Genesia said:

millwall said:

i love this album. music personified. shame the lable never surported it

Uhhhh...Emancipation marked his first independent release after WB (hence the title). Why would they support it?

I'm guessing that the label that millwall was referring to was EMI not Warner Brothers.

Dreamer2 said:

kpowers said:

Over all I love Emancipation except for Da da daa.

great track, princes best rap/hip-hop work ...its so not prince....thats why it works:-D

No it does not work, pure CRAP

ernestsewell said:

rialb said:

I never understood that argument. I guess it's a valid point since a lot of folks bring it up but I just don't get why the lack of live drums hurts this album any more than any other Prince album. Since almost the beginning (Controversy?) Prince has used drum machines. I think that an album like 1999, as great as it is, suffers more than Emancipation due to a lack of live drums. It's too bad that so few of the songs from Emancipation have been performed live, maybe then I could hear what kind of a difference live drums would make to the album.

Well, let's be fair on the time table there - Controversy wasn't the beginning. He's used drum machines a lot, but not always. Remember, he went through some "band" oriented sounding times as well. Lovesexy, Graffiti Bridge, Diamonds & Pearls, , Come, Exodus, The Gold Experience all tended to favor live drums opposed to the Linn.

If you think about good songs like "Damned If I Do", "White Mansion", "Right Back Here In My Arms", "Jam Of the Year", etc etc. They're good, but they sound cold, or closed off. Now imagine them with a band, and a more open and rich sound. It'd have been a whole different record. Of course some songs benefit more from a drum machine, mainly disk 3 - because it tends to be more dance oriented type songs - almost club-by type stuff in some regards.

A perfect example: "Somebody's Somebody". Decent enough song, right? Now, go listen to the "Live Studio Mix", which was the band in the studio, running through the song without the aid of a drum machine. THAT is the difference that shows how the album suffered from a dry and cold drum machine. I mean, it's almost criminal that "Courtin' Time" doesn't have a live drum on it! It's a damn big band song!

1999 seems to be fitting to have a drum machine. A lot of the song themes are very cold and mechanical anyway. "Automatic", "Delirious", "Something In The Water", "All The Critics...". They're all very impersonal in some ways. It's robotic, and very futuristic; the messages are very detached and passé. That's not a bad thing. But the Linn lends to that feel and idealism. Whereas on Emancipation, you have songs of a warm nature lyrically, yet the very dry and impersonal drum arrangements (or lack thereof) battle against that. The songs almost become a war of which is more important, the arrangement or the lyrics, opposed to everything working together. It gives the whole album a hurried feel. He'd been working on the songs for a while, before his WB thing finally expired, but he still had his band around, the old and new NPG, and could have easily utilized them. The glory of albums like The Gold Experience or is that a lot of it was the band just playing the song, albeit with some overdubs later. That richness shines through and makes those albums glorious for one's inner ear duties. In comparison, Emancipation hangs on the ear lobe like a pair of Dollar Tree clip ons.

I still like the album. (Yes, I did my own edits on this album too.) It's just lacking a bit. Trim 20 minutes off of it, put it on two CDs, and have live drums on the majority of the tracks. Fuck, that would have been a masterpiece.

While I disagree you certainly made a good argument. I may have blinders when it comes to Emancipation because it was a favourite of mine from the first time I listened to it. Of course you make a good point with "Somebody's Somebody" but I almost view them as two different songs which are both great. I did a little digging and I think I found some of the threads that you mentioned in an earlier post and it certainly seems like most people agree with you. Either way I like discussing this album. Certainly it was one of Prince's more ambitious projects and for me he is at his best when he is stretching himself. I would love to see him rediscover some of these songs because even a lot of the people that don't like the sound of the album think that there are quite a few great songs on it. I know it's very unlikely but it would be cool if Prince played each disc in order live, maybe stretched over three days, one disc per day.

This is probably a bit of a reach but I wonder if it was a conscious decision to not use more band members due to financial restrictions? I think that 1995/1996 was one of the eras when there were multiple rumours of Prince having money problems and maybe he was trying to cut as many costs as he could?

PurpleDiamond2009 said:

i've been listening to this album more alot lately since i never really gave his late 80s-90s work too much attention and so far i have to say that this is a really great album a masterpiece i don't understand why this album is disliked by so many fans it's a very R&Bish album and with me being a huge fan of R&B music this is like the best I have heard so far my favorite song is Joint 2 Joint(LOL @ the Captian Crunch eating ) ok I'm probably in the minority here but anyone agree? anyone?

I really like #1 and #2. I don't care for much of #3.

I love Joint 2 Joint, Emale, Somebody's Somebody, White Mansion, Curious Child, Soul Sanctuary, Sex in the Summer...

I have to get the CD to remember all the others I really like.

It had a smooth laid back groove. I just really really thought it was a good album.

