Prince should take a note from Radiohead and Rahsaan Paterson They drop an album every few years, and that album is always great quality work. Just listen to Radiohead's new album or Rashann's new album and you will see what I am talking about.

If price would have combined the best songs from Musicology, 3121, and planet earth and released the 15 best songs from each, that would have been a sensational album. Instead what you have are so so albums, with Musicology carrying the motherload of the good.

Just becuase you write a song, and it sounds good in the studio doesn't mean you have to put on wax and release it. There is no rule that you have to release a CD every year. Take some time off from writing, get a feel for what's fresh and new, then come out with a great ablum 2-3 years from now, instead of releasing some fair/poor CD, that's not worth putting the time in to promote it (example Planet Earth)

Unless your strapped for cash, covering all your lawyer fees, give it a rest with releasing CD's every 10 months.


Sincerely Yours,

Radiohead and Rahsaan Paterson

Musicology to 3121 = 23 months
3121 to Planet Earth = 15 months

Not exactly a strong argument.

milesdavis33 said:

That sounds logical, but ask fans what songs they would choose as their 'best 15' and everyone has a different opinion. Personally I like the way Prince handles his releases. He just puts it out there and lets us decide. I have been more than satisfied with Musicology, 3121 and Planet Earth.

milesdavis33 said:

To me Radiohead Music sounds the same, so i dont think Prince's songs would work like that for example, Musicology,3121 and Planet Earth Songs would just not sound right on one Album IMHO.

Besides What Prince Fan apart from you could wait 3 Years for a Album.

Prince should follow Radiohead's lead by truly embracing the digital age...instead of fighting it.

If Prince were to do exactly what you just suggested there would still be the same number of people that are unhappy.No matter what Prince does there are always going to be a certain number of people that complain. Thats why I'm so glad that he does things the way that he wants to. You can't please everyone ever.Prince keep putting out the funk and I'll keep buying it.

I do agree that the album-a-year schedule is tired. He oversaturated the market with his music, and now he dilutes his legacy with every substandard release (be it album or song).

I'd rather Prince record and release a new song every month. You might say "isn't that the same as an album a year?" No, because they would be fresh songs that were relevant.

PFUnk is more relevant than anything since Musicology.

I rest my case.

toejam said:

I'm glad someone mentioned this. There's no saying that Prince would choose 15 tracks that anyone even remotely agrees on.

but i can only handle thom yorke's anger and woe once a year! (except for In Rainbows, which is really really really good and you can hint his happiness now that he's a daddy). Releasing countless albums isn't harmful, it's just opinionated. If it bothers you, then just skip the Prince and stock up on some more Radiohead.

It's part of P's creative process to release all different kinds of material in different forms (albums, downloads, remixes, other artists). He has done this for 30 years. Take the brilliant with the interesting, challenging, experimental, half-completed, throwaways and half-baked. As a fan, I wouldn't trade his methods for anyones. Prince tends to over-produce when he holds on to something too long. The Come version of "Dark" is far superior to the CB version.

And lets see what Patterson and Radiohead are doing in 25 years.

two words:

QUALITY CONTROL

love radiohead or hate 'em, they put out good shit.

their albums always have fantastic art direction, typically including very handsome limited editions for the hardcore fans.

their official merchandise (you know, swag/merch/t-shirts/etc.) is always well-designed. it's fashionable, cute, interesting - stuff you'd WANT to wear outside of your home or put on your wall, and it's stuff made from good quality material.

if i didn't like radiohead (and they're not my FAVORITE band but i do enjoy them), i'd be very envious of radiohead fans for how highly they're regarded by the band.

Let me tell you people something:

You start a thread about Radiohead and how they sell their music, and it ends up in the same place as the thread in my signature.

Just a word of advice.

We've established Prince's problem years ago, and I'm disapointed that the mods have not updated the Q&A section of the org.


Prince's sporadic releases of the last 10 years (3 albums in a year, or 2 years between albums depending on his mood), some would argue is the result of him having to balance being both the manager of his trade, the promoter, as well as producer, singer, writer, and musician. It's too many hats, some may prostrate.

However, these are not accurate. Prince effortlessly handles all of these things, and it's never been an issue for him. Moreover, he's proven that he can do them and still sell out crowds in London 21 nights in a row, or release an album to #1 like 3121 in its first week. So the issue can NOT be related to his actual business model, as is implied in this thread.

