The opening beat on Life o' the Party.

PeachBeret said:

DorothyParker4 said:

That is beautiful . I was beginning to lose hope in our generation.. In terms of its complete lack of interest in artists/music from back in the day. And then people like you prove me wrong! Prince rocks, and as a singer/songwriter myself, I couldn't hope for better inspiration! What's your fav Prince song

Ahh I have so many favorite Prince songs..like The Beautiful Ones, When 2 R in Love, Paisley Park, Pop Life, Crazy You, Do Me Baby, Etc. Yes it's kinda sad to say that I haven't met one person around my age who likes Prince. When I mention his name they would automatically say "you mean that gay guy who wears heels?" They're missing out on one of the most talented musicians ever... and most of them are hooked on people like Lil Wayne and Rihanna thinking they're some of the greatest ever I wish I was in my teens/20s during the 70s and 80s

I know exactly what u mean. lol I've gotten more than my share of funny looks bein black and lovin hard rock/metal as much as hip-hop r&b and reggae. it seemed that back then bein in a band and singin/playin instruments was cool, whereas 2day you gotta asct like real detached about it. Like and your point is....lol But there is hope when u got great people/bands like Robert Randolph, Mint Condition, like Rapheal Saddiq, Ryan Leslie, Erykah Badu, Ezperanza Spaulding, R Kelly, and Bruno Mars, creatin challenging music that moves and breathes.

I was driving with the radio on back in the Spring of 1983 when I heard this plaintive voice sing "I guess I should have known by the way you parked your car sideways that it wouldn't last." What a great opening line for a song! I was hooked.

diamondpearl1 said:

I go waayyyy back lol. I remember hearing Prince songs on the radio but never really knew much about him. When Purple rain hit you couldn't escape it. Even still, I think I was just becoming a casual fan. I had a friend who really helped me to understand what a genius this guy is. I mean producing/composing/singing/playing all the instruments/ and putting on a killer live show? insane lol. The first Prince album I purchased on my own was "around the world in a day" From that moment on it was a over. Within the year I think I had just about every album and bside up to that point lol. I owe him so much because he really set me on my life's path of being a songwriter/musician.

In 2004. I bought Musicology and absolutely got hooked on it. Went and bought his classics like 1999, LRC, Lady Cab Driver, WYWM etc.. and was instantly hooked on his music.

I then went and spent a shet load on his entire catalogue and became a die hard fan. Bought albums, DVD's, registered to websites- the whole 9.

He is now, without a doubt, my favorite artist of all time and in my opnion, the greatest musician ever.

I knew and liked Prince's music mostly through my sisters but it wasn't until my brother-in-law put on the Controversy album in his basment that I knew I was hooked! That constant bassline was so hypnotic! I was like "what is that?" and he showed me the album cover and I couldn't believe that this was the same person I saw on American Bandstand...LOL! Then "Sexuality came on....damn that was funky! There was nothing about that album I didn't like and I've been in the Rude Boy camp ever since!

[img:$uid]http://vol0.music-bazaar.com/album-images/vol0/47/47834/72095-big.jpg[/img:$uid]

diamondpearl1 said:

Kazzy88 said:

I still like MJ but I lost a lot of respect for him after ''Invincible'', his older music from the 80's is still cool, if a little overplayed on radio and TV.

I'm definitely firmly in the Prince camp though. After listening to his musical diversity, there could only be one winner for me.

I love our hero as much as we all do but yo, I gotta beg 2 differ on Invincible. In the breakdown of You Rock My World when he hits that high note (Got to have you heeeere),and hits that spin in the video, I felt like he still had that magic. Michael 2 me was like a magician. In his shows/music, he always had that sleight of hand way of doin things with his voice and dance, that made you wonder did I just see what I think I did? lol Way b4 This Is It when I saw his picture on the cover of Ebony in December 08' lookin healthy, I truly believed he was gonna shock the world 1 more time b4 it was all over.....

