20Ten

After the Lotus Flow3r release I was surprised that Prince was putting out a new CD so soon, without really mining all the possible hits in LF/MS. But like everyone else I was keen to hear what 20Ten would sound like and as soon as I got my copy cued it up and sat back open to where Prince was headed next. Thankfully the new tracks seemed to pick up where MPLSound stopped.

Compassion - Bursting with all the intensity of his classic funkabilly songs (Jack U Off comes to mind) Prince hits hard with this opener. He infects your body and has your toe tapping in no time. With trademark sounds and arrangements of Controversy / 1999 era if this was indicative of how the rest of the album would flow then we are in for a good ride.

Beginning Endlessly - Here is Prince in funky quirk mode playing with beats and syncopation in a way that hooks you in from the first bar and won't let go til he is done with you. It's hard not to hark back to previous songs that made me feel this way - like Elephants and Flowers - which isn't meant to suggest repeating but rather a return to form. For me this is would have been a stronger opener.

What hits me again is how Prince can have very sparse arrangements yet still allow for a lush melody to wind its way through the track. With a less is more approach he proves that over production isn't necessary when you have funk foundations such as these. The guitar groove that hits at the 3.45 mark is like a welcomed friend who takes your hand and says come check out what's over this bridge - lush layers of backing vocals that surround you in warmth.

Future Soul Song - Prince has always had a fascination with the future in a few of his song titles, and here he carves out the Future Soul Song but does so in a way that rather than challenges the future it melds all the greatest elements of his past ballads and stirs them up in a fresh new offering.

One thing that jumps out is the double layering of his vocals, something that always adds an extra depth and seduction to the slow jams. Thankfully Prince stays this side of overblown and delivers a formidable ballad.

Sticky Like Glue - From that opening scream and that Linn drum pattern I was hooked, or should I say stuck. Filled with countering bass and guitar lines, the song shutters and shuffles to a seductive rhythm and then spins you round and round with a dizzy chorus. The only unnecessary part of the song to me is that rap - Prince has rarely pulled off a rap and its better if he just leaves it alone. Thankfully he redeems the track with a breakdown that has you bobbing your head and wanting to move.

Act of God - Prince on a politico-funk shuffle. Initially I wasn’t feel this, but with each new listen I discovered more the magic contained in it. I has a smooth swagger to it that promises to turn into more of a strut once it hits the live stage.

From the opening beat and syth/guitar hook Lavaux grabbed me in a way that Act of God couldn't. And as pointed out by many it does have a hint of "Shake Your Body" in it (a track Prince has been playing a lot lately) but that just makes it even more enticing. This was a song clearly marked to get a high rotation on a Saturday night.

Walk in Sand - Ok so at track 7 I start to want to reach for that >> button. Whereas Future Soul Song was all that is right about a Prince ballad, this is the lesser twin that encompasses all the elements that are wrong. It just feels too cliche and the kind of song Prince can write while napping, and maybe that's why it makes me yawn. Next.

Sea of Everything - As if to counter my feelings about Walk in Sand Prince tries to get me in with another ballad built around a scandalous beat but sadly it doesn't draw me in the way he used to. It just feels like he’s not offering anything new here. At least it is more pleasing to my ear than Walk In Sand, but it wouldn't be the first slo-jam I would reach for from Prince. But must give special mention to the layering of the backing vocals - always a treat.

Returning to the funk/rock vibe of the opener Everybody Loves Me has a driving beat that propels you along but sadly as soon as the lyrics and sing-song melody hit it just makes me feel like all the craft of his songwriting took the day off. With a Dirty Mind era arrangement it grabs me musically but at the same time loses me with the chorus that becomes increasingly more annoying with each passing.

Laydown - The opening sound bending stew of funk had me. Here is Prince having fun mixing his musical elements and putting on the experimental cap again. It has a nod to what is going on musically present but he still does it in his way, and at the 1.47 mark he dips us in the purple funk we all love. In my opinion he saved the best for last and if I have to get through some stock standard songs to get here I'm cool with that as the pay off is worth it.

In all this is a solid Prince album and thankfully he has edited himself and given us an album that lets us dip in and out of without being too overblown or overlong. I am sure he had the capacity to bust out another multidisc set, but this time it feels a less is more strategy is on point.

