Well i think its pretty safe to assume most prince fans prefer his 80's work...I know i do...but i was just wondering why...??? last night i went jogging and took a bunch of 80's outtakes with me...the family...jill jones...and some revolution outtakes like dream factory ...databank...ect...THIS STUFF WAS NASTY !!!!! full of prince' linn LM-1 drum machine...the hohner was throwing chicken grease all over the tracks and that nastyass slappin and poping thumping and humpin bass was up loud in the mix...compared to todays and the 90's stuff..this music was TOUCHED BY THE LORD !!!!! i honestly believe prince somewhere along the way became a follower instead of a leader...back then even when he used other players...there were clear lines that he worked within...these days...im sorry but i could care less how many times john blackwell can twirl his sticks or how many synth flute solos renato neto can play...give me the hohner..the linndrum some synth horns and prince alone or bobby z in the back dancin and hitting cymbal crashes and im a happy man...people move on and i know that time has past...but its a damn shame...

i think you hit on something... prince is trying to make some people happy
...and that's all i gotta say about that

yeah, Im not a fan of the horns

Dirty Mind

Controversy

1999

Purple Rain

Around The World In A Day

Parade

Sigh O' The Times

The Black Album

Lovesexy

Batman

graffiti bridge
diamonds and pearls
symbol
come
black album official release
Exodus
gold experience
chaos and disorder
emmancipation
crystal ball
the truth
Kamasutra
newpower soul
The Vault
Rave un2 the joy fantastic
Rave in2 the joy fantastic 1/2 1/2
One Night Alone
One Night Alone... Live!
It aint over
NEWS
Musicology

Chocolate Invasion
Slaughterhouse
Xpectation
C-Note

andykeen said:

live maybe but prince played most of the keys in the studio.

prettymansson said:

Yea but Mr. fink help alot in the studio, with lyrics and music!

Yeah I like the 80's better, but not necessarily for the instruments or musicians he used back then compared to now. It has more to do with his own creativity, his soulfulness, his funkiness, his lyrics. THAT has changed over the years.

he was younger and he had alot to prove. his ideas were fresh and plus he had the revolution. not saying he's not good now but he was at his best back in the 80's

andykeen said:

I think Prince needs to go back and listen to his own music.

His music sounded best when it was pure and raw.

No more horns for me either.....pass it on...

AND Prince ROCKED the 80's.....

So much in the 90's and now is influenced by the guy.



Shame the media was so hard on him. I don't blame him changing direction around the 90's.
[Edited 12/8/05 4:54am]

kinke said:

Every artist is at their best in their 20's and 30's (unless they get a late start or don't make it that far). It just happened to be the 80's and the Revolution happened to be the band at the time.

whodknee said:

But why should that be with Prince ?

It's not like he was short on creativity or something to say.

Surely you still have opinions when you get older as well.

How do you lose creativity ?? Why should you be at your peak in your 20's - 30's ?

I love 90's Prince more , but thats when I became a fan, so I guess Im biased

pepper7 said:

to be continued... i'll comment after i get off of work!

P's music from '80 to '87 is possibly my favorite music of all time. Any years outside of those I either dislike or am just a casual fan of ("Lovesexy" grew on me recently, though).

kinke said:

ok, like i said prince is still the best at what he does it's just back in the 80's early 90's he was on fire. he's chilled out alot since those days. now he really does'nt have anything to prove, he still has creativity. but if you compare him to now and the 80's i'd go with the 80's prince!

It's no doubt that these were P's glory years. If folks became fans in the 90's, that's cool too. But his work pales in comparison to that from the 80's. And I'm not just talking about his releases, but his work that was put out under other names, such as The Time.

Snap said:

to sign or not to sign that is the question.

kinke said:

Yeah I would definately agree with you. His work was best in the 80's because it had so many more layers etc...

Yet in the 90's he was still producing the same amount of music and seemed more driven in a way.

I just wonder why he wanted to produce MORE music but it seemed less creative than say smaller albums like Controversy and Dirty Mind.

Because I thought he split with his record company because they wouldn't let him release more records.
[Edited 12/8/05 14:17pm]

I was listening to Batman the other day and I was thinking one of the reasons I don't like it asmuch is that it sounds like all the rough edges have been smoothed out.

