Come is my least favourite album but I haven't listened to it for a long long time.

Just an FYI: Orgasm was leftover from the "Controversy" sessions in 1981.

I think I would've recommended listening to the albums in the order they came out - instead it seems that you're bouncing around a bit. I think you'd hear much more "evolution" if you listen to them in succession.

At first listen, ATWIAD does sound completely different from Purple Rain, but after years of digesting it - it really doesn't sound that different at all. In fact, the album seems to follow the same basic formula as PR.

Hope you enjoy your 2 new CDs!

Se7en said:

Well, thanx for that little note on Orgasm. Heh, I can't really call it a song though. It just has, ahem, "the obvious" and heavy guitar.

ATWIAD does sound a lot diff. from Purple Rain. I wasn't listening to it with that in mind. But I quickly discovered with Tambourine, America & Temptation... even The Ladder... there are some similarities. Tambourine reminds me of "Darling Nikki" with an ego-tripping Prince at the helm , for some reason "America"'s music sounds like "Sex Shooter" to me, and "The Ladder" is another ballad like Purple Rain and somewhat has the same message as it and Gold.

Temptation is the most like PR cuz its guitar heavy... and its ego-tripping Prince again... but it adds a little of his personality into it. The last 3 minutes make me laugh so much cuz he sounds almost pitful my apologies, Prince.

u really have 2 get the earlier albums 2 get a good feel 4 the artist, it is after all these albums that made the artist who he was at that point. PARADE is a must, no prince fan should be without it in their collection

Se7en said:

ahhh, where do you get that info? it's not quite that simple

Yes, Orgasm uses some guitar from that era but Vanity's, errr, vocals are from the unreleased Vibrator track which was being developed in 1983, IIRC, and Prince's vocals are new.

DreamyPopRoyalty said:

Purple Rain, Parade, Gold, and Lovesexy are essential. why are you messing around with crap like Rave and Emancipation (or even D&P and ) when you don't have those 4?

RZR said:

If I listened to people on the org every time someone said an album was crap I wouldn't end up owning any Prince music besides, maybe, Purple Rain.

Just because you don't like something doesn't automatically make it crap.

RZR said:

You obviously don't know me that well. I belive I've mentioned a bunch of times of the albums I already own.

which include Purple Rain & TGE (in fact, they're my top 2 favorites... although that's not much cuz I only have 6 now).

And it's all in a matter of opinion. I'll be the one to decide what is and isn't crap.

DreamyPopRoyalty said:

sorry, your initial post wasn't very clear on what you did and din't own and what you were intending to get

RZR said:

its ok.
I also own Musicology & 3121 (and just got Come & ATWIAD). So I should be good for a while. I want to get to know Come & ATWIAD for a month or so b4 I get any new albums.

If anything, I think Parade will probably jump to the top spot on my list to end the progression started by PR & ATWIAD. More like it jumped on the list, cuz Rave has slowly dropped off due to my growing lack of interest. It'll be the case where I'll get it if I see it and there's nothing else I want...

jtfolden said:

Yeah, I was just talking about the music. I knew that was Vanity on there.

LoDog said:

Thanks! You are so right! You can't truly call yourself a Prince "fan" unless you have these! It's the essence of who he is.

SMARTYSOFT said:

Let's not resort to saying who is or isn't a fan, that's silly... I have all of his albums but out of those you just quoted I only regularly play 1999 and SOTT.

jtfolden said:

Damn right! I couldn't agree more with that statement. I've bought all his albums too, but I would never suggest Dirty Mind up front. It would probably be among the last. That one almost put a halt to my "collecting spree" altogether. Fortunately "Come" was released and put me right back on track.

.....

gcu1 said:

Heh, good job settling that, guys. Curious, how long will be before I can stop calling myself a newbie? I know 3 months isn't a long time, but I'm kinda sick of saying that I am. I've gathered a lot of knowledge in the little time I've had, but having only 6 albums doesn't count for all that much right now compared 2 some of the others here.

And I'm enjoying my collection... but I wish I could be a little more even with the distribution... how much I listen to them... I feel like I favor some over others... I don't listen 2 Musicology much anymore (and the last time I checked out my fav. track, there was some skipping... now that drives me crazy, nearly killed me, actually... I checked it out again later that day and it ran fine... makes no sense, I got it new and i didnt listen 2 it much to begin with, regardless of how much I enjoy it.

But I feel like I've come a long way. I really do consider myself a "fan", given that I can find a good word to substitute the word "fan"... that's Prince growing on me.