I don't give a damn who doesn't like it.

i think CD 2 is the best

ernestsewell said:

1999 seems to be fitting to have a drum machine. A lot of the song themes are very cold and mechanical anyway. "Automatic", "Delirious", "Something In The Water", "All The Critics...". They're all very impersonal in some ways. It's robotic, and very futuristic; the messages are very detached and passé. That's not a bad thing. But the Linn lends to that feel and idealism. Whereas on Emancipation, you have songs of a warm nature lyrically, yet the very dry and impersonal drum arrangements (or lack thereof) battle against that. The songs almost become a war of which is more important, the arrangement or the lyrics, opposed to everything working together. It gives the whole album a hurried feel.

Very interesting take on 1999 vs Emancipation. I never gave much thought to live drums vs drum machine... but your analysis here helps me understand why everyone keeps bringing up this point about the drum machine. I have a feeling it would have been a more "alive" sounding album especially important since it was about human relationships and intimate encounters (not merely sex acts like in 1999)

Cheap R&B/G-Funk sound

Overlong, filler everywhere

Some of his worst ballads ever

Awful choice of singles

Uninspired jams

Cheesy electro sound (third CD)

Dated & sorry mid-90s artwork

SHITTY ALBUM, only NPS is worse (I certainly prefer Rave)

rialb said:

While I disagree you certainly made a good argument. I may have blinders when it comes to Emancipation because it was a favourite of mine from the first time I listened to it. Of course you make a good point with "Somebody's Somebody" but I almost view them as two different songs which are both great. I did a little digging and I think I found some of the threads that you mentioned in an earlier post and it certainly seems like most people agree with you. Either way I like discussing this album. Certainly it was one of Prince's more ambitious projects and for me he is at his best when he is stretching himself. I would love to see him rediscover some of these songs because even a lot of the people that don't like the sound of the album think that there are quite a few great songs on it. I know it's very unlikely but it would be cool if Prince played each disc in order live, maybe stretched over three days, one disc per day.

This is probably a bit of a reach but I wonder if it was a conscious decision to not use more band members due to financial restrictions? I think that 1995/1996 was one of the eras when there were multiple rumours of Prince having money problems and maybe he was trying to cut as many costs as he could?

I think Prince was quite ambitious to show he could do music on his own without a record company behind him. He put out 36 songs, and charged a lower price for it. He worked quite quickly to get the project out to coincide with the expiration of the WB contract. It seems he bypassed the band route either because he was indeed in a hurry, or he wanted to do it "on his own", being symbolic of his new found freedom.

The former NPG were taken off payroll at the time because there was no payroll to pay out. Most of the new band (Rhonda, Kat, Kirk, etc) worked for free for a short while due to lack of funds. It was the Jam of the Year tour infused some much needed cash flow into everyone's pockets. Prince had ended up being another typical story of great success who blew it all by the end of the run with a record company. It wasn't WB stealing it from him with some horrid contract, it was Prince's lavish spending on projects that ever saw the light of day. He even threw a film making into bankrupcty because Prince never really paid him for all he did during the mid-90's for Prince's vanity projects. Endless stories exist about the massive amounts of film used and never released. Someone once said it was like "Prince's home movies", because he filmed stuff all the time.

All of that led to a lot of $$$ problems being in the red all the time. So yes, I think a lot of the lack of band sound on the project was financial. For a while, I don't think he had a real band. Sonny, Michael B., Tommy, were all let go. Morris was around, but how much was he getting?

Emancipation suffered on many levels in production, and the final project reflected that. Sure the songs are good songs, but the whole thing sounds rushed, and sometimes almost like a bunch of demos, especially disk 3, and parts of disk 2.

ernestsewell said:

rialb said:

While I disagree you certainly made a good argument. I may have blinders when it comes to Emancipation because it was a favourite of mine from the first time I listened to it. Of course you make a good point with "Somebody's Somebody" but I almost view them as two different songs which are both great. I did a little digging and I think I found some of the threads that you mentioned in an earlier post and it certainly seems like most people agree with you. Either way I like discussing this album. Certainly it was one of Prince's more ambitious projects and for me he is at his best when he is stretching himself. I would love to see him rediscover some of these songs because even a lot of the people that don't like the sound of the album think that there are quite a few great songs on it. I know it's very unlikely but it would be cool if Prince played each disc in order live, maybe stretched over three days, one disc per day.

This is probably a bit of a reach but I wonder if it was a conscious decision to not use more band members due to financial restrictions? I think that 1995/1996 was one of the eras when there were multiple rumours of Prince having money problems and maybe he was trying to cut as many costs as he could?

I think Prince was quite ambitious to show he could do music on his own without a record company behind him. He put out 36 songs, and charged a lower price for it. He worked quite quickly to get the project out to coincide with the expiration of the WB contract. It seems he bypassed the band route either because he was indeed in a hurry, or he wanted to do it "on his own", being symbolic of his new found freedom.

