I gotta say, I think this is the quickest I've ever got over a Prince new release. I think even Musicology and Rave tugged at my strings a little longer than 20Ten has.

What's next for lil' Prince, I'm ready for a new album!

NouveauDance said:

I gotta say, I think this is the quickest I've ever got over a Prince new release. I think even Musicology and Rave tugged at my strings a little longer than 20Ten has.

What's next for lil' Prince, I'm ready for a new album!

NouveauDance said:

I gotta say, I think this is the quickest I've ever got over a Prince new release. I think even Musicology and Rave tugged at my strings a little longer than 20Ten has.

What's next for lil' Prince, I'm ready for a new album!

That's what I'm sayin'. I listened to Lovesexy last night, and tonight I think I'll give Come another listen. Compare that kind of longevity to 20Ten, where in as many years' time I'll probably have to look it up on Wikipedia to even remember it's a Prince album.

Second HALF? Those are just tracks 7 and 8. Then again, there are only 9 real tracks. Bad idea to put two ballads back to back after a killer first 6 tracks. That's the only flaw in the album, IMHO.

Wall said:

I sat down with it this evening and gave it a listen while doing nothing else. Here's my track by track review:

The first song -- A c-rate remake of Can't Stop This Feeling I Got, which was already a d-rate song. Trite lyrics and chugs on for 4 minutes too long. Not even b-side material.

Second song -- Could have been on Rave, when he first started talking about a return to form, or whatever lingo he used when he finally realized, fuck it, I may as well just break out the Linn.

Future Love Song -- Standard Prince ballad. It's not terrible, but he's released this song like 9 times already. Wasn't Future Baby Mama on the last album? Maybe it's a theme.

Sticky Like Glue -- What a simile. Would have been an average b-side.

Act of God -- Another generic chugger that sounds as if it was written to play on Jay Leno, after which, it would never be spoken of again.

Lavaux -- He's ready to submit a track for Footloose II. As I said elsewhere, sounds like it might get interesting at 2:55, but that's only because it's anything but until that point.

Two lethargic tunes in a row, a theme song for a kid's show and an embarrassing 3 minutes where a 53 year old Jehovah's Witness tries miming the delivery of a Jag-bomb ridin', Ed Hardy wearing mofuckainshades.

Someone said For You sounded a more mature record, and while I've not played that album in years, I think they're right. D+

A predictable and irrelevant review. You don't even believe what you're writing.

PurpleKnight said:

NouveauDance said:

I gotta say, I think this is the quickest I've ever got over a Prince new release. I think even Musicology and Rave tugged at my strings a little longer than 20Ten has.

What's next for lil' Prince, I'm ready for a new album!

That's what I'm sayin'. I listened to Lovesexy last night, and tonight I think I'll give Come another listen. Compare that kind of longevity to 20Ten, where in as many years' time I'll probably have to look it up on Wikipedia to even remember it's a Prince album.

Lovesexy is pretty weak. That opening track, and most of the album, has hideous production. I guarantee you that if you play both 20ten and Lovesexy to someone that is not a fan, they would prefer 20ten easily. Lovesexy is one of those albums that helped destroy Prince's commercial career.

NouveauDance said:

I gotta say, I think this is the quickest I've ever got over a Prince new release. I think even Musicology and Rave tugged at my strings a little longer than 20Ten has.

What's next for lil' Prince, I'm ready for a new album!

It's funny because it's true.

There's so much warmed over nostalgia, decades old musical references to such a high degree, that it doesn't even feel like new music has been released.

NeoGeo24bit said:

PurpleKnight said:

That's what I'm sayin'. I listened to Lovesexy last night, and tonight I think I'll give Come another listen. Compare that kind of longevity to 20Ten, where in as many years' time I'll probably have to look it up on Wikipedia to even remember it's a Prince album.

Lovesexy is pretty weak. That opening track, and most of the album, has hideous production. I guarantee you that if you play both 20ten and Lovesexy to someone that is not a fan, they would prefer 20ten easily. Lovesexy is one of those albums that helped destroy Prince's commercial career.

