1. Musicology vs. 3121 ; 3121 wins this eeeasily
2. Illusion, Coma, Pimp & Circumstance vs. Lolita; was a close call
3. A Million Days vs. Te Amo Corazón; well Te Amo is still growing
4. Life o' the Party vs. Black Sweat ; Life of the party sucks
5. Call My Name vs. Incense and Candles ; Call my name is marvelous
6. Cinnamon Girl vs. Love ; I Love Love
7. What Do U Want Me 2 Do vs. Satisfied; Both are sweet
8. The Marrying Kind vs. Fury ; Fury is great
9. If Eye Was the Man in Ur Life vs. The Word; The word isnt my cup of tea
10. On the Couch vs. Beautiful, Loved and Blessed ; On the couch never got me hooked
11. Dear Mr. Man vs. The Dance ; The Dance is an amazing song
12. Reflection vs. Get on the Boat: Get on the boat type is done too often

1. Musicology over 3121
2. ICP&C over Lolita
3. Te Amo Corazon over A Million Days
4. Black Sweat over Life O' The Party
5. Call My Name over Incense and Candles
6. Cinnamon Girl over Love
7. What Do U Want Me 2 Do over Satisfied
8. The Marrying Kind over Fury
9. If Eye Was The Man in Ur Life over The Word
10. On the Couch over BL&B
11. Dear Mr. Man over The Dance
12. Reflection over Get On the Boat

Final Tally:
Musicology- 10
3121- 2

I could pick at least 2 previous songs for every track on 3121 which Prince has done better before. For one: "Everywhere", from TRC, is poetic and musically more elaborate, and still stands out as a much much better gospel themed track than BLA(h)B.

Overall, this album is too weak for me to want to spend too much more time thinking about it. Selling it the first chance I get for $5 or whatever I can get for it.

Even the art, w/o even one good picture of Prince, is simple and empty, just like most songs on this album.

1. Musicology vs. 3121

Musicology , 3121 doesnt do a lot for me , Camille theres in voice but not in the funk , Musicologys not great but I prefer it .

2. Illusion, Coma, Pimp & Circumstance vs. Lolita

Lolita is my fave track off the album , love it love it love it

3. A Million Days vs. Te Amo Corazón

TAC sounds better as part of 3121 , AMD bores the life out of me

4. Life o' the Party vs. Black Sweat

Black sweat obviously , funky lil tune , and Life O The Party is one of his all-time stinkers as well , poor embarassing rubbish

5. Call My Name vs. Incense and Candles

Call My Name , a good ballad , Incense may be a grower though

6. Cinnamon Girl vs. Love

Love , Prince at least trying something new , ooh and it has a chorus

7. What Do U Want Me 2 Do vs. Satisfied

Always liked WDUWM2D , Satisfied is one of Prince's ballads-on-autopilot, pretty forgetable

8. The Marrying Kind vs. Fury
Fury probably edges it over time , got more of an energy about it

9. If Eye Was the Man in Ur Life vs. The Word

The Word , not as good as people seem to be rating it thus far to my ears ,
but it shows he's still got ambition to try new stuff

10. On the Couch vs. Beautiful, Loved and Blessed

OTC , zzzzz , BLAB stood up quite well on the album , didnt sound
out of place or inferior

11. Dear Mr. Man vs. The Dance

Think I preferred the original version of The Dance actually , so Mr.Man gets my vote

12. Reflection vs. Get on the Boat

Reflection , a bit of introspective beauty gets my vote over a trying-too-hard funk tune.

Final tally is
Musicology : 5
3121 : 7

Not that surprising , as 3121 is better than Musicology , but its no classic .

GoZero said:

The more I listen to it, I'm coming to the conclusion that it's one of his worst albums ever...I already have a nickname for it-- the Ghetto album.

