Raekwon 86

After pulling off a near-miracle by making Only Built 4 Cuban Linx Part II a more than respectable album, Rae has recently announced that he's trying his luck on a hat trick. As an aperitif,  he's readying to drop the Lost Jewelry EP in early 2013. While this humble head opines that maybe the snow beach Don shouldn't test his luck on a third incarnation of his classic debut, if this "86" cut is any indication, maybe it's not such a bad idea.

I love this shit; Raekwon raps over a cool Stephanie Mills sample your older sister was jamming to when you were in diapers. The Chef and his ilk should have never strayed away from rhyming over samples -- there is just something about the way the slang hits the track that creates an undeniable magic. It almost doesn't matter that you kinda get the feeling Rae is not always using words and phrases he actually knows the meaning of; when he's on the mic it's Rae time. Wether he's spitting about building a "Dutch Master train" or name-dropping McCormick & Shmicks, this is that shit.