Fellow orger Freespirit mailed that to me but I haven't recieved it yet so I can't comment on it. Anyway, I hear a lot of ppl here say that they're not too impressed by Prince's piano work in ONA and I hear others who say that his paino work in ONA is just breathtaking!!

What do you guys think of his Piano work in ONA???

Harlepolis said:

It isnt bad...but have you heard of Eavesdropping on Intimate Moments?

I think his piano work was excellent. Especially on the songs "Ur Gonna C Me" "A Case Of U" and " One Nite Alone"

I think his piano work was excellent. Especially on the songs "Ur Gonna C Me" "A Case Of U" and " One Nite Alone"

rdhull said:

I'm afraid not

Prince has yet to prove to me (except in concert) of how great of a piano player he is, eye know he is excellent, but being a piano player myself, eye have a greater expectation out of the piano, when it comes to Prince.. ONA is standard sounding, nothing out of the ordinary, except for a few odd chords, and the song One Nite Alone, thats the only exception..

Sdldawn said:

I'm also a pianist and I consider Teddy Wislon THE BEST PIANIST but I don't expect Prince to become like him. I guess thats why I'm kinda satisfied with every piano work comes by Prince.

Not 2 mention, (flaws) could make the a musical piece sounds beautiful sometimes.

the piano playing on ONA is amazing. There is so much more to piano playing than technically challenging riffs, not that ONA doesn't have plenty of those. But the real challenge of playing for a master such as prince comes in providing perfect accompaniment for the vocalist which in this case happens to be himself. Every chord says something, every note keeps with the emotional flavor of the individual song and everything he plays compliments his voice perfectly. I'm sure he could sit down and record an album filled with impossible to play runs but that is not what this record is about. It is about the emotions and vibes which are transmitted perfectly by his piano playing and his voice.

I'm gonna put it on right now

i think it's beautiful...

I think it's absolutely amazing! Prince is fabulous.

I don't have the album, I do have about 5 songs on mp3 and I think they are beautiful.

Yeah, eye think prince spoiled the moment in the cd giving us half of it in the first year..

i find it lacking of any true emotion...prince seems to rely on the same licks with his instrumentation...theres gotta be more there, he just needs to let it out.

Watching Prince play the piano at the ONA
concert was breathtaking, magically he plays
piano beautiful

The Piano work in ONA is so very moving and touching. It's such a Feeling Piece. It's Breathtakingly beautiful and just fills you up with the Utmost of Joy in Completness{Repetition}. It Sends you , It Sends you...There. Quite Powerful in Climatic Releases. Pure Exctasy . How can one say Otherwise? Prince Shines.

sounds good to me! but i don't know anything about piano playing.So can't really judge him on his technical ability.

drclay said:

I do play piano and what I listen for is the "touch" a performer has on the keyboard. All the technial brilliance in the world won't make the music reach out and touch you. I'll even accept some sour notes/mistakes if the soul is there.

However, I've never felt that Prince has the "touch" on piano. He's certainly competent, has a voice all his own, and can hold his own in a jam session, but his playing doesn't speak to me the way his guitar work can do. I've watched him play and I think that being self-taught, he has picked up some habits that limit him a bit. He tends to play flat-fingered (yeah, I know that Horowitz played that way, but HE could get away with it! LOL!) and that limits the smoothness and flow he could attain if he curled his fingers and stroked the keys. It also keeps him from having the nuance of dynamics completely at his disposal.

I keep trying to get into ONA, I honestly do, but it's just not hitting me. Maybe I expect too much?

It's Nice 2 hear Prince Rogers Nelson Play "ONA" piano (period). <<< thank u lol

SMlaughsjunAH

I love it all...From ONA to Aboretum (that song is so pretty)

I've always loved his piano playing. On songs like "Condition of the Heart", it really speaks to me. And who could forget his piano work on "How come you dont call me"? Simply brilliant, IMO. Prince plays piano in a very gospel-like manner, I believe, cuz "How Come You dont call me" has a very gospel edge to it.

LadyCabDriver said:

Thank you! You've hit the nail on the head for me. He's great at that style, but it doesn't translate well into the more ethereal "pretty" piano he does on ONA. The style of music on ONA demands a lighter touch.

HalluRain said:

Really? Well that's where I sorta disagree...I think it translates pretty good...but then, you know, Prince wasn't trained classically in piano, like Lisa Coleman was...see, Prince grew up watching his father play jazz piano, so that's what he's good at...Jazz and gospel piano...but I still think that his playing on ONA is really good. I think he plays very pretty, when he puts his mind to it. "Condition of the Heart" is as ethereal as it gets, IMO. But I'm not a piano player, so I'm not hearing the songs how you hear them, so its all a matter of perspective, I guess.

One Night Alone, U're Gonna See Me, and Here On Earth all have very interesting piano on them. Reminds me a bit of his piano medley on the Lovesexy tour, as well as Power Fantastic. In fact, the album starts out rather interesting and dreamy, but falls miserably flat after the first few songs.

The latter two thirds of the album is boring, awkward, and hastily thrown together without much insight, or inspiration.

LadyCabDriver said:

In interviews with Wendy & Lisa, they mentioned exposing Prince to alot of classical influences. I think that shows in his early 80s output with the Revolution.

LadyCabDriver said:

Once again, you make some very good points. Prior to the age of about 13, I firmly believed that the only serious music was classical and all the rest of rock, jazz, gospel, r&b, funk, new wave...whatever, was just throw-away drivel, not worthy of lasting respect. Yes, ladies and gentlemen, I was a complete musical snob!

Although I have since repented of my exclusionary views and grown up considerably (Halleluia!), I must have some lingering elitist attitudes that surface from time to time. I will now go perform a do-it-yourself exorcism to rid myself of this evil.

Demon, be gone!!!

Tom said:

I think the influence is there on ONA as well, I just don't think his execuation lived up to the intention.

Not good, not bad...typical of the "new" Prince

The first time I listened to ONA I wasn't crazy about it.

Then I listened to it through headphones, and I'll be darn if that CD grew on me. There is some beautiful piano work there.

Tom said:

good point, Tom.

OMG!! The piano work is great! It's what makes the album!