TRC was a statement of intent. It made me feel like I'd won the lottery using a ticket that everyone said would never win.

It's not my favourite Prince album, it's not even in my top 3, but it is his best album in terms of gelling together.

Here's my honest assessment, and PLEASE respond to this post...

1) The narrator's voice is a mistake.. end of discussion - it doesn't add anything, it doesn't even SOUND good, it actually detracts from the music

2) 1+1+1=3 is overhyped just because it has those gorgeous squiggly guitar flourishes, but in the end it is a bit too messy and hard to get into

3) The last 4 songs are immaculate and what I have been waiting to hear from P for years.

What do I wish Prince would do ? Really ? Right now listneing to Prince and buying his music is like watching Prime Ali do exhibition bouts.

Someone lock Prince and Dre in a studio for a month. Let's see what someone like Dre will push Prince to. Where's the innovation ? Where's the stuff that makes you go "Yeah ! Now THAT'S untouchable !"

And one final note - Michael Jackson had every producer he could lay his hands on to help with "Invincible", and as a result it is the single most crisply produced music EVER. But you know what, it still doesn't save it. In the end, it has no heart. Prince will always have heart. Get those damn Producers over to Paisley.

I want my 12 3-minute pop classics and I want em now !

Fandangouk said:

I only like about 3 songs on TRC. I hate that voice. I find most of the songs boring.I would never purchase this cd.

Five words....BENEATH HIM AND HIS GENIUS!!

TRC is a brilliant album, that not really saved Prince's career per se, but at least put him back on the right track, which he had left since 1998. As much as enjoy NPS, Rave, and High, even I'll admit that it doesn't have the Prince magic. Somewhere better High and The Rainbow Children, Prince remembered how to produce his music effectively. He was always a great songwriter putting out great songs, but the production from 96 to 2000 made the songs less effective. Prince reclaimed his masterful production on the Rainbow Children and therefore it shines. Yes, the Bob George voice should have probably stayed at normal speed, and some of the words could have changed- then he would have a perfect album. However, the album is no less brilliant.

Fandangouk said:

That's probably the most common complaint I've heard about it. But it doesn't affect me the way it seems to affect those who intensely dislike it. It just seems incidental to the album, because it doesn't overshadow anything. Except maybe the last part of "Digital Garden" where the guitar is grungy.



Maybe if you can't seem to get the glide in your stride and the dip in your hip. It's probably the truest Funk song (in a truly Princely fashion) on the album.



I agree that it gets even better as it goes along, but with the title track the album starts out with urgency and conviction too. And those things are probably what Prince was missing for years throughout a single album.



Dre has nothing to teach Prince. All Prince needed was something to write about he felt passionately about. When that happened it seems the production fell in line with it. Maybe if you had said another musician - but Dre ain't. And good Lord, the LAST thing Prince needs to do is be involved with more rappers.

Nobody can be innovative ALL the time. Unless they have an extremely short career.



Free your mind. Think outside the box, or listen to "She Loves Me 4 Me", and your ass will follow.

Personally I don't listen to TRC much lately anymore. Not because it doesn't have staying power - it had so much staying power that I just about exhausted it by playing it so much since day 1.

Completely, 1000% agree with everything Supernova just said...

The "voice" stops being a voice, and becomes an aural component to the album in my ears...

The bass line on "1+1+1=3" is funky as hell, and the groove pulls me in so deep...the wirey guitar is just icing on the cake...

The last thing Prince needs to do is sound like Dre...in fact, the last thing Prince needs to do at this point in his career is worry about sounding "innovative"...fuck innovation, after 25 years in the biz, and with about 10 of those years being extremely innovative, Prince simply needs to focus on quality, musicianship, and passion...U2 and Sting aren't innovative at all...neither is Springsteen...Stevie Wonder wasn't all that innovative thru his career...

Don't rely on the "3 minute knockout single" to enjoy music....the standard verse-verse-chorus structure of songwriting isn't the be-all and end-all of what's worthwhile...cudos to Prince for not bothering to stick to it on TRC...

Right on, brotherman!

Supernova said:

LoL...When I saw that you had posted, I thought "Whew...ok, Nova will probably say exactly what I'm thinkin' so I don't have to worry.."..lol

I enjoyed TRC immensely, and it actually is in my top 5, alongside Lovesexy, SOTT, Crystal Ball, and The Gold Experience. My reasoning is this :

1 - It is the most musically diverse album he has made since The Gold Experience. The ecclectic sound alone makes it an interesting listen.

2 - The album does tell a story, and I think that if u do take the time to listen to it, there is a thought provoking message in it. Whether or not you agree with it is something else, but it is interesting if you care enough to follow it.

3 - Three of his greatest songs since Sign'O'The Times, The Work, Family Name, and Last December are on this disc. Nuff said.

4 - Guitar, guitar, guitar! Prince's guitar playing hasn't sounded this liberated in years, and it takes the album to another level.