The former NPG were taken off payroll at the time because there was no payroll to pay out. Most of the new band (Rhonda, Kat, Kirk, etc) worked for free for a short while due to lack of funds. It was the Jam of the Year tour infused some much needed cash flow into everyone's pockets. Prince had ended up being another typical story of great success who blew it all by the end of the run with a record company. It wasn't WB stealing it from him with some horrid contract, it was Prince's lavish spending on projects that ever saw the light of day. He even threw a film making into bankrupcty because Prince never really paid him for all he did during the mid-90's for Prince's vanity projects. Endless stories exist about the massive amounts of film used and never released. Someone once said it was like "Prince's home movies", because he filmed stuff all the time.

All of that led to a lot of $$$ problems being in the red all the time. So yes, I think a lot of the lack of band sound on the project was financial. For a while, I don't think he had a real band. Sonny, Michael B., Tommy, were all let go. Morris was around, but how much was he getting?

Emancipation suffered on many levels in production, and the final project reflected that. Sure the songs are good songs, but the whole thing sounds rushed, and sometimes almost like a bunch of demos, especially disk 3, and parts of disk 2.

It would be interesting to know why Prince played so few Emancipation songs on that tour. A good guess might be because fans did not want to hear it, or maybe Prince thought that fans did not want to hear it. I wonder how the ticket sales were at the beginning of the tour when he was playing some stuff from Emancipation? Other than the Nude Tour this was probably the first time that Prince did not play a significant amount of new material on a tour and it started a trend. He broke out of that a little bit for the One Nite Alone era but for the most part he has been playing mostly the hits since then.I can't help thinking that if the Jam of the Year Tour had been mostly new songs that things might have been different. He may have taken a bit of a financial hit in the short term but maybe in the long term he wouldn't shy away from doing a tour that focused on new material? He did seem to lose interest in Emancipation fairly quickly but it was a while before he moved on to a new project (Newpower Soul).

ernestsewell said:

rialb said:

While I disagree you certainly made a good argument. I may have blinders when it comes to Emancipation because it was a favourite of mine from the first time I listened to it. Of course you make a good point with "Somebody's Somebody" but I almost view them as two different songs which are both great. I did a little digging and I think I found some of the threads that you mentioned in an earlier post and it certainly seems like most people agree with you. Either way I like discussing this album. Certainly it was one of Prince's more ambitious projects and for me he is at his best when he is stretching himself. I would love to see him rediscover some of these songs because even a lot of the people that don't like the sound of the album think that there are quite a few great songs on it. I know it's very unlikely but it would be cool if Prince played each disc in order live, maybe stretched over three days, one disc per day.

This is probably a bit of a reach but I wonder if it was a conscious decision to not use more band members due to financial restrictions? I think that 1995/1996 was one of the eras when there were multiple rumours of Prince having money problems and maybe he was trying to cut as many costs as he could?

I think Prince was quite ambitious to show he could do music on his own without a record company behind him. He put out 36 songs, and charged a lower price for it. He worked quite quickly to get the project out to coincide with the expiration of the WB contract. It seems he bypassed the band route either because he was indeed in a hurry, or he wanted to do it "on his own", being symbolic of his new found freedom.

The former NPG were taken off payroll at the time because there was no payroll to pay out. Most of the new band (Rhonda, Kat, Kirk, etc) worked for free for a short while due to lack of funds. It was the Jam of the Year tour infused some much needed cash flow into everyone's pockets. Prince had ended up being another typical story of great success who blew it all by the end of the run with a record company. It wasn't WB stealing it from him with some horrid contract, it was Prince's lavish spending on projects that ever saw the light of day. He even threw a film making into bankrupcty because Prince never really paid him for all he did during the mid-90's for Prince's vanity projects. Endless stories exist about the massive amounts of film used and never released. Someone once said it was like "Prince's home movies", because he filmed stuff all the time.

All of that led to a lot of $$$ problems being in the red all the time. So yes, I think a lot of the lack of band sound on the project was financial. For a while, I don't think he had a real band. Sonny, Michael B., Tommy, were all let go. Morris was around, but how much was he getting?

Emancipation suffered on many levels in production, and the final project reflected that. Sure the songs are good songs, but the whole thing sounds rushed, and sometimes almost like a bunch of demos, especially disk 3, and parts of disk 2.

I agree, your entire post is true; 1996 was the first bad year of the worst Prince era of all time (96-99), man oh man, he pretty lost it here... an awful era full of uncontrollable ego, personal problems, isolation, uninspired songs and misguided productions...

JoeTyler said:

ernestsewell said:

I think Prince was quite ambitious to show he could do music on his own without a record company behind him. He put out 36 songs, and charged a lower price for it. He worked quite quickly to get the project out to coincide with the expiration of the WB contract. It seems he bypassed the band route either because he was indeed in a hurry, or he wanted to do it "on his own", being symbolic of his new found freedom.

