Were you happy? Were you sad, angry, or just down right piss off?

Do you believe IYHO that THIS was the right kind of follow-up to Purple Rain?

Should Prince have reconsider and produce a Purple Rain 2 (EXAMPLE: Teena Marie's Emerald City) for himself?

IYHO, what was THE best song on this album?

Wendy & Lisa was good for Prince around this time.....True OR False?



EDIT: BTW, America is THE best song on this album. The 12-inch version is a best buy.

I love the entire album

i was amazed. i didn't expect it, but i embraced it from the very first listen. it was like finding a key to a secret room or something. i was a kid when this came out, and i wasn't used to an artist completely changing their sound like he did on this album. plus, every song sounded so much different than the last one. i used to spend hours listening to the album and staring at the album art, wondering what it all meant. i miss that kind of thing.

Let's see. I was 12 years old and from what I remember...

ATWIAD- I'm one of the seemingly few that has always liked this song. The "I think I wanna dance" part was always my favorite part of the song.

Paisley Park-It was always alright.It wasn't until hearing it live years later that I really cared for it.

Condition of the Heart- The instrumental intro was too long for my taste. The rest of the song had it's moments.

Raspberry Beret-Loved it from day one. I used to always turn up the radio as the song faded just to nearly blow out my eardrums to the intro of Tamborine.

Tamborine-Loved it then! Love it now!!

to be continued...

Anx said:

The title track and Paisley Park made me think real hard about the subject matter! And the music arrangement?

Will all due respect to Virgin Records, Prince & The Revolution invented Pure Moods.

I was pissed as HELL! He should have most definately continued on with his famous sound. Not a "Purple Rain 2" that people love to throw around here, but definately an album that was in the style he was known for. The song "Heaven" would have been a perfect lead single.
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[Edited 7/22/06 9:45am]

Well considering I wasn't around in 1985, I didn't exactly get that "follow-up to Purple Rain" feel...So when I first heard it, it was like going into something without any clue what to expect. At first, I was unhappy with the album, too "pop-ish" for my tastes, with the only song I really liked (okay, loved) was "Temptation." Then I started listening to it more and realizing that this album truly flows and sounds different than what is really expected from Prince. So, on topic, the first time I listened to it, one word to describe it would be "different." And even after beginning to love the album, I still question "Condition of the Heart," Prince's vocals sound way off, whether intentional or not, it's almost distracting from the beautiful lyrics.

I loved this album when it was released. I was expecting another "Let's Go Crazy", so I was surprised by the flutes of "Around The World In A Day" when I first played it. But I still love the album to this day. My favourite tracks are the title track, Condition Of the Heart, Pop Life and of course Raspberry Beret. This era I thought spawned some marvellous B-sides too. I don't think Prince should have stuck with a Purple Rain mark 2, it would have sounded very false and possibly could have backfired. Around The World In a Day is the same kind of risk The Beatles took releasing Sgt Peppers Lonely Hearts Club Band in 1967.

Were you happy? Were you sad, angry, or just down right piss off? Ecstatic - This was the first album I'd heard from P all the way through

Do you believe IYHO that THIS was the right kind of follow-up to Purple Rain? Purple Rain passed me by but with hindsight, yes, it was the right thing to do

Should Prince have reconsider and produce a Purple Rain 2 (EXAMPLE: Teena Marie's Emerald City) for himself? I've heard the alternative version of the title track in Purple Rain sounding mode and it ain't right

IYHO, what was THE best song on this album? Condition of the Heart - one man, pretty much alone created THAT????

Wendy & Lisa was good for Prince around this time.....True OR False? Very good. And they'd be good for him now, even though he's fine as he is now. 3121 is his best mainstream album since The Gold Experience

The first time I heard songs from this album was when radio stations where playing random cuts. I heard all of the songs at least once on the radio before getting the album. I remember liking Raspberry Beret, Paisley Park, and Pop Life immediately. The others not much of an opinion yet. I bought the album not too much long after radio previewing the cuts...and liking it more and more after each listen. By mid 85 I was obsessed with it. However, all my friends who all loved Purple Rain and 1999 HATED it. I actually had to by a new copy of the cassette when one of my butthead friends threw it out my car window and it got crushed from another car. Needless to say after I pounded the shit out of him and was incredibly .

