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Thread started 04/28/09 8:55pm

wildsign

Should 3121 have been on Lotusflow3r?

Do you think the Michael B/Sonny T recording session material should all have been released together? It seems all this material dates from one recording session in late 2004. The track 3121 even starts with the words "from the lotusflower" lifted from his weird vocals on Back 2 the Lotus. (just before the one mix, one mix part). And finishes with a reference to the Wall of Berlin, which would prefectly introduce that track.

The problem with Lotusflow3r, I think, is it's so disjointed. When Feel Better, Feel Good, Feel Wonderful (great as it is) comes in before Colonized Mind has even finished, it feels like we're thrown into a completely different album. It doesn't even tie in lyrically with the theme of the album.

I think more people would appreciate Prince's albums if they were more cohesive. It's like the Sign O the Times era. The album had such great material, but got a fairly mixed reception. Maybe people would have understood the material better if, say, all the Camille material was released separately, the Revolution Dream Factory type material released separately etc...
[Edited 4/28/09 20:56pm]
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Reply #1 posted 04/28/09 9:50pm

contrapposto

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It was originally intended 2 b. nod
bunny2 heart
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Reply #2 posted 04/28/09 10:13pm

funkflex

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3121 is my favorite of the so called prince comeback.....
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Reply #3 posted 04/28/09 10:28pm

luv4u

Moderator

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funkflex said:

3121 is my favorite of the so called prince comeback.....



Come back? what come back? He was never gone
canada

Ohh purple joy oh purple bliss oh purple rapture!
REAL MUSIC by REAL MUSICIANS - Prince
"I kind of wish there was a reason for Prince to make the site crash more" ~~ Ben
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Reply #4 posted 04/28/09 10:44pm

Leo777

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wildsign said:

Do you think the Michael B/Sonny T recording session material should all have been released together? It seems all this material dates from one recording session in late 2004. The track 3121 even starts with the words "from the lotusflower" lifted from his weird vocals on Back 2 the Lotus. (just before the one mix, one mix part). And finishes with a reference to the Wall of Berlin, which would prefectly introduce that track.

The problem with Lotusflow3r, I think, is it's so disjointed. When Feel Better, Feel Good, Feel Wonderful (great as it is) comes in before Colonized Mind has even finished, it feels like we're thrown into a completely different album. It doesn't even tie in lyrically with the theme of the album.

I think more people would appreciate Prince's albums if they were more cohesive. It's like the Sign O the Times era. The album had such great material, but got a fairly mixed reception. Maybe people would have understood the material better if, say, all the Camille material was released separately, the Revolution Dream Factory type material released separately etc...
[Edited 4/28/09 20:56pm]


Curious...what would be in your "Lotusflow3r" configuration?
[Edited 4/28/09 22:45pm]
"If God one day struck me blind,
Ur beauty I'd still see"
- Adore
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Reply #5 posted 04/28/09 11:51pm

wildsign

Curious...what would be in your "Lotusflow3r" configuration?
[Edited 4/28/09 22:45pm]
[/quote]

Michael B. said they recorded about 12 or 13 tracks that night in 2004. I'm guessing Prince originally had a plan for this as all one project. The tracks we know of are 3121, From the Lotus/Back 2 the Lotus, Colonized Mind, Wall of Berlin, Love Like Jazz, and maybe whatever ended up on Planet Earth that Michael and Sonny played on (title track??)

It'd be interesting to know what else was recorded and how it originally all sounded together. Is Michael's great drum outro on Wall of Berlin leading into another furious track? I really love the track "$" (in fact it's my favourite track on the album), but it doesn't have anything to do the rest of this material.
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Reply #6 posted 04/29/09 5:11am

IstenSzek

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wildsign said:

The track 3121 even starts with the words "from the lotusflower" lifted from his weird vocals on Back 2 the Lotus. (just before the one mix, one mix part). And finishes with a reference to the Wall of Berlin, which would prefectly introduce that track.



omfg good find! thumbs up!

i'd been trying to figure out what that line was ever since the 3121 album
was released and after listening to lotusflower for a hundred times it still
hadn't dawned upon me.

wow. now i really do want to go and fit the song into the lotusflower stuff.
it would fit very well.

but how to sequence the whole thing? as you said, wall of berlin right after
3121 is the most logical but where to put 3121 on the tracklist?
and true love lives on lollipops and crisps
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Reply #7 posted 04/29/09 5:23am

Imago

Great finding.

It would fit great in Lotusflower. But so would several 3121 tracks. Hell even a few Planet Earth tracks.