[Edited 2/15/12 10:42am]

For me, there was just too much auto-tune on that album. Since when did MJ need any type of pitch correction? U listen to the Thriller album or Off The Wall and his voice was very impressive. I agree Invincible had its moments but it just seemed like a good Justin Timberlake album. Personally, I would have expected more from MJ.

as a new fan, did you purposely choose dorothypark4 as a username because prince used to medley dorothy parker with the madhouse track 4, such as on the leno show?

it's interesting that there are still new fans these days, especially those who go crazy for him. especially when most young people are being fans of folk who can't sing without a computer, or just can't sing at all even with a computer

the purple rain movie started things for a lot of people, and even today when someone asks where to start, i tell them to watch the movie first, then checkout the albums going back the way from purple rain, 1999, controversy, dirty mind, prince and for you, and then go to the albums after purple rain, so around the world in a day, parade (and checkout he movie under the cherry moon), sign o the times (and checkout the live concert movie), black album, lovesexy, batman, graffiti bridge (and... wait - no!!!), diamonds and pearls, O{+> , goldgnigga, come, gold experience, the undertaker (which is unreleased on cd, but it was released on vhs/laserdisc and i count it as an album), emancipation, the truth (which is part of the crystall ball set), newpowersoul, rave in2 the joy fantastic, the chocolate invasion (internet only release), slaughterhouse(internet only release), xpectations (internet only release - jazz instrumental), NEWS (jazz instrumental), musicology, planet earth, lotusflower/mplsfunk/elixir, 20ten

i missed out the b sides, the vault, crystal ball, cnet, one night alone live and 21 nights as they are either compilations of various era material or live stuff, whilst the rest are more "album like". slaughterhouse and chocolate invasion were compilations of tracks released around 2002 on his website npg music club, released a few tracks at a time, but as they are all from the same era and he didn't put out normal albums at the time, i include them in the list. which makes sense if you went through and listened to it

after that i suggest people checkout the family, jill jones, madhouse, the time, sheila e albums, and then other related artists stuff, and then onto the soundboards, then the aftershows and rehearsals, oh and the outtakes, of which there are plenty and very unlike most artists outtakes and unreleased works, prince's outtakes are often better than some of his released work. in fact some of his best work is unreleased

unique said:

as a new fan, did you purposely choose dorothypark4 as a username because prince used to medley dorothy parker with the madhouse track 4, such as on the leno show?

it's interesting that there are still new fans these days, especially those who go crazy for him. especially when most young people are being fans of folk who can't sing without a computer, or just can't sing at all even with a computer

the purple rain movie started things for a lot of people, and even today when someone asks where to start, i tell them to watch the movie first, then checkout the albums going back the way from purple rain, 1999, controversy, dirty mind, prince and for you, and then go to the albums after purple rain, so around the world in a day, parade (and checkout he movie under the cherry moon), sign o the times (and checkout the live concert movie), black album, lovesexy, batman, graffiti bridge (and... wait - no!!!), diamonds and pearls, O{+> , goldgnigga, come, gold experience, the undertaker (which is unreleased on cd, but it was released on vhs/laserdisc and i count it as an album), emancipation, the truth (which is part of the crystall ball set), newpowersoul, rave in2 the joy fantastic, the chocolate invasion (internet only release), slaughterhouse(internet only release), xpectations (internet only release - jazz instrumental), NEWS (jazz instrumental), musicology, planet earth, lotusflower/mplsfunk/elixir, 20ten

i missed out the b sides, the vault, crystal ball, cnet, one night alone live and 21 nights as they are either compilations of various era material or live stuff, whilst the rest are more "album like". slaughterhouse and chocolate invasion were compilations of tracks released around 2002 on his website npg music club, released a few tracks at a time, but as they are all from the same era and he didn't put out normal albums at the time, i include them in the list. which makes sense if you went through and listened to it

after that i suggest people checkout the family, jill jones, madhouse, the time, sheila e albums, and then other related artists stuff, and then onto the soundboards, then the aftershows and rehearsals, oh and the outtakes, of which there are plenty and very unlike most artists outtakes and unreleased works, prince's outtakes are often better than some of his released work. in fact some of his best work is unreleased

There have been many threads like this or "I'm new to Prince what should I listen to" - this is pretty much the distillation of all the collected wisdom over the years. Thanks, Unique.

