ganews vs. Prince

ganews the sheetscale: a rating of how well each album would work for sexy times

For You (1978)



Pre-existing Prejudices

None in particular. I'm guessing a little more funk than glam, but we'll see. I listened to some of the self-titled follow-up after an AVC retrospective, and the tone of the lyrics was "deeply horny". So this ought to be a good time.

...If we ever get to it, Jesus. The scarcity of free Prince online is no joke, which makes doing this review at work a real chore. I don't have Spotify Premium, and I'm not going to pay them so they can contribute 0.1 cents per play to Prince's estate. I can't download the desktop program, and the free phone app only shuffles. I'm trying this library app Hoopla, which streams effectively but is ludicrously slow to load. This will be the last review from this computer though; my next station will hopefully see me less computer-blue.

Songs

"For You" - A chorus of Princes scatting in harmony to lead us off on this great journey.

"In Love" - OK-funky. It's got a beat and a lot of playful synth. There's nothing to really make it stand out, though. The Prince chorus continues to back it up.

"Soft and Wet" - Ohhh yeah, this is what I think of when I think of Prince: single-entendre title, sexy lyrics, funk, and falsetto. I like the little pauses that create expectation. Nice synth solo. Prince might be a guitar god, but you wouldn't know it yet. I like when Prince takes a break to drop his voice a register.

"Crazy You" - Slow jam. It's got some bubbles and sound effects, and it's a real lounge act. Eh, it's short.

"Just As Long As We're Together" - Now we've got some funky disco, something to dance to. It's got lots to like about the 70s, upbeat with bass high in the mix and synth horns. I again like Prince's deeper voice alongside falsetto. This extended breakdown is awesome with snaps and tom-toms. And then some space sounds! There's an alternate take of this on YouTube that is at least as good.

"Baby" - This jam has a lot of orchestral strings and even a chorus behind the falsetto. It's about a relationship, not just sex, so it's classy and sleepy.

"My Love Is Forever" - A little more energy, but pretty lounge-y. We get a few sustained guitar notes for a solo, but it gets a little playful later on with a better solo, tom roll, and synth work.

"So Blue" - I dig the guitar in the intro, as well as the paired acoustic and synth throughout the song. It's got some breaking inflections on the ends of words-eh, the kind we can expect a lot more of in the future. Breathy longing. And then it just ends.

"I'm Yours" - Lots of guitar and tom here. The intro seems like the Eagles through a Prince filter. The song proper is by far the most guitar-heavy track yet with some real noodling. When Prince is playing, he really likes his tom waterfalls.

Summary: We've got a few bright points, but the more generic lounge songs and slow jamz don't interest me. Unsurprisingly, the most interesting things here are hints of what is to come (heh). (This will not be the last sex pun, it is safe to say.)

Sexiness level, 1-5 scale: 2. A fair bit of this would fade into the background or rocks more than it is sexy.
Favorite overall song: "Just As Long As We're Together"
Favorite new-to-me song: "Just As Long As We're Together"

Dirty Mind (1980)



Pre-existing Prejudices

Third album in and I'm already falling behind of my intended review pace. Damn it Prince, this would be so easy if your albums were on YouTube so I could listen while getting paperwork done! Instead I have to wait until I'm hope to use Spotify. (And honestly it's easier to be motivated with a co-reviewer like Nudeviking and Il sole sotto la terra.) I'm excited for this one though, because any traces of subtlety appear from the album cover to have left the building. And yet none of these song titles spring to mind.

Songs

"Dirty Mind" - Stadium synth. This is a very peppy song, rather belied by its title and the cover art. I'm looking at my watch...it's 1980. I don't find this very sonically interesting with the Casio beat.

"When You Were Mine" - This track is even more of a throwback. It feels like the Prince version of John Mellencamp meets crappy Motown. The Casio beat gets a little strumming and echo chorus added to it. This is pretty lame.

"Do It All Night" - This synth is a little more party, a little more lounge-y. There's some bass flick. Still, this could be a cover band hired for a conference with middle-aged attendees. The lyrics are pretty sexless. This sounds commercial as hell.

"Gotta Broken Heart Again" - It's slow jamz time. Prince throws in a jangly solo, the most guitar work that has appeared yet. And then it's over! Like two minutes.

"Uptown" - This already grabs me the most of any song yet on the album. It's the most funk and the least synth, and Prince mixes the vocal up a bit instead of constant falsetto. The lyrics sound like something that really happened, not just "I wanna do it": Prince tries to pick up a girl, she straight-up asks "Are you gay?", Prince proceeds to expand her mind. Seems like an edgy thing to come right out and say in 1980, more transgressive than just dirty sex songs. It's very pro-expression.

