{{{This review of N.E.W.S. (and other recent albums in the NPGMC experience) just appeared in Ninevolt, a music magazine out of Norfolk, VA.

The N.E.W.S. about Prince
by the Philistine
July 28, 2003

It was perhaps inevitable that Prince would one day abandon the pop song format. I say "perhaps" because, aside from the fact that not even Nostradamus could forecast the whims of His Royal Badness, so much of Prince’s genius has expressed itself in the area of pop production. Though insufficiently acknowledged, Prince has had a major impact on the dynamics of the mix in contemporary R&B and hip hop, particularly in the way he fills out space around the rhythm with subtly audible textures, intoxicating as faint perfumes, or in his intricate, multi-tracked vocal arrangements, in which a veritable army of Princes intone in every register their devotion to you. But unlike most studio wizards, he is haunted by an equal but opposite demon: to eschew technological trickery altogether in favor of plain old-fashioned ass-kicking. He’s a virtuoso on several instruments and to play in Prince’s band requires a superhuman level of tightness. His set lists vary nightly, and the sometimes radical reinterpretations of his hits, coupled with extensive improvised jams, constitute the very antithesis of the pop concert.}}}

In terms of fan base and name recognition, Prince is still the biggest act to challenge the corporate music machine, resulting in a near-official ban of his post-Warner Brothers work from the radio. Undaunted, he’s transformed this blackballing into a kind of freedom, embarking on the boldest, least commercial phase of his 25-year career. In 2001, he released The Rainbow Children, an uncompromisingly religious concept album reflecting his affiliation with the Jehovah’s Witnesses and his enthusiasm for their New World Translation of the Bible. Lyrically the album is dominated by an esoteric allegory involving the Rainbow Children, the Wise One, Woman, and the Digital Garden, narrated by Prince with a murky effect on his voice that makes things extremely difficult to follow. This might be a blessing to the less-devout among us, but there’s no need to begrudge his proselytizing when it results in such astonishing music. "Gospel jazz-funk" doesn’t nearly do the album descriptive justice, though it conveys some idea. Instrumental jams link songs together into a seamless whole and even more straightforward ballads like "Muse 2 the Pharoah" or funkouts like "1+1+1 is 3" are transformed by the overall vibe, drenched in Fender Rhodes piano and spiked with heavy doses of distorted guitar. As a whole, The Rainbow Children may be the most shocking departure of a career built on shocking departures. But this was only the beginning.

In 2002, Prince promised subscribers of his music club (www.npgmusicclub.com) an album of "solo piano and voice." This didn’t quite prepare me for what arrived in the mail that May: One Night Alone..., a terse, melancholy work largely absorbed with his failure to win back his estranged wife, Mayte. Clearly he isn’t used to having his imperial will thwarted, and the album runs the gauntlet of dark emotions from sad anger to bitter resignation. He briefly pauses to denounce Abraham Lincoln in "Avalanche," but otherwise the record is a disconcerting glimpse into the emotional life of an artist notoriously reticient about his private affairs. As a pianist, Prince displays the casual virtuosity of the composer/band leader, like Ellington, able to rip it up but usually restraining himself in favor of evoking a particular mood. This may be equally seen on the more widely-available One Night Alone... Live! the three cd box-set culled from his 2002 intimate theatre tour. About three-quarters into most shows, Prince mounts the bench for a solo piano medley, reproduced here as he plays tantalizing off-the-cuff bits of such classics as "I Wanna Be Your Lover" and "The Beautiful Ones." It allows him to squeeze in a few extra hits when he’s more in the mood to lead his band through lesser-known terrain; in addition to incendiary versions of several cuts from The Rainbow Children, ONA Live! reinvestigates overlooked gems like "The Other Side of the Pillow" (from his 1998 all-acoustic album The Truth) and even debuts a jazz instrumental, "Xenophobia," featuring the horn of Maceo Parker. This latter song is perhaps most indicative of the direction Prince intends to take his music.