There's only a few things I'd add: You add "wait - no" when you start listing the '90s output, I understand that's the conventional wisdom, but there are many like myself who got into him sometime in the '90s. That output is distinct from the 1980s, almost like a different artist/person (so the is output starting around 2000), but it's not necessarily "worse" - that's up to the individual fan. I personally love the 90s. Secondly, I'd recommend listening to outtakes and unreleased works alongside his released stuff because for many, the unreleased stuff is what get many really hooked as a fan. Thirdly, though it'd take less than a month of listening to get through all 30+ albums mentioned (some of them double and triple CD sets), it's hard to digest all at once, and many of his works require longer marination between your ears before you appreciate them, so you'd want to go back to them and/or space out your listenings. Welcome!

good to hear that the wee man is still picking up new fans these days....i think prince mainly picks up new fans through his concerts these days and tv specials like the bbc 4 one a few months ago because he sure aint getting much airplay on the radio nowadays...

...i agree with unique in that the first album us old codgers bought was purple rain when he broke big in the uk that year...then saw the film...was totally hooked on his talent and started buying his previous albums ...working my way back from 1999 to for you...

...then listen to prince expand his music with artwiad...parade and sign o the times (his greatest album imo)...welcome to the world of prince...its a ride and a half

artist76 said:

unique said:

as a new fan, did you purposely choose dorothypark4 as a username because prince used to medley dorothy parker with the madhouse track 4, such as on the leno show?

it's interesting that there are still new fans these days, especially those who go crazy for him. especially when most young people are being fans of folk who can't sing without a computer, or just can't sing at all even with a computer

the purple rain movie started things for a lot of people, and even today when someone asks where to start, i tell them to watch the movie first, then checkout the albums going back the way from purple rain, 1999, controversy, dirty mind, prince and for you, and then go to the albums after purple rain, so around the world in a day, parade (and checkout he movie under the cherry moon), sign o the times (and checkout the live concert movie), black album, lovesexy, batman, graffiti bridge (and... wait - no!!!), diamonds and pearls, O{+> , goldgnigga, come, gold experience, the undertaker (which is unreleased on cd, but it was released on vhs/laserdisc and i count it as an album), emancipation, the truth (which is part of the crystall ball set), newpowersoul, rave in2 the joy fantastic, the chocolate invasion (internet only release), slaughterhouse(internet only release), xpectations (internet only release - jazz instrumental), NEWS (jazz instrumental), musicology, planet earth, lotusflower/mplsfunk/elixir, 20ten

i missed out the b sides, the vault, crystal ball, cnet, one night alone live and 21 nights as they are either compilations of various era material or live stuff, whilst the rest are more "album like". slaughterhouse and chocolate invasion were compilations of tracks released around 2002 on his website npg music club, released a few tracks at a time, but as they are all from the same era and he didn't put out normal albums at the time, i include them in the list. which makes sense if you went through and listened to it

after that i suggest people checkout the family, jill jones, madhouse, the time, sheila e albums, and then other related artists stuff, and then onto the soundboards, then the aftershows and rehearsals, oh and the outtakes, of which there are plenty and very unlike most artists outtakes and unreleased works, prince's outtakes are often better than some of his released work. in fact some of his best work is unreleased

There have been many threads like this or "I'm new to Prince what should I listen to" - this is pretty much the distillation of all the collected wisdom over the years. Thanks, Unique.

There's only a few things I'd add: You add "wait - no" when you start listing the '90s output, I understand that's the conventional wisdom, but there are many like myself who got into him sometime in the '90s. That output is distinct from the 1980s, almost like a different artist/person (so the is output starting around 2000), but it's not necessarily "worse" - that's up to the individual fan. I personally love the 90s. Secondly, I'd recommend listening to outtakes and unreleased works alongside his released stuff because for many, the unreleased stuff is what get many really hooked as a fan. Thirdly, though it'd take less than a month of listening to get through all 30+ albums mentioned (some of them double and triple CD sets), it's hard to digest all at once, and many of his works require longer marination between your ears before you appreciate them, so you'd want to go back to them and/or space out your listenings. Welcome!

the wait no bit was about the movie - you see after the other albums i put in brackets "and checkout the movie", but after that movie soundtrack i made a joke, as if you watch that movie it will stop you listening to anything else he ever did

some of his best work came in the 90s and later. the period where he was at loggerheads with warners and did come/gold experience/exodus (which i forgot to add, and that's a great album that should be heard after the gold experience)/goldnigga/emancipation and all the surrounding outtakes and stuff like madhouse 24. whilst emancipation is a patchy 3 hour affair, there are many lists from fans making their ideal emancipation album, and my person one i consider would have been on of the finest albums he ever made, critically acclaimed but perhaps not the greatest selling (mostly the material from the second disc and the remaining slow material from the other discs). then you have the truth, one night alone, the rainbow children and NEWS. there is also the war, which isn't an album, but a single 20 minute track, edited from a live 40 minute jam. it's one of the best things he did