The former NPG were taken off payroll at the time because there was no payroll to pay out. Most of the new band (Rhonda, Kat, Kirk, etc) worked for free for a short while due to lack of funds. It was the Jam of the Year tour infused some much needed cash flow into everyone's pockets. Prince had ended up being another typical story of great success who blew it all by the end of the run with a record company. It wasn't WB stealing it from him with some horrid contract, it was Prince's lavish spending on projects that ever saw the light of day. He even threw a film making into bankrupcty because Prince never really paid him for all he did during the mid-90's for Prince's vanity projects. Endless stories exist about the massive amounts of film used and never released. Someone once said it was like "Prince's home movies", because he filmed stuff all the time.

All of that led to a lot of $$$ problems being in the red all the time. So yes, I think a lot of the lack of band sound on the project was financial. For a while, I don't think he had a real band. Sonny, Michael B., Tommy, were all let go. Morris was around, but how much was he getting?

Emancipation suffered on many levels in production, and the final project reflected that. Sure the songs are good songs, but the whole thing sounds rushed, and sometimes almost like a bunch of demos, especially disk 3, and parts of disk 2.

I agree, your entire post is true; 1996 was the first bad year of the worst Prince era of all time (96-99), man oh man, he pretty lost it here... an awful era full of uncontrollable ego, personal problems, isolation, uninspired songs and misguided productions...

It's kind of funny for me to think of 1996-1999 as being the same era. I think that Emancipation is one of his best albums and that Newpower Soul and Rave Un2 The Joy Fantastic are two of his worst. For me Emancipation is the end of his second golden era (1993-1996), Crystal Ball/The Truth is a bit of a transitional era and 1998-2003 is his nadir.

Hmm, something just struck me about Emancipation. Prince did the Jam of the Year Tour which was nominally to promote the Emancipation album. He must have done some rehearsals. Surely a good number of Emancipation songs were performed at these rehearsals? So in the vault there is at least a chance that there exists an alternate version of Emancipation that features live drums. Drums by Kirk Johnson but drums nonetheless. Maybe there is hope, very slim hope, that some of these rehearsal tracks will someday be released?

Swa said:

Taken from the "A Celebration" threads from a few months back.

A CELEBRATION: EMANCIPATION

Continuing on the One Album a Day discussion of Prince's music, we arrive at the epic Emancipation. Initially I thought to do this as a one disc per day review - but to do so will rob the ability to compare and contrast and listen to this as Prince intended. So read on if you dare, lol.

EMANCIPATION

DISC I

The year was 1996 and word that a triple disc from was on it’s way. Press interviews at the time talked how he was calling this the album “I was born to make”. With his contract with Warners well and truly over (save from them pumping out repackaged greatest hits and old tunes like new) this was the first official released on NPG Records alone. He was an artist finally free to do what he wanted, release a disc how he wanted (3 sides, 12 songs per disc and one hour each), and do things his way.

I can remember rushing home to hear this cd and somewhere along the line seeing him on Oprah performing cuts from it (Sleep Around in particular) and being interviewed. It felt like he was ready to be the musician the last few years had perhaps stifled him from being.

So with much anticipation and optimism I put in each disc, and quickly listened to between 5 – 10 seconds of each song. A quick sampling of every track before popping disc one in and sitting back to truly listen.

With its teasing intro Jam of the Year had me guessing, what was it going to be like? Then with a wooooo the laid back groove hit with that accompanying horn and piano melody. Accustomed to hard-hitting openers, JOTY was cruisier. I always pictured this as the top down, volume up cruise the oceans winding roads car song that made me long for a convertible. The fluttering flute took me back to Gett Off and that can’t be a bad thing now can it. And the strong vocals of Rosie made me wonder if this had been a sleeper from an earlier album. With an obvious reference to Mayte and her pregnancy this song had an optimistic feel to it, a lightness that had been missing from some of the previous albums work. A great start, but what next….

With that infectious beat and sliding synth line, Right Back Here In My Arms had me from the get go. That bubbling bass synth that plods along in the verses (and let’s face it the song is really all verses) this song of longing was funky in a truly purple fashion.

When Somebody’s Somebody burst from my speakers I was thinking “man this is a string of solid openers” and once again he had me. With a sway with the music vibe SS was a pure delight to listen to. Everything that makes a great song was there, a beautiful melody, vocal hooks, an identifiable emotion, and those layered vocals. I love how Prince’s resolve increases with every passing chorus. How smooth is that guitar solo near the end? Just when you thought this was the quintessential version of this the LiveStudio version released as a b-side to Holy River took it to another level.

Stepping it up a notch, Get Your Groove on is more up-tempo than the preceding songs. Almost reinventing the 70s “shake your groove thang-esque” songs there is a definite party vibe at work here. Vocals delivered with joy, and a melody line in the higher register this song wants twinkling lights and flowing drinks and a few good friends.

