dancerella said:

Prince has made deep music and pop music. This album is more pop, but a few songs have good messages. Diamonds and Pearls was a pop record, but songs like Willing and Able give it more depth.

Riverpoet31 said:

If that's the way prince is vibing at the moment, then there you go. I don't think he's losing it or out of touch just because I'm not feeling him at the moment. Its about where HIS head is at. If this isn't for you, then just wait until the next cd and keep it movin'.

go listen to some spoken word, light some incense and relax.

Riverpoet31 said:

If the song "Everywhere" isn't passionate, I don't know WHAT is!!!

again, wait til its released. joe bloggs on the street will decide how good it is

every form of religion is brainwashed in my opinion....

where are the people who follow their soul?

Riverpoet31 said:

in jail

Riverpoet31 said:

There is no such thing as a soul, and God does not exist. I believe in blind luck.

"More and more, scientists are coming to the conclusion that we're here by blind chance. No purpose." - from Match Point

KingSausage said:

Completely agree. I don't even like TRC at all, and I don't like organzied religion at all. But the passion is undeniably there.

Riverpoet31 said:

Well, Prince must have been brainwashed as far back as 84 when he did the song 'God', then.

I don't follow any religion, but I think every artist really needs to follow their muse to get the best out of themselves, if for Prince that is religion, then fair enough, I will either take it or leave it, but at least he's following his 'soul'. His muse now seems to be Tamar, so you should be happy...

Yet again more ranting on how P should be stuck in the 80s....guh... The record is a simple fun and up to date sounding disc. Nothing wrong with that. The man doesnt need to search his soul every record. If he thinks it grooves then cool. Stop putting him back in PR days...that eras dead and over

happy for Tamar? naah

happy for JW? thats sectarian bullshit.....

my arse hurts,and to top it all off,my weasel ate the last of the bridge-mix.

loudawg said:

Ok people.. mystery solved! thanks for enlightening us! lol

Payt said:

woody allen wrote match point, which was pish, like nearly all his stuff. i think that says it all about the profound nature of that statement

Riverpoet31 said:

Then what should that nearly 50 year old be singing about then?

sermwanderer said:

What a load of bunk that is. I happen to trust my own critical capacity and don't give two fucks for what "joe blogg" thinks of Prince's new record. What you're saying is tantamount to, if the masses buy it, that means it's good. Puh-leese. If you need to be held by the hand of joe blogg before making a decision that's your own thing, but I think a good many people here, positive or lukewarm in their reception to the record, aren't mindless, over-obsessive sheep that need the world at large to tell them how to judge or feel about a piece of music.
[Edited 3/8/06 17:17pm]

We need a "troll" emoticon ... quick.

Riverpoet31 said:

So...you expect more from a musician...for free?

You obviously are complaining about the content of something you didn't buy. Don't you find it unusual to make artistic demands on someone who made a product you didn't buy?

Ifsixwuz9 said:

something like this?

Payt said:

Payt said:

that's good. But I was thinking more of an actual "Troll". You know like that funny looking little doll with the hair sticking straight up on his head that used to be popular in the 90's.

virginie74 said:

Exactly- I am currently listening to "some" Prince right now on my headset and it is different from when I listened on the computer.
It is what it is and I feel if you are a true Prince fan then u will find something to take from every song.

metalorange, this, and your previous posts on this thread are some of the most insightful comments I have read around here lately... So many people complain about the "depth" of Prince's recent work, when really what they really want is something other than the spiritually-centered songs that have categorized his work these past few years.

Thanks for "hittin' the nail on the head here...

metalorange said:

Ifsixwuz9 said:[quote]

Payt said:

well i found a few.. take your pick..

sorry for derailing, please continue
[Edited 3/8/06 18:13pm]

If every form of religion is "brainwashed", yet you refer to a "soul", where and how do you "follow your soul"... What leads it and how do you know?

Not sure what you mean.

Riverpoet31 said:

Riverpoet31 said:

You dont think Prince has been doing any soul searching in his music since 1994, sheesh , go and listen to The Holy River , no seriously , LISTEN to it. Theres no JW doctrine there , no BS propaganda , just a man reflecting on his past and mistakes hes made . Maybe Prince is just a bit too complex for some
on here .....

moonshine said:

In the song, Prince says Jesus is God's name -- definitely not a JW thing to say. In 1996, Prince was VERY spiritually cool. ...love4oneanother. keep the vibe alive +++

Wall said:

Don't use the word 'bunk'. It's a shit word

and you misunderstood my statement, partly my fault. I'm not suggesting that there opinion is the one that matters. Or how good the music is or whatever, but they will provide the best barometer of whether or not it is what Prince wants it to be: a successful commercial album. This isn't the Rainbow Children, it's a calculated attempt to become a chart success again. A vast majority of the judgement on the record here will be clouded, so again it's best to wait til it's hits the shelves

So, yes, I believe it will be up to Joe Bloggs on the street to decide how good it is. If the masses by it, then the record will achieve what it set out to. If they don't then it'll just be another Prince album for folk on here to digest.

sermwanderer said:

I know what you're saying, however I can't completely agree. Yes, there is a goal for the album, to be a commercial hit, but that is far more to do with how successful the promotion is by Universal as much as anything. These days it seems any pop-singer/song/album can be a huge hit if it is rammed down our collective throats enough times. I'd say a lot of people that go out there and buy albums simply because they 'appear' popular from all the advertising and hearing the songs on the radio all the time.

Gauging whether an album is good on its own is a more difficult proposition. If you asked someone on the street whether they expected Prince fans to like the new Prince album, their response would likely be, 'Well, yeah, they're fans, aren't they?!' but in fact, as seen on here, the opinions vary hugely and criticisms can be scathing.

Here's an analogy: ask someone if they liked a particular painting, they might say, 'Yes. It's got pretty colours'. Ask someone who has some background knowledge, they might expound on the history of the artist, themes they can see in the painting from previous work, put it in the context of his body of work. That to me would be a far more valid and worthy critique, looking beyond the immediate surface imagery. And that is what fans on here do - they basically use 'comparitive analysis', putting this album in the context of all the others, plus just saying whether they enjoy it or not. All that adds upto quite a balance of reviews.

Arguably, perhaps a better barometer of whether an album is considered 'good' is whether it gets put up for awards and such after being compared to a year's worth of other artists material.