So for me it was the perfect, ballsy, follow up to Purple Rain.

I also think Wendy & Lisa were nothing but a positive influence and I have missed them ever since they left.
[Edited 7/22/06 10:54am]

Were you happy? Were you sad, angry, or just down right piss off?

Delighted

Do you believe IYHO that THIS was the right kind of follow-up to Purple Rain?

Yes

Should Prince have reconsider and produce a Purple Rain 2 (EXAMPLE: Teena Marie's Emerald City) for himself?

No

IYHO, what was THE best song on this album?

The Ladder

Wendy & Lisa was good for Prince around this time.....True OR False?

In my opinion, Wendy and Lisa contributed positively during this period.
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I liked Raspberry Beret and Paisley PArk and the titel song but i didnt rellay dig temptaion thoguh I do apreciate it now . the LAdder kinda grew on me but I missed that cold electronic synth sound I´d gotten used to..

Kinda hard for me to respond....I was only 2 when this came out and it was much later that I discovered Prince Though when I did get the disc I loved it. It was a drastically differant album and I thought the creative process on the album was cool. I honestly would never want another Purple Rain. I feel artists who get stuck in a time period (and as much as I like the guys music Michael Jackson is a perfect example of this) dont grow so it was nice to hear something differant after Purple Rain. THeres my 2 bits

I remember this album 2 well. Let's look at packaging.

The tape (no cd at this time) was clear, see thru. first tape of this kind i owned.

The sound... I admit, P changed everything, even the pitch of his voice. It became the summer of Paisly Park, Raspberry Beret, and America.

The cover, I used to love the tape fold outs, I believe as time passed P's book images became less and less interesting. 3121 is a boring jacket.

Strongest song, temptation. P doesn't wail on the guitar like this often. It was hard stone.

Oddest Song.... Tamborine, but it was so unusual i loved it.

Condition of the heart gave me, well, a condition of the heart. It had a dream like quality.

Around the world in a day gave me the feel that the music was compiled from arts learned around the world. And I believe the exposure to traveling the world was the inspirition for the musical style on this album. It was P studying world music while traveling the world on his purple rain tour.

That's why I believe the song america is on this album, it simply means home sweet home.

I like growth, exploration, and surprises. I loved the album, and listened to it till the needle broke.

I used to think the song "America" was a throwaway.

I was a senior in high school the year "Purple Rain" was out, and I was NOT a Prince fan. So, when ATWIAD came out, my attitude was, "See, I told ya!" when my friend played it for me. I HATED "America". The video annoyed me (and still does!)....
But then, I 'discovered' Prince in college, and revisited this album with a new lens. I love it! I still hate "America", tho. "Girl" is one of my faves! (I named it in the 'B-side' thread).

Lynn

My first response was basically

Rasberry Beret, Pop Life, and Paisley Park were cool, but everything else equaled a pretty disappointing first listen. Sure I grew to like it more, but even now those are basically the 3 songs that get listened to the most for mois. Although I expected more of the Purple Rain sound, I'm glad he didn't go that route. made for a much more interesting career imho.

W&L's influence was cool. By the time they left it was all starting to get boring for me, so I didn't miss them much at the end.

Oh, and Pop-Life extended is my favorite off this album.



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[Edited 7/22/06 16:00pm]

I was blown away because it was totally different than "Purple Rain." But, the jam from this album is the b-side, "She's Always In My Hair."

I hate the fact that Prince has a video of me screeching like a hyena singing Raspberry Beret (recorded at the NPG Store in Mpls to win a contest).

America is the jam. Whenever I'm long distance driving, I play the 12" version, because this is one beautiful country with all that open land.

I pretty much loved it from day one...