With a throwback to Delirious, Courtin’ Time is a playful little ditty. Once again showing he can do any style of music, the song sticks out a little too much to the rest of the groove on this disc, and unfortunately feels a bit throwaway to me, perhaps why it’s the shortest track on the collection.

What can one say about Betcha By Golly Wow! when the man himself calls it “maybe the prettiest melody ever written” who am I to argue. And pretty is the word that sums it up best. There is a joy and innocence in this song that in lesser hands could have easily drifted into schmaltzy but here it all sounds cool. So serene.

Countering the prettiness of BBGW, We Gets Up brings the funk. The most up-tempo track on the first disc it’s the party in full swing tune of the set. Funny thing is, I listen to this and think that it might have been more a The Time song than a track.

My favourite song on disc 1, White Mansion is all dreams (realised). With its groove along vibe, effects and spiralling synth lines this was a song that was a focus point for me as I was starting to think about my future, leaving childhood behind and starting to build a career. And now several years later it still has the same appeal it held then. I would have loved to see how this one played live. And I loved the self referencing lines that drew attention to what this whole was about “sell my publishing rights? What a laugh. I don’t know Bo but I do know math”.

Damned if Eye Do with its classic rock structure feels a little undercooked and dare I say it simplistic. It’s the kind of song that reminded me of Terence Trent D’arby doing Prince.

When a song as beautifully crafted as Bonnie Raitt's I Can’t Make You Love Me plays you feel the emotion that is poured into it. And knowing a beautiful melody when he hears one doesn’t mess with the arrangement or try to reinvent it, he just pours out his heart and takes it on as his own. One of the most heartfelt songs every written. And one of the most amazing covers he has done.

To go from ICMYLM to Mr Happy was a weird choice. But once the initial shock to the system past I found myself drawn into this almost dark party jam – something about the delivery of “I will take care of you” always came across as menacing to me, and I loved that. Maybe it was the crazed almost twisted circus like synth line. Scrap D’s rap with reference to Eye Hate U and Ice Cube sample this song is on point.

In This Bed I Scream – dedicated to Wendy & Lisa and Susannah, there is a nostalgic feel to this song that is enticing. With lines like “how did we every lose communication?” you could almost feel the olive branch being offered. Here is a man facing up to his decisions of the past, and looking for a fresh start. This song is in the stratosphere of cool. A blend of old and new. Of past and future. This has White Mansion and Somebody’s Somebody tied for the song of disc 1.

DISC II

As I popped in disc 2 I wasn’t sure if this was a continuation, or a new start. The more I listen to the collection I feel the album was broken up into 3 distinct sets. And whilst I admire the brilliance of the collection, I wonder if there was just too much music to listen to. Would things have been different if instead of a 3 disc set, it was a 3 disc collection released one disc at a time every 4 months in year, giving people the chance to absorb the strength of each disc.

As it was, when Sex in the Summer hit I smiled. The vocal intro set the cool factor of the song, and the Bernie Warrol meets ultrasound heart beat inspired blipping bass just grounded it in the funk. I looped this song 3 times once and just lay on the floor feeling the sunshine. Roy Ayres would be proud.

One Kiss at a Time… hmmm listening to it now I feel like I haven’t even heard it before. Maybe it’s because of all the discs, the second one was the one that had the most ups and downs for me. I mean the feel of the song is rippling like water, but I remember not thinking too much of the more ballad like songs on the set. And would often fast forward them. Maybe it’s because I felt that the arrangements were familiar.

I once read in an interview that Spike Lee played Soul Sanctuary for 6 hours continuously. And whilst I’m not sure I could go 6 hours, (my limit would be 5:55) the song does have a certain hypnotic quality to it.

Emale – what an awesome song. With it’s sinister stylings, and playfully told story of online seduction, I loved the delivery of www.(rim shot). This is the song that sold disc 2 for me. It’s twisted. It’s brooding. It’s on it’s on it’s on.

Curios Child reminded me too much in its arrangement of Kiss From a Rose from Seal, and thus it never had a chance to recover.

Thankfully pressing >> delivered the sublime Dreamin’ about U a song that always sounds fresh. Reminding me slightly of the SOTT era, this song is the perfect blend of experimental and familiar, and for the record… a killer make out song.

And then Joint 2 Joint hit, and the make out was on! A flirty little song this one, it’s got that cool a$$ prince vocal delivery that just oozes seduction. When the breakdown hits at the 2 minute mark the song warps its way into a new phase. And with each passing progression we go from tap to a plucking bass that works over your speakers to the climax. And what about those last 50 seconds, lol.

The Holy River I know is a lot of people’s favourite song on this set, but I never really got into it that much. I can appreciate the arrangement, and the message, but I just never got into it. Now though, I hear it and hear new things my ears back then maybe weren’t ready for. The song seems joyous were I use to feel it was drab. And the guitar solo at the end now carries me off to that awesome hit quick crescendo.

A prelude to one night alone, Let’s Have A Baby is pure in the zone, vocal and piano working as one, and has that one take feel I just love.

