He has to do a major change in his sound, to get me back in full. His tired old-school funk stuff just aint makin it. Sure, it is great music, but it has been done to death, and the best funk has already been done. Better for the man to innovate and change it up--put it on another level.

Put him in a room, and have him listen to the Gorillaz or some other new band for inspiration. This guy used to surprise us with each album. Now you can imagine his sound before he puts out the album. Surprise us again, Prince, make us proud of you. Just doin those nostalgia gigs aint enuff.

Hoping the lil' imp heads my advice, but you know how hard headed the fool is.

Stun us, Prince, give us the bomb album. Make all those new cats shake in their boots.

Gorillaz? Give me a fu_king break, is somebody saying PRINCE should listen to gorillaz to get inspired? I don´t think i heard gorillaz. Did I hear Frank Zappa? Miles Davis? hell, even Trent Reznor, Bjork or Mike Patton. But gorillaz?


At least it was not Green Day.
[Edited 7/1/05 11:34am]

2freaky4church1 said:

neeeeext!

Dansa, you know I am right. hehe kiss

2freaky4church1 said:

no, you're not.

7salles said:

Why not Gorillaz ?

Nah, just kidding!

I wouldn't expect it to inspire him, anyone inspired by Gorillaz clearly isn't listening to enough music, but 2freaky4church1 did say "or some other new band", so I guess the point is that he should be listening to new bands which may inspire him to get out of his funky groove and insipre us again with truly different, inspired music, like he used to.

I think I'd stick him in that room with a shitload of herb , NIN With Teeth, and Joe's Garage with a little note on it saying "If you must use an annoying voiceover, at least make it funny, like this."

Right. That's what all geniuses do. Sit in a room and listen to someone else's art for inspiration. Of course! It's so frickin' simple, gosh!

2freaky4church1 said:

stop lying!

Prince needs to change his damn make-up!

The boy needs to be locked up in a room full of instruments and recording equipment, and pictures of Susannah plastered all over the wall. That'll do the trick.

Octavius said:

Octavius said:

what do you want 'im to do, go totally batshit?

Gorillaz are some messed up people.
Their music is so odd,I listened to their first album and I honestly didn't get what the fuck the guy was trying to say. Clint Eastwood,19/2000 and Feel Good Inc. are their only good songs in my opinion.

Anyways,He should listen to some Jamiroquai or Van Hunt to get inspired..throw a little N.E.R.D. in there somewhere maybe.

Hi Paul!

You going a lil nutty to?

change "the Minneappolis sound"?

OdysseyMiles said:

Yeah, point taken, of course it's not that frickin' simple, but it's certainly part of it. I'm not a musical genius (or even a musician), but it strikes me that if I was looking for musical inspiration, perhaps I'd listen to some music, if only to motivate myself. But then, I'm not a muscian so I can only speculate as to what might inspire somebody like Prince to come up with some of the truly genius stuff he has done.

Sly Stone, Hendrix, Santana, James Brown, George Clinton.

I don't think it would be unfair to say that Prince was more a than little bit inspired by those guys.

Of course, that was then....

2freaky4church1 said:

Prince needs to bring back the synths!

Better yet, Prince need to buy some new synths and use those instead. THAT alone will change his sound & made him funkyfresh!

Handclapsfingasnapz said:

I thought he'd arrived at that point years ago.

I'd love to hear him do some more guitar heavy stuff with
some more creative percussion (Latin influence perhaps?)
and he really needs to dust off his tamborine

2freaky4church1 DEFINITELY has a point! I know most here are total die-hards and dont wanna hear it but Prince's product over the past 10 years has been predictable and mild at best... And yeah, yeah, I know that whole "an Artist has to grow and shouldnt repeat himself" rap, but repeating himself is EXACTLY what Prince has done for the last decade or so... Seriously, he needs to quit with the same suit-and-tie jazz fusion jams... He's rapidly approaching a point where he could come off as a parody of himself, touring a James Brown-like oldies show that people check out to be ironic and shit... I still LOVE Prince, dont get me wrong... I just think he has it in him to be a bit more relevant, unpredictable, and mind-blowing.

Most importantly though, Prince needs to change his socks
cause wearing them hot ass boots in the summer time in LA can cause
a deadly foot odor

WildAndPeaceful said:

thank you thank you thank you...i totally agree.....prince sound is stale...people rip on janet jackson for making the same album over and over but prince has pretty much been stuck on auto-pilot for the past decade...

dansa, you dont give any validity to the statement that 2funky is making? and remove the common knee-jerk answers of, "well, prince is gonna do what he damn wants", or "we dont have any say, so shut the fuck up" kinda statements.....

dont you think prince's music would benefit either from a new muse or new musical inspirations or styles?

sosgemini said:

Two reasons why that statement is completely absurd.

The Rainbow Children and One Nite Alone.

TheBigBang said:

UTTER RUBISH!!! Throwing a few lite-jazz touches does not make a new sound...at its heart, TRC is the same ole sappy slow songs and James Brown style funk...

same as it ever was.....

One Nite Alone? i'd give it some respect if it wasnt bland, uninspiring and boring as hell....

sosgemini said:

Exactly! Enervated, 'Live in Las Vegas' style arrangements interspersed with evangelical speeches doesn't do it for me either.