DreamyPopRoyalty said:

Well, I wouldn't worry about whether you're a newbie or not. On the plus side, a lot of his music is still brand new to you and you have a LOT more to find and enjoy down the road... some 'old timers' get jaded or stuck in their ways about certain things and loose sight of the fact that we're just here to enjoy the music.



That's how it's supposed to be... Some albums I will play constantly for days or weeks then it gets tucked away as something else draws my attention. It's rare to find a person that would say they enjoy all his works the same way because each album is generally so different. Like I still play , TGE, Come and Parade a whole lot even 15 years later, but I never play TRC or "Prince" at all these days.



Well, despite Prince's love of word games (Oh boy just wait until you find the Prince/Mayte marriage album - that thing is on 'word game' overload) in the real world there really is a difference between 'fan' and 'fanatic'. Fans are the people that enjoy the music, etc, without getting confused in thinking Prince is some angelic figure that can do no wrong... fanatics are the ones that think Prince is a god and go around telling people they're not real fans.

DreamyPopRoyalty said:

Based on your collection: if you only had 3121, Musicology, and Purple Rain you'd be a newbie IMO. ATWIAD was basically an extension of Purple Rain, so there's no "street cred" there . . . but TGE and Come earn enough of that for you! I'd say that 6 albums of ANYONE'S are enough to not be a newbie - plus you own TGE, which is out-of-print, so that has to count for something!

The only reason "newbie" comes up is that we're in 2007 and we're looking back... when I had 6 Prince albums it was 1988 - and I for SURE was not anywhere near a newbie, but I was collecting them as they came out originally (I was there since 1982).

i'm gonna go with the majority here and say get SOTT and 1999- they are great albums. and its a good thing to pace ureself w/ Prince. his CDs should come with a warning of being very addictive (along w/ the parental advisory warning).

oh- and do get Parade. doesn't matter when- but get it.

heh, I'm enjoying this so much. I love u guys.

Anyway



Well, if I didn't like TGE so much, I wouldn't have gotten Come or even thought about it. I'm just amazed that I found TGE as quickly as I did. I figured, I'll get it if I see it cuz its out-of-print and supposedly hard to find. I took a chance and fell in love with it. I wanted to have an evenly distributed collection that show many different sides of Prince and hopefully will hopefully contain the best of his work, that's what I wanted in the first place. I asked "what's the best of Prince".

Nobody would place Musicology & 3121 in that category. I know why now. 3121 has its gems, but not strong as a whole. Musicology is about the opposite, but there's one track I can't get into and 2 that I plain don't understand what POV he's using. Its driving me nuts. But I couldn't help it, I wanted to know what he's like these days.



Heh, I feel like at times, I do think of Prince as a God... but I do feel like I understand him a little better these days. ATWIAD has really gotten me to know him in a way I never did and I like what I see. And I do belive he can do no wrong, but at times, I see his flaws and criticize his material (which I really hate doing). But I'm starting to understand his reasons for doing things even when I don't agree. I don't believe Orgasm is a song, but I understand his reasoning for ending Come with it and I respect that very much.

For what it's worth, my top 5 Prince albums:

1) Sign "O" The Times
2) 1999
3) Purple Rain
4) Lovesexy
5) The Gold Experience

Based on your feelings about the 2 you already have - and if you can trust the passion/opinion of a 25-year fan - I hope you can imagine what awaits you!

Se7en said:

Thanx for posting ur list.
1999 definitely will be coming up cuz I'm an 80's buff and a couple of its songs were huge in that decade. And A LOT of people have praised SOTT, although I have no personal motivation to get it, its on my "list" cuz it's supposedly one of his best 80's albums (some call it the best he's ever done). And I want to own his best... I've had that in mind from the start.

Still have 1999 and SOTT to go, eh? I have to say, it's pretty cool that you're staggering your purchases around whatever eras you're most curious about - I did a similar thing when I got started. And you'll know when you're no longer a newbie - When you feel like you really understand the man, you're there.

Anyway, both 1999 and SOTT are terrific - I give 1999 the edge because of its colder, dancier, and more evident pop sound, but SOTT definitely lives up to its reputation as a brilliant, minimalist record.

Special tracks to look out for: "Let's Pretend We're Married" and "Lady Cab Driver" on 1999, and "Starfish and Coffee" and "Forever in My Life" on SOTT.

