From what I see offered, you should get Emancipation next. There are so many albums the man has it's going to be mind boggling for you but you will enjoy the ride, no doubt! Let us know when you pick up all the albums.

purplecam said:

I doubt I'll pick up every single one. Like I've said a few times, I'm only interested in owning the best.

I'll share my biggest fear with you guys. Over the past month, ever since the SuperBowl, I've watched him in videos or in live appearances. When I start my personal "best of Prince" collection, I want to cherish it for many years to come. I'm half afraid that listening to them on CD won't feel the same as watching him sing them either in videos or live appearances, that I'll feel short-changed.

I'm having my doubts about Musicology, so is it better or worse than 3121? which I'm definitely getting cuz it's his most recent one and I've heard his recent stuff. Prince said that Musicology's message was bringing back real music, so that's why I thought it would be a safe bet. But right now, I'm listening to "Call my name" and like what I hear, so I dunno
[Edited 3/8/07 18:08pm]

DreamyPopRoyalty said:

3121 is okay but imo Musicology is better. But again, for "best" you have to go further back.

"just can't stop writing songs about u, i love u so much..." LOVE that song!
and I love Reflections also.

EMANCIPATION!!!!!

Most likely, I'll be second guessing myself a lot until I finally go out and see what I can find.

Sure, it feels a little extra extreme compared to my usual CD shopping, but we're talking about Prince here, as far as I'm concerned, the very best that is out there, the living definition of what a "true" musician is all about. Therefore, I want to own the best, but I don't want to rush into anything for the rush and experience a "low" afterwards. Like I was saying before, I don't want to get something and feel short-changed because it's not the same as a live performance on a TV appearance.

DreamyPopRoyalty said:

don't worry about the "low" experience. you won't know what the low is until you've gone through it. just take the experience as it is. most of his stuff is amazing but there are some rough spots and that's the truth. you seem to have it set on what you will get, so when it's time, pick them up and hopefully, you'll have a good time.

How about this?

Rank each of these albums (all of which are mostly likely to end up in my "best of Prince" collection) from 1-10.

3121
Musicology
Rave Un2 The Joy Fantastic
Emancipation
The Gold Experience

DreamyPopRoyalty said:

what number is the best 1 or 10?

purplecam said:

10 is the best, of course

DreamyPopRoyalty said:

assuming 1 is lowest, 10 high

Boy, I feel like I'm exploding over here and I think it's more than Gold running through my head every other minute in the same fragments over and over.

I second-guess myself a lot and Musicology is starting to feel like one I'd buy and Rave is falling into oblivion. I only had Greatest Romance working for me... the fact I've heard very little of Prince's music puts me at a disadvantage because I don't really know where to begin (the whole reason I started this thread in the first place).

The song Musicology I find exciting and also Call my Name, which I heard just today. Prince said that it was about reintroducing what "real music" is about, so that's why I feel it's a good choice. Emancipation calls out to me because he said it was very diverse and it was also the first album he recorded in freedom and it's very joyous.

Oh man, if I could ask Prince a question now, I'd ask him what he'd recommend... I just want to choose right above all else.

3121 - 8.5
Musicology - 7
Rave Un2 The Joy Fantastic - 6
Emancipation - 7.5
The Gold Experience - 9.5

3121-7
Musicology-7
Rave Un2 The Joy Fantastic-6
Emancipation-6
The Gold Experience-9


imo...

3121 - 9
Musicology - 9
Rave Un2 The Joy Fantastic - 8
Emancipation - 7
The Gold Experience - 9

DreamyPopRoyalty said:

that's a new thread right there!! If you gave him that particular list to choose from- I'd venture a guess he'd probably pick 3121 since it's his newest.
And as you see now, I was about to tell you some people do like Rave, just not me.

I definitely feel myself leaning more and more towards Musicology. So far I've only heard the title track, Cinnamon Girl, Reflections and Call my Name and like what I hear. I don't think I have to worry about his CD's not having the same effect on me as he does in appearances because I find myself wanting to jump out of my seat and dance to the music.

For those who've heard the albums all the way through, what is the overall "feel" you get from the album? What genre does it generally cover? those kinds of questions... although Prince has proven to be versatile and I like many of his genres, I'm curious about the genres just to look for a better fit. Prince called Musicology a pop rock, so that turns me onto the idea of it since pop is what I grew up with in the 90's.