In my opinion, Prince doesn't need to be "influenced" by anyone. I don't want any more Usher copycats, Black-Eyed Peas wannabees, or clone sounds of ANYONE mentioned in this thread.

For a long time, Prince has been the inventor of his own sound, including the father of the classic Minneapolis sound so many other artists followed throughout the 80's.

As for a new sound, I will agree he's made a few mistakes along the way in recent decades. A cheesey drum machine in the New Power Generation CD and others, no professionally-shot videos, no 12" singles, no promotion, the perpetuation of the NPG (which is very old)... Yet there was always that review we read with every release saying "this is the most commercial album since 'Purple Rain'" or it was a "comeback." And we bought it, every time. Admit it, any new Prince release and you would be there!

Now, I have to say, it's pretty hypocritical to chastize him for what he's given us over the years. Now we have the ability to look back on a particular album and say, "That sucked!" Two explanations might define why:

1) The man has put out a lot of varied-sounding albums. Unlike Ms. Jackson, not ever album does sound the same.

2) We are spoiled by a new release on somewhat of a regular basis. We also know a "typical" sound that defines a Prince record. Even if it is a vibe or a message, not just a beat, we KNOW the music of Prince. Perhaps what it is we miss most is that distingusihed and consistent release, such as "Purple Rain" or "1999."

Now, the trouble for all of us is, the man that made those albums doesn't exist in that form any more. Sadly, we must admit it and move on. (He has!) The music of today, like the times and Prince, has changed. The corrupt record industry can be blamed in large for this shift. They continue to f*ck it up by dictating what radio stations will play. Hell MTV doesn't even play music any more and today's artists must try to match or keep up with the younger and younger audiences the record companies insist we follow.

Sad fact, but true.

As for a new sound by Prince, I would instead ask that he stick to HIS OWN sound and grow-up a bit. Stop trying to do this contemporary RnB. (Those artists, like Usher, owe props to HIM... not the other way around!) Stop trying to deliver cryptic messages in music. If you have something to say, Prince, then just say it! Stop with the preaching, reinvention of the industry, and mystery. Let people know you are a real person, what your daily life is like, what makes you tick and inspires you, what makes you wonder, and what you like. Otherwise, you are considered by most to be a freak along the lines of MJ! You perpetuate this cartoon image of yourself. Define you, yes it does. But even your fans know there is more to you than what the recent SNL sketches portray.

"Musicology" was an enigma. For once, we had a video that finally got some regular airplay. (Notice the others ones did not, however.) An extensive tour was kicked-off by a simulcast. There was even talk this was his final tour. A free CD at the door of the show counted as "sales" and earned him one of the top-selling spots on the charts. Yet, were we buying the chance to see him in concert or going to buy the CD? All I can say is that, if it worked once, Prince better stick to the same way of scoring a top-selling album with future releases if he wants a guaranteed "hit." As even more consolation, Prince seemed to be everywhere picking up kudos. It was indeed well-deserved and great for fans. But, like planetary alignment, only happens under just-right conditions.

Now? Nothing. No DVD of the successful "Musicology" tour. No appearance at Live 8. No timely follow-up to the last disc. No appearances on TV.

For Prince to "change his damn sound," my suggestion would be to NOT copy others or be locked in a room to gain influence from anyone. I take it back. Maybe he should be locked in a room with HIS OWN music for once. That way he can hear for himself what stands the test of time, what is a classic, and what works. Most importantly, he can take his own sound and progress with it. He needs to grow-up music-wise, find inspiration in something other than Larry, and release music without all the propaganda behind it.

purpleunderground said:

WOW, DAMN, CO-SIGN

purple, you raise some valid points...and you got me wondering...


did prince really create the mpls sound?

and i dont think prince should chase a style or sound...i just think it would benefit him to listen to things other then himself...to be challenged by artist....akin to how he was challenged by wendy and lisa...and levi and sonny...


IMHO, he is at a place of complacency....he doesnt feel his legecy is challenged so he plays it safe with his music.....while others out there have stepped over him on the creative and artistic front...

and sure, prince can do what he wants...but i can "want" for wants sake..

sosgemini said:

Tell us who makes up these "others" that you speak of. Who else, with Prince's level of talent, AND who has been in the business for over 25 years, has stepped over Prince on the "creative and artistic front?"

sosgemini said:

i could give a shit less what he does, what muses he does/does not have or any musical inspirations he should or shouldn't listen to; i'm happy with what i've got, therefore i don't need to worry about it. the question that's begging to be asked here is why in the fuck are some fans so enamored in worrying about what prince should sound like or shouldn't sound like in the first gotdamned place? the only person who really should worry about all of that is prince himself. not you, not me, not the music critics, but he himself should be the only one who should have an ounce of worry in 'im. he's the one in the studio, not us.

"but i SHOULD be allowed to worry! i buy his stuff and i've been supportin his short ass for (insert number of days/months/years here)! if he doesn't shape up i won't buy anything else of his from here on out and i'll hate him forever [etc., etc., ad nauseam]" well, that's on you, not him. no matter how shitty you think a new project/album of his is, there's always gonna be a precious few who will still buy that shit. just because he puts something out don't mean that you immediately have to buy it, no matter how hardcore of a fan you are.

stop crying/worrying over something you can't help and pay attention to the rest of your music collection. sit it out for the long haul, if you gotta. rest your nerves.