Prince's Black Album

My problem is that sonically it's too lush. Could he have nade a stripped-down Linn-dominated slowjam? Might have been interesting.

 

bought it instantly in 1994, I didn't imagine it would have become so rare. "Limited edition", in the 90s, didn't really mean anything.

 

I bought the black album bootleg LP for about 20 dollars around '88. I loved it. I wish I bought it on CD when it was officially released but didn't really need it at that point. I know he played some of it on the Lovesexy tour so I'm glad I bought it when I did. I bought a few more albums after that but the Black Album was the last of the classic Prince era for me.

 

I really dig this album, I think it would've been a solid, "low-key" follow-up to Sign O the Times - something with lower, more concentrated (i.e. less sprawling) ambitions. Not a masterpiece like Sign O the Times or Dirty Mind et al but masterfully done, the first two tracks kick it off like the ultimate party record, and there are more great funk numbers, but it also goes into some inspired, dark satirical territory, mainly with "Bob George." I'm still not a fan of "When 2R in Love" but others here seem to be (too drippy to me), and I feel like there's one too many gangsta rap parodies, but that's all I'll dump on.

I sometimes wonder if a double LP with Lovesexy would have worked, splitting it between a "dark" LP and a "light" LP the way his Lovesexy shows were split, but even with that conceptual design it would have suffered in comparison to Sign O the Times.

 

Um, okay - is this some joke I don't get?

 

Those albums belongs together IMO.
And Lovesexy often doesn't get the recognition it deserves.
It clearly is a result of the Black Album "drama" in parts so I guess this is the right thread to talk about it.

After "black" came "white" and Prince made his best album with "Lovesexy" IMO.
It has a unique sound and even features more music styles than the good but overrated SOTT.
For me Lovesexy is Prince's gospel album whereas The Black Album is funk with nasty lyrics.
I also think "Anna Stesia" is his best song and somehow a reaction to the Black Album. The live versions on the ONA tour were stellar.

The Black Album itself is a jam/fun album and not his "most evil" work .
Never knew it was rare nowadays as I often saw it in the used bins for a cheap price. This could be over now.

Only the first CD version of Lovesexy was one track in Germany ... so the tracked version is the "normal" one here and a "nice price" item.

 

My early German copy (Alsdorf pressing) is one of those "track01 only" CD. Its matrix number is 925720-2 SRC-02 and has the "songs are in a continuous sequence" blurb on the label.

Yeah, that "continuous sequence" blurb looks to be on the current Euro pressings even if they're regularly tracked. Actually, no problems here since it's always a good thing to listen to an album from start to finish

 

I don't know how I missed this. I glanced at his catalog but when I came to that release all I saw was Music From the Motion Picture "Under the Cherry Moon".

 

What about Spandau Ballet's "Parade"?

 

Yes, even when typing in the search mode at Rate Your Music for "Parade" the album didn't pop up.
Search - Rate Your Music »

 

I adore that awful painting.

 

I also like that awful painting. I have everything from Prince to Lovesexy (and the Black Album boot) and I've never even heard Parade. I knew it existed but I skipped it for some reason.

 

I like the painting. Adds to the charm of the album, IMO.

And at least Prince isn't nude in it....

 

It did have that subtitle, but the formal title was "Parade"!

 

RYM does list it as "Parade" with the "Music from..." subtitle as well:

Parade: Music From the Motion Picture "Under the Cherry Moon" by Prince and The Revolution (Album, Film Soundtrack): Reviews, Ratings, Credits, Song list - Rate Your Music »

 

Maybe you've just not looked closely enough!

 

This is something I haven't really thought about, and there is a point to this, what would the singles have been? There's not really any obvious "hit" material on it.

 

Here's a question: Were you (or anybody) deterred from buying Lovesexy because of the cover? I must admit, this and Dirty Mind aren't ones that look visually appealing off the rack

 

It's not so much about fans being deterred from buying it as much as it diminished the appeal of the album and the artist moving forward.

No, it probably didn't stop any hardcore fans from buying it. But that more casual fan who liked "Alphabet St" who might see the album in the rack and wonder if it was worth picking up to check out the rest of it? Sure, the cover can sway that buyer.

 

My first thought was - great, a new Prince LP.
My second thought was - weird cover art choice.
It did not enter my mind to not buy it.

 

I think the Dirty Mind sleeve is exceptional, as is the elpee.
Lovesexy had a difficult history/birth so hard to look at that cover without that in mind.
I think the UFO sleeve for Force It is more disturbing by the way.

 

I have the 1994 CD. I find it interesting but not like a lost "Smile" masterpiece or anything. I take "Lovesexy" any day.

 

Love "The Black Album" & "Lovesexy" both very much, for various & sundry different reasons, but I do prefer "Lovesexy"...think it's his last masterpiece in a crazy great running of the table that starts with "Dirty Mind"... plenty of great later work too!!

 

I LOVE the Black Album. I think it's the funkiest music Prince ever made. Bob George is hilarious. Rock Hard In A Funky Place is a personal favorite. It's one of those albums I have to listen to all the way through when I put it on, every single time. Was there a legit 1994 vinyl release anywhere in the world?

 

You kidding? The bootleg aspect added to it and made it even more dangerous!!!!