i'm listening to tom petty's latest work and it's great. its classic tom petty, circa right now. bob dylan has also just released a timeless recording. u2 are at the top of their game. david bowie is making music we can arguably compare to his peak years.

then there's prince.

he's a musical genius, right? you'll get no arguments from me on that issue. yet he's been releasing stuff like musicology and 3121. after the dismal efforts of rave, newpowersoul, most of emancipation and crystal ball, there was a twinkle of hope with rainbow children. what gives? what are these other guys doing that prince is missing? why can't he seem to get hungry again? instead of braving it up, he releases these polished and over produced records that always sound better live. aside from rainbow children, i don't think his recent stuff has a long shelf life.

of course there are those who think he can do no wrong and those who think he can do no right. but then there are those of us in the middle...and we keep waiting for the muse to smack him upside his arrogant little head. do you think he'll ever become inspired to write another "the truth" or "rainbow children" and if so...how long is it gonna take!?

refection and rebirthing.

I think he'll get betterI didn't dig 3121 so much cause it seemed like a vehicle for Tamar more than anything, it'll get better.

It seems this question has been asked each year for the past 15 years.

I doubt Prince walks around thinking of himself as a musical genius or any other label he's been given. I also don't think his intentions are to be ground breaking or mind blowing every time he records a song.

Remember these words?

"All of this and more is for you.
With love, sincerity and deepest care,
my life with you I share."

Call me idealistic and naive, but I think that's what it was about then and that's what its about now.

A life takes many turns. I receive what Prince offers with the spirit in which he offers it. There's been thrills, chills, joy, pain, love, sin, redemption and more, all set to the music and artistry of a master musician. It's been an extraordinary journey and I'm delighted that Prince has chosen to share it.

Taking this point of view makes everything a lot more interesting and enjoyable for me. That and the fact that my tastes are as broad and varied as Prince's output.

I'm still having myself a blast and I look forward to where we're going next!

babynoz said:

Prince can do no wrong in my book-I love all of his work!!!

mzflash said:

babynoz said:

but do you take that route with every musical artist or just your favorites? i ask only because feelings like that make me think you're interested in prince the person as opposed to prince the artist. and there's nothing wrong with that but i'm not talking about having afternoon tea or lunch with him. i'm referring to his job. if i put out subpar work my boss may say, "i enjoy your company" but he may also add to that, "but you're fired for not working to your potential." do you know what i mean?

i guess the bottom line is, its not personal. i don't know prince. we don't chill together and he doesn't call me up when i'm having a hard time with life. i buy his work and he cashes my check. i just want to really dig the product again.

wonder505 said:

not by me.

i started this thread because i noticed i don't even consider prince in my top 3 anymore and that's crazy. for people who really know me...i'm talking close friends and family...prince's music is synonamous with me. when they hear prince they instantly think of me. and its wierd for me, personally, to not be too interested in the guy anymore.

i've seen ol' boy live at least 30 times. i've gone prince record hunting in every major city i've ever visited. i used to have an entire armoire on display of all my prince relics (ok, i still have the armoire ). my point is, i'm not one of those people who always bitches about prince. its just that i've noticed i'm outgrowing him.

maybe its just me. but if it is, why haven't i outgrown all of the other artists i've been fans of for years? why is prince the only one taking a backseat?

sallysassalot said:

i understand what you're saying and you make some good points
TRC is definitely a big highlight of Prince's recent career
as were many of the npgmc songs leading up to it (2000-2001)
3121 also has some great stuff, some of Prince's best
so here's hoping that this is also leading up to another something wow

It's all according to individual taste. 3121 is a very good cd in my book.Some fans liked it some didn't. Some fans liked TRC, some fans didn't like it at all.

If you go back and play some of the cd's that you might not think are good, some of all of them have genuis on them. Take Musicology: On The Counch has some very clever lyrics. Reflection is such a nice song.And when he sings 'Remember the feeling, back in the day, I know exactly what he is talking about. Chips and Whips? Wow.

