Line for Line: Method Man on "Next Up" by the Sunz of Man

--Official Stats--
Artist: Sunz of Man
Producer: True Master
Title: Next Up
Album: "The Last Shall Be First"
Release Date: July 21, 1998

Some time ago I mentioned that I might review this track due to the dopeness of Method Man's verse. Well, it's follow through time! I will say up front that Method Man brings his game on his verse, and he out-games his hosts. But who the hell are his hosts? Nobody knows. The Sunz of Man. Who? Exactly. So this album was the first album released by Wu-Tang Records, it goes the heavily religious route but still manages to pull out a few bangers. I think it even had a major hit with the song Shining Star, featuring ODB and Earth, Wind, & Fire with production by Wyclef Jean. That's weird (and not a very good song). In the end the album was pretty good and earned significant spins in the Tort Labs back in '98 - '99. Cool.


So this song is a late album banger which isn't that much of a banger after all. The problem is that the production is a bit stale which forces the MCs to step up their energy an lyrical game. Fortunately everyone does. I guess I should just say what everyone is thinking, True Master has some dope production, but he's no RZA. I get sick of writing up reviews of medicore songs and then discovering that True Master was asleep at the boards. Come on!


While the producer may have been lacking on the beat, the MCs were not...well, some of the MCs were not. This is a posse cut, I guess, with three Sunz spitting a verse and then Method Man closing out the track, and I don't know if I can say this right but the title of the album is played out in this song. If I listed the MCs in order, best to worst, the last on that list is the first to spit. "The Last Shall Be First". Get it? Dammit this blog is stupid. What I'm trying to say is that the each MC that spits is better than the guy before him. 60 Second Assassin is first and his verse is just bad. Prodigal Sun is next and also flops. Thankfully Hell Razah brings a decent verse, kicking it off with this line:

"If I could chew glass to this Ture Master shit..."

Dope right? Yes.  So Method Man ends it and just kills everyone. He does way better than he should have. Yo, Meth, you should have saved this one for your own album, you know, to make it less wack. Okay, so here is the verse:

[Hell Razah] Next up?
[ Method Man ] Yo, I believe that’s me.
[ Hell Razah ] Aiyyo Meth lock it down like LAPD.[ Method Man ]
While you proceed to cut the mustard, I cut the cheese.
Mr. Freeze givin' cold shoulders to MCs.
The sickest of disease,
Johnny Blaze at three hundred and sixty degrees,
my PLO steez is from here to overseas.
Guerillas in the mist swingin' from the highest trees,
bombin’ enemies.
See me in the global war being all that I can be:
camouflage fatigue, hard-headed, major league.
Got 'em under siege. Your battleship is sinkin’
20,000 leagues beneath sea level.
Adjust the treble on that thang thang get your shovel.
Can you dig it? Keep talkin’ ‘bout it while we live it.
All day, every days a Billie Holiday.
Lady sings the blues, get the street news.

By the way, have you heard crime pay?
Hit your block like that lava that burnt Pompeii: mega hot.
In the melting pot, felt the shot around the world
We unstoppable like Juggernaut, baby girl.
Armed and dangerous street militia, I'll make you famous.
Gamma-radiated verbal going through changes.

We get some required comic book references (X-Men & Spider Man), some history, some clever wordplay. It's all good, and one of Meth's best. And it's buried on this weird album that nobody heard. I would say keep up the good work Meth, but we all know that didn't happen.

Method Man Score 10/10
Next Up Score 7/10

U-God's Resume #24, Sunz of Man "Intellectuals"

--Official Stats--
Artist: Sunz of Man featuring Chef Raekwon and U-God
Song: "Intellectuals"
Album: The Last Shall Be First
Release Date: July 21, 1998


Look, at this blog we bounce exclamation points off your eyeballs like machine gun bullets...we jam your RAM full of the things. Why? That's how we roll!!! We're excited to bring you breaking news and reviews of songs that came out fifteen years ago that nobody heard. This is one of those songs. But are we excited about it? Sure, why not? I don't remember this track specifically but this album was definitely in the archives and, as I remember, was a bright spot in the dark ages of hip hop (1998 - 2001). It has a bunch of dope songs and even overcomes a song produced by Wyclef Jean (feat. ODB of all people) to be considered a good album.

I don't remember how the Sunz of Man were affiliated with the Wu, I could look it up, but I don't really care that much. The only thing important thing was the illness of their album, their affiliation is secondary. Actually, I guess I am interested in how these guys got an album. OH! They were the first act signed to Wu-Tang records, and as I look over the production notes of the album I realize that this was one of the first projects to drop after the RZA's five year plan completed. When this came out it really was the future of Wu-Tang, the blueprint for everything to come, we just didn't know it at the time. It was almost entirely produced by the Wu's house of producers (4th Disciple + True Master), it had an obligatory RZA track, and it had a bunch of guest spots for internal Clansmen. This is basically the same production plan that is used for Wu albums today. It works sometimes (like on this album), but for the most part it hasn't helped the Wu maintain their position as innovators. It's like coasting.


"Intellectuals"

So let's check out the track, featuring production from True Master and the only appearances ever from U-God and Raekwon on a Sunz of Man song. Maybe they weren't that good of friends. Oh, and before we start the song I should mention that this song made it to the Sunz of Man's greatest hits album...so it's going to be slamming:

This song is dope as hell. The beat jut jumps off and Rae starts the blood bath strong. 60 Second Assassin (who has a dumb name) is second and keeps it moving. Next we have U-God with the chorus:

Intellectual, rhymin professionals
Bring all the ladies, in my directional
(Repeat)

That's okay! I mean it's clever and I'll give it a pass. Hell Razah is next, and has a really off-putting flow. I know the boy is a good MC, but this verse is wack. Now U-God returns with a full verse and absolutely murders it. Dead:

My attitude is metal, I’m rotten to the veins
Saber-toothed tiger in the booth still remains
You see let it be let your soul feel free
And disdain with the horror from the powers that be
And it’s grabbing me, jabbing me, stabbing me, imagine me trapped
Fully packed anti, combat, gravity rap that
The A-L-ike attracts and, hunchback chills
The sinner’s to gain reveal, homicide hill
The thundersound underground, Plymouth rock
The loud mouth grouch in your house, comstock
The curser, verse with the worser thirster frantic
The felony’s swellin me, tellin me to push the panic

So that's one of U-God's best verses, and it's spit over an amazing beat. It's like a hidden classic track. 60 Second Assassin closes out the song with some singing and a lot of talking. It helps the track end on a high note. This is a great song, Rae and U-God kill it with U delivering the best verse. The Sunz of Man crew is outshined by the big names, and Hell Razah holds down the "worst verse" spot. Very interesting and very good. As a side note, you should also check out Method Man's verse from "Next Up" because it's one of his best (Next Up is the song that comes right before this one on the album), that shit should get a complete write up on it's own. A dope write up.

Finally, at some point in his career U-God embraced being called a grouch (because he was apparently grumpy to work with), this might be the first mention of that nickname. That's it!

Track Score: 9/10
U-God’s Score: 10/10
Impact on Rep (+,-,=): None (nobody heard this, but if you did I would move this to 'helps')


Next Week: U-God cashes a check for helping La the Darkman out with his song "Element of Surprise".

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.