Lots of 3121-talk today (of course) - don't forget that it's also the 20th anniversary of the First Avenue Sign "O" The Times intro concert, his first with the SOTT-band...

Anyway, back on topic - now that we have some perspective of how 3121 fits into Prince's canon, rate each track on a scale of 1-5 stars (as you would on iTunes/iPods) - 5-stars being one of your all-time favorite songs, and 1-star being a song you would destroy if it wasn't in your collection only because it's Prince. Feel free to add explanations if you want:

3121 - brought back some great memories of Michael B and Sonny T - I only wish the rest of the album featured them too.
Lolita - never did much for me. I like the "fellas" chant, though - brought back memories of The Time. Wait, is this whole album a throwback?
Te Amo Corazon - I like this more now than before. The guitar sound isn't something he's used before, right?
Black Sweat - fun, old-style Prince track.
Incense And Candles - not my favorite. The same late-90s R&B he's been doing since, well, the late-90s. Not terrible, but nothing great.
Love - I don't love this as much as some people do, but it's a strong, dancable track.
Satisfied - nothing original, but I like it a lot.
Fury - nothing he hasn't done before (again), but it's strong. I like it.
The Word - one of my favorite Prince tracks of the last 15 years - great stuff!
Beautiful, Loved And Blessed - I like the lyrics, but the music's nothing special, and this really should have been kept for Tamar's album (ha!) instead of including it on Prince's. It's almost as if Prince knew that Tamar's album wouldn't come out
The Dance - much better than the original. Nice style.
Get On The Boat - fun, playful end to the album. I always thought The Everlasting Now deserved commercial success - I guess Prince agreed with me...

Track-by-track it seems like a consistently-strong album. As a whole, though, something is lacking. Musicology also suffered from the modern playlist approach of just putting a bunch of songs together to enjoy, rather than finding a theme, choosing tracks appropriately, and sequencing to match the theme.

Still, overall I would give 3121 - not the 5-star rating of The Gold Experience, Lovesexy, The Rainbow Children, Sign "O" The Times, Parade et al, and not the 3-star rating of Rave Un2 The Joy Fantastic. It's a good (not great) Prince album.

very interesting set-up you got there.

I haven't gotten to that point with my 3121 CD yet... but I guess cuz I've only heard it twice since I got it a couple of Sundays ago.

I definitely will give it some thought, though. Maybe I'll come up with my own ratings of each of the tracks one of these days.

Really! wonderfull song, so powerfull

booyah said:

pretty generous, if you ask me

Every song on that album gets a 5 star rating from me.LOVE the entire thing!

sexxydancer said:

I agree, but I would give BL&B an extra. Very inspirational tune.

3121 / 4Stars
Lolita / 4Stars
Te Amo Corazon / 4Stars
Black Sweat / 5Stars
Incense And Candles / 3Stars
Love / 4Stars
Satisfied / 3Stars
Fury / 4Stars
The Word / 4Stars
BLAB / 3Stars
The Dance / 4Stars
Get On The Boat / 4 Stars

Over a very enjoyable album but not a classic.

lilgish said:

i luv this song

babooshleeky said:

Yeah, everyone's so hard on that song. It has a certain "sexy" charm to it...

I also wrote this poem about Prince and incense, so I guess that's why.

His charm intoxicating
As an incense stick
His aura fills the air
Resulting in fog thick
With an essence so indescribable
That it knows no name

3121 Best, most original in years
Lolita Fine riff, but too damn simple, plus annoying lyrics
Te Amo Corazon Grows on you
Black Sweat Brilliantly simple, yet original and haunting
Incense & Candles Despite what you say, I find it to have something new for Prince in it
Love Nice, I don't adore it though
Satisfied Just one of those great ballads that nobody but Prince can do
Fury The tune is fine, the live version kicks a bit of ass, but this synth+guitar is ruining it for me
The Word One of Prince's all time best - very mature
Beautiful, Loved & Blessed An embarrasment - again: like nobody but Prince can make them
The Dance Close to a 5, very moody, again a mature version of a less interesting song
Get On The Boat Great upbeat way of ending the album, doesn't rock your boat for years to come, though

I'll give it a go:

3121 - grower (awesome live)
Lolita - throwaway
Te Amo Corazon - cheese-tacular
Black Sweat - fun if you're in the mood
Incense And Candles - see above
Love - masterpiece
Satisfied - yawn
Fury - SNL version:
The Word - amazing
Beautiful, Loved And Blessed - underrated
The Dance - pass
Get On The Boat - funky and fun

3121
Lolita
Te Amo Corazon
Black Sweat
Incense And Candles
Love
Satisfied
Fury
The Word
Beautiful, Loved And Blessed
The Dance
Get On The Boat

Overall? I'd give 3121

My opinion on some songs have changed after a year,
so I'll give both ratings.

3121
Lolita Became one of my fav.
Te amo corazone Played this at my wedding so it means more 2 me than be4.
Black sweat Thrilled when I first heard this but now that anyone synth-sound annoys me more&more
Incense and candles I'll have 2 listen once again,skip it everytime.
Love This is what I like!!!
Satisfied Gets better after a few times.
Fury Sorry P,but the weak production takes away the power of this great song,gave it 4 stars last year thanx 2 SNL-performance.
The word Will stay a fav.
B,L&B Same as Incense&Candles,skip
The Dance Prince classic.
Get on the boat I know this one gets a lot of love here,I just know he can do better fun-funk songs.

