Another thing, why are we gonna have to wait for 4 months for the album exactly? What benefit is there to releasing it in rumoured far-off April? Prince has had all year to record it, so you would expect it would be finished by now. I'm sure he could have decided to release it anytime, so why wait until the rumoured April?

In theory, its a good plan.

But the singles have got to be killers to help draw attention to an album 5 months away.

He managed to do it with Gett Off and Cream, but even then it was only a gap of a month or so. And does new new single have that much draw? I don't think so.

Also, with the advent of downloads outselling vinyl/CD, the charts move a lot quicker these days, especially outside of the US. A hit single can vanish off the charts in 4 weeks.

I think it will be a mistake not to get the album out in Jan/Feb. Traditionally a quiet couple of months for album releases. Less competition means more attention.

I agree with what you say about not waiting so long (where did you find that, tho) to release the album. But if a hit song is off the charts in four weeks, then was it ever really a hit single in the first place? I mean, come on - it's like the music industry has become one big parody, like the old Episode of the Flintstones, where Fred Flintstone gets a big hit, and within a week, people are motioning the "square" symbol. That's not a hit, that was a product meant to appease the sheeple.
More attention will often lead to more sales.