If this topic has been done before, please delete. I want to know, how many good or pleasing songs are needed for you all to consider it a good album or cd? (I know that this number will vary from person to person.) For instance, is it 7 out of 10? This would be interesting to me because 7 out of 10 in school is just average, but 70 percent of the prison population is a lot. For instance, I only like one song on Elixir, but I like all but two songs on Lotusflow3r and all but two songs on MPLSound. And the two songs that I dislike on Loutusflow3r wasn't about them, but how they disrupted the pace of the album, so I moved them to the end, and now it's all good. So, how many songs or what percentage of pleasurable songs make a good or pleasing album?

1725topp said:

For me, it just has to have a flow, an idea. The 80's stuff was great because each album was very different from the last, or the next, and it stood out. You could not make a mix tape of "Darling Nikki" and "Venus De Milo" without it sounding disjointed. That's because Purple Rain and Parade were very different. Each had a feel, a vibe, a sound, a mix, a reverb, an echo, whatever to them. SOTT had a flatter sound to it (in a good way). Lovesexy had an "open" sound to it. D&P was a band album, as was . The Gold Experience had a very clean and crisp sound to it. The keyboards were thick, the guitars were perfect, the drums were piercing, the vocals intricate. (Of course there are albums that are companions or sister albums. ATWIAD and Parade were. SOTT and Lovesexy were. D&P and were.)

These days, you can take the best tracks from Musicology, 3121, and Planet Earth, and you'd never know it was 3 different albums, most likely. However, as a single disk, it'd be strong, unique, and different, and varied. But the fact that those three albums all have a similar sound (to me, and probably a lot of other listeners as well) makes them bland and lacking, and not that GREAT of a record. For me, Planet Earth had the most number of strong songs on it, out of the three albums I used as an example. But again, if I removed the weak stuff, and enhanced it with two other albums, it'd be greater.

Anyway, Lotus doesn't flow to me because of those snoozer songs you mentioned. If it's a guitar album, why is there elevator reject music on there? Take it out, and Lotus becomes a lot stronger, and better. Yes, there are fewer songs, but why bother with filler. Maybe we should start a thread with "What songs are pure filler?". haha

Ultimately it comes down to taste. Someone else might have a totally opposite scale that I do. Who knows.

Footnote to the 80's albums: The 90's albums were good because it was more of a band feel, and he was very experimental, but even moreso he was ANGRY. Prince was pissed the fuck off with WB, and it showed. Exodus, Chaos, The Gold Experience, The Undertaker, Come, etc etc. Those were great/fantastic/very very good albums because he was struggling in his life professionally, on a business level, and probably spiritually, etc. That fed into great music. He was 'spressin' himself. His muse is not there as it used to be I think. Sorry, but "The New World Translation" just ain't cuttin' it. It's when he left WB and got "free" that he started to wain in putting out GREAT albums again. So what's to replace the anger he felt that would generate such great material? He's all about the love but so what. So is every artist at some point. Me'shell N'degeO'cellohad great stuff when she got in the pitfalls with Maverick Records. I don't want him to be angry, but he needs something to rub him wrong, or differently to want to say "FUCK' again.
[Edited 4/2/09 22:15pm]
[Edited 4/2/09 22:18pm]

To me its the balancing act, if theres 10 outstanding songs on an album and one terrible one, to me thats a classic record, whereas if theres 7 great songs, 1 gem and 2 filler, thats a great record, if theres 8 kind of ok songs and 2 fairly bad ones thats a below par record for me. So to me its how high the highlights, I can think of very few albums of Princes that fall into the 1 or 2 hits with a lot of bad filler category (examples a lot of lesser Motown albums and one hit wonder/ TV STAGE actor one album groups have very uneven work like Eddie Murphy, Allan Sherman, the Downbeats, Monkees etc.)

With Prince the only filler albums I can think of are Graffitti Bridge, Batman, Symbol and Rave
Many are high highlights with one or two pieces of garbage like Controversy (6 superb songs, 2 crap Ronnie talk 2 Russia and Annie Christian, Come and Gold Experience or Lovesexy (We could lose Dance on).
A lot are below par like Diamonds and Pearls, Prince, ATWIAD etc but they are ok and nothing is that bad, and some of its quite good.
Many are classics like Dirty Mind, 1999, Purple Rain, Parade and Sign o the Times which are just magnificent.
The last category are yuk albums, where only a few cuts in the set are kind of ok and the rest is unimaginable tosh, a great example is Chaos and Disorder here

Huggiebear said:

Sorry putting albums into order of desirability from best to worst

1. Classics (Outstanding songs only, or maybe with one or two less good ones) = 1999
2. High highlights and low lowlights but mostly highlights = Lovesexy, Come
3. Below Par( Mostly ok with some less than ok, maybe a gem or two) = Graffitti Bridge (Lots of filler, but the gems Joy in Repetition and Still would stand all time)
4. Filler albums One or two big hits and great songs with alot of rubbish like Symbol (7 and Sexy MF are superb, the rest is less than good filler).
5. Yuk albums (Mostly rubbishy filler with a few of kinds of Ok songs like Chaos and Disorder.

Another brief measure too

KILLER vs FILLER whats the ratio on the album?

yes...way too much filler this time around, kinda like Emancipation

but if you delete the filler - u end up with some great music

prince is still capable of releasing great music but as far as amazing music goes, he cant do that anymore

Good question. First and foremost, the songs have to be good. And almost just as importantly, they should sound like they belong together as a cohesive set.

Prince's '80s run is a perfect example of this. You wouldn't expect to hear gem like Pop Life on an album like Dirty Mind, 1999 or Batman; in terms of sound and theme, it just belongs on Around the World in a Day.
[Edited 4/3/09 2:04am]
[Edited 4/3/09 2:08am]

It's gotta give me chill bumps!