Prince Albums Thread

For me, 3121 is a bit weak (maybe half and half), but it's really daring and quite great in places. "Fury" was superb, especially live, and "Love" could be his best song of that whole era. But I found stuff like "Get On the Boat" or "Te Amo Corazon" be REALLY tedious.

For me, Musicology was even worse. It sounded good and sounded like Prince, but there just weren't hardly any good songs on that one . I'll take The Rainbow Children with all the weird JW stuff simply because the songs are a lot better on that album.

 

New episode up:

 

I like the run from Musicology to Planet Earth, but I also think Planet Earth is the weakest of the 3 and it's clear that he's starting to run out of steam. The songs are more forgettable and lower quality compared with Musicology and 3121 and there's some definite retread of old ground. Guitar is a prime example - I get why people love the song and there's some great playing on it, but to me the melody is too similar to 'Fury' of 3121 that it almost feels like part 2 of that song.

I love Chelsea Rodgers, The One U Wanna C and Mr Goodnight. I get bored a little during the second half of the album though. Also, I cannot hear the track 'Planet Earth' without hearing the lift from 'Could It Be Magic' and it's incongruous every time - I wonder if P realised he was channelling Barry Manilow...

 

Lotusflow3r (2009), NPG



Track listing:

1. From the Lotus...
2. Boom
3. The Morning After (digital)/Crimson and Clover (retail)
4. 4ever
5. Colonized Mind
6. Feel Better, Feel Good, Feel Wonderful
7. Love Like Jazz
8. 77 Beverly Park
9. Wall of Berlin
10. $
11. Dreamer
12. ...Back 2 the Lotus

This was part of a three-album box set, released alongside the album we'll discuss after this and an album that isn't on streaming but wouldn't be covered here anyway. Between the two albums on the box set that we are covering, this one is more rock-based.
And that's all I have to say about it.
Please refer to what I said about Planet Earth. Actually, for a while, you can just keep referring to what I said about Planet Earth. With one exception, I won't have any opinion on the rest of the albums Prince released in his lifetime.
What opinions do you have on Lotusflow3r, unpopular or not? Would you recommend it with or without a caveat?

 

Second half of the 00’s is probably my least favorite P period. Nothing to say about this album. It has some standouts (Colonized Mind, Crimson and Clover), but the rest is pretty forgettable

 

Lotusflower has some interesting guitar work, but the inspiration's missing. For me, the albums on this box and 20ten would be among my most skipable - in fact I think these are the non-instrumental albums I go back to least. But I think Prince knew the muse was deserting him during this time, hence the four year gap after 20ten.

 

Lotusflower is a great album.

It's a close call between The Rainbow children, 3121 and Lotusflower for my favourite album of the 00's.


I love pretty much every song and it has got better for me with age.

Highlights are hard to pick as I think it's consistently good but would probably go with Boom,Feel Better, Love Like Jazz, $ and Dreamer.

 

Again, after combining 3121 and Planet Earth, I thought Prince had it in him to make very good albums on a consistent basis, and possibly a great one as well. Then this comes out, and it was basically the same thing all over again - this could've been a good album, not two mixed bags with a third disc that had no business being here.

I definitely remember "Colonized Mind," "Feel Good, Feel Better, Feel Wonderful" and "$," those three are keepers. There's probably a few more (maybe "Dreamer" and "Crimson and Clover," which I didn't realize was a retail only track - why is that?), but that's only half of a quality album. On its own, I'd grade this a B-

 

MPLSound (2009), NPG



Track listing:

1. (There'll Never B) Another Like Me
2. Chocolate Box
3. Dance 4 Me
4. U're Gonna C Me
5. Here
6. Valentina
7. Better with Time
8. Ol' Skool Company
9. No More Candy 4 U

Between the two albums on the Lotusflow3r box set, this one is more funk and R&B-based.
And that's all I have to say about it.
What opinions do you have on MPLSound, unpopular or not? Would you recommend it with or without a caveat?