I don’t even have time to talk about the awesome third ONA Live! disc--comprised of all-out jams from his legendary late-night aftershows--because Prince has already cranked out two more albums. The first, Xpectation, is an album of jazz instrumentals released exclusively to club-members via mp3 and featuring Candy Dulfer on sax. Prince’s previous forays into jazz--most notably two records he recorded with Sheila E under the name Madhouse--have sounded a little too Tonight Show for my taste, but Xpectation is authentic and gritty. The album is convincing largely because the band makes no effort to sound "jazzy." On some tracks, it is boldly augmented with a violinist, while the Purple One alternates between Fender Rhodes, organ, and guitar, continually varying the texture. Non-members who missed this extraordinary disc can at least console themselves with Prince’s brand new album, N.E.W.S., on sale this week. Like Xpectation, N.E.W.S. is all instrumental, but therein the similarity ends. Composed of four 14-minute suites named after the cardinal directions, N.E.W.S. features the core of the ONA Live band--a stripped down trio of keyboards, bass, and drums--plus Eric Leeds, a saxophonist who’s worked with Prince on and off since Sign O’ the Times (1987). The album is impossible to characterize; there are elements of jazz, fusion, funk, R&B, and rock, but no genre predominates. In lesser hands, this would be a diffuse mess instead of a compelling tour de force. Even after Xpectation, N.E.W.S. is a complete revelation, a singular work from one of the most singular artists of our time. And this is definitely news you won’t hear on the radio.

I love this review. I have to say I feel the same passion about N.E.W.S as does the reviewer. What is so awesome to me about Prince as oppossed to other artist is that he does not chase after radio airplay. Sure he could continue to write hit songs that have all the emotional maturity of a 15 year old boy; but he grows and challanges us to grow with him or not. I believe he is comfortable with the choice you make cause he has made his. I do hope this postive review will help out some of the consistently negative comments that are posted on this site. Some people are not comfortable liking something unless others like it. Well here you go a postive review about a great album.

This overview of his music since TRC is so on the mark. I couldn't agree more.
What I would really like to see is Xpectation released on CD. Maybe make it only available thru the club. Its too good to only be a download.

...*ugh*...4 "songs" I tried to listen to...I really tried...but, now, I have to accept that that's time poorly wasted that I'll never get back...
I was hoping that I'd be pleasantly surprised after the horror that was TRC...but, hope as much as I might...there is no hope left.
I once swore that I'd never buy another one of his albums again...and this travesty just enforces that. The only change is that now, no matter what he oozes out, I won't even give it a chance at all.
Thankfully, there's still the WB catalogue for when I want to listen to something worthwhile...well, except for The Vault...

MadMonkey said:

MadMonkey -- I believe that if you really give it a try you'll be amazed... I can hardly play much of Prince's back catalog (and I have a substantial portion of it), due to the new directions that he has embarked upon and managed to drag me along.

I imagine that I too consider "instrumental music" a dirty word when it comes to Prince, but that is more because of the infatuation that I have with his lyrics, but Prince is making me reevaluate my prejudices in this area.

Xpecation is breathtaking in my estimation; NEWS is a knockout! Give it a try my friend... surrender your expectations.

One other thing... tell me that you don't find that Bassline that introduces SOUTH pure Prince and I will tell you that you're a liar!

nice to read positive things about prince in the media once more...hopefully one day soon i'll be able to agree with it as well...

MadMonkey said:

Then stop wasting your own time by being on THIS website and talking about the man.

This guy is clearly a Prince worshipper. Because of his obvious worship of Prince, I don't respect his credibility as a critic. This is unfortunate though, because I agreed with everything he said. Kind of a Catch-22 of sorts.

I wish this was in a mainstream magazine, so Prince could get a little bit of free advertising

savoirfaire said:

He obviously takes Prince seriously, but I think rejecting the opinions of critics who take him seriously is kind of a vicious circle. After all, we don't dismiss a review because its writer is a fan of, say, Miles Davis.