Saviour straight away has that epic rock opera feel. And each time I just wait for it to take me away, and sure enough it does. I remember making a cd once of the epic tracks and this butted up against 3 chains of gold is just too powerful.

The Plan – a snippet from Kamasutra unfortunately didn’t make me long to hear the rest of it.

Friend Lover Sister Mother/Wife seemed a fitting way to end the second disc, as this one seemed the most in love, the most romantic. This is a purple gospel, joyful, passionate and uplifting. One of the most touching songs on the album.

DISC III

Slipping in disc 3, I was greeted with the thumping bass beat of Slave and the spooky low register intro vocals. And I was hooked, and then double hooked at “soooooul”. What I loved about this song was that the lower tones seemed to wallow in sadness and despair but as the song progressed with each verse the tone lifted and lifted to the middle register then to the higher, as if the weight dragging the tone down was being lifted. And with that enmass drum line counter to the chorus, the power just erupted from the speakers. And I loved how the argument of being a slave to a CONtract (ever notice how contracts restrict) is so eloquently put here. “I just want to play the part of someone truly free”. And the last few seconds that have counter the laughter in the left speaker and the sorrow in the right was well worth wearing headphones for.

Whereas in the past the techno dance attempts hadn’t really paid off and felt more like someone playing catch up than pioneering, Brave New World righted all those wrongs. With its bubbling bass line accentuated by bass stabs, its grounded in a funk fused groove. And the return of the classic synth line is here and long overdue. And with silky smooth “love 4 1another” vocals just icing this pound cake you know you wanted a bite. Still sounds as fresh to me today as it did back then.

Continuing the pumping dance feel with The Human Body I was taken back to Batdance and the mixing pot of sounds and melodies that was. The mix of isolation and celebration collide in such wonderful tones here. A true joy to have pounding in my brain. Especially the elongated final passage.

I was never a real fan of Face Down. But listening to it now it doesn’t seem as harsh and gangsta wannabe as I originally dismissed it to be. In fact the delivery of the track in that half spoken half rapped version reminds me of Beck’s Odelay album and the very Prince inspired stuff on Midnight Vultures. I’m gaining a new appreciation for this track now. Ah the joys of rediscovering,

Countering the in your face attack of Face Down is La La-La (Means I love you). It’s a pretty enough song, and what surprised me was that it highlighted how many covers are on here, something I wasn’t expecting, but something that adds a bit more colour to the various discs.

From the opening synth bass line and horns I loved Style. Befitting the subject matter it was a cruisey funk vibe that didn’t try too hard to be anything else but what it is. I loved the lyrically style manifesto being dished here with the little affirmation and inspirational quotes “style is loving yourself til everyone else does too”, “style don’t get drunk on Saturday night and try to dress up every Sunday morning bright”, “style is not biting style when you can’t find the funk” (puffy are you listening). I remember this was my suit up song when I was getting ready for a night out. It just had a self confidence feel that was contagious. Still makes me puff my chest a bit and say “yeah”.

Why wasn’t Sleep Around a single? I mean seriously how slamming is this song. At right in the pocket for that time and space. The subtle house feel and bounce bounce melody and vocal line. Just listening to it now I got my funk face on and grooving in my chair. This was THE $HIT and it should have been a single.

Da Da Da like Face Down were the skippers for me on this disc. And even now I’m not moved by it. Oh well, can’t please everyone all the time.

Now My Computer was a pleaser and still is. With it’s (a the time) techno savvy feel, and stripped back arrangement it seems to really personify the isolation and coldness that the internet offers an escape from. With obvious Kate Bush influence (the treaded vocals are very Cloudbusting) the alternating despair and hope of the verse and chorus arrangement made it immediately enjoyable. And with the plodding groove that transcends into that funky “better life” hook at then end makes it one of the stand outs of the whole set.

With a Love Thy Will Be Done rhythm backing it, One Of Us (the Joan Osborne hit from only a few years earlier) has a live feel to it that seems to fuel it with greater sense of hope and faith (listen to the low mix “we’re gonna play this song” intro at 0:12). I once did a compile that mixed Love Thy Will Be Done – One of Us – The Cross that I use to listen to and it had such a sense of reassurance to it.

The Love We Make is a song filled with lament and loss in the same mould of Purple Rain, and just soars. It’s a beautiful heartfelt song written for Wendy’s brother who unfortunately died from a drug overdose (put down the needle put down the spoon).

Refreshing the funk groove of The Sacrifice of Victor, Emancipation lets a free man rejoice. I remember I use to pump this song LOUD feeling the freedom wash over me. All of us have shackles we should be free of and here was a man who had broken his, and was finally “free to do what I want”. I had wanted more of a build or crescendo to the track – why did I expect a gospel choir? – but as it stands it a song befitting the freedom he had worked hard for.



