Endorphinmachine Now we're talking, great intro and full of energy. I never got what this was all about but I think you should dive right in, enjoy the ride and let the endorphins do their thang. Love the distinctly different guitar sounds during the break but what really sets this song apart for me are the drums. So many good Prince tracks could've been great with drums like these. Easy 5/5
"Endorphinmachine" gets a 5/5 from me for that scream alone! This is definitely one of Prince's best "rock" tracks (in general, I think his "rock" songs in the nineties were stronger than the ones he recorded in the eighties). I know the cowbell gets a lot of stick from some fans but I like it. I also like the lyrics. The endorphinmachine was referenced on the NPG album Exodus in the skit "NPG Bum Rush the Ship." Forget Parade and Diamonds and Pearls, I want a "super deluxe" Gold Experience/mid nineties boxed set and I want it to be at least ten discs! I hope the estate does it right, there is SO MUCH potential for a fantastic boxed set from this era!
Endorphinmachine "Press 1 for the money, press 2 for the dream Get ready for something that you've never seen: the endorphin machine" I adore this song. The first time I heard the song it was the live version on the Act II tour in 1993. After that I always loved it, including the album version. Prince took the initial rock-version (from the Glam Slam Ulysses and the Interactive cd-rom) and adds keys, synths and a some percussion instrument that you can bang on (pretty sure it's not a cowbell...). It's still very powerful and great, but the original version (released on Interactive) is another NPG Power Trio song (Prince, Michael, Sonny), so I prefer that one. Those three made some amazing music in the 90s! The vocals are amazing! Great screams and spits! Great bass and drums... and that guitar . I want one of those endorphin machines (he totally sold it). The Glam Slam Ulysses version is also the version on the promo video: After performing the song in 1993-1996, he forgot it until 2011 when he started playing more rock oriented songs and added it to the setlist with 3rdEyeGirl. Again, such a great performance (this time with a cowbell by Joshua)!! Here's one from the Montreux 2013 show: https://youtu.be/4aqwBCZaOk4 What's not to love?! This is a 5+ out of 5!
Every time I see a YouTube video of Prince live with 3rdEyeGirl I'm blown away. Like watching his version of Tin Machine on steroids (and better). Is there any official live release audio/video or else some semi official broadcast release that is a must get ?
Sadly, there is no official live release from 3rdEyeGirl. There are quite a few live videos officially streamed by Prince, but not on DVD or Blu-ray. I guess that most of them can be found on YouTube. Here's a nice compilation of some of them: https://youtu.be/crfNw8dfN2o Of course, one of the shows that should be released on Blu-ray is the Montreux 2013 show (in fact, they should release a box set with all the shows from 2007, 2009 and 2013. They have been recorded in great HD quality): ... and yes, you can say a lot about Hannah's drumming, but Prince and that band were indeed on fire!
Thanks, I searched for Montreux and found a 3 show blu-ray disc, especially the 3rd night setlist looks killer.
"endorphimnachine" - overproduced and loud, 1/5 I'll try to justify this ... gold experience is the worst album of the 90s, not only by Prince but by everybody. After his extended period of teasing fans with the album WB refused to release, he must have spent that time endlessly tinkering with it, producing and over-producing, yet somehow never finding the true groove to which he could rest his enormous legacy clanking after him like a bunch of tin cans behind a car. He couldn't find his stride with being deliberately provocative ("p control"), come hither ("shhh"), stud rocker ("endorphin machine"), weird ("dolphin") or perhaps by writing the worst song on the album, "the most beautiful girl in the world" equipped with its whole marketing campaign... he even tried copping Whale's exquisite "hobo humpin' slob babe" with his own half-a$$ed knock-off, "now." GE's annoying segues, (something he never learned his lesson from, not on the symbol album, or goldni$$a or exodus) still persist here ... and this CD is annoyingly avoidably LOUD. Don't forget the horrible cover ... remember by this time, that 90s music was taking a turn from the cheese-grate of the 1980s. Prince was too busy trying to find his feet in the music world by devising concepts and chasing trends when he should have just stuck to the funk. There's more but I havent had coffee yet and my Newfoundlander is barking.
I went to all three nights and it was classic Prince. The second night was poor by his standards - he hardly picked up the guitar, the show had no flow and he seemed distracted. The rumours all the next day were that he was going to play a 3rdEyeGirl set and sure enough he did. The Breakdown was a highlight, but it was a killer set from start to finish. Even the sampler set was brilliant - he brought the horns on to play over the job and had Larry slapping the bass too. Well worth watching.
I am shocked these weren't among the first releases made by the estate. All of the "work" is already done, they just need to come to an agreement with the Montreux people release them. I'd take them any way they were released but from a business point of view three consecutive Autumn releases would make sense. These would have made great Christmas presents circa 2017, 2018 and 2019!
I wouldn't put it all that harsh but I agree. Prince desperately wanted to get back to his I'm-alone-at-the-top-80s-status and obviously wasn't able to. It's kinda ok to skip thru it today but back in '95 the whole album was so old fashioned and oldschool. But like most Prince albums there are some decent tracks like Endorphinmachine, and others. (Gold) Plus there's one masterpiece on it
Agreed with that, though it's not as bad as a handful of other singles. I think the whole overpolishing thing isn't unique to this Prince album in particular and sometimes songs are improved, sometimes ruined. But of course as a fan of the album I don't mind it here, didn't even have a problem with the compression, since the first 25 times or so I heard the album in a rental car on my first trip to the U.S. late in '95, so it was a great companion on the road between Jacksonville & Florida keys and Orlando to Miami.
Yeah chalk me up as someone who loves the album, and loves 'Endorphinmachine', even if Prince raps on it. Will agree that the album is overly loud, but I don't mind too much given I love the album. 5/5 for 'Endorphinmachine'. Not the last time I'll give a song on the album that score.
Endorphinmachine: I first heard this on the VH1 performance and instantly fell in love with it. But when the album came out the next year, I was a bit underwhelmed. I think the added production neutered it somehow. Underneath is my favorite Prince 90’s Rock song, and the guitar riff pops into my head in all its vaguely psychedelic glory pretty much weekly. The cowbell is somewhat cringey and the added production touches are unnecessary. Yet the song itself is so good it still rates a 4.5/5 for me. I love the more uncluttered outtake version posted though!
Endorphoinmachine 4.5/5 One of his best rockers. That midsection on the bridge is just amazing. Hold up, wait a minute Ain't no good unless somebody else is in it You there with the cynical disposition Perhaps you'd like to join us in a mission Of fishin' for logic in a think tank Unless, of course, you're feelin' like a punk and take the bank But every now and then there comes a time you must defend Your right to die and live again, live again, live again