I like 3121 (the album), but lotusflow3r is a better album. I actually find it very cohesive in tone and feel. It would have been nicer to slip and extra track or two, but that's just me being greedy lol
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Reply #8 posted 04/29/09 5:47am

leecaldon

Do we still not know which track(s) Michael B and Sonny T played on Planet Earth?
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Reply #9 posted 04/29/09 5:57am

scififilmnerd

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wildsign said:

Michael B. said they recorded about 12 or 13 tracks that night in 2004. I'm guessing Prince originally had a plan for this as all one project.


Michael B. and Sonny T. are credited for playing on Támar: Milk and Honey, so some of those 11-12 tracks probably ended up on her album. biggrin
rainbow woot! FREE THE 29 MAY 1993 COME CONFIGURATION! woot! rainbow
rainbow woot! FREE THE JANUARY 1994 THE GOLD ALBUM CONFIGURATION woot! rainbow
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Reply #10 posted 04/29/09 7:01am

contrapposto

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IstenSzek said:

wildsign said:

The track 3121 even starts with the words "from the lotusflower" lifted from his weird vocals on Back 2 the Lotus. (just before the one mix, one mix part). And finishes with a reference to the Wall of Berlin, which would prefectly introduce that track.



omfg good find! thumbs up!

i'd been trying to figure out what that line was ever since the 3121 album
was released and after listening to lotusflower for a hundred times it still
hadn't dawned upon me.

wow. now i really do want to go and fit the song into the lotusflower stuff.
it would fit very well.

but how to sequence the whole thing? as you said, wall of berlin right after
3121 is the most logical but where to put 3121 on the tracklist?


Redheaded Stepchild (prince's version) was also part of the original LF tracklist.
bunny2 heart
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Reply #11 posted 04/29/09 7:06am

GetWildHornyPo
ny

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luv4u said:

funkflex said:

3121 is my favorite of the so called prince comeback.....



Come back? what come back? He was never gone

lol
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Reply #12 posted 04/29/09 7:13am

DCSEAN28

Wow.....I totally missed that. Be interesting to see Prince play it live in that order.
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Reply #13 posted 04/29/09 7:18am

Graycap23

wildsign said:

Do you think the Michael B/Sonny T recording session material should all have been released together? It seems all this material dates from one recording session in late 2004. The track 3121 even starts with the words "from the lotusflower" lifted from his weird vocals on Back 2 the Lotus. (just before the one mix, one mix part). And finishes with a reference to the Wall of Berlin, which would prefectly introduce that track.

The problem with Lotusflow3r, I think, is it's so disjointed. When Feel Better, Feel Good, Feel Wonderful (great as it is) comes in before Colonized Mind has even finished, it feels like we're thrown into a completely different album. It doesn't even tie in lyrically with the theme of the album.

I think more people would appreciate Prince's albums if they were more cohesive. It's like the Sign O the Times era. The album had such great material, but got a fairly mixed reception. Maybe people would have understood the material better if, say, all the Camille material was released separately, the Revolution Dream Factory type material released separately etc...
[Edited 4/28/09 20:56pm]

Lol.....u guys don't miss anything.
Good catch.
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Reply #14 posted 04/29/09 12:30pm

LiveToTell86

No, it would have been out of place in my opinion. I don't think LF is disjointed, I think it has a very cool flow.
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Reply #15 posted 04/29/09 12:55pm

TwiliteKid

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wildsign said:

Do you think the Michael B/Sonny T recording session material should all have been released together? It seems all this material dates from one recording session in late 2004. The track 3121 even starts with the words "from the lotusflower" lifted from his weird vocals on Back 2 the Lotus. (just before the one mix, one mix part). And finishes with a reference to the Wall of Berlin, which would prefectly introduce that track.

The problem with Lotusflow3r, I think, is it's so disjointed. When Feel Better, Feel Good, Feel Wonderful (great as it is) comes in before Colonized Mind has even finished, it feels like we're thrown into a completely different album. It doesn't even tie in lyrically with the theme of the album.

I think more people would appreciate Prince's albums if they were more cohesive. It's like the Sign O the Times era. The album had such great material, but got a fairly mixed reception. Maybe people would have understood the material better if, say, all the Camille material was released separately, the Revolution Dream Factory type material released separately etc...
[Edited 4/28/09 20:56pm]


I completely agree with you that Lotus Flower is a disjointed listen. It's not sequenced very well at all and might have been stronger had he kept all of the material from the same sessions together.

That said, I'm not sure I know what you're talking about in regards to the "theme of the album". Even taking just the Sonny T/Michael B tracks into account, I can't for the life of me see a thread that connects them. I think you might be seeing links that aren't actually there.