1. 3121
2. Illusion, Coma, Pimp & Circumstance -TIE- Lolita
3. Te Amo Corazón
4. Black Sweat
5. Call My Name -TIE- Incense and Candles
6. Love
7. Satisfied
8. Fury
9. If Eye Was the Man in Ur Life
10. On the Couch
11. The Dance
12. Reflection

1. Musicology vs. 3121

Hard to say because it's so early. I think I like "Musicology" better.

2. Illusion, Coma, Pimp & Circumstance vs. Lolita

"Lolita" with no contest. It's a funky "old Prince" kind of track. "Illusion, Coma, Pimp, & Circumstance" is sellout hip hop bullshit.

3. A Million Days vs. Te Amo Corazón

"A Million Days" by far.

4. Life o' the Party vs. Black Sweat

"Black Sweat" by far.

5. Call My Name vs. Incense and Candles

Definately "Call My Name". I hate "Incense and Candles".

6. Cinnamon Girl vs. Love

Both of these are my favorite tracks from both albums. I choose "Love" by far because it's the funkiest jam Prince has done in a long time.

7. What Do U Want Me 2 Do vs. Satisfied

"Satisfied".

8. The Marrying Kind vs. Fury

Definately "Fury".

9. If Eye Was the Man in Ur Life vs. The Word

Hard choice because both are kind of weak. I guess I'll go with "The Word".

10. On the Couch vs. Beautiful, Loved and Blessed

"On The Couch".

11. Dear Mr. Man vs. The Dance

"Dear Mr. Man".

12. Reflection vs. Get on the Boat[/quote]

Hard choice. I guess "Reflection".

All I can say is that from a first listen, the album, 3121 is much more impressive than Musicology. 3121 has a certain aggressive enery to it that just doesn't resonate with Musicolgy.

That's basically my take.

To be honest I have a hard time making it all the way through both albums. With Musicology it's because I get bored and start skipping tracks. With 3121 it's because I keep putting "Lolita" on repeat.

As for a track by track breakdown I'd probably pick the song "Musicology" over the song "3121" just because "3121" is too close to "Days of Wild". However, I'd pick all of the remaining songs off of 3121 over the rest of Musicology.

1. Musicology, I actually think 3121 is the weakest track on the album, Musicology the strongest and his real Comeback song.
2. ICPC only just, its the best song on Musicology, but LOLITA is very good too and its only just edged out, its funky, bouncy and quite slick.
3. Te Amo, a beautiful slow ballad with life, A million days similar but not as good
4. BLACK SWEAT, the best and funkiest track ever, its classic 80s Prince for the present day, only gripe its a bit short. Life of the party catchy but very annoying.
5. Call my name, although incense and candles is pretty good too.
6. Like track 2 very very hard, Cinnamon Girl is one of my all time favourites, but so is Love, so I am sorry to say its a draw. I could play love all nite...
7. Satisfied, its here that 3121 shows its strength, the last 6 songs are all great whereas Muiscology starts to plod.
8. Fury, by a long shot, a powerful rocker with some great Riffin, the marrying kind is unremarkable in comparison
9. The World, not quite as good as the rest, but better than if I was the man in ur life (only just)
10. Beautiful, loved and blessed, when Prince does ballads he does them well or he dosent, here he does, On the Couch deserves to stay there.
11. The Dance, very funky floor filler and bombastic sets the ground for...
12. On the boat, besides International Lover, Partyup and Adore the best Prince album closer ever, the song goes on and on, but stays funky and not indulgent.

So overall 3121 is the clear winner, although Musicology has its moments, afterall there wouldnt be a 3121 without Musicology in the first place

Moonbeam said:

You can tell who the posting whores are

Of course comparing track number to counterpart doesn't really mean you prefer an album on final results. You could still prefer songs on the other overall, just in different order. Anyway mine...

1. 3121
2. Illusion, Coma, Pimp & Circumstance
3. Te Amo Corazón
4. Black Sweat
5. Call My Name
6. Love
7. What Do U Want Me 2 Do
8. Fury
9. The Word
10. Beautiful, Loved and Blessed
11. Dear Mr. Man
12. Reflection

SpecialEd said:

Exactly. I just wanted to come up with a method for comparison that couldn't be argued- the order that the songs appear on the ablums.

