U-God's Resume #17: "Deadly Melody"

--Official Stats--
Artist: Wu-Tang Clan
Song: "Deadly Melody"
Album: Wu-Tang Forever
Release Date: June 3, 1997

Let’s be honest, by the time you reach this song on disc two of "Forever" you’re either not paying attention anymore or you’re asleep. It’s twenty minutes into the disc, which is reasonable, but it’s almost an hour into the overall album, which is way too far in. Add to that a piano melody that sucks (and sounds like it was made by a kid) and you’ve already got two strikes. It's a deadly boring melody, yo. However, all is not lost as the spitting on here is deaf and the loop itself is good enough to justify a spin. In the end you’ve got a track that isn’t good or bad. It just is. Balance. Yin and Yang. Let’s check it out…

But Wait! Before we start I want to quickly comment on the name of the track: "Deadly Melody". It’s a fine name and who cares, but I think they should have gone with "Deadly Medley". See what I did there? “Deadly Melody” indicates a sequence of notes that causes death. “Deadly Medley” indicates a combination of some form that causes death, it could mean the combination of MCs, but it could include the melody. A medley of melody and MC’s. It’s just a better title (and it’s been done since this song came out, see Black Milk featuring Royce da 5’9”. That's Detroit for you...always beating someone else to the punch, or in this case, naming a song with a title that I think is better than an old Wu-Tang song).

"Deadly Melody"



What else can I say? I pretty much covered it didn't I? I guess I could get into the lyrics, right? OKAY! So Masta Killa starts it off and I think that this is about the time I started thinking he was way underrated. I know I said that in my "Triumph" review, but who's paying attention anyway? Nobody. As for Masta Killa? His verse is brutal. After that (and as usual) U-God is left to follow something great. Here is his verse:

Psssh, yo
Pile-driver Tut boulder face blow Hulk
Anger rap book causin chess blade smoke
Minds the trunk, punk, elephant gun poke
Jaw-breaker humanoid vice-grip, choke
Face the inferno, maestro, pull it
Pipe hard slang, bite the golden bullet
Never, sold my soul Golden Arm cold stinger
See me on the streets address me stone bringer
Ease away, freeze back, feedback, play out in
sweet action packed rap
Bite it, stomp on a beat
Posess hollow head battle teeth Tony Atlas
Wu status, now, wisdom to the masses

It's decent, but at some point during his verse I start getting really sick of that beat. But his verse is good. The lines seem like they go by fast and also, what is he talking about? It's just saying cool things and incomprehensible things in a sequence. I mean it sounds good but whuuutttt?


After U, RZA once again tears it up. I mean he ruins it for everyone else. Meth follows and holds his own for like one sentence. Then RZA is back? What's with the sequence? It's better than most songs. The MC mix up. Allllllright. RZA's second spit is okay, but not nearly as good as the first. Then it's a back-and-forth between Deck, U-God (again) and GZA! Here it is: 

[Deck]

Check the 150 millimeter, heater as it blows holes
through your fuckin speaker
[U-God]

Makin you weaker creepin inches centimeters

[GZA]
Fifty caliber street sweeper
Shots from Shaolin that go to Masapeaqua

GZA gets one line! Then it's back to Meth and finally to Streetlife (!) for the close. Streetlife? Oh, Ghost had a verse somewhere in there too. What the hell? You know I could go through and rank all the MCs or something like that but I'll just say that RZA has the best verse and everyone else is good enough, and GZA has one line so he doesn't count. Oh, and RZA also had the worst beat (he made the beat).......so best and worst for RZA! Chik-a-chik-Pow!

Track Score: 5/10

U-God’s Score: 5/10

Impact on Rep (+,-,=): None

Next Week: "Wu-Tang Forever" is long and U-God is also on The Projects which is next!

Stone Bringer

About this series: “U-God’s Resume" is a series of posts which looks at each line of U-God’s entire career to determine if his status as ‘wack’ is justified (as labeled by internet morons). I think it is not. U-God is dope. We'll prove it. Leave it to the Tort Team.