:wtf: <--- create an emoticon for the above reason please!!!

Comparing an album that is 20 years old to a current one in terms of production is quite ambitious indeed.

At the time Lovesexy proabably sounded cutting edge, but just like all things, it inevitably gets dated, doesn't necessarily mean its a bad thing, like the man says, it's Sign Of The Times.

I think Lovesexy was sadly overshadowed by the fact that the Black album had recently been mooted and "When 2 R In Love" to that point was it's legacy.

Heck he even played Bob George live and told us not to buy the Black album in "Alphabet St." (for those new to the board).

20Ten IMHO, is NOT cutting edge at all. it just seems to be a regurgitation production-wise at least of what we have come to know from the mans distinctive sound i.e Linn Drums, his flute and string arrangements probably from the archives of his collabs with Clare Fischer and these are just abstract points.

The Rainbow Children, even Musicology was more cutting edge production wise than this I feel (Please exclude "A Million Days" which sounds like it would be right at home on The Gold Experience)

'dre

DreZone said:

NeoGeo24bit said:

Lovesexy is pretty weak. That opening track, and most of the album, has hideous production. I guarantee you that if you play both 20ten and Lovesexy to someone that is not a fan, they would prefer 20ten easily. Lovesexy is one of those albums that helped destroy Prince's commercial career.

:wtf: <--- create an emoticon for the above reason please!!!

Comparing an album that is 20 years old to a current one in terms of production is quite ambitious indeed.

At the time Lovesexy proabably sounded cutting edge, but just like all things, it inevitably gets dated, doesn't necessarily mean its a bad thing, like the man says, it's Sign Of The Times.

I think Lovesexy was sadly overshadowed by the fact that the Black album had recently been mooted and "When 2 R In Love" to that point was it's legacy.

Heck he even played Bob George live and told us not to buy the Black album in "Alphabet St." (for those new to the board).

20Ten IMHO, is NOT cutting edge at all. it just seems to be a regurgitation production-wise at least of what we have come to know from the mans distinctive sound i.e Linn Drums, his flute and string arrangements probably from the archives of his collabs with Clare Fischer and these are just abstract points.

The Rainbow Children, even Musicology was more cutting edge production wise than this I feel (Please exclude "A Million Days" which sounds like it would be right at home on The Gold Experience)

'dre

I agree aside from the part about Musicology. Speaking of TRC, I will always be one of the first Orgers to express my utter hatred for that album and its misogynistic, dogmatic nonsense, but man oh man does it sound inspired and fresh. It sounds distinctively new. There is no way one could listen to TRC and call it a series of outtakes from a past era. You can do that with 20Ten. I would have no problem believing it if it was revealed that he recorded these songs in 1998, for example.

I know I will get attacked for this...but....

YES...I am a longtime fan (and person who makes my living as a musician)who has stuck by Prince through all of his work. I had my moments where I was disappointed (most of his 90's output...NPG stuff) however generally found one or two brilliant tracks on a CD that would make it worth my while to get behind. I believe his last truly great CD was The Rainbow Children that rivaled his 80's heyday output. Since then he has sort of been on autopilot and giving us watered down versions of what 'the fans' want. Hey, there is nothing wrong with that- just leaves us wanting a new CD in two months because we were as fans still waiting for that slammin' track like 'Kiss' or 'Rasberry Beret' or 'Most Beautiful Girl In The World'...etc. etc...Well we never got it- he came close a few times with tracks off of recent collections, yet never reached the level of songwriting abilities he had in his yesteryears.