[So that’s it – the end of the Prince musical journey thus far. For those that came along for the ride, I hope you enjoyed it and thanks for sticking with it. For the haters, be thankful it’s over – til the next release ]

Awesome! My absolute favourite album circa 2000-2010. I still listen to it almost everyday, from start to finish. I can't get enough of this.

A masterpiece!

KCOOLMUZIQ said:

A masterpiece!

You tend to use that word verrrry very loosely.....

Swa said:

20Ten

After the Lotus Flow3r release I was surprised that Prince was putting out a new CD so soon, without really mining all the possible hits in LF/MS. But like everyone else I was keen to hear what 20Ten would sound like and as soon as I got my copy cued it up and sat back open to where Prince was headed next. Thankfully the new tracks seemed to pick up where MPLSound stopped.

Compassion - Bursting with all the intensity of his classic funkabilly songs (Jack U Off comes to mind) Prince hits hard with this opener. He infects your body and has your toe tapping in no time. With trademark sounds and arrangements of Controversy / 1999 era if this was indicative of how the rest of the album would flow then we are in for a good ride.

Beginning Endlessly - Here is Prince in funky quirk mode playing with beats and syncopation in a way that hooks you in from the first bar and won't let go til he is done with you. It's hard not to hark back to previous songs that made me feel this way - like Elephants and Flowers - which isn't meant to suggest repeating but rather a return to form. For me this is would have been a stronger opener.

What hits me again is how Prince can have very sparse arrangements yet still allow for a lush melody to wind its way through the track. With a less is more approach he proves that over production isn't necessary when you have funk foundations such as these. The guitar groove that hits at the 3.45 mark is like a welcomed friend who takes your hand and says come check out what's over this bridge - lush layers of backing vocals that surround you in warmth.

Future Soul Song - Prince has always had a fascination with the future in a few of his song titles, and here he carves out the Future Soul Song but does so in a way that rather than challenges the future it melds all the greatest elements of his past ballads and stirs them up in a fresh new offering.

One thing that jumps out is the double layering of his vocals, something that always adds an extra depth and seduction to the slow jams. Thankfully Prince stays this side of overblown and delivers a formidable ballad.

Sticky Like Glue - From that opening scream and that Linn drum pattern I was hooked, or should I say stuck. Filled with countering bass and guitar lines, the song shutters and shuffles to a seductive rhythm and then spins you round and round with a dizzy chorus. The only unnecessary part of the song to me is that rap - Prince has rarely pulled off a rap and its better if he just leaves it alone. Thankfully he redeems the track with a breakdown that has you bobbing your head and wanting to move.

Act of God - Prince on a politico-funk shuffle. Initially I wasn’t feel this, but with each new listen I discovered more the magic contained in it. I has a smooth swagger to it that promises to turn into more of a strut once it hits the live stage.

From the opening beat and syth/guitar hook Lavaux grabbed me in a way that Act of God couldn't. And as pointed out by many it does have a hint of "Shake Your Body" in it (a track Prince has been playing a lot lately) but that just makes it even more enticing. This was a song clearly marked to get a high rotation on a Saturday night.

Walk in Sand - Ok so at track 7 I start to want to reach for that >> button. Whereas Future Soul Song was all that is right about a Prince ballad, this is the lesser twin that encompasses all the elements that are wrong. It just feels too cliche and the kind of song Prince can write while napping, and maybe that's why it makes me yawn. Next.

Sea of Everything - As if to counter my feelings about Walk in Sand Prince tries to get me in with another ballad built around a scandalous beat but sadly it doesn't draw me in the way he used to. It just feels like he’s not offering anything new here. At least it is more pleasing to my ear than Walk In Sand, but it wouldn't be the first slo-jam I would reach for from Prince. But must give special mention to the layering of the backing vocals - always a treat.

Returning to the funk/rock vibe of the opener Everybody Loves Me has a driving beat that propels you along but sadly as soon as the lyrics and sing-song melody hit it just makes me feel like all the craft of his songwriting took the day off. With a Dirty Mind era arrangement it grabs me musically but at the same time loses me with the chorus that becomes increasingly more annoying with each passing.

Laydown - The opening sound bending stew of funk had me. Here is Prince having fun mixing his musical elements and putting on the experimental cap again. It has a nod to what is going on musically present but he still does it in his way, and at the 1.47 mark he dips us in the purple funk we all love. In my opinion he saved the best for last and if I have to get through some stock standard songs to get here I'm cool with that as the pay off is worth it.

