Flowerz said:

maybe but those bricks will feel better than the brick of shit prince gave us all with planet earth

L4OATheOriginal said:

Not sure how you came to that conclusion. Planet Earth at least has some really warm production values. Rave sounds like it was made with a Casio keyboard.

madhouseman said:

Oh my God! I couldn't've said it better.


Rave is Prince's worst album IMO, it's the lowest ebb of the lowest era, post-WB 90s. Everything about it makes my flesh crawl. The music is cookie-cutter and flat, even the 'quirky' songs are there to be quirky and not just be. You have all these guests stars doing inaudible back-up vox way down in the mix of that hideous post-Emancipation lifeless rubberband plastic production and mastering.

The failed comeback angle was also a bad move at the time, not long after the failed comeback attempt of Emancipation. Add to the everything else about Prince's career at the time - It reeked of desperation.

TRC on the other hand is his best album since he left WB. It sounded completely inspired compared to the past 5 or 6 years of releases. We might not all like what it was inspired BY, but Prince had something to say and this LP was his mouthpiece at the time. People still have long heated net-nerd debates about it's lyrics and themes.

Rave was the end of an period all pop music artists go through, I think he's come out of the other side of it all now. I think Musicology and 3121 are only marginally better than Rave, but everything seems to be a little smoother now, maybe my expectations have changed so I don't care so much if we get another Musicology or 3121, anything at this point is up after the late 90s!

How can anybody say that 3121 or Musicology is better than Rave? Rave may have it's problems, but there's still some killer cuts on the record - something neither 3121 or Musicology can boast.

You don't have a heart if you don't appreciate I Love U But I Don't Trust U Anymore. That song is so vulnerable and sincere. I remember a while back having my iPod on shuffle while getting my haircut and this song came on. It was actually a really awkward moment, we were both there in complete silence... it was almost as if it would be disrespectful to talk over it.

And listen to the lyrics of Man O War... "how could you think that I would put something inside of someone that I put inside you? Even if I tried to, I couldn't cause I still smell like the last time that we..." - this is some of his most autobiographical shit on record. There is so much more heart and emotion in these tracks than anything he's done recently.
[Edited 7/11/08 3:30am]

PurpleKnight said:

sound wise yes perhaps planet earth comes off better but overall rave has more songs that have something that planet crap lacks ...FUNK and some good melodies.

MattyJam said:

3121 has killer cuts on it 4 sure ..

3121
black sweat
love
the word

just 2 name a few

I'm going with The Rainbow Children. The musicianship on TRC was just amazing. Rave was an album that should have been so much more and so much better than it was. Probably his most disappointing CD for me cause it sounds so plastic. I like a few songs on there but as a whole, Rave missed the mark. TRC was like listening to a story and those are the kind of Prince albums that I'd want Prince to release.

L4OATheOriginal said:

Strong album tracks but I wouldn't call them killer. I'd pick I Love U But I Don't Trust U Anymore, The Greatest Romance, Man O War and Strange But True over those songs any day of the week....

The Rainbow Children is the better album in terms of consistency, but Rave does contain some great tracks.

"Strange But True" remains to this day my all-time favorite Prince track. It's just so out there and quite unique in the Prince canon.

"Rave" itself is also a great track, despite it being recorded 10 years prior (should have saved it for Crystal Ball 2 ). "The Greatest Romance" and "Silly Game" are also top class ballads, and "Undisputed" has a killer groove, despite the somewhat cheesy "NPG Get Rowdy!" chants.

But yeah, overall, The Rainbow Children just has that real earthy sound to it, and it's clear that he was inspired (musically) when making that album. I think John Blackwell played a big part in getting that sound back to him. It's still the best album of the post-WB years IMO.
[Edited 7/12/08 3:28am]

Speaking of comeback albums, I really had the feeling of a comeback when I first listened to 'The rainbow children'.

I was like 'Ehi, Prince is FINALLY back'.

I was disappointed when I listened to 'Rave', the only good song on there to me is 'Prettyman' (thank u, Maceo). The extended version of it is even better, and when I want to listen to this, I choose the 'Rave In2' version.

MattyJam said:

There is no doubt that the Rave project is a good cd, but I find myself listening to 3121 and Musicology more than I do Rave (especially the Un2 version). I have tracks from In2 in my mp3 player, but overall, the album doesn't get that much play in my house hardly ever.

I think that the Rave project is very personal for P. I think it tries to cover the way he was feeling after he and Mayte split. That's why TGRES was being pushed by him. I think in his mind, he did a good job of selling their story of meeting each other, falling in love, and splitting up.

