Why did Prince kick so much ass when he was on WBros and not so much since? How did he write and produce so much stuff and most of it all good?

I think there's three reasons why there's a difference in NPG product and WB product-

1. WBros A&R could say no to bad ideas and yes to others. Prince could fight them, but in the end he had to compromise to a certain extent, which I think was good for him. Everybody saying yes all the time cant be good for him. Some of the greatest artists either have a songrwiting partner or a producer to work with. Prince has neither, and now he has now record company, and I think it affects his music output in a bad way.

2. WBros made Prince work harder- he was hungry and he wanted to be the best in the world, once he got there he did what most artists do that ruin their career- fire everybody and think you can do it alone. There's a reason bands like U2 is still on top= Bono was smart enough not to go solo or fire his manager. Bruce Springsteen finally woke up and go the E Street Band back, and he was smart enough to hire a producer for the first time, claiming he couldn't keep up with the latest sounds and technology. Prince may need the Revolution or at least Sheila E on Drums and Dr on Keys, and trying a producer couldn't hurt for a song or two.

3. WBros is a major with big publicity departments and amazing art departments. Prince's whole image has gone downhill since he left WB I think.

amen

I sadly have to agree.

so what we are saying is the stuff he has been putting out lately is not up to snuff???

DMSR said:

It's not the first time Springsteen has worked with a producer.


No, Prince's image went downhill before he even left WB. But personally I don't see why his image matters. What you want is music Prince isn't giving you. That's not going to change whether he's with a major right now or not.



Wasn't there a thread exactly like this 3 or 4 months ago?

Supernova said:

Bruce has worked with his manager Jon Landeau and Little Steven but that's like Prince working with Levi or one of his guys on his payroll. That's different than hiring an outside producer like Brendan O'Brien who isnt afraid to suggest ideas ithout losing his career.

I can hear Levi now- "Prince try this chord. Levi, you're fired, just like Jam and Lewis."

As far as there being other threads i really dont have time to read back 3-4 months to find that thread!

DMSR said:

theC
:LOL:
It what i said awhile ago when i was comparing Mike Tyson to Prince.Once tyson left the people who pushed him to his limits.He was done.His talent would carry him along way.The end result is what you saw against Lewis.Prince is at the DOORSTEP.He need to let his EGO go and let people push him again.He's too comfortable to summon up the fire to put out a string of hits like he used to.
[This message was edited Tue Aug 20 19:18:15 PDT 2002 by theC]

DMSR said:

Not quite. Ever heard of Mike Appel?


That wasn't the point.

i Agree.the Guy has had to Much of a Impact on Pop Culture to Go mainly only into Cyber-Land.it would be cool to see Him do something with a Outside Source&see what happen at least once? but like Most SuperStar Artists Chances are that Prince will stay Hard-Headed&Stay away from that Avenue.

DMSR said:

Not exactly.

:::Excerpt on the Recording of "Kiss" from article in Mix Magazine 2001 --- Comments are by David Z.

In fact, it did produce some drama before it was released. Z says the feedback that came to him from Prince's record label, Warners, was palpably negative. “The A&R guy said it sounded like a demo,” Z remembers. “No bass, no reverb. I was devastated. But Prince had been selling big numbers, and he had a kind of power that few artists at that time did, probably more than any artist ever will again. He told Warners that that's the single they were getting, that that's the one they were putting out. He basically forced Warners to put it out.” Lucky Warners. The record went to Number One in the spring of 1986, and solidified Prince's stature as The Artist To Be Reckoned With.

The entire article can be found on alt.music.prince.

.
[This message was edited Tue Aug 20 19:29:19 PDT 2002 by Ifsixwuz9]

Ifsixwuz9 said:

And actually, WB wasn't too keen on releasing "Doves" as a single either.

his current music is boring and bad.perhaps he will change that by letting others tell his ego: No and mean it too.

Supernova said:

And actually, WB wasn't too keen on releasing "Doves" as a single either.[/quote]

theC
True supernova,i'm not saying WB made ALL the right decisions for prince.I'm just sayin they pushed HIM.They made him want to PROVE himself.And if he stood by a song HE BELIEVED IN IT FULLY.I don't think he's hot complete faith in what he's doing now.

