Avg Rating: 
4.8 ( 31 total votes )
What makes an album a classic? Endurance: one year, ten years, twenty years later it’s still as fresh as the first time it blessed your eardrums. What makes an album a classic? Intensity: even after thousands of listens, it still hits you hard, if not even harder as you learn every note and memorize every word. What makes an album a classic? Impact: you can’t talk about hip-hop, or even your life, without talking about that album. Run-DMC’s Raising Hell is a classic. NWA’s Straight Outta Compton is a classic. And, especially when it comes … ...Read the full album review
Fans can also check out Raekwon's previous albums: Raekwon - Lost Jewlry | Raekwon - Shaolin vs. Wu-Tang
DJBooth Album Review
What makes an album a classic? Endurance: one year, ten years, twenty years later it’s still as fresh as the first time it blessed your eardrums. What makes an album a classic? Intensity: even after thousands of listens, it still hits you hard, if not even harder as you learn every note and memorize every word. What makes an album a classic? Impact: you can’t talk about hip-hop, or even your life, without talking about that album. Run-DMC’s Raising Hell is a classic. NWA’s Straight Outta Compton is a classic. And, especially when it comes to that raw New York sound, Raekwon’s Only Built 4 Cuban Linx is a classic.
Now, an unbelievable 14 years after The Chef first dropped his gritty masterpiece, Raekwon is back with the sequel, Only Built for Cuban Linx Pt. 2. Sequels are almost never as good as the originals, but Cuban Linx 2 comes shockingly close. Raekwon uses his ballistic lyrical ability and an all-star roster of producers to paint a picture of urban life that’s equal parts violent beauty and beautiful violence. It hasn’t been an easy road for Raekwon and Cuban Linx 2, the album was originally slated to come out in 2006, but after his last two albums fell victim to label politics Raekwon was determined to wait until the time was right. Well now’s the time, and f**k me if it wasn’t worth every minute of the wait.
Without ever sounding stuck in the past, Raekwon resurrects the same gritty style on Cuban Linx 2 that he destroyed the world with in ’95, starting with the hypnotizing New Wu. Over expert production from RZA that seamlessly combines doo-wop vocals with classic boom-bap percussion, Rae, Method Man and Ghostface separate the rap men from the boys, making New Wu everything Clan fans have been waiting for. For his part, Ghostface is a nearly constant presence on the album, putting in work on six tracks. Some have said that Rae is Wu-Tang’s best storyteller, but while I’d have to give that title to Ghost, with their legendary powers combined they’re the most dangerous duo in rap. The pair are absolutely devastating on 10 Bricks and I’ve been replaying Gihad obsessively for days now. From Masta Killa to Inspectah Deck to GZA nearly every killa bee makes an appearance on Cuban Linx 2. In other words, this is the Wu-Tang album we were all hoping 8 Diagrams would be.
It’s not surprising that the Raekwon’s Wu-Tang brethren appear on such an epic album, but to his credit the Chef also mixes in some new ingredients. The most unexpected pairing on Cuban Linx 2 is undoubtedly the tracks Dr. Dre contributes, starting with the soulful Catalina. Complete with Dre’s trademark piano lines and a chorus from the street’s favorite singer Lyfe Jennings, Catalina fuses Raekwon’s style with a west coast sensibility that works dramatically well. The equally thumping About Me is probably the album’s weak link, thanks to a disappointingly subdued guest verse from Busta, but that’s saying more about how great the rest of the album is than any failing on About Me’s part. Also outside the box are the tracks from J Dilla, including the album highlight House of Flying Daggers and the ODB tribute Ason Jones, and Rae absolutely slaughters The Alchemist assisted Surgical Gloves. On Cuban Linx 2 Raekwon lets just enough new blood in to keep the album’s heart pumping without ever losing sight of the past. There’s a reason they call Raekwon the Chef. Ok, another reason they call him the Chef.
I have nothing negative to say about this album. I just don’t - and if you do, f**k you. At first glance I was worried the album’s 22 tracks would be too much, but there’s not a minute of filler to be found on all of Cuban Linx 2. Similarly, a glance at the massive guest list might lead the uninitiated to think there’s not enough Raekwon on the album, but there’s never a doubt whose album Cuban Linx 2 is. The man consistently dominates posse cuts, like the pounding Broken Safety, and shines when left alone on the track, like on the brutal street tale Sonny’s Missing. At this rate Cuban Linx 3 should drop sometime in 2023, but given Raekwon’s track record, I’m more than willing to wait. Let’s just hope hip-hop doesn’t have to wait that long for another album this close to perfection.
Listen to More: Raekwon Written by Nathan S.
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Member Reviews and Ratings
Average Member Rating: Total Ratings: 31
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DJ Booth Member |
Rating:
I agree with the rating and the review. OB4CLII is my favorite album of the year. However, has any album ever received the coveted 5 spins rating on this site?
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| Posted on Sep 10, 2009 |
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Tastemaker  Total Ratings: 242 |
Rating:
betta dan bp3( a lot)
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| Posted on Sep 10, 2009 |
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Tastemaker Total Ratings: 242 |
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@Xothermic
no |
| Posted on Sep 10, 2009 |
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DJ Booth Crew  Total Ratings: 906 |
Rating:
Near classic album for sure. I cant even pick my favorite tracks because they are all so dope. Its like Rae took all the best material he created in the past 10 or so years and put it on a single album. Ive been bumping this for days and I dont plan on stopping.