"Head" - Spotify's "explicit" ratings are such a joke; this is only the second track so far not labeled as such. Anyway, this keeps the party rolling from "Uptown". Seriously, this is the most explicit song yet: Prince "came on your wedding gown" to increase our tally. The electrified solo is pretty cool. This is probably the most stereotypical Prince song so far, ironically on the least stereotypically Prince tracklist.

"Sister" - Things got a lot sexier in the back half of this album. For example, this song that is straight-up about Incest. I mean, no kidding here. Incest. Wow. It's short and high-tempo.

"Partyup" - Hey, Morris Day co-wrote this! And apparently thi is what led to him being lead singer for The Time. It is a pretty good party, as things have kept rolling for the entirety of Side B. This is an OK song. It ends with a big chant which is strong and out-of-place for a song about partying. What Damn War are they referring to?

Summary: What the hell was with Side A here? Perhaps Prince wanted to show he could be more than funky, but the commercial 80s synth and (relatively) neutered lyrics sure didn't work for me. Maybe he was just trying to lull everyone to sleep before singing about incest you guys what the hell. Side B was an alright party but couldn't compare with the self-titled album last time. I guess this actually takes third place behind the debut. I don't know if I can ultimately rank 30 albums, we'll see.

Sexiness level, 1-5 scale: 2. Like the debut, this album is only half-sexy (I dub thee, "half-Prince-Nelson"). Perhaps if the cover had Prince's un-cropped crotch.
Running come tally: 3
Favorite overall song: "Uptown"
Favorite new-to-me song: "Uptown"

Controversy (1981)



Pre-existing Prejudices

I feel like we're really going to be getting into the meat here. But who knows? Prince really surprised me (and not in a good way) with the last album; I wouldn't readily classify the first half as rock, funk, glam, or slow jamz. I'm looking forward to this from the tracks I know and the strength of the back half of Dirty Mind. Also I like the suit on the cover.

Songs

"Controversy" - We kick off the party with a sharp, farty synth. It's one of those songs where the title obviously refers to the context of the album more than the lyrics. This is fun and easy to dance to. By the halfway point, we've pretty much done everything the song is expected to do. How to fill the other 3.5 minutes? First, a full recitation of the Lord's Prayer. That is uncommon to the genre, shall we say, but it fits the lyrics about good kids getting into a dangerous world. And it presages the led-off sermon in "Let's Go Crazy". Now we get a spoken-word chant, and Prince just seems to be free associating. This is a long song, and without the spoken parts that would be reasonable for a dance number.

"Sexuality" - Some orgasmic yelps, more low synth. We're really into the glam now. For the second straight song, Prince has reminded us that race is a division. Despite the title, this is a political song which gets even more strident when the spoken-word poetry comes. Prince is doing a lot of moralizing on this album and telling us how to raise our kids.

"Do Me, Baby" – Sloooow jamzzzz. The slowest and longest song in the discography yet. This is very softcore soft-focus without enough bass for funky bass. Prince makes of lot of squeaky noise in the sack for this one, and there's more spoken word. I hope that orgasm was worth the wait. Still, the word wasn't uttered, so it doesn't make the come tally. The synth gong to end on is an odd choice.

"Private Joy" – We're back to stadium synths with handclaps to really drive the 80s home, but at least it's more fun than on Dirty Mind. This has a bass breakdown, but the song is just OK. Not only do we get the first guitar solo of the album, but it stretches into a sonic freakout that last beyond the song.

"Ronnie, Talk to Russia" - Now the explicit politics are right there in the title instead of being hidden behind something sexy. The sonic freakout from "Private Joy" has been extended into this song with gun sound effects. More guitar solo. Prince is backed up by a chorus. This is awfully chipper for a warning not to blow up the world.

"Let's Work" - Finally the funky bass I've been waiting for! This is the best dance party here so far, and I like the little synth solo. The title is also about sex, yet it's actually subtle. It's simple and fun. I wouldn't mind if it were longer.

"Annie Christian" - Spoken lyrics and very heavy-handed moralizing. Prince implied the woman had a lot of abortions, "killing black babies". The sound is very unique and there's some OK background guitar noodling. The problem with socio-political themes in art, especially conservative messages in the devil's guitar music, is that people have no patience for it if they don't share the opinion.

"Jack U Off" - Subtlety is out the window for the closer, making for hard tonal whiplash after "Annie Christian". It's very playful with guitar noodling and latter-day Freddy Mercury ejaculations. This really sounds like an improved version of what Queen was doing two years later. I venture to say that a Prince/Queen collaboration could have blown out "Under Pressure". Also we start a new tally category for Prince song titles with his idiosyncratic spelling!