Moonbeam said:

Of course. Your initial quesion asks "which is the superior record?" while this method doesn't give such results though.

SpecialEd said:

There is some correlation in the ordering of the songs, though.

I'm sure he has certain formulas for track 1, 2, etc, and that even though Reflection & Get on the Boat are different, they are comparable because they close their respective albums.

1. Musicology vs. 3121... TIE

2. Illusion, Coma, Pimp & Circumstance vs. Lolita no contest.... Lolita

3. A Million Days vs. Te Amo Corazón..... screw ya'll Te Amo' (There's one part of A Million Days that just messes the song up for me.)

4. Life o' the Party vs. Black Sweat No contest... Black Sweat

5. Call My Name vs. Incense and Candles .... Call My Name by a hair. (however, I&C doesn't make me hit the skip button)

6. Cinnamon Girl vs. Love.....Love (something about CG just irked me)

7. What Do U Want Me 2 Do vs. Satisfied ..... Satisfied

8. The Marrying Kind vs. Fury ... Fury

9. If Eye Was the Man in Ur Life vs. The Word ..... The Word. (That part about Missy ruins the song for me.)

10. On the Couch vs. Beautiful, Loved and Blessed ..... On The Couch

11. Dear Mr. Man vs. The Dance The Dance

12. Reflection vs. Get on the Boat[/quote]..... No contest, Get On The Boat

3121
illusion,coma, pimp and cirumstance
a million days
black sweat
call my name
love
satisfied
fury
the word
beautiful, loved and blessed
dear mr man
get on the boat

1. Musicology vs. 3121

3121 absolutely stomps on Musicology. While the latter is completely hookless and devoid of anything remotely interesting sonically or lyrically, 3121 is funky, quirky, and has a charm all it's own. One can almost see Prince winking at the fans during this one.

2. Illusion, Coma, Pimp & Circumstance vs. Lolita

I like both songs, but Lolita is a lot more fun. Synthy pop bliss.

3. A Million Days vs. Te Amo Corazón

A Million Days is really quite a moody mini-masterpiece, even though it's structured like a typical Prince midtempo rocker. Te Amo Corazon, while gorgeous and lush sounding, just doesn't even approach being as captivating as AMD.

4. Life o' the Party vs. Black Sweat

I'm not overly fond of BS, but Life o' the Party is a pointless exercise, so BS wins by default.

5. Call My Name vs. Incense and Candles

Tough one. CMN is Prince doing what he's damn good at, while I&C is a departure for him. I love both tracks, but I'm going to give Call My Name the edge here - Just more soul in there, and it hits home.

6. Cinnamon Girl vs. Love

No contest, Love is arguably the strongest cut on 3121 with its amazing chorus and stellar production. Cinnamon Girl has some interesting lyrics, but it's fairly by the numbers as a poprock tune.

7. What Do U Want Me 2 Do vs. Satisfied

I'm actually quite a fan of WDUWM2D, despite its clunky title. It's laid back, but fun and it holds my attention. Satisfied isn't anything special.

8. The Marrying Kind vs. Fury

Neither song really interests me, but Fury gets the nod.

9. If Eye Was the Man in Ur Life vs. The Word

I like them both, but The Word is just incredible. It's moody, pensive, and fascinating. I don't even mind the JW-inspired lyrics one bit.

10. On the Couch vs. Beautiful, Loved and Blessed

BLB all the way. It's light and breezy, but still pleasant and moderately interesting. On the Couch suffers from the same problems that Satisfied had.

11. Dear Mr. Man vs. The Dance

The Dance by miles upon miles. Atmospheric and involving, with some terrific vocal work. Very nice lyrics too. Love the screaming at the end.

12. Reflection vs. Get on the Boat

GOTB has grown on me, but Reflection has a simple, relaxed, and effortless beauty to it. The nostalgic and fun lyrics seal the deal for Reflection as the winner.