So was emancipation the big success it should have been? No
Was it the album we had all hoped it would be? I think for the most part yes.
Was it to ambitious a product for most people to get into? Most definitely.
As I mentioned earlier, and I don’t think I am alone, I felt it was too much music obviously for one session. Which meant that for the most part, you skipped through songs, or listened to one disc or two at a time, which robbed you from the intended experience. I still think it might have been wiser to release the discs individually – one every 4 months – to allow people to fully digest the music and enjoy it. No to mention also allow for a constant build. But I’m not the creator of the music, so ultimately you have to leave that ultimate decision to Prince/. He wanted to make a statement. And with this he showed how when you are given complete artist freedom, some truly wonderful moments can arise.


And if you are reading this line – then thank you – I know it was a mammoth post, but to not give Emancipation the due discussion it deserved would be to rob it of its beauty.

So what do you think?

Swa

Very nicely put SWA and well thought out. Of course I don't agree with all of it, but definately well thought out. To me Emacipation...all of it was astounding. It was a burst of energy and his freedom from that label allowed him to do what he'd wanted to do for some time. It was what he needed to do. It's an acurate representation of his emancipation.

I think Prince sounds happy and confident on this album. Married, dog, kid.

It's just a lot to digest and some tracks are better than others, but I think it's a lot better than some of his other efforts around the same time.

Would have been neat if maybe he'd segued the songs into medleys, a lot of the songs are pretty lengthy. Maybe trimmed it to two discs...

I think the Org has talked about Emancipation, um, a few times before.

I will also add that I find "My Computer" hilarious.

I imagine Prince sitting at a computer, and for some reason, that is funny.

"Bombs and thangs"

PurpleDiamond2009 said:

i've been listening to this album more alot lately since i never really gave his late 80s-90s work too much attention and so far i have to say that this is a really great album a masterpiece i don't understand why this album is disliked by so many fans it's a very R&Bish album and with me being a huge fan of R&B music this is like the best I have heard so far my favorite song is Joint 2 Joint(LOL @ the Captian Crunch eating ) ok I'm probably in the minority here but anyone agree? anyone?

No, I actually think that many on the org think that it would be a masterpiece with some edits... I just started listening to P after 15 years of not, and I have listened to this set many times and there are many songs I love on it like "Soul Sanctuary" and "Somebody's Somebody" which make it a classic. Some songs I could do without. But there are so many good songs on it, I love it. But nobody can top Bonnie Raitt's "I Can't Make You Love Me." Not even Prince. But I love the aforementioned songs as well as "Holy River."

Jam Of The Year (Emancipation Album Edit)

1. Jam Of The Year

2. Right Back Here In My Arms

3. Somebody's Somebody

4. Betcha By Golly Wow!

5. White Mansion

6. Mr. Happy

7. Eye Can't Make U Love Me

8. Sex In The Summer

9. One Kiss At A Time

10. My Computer

11. One Of Us

12. The Love We Make

This is my edit of Emancipation, however this edit is titled Jam of the Year

romeo77090 said:

Jam Of The Year (Emancipation Album Edit)

1. Jam Of The Year

2. Right Back Here In My Arms

3. Somebody's Somebody

4. Betcha By Golly Wow!

5. White Mansion

6. Mr. Happy

7. Eye Can't Make U Love Me

8. Sex In The Summer

9. One Kiss At A Time

10. My Computer

11. One Of Us

12. The Love We Make

This is my edit of Emancipation, however this edit is titled Jam of the Year

you forgot Emale, Joint 2 Joint, Soul Sanctuary, Curious Child

prodigalfan said:

romeo77090 said:

Jam Of The Year (Emancipation Album Edit)

1. Jam Of The Year

2. Right Back Here In My Arms

3. Somebody's Somebody

4. Betcha By Golly Wow!

5. White Mansion

6. Mr. Happy

7. Eye Can't Make U Love Me

8. Sex In The Summer

9. One Kiss At A Time

10. My Computer

11. One Of Us

12. The Love We Make

This is my edit of Emancipation, however this edit is titled Jam of the Year

you forgot Emale, Joint 2 Joint, Soul Sanctuary, Curious Child

Those would be slammin b sides and classis slammin outtakes for the die hard fans

rialb said:

Genesia said:

Uhhhh...Emancipation marked his first independent release after WB (hence the title). Why would they support it?

I'm guessing that the label that millwall was referring to was EMI not Warner Brothers.

thanx dude thats exactly what i ment. they invested so much money in prince.

with the right promotion this album would hve took the world by storm. A must listen 4 any 1.

The day b4 the album was released i lost my mum 2 cancer. This album & all its emotion help me heal. Something only prince can do.

millwall said:

rialb said:

I'm guessing that the label that millwall was referring to was EMI not Warner Brothers.

thanx dude thats exactly what i ment. they invested so much money in prince.

with the right promotion this album would hve took the world by storm. A must listen 4 any 1.

The day b4 the album was released i lost my mum 2 cancer. This album & all its emotion help me heal. Something only prince can do.

