which album do u guys and girls think is best?
hmmmmm 4 me its a hard question cuz i luv them both, put i think ill go with Purple Rain.....no actually ill go with Sign Of The Times...i think

anyway what do u guys think is best?

they cant be compared, two completely different albums.

When purple rain came out, it was an outstanding album, now over 20 yrs later, it is still an incredible album, it, like 1999, has matured very well with age.

However, SOTT has not matured so well, in musical terms, but it still stands as one of the most audacious albums ever released by a mainstream artist at that time, it became Princes second monster, critically acclaimed to the heights. It also signalled, that these heigths would never be reached again.

In the end, I could never compare these two albums, but it does raise a stupid question, what would SOTT been like as a single album, but i dont want to even think about it, as SOTT is what it is, an unbelievable F.... double album

Whitnail said:

yes i see ur point i find it hard 2 choose but ppl are diffrent and as these 2 are 2 of my favs, i was wondering 2 see whic 1 ppl prefered more than the other
[Edited 1/16/08 15:04pm]

I would argue that Sign has aged far better than Purple Rain... and is also a far better record...

maplesyrupnjam said:

would make a great argument

I can't prefer one over the other, I'm glad they are both there amongst my entire cd collection to choose from.

Love them both, but if I HAD to choose...Purple Rain

I'm always a little surprised at the raves Sign gets from the general public.

Don't get me wrong I think it's great, but strange that songs like Dorothy Parker, Forever In My Life, Starfish & Coffee, If I Was Your Girlfriend are part of a publicly-perceived masterpiece

It's not hard to see why people like Purple Rain, but Sign is more challenging and more sparse at the same time.

I think I still would rate PR higher as an album, though Sign's music is often more interesting.
[Edited 1/16/08 16:23pm]

NDRU said:

yeah but that's ppl's preference.. just like your preferences maybe be something.. not liked ... different strokes for different folks ..
[Edited 1/16/08 16:51pm]

Flowerz said:

Flowerz said:

I just think it's impressive that the public accepted it. Good for the public!

Sign O The Times 4 me.

No contest SOTT is the better.

Puple Rain is a fantastic album, but undoubtedly the most commercial. And it seems deliberately produced to be commercial as it was also to be a film soundtrack. All the tracks sit nice and tight together and the album flows nice and smoothly from beginning to end. One of the reasons that it is so popular.

However; all the albums pre and post Purple Rain are no where near as commercial and showcase Princes talents and diversity in songwriting and as a musician so much more, and so much better.

SOTT is near on the pinacle of perfection of all his 80's albums that show off these talents and why I feel it is definately better then Purple Rain.

All of Princes albums of the 80's I class as Rock/Funk - except Purple Rain which is sooooo POP/Rock!!!

It is brilliant, but just missing the more challenging and creative songs that make the other albums!

love sott, but purple rain even more, but only cuz prince looked sooo heavenly.
absolutely creamy in those crazy paisley threads & gets me all lustridden at the thought of computer blue.
tht has 2 b my fave outfit - half a birthday suit topped off with blindfold....2 much beauty 4 my head 2 handle :lixlips:

SOTT is by far the best album Prince has ever made and just think if it wasn't trimmed down to a double album and released in its full 3 album glory of Crystal Ball. Would it have been better? Who knows but I will say that all the songs that came from this era is Prince at his greatest musical peak as a song writer and musician. Late 1986 to 1990 Prince could not be matched. Hell he can't even match himself now. That Prince will always be the greatest Prince.

SOTT all the way if only because of greats like "If I was your Girlfriend" & "Forever in my Life". That was pure lyrical and metaphorical poetry. To this day I am DEEPLY MOVED by that whole album, I'm SO glad I was able to see that show live in Europe. Happy to have crossed that off my proverbial bucket list.

Purple Rain

Sign O' the Times

Listen up everybody! I'm only going to say this once. Both are phenomenal albums. YES! Classics! Well recorded, well produced, well engineered. PR is his all time best seller (it helps to have a good movie behind it). While by most SOTT is considered his most artistic. I love both with all my heart. Both are in my top 3 Prince albums of all time. SOTT is #2 while PR is #3. (In case you're wondering, D&P is #1). So I would choose Sign over Purple. Why? Because while PR holds 2 of my favorite songs ever on it (When Doves Cry and Purple Rain), I think SOTT is far more artistic and less commercial which makes it even more better. Sometimes the albums that sell less may not necessarily mean it was worse than it predecessors. Sometimes it could mean that people slept on a good project and didn't even know. Prime examples: Lovesexy, Gold, Rainbow Children. I like more artistic and daring projects and this is the one. Just like Rocky 2, SOTT wins this by a split second. Yes it close but when listening to these back to back then you can see the slight difference. So hail to the winner by a split second. My pick: Sign 'O' The Times.

Purple Rain easily for me. I like Parade and ATWIAD more than SOTT. SOTT is when Prince started overdoing the horns...

SOTT

SOTT.

After much consideration,I'm gonna have to say 'Purple Rain'.I think "When Doves Cry" is the most amazing thing Prince has ever done.

While I love SOTT,
I like the funky/rock Prince best.
So for me (Illustrator), my answer is Purple Rain.

So different as albums but if I need a pick me up I put on Purple Rain over SOTT, I still love SOTT though

I consider SOTT to be Prince's magnum opus. Purple Rain is brilliant and pulls a close second, but SOTT is the great Prince album.

timorousme said:

indeed it is