Summary: Whereas the pseudo-political chant closing "Partyup" was highly unfocused, Controversy is clear in its political messages and not shy about spreading them all over. Prince is really mixing in his personal beliefs and not always taking the trouble to bury them in sex songs. The results aren't uneven, but all the spoken word brings me down some. Nobody came this time. Well, Prince did and loudly, but he didn't say it.

Sexiness level, 1-5 scale: 3, and I'm being very generous because "Annie Christian" is such a boner-killer and much of Prince's spoken-word isn't sexy.
Running come tally: 3
Song titles U know aren't true 2 dictionary: 1
Favorite overall song: "Let's Work" beats the title track by not over-extending and cramming itself full
Favorite new-to-me song: "Let's Work"

You're doing good work on this "vs", ganews. I'm reading, but I haven't felt the need to counter or echo any of your preferences.

Around the World in a Day (1985)



Pre-existing Prejudices

After the monster of Purple Rain, we're back in discovery mode. All I recognize is "Raspberry Beret" and the record label namesake. I expect we're going to continue in a vein of pop/rock moreso than funk/glam. Hey, that's the synth player from the Revolution with the face mask and scrubs there on the album cover - my favorite!

Songs

"Around the World in a Day" - We're kicking of with some cryptic weirdo synth, like if synth was standing in for musical saw. This is probably the most experimental thing Prince has done yet, but the world sounds don't do much for me. I'm much more interested in the party synth that makes only a brief appearance at the two-thirds mark.

"Paisley Park" - Guitar fuzz and snare beat. I've already had enough of the musical triangle for one album - or perhaps those are the "finger cymbals" from the Wikipedia page. I'm trying to place what 80s song this reminds me of so I can figure out who came first. As such, it sounds like pretty generic pop. Needs faster tempo or something. The musical saw is back.

"Condition of the Heart" - Piano and jazz toots. I suppose Prince is stretching out after having conquered the world with his last album and movie. Is this going to be entirely instrumental? No, Prince finally comes in to croon. It's not bad, except for those finger-cymbals, more interesting than slow jamz at least. Ah, spoken-word title-drop, we know who we're listening too now.

"Raspberry Beret" - I might get whiplash from snapping this hard from sleepy to fun. It jumps right in with a regular beat, a count-off, and another story from a day in Prince's life. (As usual, I am obligated to shoehorn in any tenuous Beck connection - I have a recording of a live a capella cover he did, and I see he also played it in tribute at Governor's Ball last year.) It's a simple and fun little song, one of Prince's most recognizable.

"Tamborine" - Hey, we're going to keep having fun with a sneaky little handclap song. It feels almost conspiratorial. I wish this used more actual tambourine and less finger-cymbal. Nice drum and vocal break downs. The pairing of extreme falsetto and ghostly wail is cool.

"America" - This drumbeat sounds like it was lifted and slowed slightly for OutKast's "I Love the Way You Move". Dirty bass, I missed you! I appreciate the eclecticism a lot more when it's only lightly sprinkled in, like the flute here. I feel like this could be on the Batman soundtrack.

"Pop Life" - The other big single of the album, says Wikipedia. It's got high bass flicks but isn't very fast, actually being very piano-heavy. It's pop, all right. Prince suggests you not do cocaine.

"The Ladder" - The beat is like someone dropping an anvil through a snare drum. The churchiness of the chorus and piano (and, explicitly, the lyrics) is putting me to sleep. I think I'll tag Nudeviking here just for fun because of the saxophone, which has a very "Young Americans" tone.

"Temptation" - Prince just realized he made an entire album without really talking about sex! Better toss a bluesy one off...on second thought let's make this 8 minutes long. Echo snare, guitar rumble, sax. Prince wails, puts on his best Boris Karloff laugh. The guitar buzzes and bounces around. After five minutes the track unexpectedly turns around into something dark. Prince talking about tasting the wetness comes off creepy instead of fun and hot. The over-wrought guitar plunks drive this into parody, "what if Prince got all arty?"

Summary: When we got to the great double play of "Raspberry Beret" and "Tamborine", I thought this was going to be another Dirty Mind, where Prince tries a few things and then settles down to a more typical throughline. This album instead turned out to be a bit all over the place. I wouldn't call it Prince trying psychedelia, more like throwing out ideas. This was intentionally anti-commercial, and intentionally different - note that none of the running Prince hallmark tallies advanced. It's not a party, but there are still some hits with the misses.