....now....he puts out 20ten???? The stuff on this new collection sounds like D-Rate songs that go in your ears and get forgotten as quickly as they go in. With the exception of Future Soul Song he never even hovers around even B-side quality. Really guys, I know we are all die hard fans but comparing this garbage to Sign Of The Times? Not one of these songs would have even been used for a B-side to a single from that album. I know he has written some clunkers before but Walk in the Sand, Sea Of Everything and Everybody Loves Me win the prize. What happened to ending his CD's on an interesting note along the lines of Temptation off of Around The World in A Day'? Man...I pray one day this man will get his Mojo back and shock us all with a truly great CD.

iwish i could listen to it but unfortunatly i don't live over in europe and not going to visit anytime soon . p.s would love if someone could help me with this

torah3121 said:

iwish i could listen to it but unfortunatly i don't live over in europe and not going to visit anytime soon . p.s would love if someone could help me with this

I'm sure many people could help you with this, but due to Prince hating people talking about downloading music illegally, we're not allowed to talk about it on here.

Your best bet would be to find out about such terrible things using the search engine of your choice. Or waiting to for him get his act together and release this in other countries.

erik319 said:

torah3121 said:

iwish i could listen to it but unfortunatly i don't live over in europe and not going to visit anytime soon . p.s would love if someone could help me with this

I'm sure many people could help you with this, but due to Prince hating people talking about downloading music illegally, we're not allowed to talk about it on here.

Your best bet would be to find out about such terrible things using the search engine of your choice. Or waiting to for him get his act together and release this in other countries.

Or you could look here.

www.mirror.co.uk/celebs/prince/order-row/

HonestMan13 said:

erik319 said:

I'm sure many people could help you with this, but due to Prince hating people talking about downloading music illegally, we're not allowed to talk about it on here.

Your best bet would be to find out about such terrible things using the search engine of your choice. Or waiting to for him get his act together and release this in other countries.

Or you could look here.

www.mirror.co.uk/celebs/prince/order-row/

There you go. so many options!

NouveauDance said:

I gotta say, I think this is the quickest I've ever got over a Prince new release. I think even Musicology and Rave tugged at my strings a little longer than 20Ten has.

What's next for lil' Prince, I'm ready for a new album!

I was thinking the same thing...

So when is Granpa gonna go ahead and post this crap on itunes? Assuming the internets dont die tomorrow. I have no interest in the Daily Mirror.

Sadly, the last thing I liked by the one-hip-wonder was probably Gold. Everything - I mean EVERYTHING since then has either sounded lame or the lyrics were so forced I couldn't get past it.

3chainsofgold said:

Man...I pray one day this man will get his Mojo back and shock us all with a truly great CD.

First of all Temptation is horrible. Second, when are people gonna realize that 20Ten / Lotusflower etc...is about as good as it willl ever be with a 50+ year old Prince...

Just enjoy the fact that he's at least since 2004 he's slowing been acknowledging his brilliance from the 80s instead of running away from it.

I'm not sure what you are listening to as there are elements of 20Ten that make me very, very happy.

torah3121 said:

iwish i could listen to it but unfortunatly i don't live over in europe and not going to visit anytime soon . p.s would love if someone could help me with this

I just got the album and I live in NY. All I did was Google 'Prince 20ten' and it gave me sites that offer free downloads of the album...thanks Google. Maybe Prince shouldn't have made a statement about how the internet is dead because now people are using it against him.

I'm sorry, but I refuse to buy an album that others are getting for free (or dirt cheap since it comes in their local paper); especially, after I had to trek to Target (with it's hideously ugly clown red walls, high prices, and obnoxiously chipper sales associates--sorry, but I really hate Target ) and slapped down $10 for 'Lotusflow3r' on the day it came out. I hear he's trying to distribute '20ten' here in the US through WB, which isn't okay with me unless we get the same courtesy that his European fans are getting...a free album or one that's less than $5 (or however much the Mirror costs over there). I haven't listened to it in it's entirety yet, but I am loving 'Future Soul Song' a lot after first listen. Further reviews later.

[Edited 7/15/10 9:33am]

beauhall said:

So when is Granpa gonna go ahead and post this crap on itunes? Assuming the internets dont die tomorrow. I have no interest in the Daily Mirror.

Sadly, the last thing I liked by the one-hip-wonder was probably Gold. Everything - I mean EVERYTHING since then has either sounded lame or the lyrics were so forced I couldn't get past it.

