this is kind of a prince-related thread, but not really. i wanna focus on the other artists we all like, and what we expect from other artists as fans, as compared to what we expect from prince.

my query is this: if you're the kinda prince fan who starts getting antsy when it's been 9 or 10 months without a new album, i'm curious to know if there are any other artists you hold to this standard.

why is it cool for sade or kate bush or d'angelo or maxwell or seal or, ugh, about a kajillion other bands to take upwards to a decade to release a new album - and when someone like sade finally DOES drop 12 new songs on us, we act like it's manna from heaven - yet prince can completely saturate us with stuff...an album, a tour, new downloads, videos, blah de blah - and a year later, we're all torches and pitchforks outside of paisley park, pounding the gates down and demanding something new.

let's face it - prince ain't getting any younger, and he's not knocking 'em out like he used to. and as for all the vault recordings, well, it's totally his decision as to what becomes of them. he could just toss 'em all if he wanted. they're his. the reality is, we could see prince slowing down his new releases over the next few years. heck - bowie used to release two albums a year, back in the '70s. now if he releases something new every two years, he's doing well.

and also - does a new prince album have the same impact now as it did in the '80s or even the '90s? is he more of a live musician these days, what with all the free-form jam stuff he seems to be into anymore?

Prince gives of that soul connection.
It's y we r still here....

love

Lemme get comfortable... I can't wait to hear the responses...


And as usual your 100% on point Anx.

Anji said:

i'm not saying that a new prince album doesn't matter - but i'm suggesting that maybe his work as a live musician is starting to upstage his reputation as a recording artist, which isn't completely unusual in artists who continue to stay active into their later years (not that prince is THAT old)...look at chuck berry, james brown, little richard - they all still perform to some degree, but who can tell me about an album any one of them released over the past 5-10 years?

Pointless attempt at dialogue edit
[Edited 5/23/05 18:25pm]

psykosoul said:

scoot over...

AsianBomb777 said:

no, he isn't.

there's no "become". most of ya'll already are.

Handclapsfingasnapz said:

Thank's Yoda.

AsianBomb777 said:

Handclapsfingasnapz said:

ok, so what about kate bush then? she's considered by many to be a genius and a visionary. she has a healthy fan base. there are quite a few kate fans even here on the org. why isn't there more outrage about her taking over a decade to release a new album, especially after she's announced a forthcoming record several times over the years, and each time it's been a false alarm? she seems to still be highly regarded as far as i know, and people seem satisfied with appreciating what she's done thus far.

Anji said:

are you speaking as a fan or his fake psychiatrist here?

Anxiety said:

I don't appreciate what she's done.

AsianBomb777 said:

some muthafuckas here don't appreciate half of what ol' boy's put out, either. so what?

I think we've all become a little greedy. It's probably because we have been spoilt over the last 15 years with albums coming left right and centre. We expect something to come out soon.

Just saying.

AsianBomb777 said:

Handclapsfingasnapz said:

What????? WHAT?????
I appreciate ALMOST EVERYTHING HE's DONE.

Erm. Sort of. Well, about 75% of it.




THere are times when he slips though.....

psykosoul said:

Well, thank you so much for agreeing with me on some of my points. You're opinions seem so enlightened I'm almost overwhelmed.

I believe Anx asked why people placed such strong expectations on Prince. My point was that Prince is different, in our minds, from other musicians. Kate Bush could release a 3CD opus tommorow, and I'd never buy it.

Fans have a right to expect alot from their heros, and ever much of a right to feel dissapointed if they want to. Complaining about fans who have expectations is as annoying as listening to fans bitch about Prince as far as I'm concerned.

We might as well start spewing Love4OneAnother rhetoric about fans who complained about recieving Crystal Ball 6 months late as "haters". We are entitled to our opinions.

AsianBomb777 said:

and i hear she hasn't exactly built a shrine to you, either.

Anxiety said:

[Edited 5/23/05 18:47pm]

and amongst all this, those who are fans of those who put out less material than p does probably pay more attention to other music in their collections due to the long periods of time they have to wait between releases. as musically eclectic as the prince fanbase is, the question that begs to be asked is this: why can't the impatient prince fans busy themselves on their other musical loves, as opposed to sittin around and continuously wondering when ol' boy's gonna drop something?

it makes absolutely no sense.

Handclapsfingasnapz said:

because that would require them to allow unPrincely thoughts, sounds, desires, visions, fantasies, lives into their heads..... and that would just be a waste of time better devoted to eating, sleeping, and breathing Prince. duh!

AsianBomb777 said:

nah, let's not take it that far. i'm going into this thread with the assumption that we're all intelligent and self-aware enough not to fall into the tired old "fam vs. naysayer" binary, which i really have no desire to conjure up with this thread, thanks all the same.

i just think it's odd that out of all the multitudes of artists out there, prince is the only one i know of who has fans who get impatient when the man hasn't produced something every few months. i don't necessarily think that's a delusional attitude for his fans to have, as long as they don't get carried away and start acting all indignant like they're OWED something, which can get really creepy and weird. prince has conditioned his fans to expect him to be prolific. it's what it is.

on the other hand, we're not talking about the same guy who was staying up all night fueled on doritos and mac'n'cheese and spitting out crazy shit left and right non-stop. i also think we're talking about someone who seems to be coming out of his shell more and more, and - in his own very idiosynchratic way, mind you - is opening up to collaboration and the influence of other musicians.

plus, frankly, dude's at a place in his life - both in terms of age and in terms of career - where he can do whatever the hell he wants.

so is it realistic to EXPECT a new album from him every 12 months at this stage in the game?

GrayKing said:

well, folks better start gettin used to the shit...can't be spoiled n'dreamin forever.

i do think, however, that once prince gets his way with the whole masters/WB mess or is given a sweet enough deal on a reissues series, the pendulum's gonna swing the other way and people are going to be screeching about how they can't possibly afford to keep up with all the prince stuff flooding the market.

Handclapsfingasnapz said:

your head has turned to mush, woman!