It sounds (music production and vocal) very polished. So in that way that was the problem that I found with some of his music after Batman.

Although technically it was really good it lacked the immediate rawness of his earlier stuff that made you feel like you were in the recording studio with him.

Also the songs don't seem to flow so easily.

But that said. I'm not complaining because, blimey, the back catalogue of stuff is endless.

I suppose I was just curious as to why he changed direction and changed the style of production and song writing.

Also I do agree it doesn't matter what era you like, or albums or songs, etc...
[Edited 12/8/05 14:27pm]

Prince was part of the whole 80's vibe back then. When the vibe died, he was kinda lost and that led to him going in the wrong direction with rap and shitty jazz. He hade a few good songs, but never really found his place again.

I like Prince from the 80s better and his shit were funky, more fresh, and also groovy. The only albums I don't like of the decade were ATWIAD, Parade, and Lovesexy.

In the 90s I cant say the same because those albums I wouldn't like like no more than two to three songs whereas the 80s albums I would like every song of the album. And not to mention he had done some great work with his protege like the Time and Vanity 6 and even the Family.

amen. but i like some of the 90's stuff too, like Diamonds and Pearls and The Love Symbol Album... i still miss the 80's stuff cuz it was crazy.

pepper7 said:

I'm speaking mostly from experience, but also from observing other artists. We're naturally more inquisitive and idealistic throughout our twenties. That wears thin and the creative process takes its toll after a while. We start looking for stability and comfort like anybody else. It's the same reason men start looking to settle down and plant their roots so to speak in their late twenties/early thirties.

Combine that with the fact it feels you're repeating yourself more often after hundreds of ideas have been explored. For me personally, it feels as though I've basically said most of what I have to say (it'll be decades from now before I've painted them all though). Sure I'll have more ideas but now they come maybe once a month rather than 4 times a day. A lot of that has to do with me not being as open to new ideas but there are also fewer things that I haven't already experienced or been inspired by.

whodknee said:

I don't agree with that at all. In visual art you don't even get considered an 'emerging artist' until you are well into yr thities, oftentimes.

Wagner wrote his best opera last, "Parsifal". No one faults age-ed blues musicians.

It's a mistake to look at Prince's music in terms of 80's and 90's. Perhaps it's better to judge it on an album by album basis or perhaps even by era. Admittedly, my favorite era is the mid 80's, including albums such as Purple Rain, Parade, Sign 'O the Times and most of the boots and b-sides from that time. However, my next favorite era is the music from the early to mid 90's. Therefore, it would be unfair for me to claim 80's Prince is my favorite when there are so many songs from the 90's that I'd place above some of his 80's output. For instance, albums like Contraversy, ATWIAD, The Black Album, ect. are good overall but not every single track is classic IMO. I'm sure MOST people would agree that Prince's best music isn't everything from the 80's in various order followed by the 90's and so on, all perfect and precise.

That's why it's funny when I read things like "that's one of Prince's best songs of the 90's" and I'll think that's one of his best songs EVER. Songs such as Theives in the Temple, 7, Shy, Come On, In This Bed I Scream, The Love We Make and others are among his best. Now whether they're as good as his VERY best is another story, but they're atleast as good as some very good songs from the 80's. I'll even concede that Prince's better songs aren't as plentiful as they used to be, but they're there and in large enough quantity that they shouldn't be tossed aside as if they doon't matter!
[Edited 12/9/05 5:00am]
[Edited 12/9/05 5:01am]

whodknee said:

i hear ya...

xpertluva said:

Very well agreed.

whodknee said:

Maybe I don't know.

As I've just reached a certain age myself (a-hem....30) I started to feel really self-concious about my age.

This annoyed me because I didn't want to be like that. Especially if people ask me my age.

I suppose I feel that I should act all grown-up. Also at a certain age it seems to be "expected" that you've got everything "sussed" and "sorted".

Yet emotionally and mentally I'm still the same as any other age.

I still ahve questions like why am I here ? What is my purpose ? Where am I going? Am I in love with this person etc...

I'll probably have those questions till the day I die.!

I'm not sure what age has to do with creativitiy.

Creativity is just away of expressing how you are feeling about stuff.

It can be as basic as the clothes you wear. Paintings, poems, songs can be seen as just another way of expressing those thoughts.