I don't like some of Emancipation, but perhaps he was trying to sound 'modern' to sell cd's.But,some of it is very good. "You don't even know what cereal I like', No, Captain Crunch'? Who would think of that but Prince?

In all the years I've been buying differnt cd's Prince is the only artist where I liked some of all of a cd.

I'm not a good judge on Tom Petty. I like a lot of his songs and I have his greatest hits cd. and I've only seen him in concert one time, but a friend of mine who is a big fan of Tom Petty doesn't care much for the new cd, so it's a matter of indivdual taste

The short answer is that you are crazy...

Everything he has released has classic songs within.

Snap out of it, crazy ass!

There is great music on every Prince album...

I love the title song on TRC ( can´t really relate to the lyrics though), especially that guitar break towards the end of the song.

Mellow is also cool ( lyrics ain´t that great, but still)

Digital Garden is cool ( again, the lyrics are a bit too cryptic to win the masses., but the delivery and music are great)

Family Name is a great song with superb lyrics, so is Last December, very uplifting though I am not a Christian.

Everywhere is one of the best songs he ever came up with, great music, very positive...


There are gems on Musicology as well...I love that album, especially Reflection.
I dislike On the Couch and Musicology ( the song) and always skip them.



3121 is a great album ...only songs I skip are the HORRIBLE Lolita and Satisfied ( just like I can´t stand On the Couch...both are too boring and absolutely not my cup of tea...but I can´t get enough of the title song and The Dance and Love and BL&B ...The Word is also fantastic, except for the chorus...it would be flawless in my book and right up there with classics like 7 if it wasn´t for the cheesy chorus ).

So, all in all, based on a " how many good songs on an album" ratio,there are still great songs on every Prince album...yes, even on New Power Soul...at least half of it is good, especially considering the phase he was going through.

sallysassalot said:

Yes, I do take that route with every artist that interests me. It could be a musician, an author, a painter or what have you. For me the art is part and parcel of the artist. The artist/patron relationship is not quite the same as a boss/employee situation. The artist does not "work for" the patron, the artist expresses themselves through their art and, if interested, the patron supports it. For me, it's a bit deeper than simply "work for hire".

It isn't about having afternoon tea with them, chilling with them or having them call me up. It's about appreciating and vibing with what the artist expresses and the way they express it. Some artists merely entertain you, but others do touch you on a personal level.

On the few occasions when Prince does something I don't care for, it doesn't cause me to question the quality of his product or my level of interest. If the unlikely day ever came that I completely lost interest in his work, I'd take the view that it's been a phenomenal adventure and leave it at that.

I've always been a "glass half full" type of person, so I don't see that happening. Hopefully he'll do a "job" you'll feel is worth your "check" real soon.

Fact is, EVERY artist has periods of creative lows. The only one with a consistent output I can think of would be Miles, but even he layed low in the late 70s. The Beatles, Jimi, they all would have made inferior music, if they had continued. Bowie certainly went through it, for more than a decade actually, Dylan as well, not familiar with Petty's music.
One day, if you're a true artist, you'll get fueled up again. Also, it really depends on the kind of music you're doing (best). In Dylan's case, it wasn't unlikely that he comes back to truely great music again, IMO. Prince's best music, however, was IMO very often driven by, how to say it, the fire of youth. It was party music (in the broadest sense), it was sex, all that. You settle down a bit as you're growing older, there's no denying that.

well, i'm certainly not here to piss on anyone's parade or to convince anyone else of my opinion. i should say i enjoy musicology and i enjoy 3121. but i also enjoy the spice girls and gwen stefani. i guess coming from an artist who makes songs like reflection and the word, i hate to see a bunch of fluff on there as well.

i don't know. sign o' the times had serious material mixed with pop but the pop was more creative. so did lovesexy. so did parade. so did around the world in a day. so did purple rain. so did 1999. so did gold experience. and so on and so on. the pop on 3121, musicology, rave...this is all by the numbers, generic pop. where's the prince? aside from one or two gems, the rest seems to be filler or just generic pop. (this is, of course, all in my opinion).

i guess he's older and just doesn't care as much as he once did. or maybe i just don't get as excited about his current styling. or maybe its a little bit of both. one thing is sure, i'm sure shocked that i'm the only person on this website who feels this way.

calldapplwondery83 said:

but all of those artists got reinvigorated by working with other producers and artists. prince refuses to do that and, when he works with other artists, they have to be artists that he can mold into his own style.

sallysassalot said:

Well, as long as he goes for a TRC-style sound, everything's fine. It's only when he goes "electronical" nowadays that he does not sound up-to-date or even more than that. Black Sweat was a nice change, though.

