Prince can put together decent sounding, expertly performed tunes in practically any genre without even thinking about it. But just because he can doesn't mean he should, and this undercomposed, trivial, painfully dull album shows why. From the one-chord, sluggish funk title track through the trite, upbeat funk "Get On The Boat" (which does have a pleasant Maceo solo), there's plenty of proficiency but no passion, originality or even a solid melody. He hits all the usual formulas - "Kiss"-style minimalist funk ("Black Sweat"); "Adore"-style R&B ballad ("Satisfy"); "7"-style acoustic pop ("The Word"); arena rocker ("Fury"); delicate ballad ("Te Amo Corazón") - but with astoundingly weak hooks and lyrics ("Lolita"). Guests include protege Tāmar (a singer in the grand tradition of Vanity and Elisa Fiorello), his touring horn section, new rhythm section Joshua Dunham and Cora Coleman Dunham, and percussionists Herbert Urena, Ricky Salas and Sheila E. I could've rated this lower, but the arrangements and production are so much better developed than New Power Soul - similarly shoddy song-wise - I couldn't see rating them the same. (DBW)

this guy's an idiot -- and i never use that word lightly

yeah but other reviews of prince music are pretty acurrate on www.warr.org

warr.org said:
They have a point here


[Edited 3/28/06 1:28am]

warr.org is an interesting site.I enjoy reading their reviews even though,half the time,I don't agree with them

Sounds about right to me, dunno how anyone could contest it - even if you like 3121, their points regarding the auto-pilot song-writing are valid.
[Edited 3/28/06 1:43am]

NouveauDance said:

What is the difference between songwriting that's on autopilot and songwriting that is not? I'd say "The Word" and "The Dance" are two songs not written on "autopilot." Why is "Satisfied" autopilot but "Slow Love" not? Again, I find mostly all positive and negative reviews laughable. I think most people are idiots.

loudawg said:

Who said anything about Slow Love?

loudawg said:

excellent questions

NouveauDance said:

I dont agree.
Is that you in your Avatar?

It´s funny , even though I really enjoy 3121 I can still understand the criticism that people display...I can relate to every comparison and every point they´re making, and I think this guy hits the nail on the head, but I still enjoyy 3121 so that is all that matters to me.

I mean, he´s probably right, from his viewpoint, but other than Lolita all songs are really good IMO ( except for Satisfied, but even that is not really bad).
Black Sweat is great and immensely enjoyable, so are Fury and the title track ( how can one seriously dis 3121, the song ?) , I also like Incense and Candles and Beautiful, Loved and Blessed ( WTF is up with that Vanity comparison ?).

Yet, I can still understand this guy....he should give it more time..or maybe just accept that he doesn´t like Prince anymore.There were also less than stellar songs on some of his classics. 3121 is a good album.

muirdo said:

It is. Why do you ask?

I think it's sad that people can't just have fun with an album, instead of looking for Prince to reinvent the wheel every time he goes in the studio.

I think Prince proved that he could do an up-to-date album. In terms of production it´s so much better than Rave Un2 The Joy Fantastic. I think it smells dance floors and a song like ´Incense and candles´ could easily play on a danceclub without being embarassing. But it´s not challenging musically. Prince is having fun, and it can be good

TheBigBang said:

How many albums of treading water does one artist need to put out though?

That's why TRC was such a breathe of fresh air, it was a break from the almost unbroken string of sound-a-like albums from Emancipation till 3121.

TheBigBang said:

Thank you. I swear, Prince could give them something better than Purple Rain and Sign O The Times COMBINED and people will still hate it. In fact, for those that hate 3121 or have issues with it, GOOD. Stay in the past if you want, I'm gonna live in the present and you know what? I'm lovin it!
[Edited 3/28/06 6:43am]

NouveauDance said:

I agree with you; I think TRC is the best album he's done this century. However, I don't fault him for wanting to just have fun.

I am not surprised that some do not dig 3121. Everyone is entitled to their own opinions. Being a Prince fan you know this is not as classic compare to his older stuff. I think it is good. It's definitely better than the last couple of albums he has released since Musicology. I do know others may not feel the same way i do. I look at it this way. Prince is proving to all nay sayers that he is still in the game & playing it the way he knows how very well.
[Edited 3/29/06 6:57am]

This album has no melody? I've read the other reviews before, but this one is easily the worst of the reviews, and not because it is negative in tone. 3121 has the strongest melodies for over a decade on a Prince album.

Moonbeam said:

I agree... for the first time in a long, long time I've woken up with a melody in my head ... and I've found those melody's creep in unexpectedly as I'm going about my day.

DavidEye said:

Yes, I enjoy the site a lot, but I dont trust everything they say. DW is more talented than the other guy, and they tend to underrate records of "old" musicians (see the reviews of recent Stevie Wonder and Rolling Stones cds). And surprisingly they overrate latin artist like Marc Anthony . Plus, you got to see the disclaimmer in DBW page about Prince, when he states that unlike other artists fans, P. fans are always in contradiction about what is the best and the worst of the artist.

thebanishedone said:

--

Find myself agreeing to pretty much all in this review, ive now listened to the album at least 10 times to make a fair judgement.
IMHO i kinda like 'love' - 'the world' - and - 'the dance' but the rest is poor, 'get on the boat' is musicology with different words. can you sue yourself for that? id rate 3121 - 3/10

But hey im listening to 'Im yours' and it still rocks after 28 years so its all good