Great catch on the "From the lotus flower" line, by the way.
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Reply #16 posted 04/29/09 12:55pm

TwiliteKid

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contrapposto said:



Redheaded Stepchild (prince's version) was also part of the original LF tracklist.


Please stop making assertions without providing sources.
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Reply #17 posted 04/29/09 4:03pm

contrapposto

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TwiliteKid said:

contrapposto said:



Redheaded Stepchild (prince's version) was also part of the original LF tracklist.


Please stop making assertions without providing sources.


sad shrug zipped comfort wave
bunny2 heart
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Reply #18 posted 04/29/09 6:20pm

wildsign

TwiliteKid said:

wildsign said:

Do you think the Michael B/Sonny T recording session material should all have been released together? It seems all this material dates from one recording session in late 2004. The track 3121 even starts with the words "from the lotusflower" lifted from his weird vocals on Back 2 the Lotus. (just before the one mix, one mix part). And finishes with a reference to the Wall of Berlin, which would prefectly introduce that track.

The problem with Lotusflow3r, I think, is it's so disjointed. When Feel Better, Feel Good, Feel Wonderful (great as it is) comes in before Colonized Mind has even finished, it feels like we're thrown into a completely different album. It doesn't even tie in lyrically with the theme of the album.

I think more people would appreciate Prince's albums if they were more cohesive. It's like the Sign O the Times era. The album had such great material, but got a fairly mixed reception. Maybe people would have understood the material better if, say, all the Camille material was released separately, the Revolution Dream Factory type material released separately etc...
[Edited 4/28/09 20:56pm]


I completely agree with you that Lotus Flower is a disjointed listen. It's not sequenced very well at all and might have been stronger had he kept all of the material from the same sessions together.

That said, I'm not sure I know what you're talking about in regards to the "theme of the album". Even taking just the Sonny T/Michael B tracks into account, I can't for the life of me see a thread that connects them. I think you might be seeing links that aren't actually there.

Great catch on the "From the lotus flower" line, by the way.


You're right, there's not much of a theme as such on the album as it is. I guess that's what I'm wishing for more of. When "Feel Better" starts, the lyrics are just so different in tone to what came before that it just makes no sense. There was a vague cosmic/spiritual tone, and all of a sudden it's bragging and bravado along the lines of "Why should I do that when I can do this" or "Props and Poundz" (I know that's a bit harsh. The song is much better than those two)
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Reply #19 posted 05/04/09 4:38pm

December1984

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Leo777 said:

Curious...what would be in your "Lotusflow3r" configuration?
[Edited 4/28/09 22:45pm]


I can't say for sure what the Michael B/Sonny T tracks from 2004 are, but I suppose it might have gone something like this:

From the Lotus...

3121

Wall of Berlin

$

Colonized Mind

Feel Good, Feel Better, Feel Wonderful

The One U Wanna C

Boom

Crimson and Clover

4ever

Dreamer

...Back 2 the Lotus

It's less of a psychedelic/spiritual album and more of a party/rock record but I think it still works. All of Prince's best material has always included a mix of different sounds and styles. I put it together in my iTunes playlist and I like the flow of it.
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Reply #20 posted 05/04/09 5:05pm

NouveauDance

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contrapposto said:

TwiliteKid said:



Please stop making assertions without providing sources.


sad shrug zipped comfort wave

falloff

I like that, it actually makes sense as a sentence!
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Reply #21 posted 05/05/09 3:28pm

4bjb

Prince said the thinking behind Lotusflow3r was to introduce a "new artist" to the world...somebody that is very dear to him...having said that, Prince launched Lotusflow3r at the perfect time.
Lemme
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Reply #22 posted 05/05/09 6:31pm

TwiliteKid

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December1984 said:

Leo777 said:

Curious...what would be in your "Lotusflow3r" configuration?
[Edited 4/28/09 22:45pm]


I can't say for sure what the Michael B/Sonny T tracks from 2004 are, but I suppose it might have gone something like this:

From the Lotus...

3121

Wall of Berlin

$

Colonized Mind

Feel Good, Feel Better, Feel Wonderful

The One U Wanna C

Boom

Crimson and Clover

4ever

Dreamer

...Back 2 the Lotus

It's less of a psychedelic/spiritual album and more of a party/rock record but I think it still works. All of Prince's best material has always included a mix of different sounds and styles. I put it together in my iTunes playlist and I like the flow of it.


$, FBFGFW, Boom, 4Ever and Dreamer are all Josh and Cora, so they don't fit your filter. Not sure about The One U Wanna C or C&C, but I think I've read that they are on Planet Earth (the track).
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Reply #23 posted 05/05/09 6:51pm

thedoorkeeper

Aren't there a couple of tracks on Planet Earth that reference 3121?
I can't remember which ones.
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