Sexiness level, 1-5 scale: 1, easily the least sexy yet. No one is getting an erection from this.
Running come tally: 6
Purple song tally: 4
Tally of song titles U know aren't true 2 dictionary: 4
Favorite overall song: "Raspberry Beret"
Favorite new-to-me song: "Tamborine"

Finally caught up to you after listening to Around the World in a Day this afternoon! Like repulsionist I think your write-ups are so good commenting feels a bit extraneous, but I did spend years commenting on the AVC so here are some supplementary thoughts on 1999-Purple Rain-Around the World in a Day:

1999:
This one was actually a grower for me—on first listen I didn’t quite understand why it was such a classic—I assumed it was mostly because it was America’s first encounter with a more refined Prince and they were blown away, even if it didn’t measure up to what followed—but as I’ve gotten to know the album I’ve liked it more and more. Odd tangent: I recently did a little side-job for someone with a young (~2 year old) son and she was mentioning how odd it was saying, upon his surprise on seeing a female bus driver, saying that she was a “lady bus driver.” She said the phrase seemed odd, and I mentioned it reminded me of this song, to which she replied, “He’d probably like it.” And then a few weeks later I re-listened to 1999 for the first time in a while and…that kid’s going to grow up quick.

Purple Rain
This was my introduction to Prince, via my mother, who’s a major Prince fan. She was relieved when I took my first human growth & development course mainly, I think, so she could feel comfortable playing this in the car around me. “Darling Nikki” might not be dirty in terms of lyrical content, but damn if it doesn’t sound dirty. I think the random concert noises are perfect for “Baby I’m a Star”—after all, he has an adoring crowd—and you’re basically cheering along with them when he gets to “Purple Rain.” This is one of those rare perfect albums.

Around the World in a Day
Let’s get this out of the way—I actually don’t like “Raspberry Beret.” It’s easy to sing along with if you don’t know the words other than “raspberry beret” and it’s very hard to interpret in a way that involves coitus or manual stimulation, which I think accounts for its widespread popularity. Overall I agree with you on this one, though I like the noodling and experimentation a bit more it doesn’t really play to Prince’s strengths. And “America” does sound very much like OutKast sampled it, though I don’t know their discography well enough to pinpoint where. “Around the World in a Day” is interesting—the sound that leaps out to me most is his quasi-middle eastern stuff (including percussion—I wonder if it was sampled or if he knew people who were able to play a snippet, since it’s very different from the super-regular beats Prince usually listens to). He’s synthesizing what’s usually a clarinet line, in particular—it’s an interesting contrast with actual Middle Eastern music of the period, which typically used synth as an accordion substitute:

ganews On the plus side it’s making me revising Speakerboxx/The Love Below

Many valuable aperçus here, ganews.  

The analysis of the eponymous album encouaged me to put it on.  It's a joy, especially as summer fare.   Erotic, sweethearted, and catchy as all get-out.   

Lovesexy (1988)



Pre-existing Prejudices

Perhaps it will be...sexy? It will also be just 45 minutes. I'm ready; if Sign "O" the Times had been just sides 2 and 3 it would have been that much more awesome. But this one was a quickly-made substitute for The Black Album, so who knows. Speaking of which, I was supposed to be listening to that one today, oops. (To cover my mistake, I think I will do it for 1994, when it was released. The public heard this one first anyway.) So, none of the song titles jump out at me. Curiously, Spotify has this album only in the form of a single 45-minute track.

Songs

"Eye No" - After the weird intro, it sounds like we're leaning heavily into the glam. The horns are good. Prince emcees more dance-hall calls. The congas add a bit of world sound, in a good way. Prince and the backing choir remind us during the party that there is a heaven and a hell.

"Alphabet St." - I think I know why Spotify has this as all one track now, there was no real break between songs. This has the slap bass that I am known to be fond of. It also has a very progressive sort of sound; not the musical genre but the liberal ideology? I don't know, somehow I can see this being used by late 80s Sesame Street. At least until the rap starts. Hey, it's the wiggly-straw sound! I have loved that sound ever since I heard it on "Tropicalia" by Beck. Uh, they just name-dropped the song title, and I didn't even put that together when I made the Sesame Street comment. The lady reciting the alphabet gets a little hot and heavy.

"Glam Slam" - Wow, this is just super corny. "Glam slam thank you ma'am, you really made my day", that is half the chorus. Steve Miller writes better than this. The music with synth and guitar squeals isn't great either. Is this a drag show runway classic? It ought to be, but maybe it was too on the nose for that even. Things get better when the singing stops.

"Anna Stesia" - The proper adjective for this is "smoky". If Prince had made a vampire movie, this would be played in the scene where Vampire Prince (or more likely, Vampire Girl-Who-Is-Prince's-Protege) looks through the bedroom at the intended victim. Anyway, this has good guitar noodling and a low synth rumble. The vampire music even ends with a heartbeat-beat.

