3121 is my favorite of the so called prince comeback.....

Do you think the Michael B/Sonny T recording session material should all have been released together? It seems all this material dates from one recording session in late 2004. The track 3121 even starts with the words "from the lotusflower" lifted from his weird vocals on Back 2 the Lotus. (just before the one mix, one mix part). And finishes with a reference to the Wall of Berlin, which would prefectly introduce that track.

The problem with Lotusflow3r, I think, is it's so disjointed. When Feel Better, Feel Good, Feel Wonderful (great as it is) comes in before Colonized Mind has even finished, it feels like we're thrown into a completely different album. It doesn't even tie in lyrically with the theme of the album.

I think more people would appreciate Prince's albums if they were more cohesive. It's like the Sign O the Times era. The album had such great material, but got a fairly mixed reception. Maybe people would have understood the material better if, say, all the Camille material was released separately, the Revolution Dream Factory type material released separately etc...
[Edited 4/28/09 20:56pm]

The track 3121 even starts with the words "from the lotusflower" lifted from his weird vocals on Back 2 the Lotus. (just before the one mix, one mix part). And finishes with a reference to the Wall of Berlin, which would prefectly introduce that track.

Michael B. said they recorded about 12 or 13 tracks that night in 2004. I'm guessing Prince originally had a plan for this as all one project.

wildsign said:

good find!

i'd been trying to figure out what that line was ever since the 3121 album
was released and after listening to lotusflower for a hundred times it still
hadn't dawned upon me.

wow. now i really do want to go and fit the song into the lotusflower stuff.
it would fit very well.

but how to sequence the whole thing? as you said, wall of berlin right after
3121 is the most logical but where to put 3121 on the tracklist?

funkflex said:

Come back? what come back? He was never gone

Do you think the Michael B/Sonny T recording session material should all have been released together? It seems all this material dates from one recording session in late 2004. The track 3121 even starts with the words "from the lotusflower" lifted from his weird vocals on Back 2 the Lotus. (just before the one mix, one mix part). And finishes with a reference to the Wall of Berlin, which would prefectly introduce that track.

The problem with Lotusflow3r, I think, is it's so disjointed. When Feel Better, Feel Good, Feel Wonderful (great as it is) comes in before Colonized Mind has even finished, it feels like we're thrown into a completely different album. It doesn't even tie in lyrically with the theme of the album.

I think more people would appreciate Prince's albums if they were more cohesive. It's like the Sign O the Times era. The album had such great material, but got a fairly mixed reception. Maybe people would have understood the material better if, say, all the Camille material was released separately, the Revolution Dream Factory type material released separately etc...
[Edited 4/28/09 20:56pm]

Do you think the Michael B/Sonny T recording session material should all have been released together? It seems all this material dates from one recording session in late 2004. The track 3121 even starts with the words "from the lotusflower" lifted from his weird vocals on Back 2 the Lotus. (just before the one mix, one mix part). And finishes with a reference to the Wall of Berlin, which would prefectly introduce that track.

The problem with Lotusflow3r, I think, is it's so disjointed. When Feel Better, Feel Good, Feel Wonderful (great as it is) comes in before Colonized Mind has even finished, it feels like we're thrown into a completely different album. It doesn't even tie in lyrically with the theme of the album.

I think more people would appreciate Prince's albums if they were more cohesive. It's like the Sign O the Times era. The album had such great material, but got a fairly mixed reception. Maybe people would have understood the material better if, say, all the Camille material was released separately, the Revolution Dream Factory type material released separately etc...
[Edited 4/28/09 20:56pm]

Redheaded Stepchild (prince's version) was also part of the original LF tracklist.

contrapposto said:

Please stop making assertions without providing sources.

wildsign said:

I completely agree with you that Lotus Flower is a disjointed listen. It's not sequenced very well at all and might have been stronger had he kept all of the material from the same sessions together.

That said, I'm not sure I know what you're talking about in regards to the "theme of the album". Even taking just the Sonny T/Michael B tracks into account, I can't for the life of me see a thread that connects them. I think you might be seeing links that aren't actually there.

Great catch on the "From the lotus flower" line, by the way.

Curious...what would be in your "Lotusflow3r" configuration?
[Edited 4/28/09 22:45pm]

TwiliteKid said:

Leo777 said:

I can't say for sure what the Michael B/Sonny T tracks from 2004 are, but I suppose it might have gone something like this:

From the Lotus...

3121

Wall of Berlin

$

Colonized Mind

Feel Good, Feel Better, Feel Wonderful

The One U Wanna C

Boom

Crimson and Clover

4ever

Dreamer

...Back 2 the Lotus

It's less of a psychedelic/spiritual album and more of a party/rock record but I think it still works. All of Prince's best material has always included a mix of different sounds and styles. I put it together in my iTunes playlist and I like the flow of it.