the reason i suggest the way i did is because the world was turned onto prince from that movie, that album, that single, that tour. the only other act in history to be number one in the album, single and movie charts at the same time was the beatles, but unlike the beatles, prince got both an oscar and grammys amongst many other awards

once people were then turned onto prince via that movie and album, the only way to experience more music at the time was to look back. 1999 and little red corvette received more airplay as a result of purple rain and they were reissued as a double sided single. those are still two of his most well known tracks, and 1999 is one of the most well known and referred to tracks of all time, so checking out 1999 next is a good progression to find out more music. it's also one of his best albums, plus it's a double, so you get more bang for your buck. you can see straight away that the sound changes, with a bit less guitars than purple rain, more keyboard and funk oriented, and as you move back to controversy you can again see how it has a rougher sound, and to dirty mind which is funkier and less keyboard oriented, so when you move back to prince with the well known track i feel 4 u, and to his first album you can see how the sound changed from the first album sounding like music in my mind by stevie wonder, to the bombastic sound of purple rain

from then on, you've experienced the past, so it's time to move on, and to do it in the same way that fans did back then, you will see how the sounds progressed through time, and perhaps understand the music and progressions better, and in turn enjoy the music better. right now to start with prince, most people will know stuff like 1999, when doves cry, kiss, raspberry beret, sign o the times, batdance, gett off, sexy mf, the most beautiful girl in the world, nothing compares 2 u, manic monday, i feel 4 u, diamonds and pearls, cream, etc etc etc, so will already know the music is diverse and varied, from rock to funk to pop to soul, dance to ballads, so they will already know some of the points on the map, but to travel it as a journey will give the greatest enjoyment

you might note that i haven't suggested starting from the first album, as i perhaps would with other artists. i think the first album is considerably different to what most people know and expect from prince, so listening to that first, then the second album might put people off continuing for another 30+ albums, but if you do it backwards from purple rain, you can see the genius first, and better understand the early work, and see that early work was a short period that quickly progressed

and why would i suggest watching the movie instead of starting with the album? would you suggest someone listened to the grease soundtrack before watching the movie? or the same with saturday night fever, footloose, dirty dancing, etc? the two things were created together at the same time (actually the music was very much seperete from the creation of all those movies, either written years before, or just added afterwards), and the album is the soundtrack to the movie. you really need to see the movie to understand why someone would say watch the movie first

Ha, nice topic!

Good memories. Here's mine...........

It was 1984, and I was 11 years old, and still very much into playing with Lego. One day, I was over at my best friend's house playing with his Lego together in his room. He had an older brother who had his room in the attic, and told me his brother had a just released, new record from a "crazy guy" we should take a listen to. Why? I asked. He said: because it is a record which we are not allowed to listen to! We are too young for this stuff!! This guy is quite controversial in America. You must be 18 and over to attend one of his concerts, because he, and some dancers walk around NAKED ON STAGE!!!! Whoaah, then this MUST be good! This is music for grown ups, not little kiddies like us. Okay! I said, let's play this record then!

The first notes I heard was a grinding organ, and then the words came................."Dearly beloved!.."

Since that day I am hooked........

Cheers!

Doc.

[img:$uid]http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-lPE3UHgODV4/TugKH4X35dI/AAAAAAAADa8/uSwOBi50_MI/s400/prain.jpg[/img:$uid]

Feelgood said:

Ha, nice topic!

Good memories. Here's mine...........

It was 1984, and I was 11 years old, and still very much into playing with Lego. One day, I was over at my best friend's house playing with his Lego together in his room. He had an older brother who had his room in the attic, and told me his brother had a just released, new record from a "crazy guy" we should take a listen to. Why? I asked. He said: because it is a record which we are not allowed to listen to! We are too young for this stuff!! This guy is quite controversial in America. You must be 18 and over to attend one of his concerts, because he, and some dancers walk around NAKED ON STAGE!!!! Whoaah, then this MUST be good! This is music for grown ups, not little kiddies like us. Okay! I said, let's play this record then!

The first notes I heard was a grinding organ, and then the words came................."Dearly beloved!.."

Since that day I am hooked........

Cheers!

Doc.

