The once and future Prince
Friday, August 27, 2004
MARTY HUGHLEY

http://www.oregonlive.com...312430.xml

Comeback, apparently, is a dirty word. At least it is to proud pop stars reluctant to admit that the quality of their work has ever lagged.

All the same, that word has attached itself to Prince's career this year, and no amount of indignant denials will pry its pincers loose.

With an electrifying performance in this year's Grammy telecast (honoring the 20th anniversary of the album and film "Purple Rain"), induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, his best-selling album in a decade and a rapturously received arena tour that stops Wednesday in the Rose Garden, from just about any vantage point but Prince's, it sure looks like a comeback.

In the 1980s, Prince was one of the most popular and influential musicians on the planet. He put hit after hit on the charts, from "Little Red Corvette" to "When Doves Cry" to "Kiss." He established himself as an eye-popping stage performer to rival (and often surpass) the then-dominant Michael Jackson. He conquered movie theaters, too, with the semi-autobiographical "Purple Rain." His crisp, synthesizer-laced pop/funk and his psychedelicized Edwardian wardrobe were copied by countless lesser acts.

By the latter half of the '90s, though, Prince had become a marginal figure in terms of the mainstream entertainment industry. The main factor in the reversal of his fortunes likely was the rise of hip-hop as a commercial force. On such albums as "Diamonds and Pearls" and "The Gold Experience," Prince tried to accommodate rap, but the results were awkward. He also engaged in a bitter, public battle with Warner Bros. Records, which wouldn't release and market albums as frequently as the prolific Prince wanted. (This was the issue that led to him infamously appearing with the word "slave" written across his face.)

Then, after he broke from Warner Bros., he released sprawling, multidisc packages such as "Emancipation" and "Crystal Ball," which included some terrific material but suffered from hideous cover art, lack of promotion, inefficient distribution and the demanding nature of eccentric, three-hour-long albums.

"Musicology," his latest release, isn't a groundbreaking masterpiece along the lines of "Sign o' the Times," but it has a firmer rein on its ambitions than any Prince release in ages. It ranges widely -- from taut, James Brown-style dance floor workouts to plaintive blues and ballads, and effervescent pop -- but never loses itself in conceptual conceit or indulgent experimentalism. At 12 songs and less than 50 minutes total, it doesn't tax the attention span. And it's been far easier to get hold of; instead of relying largely on his Web site (www.npgmusicclub.com), Prince licensed this one to Columbia Records for manufacturing and distribution, and a copy of the album also is given to ticket holders at this tour's concerts. It has reached as high as No. 3 on the Billboard 200 album sales chart and remains in the Top 10.

So, to most of the world, that constitutes a return to form and to popularity -- that is, a comeback. But that's a matter of perspective.

Considered from the Prince side of things, it wasn't he who went away, but us. He continued to make strong music, to tour and to put on phenomenal performances. And having cut out the record label middlemen, he might well have maintained his financial position, even with the decline in unit sales.

Prince claims that sales figures and awards are meaningless to him, that it's all about the music, and for someone whose command of music is so far-reaching and seemingly effortless, this makes sense. While the wheels of business and celebrity clack and whir and produce nothing more valuable than attention, great musicians such as Prince continue to ply their art. The music is there for us if we want it.

For Prince's fans, this is their big comeback.

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No pictures, but there is a link to another article called "prince, by the numbers." http://www.oregonlive.com...261851.xml