Maybe the title of this thread shoud be: Sallysassalot...What's Happening?



These are all valid critiques/thoughts. However, they basically come down to the fact that you aren't feeling it. I like Musicology better than The Rainbow Children. The Rainbow Children was nice, but it was an album best listened to alone. Call me crazy, shallow, whatever-it shifts my perspective of Prince. I am very happy with Prince's latest output. I loved 3121.



Prince is different things to different people. Your favorite side of Prince's music maybe be something entirely different than mine. Does that mean Prince needs to be smacked upside his head? Vainandy thinks that Sign O the Times is "too retro". Does he need to be smacked upside his head?





If you eat your favorite food everyday and all of the time, so much so that it becomes synonamous with you, will you continue to enjoy it as much as they first couple of times you ate it? Probably not. Why is it different with Prince?




I feel that if you live, breathe, and sleep Prince music that there is a chance that you will burn out. Just like an addict you need more and more to keep as high as your first time.



Maybe you are in a different place than you used to be. Why does a man flirt with another woman when his wife is waiting at home? He is used to his wife, he feels as if she will always be there, and he takes her for granted.

You aren't feeling Prince anymore, it's not a crime. . Maybe you have moved onto classic rock. Maybe you need a break.....Either way, I'm sure we'll see you buying the next album, and standing in line for the next concert.
[Edited 9/25/06 6:29am]

skywalker said:

i get all of what you're saying but... (there's always a "but").

i've always liked bowie. i've always liked tori. i've always like prince. the only one whose quality of work i think has slipped is prince. sure, if p tours 9and its not a hits tour) i'll go. of course...he's a brilliant live showman. if he released a record tomorrow, sure, i'd buy it. but it had better wow me cuz at this point, no "favorite" is safe. janet jackson is my favorite female pop superstar but i've no intention of buying her new cd because i think its crap. prince is not above that in my book.

anyway, i know this is all a matter of taste. and i am on a prince website, after all...i'm really only ready to drop him like a heroin habit. the bottom line is his current work...for me, at least...has lost its staying power. but maybe this is a phase. maybe in 2 months i'll be blasting lolita again.

but in the meantime, i'll continue to blast le grind or family name or something that tells me he's inspired.

sallysassalot said:

...I hope not! (Just my own personal )

I've gone through periods where I had to take a break from Prince,especially in the 90s when he was releasing some less-than-brilliant music.Take some time to listen to other artists for awhile.

sexxydancer said:

Hey, we're polar opposets. Because as of now Prince can do no right. This changes later on.

I think Prince's problem is that he doesn't "Keep it real".
All those artists you've mentioned have come back down to earth recently and their music reflects that.
Prince still lives in Prince world. His music has become party music with little substance, and the songs with substance have become too targeted at hardcore christians/JWs (and hypocritical when you see what he's up to!).
[Edited 9/26/06 3:55am]

james said:

Prince propably had Dave Chappelle do a special skit of [uses extra deep voice] "When keeping it real...goes wrong" for him and he didn't like what would have happened to him.


Uhm...yes. Next.

Wait a minute, I got another one...

You say he doesn't keep it real, yet you say his music "with substance" is too "targeted" to a certain group/belief. But isn't just that "keeping it real"? Not changing your music to fit a broader audience.

I only mean this part of your comment of course, because besides that he surely has maybe not changed, but certainly made music for a relatively broad audience.

sallysassalot said:

would u call her nasty rude negative and judgemental if she did?