I just posted this on another forum:


Am I nuts for not caring about Prince's side projects? What have I really missed out on? As far as I can tell, Prince has taken the best material from them and recorded his own versions of it anyway...

bluefish said:

With the exception of The Time and Tamar, I've never gotten into Prince's associated artists. That doesn't include people who were already recording artists before they worked with him like Mavis or Chaka.

i wouldnt say you are nuts but you really need to take some time to check out the time.

Oh you have to take a listen!! So many great albums and all are different. I love all of them.

I've concluded we're all nuts.

squirrelgrease said:

Heck yeah.

Nah, for the most part--the stuff's crap.

minneapolisFunq said:

I agree.You can skip alot of the latter stuff,but if you're a Prince fan,you gotta check out the first two Time albums,which are just as essential as Prince's own albums from that period.

Yeah, you really got to listen to The Time...and maybe Sheila too...and why not Madhouse...and also Jill Jones...and while you're at it, the Family...well, most of them in fact !!!

To quote someone else...yeah, I think we're all nuts !

I am a huge Mazarati fan myself. That LP was one of the best things Paisley Park out. Of course the Time and The Family.

sosgemini said:

disagree


npg albums
the time
mazarati
madhouse

are all worth a listen

DecaturStone said:

I agree.

nyse said:

that's a small drip in the puddle of what is out there though but out of the lot I would only consider The Family worthy of repeated attention.Heck, even the time's albums have major faults...i think there's some major nostalgia behind the love for them but outside of the hit songs, the albums are full of joke songs and long jams.

Yes you're nuts

It's my mantra, and I've said it a million times, but: IMO, the produced/related artists stuff is just as important as the records released under his own name(s).

Besides being some great tracks and albums, they also fill in the gaps between Prince's own records, and let you see the workings a little more as it were. You hear stuff played with that was only hinted at on Prince records, or you see ideas tested out and experimented with.

And no way is the best already out there recorded by Prince himself - There's no 'Mia Bocca' by Prince circulating.

Go look up a decent discography and familiarize yourself with the other half of Prince's output.
[Edited 12/24/09 16:02pm]

SoulAlive said:

Mazarati rules. i even like the 2nd album.

sosgemini said:

And what's so wrong with long jams? Joke songs kind of suck no doubt, but those are only on the last 2 albums. Also, I'm not really nostalgic about them because I wasn't around when they were together. So I think they're good just because they're good, give or take a "Chili Sauce" and a "Yount."

YOOOOOUNNTTTTT

U OUT YO HEAD!

SoulAlive said:

Co-sign.

you don't have to CARE about anything. But you're missing some great music. But your post suggests that you like PRINCE only if he is the focus..so you may get nothing out of it. You'd know best.

Zannaloaf said:

Great post, and yes, I do prefer Prince as the main focus. That's not to say I don't love "The Glamorous Life," "Jungle Love," "The Bird" or "A Love Bizarre." I do love them. But beyond those, I find the side projects boring, to be honest.

I thought 1-800-NEW-FUNK was a Prince album when it came out, so I rushed out and got it. I was hugely disappointed to hear that he was only featured on "Love Sign." I haven't listened to it since that first time.

I gave Elixer a listen just to see if I could dig a protégé album as much as a Prince album, and while Bria's far from horrible, she sounds like a lesser Janet Jackson and there's nothing great about any of the tracks.

I think the only side project I could really get into would be the Time. I love their Purple Rain songs, as well as "Jerk Out." "Release It" is the only non-Prince song I like from Graffiti Bridge.

After thinking about it, I realized I've heard "Mia Bocca" before and I don't like it very much, so if that's JJ's best, then I doubt I'd dig her other stuff,

Carmen and Ingrid? No thanks. (Though Carmen is one of the hottest women alive, IMO.) Ditto on Mavis...a whole album of "Melody Cool"-esque gospel tracks would drive me .

Vanity/Apples? Outside of the singles, I'll pass. "He's So Dull" is just .

Sheila? Again, apart from the Purple Rain-era stuff, I'm not interested. The snippet of "Sex Cymbal" I heard on the BBC documentary sounded like something Jody Whatley or even Paula Abdul could've pulled off MUCH better.

Mazarati and the Family? Never heard their stuff, so dunno about either of them.

You're kinda right, some productions are light weighted, Mayte, Carmen, Elixir, Good Question, Dale Bozzio and 1800New funk (not all of it though...), and I didn't listen to them very often, I did maybe once or twice !!!
But on the other hand, some here are really heavy weight, the work on their album is very good, and frankly, you can hear Prince everywhere ! I mentionned these people before (Sheila, the Time, the Family, Mazarati, Madhouse, Mavis Staple, George Clinton...) and you know that some times, there is a gem hidden on the record, just listen, you will find it, Sinead O Connor did...

bluefish said:

That's the 2 I'd recommend right there, PRINCE's strongest production/protoge material is from the 80s, and those 2 albums stand out by far IMHO.

THE FAMILY (1985) and MAZARATI (1986) are awesome!!

I'd recommend

The Family
Mazarati
The Time (all CDs)
Sheila E. (all CDs)
Madhouse (all CDs)
Jill Jones
Mavis Staples (all CDs)

and possibly

Taja Sevelle (her Paisley Park CD and Toys of Vanity)

bluefish said:

Sex Cymbal is post-Prince, no input there, just the first 3 albums.

bluefish said:

Mazarati is straight up MPLS Sound Purple Rain era funk/rock, The Family is the biggie here, it starts out like The Time with horns and takes Prince's sound towards Parade. The Family LP is a perfect example of what I mean by his productions for other artists bridging the gaps between his own records.

Remember a lot of these albums like Sheila, The Time, The Family etc, they're are essentially Prince albums - He told them what and HOW to sing, the whole look and direction of the project is often Prince's creation of a character, not just the music.

I can understand you maybe not liking some of the seemingly conveyor belt of pretty young things with wafer-thin voices and cheap synthpop, but really do check out The Time, The Family, Madhouse and Jill Jones (who's album is very 1984-6 Revolution era, Jill was patient through that whole 1999-SOTT period and got one of the best albums out of it IMO, it has everything from 1999 Synth funk, Purple Rain rock-funk, Revolution jams, everything).

the post 80's stuff U can ignore

But to really experience Purple Music pre 90's you have to include the protege music,

the best thing to do is take the Prince album for each year and include a playlist with B sides, long versions, outtakes and protege albums

So for 1999 add the Time:What Time Is It? and Vanity 6 music along with Horny Toad, How Come U Don't Call Me..., and Irresistable Bitch
if you have outtakes it's a + such as Purple Music, Moonbeam Levels, Extra Loveable

Do the same for Controversy + the Time + Tick Tick Bang

Purple Rain + the Glamorous Life + Ice Cream Castles + Blue Limousine-Sex Shooter, outtakes & B sides

The all seem to come together, almost like answers and conversations

BlaqueKnight said:

I posted it here because it is a topic about Associated Artists. Do you think it should have gone in Music & More? I don't understand how posting a topic in the appropriate forum makes me an "attention whore."

I will most definitely check out the Time.

I think Prince had some good 80's side projects (Vanity 6, The Time, Sheila E.) but all of his side protoges from 1990 to today I could care less about (Carmen, Mayte, etc).

bluefish said:

Just messin' with ya. No harm intended.

I prefer to listen to the associated artists from the 80's. I am not interested in NPG, Mayte, Tamar etc...
Apollonia 6 is my fave, closely followed by Sheila's first album.