"Dance On" - This straight kicks ass. Breakbeat drums and Terminator synth. Then Prince sings, stadium synth and guitar peek in. Who is the soul lady contributing vocals? The song lightens up a bit but doesn't stop being awesome. Did Prince just predict Eminem? These samples are wacky, like the Looney Tunes take-off-running kapow. What a great song!

"Lovesexy" - Call out to the New Power Generation, whose stadium synth is much like the Revolution pre-Purple Rain. Prince has a car burning rubber in his pants, this is one of the best metaphors ever. This is pretty cool. Horns, handclaps, guitar squall, sampling. A helium leak seems to have happened while the sexy talk was going on.

"When 2 R in Love" - It's a piano slow jam, but it gets a little more synth-y and a little less bland. Penetration. Tappy bass. "Let's kiss with one synonymous motion".

"I Wish U Heaven" - Bringing the dictionary tally into double digits. This is an echo-snare stomp, inasmuch as Prince stomps. It's light and airy.

"Positivity" - Marimba. Are all the instruments about to come out? There's an entendre here, I can't quite put my finger on it. Positivity is a girl, and has she had her plus sign today? This song is just very Prince. Spoken-word story, instruments thrown in all over the place, choir backup, weird subterranean sexy. It's cool. There's a watery outro.

Summary: Apparently this got mixed reviews, but I find that it performs very well and on an even keel. Actually, it's the most even album since Purple Rain. Perhaps recording in just seven weeks forced some restraint. Prince not only smoothly incorporates the world sounds and fuller instrument range he's been toying with for years, but he also adds something totally new to his repertoire: sampling. And its great! This is very encouraging, seeing as I have about twenty albums to go.

Sexiness level, 1-5 scale: You know what? 5. There was a lot of sexy, and "Glam Slam" was early enough not to bring me down.
Running come tally: 7
Purple song tally: 5
Tally of song titles U know aren't true 2 dictionary: 10
Favorite overall song: "Dance On"
Favorite new-to-me song: "Dance On"

Graffiti Bridge (1990)



Pre-existing Prejudices

Wait, another Prince movie?? And this is its double-album soundtrack. Well, I hope it's better than the last Prince movie soundtrack, Parade. Might as well watch the trailer...holy shit, this is a sequel to Purple Rain! I'd say we are about to enter a new era, an update to the classic, but it looks like this was recorded in spots all over the 80s. That's could be a good or bad sign. Well, it features a whole munch of cool guests. How 'bout that album cover? I don't care for the hairstyle, but that is the first version of the symbol Prince will be adopting as a name in a few years; we saw it before on the Purple Rain motorcycle.

Songs

"Can't Stop This Feeling I Got" - New album, same angst. It would be impossible to equal "Let's Go Crazy", but this sounds like INXS recorded "Footloose" until it loosens up a little. Back to the era of stadium synth. Later it becomes very one world-y.

"New Power Generation" - This is pretty cool. The lyrics are more save-the-world, but that's OK. "Makin' love and music" is a pretty good slogan. It sounds very of its time, which probably means everybody copied Prince right after. A little sampling, some whoa-ohs. Ironically, today BET would call this "grown folks' music". So it goes.

"Release It" - Morris Day dialog sampled from the movie, and the track was performed by the Time. This drumbeat kicks all the ass. It kind of rips off "Run's House". I love when Morris calls out to Jerome. Shake it like a pecker wood? A "stella" is a hot girl in the movie's parlance. This must be one of those in-movie examples where the Time is better than the Kid.

"The Question of U" - It's an introspective ballad spiced up with some interesting sound. Cool smooth guitar solo. Echo-y handclaps are an odd choice, but they work. I was watching a bit of the old Highlander TV series the other day, so I'm more receptive to the soft-focus 80s/90s border. These calls make for an Ennio Morricone sound that is great. Then there's strings and flute, and this is actually a really cool song. World influence done right.

"Elephants & Flowers" - Guitar and gospel choir. More grown folks' music. It has turntable scratching, that's new.

"Round and Round" - This is some kid's song produced by Prince, before he went off to more 90s success and faded out. More early 90s R&B with electronic drums and pops.

"We Can Funk" - Featuring George Clinton, because the title. Prince will pee in your cup, he is testing positive for the Funk. This is a most uncomfortable metaphor in 1990 when everyone was still scared of AIDS, and it is no better today. The sex being sold does not appeal to me after that. Any watersports fans care to comment? Otherwise the song is OK, Prince with an atomic beat.

