HERE'S THE ULTIMATE TEST FOR ANY RECORD BY ANYBODY---WOULD YOU BE EMBARRASED TO HAVE IT CRANKED IN YOUR CAR WHILE YOU ARE AT A STOPLIGHT?

I DID THIS TEST WITH 3121, AND I HAD TO TURN IT DOWN, I FELT VERY UNCOOL.. HAHA

DMSR said:

This happened to me, and I was a bit embarassed. Not by the music, but because I realized it looked like I was trying to impress someone by blasting Black Sweat, when I was really just enjoying it.

I thought the music sounded cool, actually (something I haven't felt with Prince for a while). I'd blast the song 3121 no problem.

I love all the lyrics!
They're funny and deep. A lot of wisdom seems to come from comparing and combining religious passion with earthly passions.

Who would think that LoveSexy from a 48 year old is actually quite a lot more exciting than a teenager's erotic fantasies (even Prince's )!
.
[Edited 3/23/06 11:38am]

Horrible horrible horrible -- glad I didnt buy it.

My review:

1. 3121 - best song on the CD, if it was longer I would have bought it
2. Lolita - good song until the lame call-and-response segment -- using this title does Nabokov an injustice.
3. TAC - boring boring tedious, dull - instant skip track
4. Black Sweat - lame and tedious, instant skip
5. Incense and Candles - interesting vocal gymnastics, hardly great enough to warrant buying the CD
6. Love - boring, skip
7. Satisfied - good song, I like it but doesnt warrant me buying the CD for it, if it was longer, like the title song, Maybe I would have
8. Fury - boring, SKIP
9. The Word - interesting, the 2nd best thing about this CD, but tedious after a few listens
10. B,L, & B - ZZZZZ SKIP
11. The Dance - good song with the disadvantage of being sandwiched between two sucky songs.
12. Get On the Boat - Vegas horn fills, and tiresome Sheila E. timbala patterns

My only question is, what happened to the funk?

You love ALL the lyrics?? Even the wall of Berlin stuff...WOW!!

like the album, especially Lolita, not crazy about Get On The Boat, needs less horns, more guitar

2. Lolita - good song until the lame call-and-response segment

"It's going down, like the wall of Berlin"
Just such an out of date reference. How long ago did the Berlin Wall come down !?

Trouble with us Prince fans is we have such varied taste. Some people want him to make a White Stripes album, others want a hard funk album !
All I want is a quality Prince album.
He's never sounded like anyone else, so I don't know why people want to compared him to Miles Davis or The Pixies!!? That's not the style music he does, and never has. If you prefer those artist, then good for you.

3121 is about as close to a classic Prince album (Parade, ATWIAD, SOTT) as he's come in a while. A few lame lines, some irritating raps, but overall it's pretty good.

I dont want Prince hobnobbing with fucking Oprha Winfrey and Ellen,

or throwing dated references in songs ("put down your cell phone")

. . or not swearing, how lame is that?

You are high on something, brother. This CD has no BALLS! I dont want Prince hobnobbing with fucking Oprha Winfrey and Ellen, or throwing dated references in songs ("put down your cell phone") . . . or not swearing, how lame is that? Be funky, crazy, throw out jams as you see them, mile-long jams that alienates the lame-asses that approve of your geriatric outings . . .that Black Sweat video is beyond lame.

Goddamn Prince, what an embarassment!

mapaul said:

aw dude, you must appreciate the brass balls of a man who sings about fucking and has fucked many a young nubile and now claims he won't give in to temptation. He plays it off like he's moral but he's just being a tease. It's audacious and hypocritical and sanctimonious and coy all at the same time.

And I think it's rock 'n' roll.

Can you imagine fine young womens at his concert hearing him sing "You'll never make a cheater out of me?" It's a come on. It's a challenge. He's inviting more groupies.

That's some wicked shit right there.

I see you standing with your back on the wall.

Listen... I have been such an uninterested, former hardcore Prince fan for so many years now. I used to be such a naysayer on this board. I thought (and still think) Musicology was a snore (aside from Illusion, Coma)... I loved a few songs on Rave, but hated the whole package. "Baby Knows" still makes me a little nauseous. I was firmly in the camp of fans who feel that most of the nineties work (and since) has been a rehashed, overproduced shame.

