Wu-Tang Clan – Wu-Tang Forever (4xLP)

The Wu-Tang Clan’s reputation as one of the most vital hip-hop groups to ever rock the mic is hardly undeserved. Since its inception, the prolific collective has churned out no less than three platinum albums, one gold, more than 20 solo records and a flurry of hit singles. Along the way, Wu-Tang has concocted its own mythology inspired by the mysticism depicted in kung-fu flicks, the pro-black man teachings of the Five Percent Nation and a rugged street-oriented aesthetic.

But it’s the entertainment, not ideology, that’s put Wu-Tang on the charts and kept them there. In 1993, the group’s debut release, Enter the Wu-Tang (36 Chambers), exploded nationwide, yielding a cavalcade of instant classics including “Method Man,” “Wu-Tang Clan Ain’t Nuthing Ta Fuck Wit,” “C.R.E.A.M,” “Can It Be All So Simple” and “Shame on a Nigga.”

Four years and a string of solo endeavors later, the collective issued their brazingly titled second effort Wu-Tang Forever in 1997. The sprawling release includes even more elaborate production flourishes than their debut, with powerful off-kilter beats, inventive samples and soundtrack style violins and synths aplenty. Wu-Tang continues to tell great narrative stories about the trials and tribulations of urban life here with a mad dash of no less than nine MCs, including the debut of protégée Cappadonna. Wu-Tang Forever is an outstanding and defining hip hop record – on no less than eight sides – that as its title suggests is built to last.