Disc 2 minus "Holy River" would have been one of the better (and more focused) albums that Prince has released.It it certainly in my top 5 Prince "discs" of all time.

Before a few folks get their panties in a bunch about 'Holy River', I'll qualify that by saying that it simply didn't fit with the other songs, neither musically nor lyrically.

Discs 1+3 are throwaways, with the exceptions being the covers which were decent. People are entitled to their opinion, but anyone who can honestly say they can sit and enjoy the entire 'Emancipation' album comes off as being a little mindless to me. IMO, the 3-disc format is a clear attempt to stuff the stats (sales). Thankfully, disc 2 made my purchase worthwhile and then some to me.

TraSoul82 said:

Wow, I definitely agree that Holy river sticks out like a sore thumb on this whole set. I'm going to take holy river & listen to disc 2 again sometime to try & get why you think it's so good..

TraSoul82 said:

Wow, I definitely agree that Holy river sticks out like a sore thumb on this whole set. I'm going to take holy river & listen to disc 2 again sometime to try & get why you think it's so good..

TraSoul82 said:

Wow, I definitely agree that Holy river sticks out like a sore thumb on this whole set. I'm going to take holy river & listen to disc 2 again sometime to try & get why you think it's so good..

kittylarue2 said:

They're all ones I happily skip!

That's why I love that this set was issued as is, so we can all pick our favourites, rather than be stuck with what Prince, or anyone else, thinks would have been the best single disc selection. I love that the whole thing is out there, same with Lotus/MPLSound/Elixer.

Jam Of The Year
Get Yo Groove On
Courtin' Time
Betcha By Golly Wow
We Gets Up
The Holy River
Saviour, (my wedding day first dance song).
Slave
Face Down
My Computer
One Of Us
The Love We Make, (best song on the set).
Emancipation

TheEnglishGent said:

Good Selections, I agree that The Love We Make is a great track. This has become a fun thread and is actually making me like Emancipation more which is a miricle.
[Edited 3/9/10 3:12am]

TraSoul82 said:

I think Holy River fits perfectly on disc 2, especially where it's at. If you pay attention to the lyrics on that disc, they tell a very straightforward story about a relationship. Courtship --> Romance --> Betrayal --> Doubt --> Regret --> Reconciliation --> Marriage

Holy River is in the Regret & Reconciliation part. He's realizing he made a mistake and is setting his mind to making it right.

Even more than the music, the lyrical narrative, with a fully formed story from beginning to the end, is what makes disc 2 so great.

Holy River is actually the most important piece of that storyline. Its centerpiece if you will. I can't even imagine that disc without it. And there's not really any other track from the era (that we've heard) that could take its place in that context.
[Edited 3/9/10 6:03am]

errant said:

I don't know. Look at, Karmasutra, The Truth, Crystal Ball. These projects seem to wreck your position. For various reasons, these projects don't seem like an attempt to be mainstream, popular, or accessible to the masses.

skywalker said:

Kamasutra wasn't released to the public. The Truth was a bonus disc for Crystal Ball. Crystal Ball itself was meant to be a mail-order release as well. And his last-minute decision to release it to stores indicates to me that he was pandering because critics and fans had been wanting him to release vault material. His choice of vault stuff that people were clamoring for was just a bit .... off.

errant said:

My point exactly. So he promoted New Power Soul and Rave Un2 The Joy Fantastic. So what? He promoted Emancipation and The Gold Experience as well. Earlier in the decade, he hyped the hell out of Diamonds and Pearls and .

I disagree with the idea that 1996 to 2000 was a MORE concentrated effort on Prince's part to make more accessible music.

skywalker said:

I have trouble shaking the notion that beginning with Diamonds & Pearls that he made a concerted effort to have more accessible music--with some exceptions, of course.

While I like that era, it has always been a bit disappointing to me. I felt he was holding back in many ways, maybe even pandering to an audience he felt couldn't understand Parade or Lovesexy.

Acrylic said:

U crazy if you gonna cut off New World, The Human Body, and esp THE LOVE WE MAKE? Thats my fave tune on the entire album.

I tried a few times to make it one CD...but was always had a hard time. The only tracks I really don't like is Mr Happy, Betcha By Golly Wow, and Get Yo Groove On. But over the years I don't even mind those that much. Overall its a good set...not AWESOME or anything...but good.

I did this once a while ago, and a lot of the lists don't seem to have the best, well done songs on it.

1. Sex In the Summer
2. Right Back Here In My Arms
3. The Human Body
4. Face Down
5. Sleep Around
6. The Love We Make
7. Slave
8. My Computer
9. The Holy River
10. In This Bed I Scream
11. Saviour
12. Emancipation

NDRU said:

If your position is that Diamonds and Pearls marked the beginning of Prince being more accessible to the masses, I agree. I don't think this is something that started with Emancipation. However, I don't think that this is ALWAYS the case. He still has albums/songs/concepts that are more artistic than commercial.