I don't think Prince needs a major label. I think the stuff he is putting out now is great and I think he keeps getting better all of the time.

I agree with Natasha, plus I don't think he got enough promotion when he was with WB. Especially here is australia, before I had access to the net, I never knew when his stuff was being released.

subyduby said:

Oh, go listen to Celine Dion and LaToya Jackson.

Supernova said:

OUCH!!! Like ET!!!

Supernova said:

oh shut-up! prince songs suck (currently).

subyduby said:

So do Saline Dijon songs (historically).


Now go make me a sandwich and clean up the damn kitchen, child!

Princeneedsamajorlabelikeyouneedaholenyohead.

All of my favorite bands are on indie labels. Why?
I don't know. Maybe it's the freedom that the artists have to express themselves without worrying if they are going to appeal to the broadest fan base.

Prince still rocks and gets funky. He just doesn't care if YOU like it, there are plenty that do.

-Peace

DMSR said:

I miss the Warner years! Back then,everything was so structured and organized.A new CD would be announced,the first single and video would come out,then the album would be released several weeks later.Nowadays,there is always alot of confusion and misinformation coming out of Prince's organization.

Prince has never been better, musically.
That's what it's all about, right?
Or, do u want a video too?

subyduby said:

You're referring to Michael Jackson right?

I don't think the stuff that he's producing nowadays is great ... flashes of genius yes, but on the whole it's been disappointing.

This year he's committed to releasing CDs to fans on NPGMC, plus downloads, plus the Celebration, plus an American tour, possibly a European one. I'd rather he focused on putting one great CD out there to everyone than however many mediocre ones he's planning to release to fans.

OK, that was my opinion. The truth is that Prince is now at a stage where he can do what he likes musically. He's given us some great CDs in the past and doesn't really need to release any more of that calibre to be considered one of the most prolific and talented musicians of our time.

So, on the one hand, I'd like to see more from him - more quality rather than quantity ... on the other, I appreciate that he's going in the direction he wants to right now and he always said he would do less commercial stuff eventually.

Finally, my opinion on whether he needs a label? "Yes" .. not necessarily a major one though, because I don't think he could handle giving up control of his music, but I'd like to see what he could achieve through collaborations with new producers and artists along with an element of controlling what he releases to the public, because I don't think he always releases his best stuff and to me that's a pity, because there are a vast number of people out there who don't appreciate what he's capable of as an artist.

subyduby said:

It doesn't matter that you're ignorant, the unbearable thing is that you're a pompous ignorant moron. Your avatar picture says exactly how a conformist, pathetic teenager you are.

The major problem is that the jw dogma ("whosepapers, hellavisions, and scagazines", well everything that doesn't evolve around their "truth") might incite him to keep his club as a shell (inside the jw cult) vs the devilish World.

Supernova said:

Here's part of the article from Rolling Stone interview-

Equally significant, The Rising is the first Springsteen album ever to be produced by an outsider. Springsteen's camp over the years has been one of the most tightly knit in the rock world. Beginning with his first album, 1973's Greetings From Asbury Park, N.J., Springsteen has had a hand in producing every one of his albums. His only production collaborators have been people very close to him, such as his manager, Jon Landau, Van Zandt and Chuck Plotkin. They are notorious perfectionists. The time it takes them to make an album can be epic, up to three years; just as epic are the conversations between Springsteen and Landau about the nuances of a single take. But for The Rising, Springsteen handed the reins to Atlanta producer Brendan O'Brien, whose credits include albums by Pearl Jam and Rage Against the Machine. The new record was finished in seven and a half weeks.


I REST MY CASE!

jnoel said:

"hellavision" has nothing to do with the witnesses. That goes back to 94/95. References to it can be found on the Exodus album.

DavidEye said:

Yea and my point about the image was more about the album artwork and the photos and whole package.

DMSR said:

You can rest your case all ya want, DMSR, but Mike Appel's name is in the credits of BOTH of Springsteen's first 2 albums of his career. Maybe the writers at Rolling Stone either have forgotten, or don't know. But anyone who knows anything about his first 2 discs knows that. Appel just happened to be the guy that Springsteen had legal trouble with and it took him 3 years after Born To Run to be able to record again. Maybe Appel was close to him too (I don't know), but he does have a producers credit in those albums I mention.

Case dismissed.