In all this is a solid Prince album and thankfully he has edited himself and given us an album that lets us dip in and out of without being too overblown or overlong. I am sure he had the capacity to bust out another multidisc set, but this time it feels a less is more strategy is on point.

[So that’s it – the end of the Prince musical journey thus far. For those that came along for the ride, I hope you enjoyed it and thanks for sticking with it. For the haters, be thankful it’s over – til the next release ]

Prnce is the man with the swag

smoothcriminal12 said:

KCOOLMUZIQ said:

A masterpiece!

You tend to use that word verrrry very loosely.....

Aren't u in the wrong forum???????

2010 is Sticky like Glue

KCOOLMUZIQ said:

smoothcriminal12 said:

You tend to use that word verrrry very loosely.....

Aren't u in the wrong forum???????

No?

A steaming pile of poop.

But this is the last Prince album to date. So, thankfully, we'll be finished with these stupid celebration threads.

In all honesty, have you ever wondered WHY should anyone be interested in what YOU think about Prince's albums? I don't think you have.

vitriol said:

A steaming pile of poop.

But this is the last Prince album to date. So, thankfully, we'll be finished with these stupid celebration threads.

In all honesty, have you ever wondered WHY should anyone be interested in what YOU think about Prince's albums? I don't think you have.

well atleast his threads have something positive about them , and its refreshing to see his generally positive views rather then the negativity we see here regarding Prince by so many posters. I like Swa's threads and i know some other people do too, he/she is good at describing songs and which ones they like and which ones they don't. These celebration threads are about a 100 times better then the whiny "prince will never be the same again, prince has lost it threads".

On first listen I thought it was pathetic...now I think it's nearly as good as Musicology, 3121 and/or LotusFlower, and certainly better than anything he did during the 96-03 years...

gotta love the retro-electro sound, the strong songwriting and the freaky aura of the whole album; one of his funniest and most carefree albums...

and Laydown kills any "jam" of MPLSound...

It's his 2nd most infectious this decade. He started this decade on the good foot & rocked on for rest!!!

Why must people quote the original thread to comment on it?!?!?

Dat redundant sh*t just bugs me, Especially when it's a real long post to begin with.

I see it in almost every thread.

For those that don't know how to reply to a thread without reposting or quoting the original thread, here's how.

Step 1) Look at the bottom of the page in the lower left hand corner.

Step 2) Click on the word, "Reply".

Step 3) Proceed to leave your response to the first post, the original thread.

Thank you and your welcome.

[Edited 10/29/10 16:10pm]

vitriol said:

In all honesty, have you ever wondered WHY should anyone be interested in what YOU think about Prince's albums? I don't think you have.

That is a totally unwelcome and aggressive comment. Why on Earth would you ask a question like this looking at all the positive comments. If you dislike it yourself, you are free to leave it alone.

^I just find these threads irrelevant. Just stating an opinion just like the OP stated his/hers.

vitriol said:

In all honesty, have you ever wondered WHY should anyone be interested in what YOU think about Prince's albums? I don't think you have.

Um...isn't this the whole purpose of what these forums are for?

Sharing and expressing your opinions and ideas about Prince and his art?

You don't have anything nice to say, don't.........please.

After further thought, your post is pretty stupid. If you really want to bash someone you should really back it up with a good reason. Just sayin'.

[Edited 10/29/10 16:19pm]

[Edited 10/29/10 16:20pm]

Great review & thanks for sharing... Don't mind the negative Nancies, they're just pissed off @ life in general.

vitriol said:

^I just find these threads irrelevant. Just stating an opinion just like the OP stated his/hers.

Not irrelevant! Why? Because I want to know how and why someone else views Prince and his albums. Maybe there's something I missed that someone else caught.

Your opinion on the other hand not being backed up by solid or good reason makes me not interested in any other opinions you have on Prince or other members points of view, this also defeats the purpose of being a member of this community.

You don't even have to click on the thread! Move on.

[Edited 10/29/10 16:27pm]

[Edited 10/29/10 16:27pm]

[Edited 10/30/10 1:09am]

[Edited 10/30/10 1:09am]

vitriol said:

A steaming pile of poop.

But this is the last Prince album to date. So, thankfully, we'll be finished with these stupid celebration threads.

In all honesty, have you ever wondered WHY should anyone be interested in what YOU think about Prince's albums? I don't think you have.