Most of the time, I think Prince straddles the line between pop and art just fine.

Rave Un2 The Joy Fantastic was followed by more artful conceptual ideas/music. With Prince, it is purple ebb and flow, etc.


[Edited 3/9/10 14:42pm]

skywalker said:

yes, exactly. He seemed to consciously give a polished pop product in which the messages were hidden in a pop language. The song Diamonds & Pearls is the prime example IMO. I have never believed it was a straight pop song, but more of a metaphor for his music, as was calling the album by the same name, signifying the polished gems inside.

Personally I wish he'd not done that & continued to challenge the way he had in the 80's, but that's his decision and I've learned to judge his music on what he does do, not what I wish he'd done.

Here's my list.I removed the title track (which I never liked) from it,so I'm gonna call it New World instead....


PRINCE 'NEW WORLD'

Get Yo Groove On
Right Back Here In My Arms
Courtin' Time
Emale
In This Bed I Scream
Sex In The Summer
One Kiss At A Time
Sleep Around
Human Body
Holy River
My Computer
New World

stichdoll said:

I like "Courtin Time" reminds me of the rockabilly songs he used to do in the early 80s.

SoulAlive said:

I like it as well.
Who in the hell complains about getting 2 MUCH music?

NDRU said:

These posts are spot on. Emancipation may not have a "sound" that is to everybody's taste but its songcraft and diversity are superb. Disc 2 in particular has helped me win over a number of professional muso friends who weren't previously into Prince. (Admittedly the people I'm referring to are jazz/classical types not rockers.)

TheEnglishGent said:

Hear...Hear... to that....

Great CD as it offers so much to so many and has lasted the test of time ...some really great Prince stuff on the CD ...

I would love Prince to do more like this 3 x CD or 2 x CD allow him to fully express his music ...then it allows the public to pick and choose their best tracks.....

Freedom...

I once tried to make a double CD out of Emancipation. It was OK.
At the time I did not like the covers Prince did. I removed the covers and The Plan and it fits on two discs.

Emancipation needed to be three discs. I love the Lotus Flower collection last year too. I would not mind if Prince did a triple set every so often. I know I am biased in this becuase I tend to like Prince's music. Even the tracks that I consider bad are usually better than 90% of the other music that is available.

What I found funny is that when I uploaded Emancipation to my I-pod the second disc loaded as a album and not a Prince album. Maybe originally there was a plan to release Emancipation as two CDs: a Prince and a album. That would have been similar to the Come and Gold plan a few years earlier.

3 discs, 3 hrs, 36 tracks for $25 in 1996 was a treat.

I hope he does another Target muti-dosc deal some day.

Emancipation - If it was a single disc??

It would be 2 times less obnoxious.

Soul Sanctuary

should have been released to the public;
what a gem this is

My single disc would be:

Jam of the year
Sex in the Summer
One kiss at a time
Soul Sanctuary
Curious Child
Dreaming abot U
The Holy river
New World
The Human Body
Sleep Around
My Computer

Bohemian67 said:

U take the single disk.....I will take ALL 3.

Graycap23 said:

yeah, I can easily make 1-disc mixes of the album, but in the end I have to leave out songs I like.

I would prefer the album the way it is.

Bohemian67 said:

Your missing Joint 2 Joint, Face Down and the Love We Make...3 essential Emancipation tracks.

Poplife88 said:

I don't like Joint 2 Joint it's too...mmm I don't know no words to describe it, just doesn't move at all, anywhere.

Love we make rings a slight bell....Face down not at all I'll have a listen again. Can't believe I only looked at the booklet for the first time tonight. I prefer just listening without any preconceived ideas or impressions I suppose. I play it by ear.

well I can't wittle it down to one cd.

BUT I can still wittle it down to 3 lol

but these are the songs i absolutely like 100% off each disk

CD 1

Right Back Here In My Arms" – 4:43
"Somebody's Somebody" – 4:43
"Get Yo Groove On" – 6:31
"Betcha by Golly Wow!" – 3:31
White Mansion" – 4:47
"I Can't Make U Love Me" – 6:37
"Mr. Happy" – 4:46
"In This Bed I Scream" – 5:4

CD2

"Sex In the Summer" – 5:57
"One Kiss at a Time" – 4:41
"Soul Sanctuary" – 4:41
"Emale" – 3:38
"Dreamin' About U" – 3:52
"Joint 2 Joint" – 7:52
"The Holy River" – 6:55
"Let's Have a Baby" – 4:07

CD 3

The Human Body" – 5:42
La, La, La Means I Love U" – 3:59
"Style" – 6:40
"Sleep Around" – 7:42
"My Computer" – 4:37
"One of Us" – 5:19
"The Love We Make" – 4:39

so i guess it could really be a 2 disc set