Ah, to be 36 years old and the best rapper in the world. Of course, I can only be talking about Ghostface Killah, who has indisputably emerged as the cream of the Wu-Tang Clan and has embarked on a decade-long run of exceptional albums that put practically every other hip-hop artist or group to shame. I mean, think about it—most rap groups are lucky to put out one great album, let alone two or three. Ghostface, on the other hand, has cranked out quality albums ever since 1996’s Ironman, and people still debate over which of them is the best (Ironman? Supreme Clientele? Pretty Toney? Fishscale?). In a genre dominated by one-hit wonders and albums stuffed with unfunny “skits” and way too many guest appearances, that kind of consistency is an amazing feat.

Like any great album, the singles are only part of the story, instead of the obvious standouts, and this is true of Supreme Clientele, my choice for Ghostface’s masterpiece. Take “The Grain,” one of the shorter tracks from the album, and also one of the most intense. RZA, a master of the minimalist beat to begin with, goes practically lo-fi here, simply chopping up Stax semi-legend Rufus Thomas’ “Do the Funky Penguin” and looping its nifty piano intro, complete with Thomas’ grunts from the original track. Over this Ghostface fires away with his trademark hot-rod supercharged flow, spitting lyrics about Tai Chi, Queen Elizabeth eating Whoppers, and invading Pamela Anderson Lee’s most intimate of private areas. RZA tries to keep up, but his mush-mouth delivery is molasses compared to Ghost’s bootleg whiskey. The track ends with some awful (but funny) soul crooning and some old-school “yo, don’t fuck with her” shout-outs. It’s a marvelous standout on an album full of standouts, gritty and spare, and a great change of pace from more gaudy moments like “Nutmeg” and “Buck 50.”

One only wonders what the future will hold for Ghostface as he approaches his fifth decade and second as an MC. I once said to a friend of mine that if he ever collaborated with, say, Madlib, he could cause people’s heads to explode from coast to coast. But Ghostface doesn’t have to drop a genre-defining masterpiece to stay at the top of the mountain. He just has to keep doing what he’s doing. And that should be good enough for all of us.

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