On a strictly song-by-song tally, Musicology scored a 4, while 3121 grabbed an 8.

My overall scores for the albums:
Musicology: 6
3121: 9

While Musicology certainly had its moments, it just felt so... dull and lifeless for the most part. 3121 is fresher, more energetic, more focused, and a much more involving record. Its highs are just far higher than those found on Musicology.
[Edited 3/24/06 0:38am]

tane1976 said:[quote]1. Musicology, I actually think 3121 is the weakest track on the album, Musicology the strongest and his real Comeback song.


Sorry I take it back, 3121 has grown on me incredibly its grown so much in 24 hours, I prefer it to Musicology, someone said its Camille and I believe them, 2 Funky

1. Musicology
2. Illusion, Coma, Pimp & Circumstance
3. (both suck)
4. Black Sweat cos it's the studio version. Live, Life O' would've won
5. Call My Name grammy!
6. Love easily
7. What Do U Want Me 2 Do
8. Fury but barely
9. If Eye Was the Man in Ur Life because the lyrics of The Word annoy me
10. On the Couch great tune, also live
11. Dear Mr. Man best track by Prince this century
12. Reflection

Musicology: 8
3121: 3

1. 3121
2. Tie (like both)
3. Te amo corazon
4. Black sweat
5. Tie (i don't like either)
6. Tie
7. What do u want me 2 do
8. Fury
9. The word
10. Tie
11. Dear Mr Man
12. Get on the Boat

3121 : 6
Musicology: 2
+ 4 ties

1. Musicology vs. 3121
2. Illusion, Coma, Pimp & Circumstance vs. Lolita
3. A Million Days vs. Te Amo Corazón
4. Life o' the Party vs. Black Sweat
5. Call My Name vs. Incense and Candles
6. Cinnamon Girl vs. Love
7. What Do U Want Me 2 Do vs. Satisfied
8. The Marrying Kind vs. Fury
9. If Eye Was the Man in Ur Life vs. The Word
10. On the Couch vs. Beautiful, Loved and Blessed
11. Dear Mr. Man vs. The Dance
12. Reflection vs. Get on the Boat I love both!

Musicology:4 songs
3121: 7 songs
1 tie
[Edited 3/26/06 14:43pm]

1. Musicology vs. 3121
2. Illusion, Coma, Pimp & Circumstance vs. Lolita
3. A Million Days vs. Te Amo Corazón
4. Life o' the Party vs. Black Sweat
5. Call My Name vs. Incense and Candles I don't like either, but at least incense and candles doesn't put me to sleep.
6. Cinnamon Girl vs. Love
7. What Do U Want Me 2 Do vs. Satisfied same as track 5
8. The Marrying Kind vs. Fury both are good but Fury is teh-hendrix
9. If Eye Was the Man in Ur Life vs. The Word I think the word is the sexiest gospel song every written
10. On the Couch vs. Beautiful, Loved and Blessed
11. Dear Mr. Man vs. The Dance
12. Reflection vs. Get on the Boat

1. Musicology vs. 3121
2. Illusion, Coma, Pimp & Circumstance vs. Lolita
3. A Million Days vs. Te Amo Corazón
4. Life o' the Party vs. Black Sweat
5. Call My Name vs. Incense and Candles
6. Cinnamon Girl vs. Love I absolutely LOVE this song!
7. What Do U Want Me 2 Do vs. Satisfied
8. The Marrying Kind vs. Fury
9. If Eye Was the Man in Ur Life vs. The Word Hands down
10. On the Couch vs. Beautiful, Loved and Blessed
11. Dear Mr. Man vs. The Dance Hard decision
12. Reflection vs. Get on the Boat

1. Musicology vs. 3121
2. Illusion, Coma, Pimp & Circumstance vs. Lolita
3. A Million Days vs. Te Amo Corazón
4. Life o' the Party vs. Black Sweat
5. Call My Name vs. Incense and Candles
6. Cinnamon Girl vs. Love I absolutely LOVE this song!
7. What Do U Want Me 2 Do vs. Satisfied
8. The Marrying Kind vs. Fury
9. If Eye Was the Man in Ur Life vs. The Word Hands down
10. On the Couch vs. Beautiful, Loved and Blessed
11. Dear Mr. Man vs. The Dance Hard decision
12. Reflection vs. Get on the Boat

3121
Lolita
A Million Days
Black Sweat
Call My Name
Cinnamon Girl
What Do U Want Me 2 Do?
Fury
The Word
On The Couch
The Dance
Reflection

This would make one great album!

