"Fishscale" revisited (The 5 Mic version)
Ghostface Killah's 2006 album had long time Ghost fans all over going nuts over the quality product that was the pure and uncut "Fishscale" project. Many were early on hailing it as a modern "classic", a true return to form for Dennis Coles, with sharp and extremely vivid crime narratives, vicious punchlines and a few stream-of-thought delivered abstract bangers which further certified Ghost as one of the best storytelling MC's the hip-hop game has ever wittnessed. Over the years i've seen alot of peeps downplay the impact it had, claiming the replay value just wasn't there after a few months, complaining about bad mixing and engineers that should be fired. To me it was an album that more or less could be played from front to back without ever getting boring, sound uninspired or come off as repetitive - at least not the first couple of months i had it in my possesion. I banged it on a daily basis most of the time the first 60-90 days i had it and i was so happy that the Wu had delivered another classic since it gave me the same feeling i catched when "Supreme Clientele" dropped - also in a period when i had started doubting the Wu after a gang of releases that didn't live up to the potential of previous work at all. One day i put on the album in my headphones as usual and i sadly realized that the incredible songs like "The Champ", "Kilo", "Underwater", "9 Milli Bro's" had lost much of their magic. They still sounded good of course but they had lost that extra spark that made me hold it in the same regard as albums like "Supreme Clientele", "The W" and "Bobby Digital in Stereo". Soon afterwards my copy of the retail CD started collecting dust for the next two-three years with only the occasional play now and then.
Later the same year Ghost dropped a complation album of sorts, titled "More Fish", made up of mastered versions of tracks that we're left on the cutting room floor off the "Fishscale" recording sessions as well as some of Ghost's recent high-profile collaborations with artists like Amy Winehouse and super-producer Hi-Tek. Together with a few newly recorded tracks and some solo songs from Cole's Theodore Unit crew the compilation worked as a decent little brother piece to "Fishscale". "More Fish" took me about a year after the release date to pick up since, despite some incredible bangers, i didn't feel it played well as an album and felt incomplete.
I'd been playing around with the idea of putting together the ultimate 2006 Ghostface Killah album with "Fishscale" as the bone and marrow of the project, deleting a gang of pointless skits and the very few joints on there i felt wasn't really up to par with the running theme or quality of the LP. As soon as that was narrowed down I started to look at the songs that was recorded for the original project but didn't make the final cut, first those who was announced or appeared on early advance in the beginning of 2006 such as "Charlie Brown", "Murda Goons" and the superior original version of "Barbershop" that plays like a full song rather than the interlude it had became when the retail album finally dropped. Already here the personal deluxe edition i was compiling stood amongst Ghost's best material in years but once I started adding the few tracks from "More Fish" that I felt carried on the sound of the first the best I was really stunned at the outcome. I tried to only include the joints i felt might very well, or in a few cases even knew for a fact, been recorded and intended for the original LP. Madlib's spaced out "Block Rock" was definitely recorded for and left off "Fishscale" at the last minute as my original copy stated him as one of the producers; "Outta Town Shit" by the incredibly underrated UK musician Lewis Parker could've easily been a beat given to Ghost at the same session "Shakey Dog" was done; I can imagine a similair situation with the two MF DOOM bangers, "Alex" and "Gunz N Razors".
I haven't really been able to decide if "Back Like That" and "Momma" should be included on the album or not, both great songs that add flavor to the album but at the same time it might make the album to long plus they switch too far away from the "punch you in the face" music, coke narratives and abstractionisms that makes up the rest of the LP (i think switching "Big Girl" to track #13 and deleting "Back Like That" while keeping "Momma" as a bonus track might be the way to go altho i for one am actually a fan of "Back Like That). Pretty much with or without them though I feel confident saying that this, in my opinion, perfect version of "Fishscale" is deservant of 5 mics and a serious rival (as well as brother) to Raekwon's masterpiece "Only Built 4 Cuban Linx Niggas Pt. II". The only song that would've made it even iller is the Pete Rock produced banger "Chunky", recorded for "Fishscale" and slated for "More Fish" but snatched off the final tracklist at the last minute. Since a shitty quality with DJ shouts is the only version available of this track it would do the front-to-back play more harm than good despite how ill the actual joint is.
GHOSTFACE KILLAH - "FISHSCALE" [claaa7's 'All That Fish' edition]
01. "Intro: The Return Of Clyde Smith"
02. "Shakey Dog" [prod. by Lewis Parker]
03. "Kilo" (Ft. Raekwon) [prod. by MoSS]
04. "Gunz N Razors" (Ft. Killa Sin, Cappadonna & Trife) [prod. by DOOM]
05. "Outta Town Shit" [prod. by Lewis Parker]
06. "The Champ" [prod. by Just Blaze]
07. "9 Milli Bro's" (Ft. Wu-Tang Clan) [prod. by DOOM]
08. "Beauty Jackson (Hi)" [prod. by J Dilla]
09. "Crack Spot" [prod. by Crack Val]
10. "R.A.G.U." (Ft. Raekwon) [prod. by Pete Rock]
11. "Block Rock" [prod. by Madlib]
12. "Whip You With A Strap" [prod. by J Dilla]
13. "Back Like That" (Ft. Ne-Yo) [prod. by Xtreme]
14. "Be Easy" [prod. by Pete Rock]
15. "Clipse Of Doom" (Ft. Trife) [prod. by DOOM]
16. "Charlie Brown" [prod. by DOOM]
17. "Dogs Of War" (Ft. Raekwon, Cappadonna, Trife & S.G.) [prod. by Pete Rock]
18. "Barbershop" (Extended Version) [prod. by The Studio Beats]
19. "Big Girl" [prod. by Ghostface Killah]
20. "Murda Goons" [prod. by J Dilla]
21. "Alex (Stolen Script)" [prod. by DOOM]
22. "Underwater" [prod. by DOOM]
23. "Outro: The Ironman Takeover"
Bonus Track:
"Momma" [prod. by Sean C & LV]
Reply With Quote
Originally Posted by kingwu
Bookmarks