joyinrepetition said:

Classic Prince album in the latter years for Prince

Feels like it was his last great album in terms of promotion, singles, offical videos, tours etc.

stpaisios said:

Phishanga said:

Unfortunately, that autotune song that I fortunately forgot the name of, is on there, so... Really like the title track and The Word, though.

Yea, but autotune in that song has purpose like some vocal filter -- a nice touch, it's not forced to correct his vocal... Prince is not a crap singer.

Yeah but it's super gimmicky and annoying. And pretty much everyone uses it. As an effect, not a correction. It was being heavily used even when this came out. Really gets old, and it can go away any time. There are entire albums these days with it dialed up to 11.

[disregard previous question about autotune.]

I rank the songs this way...

1.)Love 10/10 (great song)

2.) Black Sweat 10/10

3.) 3121--10/10 (sonically funky as hell, lyrically a bit basic at times but drinking from glasses with chocolate handles..only Prince could come up with that eccentric little touch)

4.) the Dance 9.5/10

5.) Satisfied 9.5/10 (a bit derivative but very fun and I dont mind its message of pleasure through talking sexy/spiritual)

6.) Incense and Candles-- 8.5/10 sexy song (didn't need the autotune but a good song noneless)

7.) Te Amo Corazon--8.5/10 lovely song but not especially memorable.

8.) The Word 8.5/10 (lyrically--a bit too preachy for me, but damn if that song almost makes me want to believe--musically wonderful song)

9.) Fury 8.5/10 (much better live I agree but not bad as is)
10.) Lolita 8.5/10 (also better live, a catchy song but feels almost too 80's to me and Lolita in the book is 13 years old, I am not too fond of the reference even though I know he is probably referring to a 17 or 18 year old)

11.)Beautiful Love and Blessed (7.5/10) -- pleasant enough song but also a bit preachy for me.

12.) Get on the boat (7.5/10)--pleasant enough but also a bit preachy to me and it doesnt fit in with the tone of the rest of the album.

Average grade of all songs 8.875. B+ (lowered only by some of its preachiness)

johnnyribcage said:

I find it to be enjoyable, middle of the road Prince. Noting earth-shattering. There are few great tracks in my opinion. 3121, Lolita, Black Sweat (although the lead synth kind of hurts my ears these days on certain stereos... getting old I guess).

The rest ranges from pretty decent to not that good. Like, I'd rank Love as okay. Incense suffers from that awful auto-tune - probably my single most hated vocal affect of all time. I pretty much dispise anything that uses it. Fury was better live, but the production here neuters it. The Word - okay I guess. Get on the Boat is a solid effort, but not as strong as others in this vein.

So yeah... not bad. I pop it on once in a while.

by the way, reason for the edits: how in the hell do you put paragraph space breaks on this forum? None of the typical ways work for me.

[Edited 9/10/17 7:40am]

[Edited 9/10/17 8:20am]

gingerwildwood said:

kingricefan said:

Phishanga said:

Kiss is a masterpiece, too. But Black Swaet has the bass in it.

coldasice said:

kingricefan said:

I like 3121. Took awhile for the opening song to grow on me but I like almost every one now. Black Sweat is a masterpiece!

Black sweat is pretty much just a remix of Kiss.

coldasice said:

Phishanga said:

Unfortunately, that autotune song that I fortunately forgot the name of, is on there, so... Really like the title track and The Word, though.

It's a talk box not autotune

Really? Well, I'm really not that interested in listening to the song again, so... but I guess autotune all the way up and a talk box can be quite similar.

I love the album and yea it has some underrated gems. 3121, Incense and Candles, Fury, The Word, Lolita, Black Sweat, Love jams

johnnyribcage said:

I find it to be enjoyable, middle of the road Prince. Noting earth-shattering. There are few great tracks in my opinion. 3121, Lolita, Black Sweat (although the lead synth kind of hurts my ears these days on certain stereos... getting old I guess).

The rest ranges from pretty decent to not that good. Like, I'd rank Love as okay. Incense suffers from that awful auto-tune - probably my single most hated vocal affect of all time. I pretty much dispise anything that uses it. Fury was better live, but the production here neuters it. The Word - okay I guess. Get on the Boat is a solid effort, but not as strong as others in this vein.

So yeah... not bad. I pop it on once in a while.

by the way, reason for the edits: how in the hell do you put paragraph space breaks on this forum? None of the typical ways work for me.

[Edited 9/10/17 7:40am]

I almost agree with this lock stock.

I'd say it's probably more filler than good IMO.


I remember when this album came out. A lot of people who's opinions I really respected on here really loved Te Amo Corazon. I just don't see it.

3121 is a fun, albeit simple track, (suited much better in the live environment as a jam). And there are a couple of other tracks that are OK if I'm in the mood for them.


But too much of the album is a backwards facing re-tread for me personally to even label it as "good". It's a pedestrian Prince album that is cohesive compositionally and had lovely packaging.


Oh Johnny - hold down the shift key and hit enter. Thats how you get paragraphs.

