Vict0r said:

NeonCraxx said:

This is bullshit. Why don't people love Free?

Don't worry, I love Free. Actually, I seem to like a lot of songs that people on here don't.

Please don't tell me that includes Purple And Gold

1. 1999 – A rotating vocal treatment in a pop party anthem about nuclear disarmament. A song everybody can love and it still manages to seem intellectual yet unpretentious.
2. Little Red Corvette – What about this song isn’t excellent? This is some of Prince’s greatest lyricsm.
3. Let's Pretend We're Married – Fun and sexy but not as cool as those dirty metaphors in Little Red Corvette.
4. Delirious – Goofy and fun and unforgettably reeking of the 1980s.
5. D.M.S.R. – Fun, but it can feel a little vapid compared to the best songs on 1999.
6. International Lover – This is a weird one for me. It’s good, but for some reason I find it to be the least memorable song on this album. It just kind of sits in the middle.
7. All The Critics Love U In New York – Musically it works, but the lyrics lay it on a little thick.
8. Lady Cab Driver - Great, but it drags on and borders on filler.
9. Automatic – Fun, but it really feels like filler. Were dance tracks just this long at that time?
10. Something In The Water (Does Not Compute) – This album was pretty long; why so much filler in this track?
11. Free – The turd in the punch bowl. Prince was probably trying to be sincere, but this schlock is nearly as bad as Lee Greenwood’s “God Bless the USA”. This is a perfect song for goobers who try to end any criticism about US military policy with “…support our troops because freedom isn’t free!”

aardvark15 said:

Vict0r said:

Don't worry, I love Free. Actually, I seem to like a lot of songs that people on here don't.

Please don't tell me that includes Purple And Gold

Nah, I don't classify Purple And Gold as a personal favourite

Thanks guys

Love your comments and views, good to see we are everywhere with this album, a big dividing camp over Free as it does feel a bit out of place on this album.

But we all pretty much agree, that this was amongst the best of his albums and he really was so hungry at this time and yet could give us true professionalism.

1. Something In The Water (Does Not Compute) - Never heard anything as unique & infectious, yet blantantly honest. I live for the second half of this song, especially the raw emotion emoted from that scream Love both the outtake & album version.

2. Little Red Corvette - SO damn tantalizing, every time it comes on I can't change it even if I wanted to

3. International Lover

4. All The Critics Love U In New York - The contrast of his vocals when compared to the complex beat

5. Automatic - So sexy, so addictive, so straight forward, the spoken outro & THE DAMN VIDEO I don't get why people say this track's too long as I think it's a great example of Prince riding out a groove

6. Lady Cab Driver - I love how breezy this song comes across .. well, until Prince's 'interlude'

7. Let's Pretend We're Married

8. Delirious

9. D.M.S.R.

10. 1999

11. Free - So I was like the majority with this song, basically couldn't stand it at all .. that's until last night when I decided to give it a try & it hit me like a brick (in a good way) so let's just say the title track belongs in this position

1999 - IMPOSSIBLE to rank:

I love the 1999 masterpiece.

The whole album is just so energetic, incredible funky..

I love the songs, all of them.

NeonCraxx said:

This is bullshit. Why don't people love Free?

I'm not sure, it seems a little too simple. I don't usually pay attention to lyrics but "Free" seems very naive which is a little bothersome.

I think quite a lot of people view "Moonbeam Levels" as a superior song and maybe resent "Free" for taking its place on the album. Granted, had "Moonbeam Levels" been on there instead I'm sure lots of fans would argue that "Free" is the better song and should have been included.

1. Automatic

2. Something in the Water (Does Not Compute)

3. Lady Cab Driver

4. D.M.S.R.

5. Little Red Corvette

6. 1999

7. All the Critics Love U in New York

8. Free

9. Let's Pretend We're Married

10. International Lover

11. Delirious

Always thought "free" was a brilliant song, possibly the best song of the album. I personally prefer Free to Moonbeam Levels, both lyrically and musically.

I don't consider the lyrical message of "free" as something simple at all. It's interesting to see how everyone has their own definition to what's simple and what's supposed to be minimalism.

As he gradually expands the concept of "freedom", the music gets louder, his vocals get stronger and more instruments are added; The entire song gets all monumental.