A. Hey Beau! Great to see you again!

B. "One-hip-wonder"?

C. I haven't heard this yet, but going off the reviews, it seems there's no way it can help but exceed expectations.

So I have that going for me, which is nice.

Finally got a chance to listen on a real stereo, and strangely I was less excited about the first half than I had been initially and enjoyed the second half more

After a few listens, now, I am not so sure this album is any better than Musicology or MPLSound, but generally I enjoy it.

Walking in Sand seemed kind of lite, but I have had it stuck in my head since last night. Kind of "got" everybody loves me, thoough I still think a stronger track might have been nice. Beginning Endlessly just wasn't as exciting as I had thought. Laydown is weak, but funky, and made me want to start the album again--I do want to listen to this album over & over, which says something.

I think Sticky like Glue is the standout track for me.

RodeoSchro said:

A. Hey Beau! Great to see you again!

B. "One-hip-wonder"?

C. I haven't heard this yet, but going off the reviews, it seems there's no way it can help but exceed expectations.

So I have that going for me, which is nice.

So I found the entire CD somewhere and was able to listen to it. Now, I'm not going to reveal my sources, but if YOU ever check out the TUBES of the internet, you might be able to hear the songs.

My review?

Suck.

That's what. Suck. I agree with everybody who said it sounds like a collection of quickly whipped out demos. He's using the Linn Drum again? Big whup. He's also using a guitar again. That doesn't make anything better or worse.

And LotusFlower and Planet Erf and what was it before that one? Crap Craptastic? I don't remember... thse could all be put in the same vault with those records. And by "vault" I mean "garbage bin of forgettable crap".

What a let down. I honestly can't imagine what WOULD impress me at this point from Prince. If it sounded just like the stuff I used to love, I'd whine that it's nothing more than a repeat (altho I LOVED 1+1+1=3 for that very reason) and if it's a gigantic departure, I'm never really impressed. The biggest issue for me is the really crappy production - it's SO polished, SO incredibly fine-tuned that there's no room to breathe.

Then again, I'm a jaded old fart myself, so, take what I say with a "kids these days..." grain of salt.

beauhall said:

RodeoSchro said:

A. Hey Beau! Great to see you again!

B. "One-hip-wonder"?

C. I haven't heard this yet, but going off the reviews, it seems there's no way it can help but exceed expectations.

So I have that going for me, which is nice.

So I found the entire CD somewhere and was able to listen to it. Now, I'm not going to reveal my sources, but if YOU ever check out the TUBES of the internet, you might be able to hear the songs.

My review?

Suck.

That's what. Suck. I agree with everybody who said it sounds like a collection of quickly whipped out demos. He's using the Linn Drum again? Big whup. He's also using a guitar again. That doesn't make anything better or worse.

And LotusFlower and Planet Erf and what was it before that one? Crap Craptastic? I don't remember... thse could all be put in the same vault with those records. And by "vault" I mean "garbage bin of forgettable crap".

What a let down. I honestly can't imagine what WOULD impress me at this point from Prince. If it sounded just like the stuff I used to love, I'd whine that it's nothing more than a repeat (altho I LOVED 1+1+1=3 for that very reason) and if it's a gigantic departure, I'm never really impressed. The biggest issue for me is the really crappy production - it's SO polished, SO incredibly fine-tuned that there's no room to breathe.

Then again, I'm a jaded old fart myself, so, take what I say with a "kids these days..." grain of salt.

I don't think it sucks, but it definitely isn't anything amazing but maybe that's because to me it sounds like leftover tracks from Lotusflow3r and MPLSound. I loved MPLSound but only thought Lotusflow3r was okay, but it's better than Planet Earth which to me still sounds like an album of filler tracks...not terrible filler tracks but filler tracks nonetheless. 3121 is still his best all-around pop album in this decade and TRC is his most innovative from this decade (even though I hate that album with a passion it was definitely out of his norm). The Prince of olden days is no more; but he's the only great pop artist we still have from the 80s because Madonna lost me after 'Ray of Light' and MJ is . I think his religion is keeping him from that unpolished gritty sound that I know I miss soo much.

