New album features Rahzel, Black Rob

Russel Jones, a.k.a. Ol’ Dirty Bastard, had more soul than Ghostbusters and more funk than sweaty arm pits.

ODB brought what I believe was the most wild, unorthodox rhyme style from the Wu-Tang Clan and hip hop itself. ODB departed this world on Nov. 13, 2004, and it was a great loss. He was a true American free spirit and will be well remembered. His latest album, Osirus, leaves us with work he did after going through some major trials and tribulations.

Osirus starts off with the song, “Pop Shots.” This song has ODB singing the chorus: “As I pop….shots (x4).” ODB’s vocal cords sound tangled like shoe strings, and it sounds pretty bad. His singing sounded more entertaining in the past, which was original.

“Pop Shots” is telling a story about ODB’s struggle, talent and how he lived in the hardest projects in Brooklyn. He gives a good explanation why some listeners weren’t feeling him in the past. ODB states, “If I spit 10 rhymes nigga nine gonna connect/ If you ain’t feeling one or two, I respect/ Cuz I probably just forgot and wrote it strictly for my set.”

“Dirty Run” is a track with a lot of funk in it. It uses a ’70s sample for the beat. The lyrics and chorus match this beat like two rooks on a chessboard. Some of his bars state, “Big pimp, watch the fur drag/ A hundred ‘lick’/A hundred ‘lick’/A hundred ‘lick’/ Fabulous/ Being like a bus full of travelers/ Turning up so the cops won’t get mad at us.”

ODB is a lyrical assassin like he was in the old days on “Stand Up.” Some of his bars state, “You’re nothing but fallen stars/I see it on y’all/Appear bizarre/ Ol’ Dirty Boulevard/Among global law, take his head Caesar/ Got babies like caviar, growing evening stars.” The growing evening stars represent two things: jewels of knowledge or children.

“Don’t Stop Ma” is a favorite track of mine on this CD. This is a dance club song with a good beat and catchy lyrics from ODB. For the chorus, ODB says, “Oh, don’t stop ma/ You got my legs shaking here in the spot ma/ You is a real freaky girl I gotta give ya props/ Cuz I’m full of bam bam when my bed rocks.”

“Down South” is a song about how the south likes ODB’s style of rhyming. With a hard beat and a whistle in the background, this sounds like a song from the south. Some of his lyrics state, “I’m ready to thump and get the whole crew arrested/ Bail them out and laugh about it in Texas.”

The rest of this album features some decent and bad songs. There are 16 songs on this album and it includes two skits from Rahzel. Overall, this album is good for any Wu-Tang enthusiast, but for someone unaware of ODB’s talent, that person would find it better to buy The Return to the 36 Chambers or Nigga Please to hear the true glory of ODB’s rap style.

Contact pop arts reporter Jeremy Porter at [email protected].