Only Built 4 Cuban Linx... [EXPLICIT LYRICS]

Raekwon

Product Details

• Vinyl (August 1, 1995)
• Original Release Date: 1995
• Number of Discs: 2
• Format: Explicit Lyrics
• Label: RCA
• ASIN: B000002WU8
• Also Available in: Audio CD  |  Audio Cassette  |  MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.9 out of 5 stars See all reviews (182 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #213,566 in Music (See Bestsellers in Music)

  Popular in this category: (What's this?)

  #29 in

  Music > Rap & Hip-Hop > Vinyl Records > East Coast

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com
Only Built 4 Cuban Linx is arguably the best quasi-solo Wu-Tang album (Ghostface Killah literally gets equal billing). Most of contemporary hip-hop's Mafioso-inspired themes and MC street aliases are inspired by the "Wu-Gambinos" motif introduced on this 18-cut LP. As the Wu's preeminent storyteller, Raekwon (a.k.a. "The Chef") paints Technicolor Kool G Rap-style pictures of high-stakes drug trafficking on "Criminology," and then mixes his street sensibility with 5% Nation of Islam reasoning on "Knowledge God." This album is loaded with RZA's finest production moments, as he samples a barrage of kung-fu flick sound bites, plays discordant keyboards on "Incarcerated Scarfaces," and utilizes some eerie female vocals on "Rainy Dayz." Rae's timeless duet with Nas on "Verbal Intercourse" further cements the album's status as one of the best of all time. --Dalton Higgins

Product Description
2008 release containing the instrumental version of this album from the Wu Tang member, originally released in 1995. Only Built 4 Cuban Linx's portraits of big-money drug deals and black underworld kingpins living in luxury had an enormous influence on the new New York hardcore scene, cinematic soundscapes support the album's tone; the appropriately dark or melancholy, shifting moods layer like different scenes in a film. 17 tracks. Altered Ego. --This text refers to the Audio CD edition.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

14 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars THE ONE AND ONLY BUILT FOR PURE RAP FANS, September 1, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Only Built 4 Cuban Linx (Audio CD)

I have every Wu-Tang cd there is and I've been a fan since the start of the WU. I have to say that Rae's album is the greatest album in history. I bought that album when it first came out, which was around four years ago, and every time I listen to it, it still feels like the beginning. Most cd's I buy, I get sick of in a few weeks or even days. However, this album is so perfectly balanced and groundbreaking that I get chills everytime I listen to it. When I listen to it, it just boggles my mind. This is the album that started the entire "Mafia/money-making" craze that has taken over the rap world, but Rae's the only one who did it right. He brought originality and creativity to it, and he did it his own way. When I see other rap stars pretending to be mobsters, they're just followers of the original, Raekwon. Only Built For Cuban Linx...- THE BEST ALBUM EVER

9 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars One of the greatest hip-hop albums ever made., July 22, 2000

By	J. Storm "Hurt Goodbye to the Machine 4/7" (The Abyss) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This review is from: Only Built 4 Cuban Linx (Audio CD)

If you don't have this album in your collection, seriously, either you don't like hip-hop or there's something wrong with you. This is a timeless classic.
I'm not even going to begin to describe why every track is dope, cuz I'd literally be here all night. Incarcerated Scarfaces, Glaciers Of Ice, Ice Cream, Wu Gambinos, Heaven & Hell, etc...they're ALL classics. But if I had to choose two favorite tracks off of here (I could never choose just one), they'd be Rainy Dayz and Verbal Intercourse.
Rainy Dayz is so smooth it'll give you chills....I remember the first time I heard this track, I played it over and over again, and just like the whole album, it never gets tiring or old.
Verbal Intercourse lets us hear with our own ears the transformation of Nasty Nas to Nas Escobar, and Esco fails to dissappoint. Everything about this track is beyond classic--the unbelievable beat and the flawless flows of Nas, Rae, & Ghost combine to make this one of my personal favorite tracks of all time.
Now enough reading this review, BUY THIS ALBUM!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! NOW!

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Wu-Tangs Best Solo Effort ....Ever, November 16, 2002

By	Anthony Hanes "anthony_hanes" (winston-salem, north carolina) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This review is from: Only Built 4 Cuban Linx (Audio CD)

1995 was a one of the greatest years in the history of hip hop. The underground circuit was strong and future stars were on the rise. The Wu-Tang had a world-wide appeal that was almost contagious. With several street bangers already in place who knew that a quit member that goes by the name "The Chef" would drop an album that would prove to be timeless. Raekwon's "Only Built For Cubn Linx" is not only the best Wu-Tang album created but one of the best Hip Hop albums of all time. How many CD's can you play all the way throught and be totally entertained as well as educated. Hell, even the skits were dope! Standout tracks such as "Rainy Days", "Incarcerated Scarfaces", "Wu Gambino's", "Ice-Cream" and "Knowledge God" all represent classic Wu-Tang music......But on "Verbal Intercourse"..Nas drops one of hip hops hottest verses followed by an equally hungry Raekwon. The album is pretty much flawless and the outro is one of the best I've heard. Titled "North Star"..an old school cat from the neighborhood talks about the good times and watching a young Rawkwon grow up to be one of hip hop's finest. Believe me people, "Only Built For Cuban Linx" should have gotten a perfect rating in every hip hop magazine. Shame on the source for giving this album 4.5 mics and then seven years later say they made a mistake! Don't make the same error....go cop it"

t-hanes