Album of the Day

Born Russell Jones, Ol' Dirty Bastard helped make Wu-Tang Clan one of the most revered groups in hip-hop, and his solo debut, RETURN TO THE 36 CHAMBERS, features bandmates GZA, Method Man, Raekwon, Ghostface Killah, Masta Killa and RZA (who handles most of the production chores) lending a hand in return. If ODB's whacked-out, very explicit (“The Dirty Version” label is well-earned) rants may have seemed a side show under the Wu-Tang tent, they take impressive command of the center ring here – especially when framed in such irresistible tracks as “Shimmy Shimmy Ya” and “Brooklyn Zoo.” Tapped by The Source magazine as one of the 100 best rap albums of all time, RETURN TO THE 36 CHAMBERS is Ol' Dirty Bastard at his most entertainingly delirious, and the collection is coming on vinyl for Record Store Day 2023.