This word "free" - includes so many different things. It basically represents every little thing we take for granted on a daily basis. I believe the theme of the song is not necessarily "embrace the fact that you're free to do whatever you want", but "overcome loneliness and pain by acknowledging how blessed and fortunate you are to have what you have."

"Be glad you are free, free to change your mind," I have so much appreciation for this song

[Edited 4/22/12 0:18am]

[Edited 4/22/12 0:19am]

1. D.M.S.R.

2. Little Red Corvette

3. Something In The Water (Does Not Compute)

4. Lady Cab Driver

5. 1999

6. Let's Pretend We're Married

7. Delirious

8. Automatic

9. Free

10. All The Critics Love U In New York

11. Intenational Lover

I love the simplicity and lightness of Free. Its one of those songs that has to be listened to at the right time in order to be appreciated.

1. Lady Cab Driver

2. 1999

3. DMSR

4. Automatic

5. International Lover

6. Free

7. Let's Pretend We're Married

8. All The Critics Love U In New York

9. Something In The Water (Does Not Compute)

10. Delirious

11. Little Red Corvette

I love this album. For me it ties with Purple Rain as his best album. I also love Sign o the times of course, it's diverse and very strong, but, when I think of 1999 and Purple Rain, I think they're full of masterpieces, which isn't exactly the case of Sign o the times, on which there are some songs that are not so astonishing as the highlights.

1. Little Red Corvette
(This is a wonderful composition - melody and lyrics - , one of his very best. A "perfect pop song", like many of you said and even his manager - I can't remember his name - at the time said, with the same words, in a recent interview to a documentary that's on youtube. I love the synth phrases misty feel, how he starts to sing almost groaning it, the killer guitar solo. However, I just think the vocals timbre of the recorded version is not quite there. It's too high pitched, or there're are too many layers on it. I heard a live version, from that show from which came the released versions of I would die 4 U and Baby I'm a star, and I think the vocals were a whole lot better.)

2. Something in the water
(The feeling of this song is just mesmerizing. It starts with "Some people tell I've got great legs/Can't figure out why you make me beg" and ends with the bigger screams on record. I love the rhythms, intricate and genius. And the hypnotic synth riff is just wonderful. Not to mention the vocals, which are among the very best he's recorded. I think it's the only song of his - and by any - relatable to When doves cry.)

3. Let's pretend we're married
(It could be done by a rock 'n roll act. It could be on some of the late 70's Led Zeppelin albums.)

4. Delirious
(It's rockabilly, yet it fits perfectly the album's sound - it shows great versatility.)

5. DMSR
(This is like a modernized version with synths of a long Funkadelic jam.)

6. 1999
7. All the critics love U in New York
8. Lady cab driver
9. Automatic
10. Free
11. International lover

I just wanna mention How come U don't call me anymore, 1999's single b-side. What a great song. One of his very best ballads. Soulful. Perfect. And unique in his carrer. I can't recall any other song like it. It could've been recorded by Etta James, Aretha Franklin, Otis Redding, Donny Hathaway or even James Brown in the 1960's. I think it's his very best b-side, along with Erotic city.

[Edited 4/23/12 15:28pm]

The only track from 1999 I really don't care for is Free. Wish Irresistable Bitch was on the album instead.

1. 1999
2. D.M.S.R.
3. Lady Cab Driver
4. Little Red Corvette
5. Let's Pretend We're Married
6. Delirious
7. Automatic
8. International Lover
9. All the Critics Love U in New York
10. Something in the Water (Does Not Compute)
11. Free

1. Something in the Water

2. Let's Pretend We're Married

3. Lady Cab Driver

4. International Lover

5. Automatic

6. All The Critics Love U in new York

7. Free

8. Delirious

9. Little Red Corvette

10. 1999

[Edited 4/24/12 12:34pm]

Even though I was very young back then when 1999 came out lol:

1: Automatic -Don't know y love the line Needle in a haystack lol

2:Delirious

3:Let's pretend we're married

4.M.S.R.

5:1999- Fav line mommy y everybody has bomb?

6:Little Red Corvette - First time seeing him on tv

7:International Lover

8:All the critics love u in new york

9:Free- Didn't get it then lol

10:Lady Cab Driver

11:Something in the water..does not compute