Prince has been called a genius all of his career, but today his work is not so well known -- and I'm not just talking about his recent work. Simply put, Prince's catalog + unreleased material + legendary live shows make his work one of the most poorly known, recording for recording. He is ripe for the kind of treatment afforded to the Beatles or Elvis -- can you imagine if the King had a recording equivalent to something like Witness 4 the prosecution or Just my imagination forgotten in some warehouse? I don't think there's one artist alive today that has written more unknown and neglected gems. If he finally settled his dispute with WB, it would be possible to stage a much deserved revival, with reissues augmented with some of the abundant unreleased material. That seems impossible at this point, but in the meantime Prince's reputation with the critics, which had been in decline, is showing sings of being revived even if the reviews are fewer than in the past.

tsss..

this
is
pure
FAM
worship

great review

and JG - oh senna !!

Nice review. This guy obviously is a fan, but he doesn't sound like a mere worshipper to ... I mean, I would at least get curious after reading such an article!
It's very nice to read this kind of reviews now that Prince seems to have chosen a strong new path and is exploring it in a mature and thick way.

i can't help myself. I've tried but, u know, i just...i just...i just...Damn:

N.E.W.S is DA B.O.M.B, man!!

hmmm...the last time I checked, this was an open forum and everyone was allowed to give their two bits...well, I had mine. I certainly am not telling anyone that my words are the gospel and you must heed them. I'm just saying what I feel. If you don't like what I have to say, that's fine...if you agree with me, that's fine too...we're all entitled to our own opinions. But, the one thing that no one should do to anyone else is tell them what to do without any justification. So, don't tell me to stop doing what I enjoy doing, newbie (re: minneapolisgenius)...I've been here a lot longer than you and I intend on staying. I'm not going to tell you what you should do...that's not for me to say. You're more than welcome to take part in any conversation...just the same as I am. And, as it has been said many times in the past...if you don't like what you read, you don't have to read it. It's okay, really...I won't mind at all.
And...kmc...honestly...I really did try. I tried as hard as I could. But, he's just lost it now. Whatever creativity he had has long since died a quiet death. Which is really quite a shame. I used to be nuts over him. Heck, I used to be (and probably still am) the authority on his music in my hometown. But, his neglegence of the people who made him a star (e.g. the fans, WB, etc.) and his seemingly waning interest in offering the public anything worthwhile have just totally soured anything he does, for me, now.
But, wait...a thought just occurred to me...
Maybe (since he's such a fan of This Is Spinal Tap), just maybe, he's going all experimental...so he can lose his fanbase, and then come back blazing when he's 50. LOL
Sorry, I just couldn't keep a straight face...LOL.

I don't think there's one artist alive today that has written more unknown and neglected gems. oui Aéro

MadMonkey said:

Hey, Madmonkey,
I've said it before at this forum and I'll say it again, you're entitled to your opinion. It seems that Prince fans break down into a few categories. There are fans, like me, who are into the fact that Prince does something new everytime he puts somethingout. There are those who only love his old work, those who love his vocals, those who love his arrangements.

So it's cool that you feel the way you do about his recent output. Me, personally, ONA piano album didn't do much for me, but NEWS is brilliant and TRC was the most incredible piece of work since LoveSexy (which I classify up there with Purple Rain and SOTT).

MadMonkey said:

I don't know what you define as "really trying," but I've really tried on every single Prince release since 1999 and managed to fall in love with most of them... if I let my mind go back I can still remember my WTF is this response to this beloved trio of albums: Purple Rain, ATWIAD, Parade. I won't get into the minutae of why Purple Rain was took effort on my part, but it was a radical departure from his earlier works. Prince does seem to be the master of the radical departure.