"Joy in Repetition" - Sort of a "What's Goin' On" intro. It's a Prince story-song, except this is in-movie. More guitar noodling.

"Love Machine" - Another Time track. Contemporary pop. This is a bit nasty, like Prince outsourced the dirty talk. Well, it wasn't Prince saying, but somebody came, so that's a title. The Time really go in for the bits of sax.

"Tick, Tick, Bang" - Prince is back with a suggestive song of his own. Sorry, but all I can think of is the South Park kids singing "finger-bang baby, bang bang!" It's kind of a mixed up sound with guitar, electronic drums, and sampling.

"Shake!" - Still another Time track. They're pretty solid though, I'm starting to agree with Jay and Silent Bob. The little guitar inter-line bridge in verse two is really cute, a great thing to build a power pop song around but this is different.

"Thieves in the Temple" - In an alternate universe this was the theme song for a Nickelodeon game show. The song is pretty OK. Pop with guitar poking in and electronic drums. It closes with Prince yelling.

"The Latest Fashion" - This only features the Time, though it sounds entirely like them. This is a good funky song, if only it were a bit less silly. Or rather, waaay less silly. Prince raps adequately. Did Prince just recommend abortion?

"Melody Cool" - Mavis Staples performs, and it's cool like the title says. This is the most grown that the grown folks' music has sounded. I don't know the movie, but the lyrics here imply that Mavis Staples showed up and whipped Prince's ass into shape.

"Still Would Stand All Time" - This piano and chime waterfall is screeching everything to a halt. Prince sings "we are not alone" like the Mindbenders' 60s "groovy kind of love". The focus is even softer by the time the gospel choir comes in.

"Graffiti Bridge" - The title track finale? First orchestra and then...wow this really sucks. Does Prince's The Kid ascend to heaven at the end of the movie? Or maybe die. This music would be appropriate for either of those.

"New Power Generation (Pt. II)" - Reprise of one of the few actual good tracks. I bet this just played over the credits after Prince went to heaven on the title track.

Summary: Credit to Prince, his sound evolves. Nothing stays the same for more than an album or two, which is to say a year or two. This is no mere re-tread of Purple Rain, though it might be better if it were (not even one mention of purple!). Prince's songs and the ones he produced instead sound like all the R&B produced for the next five years would sound. And yet, Prince here is overshadowed by all his guests, even the Time. Almost none of his songs rise above OK. This is way more disappointing than when Prince got worldly and experimental after the release of Purple Rain, because it falls so far from that height. I hope when we get to the stuff entirely produced in the 90s, things are better. Usually when I listen to an album on Spotify I throw it in a folder so its songs can come up on random later, but this is the first Prince album where I'm only grabbing a few tracks.

Sexiness level, 1-5 scale: 1. The couple dirty tracks over 68 minutes were just off-putting.
Running come tally: 9
Purple song tally: 5
Tally of song titles U know aren't true 2 dictionary: 11
Favorite overall song: "Release It". Shit, that's not even a Prince song!
Favorite Prince song: "The Question of U"

[Love Symbol Album] (1992)



Pre-existing Prejudices

Bracketed title as it appears on Spotify. Spotify also considers every track here "explicit", so this ought to be good. After a few clunkers, I'm hoping for a return to form. I said that last time too; hopefully this album fetures more Prince and fewer guests. Speaking of which, Prince didn't actually adopt the symbol as his name until the following year, hence track 1. If Prince didn't want it to be unpronounceable, he could have used symbols that look vaguely like letters like Led Zeppelin.

Songs

"My Name Is Prince" - This is a pretty decent early 90s blend of record scratches, samples, and rhythm. "My name is Prince and I am funk-ay..." Wait, goddamn all these lyrics are so baller, I can't type the entire thing. Tony M. is back but relegated to background, fine. Prince's lyrics have the same cadence as Will Ferrel' cheerleader character on SNL. Prince's voice sounds uncharacteristically strained. This was a single, it must have sparked some Jay Leno-type jokes after the name change. Tony M. gets an extended rap again. Wow, really extended. This rap is faster and better than on last album.

"Sexy MF" - I'm used to hearing the radio edit that replaces "fuckah" with a Prince squeal. Without it, this is much softer and smoother. In between, Prince pulls off a low rap pretty well. The supporting horns and organ are cool, and Prince even calls out the deep sax. This organ solo is pretty cool, then a solo guitar groove, this has it all. Aw, Tony M. you are ruining this, dammit! Prince was low and cool, you're coming on too strong. It's the difference between suavely lighting a woman's cigarette and yelling at her on the street. Then Tony departs and Prince brings the jazz back, and it's great again. Fuck you, Tony M.