If TGE got 5,3121 gets 4!
[Edited 3/21/07 16:09pm]
[Edited 3/21/07 16:10pm]

I promise to get back to you guys with my track ratins the next time I listen to 3121 thru. I'm working on Musicology currently, but I'll definitely be back.

Everyone has such an interesting take on all of the tracks. And I'll admit that they're not as impressive on disc as they are during his performances (SNL and Brit Awards to name a few), but I still am crazy about the 6 or so songs I've heard b4 getting the album.

Black Sweat, Fury, Te Amo Corazon, Beautiful Loved & Blessed, Lolita and Satisfied are all very different/distinct tracks and I love them all (well, not Satisifed as much) for different reasons. I wouldn't have liked Black Sweat if Prince didn't do it. BL&B I think got to me the other day because I almost felt like Prince was talking to me thru it. Lolita is plain fun and so is Fury (thu slightly diff.), and Te Amo Corazon has a laid-back, gentle, but romantic appeal that's even sweeter during the Brits performance, but I'm crazy about it. I'd give it 5 :stars:'s because it's Prince's mystifying presence at best.

Damn.

I keep forgetting to pick this up album.

And I was at the mall yesterday, eating my dinner at Wendy's which is just across from the FYE. I coulda picked it up then.


ah, well.

Kay sirrah sirrah.

Illustrator said:

It sure doesn't sound like you're in a rush to get it. lol

But that's cool. I'd understand why you wouldn't be. Not many people are praising it. On my search for CD's, I think I wanted to get it but I found Musicology first... and that's why I wasn't as crazy about it at first listen.

I'm looking at Musicology as I type, but I'll get back to reviewing 3121 tomorrow, if I can get myself in the mood.

3121
Lolita
Te Amo Corazon
Black Sweat
Incense And Candles
Love
Satisfied
Fury
The Word
Beautiful, Loved And Blessed
The Dance
Get On The Boat

Overall: Better than Musicology.

squirrelgrease said:

I'll be sure to compare it to Musicology tomorrow. But after listening to it for the 4th time, I've come to the following conclusion

On the Couch=Satisfied=

Sorry Prince, but I just can't relate. I find them both a little dragged out and boring... but that's just me. I'm sure, for one reason or another, he found one to write both of them. I respect that, but at least taking "On the Couch" off of the playlist won't interrupt the flow of Musicology.

Ok here's mine! But I'll have to get back to you on the tracks I labeled "tenative". I was a little distracted while listening to those.

3121 1/2
Lolita 3/4
Te Amo Corazon
Black Sweat
Incense & Candles 1/2
Love
Satisfied 1/2
Fury (tenative to change)
The Word 1/2 (tenative to change)
Beautiful, Loved & Blessed
The Dance
Get on the Boat (tenative)

Strange, though. The album starts a little montonous, just Prince's voice over a continuous beat, I find that a little boring at times, but the lyrics keep my attention. (3121, don't you wanna come... you can come if you want, but you can never leave)

Te Amo Corazon and I have a little history just becuz of the Brit Awards performance, I just find it so sweet. The mesmerizing presence Prince has on stage takes on a different form in this song... it's not a physical form, but its like a particular wavelength of sound that just resonates so sweetly.
Black Sweat is a bit boring at points, but it's just so fun to dance 2.
Incense & Candles sounds a little modernized to me, which turns me off a little, but there's something about it that I like. Especially the rap 1/2 way through, gives it Prince's charm a little.
Love starts out like on the down-low, but when he starts singing the chorus, I am hooked from start to finish. I love it, love it, love it. And Prince really puts a smile on my face when he sings it.
Satisfied is slowly growing on me, I dunno why. (my guess, Prince working his magic).
The Word is so unique that it almost doesn't belong on the album.
Overall, 3121 is a very modernized album, which I find a little discouraging. Sounds like Prince selling out a little by converting his music to the modern age... but some of the songs on here take on a life of their own that sets them apart from the rest. Those ones I gave 5 's for the most part.
Anyway, The Word is such an unique track that I'm almost tempted to listen to it again.
BL&B, a lot of people have been hard on, but somehow, I connect with it. Almost as if Prince is speaking to me thru the song. I can't help falling in love with it and it's so fun to sing along to.
The Dance is very seductive. I absolutely love it. Very impressive on Prince's part. This is a gem that sparkles and shines very brightly because he's telling a story with this song and towards the end, he starts doing one of the things that drives me mad (in a very good way)... speaking words of passion with a capital "P"
Get on the Boat I'll have to listen to a few more times. I've got no idea what he's tryin' to say (don't tell me yet), so I gotta figure it out. Maybe if I can make sense out of it, I can make a decision on it. I do like the fact that it's a long track and wont let me end the experience until im good and ready.

The album and I are becoming one with every listen and I'm starting to get very familiar with the tracks. This album knows how to put a smile on my face and I find that a very good quality in a Prince album. That connection Prince and I have through it is still there and as long as I have that, I'll love this album.
[Edited 3/22/07 12:55pm]