't say that this entire CD is flawless and wholly astounding, because I believe some of its songs are better than others. What I will say is that I believe Ol' Dirty was the number one Wu-Tang artist (and that's definitely saying something, because all of them are outstanding), and that this solo effort is an extraordinary album. My personal favorite track is "Protect Ya Neck II," followed closely by "Shimmy Shimmy Ya." ODB had a remarkably unique style, and his gruff vocals always command your full attention and never fail to entertain. His premature death was very sad, and now whenever I listen to his songs or his verses in collective Wu-Tang songs, it always evokes some sorrow that he's gone. Still, it doesn't mar his material; nothing could. If you're a pop-rap lover who adores pseudo-rappers like Nelly and Cassidy and spurns the heroes like Snoop (old-school Snoop, that is), Dre, Cube, and the Wu, then this album probably won't suit your tastes. But to the more fastidious rap fans out there: Get this album, along with some of the Wu's other stuff (especially Enter the Wu-Tang).

PS: Don't listen to the insensate naysayers like "Helen." Just look at her naive, gushing reviews for Nelly's "Sweat/Suit." She seems to think that Nelly has a singing voice worthy of idolatry, and that this makes him the finest rapper ever to grace the Earth (...). People like her know NOTHING about rap.

Old Dirty Bastard is the G.G. Allin of Hip-Hop he dosn't give a rats a$$ what any one thinks. He says whats on his mind and a whole lot more if your new 2 the whole Wu-tang scene (if you are dont worry its not 2 late cause mainstream music [stinks] more than it ever has latley) and havn't heard this album buy it this is easily one of the best albums of the Wu-Tang family this album is timeless sh!t. The beats are hardcore from begining 2 end O.D.B makes wrappers like m&ms and puff diddy look like sellout posers. O.D.B is the real deal drunken master of the Clan "I came on my momas pu$$y I'm on welfare 26 years old still on welfare" WWHHAAATT!! just buy the dam thing !

I'm a fan of the Wu-Tang and I love this album. This is one of their best albums ever and and one of my favorite albums of all time. I bought this album when it came out, and I can still listen to it today and enjoy every second of it. ODB's humor still makes me laugh, and the music production is top-notch.