Soundbites
By Daily Bruin Staff
April 28, 2004 9:00 p.m.
Ghostface
“The Pretty Toney Album”
Def Jam
Who could have seen this coming 10 years ago? With the Wu-Tang
Clan now in its second decade, the only member still releasing
consistent solo material is none other than Ghostface, who has now
dropped “Killah” from the end of his name for his Def
Jam debut. And though the name and label may be different, fans
fearing a shift toward more “mainstream” hip-hop have
little to fret about, as Ghostface delivers some of the most
inspired material of the year with “The Pretty Toney
Album.” The album is not without its share of filler
““Â the ill-advised collaboration with Missy Elliott,
“Tush,” sticks out in particular ““Â but for
the most part the beats and rhymes remain inventive throughout.
Despite the current trend in hip-hop toward sped-up soul, Ghostface
goes old school, rapping directly over entire chunks of soul on
“Save Me Dear” and especially “Holla,” a
brilliant reinterpretation of The Delfonics’ “La-La
(Means I Love You).” As usual, Ghostface brings out strong
production from his beatmakers, including No I.D. and the RZA
““ the Jadakiss collaboration “Run” may be the
RZA’s best beat in years. Still, the album fails to match the
creative peaks of previous efforts “Ironman” and
“Supreme Clientele.” Part of the reason lies in rumors
that Ghost’s new label was unwilling to shell out the money
to clear samples for songs eventually cut from the album.
Unreleased material on mixtapes and Internet leaks confirms as
much; nevertheless, “The Pretty Toney Album” proves
that Ghostface remains one of the very best creative forces in
hip-hop. -By Alfred Lee