I didn't care for Paisley Park. Come to think of it, that one never really grew on me... but it went along with the whole Purple-hippie-psychedelia thing so I never complained about it. I was a little too young to appreciate the intro to Condition of the Heart but it eventually became a staple of the song. But overall, I thought it was a great follow-up to Purple Rain.

CinisterCee said:

Throwaway? Maybe.

But the 12-inches version changed all that!

I loved it from the beginning,as I do all Prince releases.

After I listen 2 it 4 the 1st time,I truly new why I was Born!!!

when i first got the cassette i couldnt stop listening to it. I would play it over and over again.
My favorite song is America especially the extended version. I love every song on the album.
[Edited 7/22/06 18:59pm]

TonyVanDam said:

[Edited 7/29/06 1:36am]

My 2nd. fav Prince album.

Was dissapointed with it a bit after the mass appeal of PR but still played it lots.

I regard it as a definate classic now though

I didn't get the feel like most of you did, hearing the album after Purple Rain was released. But when I heard it I was just blown away by how different it sounds from his other stuff. I think it was good that he went in a whole different direction that PR, it just goes to show that he puts out whatever he feels like and that he is a very talented man. I like the album, I like others better but this is still a good album. My fav. songs are Tamborine, ATWIAD, and Paisley Park. And I think that Wendy and Lisa were good for him at that time.
[Edited 7/22/06 20:53pm]

I only knew of Purple Rain as a movie. I don't even remember hearing the songs on the radio. (I was a bit young & not interested in music + grew up in a cultural wasteland ). However, I distinctly remember hearing Pop Life on the radio--I actually wrote a short story with the same title (different subject matter though). I don't remember Raspberry Beret being played much... I'd guess that the album as a whole pretty much passed over the area where I grew up.

It wasn't until a couple years ago, when I was working on buying all the Prince albums, that I listened to the album in it's entirety.

At first I didn't really like it, except for America (which I'd heard around), Raspberry Beret, and Pop Life. But I would read threads here about how great this song or that one was; so I'd go back and listen to the songs again. I like the album much more now. The songs I like I really dig but the ones I don't like I really dislike. There's no inbetween for me. My fave songs are America (12", which I don't own, but love anyway), Raspberry Beret, Tamborine, Paisley Park, ATWIAD, Pop Life and the B-Sides. It's too hard to pick the best song--there are so many factors to consider. I hate Temptation, Condition of the Heart & The Ladder. Prince's voice is too whiny or something, esp. on Condition of the Heart. It's like nails on a chalkboard for me (same with God).

I love the cover--how each song is represented in the imagery. A couple of months ago I found the LP for $3 at a used vinyl store!

I really can't say whether I would have thought it was a good follow up to PR at the time--I just wasn't into music as a kid. I can understand why a lot of people would have been disappointed with it considering it's drastically different from PR, 1999, Controversy, & DM. But even if he had done a "Purple Rain 2" after that he'd be in the same situation--continue with the PR sound or do something else? It would be a no win situation--critics would say he was being unoriginal and riding the PR popularity and fans might get bored, saying 'all his albums sounds the same' but then if he did something different people would be disappointed because they expected something different. (Come to think of it, that's still the problem Prince has every time he releases an album...)

RE: Wendy & Lisa: I'm not familiar enough with the extent of their imput for this album to have an informed opinion about that.

I was gloriously 17. Had been lovin' the man and his music since I was 13. I was stunned by the depth of that album. It took me to places emotionally that were so artistic, so unique, so moving. Ofcourse, since I was a teenager, everything was intense, but that album was a vehicle for me creativly.I love that he was so free at the time, so imaginative. I think both Wendy and Lisa were and still are dynamic musicians. He needed their contributions in that album.

The coming face to face with God, the daisies with their blinding color, Prince's whaling, the fairytale told in the Ladder, that awesome, all-accepting place we all wanted to belong to back then-Paisley Park. These are just some of my favorite images from this album, not to mention, the artwork....LOVED IT.