Return to the 36 Chambers: The Dirty Version

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Script error: No such module "Unsubst". Template:Use mdy dates Script error: No such module "Unsubst-infobox".Script error: No such module "Check for conflicting parameters". Return to the 36 Chambers: The Dirty Version is the debut studio album by American rapper and Wu-Tang Clan member Ol' Dirty Bastard, released March 28, 1995, by Elektra Records in the United States. Intent on creating a solo album away from Wu-Tang, he signed to Elektra in January 1993 and began a two-year recording process that started that same year.

Background

It was the second solo album, after Method Man's Tical, to be released from the nine-member Wu-Tang Clan following the release of their debut album. Return to the 36 Chambers was primarily produced by RZA, with additional production from Ol' Dirty Bastard, and affiliates True Master and 4th Disciple. The album features guest appearances from Wu-Tang Clan members GZA, RZA, Method Man, Raekwon, Ghostface Killah and Masta Killa as well as Wu-Tang Killa Beez.

Return to the 36 Chambers: The Dirty Version peaked at number seven on the Billboard 200 and number two on the Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart. The album sold 81,000 copies in its first week,[1] and was certified Platinum in sales by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) on March 26, 2019.[2] Upon its release, the album received positive reviews from most music critics, with many complimenting Ol' Dirty Bastard's bizarre lyrical delivery and RZA's eerie production. The album was nominated for Best Rap Album at the 1996 Grammy Awards.

Critical reception

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Upon its release, Return to the 36 Chambers received general acclaim, including award nominations and inclusions on year-end publications. In his review for Rolling Stone magazine, Touré commented: "With his raspy, lisp-punctuated voice and half-sung, half-rapped style, Ol' Dirty Bastard may well be the most original vocalist in hip-hop history."[3] Entertainment WeeklyTemplate:'s Tiarra Mukherjee thought the album showed the "raw, innovative talent of their illest member ... The RZA's signature dissonant piano loops [sparkle] behind Dirty's delirious, reverberating delivery."[4] Michael Bonner of Melody Maker wrote, "... an hour of cruel hard and frighteningly funny hip hop; the perfect companion piece to Wu-Tang's 36 Chambers ... the songs are driven by a vicious, unstable urgency."[5]

By contrast, Select magazine's Matt Hall was more critical of the album. His review found the album inferior to Method Man's album Tical, stating that "From the extremely long and unfunny – intro skit, its obvious ideas are spread wafer thin across the 15 tracks."[6]

The Dirty Version was nominated for the 1996 Grammy Award for Best Rap Album, but lost to Naughty by Nature's Poverty's Paradise.[7]

Retrospectively, the album has continually seen positive coverage.[8] PitchforkTemplate:'s contributor Sheldon Pearce lauded the album in a classic review as "a work of orchestrated negligence and a makeshift classic."[9]

Track listing

Track listing information is taken from the official liner notes and AllMusic.[10][11]

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Personnel

Musicians

Additional

  • Big Dore – producer
  • True Master – producer
  • Ethan Ryman – producer, engineer
  • John Wydrycs, Tim Latham – engineer, mixing
  • Jimmie Lee, Jack Hersca – engineer, assistant engineer
  • Deden Sumandani – mixing
  • Martin Czembor – assistant engineer, mixing
  • David Sealy, Jay Nicholas – assistant engineer
  • Alli – art direction
  • Danny Clinch – photography

Charts

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Certifications

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Accolades

  • (*) signifies unordered lists
Publication Country Accolade Year Rank
Blender United States 500 CDs You Must Own Before You Die[15] 2003 *
Ego Trip Hip Hop's 25 Greatest Albums by Year 1980–1998[16] 1999 4
Hip Hop Connection United Kingdom The 100 Greatest Rap Albums 1995–2005[17] 2006 32
Les Inrockuptibles France Albums of the YearScript error: No such module "Unsubst". 1995 *
Muzik United Kingdom Albums of the Year[18] 1996 15
Ned Raggett United States The Top 136 Albums of the Nineties[19] 1999 87
Pop Sweden Albums of the YearScript error: No such module "Unsubst". 1995 14
The Source United States The 100 Best Rap Albums of All Time[20] 1998 *
Spex Germany The 100 Albums of the CenturyScript error: No such module "Unsubst". 1999 67
Albums of the YearScript error: No such module "Unsubst". 1995 1
The Village Voice United States Pazz & Jop[21] 1996 39

References

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  1. Snow, Shauna. MORNING REPORT. Los Angeles Times. April 6, 1995.
  2. RIAA search: Return to the 36 Chambers Template:Webarchive. RIAA. Retrieved 2010-08-16.
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External links

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