The problem is Princes fear of Dehydrogenated monoxide. Call me crazy, but you can see his obsession with the stuff in Purple Rain, The Holy River, When 2 r in Love, Soft and Wet, and the list goes on and on. Dehydrogenated monoxide has been linked to corrosion, rusting, bacterial growth, mold, and all manner of things that plague us. The US government has not admitted it, but it's in our drinking supply, and no matter what you try to do, it can't remove it. Sites claim that if you wash your hands for hours, it will still be on your hands that entire time.
For those of you who have been in Paisley park in the last 2 years, you'll notice that the water fountains are filtered, and that toilet paper is handed out only upon request, because it contains traces of dehydrogenated monoxide. This lead to all manner of rumers that Prince does not use toilet paper, but that has never been proven, though one could surmise that if Prince is willing to insulate Paisley Park, and indeed his house from receiving the substance (which comes is found in large doses in droplets of rain in Minneapolis), that it would not be too far a stretch that he's stop using TP.

One can search through his lyrics and find references to the stuff, disguised as other "cute" names, but the obsession is there. It's pervasive, and it's ruining his career.


spelling edit
[Edited 11/12/07 20:40pm]

Imago said:

It's true what I've heard, You are a legend.

A very funny, legend,

Imago said:

how the fuck could the spelling edit not include rumors/rumers....

show me your wok all you want, Dani is definately smarter...

roodboi said:

CLICK ME

Imago said:

I prefered the pic of muse/carrie...

roodboi said:

NO

I follow Prince for more output per interval of time. I'm more bored by Radiohead. It's like watching someone respond to you, but they stand and wait and think and formulate until it's perfect before they utter it....

that gets boring, and not really very expressive.

ufoclub said:

It's very strange.

On the one hand, you have a lounge act self-aggrandized to the level of genius, and on the other, you have a true musical genius who's been acting like a lounge act.

Not much of a Radiohead fan, but I know what you're saying.

To me, the one page Prince should have borrowed was from the book of the Grateful Dead, and I'm not a fan of them either:

- Do a different show every night. Aftershow style. Improv. Jam sessions.

- Let people record them from the soundboard and trade them freely. Buzz builds.

- From this following, merchandising money materializes, fans follow you from town to town because they don't know what you'll play from night to night. Other fans, having heard the freely traded taped performances, are hoping you'll do "Watchtower" again.

- Put the bootleggers out of business by releasing all those songs officially, Re-mastered and copyright encrypted through your own website for a nominal fee.

- Concerts and live performances...See above. Stream these shows on a PPV basis or make them available on DVD for purchase online through 3121. Seems a lot less cheesy than some Verizon cell phone bullshit, a fashion show video or an appearance on American Idol.

- Just make it available. We'll buy it. Quit worrying about your picture showing up on the internet, PERFUME and whatever the fuck else, get ANGRY and cut some inspired tracks. Put them up for sale. Make money. Word spreads. Music is free and everyone is dying to hear your stuff.

That's that for now.

But it's always struck me as crazy that a guy who poses naked on his own album cover, bares his ass on MTV, shoots jizz out of his guitar, wears enough mascara to put Tammy Faye to shame and plays the Super Bowl halftime show "just wants to be left alone".

PurpleKnight said:

bingo!!! IMHO this all has to do with prince's mentality that he no longer has any competition musically...which is false. meshell, bjork, radiohead and a few others have really surpassed prince in the creativity department of late and he seems more interested in creating neat media stunts versus actual music...

where's the priority? unless the priority is selling concert tickets...which is cool, but then is an album necessary if you are a concert act?

Believe me, I tried.
I parked their car once.

Instead of tipping me, the fuckers called the cops on me.
Turns out, if you want to park a musical act's vehicle at a restaurant or something,
you have to actually be employed at said establishment.

Just another example of the Man trying to keep a brother down.

I hear what you're saying, but there is an undeniable truth that around 10 months or so after a prince cd is released, this place goes nuts with threads wondering if he's retired, slowed down in his old age, "I thought free the music would mean more music!" "So now he's just a concert guy, how sad..."

You really think more time in between releases would be the cure? We'd end up with a 36-song mega-release "that would be so much better if he removed all the songs I don't personally like..."

And if you even try to deny the truth of what I'm saying, remember, it's undeniable.

PurpleKnight said:

While there's definitely some truth to that, the only reason my mom knows Radiohead put out an album this year is because of the nature of the release. They got a huge amount of publicity based solely on that. Of course the positive reviews don't hurt.

ElCapitan said:

Well, sure; Radiohead is a commercial-turned-indie band. What I'm really talking about is the fact that In Rainbows is regarded by those who received it as a truly great album, and not just as an album that was released in a shocking way.

PurpleKnight said:

Well, I'm as pro- "make a great album" as anybody. Of course there's a vast expanse between the wanting and the doing.

We could fashion the most eloquent "Dear Prince, just make great music" open letter. And he might truly take it to heart, focusing all his energies on crafting that next chapter in his legacy that would once again remind the masses of his capacity for genius. And we might still end up with "3122". Maybe, at least for some listeners, all he's got left is "mediocre filler"?