5 - The title track. Okay, stick with me on this one. This simply goes to giving Prince credit for being ballsy. Not only is it an infectious groove which fuses jazz, rock, and R&B, it is a song that in and of itself tells a story. Listen 2 it a few times back 2 back. It'll grow on u.

I'm sure I'll get flamed 4 some of this, but thats my take on it and I'm stickin' 2 it.

Peace B Wild,
Mike

Thanks for all replying, I been out all day so only just had a chance to read it all.

Very interesting post... and yes, I am still listening to TRC since I bought it, and it still lifts me up.

As for the Dre comment, what I was getting at was not that Dre will push P toward rap, but that Dre is seen as a "talent" and I want Prince to be around people he wants to impress.

I want Prince to show off again.

And my "3 minute pop classic comment" was a joke ! lol. Loving Prince aint about the success (I absolutely LOVE Around the World in a Day, and i may as well have been a leper when I played it in the school common room when it came out)

I just love Prince and his music, is all. I want to be proud of it. I want to shake, rattle and roll.

Fandango out.

The album is growing on me. I couldn't stand it at first except for Muse 2 the Pharoh. I still like 1+1+1=3 with that tasty little drum fill. I still don't care for the begining of family name, it just sounds like my mac is talkin to me!





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[This message was edited Sat Apr 6 18:05:45 PST 2002 by Zum]

What I most like about TRC is the reaction that I had when I first heard it....Wow! Is that really Prince?!....Yes, it's definitely Prince, but taken to yet another level, yet another angle. Here is an album that challenges you to listen closely and more than once before you "get it". As Wellbeyond said, the A-B-A-B-A-B-B structure is only the tip of the musical iceberg.

TRC has an incredible ability to paint a sonic picture. It takes you through many landscapes. It's a journey. And it's the most conceptually tight album he's put out since Lovesexy. And, whether you agree with it or not, it makes a statement, and you gotta admire that.

The other thing I like about this album is the "live band" feel to it. Until I read the liner notes, I would have sworn that it was recorded by a much larger group of people. To find out that, aside from drums, horns/woodwinds, and a few vocals, the whole thing was performed by Prince -- that just amazed me. Not because I'm surprised he's able to play the one-man-band, but because the different lines weave so intricately together. Stop and ponder a mind that can hear all of that in its head and reproduce it with that much precision and craft and that's the main thing that first attracted me to this man's music.

the album itself is still laying around my house...i only pick it up and put it in my stereo to listen to Mellow and She loves me 4 me

Honestly, it took getting used to.....but, once u get it, it's definately got a hook that won't let u go. I love it.
It's in my top 5 for sure.
1+1+1 is 3 just HAS to b heard live to appreciate the funkiness of that song. And, as someone mentioned, the title track is an underappreciated gem.
I've always loved top 40, R&B, Rock, and especially FUNK...now it seems i'll be listening to more Jazz and fusion, cause it seems that's where P is goin....
U may not like all of the individual songs, but, for every song that u don't like, that song is someone elses FAV...i find that with P, it's better to just sit back and marvel at the talent, cause no one is doin it at the same level as he is.

I like it.

To me I have grown to like TRC more and more. I think after seeing the music played live I like it more. It's one of those cds that I do not play constantly, tho I do find myself going back to listen to it time and time again.

I enjoyed seeing 1+1+1=3 live.

I think the next years will be exciting, hopefully, with NPGMC around. (I heard the club will be changing each year?) What years it could be if he unloads live cds and rehearsals straight to us!? Well I guess we will find out whats to come in the future.

TRC was like a fresh start and the High session tracks were cool..IMO

i total agree with the last 4 song being off the hook. but listening to TRC LIVE well nothing compare 2..... and 1+1+1is3 well my ? is have ya danced to it??
oh yeah the song Everywhere is such a great way to start you day with, how would ya have a bad day then?

still can't get into it...

Fandangouk said:

Unfortunately without anyone editing Prince's ideas, you're gonna get some wack stuff that doesn't work, like the Bob George voice. It was great at the beginning of 1999, but to use it throughout the album is silly. Dr dre would be interesting, I don't think he writes great songs but the quality of his poductions can't be denied. His songs are very repetitive and very simple. It is funky though and fills the dance floors. I am absolutely sure he will never co-produce anything though.

wellbeyond said:

Swallow your tongue, don't just bite it, after saying something like that, so it never happens again. Both U2 and Sting are quite innovative, if that term still means to try something new. U2's music has evolved considerably since the early 1980s...and Sting defied radio convention, not to mention his record company, when he included that Arabic bit in the single Desert Rose, which is not only a good song, but also was quite a hit. He constantly finds new ways to approach music and exposes his listeners to new styles and elements in his compositions, from traces of classical music to new jazz, while still presenting an accessible song. Sting has also recorded songs in a number of languages from Spanish & French to Gaelic, which while it's not exactly innovative, it's taking chances. Prince's 1990s output for the most part took zero chances, but TRC (while I'm hardly a fan of it specifically) is a step in the right direction musically. Though, you can't really sing along to lyrics about "theocratic orders" the same way you can about Prince's earlier work.
[This message was edited Mon Apr 8 7:11:46 PDT 2002 by IrishEcho]

Oh, the truth about TRC. A lot of you forget how much you praised Rave when that first came out...and now look at how many of you loathe it...that reaction is the same for a lot of Prince's music, maybe even TRC.