1. Musicology vs. 3121
2. Illusion, Coma, Pimp & Circumstance vs. Lolita
3. A Million Days vs. Te Amo Corazón
4. Life o' the Party vs. Black Sweat
5. Call My Name vs. Incense and Candles
6. Cinnamon Girl vs. Love
7. What Do U Want Me 2 Do vs. Satisfied
8. The Marrying Kind vs. Fury
9. If Eye Was the Man in Ur Life vs. The Word
10. On the Couch vs. Beautiful, Loved and Blessed
11. Dear Mr. Man vs. The Dance
12. Reflection vs. Get on the Boat

I haven't bought the album yet.
So, for the time being,
3121 wins.

Oh, yes! I liked Musicology, but 3121 is much better! Love it

I'm not sure it's a fair comparison, but it's interesting. To me, Musicology didn't feel like a "real" Prince album, but 3121 does. Musicology doesn't really have any classics in my view (perhaps Reflection and the title-track ICP&C doesn't quite cut it, for me), whereas I already think 3121 definitely has (BS is up there with the greats for me, and Fury probably 2). They're both flawed with some great trax, but 3121 tips it for me, for sure.

1. Musicology vs. 3121
This is the hardest one - 3121 is far more Princey and interesting but Musicology really got me (as opposed to the rest of the album). It wins for the break in the middle-end (otherwise it woulda just been a JB outtake).

2. Illusion, Coma, Pimp & Circumstance vs. Lolita
In many ways ICP&C is a better song, but something about it always annoyed me, and it does sound forced. I used to dis his sugar-pop songs (RB, S&C) only to have them grow on me and become classics - this time I'm giving Lolita an open door!

3. A Million Days vs. Te Amo Corazón
Never got the enthusisasm for the overblown AMD, whereas TAC is a grower destined to become a classic for afficionados (I was lukewarm about it at 1st).

4. Life o' the Party vs. Black Sweat
Ok, I think the hate for LOTP is overdone - the main prob is the chorus, other than that the song kicks a. OTOH: BS rulez!!!! Best thing P's done in at least 11 years, maybe 18!

5. Call My Name vs. Incense and Candles
Just because I can't bear that vocorder or whatever it's called.

6. Cinnamon Girl vs. Love
This is a close one. CG was disappointing and not as good as it shoulda been (great vid). I have mixed feelings about Love, but it's fun, so it wins.

7. What Do U Want Me 2 Do vs. Satisfied
Never liked WDUWM2D - never understood the enthusiasm - it takes more than a muted sound to make a song worthy of SOTT. Satisfied is a classic cool ballad.

8. The Marrying Kind vs. Fury
No contest!

9. If Eye Was the Man in Ur Life vs. The Word
Loving The Word, where If Eye was, like, okay.

10. On the Couch vs. Beautiful, Loved and Blessed
Okay, this is a difficult one. OTC was a highlight for me on Musicology and I didn't like BLAB at first, but that was mainly due to the SNL vers. BLAB is growing and I'm inclined to give a tie but, yeah I will.

11. Dear Mr. Man vs. The Dance
Dear Mr. Man coulda been better, but I love it. The Dance will prob'ly grow, but for the moment it's still behind.

12. Reflection vs. Get on the Boat
Loved Reflection, whereas Boat's just a cool jam, with a slight cringe-factor.

Total tally: Musicology - 4, 3121 - 7, tied - 1