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| Posted on Sep 10, 2009 |
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Rating:
 Good album...
SWAG 24 ENT - www.myspace.com/greenguy24 www.myspace.com/swag24ent |
| Posted on Sep 10, 2009 |
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DJ Booth Member |
Rating:
classic wu.
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| Posted on Sep 10, 2009 |
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DJ Booth Member  Total Ratings: 42 |
Rating:
This album is sick. All the tracks on here are well produced, Ghost and Rae murder them lyrically. I bought this album, and burned BP3, and I dont plan on buying it cause its not buy-worthy to me. Only thing about this album is I wish there was more of are beats like the "house of flying daggers" Love that intensity!
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| Posted on Sep 10, 2009 |
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DJ Booth Member  Total Ratings: 195 |
Rating:
People need to chill with the 5-star reviews lol Chef's a legend but not every track was fire. Ghostface is the man. Best song on the album HAS to be "Surgical Gloves" which only confirms Alchemist's status as a BOSS producer in the game.
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| Posted on Sep 11, 2009 |
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DJ Booth Member |
Rating:
im gonna give it 5 stars, though i think its a lil closer to 4.75...a few minor misteps...but very minor. great album from beginning to end. props to the WU and Rae
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| Posted on Sep 11, 2009 |
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Rating:
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| Posted on Sep 11, 2009 |
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Tastemaker Total Ratings: 242 |
Rating:
WUUUUUUUUUUU
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| Posted on Sep 11, 2009 |
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Tastemaker  Total Ratings: 484 |
Rating:
THIS ALBUM IS CLASSIC, I CANNOT STOP BUMPIN THIS ALBUM
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| Posted on Sep 11, 2009 |
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Tastemaker  Total Ratings: 198 |
Rating:
Straight up classic album. Cannot go wrong with an album like this. House of Flying Daggers is a classic, especially with the J. Dilla beat. Raekwon has all the classic Wu features on this album, plus I love the track Broken Safety with Jada & SP the Ghost.
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| Posted on Sep 11, 2009 |
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DJ Booth Member |
Rating:
Went through this album on youtube and just couldn't resist coppin it. Definitely a classic in my book...
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| Posted on Sep 13, 2009 |
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Tastemaker  Total Ratings: 433 |
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Wow, this has to be the hardest/darkest album I've heard in years. The only thing that comes close to being this dark is "Slaughterhouse", but damn. This album isn't as good as Pt. 1 (Obviously) but like Nathan said it comes damn close. I'm giving it a 4.5. My favorite track was "Kiss the Ring"
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| Posted on Sep 14, 2009 |
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DJ Booth Member |
Rating:
the wu never fails to bring anything to the table
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| Posted on Sep 18, 2009 |
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Tastemaker  Total Ratings: 303 |
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This album's a classic to me. I can still hardly believe that an album of this caliber and an album so reminiscent of the 90's hip-hop period has dropped in 2009. This LP is like the savior of hip-hop for the whole decade. This is the breath of fresh air that all of us have been waiting years and years to take. Love this album. Raekwon, Ghostface, and everybody else were simply brilliant. The production was all top notch. I dare someone to name one bad song on this LP. You can't.
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| Posted on Sep 21, 2009 |
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DJ Booth Member |
Rating:
classic joint all the way gutta best rap album of the year, even better than relapse and b3
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| Posted on Sep 21, 2009 |
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DJ Booth Member  Total Ratings: 21 |
Rating:
Its truly amazing after 14 years (i believe) they can do this..i miss them old Wu days,but raekwon the chef and ghostface killah have once again..delivered
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| Posted on Sep 21, 2009 |
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DJ Booth Crew  Total Ratings: 2476 |
Rating:
For all the heat I caught for my rating of Jay's BP3, I won't hesitate to say this is a much better album. Rae goes in unbelievably hard on every track, this is the album we've been waiting for Wu-Tang to make for years.
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| Posted on Sep 21, 2009 |
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Rating:
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| Posted on Oct 30, 2009 |
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DJ Booth Member |
Rating:
OFF THE HOOK !
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| Posted on Nov 11, 2009 |
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Tastemaker  Total Ratings: 1192 |
Rating:
The best album released this year
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| Posted on Nov 30, 2009 |
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DJ Booth Member  Total Ratings: 59 |
Rating:
Classic joint!!
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| Posted on Jan 06, 2010 |
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Tastemaker Total Ratings: 477 |
Rating:
The only genuinely oldschool album of 2009.
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| Posted on Jan 07, 2010 |
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DJ Booth Member |
Rating:
Straight up classic!
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| Posted on Feb 28, 2010 |
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DJ Booth Member  Total Ratings: 189 |
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Classic Wu. Simply put. This album brings everything to the table and delivers it almost perfectly.
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| Posted on Apr 12, 2010 |
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DJ Booth Member  Total Ratings: 13 |
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the review couldn't have said it any better. This is another Raekwon classic, got it on my ipod, blastin it still. 5 starts, nuff said
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| Posted on Apr 22, 2010 |
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DJ Booth Member  Total Ratings: 144 |
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i almost agree 4.5 stars
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| Posted on May 01, 2010 |
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| Posted on May 18, 2010 |
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Tastemaker  Total Ratings: 2949 |
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Good memroies : )
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| Posted on Mar 09, 2011 |
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