Ranking the Wu

To build on an aside in the previous post, I thought I'd rank my favorite members of the Wu-Tang Clan from worst to first.

It was unbelievably tough to come up with a meaningful way to measure each member's contribution to the group. Por ejemplo, I think the RZA is one of the Wu's worst lyricists but he's also the de-facto head of the clan and the lead producer for "Enter the Wu-Tang (36 Chambers)." So, do you rank him before or after Method Man?

Shame on a nigga. But I tried to do it anyway:

9. U-God - He "wasn't into all that Kung-Fu shit" and it sorta showed. No lyrical skills to speak of. His Wu impact was also limited by the fact that he was locked up for much of the making of the group's debut album.

8. Masta Killa - It was tough to think of a time when he stood out from the rest of the Clan. He really doesn't have a signature moment. Steady but certainly not spectacular.

7. Raekwon - "Only Built 4 Cuban Linx" is one of my 20 favorite hip-hop albums. But often, I found myself wanting more substance from The Chef. In fact, sometimes his lyrics just bored me.

6. Inspectah Deck - Good lyricist, good producer and I also loved "Uncontrolled Substance." His verse on "Cream" - "handcuffed in back of a bus, forty of us, life as a shorty shouldn't be so rough" - was a classic hip-hop moment in its own right. But no one was going to Wu shows to see the Inspectah, dig?

5. GZA - You know the Genius had pull in the clan, given that he and Meth were the only two Wu members to have solo tracks on "Enter." You might argue that he was the best lyricist in the group. And I probably wouldn't mount much of a counterargument. But even John Stockon had to ride the bench on the Western Conference All-Star team, dig?

4. RZA - The leader, the producer and one of the group's weakest lyricists. But how can the RZA not be in the top half of the group's most influential members? No one reps the Clan more than Bobby Digital. Also, he was decent in "American Gangster."

3. Ghostface Killah - This is pure-dee bias here. Ghostface is probably my favorite member of the group. I think he's probably the second-best lyricist behind the GZA. He probably had the best, most thorough solo career. And what a character. C'mon. What about homeboy's Wonder Woman arm?

2. Ol' Dirty Bastard - RIP. Probably the most colorful character in hip hop outside of Busta Rhymes. Dirt McGirt was truly one of a kind. Really. His whole catalogue was a freestyle. And, man, I loved me some "Brooklyn Zoo." I just couldn't get enough of that - literally, since it never came on the radio in Texas.

1. Method Man - Overall, Meth has to go No. 1. He's a solid lyricist, quite the character himself, probably the best live performer of the group, a moderately successful actor and, bottom line, had the best solo career of the crew. However, Meth has lost steam in recent years. It'd be nice to see him make a comeback.

Feel free to disagree. And enjoy the song that brought the crew into my living room.

UPDATE: I swear, sometimes me and my man Avery are on the same wavelength. He come up with his own list today, too. I swear I didn't know until I'd already posted mine. Check it out.