I think [mostly] we all agree that SOTT is a classic, but what was the weakest song on the album & what outtake [of that era] should have made the album instead [this is a toughy, but hey, why not ask lol]????

Slow Love is gonna win (lose?)

I always thought I Could Never Take The Place and Slow Love could have been left the cutting room floor. Could never .... was kinda just bland pop music and Slow Love is right next to 'Arms Of O" as Ps lamest slow jams

Dream factory version of Strange Relationship

I personally always thought that "It" was weakest song on the album [and that's saying something]. I like "It", but I love the rest of the songs on that album...

As much as I like "It", if I had 2 choose then I'd choose "It" as the weakest song on the album.It's the song that I skip the most honestly. I'd remove that song and put his 1987 take of "Wouldn't U Love 2 Love Me" and "Good Love" in its place instead.

No weak tracks on Sign O The Times, but it should have been longer.

1. Rebirth Of The Flesh

2. Sign "O" The Times

3. Play In The Sunshine

4. Housequake

5. The Ballad Of Dorothy Parker

6. Feel U Up

7. Sexual Suicide

8. It

9. Hot Thing

10. Starfish And Coffee

11. Dream Factory

12. Crystal Ball (Dream Factory Version)

13. La, La, La, He, He, Hee (Extended)

14. Slow Love

15. Train

16. Forever In My Life

17. Movie Star

18. Good Love

19. U Got The Look (Extended)

20. Shockedelica (Extended)

21. If I Was Your Girlfriend

22. Strange Relationship (Dream Factory version)

23. Last Heart

24. Joy In Repetition (w/ drum beat intro)

25. I Could Never Take The Place Of Your Man

26. The Cross

27. It's Gonna Be A Beautiful Night

28. Adore

29. All My Dreams

and the b-sides:

The Sex Of It

Witness 4 The Prosecution (Rock version)

We Can Funk (1986 version)

802 said:

No weak tracks on Sign O The Times, but it should have been longer.

1. Rebirth Of The Flesh

2. Sign "O" The Times

3. Play In The Sunshine

4. Housequake

5. The Ballad Of Dorothy Parker

6. Feel U Up

7. Sexual Suicide

8. It

9. Hot Thing

10. Starfish And Coffee

11. Dream Factory

12. Crystal Ball (Dream Factory Version)

13. La, La, La, He, He, Hee (Extended)

14. Slow Love

15. Train

16. Forever In My Life

17. Movie Star

18. Good Love

19. U Got The Look (Extended)

20. Shockedelica (Extended)

21. If I Was Your Girlfriend

22. Strange Relationship (Dream Factory version)

23. Last Heart

24. Joy In Repetition (w/ drum beat intro)

25. I Could Never Take The Place Of Your Man

26. The Cross

27. It's Gonna Be A Beautiful Night

28. Adore

29. All My Dreams

and the b-sides:

The Sex Of It

Witness 4 The Prosecution (Rock version)

We Can Funk (1986 version)

You just turned SOTT into a 3 disc set [maybe even 4 or 5 for vinyl]! LOL It's hard to argue with a lot of the tracks/versions you mention....

NouveauDance said:

Slow Love is gonna win (lose?)

I think "Slow Love" is DOPE!

"It" is by far the weakest track on there, and it should have been replaced by "All Day, All Night."

That would have made for a truly amazing Side Two.

"It's Gonna Be A Beautiful Night"

Many songs from the Dream Factory project would've worked well in its place.

[Edited 4/13/11 15:34pm]

"U Got The Look" replace with either "Joy In Repetition" or "Crystal Ball".

"It" gets my vote.

SOTT is such a situation.

I never really see this album as having outtakes.

Because it came from 3-4 other albums from 'a different' era

I even wonder how many songs from the Black album were from the Dream Factory era ie Rock Hard in a Funky Place

Koo Koo (Sheila E) is 1 song that sound like a SOTT era song

I think my vote goes to It but then Slow Love wasn't written by Prince & the Revolution so I'm sorta leaning that way.

Rock Hard in a Funky Place, Joy in Repetition maybe as a replacements

It's Gonna Be A Long Somewhat Boring Night...

