Why Wasn't Lovesexy Recieved Well

I guess you can call this my "Around The World In A Day Thread"(get it?Prince released Purple Rain,then he end up releasing a album totally different)

Well anyway's why wasn't Lovesexy a big hit album?I heard Sheila E. say,"the album isnt't doing good" in a news report.Can yall explain.

2 Me it seemed like he didnt put shit into it.i only liked anna stesia and glam slam all the rest is some other shit.

The album is a great record...I think maybe the undivided one long play forces the listener to play the album straight through. I personally never minded that aspect of the record.

Boysexy1992 said:

But the tour was mad good though

Boysexy1992 said:

to start with: people in some countries had problems with the cover.
(still don't know why)

MattyJam said:

I think it was the album cover which got it banned from some chains and it seemed like the fickle fans from PR and 1999 were starting to move on to whatever the latest trend were as they were not into the music and the genius of P. And they were probably pissed that he got them again. IE the waty Prince does not stay with the same sound, so if they loved him for the PR sound,then they were pissed with ATWIAD and Parade. The Sign of the Times got them back only for him to once again switch it up and hit the with Lovesexy. Which is also a pretty religious record too. I just started listening to this CD again recently and it has actually become one of my favs. And yes that tour was off the meat rack. Sick. And the DVD is pretty great as well.

Too much change preceded this album

I think Prince started to loose people just because of the drastic changes
from the Revolution 1986 climax to changing to a new band with an album that Prince wasn't happy with and did not promote much, did not tour the US(with people excited about it and being disappointed with being given a concert movie)

a lot of fan weariness set in

Then the much anticipated Black album get's cancelled (I think the black album was much more popular)

Then he throws together the Lovesexy project in a few weeks(lack of quality) the band says they don't understand the concept and all of this ^^ comes to a head, resulting in the album not being received well

I like the album, but it does have a very 'shallow' feel to it vs what I consider a very emotional, deep, planned and high quality album like:Purple Rain or Around the World in a Day

Nightcrawler said:

MattyJam said:

OldFriends4Sale said:

In Ohio the record was behind the counter because of the cover. I believe some chains refused to carry it as well. Maybe with a different cover, but I also remember a lot of people wanting the black album instead. Interesting that he changed his mind on the black album initially, but included songs from the Black Album on the Lovesexy tour. But Prince is Prince and plays by his own rules.

MattyJam said:

Id say having so many great Bsides & rubbing people the wrong way with the CD making people have to listen to the whole thing straight through.

MTV made a big deal about that.

The album cover for starters, some places would not stock the album or covered up the front. I remember going to get it on the first day it was released and how embarrassed I was , the guys probably laughed at me. Here I am a 16year old guy buying this, back then P was not as popular as the Purple Rain era, the general public saw him as odd/gay/eccentric/wierd,,,whatever....only the diehards got that album and the real diehards dug it.
It is one of his materpiece's in my opinion and ranks up there with TRC as far as best concept albums. It has the perfect intro/body/exit...it is such a complete album from start to finish. But for the casual listener it is too much work to get into it, except for maybe AlphabetST/Glam Slam

thepope2the9s said:

ElectricBlue said:

Id say having so many great Bsides & rubbing people the wrong way with the CD making people have to listen to the whole thing straight through.

MTV made a big deal about that.

thepope2the9s said:

I know it's been 19 years, but I still can't believe that the Lovesexy album cover caused so much controversy in 1988.

Big ol' prudes.

mistatee said:

ElectricBlue said:

Id say having so many great Bsides & rubbing people the wrong way with the CD making people have to listen to the whole thing straight through.

MTV made a big deal about that.

I don;t think people would not buy an album because it's not tracked.
And...
The album came out in 1988, most people were still buying vinyl back then, so unless you bought the cd, you didn't have to listen to the whole thing.

In America, it was definitely the cover...I have always been a HUGE Prince fan, but even I was embarrassed to buy it (mind you it was 1988 and I lived in the most conservative Chicago suburb). My friends gave me so much shit about that cover. They didn't care on bit about the music.

But also, even though now I think its a great record...the songs just weren't very strong...Esp compared to SOTTs. There were not stand out singles besides Alphabet St...and even that didn't do that great compared to his other lead off singles up that point.

The cover and the music were too out there, complex and perhaps too self indulgent / personal for the masses aside from the 1 obvious hit [Alaphabet St].
The tour on the other hand was a killer.

I wasn't embarassed buying the album. The cover is a work of art. By far his best album cover.
[Edited 9/4/09 8:36am]

It's one of my Top 3. Great album.

I think "Glam Slam" was a single only true Prince fans could get into.

I think many folk (general public beyond die-hards like us) could not get past clowning this album for the cover.

I love the big showy look-at-me-I'm-a-musical-prodigy ending to Glam Slam.... and the way it leads into Anna Stesia... pure genius.

MattyJam said:

Damn,this was just a filler thread.Did not know people would actually post on it.

The cover is fine.

It's just that the songs aren't good, the production is too much, and the one track idea is TERRIBLE.