I like the voice on TRC. I see in the role of a storyteller. The voice @ the beginning of 1+1+1=3 makes the song & sets it in motion. What would a Prince CD be without little quirky sections. One thing about Prince you either like him or you don't.

IrishEcho said:

To me, "innovative" isn't simply something you haven't done before...it's something not being done by others...personal evolution does not equate to innovation


Whoa...an arabic bit in a song..!!...Whoa, nellie, that's innovative..lol.. Yep, Prince should try and put little bits of Arabic touches in his music sometime...can you imagine what the song "7" would have sounded like had Prince just bothered to add some arabic flavor to it??..


Thank you...you just agreed with me..lol...it's not innovative...you can't simply say that because you admire what a particular artist does that it makes what he or she does innovative...takes far more than that...and my point of course was that artists don't HAVE to be "innovative", especially when they're an artist like Prince or U2 or Sting...they've all been around forever, and have had their innovative moments thru their careers...finding fault with any of these artists because their output isn't "innovative" enough is missing the point...saying that an artist of Prince's stature(or U2 or Sting's stature) isn't pushing themselves enough is one thing, and it's a valid argument...but saying they still need to be "innovative" is an insult to how innovative they've already been in their careers...

IrishEcho said:

Actually, I had gone back when the old P.org was still up, and checked on what everyone was saying about "Rave Un2" when it came out...and the reaction was nothing like the praise heaped on TRC...in fact, a lot of posters at the time were saying while it was miles better than NPS, it was still disappointing...and 4 months after it's release, there were not very many people on P.org raving about how great it was...certain songs from the CD, yes...the CD itself, no...

my two cents: Ice Cube was right when he said, "Dre, stick to producin'!" - I think that's what he meant.

It has taken quite a while for me to warm up to TRC. At first, I hated the lyrics, but loved the music. The lyrics have grown on me now, but I admit, it is not my favourite cd lyrically. The music is off the hook, but some of the lyrics are a bunch religious crap. The voice is very irritating, but like someone else said, I am deaf to it now. I don't even pay attention to it anymore. When I hear lyrics like "we don't give a duck", I just want to laugh. That's so immature. I can't believe he would even bother. Why not write something else that doesn't sound so damn childish. I would give TRC about a 7 on a scale of 1-10. The music is there, but the lyrics and the silly deep voice need some help.

I think this album is his best since Lovesexy! but there are a few things I hate:

1. That pointless garbage with the really bad Darth Vader voice. It takes away from the album.

2. Prince is PREACHING! the one thing I loved about Prince is that he had a way of being religious with out preaching (ie: Let's Go Crazy, Lovesexy ect.) which is a lot more creative. I have my own views, if you want ME, AN NPGMC MEMEBER, to buy and listen to your music DO NOT PREACH TO ME! It is to much to take in. You can hear it in the Chicago Show, between songs, he's on stage preaching! ARRRRGGHH! I am NOT going to pay 125.00 to hear him tell me HIS beliefs, and tell me what I should and shouldn't believe!

On a good note, the music and melodies are by far his best in years!

Favorite songs are 1+1+1=3, Last Dec., the Work, Family Name, his BEST SONGS IN YEARS!!!

U2 and Sting?

Sting's music was more interesting with the Police when he wasn't into boring Adult Contemporary schlock. And U2's creativity seems to have fallen off since the early 90s no matter how popular their latest record is.
[This message was edited Mon Apr 8 12:01:25 PDT 2002 by Supernova]

wellbeyond said:

[/b]And back to this being your personal view of innovation. I never simply said anything because I admire what an artist does.

[/b]"and my point of course was that artists don't HAVE to be "innovative", especially when they're an artist like Prince or U2 or Sting...they've all been around forever, and have had their innovative moments thru their careers...finding fault with any of these artists because their output isn't "innovative" enough is missing the point..."


By your definition then, when exactly does an artist's innovation end?

There are plenty of artistic innovators out there that I couldn't care less about. There is currently a duo on Broadway that makes shapes from their penis. I believe one of their trademark shapes is the "cheeseburger." Is that innovative? Maybe. Do I find it appealing? Not in the slightest. Feel free to catch it next time you're in the Big Apple.

Do you just argue because you like to see your words on the screen? There are more enriching hobbies available