"Love 2 the 9's" - Adult contemporary, smooth jazz. It's OK, nothing special, the midway Prince comes in with a low rap, scratching, and a marimba. Beat it Tony, I don't want to hear you even talking. At least Prince keeps the rap to himself and does fine.

"The Morning Papers" - Grown folks music: piano and chime waterfall. Prince seems to be singing about sexing up his high school teacher. Appropriately, GE Smith saxophone comes in. The guitar wails are better.

"The Max" - The max is in control and pounding on the low piano keys over a beat, like Prince was doing years before Janet Jackson's "Rhythm Nation". Tony M. is fine here back in his proper roll as hype man, but it's hard for me to forgive "Sexy MF". This song is a good example of synthesizing elements for maximum effect, the way Prince never really achieved on the previous album until its final track. This woman is "Mayte", but Wikipedia doesn't know who she is.

"Segue 1" - Prince's first-ever skit! If you don't count the lesser movies. This reporter is Kirstie Alley?!

"Blue Light" - Reggae back-beat. This is a sweet song, in which Prince and his woman argue where to have sex. This is his best adult contemporary song ever. Prince with no double-track vocals and a few simple backing singers, it could have been recorded live in a club.

"I Wanna Melt with U" - Oh hey there, this is awesome. Sexy low raps, quiet falsetto, farty synth. And here I was thinking of Modern English. Prince sees a river of blood, she must've been a virgin. If Tony M. appears, so help me I will quit this project. Prince is really pouring on the sex. The sounds get really funky. It fades out heavy on the electronics, before four minutes, perfect.

"Sweet Baby" - Soft focus in song form. Without the vocals this sounds like a softcore porn soundtrack. Fortunately a few religious drops keep us on track. Ah dammit, I was checked out and I thought I heard one for the come tally, but it was "come your way".

"The Continental" - Ohh, Prince is gonna do you like you wanna. This is a type of a rock stomp that wasn't quite dead yet in 1992. Purple floor! I thought that tally was done. Prince wails and raps and gets nasty, he wants your germs. Now I'm thinking of The Continental sketched from Christopher Walken on SNL. Now the song slows up a bit to get even more intimate. Sexy talk on the phone. Ha, the woman is apparently Carmen Electra.

"Damn U" - Slow jamz combined with adult contemporary complete with chime waterfall, strings, and piano. Prince takes a playful tone. This is another one of those Japanese karaoke bar tracks. Kooky love affair is right. It ends with another bit of skit.

"Arrogance" - Or perhaps the skit begins this one. The rapid scratching sounds like OutKast "B.O.B.". This has a cool fusion of dance hall call-and-response and free jazz.

"The Flow" - A skit kind of segues in. Damn, Prince just used the n-word. Tony M. is back rapping at high speed after a long absence, but it's not bad. Aggressive and short.

"7" - Oh yeah, it's this song. Best use of "savoir faire" in a song ever. Prince comes across with such confidence. If I heard no other Prince but this song, I would probably link him with Boyz II Men. It really is some of his purest R&B. Hey, I didn't remember that cool sitar.

"And God Created Woman" - Adult contemporary time. Nice horn though. Prince is Adam, so this is yet another casual song about something that could have really happened to him. Really, no one else has ever made the Bible as sexy. Don't give me that pastor-couple's-counselor crap about "Song of Solomon".

"3 Chains o' Gold" - Interesting, an appearance of stadium synth. It starts as that, then flute-flutters down into adult contemporary. And then it changes again into Christmas. Then epic mythology by way of Trans Siberian Orchestra.

"Segue" - Apt title. This movie would probably have been better than Prince's last couple actual movies. In case you weren't aware this was all a rock/funk/R&B opera

"The Sacrifice of Victor" - Tony M. in the background to cap off the opera, you know it is an opera?? Ah for early 90s hip-hop with horns and funk licks.

Summary: This was a seriously good album, well deserving of being Prince's biggest seller since Purple Rain. It was everything promised by Diamonds and Pearls. Sticking Tony M. in the middle of "Sexy MF" was a crime against art and music, a million times worse than the dialog sample in the middle of "Trust" on Batman. Seriously, if only I could edit out the full-on Tony M. raps from the first two tracks this would be a top-tier Prince album without question. No, that's being too harsh, the raps from Prince and Tony were much improved this album, and it is a top-tier album. We're so far from where we started and yet still so good, it's amazing.