[Edited 9/10/17 16:54pm]

[Edited 9/10/17 16:55pm]

kingricefan said:

I like 3121. Took awhile for the opening song to grow on me but I like almost every one now. Black Sweat is a masterpiece!

The title track is actually the highlight for me – it’s the kind of strange, creative, left-field funk that I’ve always loved Prince for.

Similar to Musicology IMO; quite listenable with a few good songs but nothing really great.

.

At the time I loved the opening 3121 but then was disappointed with what followed, especially Fury after the rocking version he played on SNL.

Generally well regarded by the fans, was fairly well received by the critics at the time, Black Sweat feels like it should have been a proper hit... I dunno, there was the usual stuff with Prince fighting over promotion wasn't there? If it was on a streaming service anyone actually used it'd probably gain more fans but once again, when you have as much stuff as Prince new fans aren't going to be checking out an obscure mid 2000's album before his 80's work.

Some tracks will eventually make a deep-cuts playlist but I can't see it ever being re-evaluated as essential Prince. Like HitnRun 2 there's a certain amount of coasting on his chops going on in it, it's all enjoyable and there's some real highlights, but it's coasting nonetheless.

A best of Musicology/3121/Planet Earth/Lotusflow3r with some non album tracks like F.U.N.K. and maybe Glasscutter would be one hell of playlist although we'd never agree on what tracks would be on it.

[Edited 9/11/17 6:53am]

johnnyribcage said:

I find it to be enjoyable, middle of the road Prince. Noting earth-shattering. There are few great tracks in my opinion. 3121, Lolita, Black Sweat (although the lead synth kind of hurts my ears these days on certain stereos... getting old I guess).

The rest ranges from pretty decent to not that good. Like, I'd rank Love as okay. Incense suffers from that awful auto-tune - probably my single most hated vocal affect of all time. I pretty much dispise anything that uses it. Fury was better live, but the production here neuters it. The Word - okay I guess. Get on the Boat is a solid effort, but not as strong as others in this vein.

So yeah... not bad. I pop it on once in a while.

by the way, reason for the edits: how in the hell do you put paragraph space breaks on this forum? None of the typical ways work for me.

[Edited 9/10/17 7:40am]

I somewhat agree with this sentiment about the album..." find it to be enjoyable, middle of the road Prince. Noting earth-shattering"

But I actually really like the song Love , to me it has a kind of old style Prince feel to it...its one my favourite tracks on the album.

Definitely a 'return to form' for me after the disappointment of Musicology. The whole 3121 era reminded me of the Gold Experience 94/95 era where the album was a bit more of a concept and had the film and videos following the concept. Also interesting that much of the Planet Earth and Lotusflow3r albums came from the same period. Really hope the 3121 film gets released one day.

I listened to 3121 a few weeks ago. It's a damn good album. "Lolita," "Black Sweat," "Love," and "Fury" would be classics at any stage of his career.

I wish he did "Fury" with 3rd Eye Girl, would've kicked ass with just them and some horns. That song just smokes. The SNL performance is dynamite.

I will say this, though: as good as the album is it's maybe my least favorite Prince live period, at least post-comeback. "Black Sweat" did not work live at all, and the shows just felt very autopilot-ish from what I've heard on boots. It was cool, I guess, to have "Around the World in a Day" and "Sexuality" (ok, "Spirituality") back in the set, but they even sounded lifeless.

[Edited 9/11/17 7:48am]

not underrated. Actually it gets alot of praise now. I think the album does not have a "theme" like his other albums do so it may easily get looked over; however it is a real good 'collection of songs'. Black Sweat, Te Amo, Lolita, Get On The Boat, Furty, The Dance, 3121 and Love are standout tracks!!

In regards to the original question posed.......


First Prince album to hit #1 in the States for over 15 years.

First Prince album ever to enter U.S Chart at #1.

4* review in Rolling Stone and generally good reviews throughout the world (also some of his highest chart placings worldwide for decades). Lots of exposure and interest in Prince again.

I'm not sure the evidence suggests that it is fair to consider 3121 as being grossly under-rated. It may not be generally rated alongside Sign O The Times, Purple Rain or Parade (just three examples from THAT period) as a Prince classic, but I feel it is justly rated as a solid, commercial effort from an artist of his vintage, by both Prince fans and most music critics alike.

Indeed, during the Musicology, 3121, Planet Earth era (three albums that I enjoy very much), it could be argued that at times Prince's new releases were being slightly over- rated in some quarters, as each new release was championed as 'Prince's best album for 30 years' by some in the press (who probably hadn't heard a new Prince album since 1995), as Prince enjoyed a middle age resurgence in popularity; being welcomed back in to the public/ commercial consciousness as a sort of reborn national treasure. After years of being either ridiculed or widely ignored by the public and critics alike (outside of Prince's own ever dwindling fan-base) I look back warmly on how Prince was being reiviewed and rated in the mid to late 00's.

Good times to be a Prince fan... and some fine, if not all-time classic albums to add to the collection (My own opinion of course).

