It isn’t easy to get the entire Wu-Tang Clan together in one city let alone on a single stage. With the exception of dearly departed member Ol’ Dirty Bastard, this July 2007 Montreux concert showcases all the hip-hop group’s members and demonstrates the power of a collective.
Live at Montreux 2007
Ol’ Dirty Bastard Endures
It’s impossible to overstate the significance of the Wu-Tang Clan. With a career that has already spanned almost 30 years, nine group albums, 91 solo albums (either as solo artists or as part of a non-Wu group) and more members than the U.S. Congress, the hip-hop supergroup is doubtlessly one of the most influential musical artists of its era.
In 2007, the group’s performance at the Montreux Jazz Festival marked a poignant moment of its journey, coming almost 15 years after its breakout classic “Enter the Wu-Tang (36 Chambers)” and three years after the death of founding member Ol’ Dirty Bastard. The Montreux performance itself serves as both a testament to the fact that the Wu-Tang Clan, though aging, has not lost a step, arriving on the stage with the collective force of a soccer riot.
After making headlines in the mid-‘90s for their brash delivery, Heisman-level wordplay and adoration for ‘70s kung-fu and blaxploitation films, the MCs in Wu-Tang Clan are now hip-hop elder statesmen. That status feels weirdly appropriate for Montreux, a major festival that since 1967 has celebrated the legends of Black music.
Though rap is relatively new when compared to other genres that have dominated popular music over the decades, it is now at least 40 years old. Acts like the Wu are playing the legends circuit, usually the end of the line for a music career. Yet as they arrive on stage, the Wu-Tang Clan MCs still exude a brash confidence befitting hip-hop newcomers while flashing the lyrical deftness of seasoned craftsmen.
The group emerged from the era where “MC” stood for “Move the Crowd,” and that mission statement still applies. It’s rare to see any iconic music act still delivering the goods after its prime, but this show evokes a performance at an iconic New York City club like the Tunnel rather than one at the prestigious Miles Davis Hall at a jazz festival.
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Switzerland gets the full roster: RZA, GZA, Method Man, Inspectah Deck, Raekwon the Chef, U-God, Ghostface Killah and Masta Killa.
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The performance also marks a rare latter-day Wu feat: A show where the whole Wu-Tang Clan is present. For the uninitiated, that’s not a normal thing. In recent years, fans have gotten used to piecemeal Wu-Tang Clan shows. Maybe three guys show, maybe six. Not this night. Switzerland gets the full roster: RZA, GZA, Method Man, Inspectah Deck, Raekwon the Chef, U-God, Ghostface Killah and Masta Killa.
Also joining the party are some of their extended family members: Cappadonna, Streetlife and the vastly underrated DJ Mathematics. This rare gathering delivers a set heavy on the group’s classics, flavored with solo gems, including a mini-set of Ol’ Dirty Bastard hits such as “Brooklyn Zoo” and “Shimmy Shimmy Ya”.
ODB didn’t let a silly thing like not being alive stop his presence from looming over the show. The gifted, troubled, chaotically unpredictable MC died of an accidental drug overdose in 2004. But the surviving members carry on as if he’s with them on stage, the whole clan serving as hypemen for their fallen bandmate. Sadly, it’s not something that we’ve seen often as rap grows up. For every Wu-Tang Clan, there’s a supergroup that either had a falling out with a key member or let money, drugs or a combination of both ruin its career.
Wu-Tang Clan integrates its late friend’s music into the performance without resorting to solemnity. A clear statement blasts from the speakers: ODB is one of us and he’s here with us tonight. In 1997, the Wu-Tang Clan titled its second album “Wu-Tang Forever.” That declaration goes double for Ol’ Dirty Bastard and his place in the band’s ever-evolving legacy.
Wu-Tang Clan Montreux 2007 Setlist
Wu-Tang Clan Ain’t Nuthing Ta F’Wit
Da Mystery of Chessboxin’
Duel of the Iron Mic
Fish
Grid Iron Rap
Bring the Pain
It’s Yourz
Liquid Swords
Ice Cream
Uzi (Pinky Ring)
One Blood Under W
Do You Really (Thang Thang)
What the Blood Clot
Careful (Click Click)
Protect Ya Neck
Bring Da Ruckus
Tearz
C.R.E.A.M.
Method Man
Reunited
For Heavens Sake
Wu Tang: 7th Chamber
Shadowboxin’
Shimmy Shimmy Ya
Brooklyn Zoo
Got Your Money
Cherchez LaGhost
La Rhumba/Black Widow Pt. 2
Da Rockwilder
Triumph
Impossible
Gravel Pit
Ernest Wilkins is a writer, media entrepreneur and content strategist. He writes a popular newsletter and hosts a podcast called “Office Hours with Ernest Wilkins.” Ernest’s writing has appeared in the Chicago Tribune, Complex, Deadspin, Gawker, GQ, Pitchfork, Rolling Stone, Vulture and VICE. He lives in Chicago. Find his work at ErnestWilkins.com or find him @ErnestWilkins everywhere you get your social media.