MadMonkey said:

What do you define creativity as? It has been argued ad nauseum on this forum, but radio and charts don't speak to creativity... Prince needs someone willing to PAYOLA his work back into Top 40.

MadMonkey said:

Prince has changed my perception of how an artist gives back to his fanbase. I probably don't look at negligence in the same terms as you... I sometimes feel that the recording industry makes artists negligent. I will only use MJ because we are familiar with his discography.

• Off The Wall, 1979
  
• Thriller, 1982
  
• Bad, 1987
  
• Dangerous, 1991
  
• History, 1995
  
• Invincible, 2001
  

In the approximate decade that it took MJ to put out Off The Wall, Thriller, and Bad, what did Prince manage to do? I would say that he made us revisit the meaning of the word negligence. Between the years of 1979 and 1982 we got from Prince:

• Dirty Mind
  
• Controversy
  
• The Time
  
• Vanity 6
  
• 1999
  

In the ten year span that it took MJ to put out Dangerous and Invincible we got from Prince:

• Diamonds and Pearls
  
• 
  
• Come
  
• The Black Album
  
• The Gold Experience
  
• Gold Nigga
  
• Exodus
  
• Chaos & Disorder
  
• Emancipation
  
• Crystal Ball
  
• New Power Soul
  
• Rave un2 The Joy Fantastic
  
• The Rainbow Children
  

... and the second list doesn't include any of his Paisley Park work.

MadMonkey said:

Again, what do you define as worthwhile?! I just can't be dismissive of the output, my friend. I find much of Prince's work calls for a certain amount of surrender on my part as the listener.
[This message was edited Mon Aug 4 5:46:18 PDT 2003 by kmc]

minneapolisgenius said:

Excuse me, but all opinions are welcome here as long as they are expressed with civility and intelligence. You don't have to love everything Prince puts out to be here. If we all agreed on everything, life would be quite boring.

Just like NEWS, which I feel, is a total snooze. Some occasionally funky moments, but it feels throwaway to me. I appreciate it for what it is though, and I look forward to the day when Prince releases a proper new "album" with "songs".

My opinion, of course.

Ian, you said "occasionally funky moments".
What about the moments that aren't supposed to be funky at all? Like the ending of South? That has to be propably my favorite part, really beautiful.

BTW, I think NEWS should be looked at as a collection of "musical moments", if that makes any sense.
As complete songs, they are good IMO, while they also have some dull moments. But then suddenly you're into something completely different, like the guitar breakdown on West.

Finally... a reviewer that really "understands". I wonder if he/she is a fan or if they can really just relate based on level of musicianship displayed Prince and his band.

Prince isn't playing at the 3rd grade "Pop" level anymore. Musically speaking, he's in grad-school working on a PhD and a lot of fans are lost. Too bad...

I can't argue with Prince's musical direction...or his ability...or that his music is far superior than common radio play today as far as music/talent/structure/etc goes.

However...is there anyone else out there that would love to hear him slam out a tune like "Shake your tail feathers" and get the radio waves hopin again? We all say/hear that "he could generate radio top 40 hits in his sleep." Maybe he could...but if it was that easy, wouldn't it be fun to have him do it one more time? Could any of the "High" tracks been top 40 hits???

I certainly realize the struggles in doing that with his "freedom" position and all...but just thinking out loud.

Its not a bad album Its an Excellent album, for those that don't like it and think its bad it looks to me they just don't like this kind of music, I've been anticipating this for a long time and from the sounds of it so has Prince all the way back from when he was with that East 49 or what ever number band, also with the revolution, the sound has been there it just hadn't been throughly explored, He could have done this along time ago and I would have preferred albums like this over many other albums in the past, but now is the time for it and right on time it its, so those who don't care for it get off the wagon and make room for the rest of us that do like it , both old fams and new fams. I believe every song Prince has made has a extra long version of it where he gives each song a total work out, like Lets Go Crazy, I would Die For U also has a much better version where the music gets an entire work out, I hate listening to a 2 ,3 , 4 , min song give me something I can groove to , CRYSTAL BALL!