[Edited 9/14/17 3:35am]

Yewdale said:

In regards to the original question posed.......


First Prince album to hit #1 in the States for over 15 years.

First Prince album ever to enter U.S Chart at #1.

4* review in Rolling Stone and generally good reviews throughout the world (also some of his highest chart placings worldwide for decades). Lots of exposure and interest in Prince again.

I'm not sure the evidence suggests that it is fair to consider 3121 as being grossly under-rated. It may not be generally rated alongside Sign O The Times, Purple Rain or Parade (just three examples from THAT period) as a Prince classic, but I feel it is justly rated as a solid, commercial effort from an artist of his vintage, by both Prince fans and most music critics alike.

Indeed, during the Musicology, 3121, Planet Earth era (three albums that I enjoy very much), it could be argued that at times Prince's new releases were being slightly over- rated in some quarters, as each new release was championed as 'Prince's best album for 30 years' by some in the press (who probably hadn't heard a new Prince album since 1995), as Prince enjoyed a middle age resurgence in popularity; being welcomed back in to the public/ commercial consciousness as a sort of reborn national treasure. After years of being either ridiculed or widely ignored by the public and critics alike (outside of Prince's own ever dwindling fan-base) I look back warmly on how Prince was being reiviewed and rated in the mid to late 00's.

Good times to be a Prince fan... and some fine, if not all-time classic albums to add to the collection (My own opinion of course).

[Edited 9/14/17 3:35am]

This is all so true - Musicology certainly felt like a comeback at the time... and then with with proper promotion for both albums, and then 21 Nights - not to mention 80s fans beginning to hit middle age and 'coming back' to Prince and the music of their youth... it really felt like he was a big deal again for the first time in well over a decade.

gingerwildwood said:

Actually, I find it grossly overrated. Like Musicology, I skip over half the CD.

.

Oh praise heaven, thank you for this comment. Totally agree, though I skip over more than half (like Musicology).

.

To my ears, Musicology AND 3121 represent the absolute nadir of Prince's career.

.

There isn't a single song on either of those albums that's really worth singling out for special praise. Of all the uninspired songwriting of his later years, these albums contain the highest concentration of subpar wheel-spinning.

.

In fact - that's the BEST thing that can be said about those albums: they're so consistently mediocre (at best), they can conveniently be passed over in their entirety.

christobole said:

This may come as a surprise, even a shock to most of you, but all of Prince's post-88 albums are overrated.

.

Oh snap - that's a bowel movement of a comment right there.

.

Three words...

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CHAOS...

.

And...

.

DISORDER

.

Perfect album?

.

Not by a longshot.

.

Often cited, even by hardcore fans, as "the worst" or "one of the worst"?

.

Yes.

.

Therefore - underrated (and at least 85% brilliant).

I feel that this is when Prince finally achieved the respect he deserved from those people who were only casual fans and the critics alike. We always knew he was great but it took until this moment for the rest of the world to see it.

Yewdale said:

In regards to the original question posed.......


First Prince album to hit #1 in the States for over 15 years.

First Prince album ever to enter U.S Chart at #1.

4* review in Rolling Stone and generally good reviews throughout the world (also some of his highest chart placings worldwide for decades). Lots of exposure and interest in Prince again.

I'm not sure the evidence suggests that it is fair to consider 3121 as being grossly under-rated. It may not be generally rated alongside Sign O The Times, Purple Rain or Parade (just three examples from THAT period) as a Prince classic, but I feel it is justly rated as a solid, commercial effort from an artist of his vintage, by both Prince fans and most music critics alike.

Indeed, during the Musicology, 3121, Planet Earth era (three albums that I enjoy very much), it could be argued that at times Prince's new releases were being slightly over- rated in some quarters, as each new release was championed as 'Prince's best album for 30 years' by some in the press (who probably hadn't heard a new Prince album since 1995), as Prince enjoyed a middle age resurgence in popularity; being welcomed back in to the public/ commercial consciousness as a sort of reborn national treasure. After years of being either ridiculed or widely ignored by the public and critics alike (outside of Prince's own ever dwindling fan-base) I look back warmly on how Prince was being reiviewed and rated in the mid to late 00's.

Good times to be a Prince fan... and some fine, if not all-time classic albums to add to the collection (My own opinion of course).

[Edited 9/14/17 3:35am]

It could have been an absolute killer album if:
- incense and boat weren't on it
- some things were mixed differently (the sharp ear-shattering painsynth of sweat)

- some lyrics were different ('like wall of berlin' 3000 years after the event + too much preach)

- some things were sung with a bit more raw power instead of ultra-clean and save (lolita)
- he didn't copy himself here and there (synth-line of Fury)
- he wouldn't have shown his age (i sound more authentic and full of fire at exactly the same age)

Otherwise it's good but mostly 'too produced'; no soul. Wth those songs, and put Somewhere Here On Earth on this album as well, that would have been a great album 15 years earlier when things were still less plastic.

But still far from the mega-killer album what Graffiti Bridge could have been.

[Edited 9/14/17 13:41pm]