Sexiness level, 1-5 scale: 5. I have no choice but to give it the top level, rounded up a bit from the rap interruptions and skits. More bedroom sexy and less party sexy.
Running come tally: 9
Purple song tally: 6
Tally of song titles U know aren't true 2 dictionary: 16
Favorite overall song: I'll go with "Sexy MF" in spite of Tony M. Tough call. "7" is the most important song, though this is a Favorite category.
Favorite new-to-me song: "I Wanna Melt with U". Lots of great choices.

Come (1994)



Pre-existing Prejudices

I was wrong, this is the last album (for a while) under the name Prince. Apparently those dates are his birth and death under that name. But look, the dusty and long-forgotten come tally gets a whole album title to itself. For the only time besides 1999, Prince took a whole extra year off before this was released (1993 was a B-sides compilation set, but this is also the year the Black Album was finally released, that's next time). From the track listing looks to be more sexy but also quite dark. Yes, the 90s, the dark age.; let's see.

Songs

"Come" - The tally comes hard into double digits. This isn't dark at all, but fun, smooth, and jazzy. Tony M. is surely going to pop up any minute and ruin it like "Sexy MF". This really goes for the horns, light scratching for flair in the back. The trip-hoppers were taking note. Ooo, it's down and dirty. 5:30, we're halfway there, and the track breaks it down for more dirty talk. Some very wet...kissing...noises. The last 25% is mostly jazzy noodling with a little more singing. It never gets old, exactly; this is more experience than song.

"Space" - Darker, not Terminator but space age for sure. "All covered in sex". Prince will do things both to your body and to your head. Call out to the bass with a flat affect.

"Pheromone" - Come again, and lie beneath Prince's shadow. After the beach interlude, this gets a big hollow stomp beat. It has sort of a comfortable mesh of 80s and 90s sound in spite of being so sparse. Electric piano peaks in. I guess Fine Young Cannibals were big Prince fans.

"Loose!" - Prince screams the count and this track has an absolutely sick sound. It's late 90s techno-infused, except once again years before everybody else because it's Prince. The vocals sound like BT, remember BT? This could be on the soundtrack to the Matrix. Hey, it's a guitar! The electronics get even thicker at 2:30, and you can see where the Prodigy got some inspiration. Prince caps it off, "Kewl."

"Papa" - A story of harsh parenting. Prince's rawness and the spoken word makes it sound autobiographical. "Don't abuse children, lest they turn out like me." Then the band steps in, and before this shorty is over we're back in the 70s like way back on For You.

"Race" - More beach interlude. Then we gimme da beat, and it's funky early 90s time. Between the woman and Prince's flat near-rap this is almost C+C Music Factory from three of four years earlier, Prince behind the curve for a change. Not quite the same, there's a little horn and guitar and classic Prince sound and subject matter to set it apart. You might call it on-the-nose without context, but this is the man who recorded "Sign 'O' the Times".

"Dark" - The beach intros are just weird, OK? Now it's time for a jazzy slow jam. The horns do a lot for me compared to your average slow jam though. Some high bass moves in with an organ, and this gets really groovy. We're singing about literal dark, the track is so playful it makes the cover almost a parody of grimdark. Nice guitar work, subtle farty bass. This must be my favorite Prince slow jam.

"Solo" - Sounds like Prince got bored in studio and decided to turn up the echo and play around. The content is kind of an interesting bluesy doo-wop with a keyboard replica of a harp. Curious.

"Letitgo" - Beach time. I'm going to give it a come tally because it I think it's only pretending to be innocuous. Pretty cool jazz hop, just enough funk lick for me to be more charitable than calling it Grown Folks Music. Really neat organ solos, and I dig this percussion break whatever it is.

"Orgasm" - Motor-revving guitar feedback, and, indeed, an orgasm. Here she comes. Not marked Explicit by Spotify, even though that is literally the whole track, why do they even have that label?

Summary: This was certainly an experimental album, and apparently Prince didn't think much of it, but it hit me in all the right ways. I much prefer it to the streak in the aftermath of Purple Rain, certainly. This is one of my favorites. It's front-loaded with deep sexy before wandering around, just like the other experimental albums. It's not quite coherent, but there's nothing that leaves me cold or gives me complete whiplash. The first few tracks almost get at self-parody with the deep flat voice and dirty talk, but I was too busy enjoying it.

Sexiness level, 1-5 scale: 4. Some of the very sexiest, and certainly very hot bookends, but the middle might confuse. Fortunately, the title track is an album by itself.
Running come tally: 13
Purple song tally: 6
Tally of song titles U know aren't true 2 dictionary: 16
Favorite overall song: "Loose!" Maybe I'm showing my age by this preference, but I loved it/
Favorite new-to-me song: "Loose!"

Oh it's coming. Wifemate leaves for conference at the end of the week, then it's going to be a big Prince party.