its my favourite along with newpower soul

sorry but i love this era.

maybe becuase im constantly listening to live shows from 96-99?

Thought it was a very very good album.

Oprah dubbed it, per Prince’s words, the album Prince was born to make/release . Prince, himself opened his Paisley Park complex up to Orpah’s studio and allowed what, at that time, appeared to be unprecedented access to his private life complete with musical performances live for her studio audience.
For once, Prince was promoting the hell out of an album, such as we’ve not seen him do since Diamond’s & Pearls. Dare I say it, there was actually a good deal of ‘hype’ surrounding the release of his 36-song / 3-CD opus. For all of the criticism thrown at Emancipation, it did go gold, which for 3 CD albums isn't a easy trick to pull off I'd imagine.

This isn’t the first review I’ve ever given of the album. In fact, I believe this is my third one here on the org. But Emancipation is an album that delights, irritates, and confounds me all at the same time. It’s one of my most listened to Prince albums. In short, I have a strange love affair with Emancipation .

Despite my expectations that I was going to be listening to 3 hours of The Gold Experience with it’s riot of fierce screams, guitar solos, off-the-chain drums, and the disappointment such expectations would have produced, I’ve grown to appreciate Emancipation as a true gem of the 1990s.

Let’s face it. I don’t care what anybody says. If Emancipation had been released after 1999 and before Purple Rain, it would have been hailed as a masterpiece—an imperfect masterpiece, but a masterpiece none-the-less. Prince covers an entire range of topics, musical styles, and moods that many other musicians spend their entire careers trying to accomplish. The songs are slickly conceived, tightly held together by a syrupy, sticky, glittery production style. Sure, the drum track and guitar parts aren’t quite what we came to expect post LoveSexy, but neither are some of his most loved albums, Dirty Mind and 1999—and nobody knocks those albums. Emancipation is an album that deserves more respect that it’s been given.

But how the hell does someone listen to a 3 CD , 3 hour , album? How do you digest such a thing in one sitting? Personally, as I’ve stated in previous posts concerning the album, I have to listen to it like it’s 3 sister albums (cd 1, 2, and 3).

Emancipation CD1

If Prince had released just the first CD alone, he would have succeeded in releasing a great, tight, return-to-form pop album, in the spirit of Batman, COME, or Diamonds & Pearls.
The first CD opens with Jam of the Year , a jazz infused song that doesn’t quite live up to it’s title, but is a great introduction into the rest of the album (cds 1, 2, and 3). The chorus is simple, easy to follow, and although not anything spectacular, it sticks in your mind long after you’ve moved onto the next few tracks.
Followup tracks like Right back here in My arms and Somebody’s somebody solidify the fact that Prince is releasing a pop album. A very long, wordy, seemingly rambling, pop album, but an album focused on popular music none-the-less. But, as silly as this sounds, if one looks past the drum programming, toned down, less-than-daring musical arrangements, there’s no denying Prince has an ear for a good pop tune. Emancipation is about the songs themselves—not the musicianship, not showing off, not over-the-top flashiness, but just smooth, groovy, tight pop songs. Ironically, it ends up being a risky , audacious, album just by how self-indulgent and loooonnnnng it is. Prince pulls a few weird things in the first CD though, with the charming but equally annoying Courtin Time, the less-than-necessary remake Betcha By Golly Wow, and endlessly annoying We gets Up (a song Prince seems to love repeating in each of his albums following Emancipation—think Get on the Boat).

Emancipation CD 2
Off all 3 CDs, this one is the most self-indulgent one. The entire thing feels like a love letter to Mayte, the youngling he was banging at the time. And in all honesty, this was my least favourite of the CDs. But as with so many Prince albums, over time, I grew to love it, and appreciate it.
Gems like the hypnotic, understated, Soul Sanctuary , the oozing sweetness of One Kiss at a Time the simplicity and sing-along sensibilities of emale set the tone for the rest of the CD. The quiet, sugary, dream-like Curious Chid draws either adoration or ire from its audience—I fall in the group that adores this track. If Prince has the ability to do anything at all on Emancipation, it’s the ability to paint a clear picture of a scene in my mind’s eye. He paints pictures in my mind with every note.
A few missteps , that offer interesting moments despite are the overbloated, quirky, Joint 2 Joint featuring some of the most annoying rap moments Prince has tortured us with since the Jughead raps on Diamonds and Pearls. And for some reason, though Oprah got wet for the song, I’ve never been a fan of Let’s Have a Baby, though his falsetto hasn’t sounded this spot-on since For You.
Along the way, prince manages to throw in a Purple Rain style anthem, The Holy River, which doesn’t quite reach same emotional highlights of the former, but prove none-the-less that Prince can still write a convincing sing-alone anthem.
Finishing off the album are the beautifully rendered love songs, Savior and Friend, Lover, Mother, Sister, whatever.., I could listen to the last track over and over again.

Emancipation CD 3
If any of the CDs evoke any sense of the Old Prince—the obsessive, experimental, head-scratching, ‘old’ Prince, it’s the last CD in this album.
The album opens with the sparse , slave-hymm styled, ‘slave’ a song sounding oddly -like an under-produced demo (compared to the rest of Emancipation). New world is very much something I’d expect from Dirty Mind or Controversy. The Human Body proves that Prince could easily release an electronic album if he so desired…in his sleep.
Missteps, to me are the exceedingly annoying and unnecessary, la la la la la means I love U and disco-infused Sleep Around where, once again, Prince proports that it’s a man’s duty to keep his woman from straying—cause you just know those bitches can’t control their vaginas without a man’s guidance and attention.
Da Da Da is also a track I really really wish Prince would apologize for. I mean, it sucks ass.
Notable highlights are his treatment of Joan Osborne’s One of Us the only remake I love, and upbeat, danceable Emancipation—lawd do I love the way that man plucks the bass in this song


Sure there are songs I dislike on Emancipation—I make no secret of that. As a matter of fact, I’d say there are about 5 or 6 songs that I simply do not like..at all.
But 5 or 6 songs out of 36 is a damned good number for such an ambitious, sprawling, opus like Emancipation.
When was the last time a musical act released an album and you could claim to like half the songs on the album, let alone 30!