As for Musicology, I think it was purposely made for a "comeback" album. He not only wanted a hit album, he wanted the story to be about him being an influence on musical history.

To me, 3121 is about his comfort level with the fans. I think the project is centered around "Love". Not the song, but the emotion. Love of music, women, home, life, fans, etc.

Rave was a joy to hear when released and still I hold some songs closer to my heart than most of his others from other albums.

Rainbow Children. Well, received the gift with thanks and tried to listen and work it out. Left the album sitting there for maybe months and 'Everywhere' was still ringing in my ears. Being a non churchical if you like, I could see myself in purple robes dancing my socks off down the aisles. Strange I know. Then Digital Garden grew bigger, then Family Name and 1+1+1 is 3 were still ringing in my memory. It was maybe a long labour of love and I'm still not there with this one.

Undecided. Sorry folks but who is to say which song/b side/album/video or tour is or was the best. I say all if given a chance as certain songs will never ring true till you hear his words and you think, 'Shit, I've been singing that song for years and now I understand what it now means to me right now in this moment in my life'.

I loved the comparison between the shit and the turd!!!!. Thanks for the giggles!!!..

Compare the drumming on TRC to the drumming on Rave...holy stinkin' cumquats, what a colossal difference. John Blackwell propelled The Rainbow Children tracks forward with power and finess...Kirky J or whoever flattened the life out of almost every Rave song.

Then compare Prince's guitar playing on TRC to his playing on Rave...it's like night and day. On TRC's title track alone Prince throws down some jazzy rock and then channels a bit of Radiohead at the very end. And he buzzes completely out at the end of Family Name. Nothing on Rave even slightly sounds as energized.

Lastly, compare the production values on TRC and then listen to the production values on Rave...TRC sounds clean, crisp and devoid of anything overproduced and heavy. So much so that you actually hear his fingers moving up and down the neck of his guitar during the instrumental at the end of the song "The Rainbow Children". Rave sounds plastic and amateurish by comparison. The production values on TRC are so well done you SWEAR and entire band is playing each song, not just Blackwell on drums and prince on everything else.

Prince seems inspired and energized on TRC...like he cared, REALLY cared. Rave was a collection of average Prince songs and uninspired guest appearances.

The Rainbow Children is better, and it's not even close.



..
[Edited 7/13/08 0:37am]

TRC as it is a group of songs written to be released together.

Rave, whilst ok, sounds like it was thrown together from the vault of recorded songs and released to generate some pocket change or because it was time to release something but Prince wasn't specifically working on a project at the time.

My opinion only of course.....

MattyJam said:

i would substitute man o war with the sun moon and the stars

The Rainbow Children. I've never been able to get into Rave. The only track that I ever really liked was Man O' War

Well ive just watched the rave dvd and loved every minute of it.... xxxx

"The opposite of NATO is OTAN..."

....I never tire of that. Hands down winner for that alone...

The Rainbow Children

Ummm... I like, LOVE them both.

sandraparke said:

so u just watched him do half of TGRES and baby knows? cause the rest of the dvd has nothing from rave on it

L4OATheOriginal said:

even if rave is a flawed album it still has its moments.but all in all rave gets its ass kicked by the rainbow children.TRC is just two weird a cd which makes it princes best of the last 8 years easy.i do love planet earth but TRC is just dynamic for me.

I think Rave-like 3121/Earth suffers from Prince being conscious of the market. TRC comes across better coz it's his arrogance on display and that's what you come to expect from prince-regardless of whether you like the music or not.Problem with Prince regardless of how commercial he tries to be he has already won the fans he will always have-to win new ones is nigh on impossible. To younger people he has not existed so the commercial stuff will not be a revelation. he may as well indulge in what he wants to do-it produces better stuff. he does not have the luxury of Madonna (blaaaaah) where she never went away and people can listen to a new single and go "oh thats better than the last one"

sexxydancer said:

If you were FORCED to rank all Prince albums, your head would just explode wouldn't it?

I actually prefer Rave.

violetblues said:

You are the saddest Prince fan...I do not know why you cry...as if the happiness in "Rave," did not reach you, and, "The Rainbow Children," is over your head. Maybe in time, you will cheer up...I hope so.

MattyJam said:

A younger generation of listeners...truly do not understand Prince's foundation, with...songs from the past...such as, "When you were mine."

Prince's music is age appropriate toward the listener....There are peices of understanding in Prince's music and lyrics, that will sink to the level you can absorb...If something is not liked...it is because it is not understood.

Rave reminded me of a man on drugs..... while crashing.Read the damn lyrics off that album. I'd say TOO much meth.