Why? Because you could have traded it for Crystal Ball due to length.

Or you could have traded it for three entire songs...and my choices would be these 3: Witness 4 The Prosecution, Old Friends 4 Sale(Original), and Rock Hard In A Funky Place.

Why? Witness and Rock Hard would give the cd a little bit more rock that it was missing, and the original Old Friends to me is one of his best songs ever. Not only did it get a famous play in the 1985 Rolling Stone Interview, it was one of the few songs mentioned in those articles to really be worth the hype (Schoolyard? Nope.)

I probably spent over 1,000 hours in college writing out different album configurations, and then writing set lists of what would be the perfect SOTT concert.

As much as I love what Prince actually did, adding those 3 songs, and getting rid of Night would have been so great to have 3 fully classic songs on there to go with the other gems. I have cut back on the set lists...but just imagine this concert:

SOTT

Play In The Sunshine

Little Red Corvette(short version)

Housequake

Strange Relationship

6

Witness 4 The Prosecution

Rock Hard In A Funky Place

U Got The Look

Let's Go Crazy

When Doves Cry

Kiss

Condition of The Heart

Old Friends 4 Sale

Starfish And Coffee

Forever In My Life

Purple Rain

girls & boys

Little Red Corvette(full version)

If I Was Your Girlfriend

Pop Life

Adore

The Cross

Yeah, I know...some in here would rather have him just sing over a taped medley at the Piano, or hear him play cover songs with some female background singer singing. Not me. I can still dream of what I wish Prince would do. That's my opinion...and damb proud of it.

Slow love, a billion times.

i knew "it" was rather disliked, but eye didn't realise "slow love" had so many detractors

For some reason I was never that crazy about "Forever in My Life". I'd choose that as the weakest track. I'd pick "Joy in Repetition" to replace it. If that song, along with "Crystal Ball" was on Sign 'O the Times, I'm not sure if there's another album out there by anybody that would even be in the same ball park!

herrherr said:

"It's Gonna Be A Beautiful Night"

i very like Slow Love (especially from SOTT Movie), why don't you like it?

it is the weakest track. I'd replace it with any of the following:

Crucial

Last Heart

Joy In Repitition

"It" is the weakest, but I'm more fed up by "U got the look" these days and tend to skip it more than "It"

Although I like "It", I would have replaced it with "Shockedelica".

I know I'll be most probably alone on this, but I'd wish The Cross wasn't left out EVEN if it wasn't replaced by another track. I absolutely loathe The Cross. The music is lame -to put it mildly- and you better not get me started about the lyrics.

On the other hand, I think Slow Love (lyrics aside, like 99,998% of Prince's production) is one of the best ballads he ever composed.

I could also live without Play In The Sunshine' or 'U Got The Look'.

Whilst I love It's Gonna Be A Beautiful Night (especially the horn arrangements), I'd rather leave that for a maxisingle b-side if I could have 2 or even 3 songs in its place.

I couldn't say which songs I'd rather have on the album replacing those. Most of his production at the time was sublime. Probably ANY THING from the Camille project not eventually included on SOTT.

Anyway, in spite of a turd like The Cross, SOTT is for me the best album of the 80s and one of the best albums a human mind ever created.

I would remove "It's Gonna Be A Beautiful Night".It's a live recording which feels out of place and it's not really an outstanding song anyway.This could have been left off the album.It takes up alot of time.

The song that should have taken its place? "Wonderful Ass" or "Rebirth Of The Flesh".

xpertluva said:

For some reason I was never that crazy about "Forever in My Life". I'd choose that as the weakest track. I'd pick "Joy in Repetition" to replace it. If that song, along with "Crystal Ball" was on Sign 'O the Times, I'm not sure if there's another album out there by anybody that would even be in the same ball park!

I would also ditch "Forever In My Life," but I'd replace it with "Rebirth of the Flesh."

SOTT... contains 16 brilliant songs, but like said before Slow Love may be the 'weakest'.....

"Slow Love" helped get me laid a few times...it's a must.

"It" is the one to go.