[Edited 10/21/08 7:56am]

scandalousalan said:

ohhhhh love this song, deff one of my faves on the album

luv4u said:

i love disc 3 the best!!!

TheBigBang said:

Haven't heard those, but I own over a thousand CDs and have probably ditched as many over the years, and "Emancipation" is the worst of the lot.

Congruent said:

Nope - it is utter crap.

cinthiarose said:

co-sign

RumAndRaisin said:

Yes ....RumAndRaisin....

The two Albums have some real solid tracks on them....funky as hell...it's a CD that shows off Prince's skill and diverse range...a great body of work...Emancipation was designed to push, kick and punch you right in your face ...tracks like Face Down...Da..Da..Da...Joint 2 Joint ...In this Bed Eye Scream ...great..

RumAndRaisin said:

You like the production values of this era?

ah well

xlr8r said:

not to bothered

One of my favs. so much material, so many different moods.

FlashStabone1 said:

Yes I agree

Friend, Lover, Sister, Mother/Wife is the best song on that album IMO

I can't believe you didn't even mention ...The Love We Make (referring to the song).. it's one of his best in my opinion.

For me, Disc 1 starts out hot with Jam of the Year, Right Back Here..., and Somebody's Somebody, then the middle half starts to lose the plot. It's not until I Can't Make U Love Me, Mr. Happy, and In This Bed I Scream that we get any of the momentum back.

Disc 2...again, great start, really through the whole first half (except for Emale). Joint 2 Joint doesn't feel at all like it belongs on this disc, and probably should have been switched with La La Means I Love U. The rest of the disc is a big valentine to Mayte, and this one feels more like a kiss-off to a clingy-ass gold digger. Holy River ranks in my Top 20 or so ever. Love, love, fucking love this track. And then, the last third just falls flat for me. Friend, Lover, etc. is a great devotional ballad, the kind we haven't heard much from him outside of Adore, but Saviour was just overcooked, The Plan was a worthless interlude stuck in to push the thing to 60 minutes, and Let's Have a Baby was sappy.

The first quarter of Disc 3, as somebody said before, show that Prince could have cranked out a slammin' techno album, as all three just boom with electro-industrial type funk. Face Down, I think, is one of the sort of rare hip-hop moments where Prince doesn't embarrass himself. La La and Da Da Da are probably the only mis-steps on this disc, as I absolutely dig Style, Sleep Around, One of Us, and The Love We Make. Disc 3 is absolutely my favorite here, and if La La had been switched with a pared-down Joint 2 Joint, and maybe Da Da Da yanked in favor of something like Mr. Happy or We Gets Up, it could have stood on its own as a pretty hot techno-funk album.

All in all, Emancipation was an incredible album, but yeah, there are some pretty big stinkers in the pile. He could have resurrected some newish B-sides, like Rock and Roll is Alive, and slid them on here in place of dreck like Da Da Da and Saviour.

i really like the album alot it has some amazing songs on it

Dayclear said:

Very underrated

The songs that really i dont like on this album and is just a shocking songs to his career is "da, da, da" not for it sounds but for the guest rappers pro-drug use lyrics. Thats kinda been the one staple in prince's music is his anti-drugs. In this song he's got someone raping about how they can't find a job so there gonna smoke some herb (hmm, wonder why you cant find a job...) Another line about using weed n gin to inspire to write music. I've just be always shocked about that rap ever making it to a prince song.



Other then that major flaw. I think that album is very under rated but his own fan base. It's a solid solid pop album, i think the album got the wrong hype with it being this first post WB recored a 3 cd set and Ophrah hailing the "album is was born to make" Gave fans the impressed that it was gonna be some anti commercial prince master peace ... The Crystal Ball if you wiil, but it was just a straight up pop album, and a great one at that.
[Edited 3/16/09 4:49am]

Imago said:

That was a great and thoughtful review.

Imago said:

great review IMAGO

"Ask yourself your destination, What the source of your insperation be? and u will find a spirit tryimg 2 get bck 2 the mind like ya was in your mommas belly, Live and let live was the order of the day, What you say? Lovin 1 another is the only way Da da da, da da da da (hey if u belive in 1 thing, U believe in 2 things, U belive in anything let me hear u sing) Da da da, da da da da....."
[Edited 3/16/09 7:44am]

P2daP said:

You must be on drugs....prince is not pro drugs ..the rap is telling a story ..you need to play the record again and follow the lyrics....
I'm sure you have many Drug induced records in your music collection at home so stop throwing stones...

smoking and drink are drugs.....and that includes red wine ....

Eye agree with u in the fact that 2 me it has always bn his most complete work...as if his entire being pured in2 it...his magum opus. Although honestly, eye can't pick just 1 album eye love them all...but if it were 1 it would b this. Thanx 4 writing down that u dig this...'cause eye share ur taste:)

LondonStyle said:

Hey u mutha fuckers I luv Da,Da,Da its a great track!

optimus said:

Oh Optimus. I must let that slide because you're cute.

But I regret having read that.