Well thanks for your input. Sure it's easy to snipe away from the sidelines without getting involved. Or starting threads that get people listening to the music. After all it was the music that brought us all here in the first place - not his hair, or an open shirt, or who he was dating.

My intent (as stated at the outset) was to reflect on each album in the hope of generating a discussion around the music. Something that a lot of people are interested in. I mean even you got involved. And each day it was just one thread out of many new ones posted.

Why should anyone be interested? Well it seems many were interested and for some it helped them rediscover albums or help them figure out what to buy and what not to. But I'm not so arrogant to think my view is above anyone else's. It was just a starting point in the discussion, and a common place for those that wanted to share their views as well.

Sure it wasn't for everyone - clearly - but the day we stop being able to share our thoughts about the music is the day we should all stop being fans.

I really dig these. Best part of the forum for me actually. You should tackle the Time and Mazarati next

I gotta admit that if I was tortured with "Everybody Loves Me" and spilling the beans would put my mom's life at stake, along with the entire human race. We all would be f*cked.

Not the absolute worst Prince album, but definitely has some of the worst Prince music along with some ok tracks. A jarringly mixed bag.

[Edited 10/29/10 19:34pm]

vitriol said:

A steaming pile of poop.

But this is the last Prince album to date. So, thankfully, we'll be finished with these stupid celebration threads.

In all honesty, have you ever wondered WHY should anyone be interested in what YOU think about Prince's albums? I don't think you have.

Didn't you already kick up a big stink about this stuff before a few weeks back or whatever? Chill. You don't need to click the link.

swa, dont let any haters stop you from making your threds. I, for one, find your topics very informative and interesting. I know other people on here like your threads too.

vitriol said:

^I just find these threads irrelevant. Just stating an opinion just like the OP stated his/hers.

Okay, I can respect it though I can't claim to understand the purpose. Don't you feel any responsibility for the atmosphere, You create with your tone and your condescension.

Well, I guess I just find your comments irrelevant then.

vitriol said:

A steaming pile of poop.

But this is the last Prince album to date. So, thankfully, we'll be finished with these stupid celebration threads.

In all honesty, have you ever wondered WHY should anyone be interested in what YOU think about Prince's albums? I don't think you have.

Stop hating.

Nice thread efforts Swa. I couldn't find back the thread with all the albums and links together so glad they're popping up individually.

20ten: The cover is nice; I like the artist's hand in sketch, at the shoulder and the idea of music quenching thirst.

Lavaux and Act of God often jump start my day in the car. There's a flippant cheekiness about Act of God that I like and the deep bass in the "freedom ain't free" part. Lavaux has the same effect on me as Mountains. It's uplifting. Sticky like glue is not one I deliberately put on first, but it has a calming groove once it plays. I like the vocals.

Laydown is good for when I'm mad. Then I go and laydown some cash on something and I feel better. I did it this week and in the clothes store they played the song "Musicology" great song for clothes shopping.

Beginning endlessly, I like the lyrics more than the music. A heavier track, it needs to fit a mood for me. The ballads are all nice. I can't choose which one I like most.

The only song I don't listen to is Everybody loves me. Nice intro and key change at 1.31, the piano part and some rhythm. But is it a mixture of a pop, happy birthday, cheerleading song or is Prince just being ultra cheeky? I can't get past the "everybody loves me" lyrics. I like the "king of hate or queen of misery" line, but I will not sing "everybody loves me." I refuse.

"No sanctity to the left of you no righteousness to the right

The only thing that's left in fashion.....Compassion...." nice one, a happy number and nice lyrics. "Whatever skin you're in, we all need to be friends..." It's hard to put "good message lyrics" into something funky, but Prince manages. As this one reminds me of cause and effect, I wouldn't have minded the powerful rhythm drum part of cause and effect. It's a good cd opener though.

I was happy with 20ten. Now I also want the deluxe edition for the extended Lavaux and whatever other surprises are on there.

"20Ten" is a return to the elements that made him big in the 80's: Linndrum, funky rhythm guitar, lots of synth and funky slapbass.

To me it is probably his best album since 2001's "The Rainbow Children". The only thing missing on "20Ten" is the "weirdness" that seems to characterise his best works. I like the album because it sounds like proper Prince music, but it could have done with a bit more adventure (more tracks like Crystal Ball, In All My Dreams, Dorothy Parker etc). Also it could have done with a few less ballads.

Nevertheless I was (and still am) very pleased with the album, I hope to see more work in the same vein being released in the coming years!