I don't think its terrible, but this is just not my thing. It's "OK", but that's as high as my praise for this collection goes.

I think what I find most lacking with 20ten is passion. It's like he went into his musical kitchen and quickly pulled out some canned beats, pulled out some leftover frozen lyrics, coated it all with artificial sweeteners, threw it in the microwave for 3 minutes and presto!

I dont know if its just old age, or pain medication, or any other medications, but his creative senses are absolutely dulled and whatever passion he can muster seems artificially viagra-like induced. But if he's happy and content that's great, he has contributed more than enough great music in his lifetime than most mere mortals ever will. He can rest on his laurels if he wants to.

The final grade I will give to this project is a C- and only because of all the earned sympathy points he has acquired.

[Edited 7/15/10 12:57pm]

i still like the new album and its getting heavey rotation in my car every time im in it.

sound nice on my B&O car stereo

NouveauDance said:

I gotta say, I think this is the quickest I've ever got over a Prince new release. I think even Musicology and Rave tugged at my strings a little longer than 20Ten has.

What's next for lil' Prince, I'm ready for a new album!

Gotta agree.

I won't bother with a detailed song by song review. My main issue with 20Ten is for an album that clocks in under 40 minutes it contains 2 of the most filler songs *I feel*Prince has ever released on an album (Everybody Loves Me(embarrassing) & Act Of God)

Compassion and Beginning Endlessly have some interesting(almost infectious,even!) musical moments(especially B.E.) but his delivery of the lyrics (too wordy, perhaps?) threaten to ruin the flow.

Future Soul Song has some nice enough passionate moments...

Lavaux and Sticky Like Glue are very nice, funky and engaging.

I haven't listened enough to the back to back slow numbers to give a definitive impression. They seem pleasant enough, but somewhat dull. In fact, "pleasant enough" and "somewhat dull" kind of sum up most of the album for me. Some rougher edges and more impassioned vocal deliveries would have been nice.

Someone in an earlier post had also used the would "claustrophobic" and I thought that was an excellent word to describe the overall feel and mood. Even the backing vocals are lacking a rich, deep sound.

As a huge fan of the musicality of TRC, N.E.W.S, C-NOTE and ONA (piano) I hope 20Ten isn't part of the "creative" period Prince mentioned he was going thru in a recent interview. I just hope we don't have to wait another year for the next one.

thanks2joniandu said:

Even the backing vocals are lacking a rich, deep sound.

As a huge fan of the musicality of TRC, N.E.W.S, C-NOTE and ONA (piano) I hope 20Ten isn't part of the "creative" period Prince mentioned he was going thru in a recent interview. I just hope we don't have to wait another year for the next one.

Whoa....the absense of a gazzilion multi-tracked vocals by Prince are what make this the most listenable release in ages. The best part of this CD is that he's not trying to throw every single thing on every track. Ironically it makes these songs almost demo like like Dirty Mind.

I find the "real music by real musician" pose a bit tiresome and presumptuous.

emesem said:

thanks2joniandu said:

Even the backing vocals are lacking a rich, deep sound.

As a huge fan of the musicality of TRC, N.E.W.S, C-NOTE and ONA (piano) I hope 20Ten isn't part of the "creative" period Prince mentioned he was going thru in a recent interview. I just hope we don't have to wait another year for the next one.

Whoa....the absense of a gazzilion multi-tracked vocals by Prince are what make this the most listenable release in ages. The best part of this CD is that he's not trying to throw every single thing on every track. Ironically it makes these songs almost demo like like Dirty Mind.

I find the "real music by real musician" pose a bit tiresome and presumptuous.

Hi emesem...

I'm really glad you're enjoying the new album. I was going to compare Dirty Mind to 20Ten in terms of length and stripped down feel. The difference is in the delivery. I don't feel the passion or the drive on 20Ten.

Yes, I know he's not 19, but if you're going to deliver an album of 9 songs that are mostly less than 4 minutes long they should be more impressionable than this batch.

I get your point about "real music by real musicians"... I always try to remind myself Prince was first a pop artist.