Oddly enough, SOTT was one of the last Prince records I ended up buying, and it didn't immediately wow me. But after a couple of days, it all came together.
[Edited 5/9/07 0:39am]

Risico said:

Thanx for the little insight on both. I've seen the video for "Let's Pretend We're Married"... I haven't heard the portion that a lot of people go crazy for where he gets all nasty & such... yet

I feel like I know him well already, but I know there's still a lot to discover about him. My recent purchases have proved that. Come & ATWIAD have 2 diff. sides of him I didn't know too much about and can't wait to know more about.

Yeah, I definitely like my style and it's keeping my feet on the ground for the most part (the albums raise me up to a diff. dimension regardless of what I do). There's a lot to be deciphered from my new albums, so I'll be checking into them for a while.
Everything really boils down to what I see next, but I won't be going out for a while. Meanwhile, my "must haves" are shifting around a bit.

Diamonds & Pearls is starting to fall into non-existence. Rave's tempting to do the same, but with TGRES in my head all the time, it's kinda difficult. Parade's coming onto the list as well... but I have really little to no motivation to think about getting anything new for a while. I think my collection with end up having a max of 12 albums... I'll see what happens w/time.

Actually Rave IN2 is very nice, much better than the commercially realeased Rave Un2. I just got it last Friday to complete my collection of official Prince albums but you'll have to get in on ebay and its quite rare so you'll have to pay a bit for it too.

My new top 10:

1. Sign O' the Times (since Dream Factory doesn't count)
2. Purple Rain
3. Parade
4. Lovesexy
5. Rave In the Joy Fantastic
6. Crystal Ball
7. The Gold Experience
8. The Hits / the B-sides
9. One Nite Alone: Piano and Voice
10. Diamonds and Pearls
[Edited 5/9/07 16:00pm]

First album I bought was Sign O' The Times.

Then, 1999 and Purple Rain.

After that I bought 3121 and then Parade and The Love Symbol Album.

I also have Dirty Mind, Grafitti Bridge, B-Sides, Emancipation and The Black Album.

My ranking is like this:

1. SOTT
2. Purple Rain
3. 1999
4. Parade
5. 3121
6. Dirty Mind
7. Love Symbol
8. Black Album
9. Controversy (I don't own this though)
10. The Gold Experience (I don't own this)

InsatiableCream said:

Bit late to this party, but good to see it took precisely one reply to clear that one up.

Parade is, for me, his finest hour - an absolutely flawless record, and still my absolute favourite.

DreamyPopRoyalty said:

You don't need Emancipation or Rave or CB or Come. None of these should be on your "must buy" list. 1999/Parade/SOTT are must-haves. D&P is really mediocre. is way too long and uneven.

iain said:

My curiosity about Parade has been hightened cuz of all these posts.

Sure, SOTT gets a lot of love on here, so for those reasons only, it's on my list of "must haves", cuz in addition to fulfilling my own interests, I want to own "the best".
Of course "Under the Cherry Moon" will have to come into my possession around the same time, if not after.

How would you describe Parade, though? Is it more laid-back... I mean opposed to SOTT, which seems to be a bit more "serious"... I mean based on the title track. For the most unusual reason, its been playing in my head lately and I havent listen to it for weeks. (I own it on the CD everyone told me NOT to get , just shows how much I listen to everyone when they try to talk me out of something).

I'm not really motivated to get anything new for a while, but the fact everyone keeps talking about it has me very curious. Plus, I own ATWIAD now, so I want to know what happens to Prince after it. (heh, it makes me feel like I'm listening to his life's story... totally cool, though, that's what I like to hear).

I don't think I'll get a new album until my 21st bday (2 months & 19 days, I cant wait)... then I can make online requests. Then I'll most likely request Parade & Emancipation (people who know me well know that I haven't stopped saying that I want to get it, and have never stopped considering it). If I want to know most of the sides of Prince, I gotta know what he sounds like when he's in love... although I love the way he sounds on Come (album), so tender & sweet when he speaks

DreamyPopRoyalty said:

Dude, Dirty Mind is a minor masterpiece. When You Were Mine is so frikkin great. Buy Controversy for the title track and Private Joy. The first album is collectors only, the second one has flashes of brilliance.

BartVanHemelen said:

thanx for the little insight.
And to avoid the clutches of "obsession" that I've dealt with a few times in my life, I don't want to be a completist. Sure, a few years down the road, I might say otherwise cuz I get bored with what I own... but right now, I don't want to get everything. I want to complete the "storylines" I've already started and also concern myself with "the best".