Gold has brought me to tears. After hearing it 4 times, something drastic finally happened. Oh man, if my roommate was here now, she'd think I was out of my mind.

I knew that the chorus hit me somewhere special. My soul and heart started crying and I still have tears running down my face cuz of it.

"Everybody wants 2 sell what's already been sold
Everybody wants to 2 tell what's already been told
What's the use of money if U ain't gonna break the mold?
Even at the center of fire there is cold
All that gitters ain't gold"

Just a combo of beautiful music and resonating lyrics reached into my soul and made it cry. Will I ever be able to stop?

Oh man, I'll go nuts when I go home cuz I won't be able to hear it until I come back to my computer at college running on a fast connection.

Dolphin was the song that touched my heart when I first became a fan. I love the opening lyrics...

How beautiful do the words have 2 be
Before they conquer every heart?
How will U know if I'm even in the right key
If U make me stop before I start?

DreamyPopRoyalty said:

I love, love love Gold! LOVE the lyrics, love everything about it. I agree with the person who compared it to Purple Rain (on a different thread I think)- closest to it anyway. I've been meaning to pick it up, used unfortunately- on CD- as I only have it on cassette.

I had to buy TGE on cassette too! My family was behind the times,so we didn't have a CD player until a year later.

paisley16 said:

Yeah, it is like Purple Rain. (Those who were concerned about me crying myself to death, I've stopped now... but it was hard to stop). Purple Rain must have reached me, opening the door for me for seeing Prince as a truly amazing musician.

Oh man, I'm not gonna be able to sing the chorus w/o losing it. That's the first time he's reached me that deeply, so naturally I'll be teary-eyed for a while over it. I don't know if I'll even be able to watch the song's video again w/o breaking down in tears. lol, I might never be able to stop.

UCantHavaDaMango said:

My story is much worse than that ....I was already in my 20's then, but broke, seriously broke, and never bought a CD player. Music is such a big thing for me that I couldn't allow myself to buy a cheap one, so I kept buying vinyl as long as I could- then switched to cassettes. (I did buy the Hits/B-sides on CD and promptly took it to a friend's house to tape the new songs on it). I finally got a good 5 disc changer from my 2 best friends for my 30th birthday in 1998.

DreamyPopRoyalty said:

Awww Paisley...

I'm glad you finally got one as a gift.
[Edited 3/8/07 20:31pm]

It's weird, not only am I a newbie, but I'm probably among the younger fans on here. I sure am glad I'm hearing from those who've been and done and heard various things about Prince.

I feel it's only right to do him justice by getting his best, since I respect him above all other musicians. That's why I like using 'precision of language' when I talk about him here. I don't curse when I'm thinking about him, even though he is driving me nuts right now with Gold and I don't use words like "love" because it's such a vague word to use and it's not realistic to say "I love..."... that's just too much and he wouldn't like it that much either.

But I'm getting off topic here. Are there any really good songs that make certain albums worth getting? Just out of curiosity.

DreamyPopRoyalty said:

If you want to be moved to tears, try 'Sometimes It Snows In April' on Parade. As a bonus, the rest of the album is amazing too.

DreamyPopRoyalty said:

This could go on forever!! Even Rave, which I strongly dislike- has The Greatest Romance on it. I could give you one really good song off each album to make it worth buying. I'm going to have to go back to suggesting, as others did, to start from the beginning and buy them all!!! For a "newbie", that is probably the best way to really learn about what he's done over all these years.

leecaldon said:

yup.
see, this could go on and on!

leecaldon said:

Definitely - Parade is Prince's best work IMO, and 'Sometimes It Snows In April' is heartbreakingly beautiful.

paisley16 said:

It'll be close to impossible to get them all. lol, maybe someone should just tell me which ones aren't worth considering (sorry Prince if that sounds too harsh).

My main concern right now is to get the really good stuff first so it'll last me a while and I'll be less tempted to spend too much in one spot. I'm looking at getting 4 at once here (but I guess it comes down to what my local FYE carries)... and much as I love spending, guilt always comes with it if I spend too much.