There was a fair blitz with the album from a marketing point of view - Prince on Oprah, heavey rotation with Betcha By Golly Wow, interviews with Q magazine and on and on.

The problem from a marketing point of view was there was just too much music.

I think if the album had been released as individual discs - each 4 months apart from each other then Prince could have owned the year.

Disc 1 released with 2 singles off each disk then

Disc 2 released - another 2 singles then

Disc 3 to close out the year with 2 more singles.

Each disc would have had 4 months to generate interest and anticipation for what was to come next.

Swa

rialb said:

JoeTyler said:

I agree, your entire post is true; 1996 was the first bad year of the worst Prince era of all time (96-99), man oh man, he pretty lost it here... an awful era full of uncontrollable ego, personal problems, isolation, uninspired songs and misguided productions...

It's kind of funny for me to think of 1996-1999 as being the same era. I think that Emancipation is one of his best albums and that Newpower Soul and Rave Un2 The Joy Fantastic are two of his worst. For me Emancipation is the end of his second golden era (1993-1996), Crystal Ball/The Truth is a bit of a transitional era and 1998-2003 is his nadir.

Almost totally agree with you here. I love one half to two thirds of the songs on Emancipation, but as with the previous posts by Ernest and I, think the production values drag the album down.

But I am completely with you on NPS and Rave. I don't see how they fit in. I get that the production value somewhat ties them together, but the songs on NPS and Rave are REALLY lacking for me, (especially NPS).

Oh and SWA, great post. Track by track analysis posts are always fun to read. Of course I don't agree with all your thoughts on every song, but if you have My Computer as one of your favorites, you're alright in my book!!!!

i never get the impression that emancipation exists as it is because it was rushed. i think the 1st disc is too "happy" and lightweight, and therein lies the problem. i however do not see it as a problem at all. it represents quite accurately prince's state of mind at that time. it's one of his most personal albums, though not in the dark sense that come was. on the contrary it's very bright, almost summery. it's only when it's put in context with what's going on at that time (and with the benefit of hindsight) that it becomes a rather bleak album, and very personal in a different sense. nevertheless i still believe that when the dust settles it's one of the albums most worthy of reevaluation.

romeo77090 said:

Jam Of The Year (Emancipation Album Edit)

1. Jam Of The Year

2. Right Back Here In My Arms

3. Somebody's Somebody

4. Betcha By Golly Wow!

5. White Mansion

6. Mr. Happy

7. Eye Can't Make U Love Me

8. Sex In The Summer

9. One Kiss At A Time

10. My Computer

11. One Of Us

12. The Love We Make

This is my edit of Emancipation, however this edit is titled Jam of the Year

Take out Mr Happy, replace it with the Holy River and then we can dig it.

I agree with most of you too, the organisation and layout was rushed ass, and a haphazard mess that did the package no favours, rehiring the quality control department may have helped.

Fenwick said:

Oh and SWA, great post. Track by track analysis posts are always fun to read. Of course I don't agree with all your thoughts on every song, but if you have My Computer as one of your favorites, you're alright in my book!!!!

Cheers. My reviews are never meant to be definitive, just one listener's point of view. And actually having others disagree and enlighten me on what they hear in a song I may not dig is all part of the experience.

Cheers

Swa

Swa said:

millwall said:

thanx dude thats exactly what i ment. they invested so much money in prince.

with the right promotion this album would hve took the world by storm. A must listen 4 any 1.

The day b4 the album was released i lost my mum 2 cancer. This album & all its emotion help me heal. Something only prince can do.

There was a fair blitz with the album from a marketing point of view - Prince on Oprah, heavey rotation with Betcha By Golly Wow, interviews with Q magazine and on and on.

The problem from a marketing point of view was there was just too much music.

I think if the album had been released as individual discs - each 4 months apart from each other then Prince could have owned the year.

Disc 1 released with 2 singles off each disk then

Disc 2 released - another 2 singles then

Disc 3 to close out the year with 2 more singles.

Each disc would have had 4 months to generate interest and anticipation for what was to come next.

Swa

good idea bro i think your right

"Slave" is interesting in that the music is, I believe, completely made up of percussion sounds. I'm not sure if Prince has had another song like that before or since.

Somebodys Somebody. Best Song Ever. Period.

PurpleDiamond2009 said:

Somebodys Somebody. Best Song Ever. Period.

It's that jam for you when it's raining outside and when you get melancholy for some reason. Well, at least, that's the way it works for me. I dig the "whining/grumbling" style of vocal. It's like him saying "I'm feeling lonely as hell now and I hate it ", musically. When I feel lonely, many times, the feeling takes over me when I'm not busy just chillin and stuff. The song catches the sentiment

PurpleDiamond2009 said:

Somebodys Somebody. Best Song Ever. Period.

Do you prefer the album version or the LiveStudio remix? I think the LiveStudio version just takes it to a whole other level.