Unlike Bart, feeling like that left me with no desire to come and post about it. Why would I? I have been perfectly happy listening to my 140% complete back catalog, alone, and hoping that Prince, some day, would listen back to "Lady Cab Driver" or "17 Days" or "Crystal Ball" and get reinspired. Besides, I listen to quite a lot of other music, constantly, mostly indie and dance. Dwelling on Prince's current releases has just been depressing, except for a few bright spots along the way.

I think of 3121 as a supernova.

The new album has fucked up all of the last twenty-four hours for me. I can't get any work done. I have other new CDs that I haven't listened to yet, and maybe won't get to for a while.

So I was pretty surprised to log on to Prince.org, confident that I'm going to the one place where 3121 will be nothing but celebrated, and people are actually saying they're not feeling "Love"?

I am so happy I came to this with fresh ears. I mean, whatever, I've been listening to old Prince as much as ever, but I haven't been on the boards, I haven't been seeking out leaks, and I haven't been talking to anyone about Prince. SNL and the "Black Sweat" video got me a bit excited, but otherwise I've just been reserving any anticipation.

I did that because I figured I'd be disappointed, and because discussing and criticizing Prince as obsessively as I used to... it eventually robbed me of objectivity and I found, especially with Musicology, that the worst had happened: the whole world loved a Prince album that I didn't give a shit about.

So let me tell you where people ARE feeling 3121: out here, in the big world. Check out the other thread for a bit, you know, the one that has all the media reviews. Balance out the point of view. Prince does indeed fit into the current musical landscape. He's not going to be just ours anymore, at least for a while. "Incense and Candles" is a far, far more competitive and current song than most fans seem to be comfortable with. Here's some more news: Prince may not be the first to vocoder his vocals, but I&C contains probably the most understated, graceful, appropriate, and beautifully produced example of it in any R&B song I've heard recently. How can you not raise your hands and sing along with "I'm-a wannit all night long?" How can you not feel that rat-a-tat drum break at 2:02?

"Love" is the song I feel like Prince promised me, way back in 1988. And he f**cking kept it. My most played. The most driving mix yet of the familiar with the totally unexpected. The very first Prince song that made me get up and dance on first listen in probably over ten years. Let's skate.

And when has he been as loose and funny as on "Lolita"? I know the song is totally retarded. But I also think it's totally excellent. This is the same Prince that used to yell out "Fishtail!" and s**t like that. You didn't smile at 0:01 when that synth line came in? You didn't shout when you heard Prince taking back that call-and-response that he gave the Time in the first place?

Even though I'm playing "Love" the most, the song I am probably most blown away by is "The Word". Aside from being (what I think is) his most beautifully produced single track ever (headphones, headphones, headphones), it's the first time I've heard such a religious song from the Jehovah Prince that still felt emotional, resonant, universal. He's never sung verses like this. The arrangement is so beautiful. I couldn't believe Prince played that horn, too, I thought it was Eric Leeds or something, with Wendy on acoustic guitar... this sounds like the Revolution would have sounded in 2006. Bliss. Um, and the scream at the end?

Yes, I have my little critiques (I didn't really need "Satisfied", as great as his vocal is)... but this is my whole point. I would hate to think that my dislike of a corny synth fill here or there would distract me from the fact that 3121 is easily Prince's most fresh, accessible, and yeah, brilliant album in years and years.

If you're too close, man, back up and give yourself some air. It's okay to love the f**k out of this joint. It really is.

mapaul said:

aw dude, you must appreciate the brass balls of a man who sings about fucking and has fucked many a young nubile and now claims he won't give in to temptation. He plays it off like he's moral but he's just being a tease. It's audacious and hypocritical and sanctimonious and coy all at the same time.

And I think it's rock 'n' roll.

Can you imagine fine young womens at his concert hearing him sing "You'll never make a cheater out of me?" It's a come on. It's a challenge. He's inviting more groupies.

That's some wicked shit right there.

skip said:

I loved reading this!