''36 Seasons'' is the tenth studio album by American rapper and

Wu-Tang Clan Wu-Tang Clan is an American hip hop collective formed in Staten Island, New York City, in 1992. Its members include RZA, GZA, Method Man, Raekwon, Ghostface Killah, Inspectah Deck, U-God, Masta Killa, and, until his death in 2004, O ...

member,

Ghostface Killah Dennis David Coles (born May 9, 1970), better known by his stage name Ghostface Killah, is an American rapper and a member of the hip hop group Wu-Tang Clan. After the group achieved breakthrough success in the aftermath of ''Enter the Wu-Tang ...

. It was released on December 9, 2014, by

Tommy Boy Records Tommy Boy Records is an American independent record label and multimedia brand founded in 1981 by Tom Silverman. The label is credited with helping and launching the music careers of Queen Latifah, Amber, Afrika Bambaataa, Stetsasonic, Digita ...

Background

In a December 2014, interview with

HipHopDX ''HipHopDX'' is an online magazine of Hip hop music, hip hop music criticism and news. ''HipHopDX'' has over 3.5M monthly readers, the website encompassing hip hop news, interviews, music, and reviews. The website's founder and CEO is Sharath C ...

said it took about 11 days to record the album. Like Ghostface Killah's previous album, ''

Twelve Reasons to Die ''Twelve Reasons to Die'' is the first collaborative studio album by American rapper Ghostface Killah and American composer Adrian Younge. It is a concept album based on a comic book of the same name. The album was executive-produced and narrated ...

'', ''36 Seasons'' is a concept album. The album follows the story of Tony Starks as he returns to

Staten Island Staten Island ( ) is the southernmost of the boroughs of New York City, five boroughs of New York City, coextensive with Richmond County and situated at the southernmost point of New York (state), New York. The borough is separated from the ad ...

after nine years away seeking a quiet life but he finds this will be difficult to accomplish.

Release and promotion

Record store Get On Down was the only retailer to sell ''36 Seasons'' in vinyl format. Get On Down also sold a CD bundle that featured the vinyl version, an instrumental CD, poster, graphic novel booklet, and a T-shirt.

Critical reception

''36 Seasons'' received generally positive reviews from

music critic '' The Oxford Companion to Music'' defines music criticism as "the intellectual activity of formulating judgments on the value and degree of excellence of individual works of music, or whole groups or genres". In this sense, it is a branch of m ...

s. At

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, which assigns a

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rating out of 100 to reviews from critics, the album received an

average In colloquial, ordinary language, an average is a single number or value that best represents a set of data. The type of average taken as most typically representative of a list of numbers is the arithmetic mean the sum of the numbers divided by ...

score of 72, which indicates "generally favorable reviews", based on 18 reviews. David Jeffries of

AllMusic AllMusic (previously known as All-Music Guide and AMG) is an American online database, online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on Musical artist, musicians and Mus ...

said, "Inspiration flows out of the man throughout the album, and this end-to-end concept is executed with little note-spinning or boring lyrics that just serve the story, and while Twelve Reasons took a big giallo risk and nailed it, this more expected, '70s-favored success still surprises with its vigorous sense of purpose." Homer Johnsen of

stated, "''36 Seasons'' may not be Ghostface’s greatest project, but it is another notable addition to his extensive body of work. Rapping alongside Kool G Rap and AZ for the bulk of the album is certainly a treat, and the two have their own moments of glory. Production, on the other hand, simply does not hold on to the lyrical dynamism present between Ghost, Pharoahe Monch, AZ and G." Michael Madden of

Consequence of Sound ''Consequence'' (previously ''Consequence of Sound'') is an independently owned New York-based online magazine featuring news, editorials, and reviews of music, movies, and television. History ''Consequence of Sound'' was founded in Septem ...

said, "''36 Seasons'' is the result of consummate artistic process and taste--a complete album both lyrically and musically." Theon Weber of ''

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'' said, "It's a small, controlled, uncommonly focused album, by an artist well into the kind of middle age that prizes refinement and brevity." Olivia Arezes of ''

Exclaim! ''Exclaim!'' is a Canadian music and entertainment publisher based in Toronto, which features coverage of new music across all genres with a special focus on Canadian and emerging artists. The monthly ''Exclaim!'' print magazine publishes seven ...

'' stated, "Ghost has always been considered a master of storytelling, and on ''36 Seasons'', he paints the usual sordid pictures in his songs, except this time he's cast an all-star team —Kool G Rap, AZ, Pharoahe Monch and others — as characters in an audio comic that's as action-packed as a kung-fu film." Matthew Fiander of

PopMatters ''PopMatters'' is an international online magazine of cultural criticism that covers aspects of popular culture. ''PopMatters'' publishes reviews, interviews, and essays on cultural products and expressions in areas such as music, television, ...

said, "His flow is solid on this album, and there’s no reason to suggest Ghostface is done, but if he is trying to recapture something, all we get here is sound and fury."

Track listing

Credits adapted from the album's liner notes.

Charts

References

{{Authority control 2014 albums Albums produced by the 45 King 2010s concept albums Ghostface Killah albums Tommy Boy Records albums