 

Another hit and miss. However, P goes back for some serious early 80´s funk on Ol´Skool Company and he literally burns the house down.
I also have a sweet spot for Valentina (Salma Hayek´s daughter). It´s a little funky fun number

 

For want of a better description, most of this album sounds like a tired attempt to recapture his 1999 album sound.

I will say the same for the 20TEN album too.

 

I may have a slight preference for this one over Lotusflow3r, but again, I wish he took the best of both albums and combined them into a short one that was really worth listening to from start-to-finish. (The eight tracks mentioned in my previous post and this one add up to 39 minutes and change, more than enough for an LP.) MPLSound starts off strong - those first three tracks are the highlights and they got my hopes up for the rest - but the album never really takes off after that. Another B-.

The LM-1 beats are indeed retro, but that's really the only egregious element that's a throwback to the 1999 and Purple Rain era.

 

Just to go back to Rainbow Children a bit given the fresh vinyl release. It's another case where the vinyl reissue sounds much better and relieves some of the 'boxy-ness' of the Prince albums of this period. Beyond that though, just been spinning it and had forgotten just how amazing the playing and instrumentation on this album is - if you can get passed the hooky concept, voice-over and most of the lyrics, it's one of his strongest musically (certainly of the post-80s). I'd also say it's his most convincing attempt at a Jazz approach - if N.E.W.S et al. were in this vein they'd rate much higher from me.

 

MPLSound & Lotusflower, both are nice albums, nothing genius but fun to listen to. no standout songs for me, but a nice B rating

 

20Ten (2010), NPG



Track listing:

1. Compassion
2. Beginning Endlessly
3. Future Soul Song
4. Sticky Like Glue
5. Act of God
6. Lavaux
7. Walk in Sand
8. Sea of Everything
9. Everybody Loves Me

What opinions do you have on 20Ten, unpopular or not? Would you recommend it with or without a caveat?

 

For me P sounds really tired on this one - no wonder he took a 4 year break in releases after this one. This is P by numbers for sure. One of his weakest.

 

I found it so dull that I didn't bother checking his other releases for a few years, after that. All the live stuff in the posh avenues, everyone on stage dressed up to the nines, and all, I couldn't stand that period. Made me think of the late Bryan Ferry stuff, where it looks like you're supposed to be a member of the Bright Young Things society to enjoy it, or something.

Unfortunately, ignoring him for too long made me miss the 3rdeyegirl stuff while it was happening, and I just feel extremely dumb for that.

The hidden track, Laydown is pretty fun, though.

 

Yep. Slaughterhouse is one of Prince's funkiest and politically pointed lps. Top 10 for me.

 

I guess I’m in the minority side here, but I thought 2010 was a serious return to form after a handful of weak albums . It starts with great momentum and includes at least 6 , out of 10, solid tracks.
A very personal favorite. I still play it when I want some great pop Prince

 

The best track on the record, just as the hidden tracks "Wasted Kisses" and "Prettyman" were on their respective misbegotten albums.

"Future Soul Song" is also a keeper, but that's it. Even worse, the CD was distributed through that trashy paper The Daily Mirror. I wish he had released an RSD 45 with those two tracks, it would've been a nice one-off. A C- album.

 

Never got into it. Checking it out today. Spirited review (though the poster seems like the type of dude Prince would steer clear of... "What it be?, What it is?" Interesting history of the album's release.) -

 

I dunno but he liked the artwork, airbrushing it onto his shirt for concerts.

 

The YT poster didn't do the artwork. He names the artist in the video. Prince used to run from uber-enthusiastic fans, though they may have not meant harm. He wasn't comfortable with strangers, in general, unless they were partying on stage with him. Haha

Edit: Oh, you meant the poster airbrushed the art on t's; yeah, I'd love to own a few of those.

 

again another nice album, it sounds a bit demo-ish. Lavaux is my favorie song here, even made me buy the Pointer Sisters cd with Automatic on it

 

I think you could only get this edition w/free 20ten in Germany.

It's unexceptional Prince material to me.