...

and as for shake a tail feather its just another old anthem which the radio is OVER POPULATED with them, in every kind of music be it christian , hip hop, pop , give me something new something different give me something like a Herbie Hancock, Quincy Jones , Miles, Stevie Wonder, Production, Give Me a PRINCE production of wonder full sounds and textures stuff I aint heard before, those are the kind ofg MAsters in my collection Give me something a master like prince would make at this timer in his life not what some stale top 40 radio wants to play.



The music I play aint the type of stereo your tryin to feed Dont play me

ian said:

Hater!

My experience is different. I actually expected to dislike NEWS, especially after hearing the first sample. It was going to be "Purple Muzak". Well, it's not a tight little record packed with 3 minute pop masterpieces, no.. but neither is it "purple muzak". The way Prince and his band keep changing textures and styles is compelling -- it's like a guided tour through american music -- rock funk jazz, blues succeeed each other and mix deftly, rarely sounding anything less than natural. This is not a "take on the world" effort, but a project with a modest goal : channel some of the more experimental side of the band into a record. I think NEWS does that well, as did Xpectation. For projects that could be dismissed as "Prince wanna be Sting wanna be a jazzman", these two records made and released without much fanfare are successful in their own right. It's not what I want to hear from Prince for the rest of his career, but neither is it Kamasutra. It's Prince best instrumental music since and (probably) including Madhouse. Hopefully, Prince's next lyrical effort will be better, both from the year of lyrical silence and the many months spent on pure instrumentation. This is much, much better than putting out half-baked pop songs year after year.
[This message was edited Mon Aug 4 7:23:31 PDT 2003 by Aerogram]

Aerogram said:[quote]savoirfaire said:[quote]This guy is
Prince has been called a genius all of his career, but today his work is not so well known -- and I'm not just talking about his recent work. Simply put, Prince's catalog + unreleased material + legendary live shows make his work one of the most poorly known, recording for recording.

CASE IN POINT: My Pastor says that he likes Prince very much. (Yes, can you believe my Pastor likes Prince!) But, he also likes country music. When I told him that Prince once wrote songs for Kenny Rogers, he accused me of lying. I mean, seriously, he thought that I was lying to my own Pastor!!! In church, no less!! So, here's an example of people not really knowing how much of an influence P's had on the music industry. He's done everything, and I think it's a shame that his genius will never see the light of day...unless perhaps he dies...

I have actually emailed the Philistine before about a previous work. He is not a FAM. He has a respect for all sorts of music, and Prince is amoung that group. He did his homework, and as you can see, it shows. He has a subscription because it's the way he makes his living.

The majority of the reviews in the papers that I have seen have been focused on how Prince is not making the big hits anymore. They cater to an audience that wants to know "what the hell ever happened to Prince?" They want to seem witty by using funny catchphrases and try to make it look like they know thier facts by reading through the press releases and regurgitating fact.

This is great that he did his homework beyond just finding out that Prince's previous release schedule was.

If anything you should be encouraging MORE of that type of work.

calldapplwondery83 said:

Don't ya know, Prince fans use the term "funky" as a generic positive adjective. It doesn't necessarily mean "funk"

Yes NEWS has some great moments. But they are just moments, and they are moments I'd rather hear as part of an actual song. Just my preference. I find it all rather directionless and indulgent. As I said, I appreciate it for what it is, but I'd enjoy a proper "album" a bit more.

Aerogram said:

Actually, I agree with this assessment. This isn't a record with lofty ambitions, it is a small project (since Prince isn't tied to the idea of doing full albums if he doesn't want to) with some great music.

It's better than Xpectation. I enjoy it and appreciate it for what it is. I'll forget it though, quite quickly. At least the low price of the CD reflects the lack of content, so I have no complaints. I look forward to hearing a proper "album" from Prince in the future though.