New topic
Printable| Author | Message |
ONA Live - Another view I read with interest a few negative reviews of ONA live, commenting on the lack of hits and the more subdued mood of Prince in 2002.
Right off the bat let me say that I am firmly a fan of Prince of old, but I am still enjoying the music of right now, such as RC, ONA and Xpectation. What annoys these reviewers, as far as I can see, is the way Prince frustrates their commercial sense. If Prince had been tied to a record label when he decided to release ONA, there would have been some struggles without a doubt. The vast majority (and I mean just about every member of the music buying public) equate Prince with Purple Rain, Sign of the Times, and Lovesexy. The further you move away from that period in Prince's evolution, the less people know or care. For his first ever live album people were expecting the hits. That's all. Prince though is a musician, not a businessman. I'm not saying he's a bad businessman, just that he appears to be motivated by his muse rather than his bank balance. A major label backing the first live release from Prince, a double CD which contained nothing more than one definitive greatest hit live package, with a video/dvd of the show to be released with it, would have put Prince on the radar again for a lot of people. Record Labels make money, they would have know how to promote it, how to build a brief but successful tour out of it, and how to even get Prince airplay on the back of some live singles. For all that is said of Prince's diminishing fanbase, he is still an icon, and his name is still known. So coming back to my original topic, I suspect that a lot of people get annoyed and bitch about Prince's new direction because they cannot understand why the above hypothetical situation isn't happening. Even a CD/DVD launch of the 2000 live show could have climbed Prince a few rungs back up the fame ladder; you only have to imagine how the music starved masses would have lapped up a single release of Lenny and Prince doing Fly Away, especially if they did a few appearances playing the song. I love Prince for doing his own thing. The music went one way and I went another a long time ago. But I still listen, and I still join the club, and I still like to see what the guy is up to these days. It's a shame the reviewers (some, no means all) can't get past the past, and experience something new. Fandango | |
- E-mail - orgNote -  Report post to moderator |
Fandangouk said: I suspect that a lot of people get annoyed and bitch about Prince's new direction because they cannot understand why the above hypothetical situation isn't happening.
Excellently put... 
By the way, the rest of your post was good as well...nicely done... | |
| - E-mail - orgNote - Report post to moderator |
Fandangouk said: I read with interest a few negative reviews of ONA live, commenting on the lack of hits and the more subdued mood of Prince in 2002.
Right off the bat let me say that I am firmly a fan of Prince of old, but I am still enjoying the music of right now, such as RC, ONA and Xpectation. What annoys these reviewers, as far as I can see, is the way Prince frustrates their commercial sense. If Prince had been tied to a record label when he decided to release ONA, there would have been some struggles without a doubt. The vast majority (and I mean just about every member of the music buying public) equate Prince with Purple Rain, Sign of the Times, and Lovesexy. The further you move away from that period in Prince's evolution, the less people know or care. For his first ever live album people were expecting the hits. That's all. Prince though is a musician, not a businessman. I'm not saying he's a bad businessman, just that he appears to be motivated by his muse rather than his bank balance. A major label backing the first live release from Prince, a double CD which contained nothing more than one definitive greatest hit live package, with a video/dvd of the show to be released with it, would have put Prince on the radar again for a lot of people. Record Labels make money, they would have know how to promote it, how to build a brief but successful tour out of it, and how to even get Prince airplay on the back of some live singles. For all that is said of Prince's diminishing fanbase, he is still an icon, and his name is still known. So coming back to my original topic, I suspect that a lot of people get annoyed and bitch about Prince's new direction because they cannot understand why the above hypothetical situation isn't happening. Even a CD/DVD launch of the 2000 live show could have climbed Prince a few rungs back up the fame ladder; you only have to imagine how the music starved masses would have lapped up a single release of Lenny and Prince doing Fly Away, especially if they did a few appearances playing the song. I love Prince for doing his own thing. The music went one way and I went another a long time ago. But I still listen, and I still join the club, and I still like to see what the guy is up to these days. It's a shame the reviewers (some, no means all) can't get past the past, and experience something new. Fandango You sure did change your stance from a few months ago when you said you were thru...good to see you came to your senses. "Climb in my fur." | |
| - E-mail - orgNote - Report post to moderator |
I just ordered my copy of ONA Live.
I'm sure there will be some things I like about it and things I won't. It's been that way with me for every single Prince album over the years. I felt that way about TRC. I will continue to buy what Prince makes available, however I won't join the music club. It's not something I'm interested in. | |
| - E-mail - orgNote - Report post to moderator |