[img:$uid]http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-L0lW9Av9MNU/Tubdv0wddII/AAAAAAAADa0/jH731kxgPgM/s640/Lego-Prince.jpg[/img:$uid]

http://prince.org/msg/7/372387

[img:$uid]http://i22.photobucket.com/albums/b343/Martinair767/purple_rain_2.jpg[/img:$uid]

NeonCraxx said:

I was 13 years old in 2007, I've been listening to Prince for a while. I stole The Hits/B sides from my mom. Then for Christmas I got the Planet Earth and Purple Rain CD's as gifts and I was hooked

I became a fan the same year, and it was just days after Planet Earth was released, and that was the album that got me hooked.

At the time, I was big into another artist who I won't name, and I was hearing a lot of people comparing my then-favorite artist to Prince, so I decided to check him out. I listened to the hits "1999" and "I Wanna Be Your Lover" first, but they didn't connect with me at the time.

Then, I realised he had a new album, so I decided to listen to it, and "Planet Earth" caught my interest, as it was lyrically similar to a lot of songs by my then-favorite artist, who loved to sing about healing the world. I thought "Guitar" was a really fun song; then where I heard "Somewhere Here On Earth", the lyrics really connected with me at the time, and that song made me decide I had to buy the album. To this day, S.H.O.E. is one of my top 10 favorite Prince songs.

unique said:

artist76 said:

There have been many threads like this or "I'm new to Prince what should I listen to" - this is pretty much the distillation of all the collected wisdom over the years. Thanks, Unique.

There's only a few things I'd add: You add "wait - no" when you start listing the '90s output, I understand that's the conventional wisdom, but there are many like myself who got into him sometime in the '90s. That output is distinct from the 1980s, almost like a different artist/person (so the is output starting around 2000), but it's not necessarily "worse" - that's up to the individual fan. I personally love the 90s. Secondly, I'd recommend listening to outtakes and unreleased works alongside his released stuff because for many, the unreleased stuff is what get many really hooked as a fan. Thirdly, though it'd take less than a month of listening to get through all 30+ albums mentioned (some of them double and triple CD sets), it's hard to digest all at once, and many of his works require longer marination between your ears before you appreciate them, so you'd want to go back to them and/or space out your listenings. Welcome!

the wait no bit was about the movie - you see after the other albums i put in brackets "and checkout the movie", but after that movie soundtrack i made a joke, as if you watch that movie it will stop you listening to anything else he ever did

some of his best work came in the 90s and later. the period where he was at loggerheads with warners and did come/gold experience/exodus (which i forgot to add, and that's a great album that should be heard after the gold experience)/goldnigga/emancipation and all the surrounding outtakes and stuff like madhouse 24. whilst emancipation is a patchy 3 hour affair, there are many lists from fans making their ideal emancipation album, and my person one i consider would have been on of the finest albums he ever made, critically acclaimed but perhaps not the greatest selling (mostly the material from the second disc and the remaining slow material from the other discs). then you have the truth, one night alone, the rainbow children and NEWS. there is also the war, which isn't an album, but a single 20 minute track, edited from a live 40 minute jam. it's one of the best things he did

the reason i suggest the way i did is because the world was turned onto prince from that movie, that album, that single, that tour. the only other act in history to be number one in the album, single and movie charts at the same time was the beatles, but unlike the beatles, prince got both an oscar and grammys amongst many other awards

once people were then turned onto prince via that movie and album, the only way to experience more music at the time was to look back. 1999 and little red corvette received more airplay as a result of purple rain and they were reissued as a double sided single. those are still two of his most well known tracks, and 1999 is one of the most well known and referred to tracks of all time, so checking out 1999 next is a good progression to find out more music. it's also one of his best albums, plus it's a double, so you get more bang for your buck. you can see straight away that the sound changes, with a bit less guitars than purple rain, more keyboard and funk oriented, and as you move back to controversy you can again see how it has a rougher sound, and to dirty mind which is funkier and less keyboard oriented, so when you move back to prince with the well known track i feel 4 u, and to his first album you can see how the sound changed from the first album sounding like music in my mind by stevie wonder, to the bombastic sound of purple rain

from then on, you've experienced the past, so it's time to move on, and to do it in the same way that fans did back then, you will see how the sounds progressed through time, and perhaps understand the music and progressions better, and in turn enjoy the music better. right now to start with prince, most people will know stuff like 1999, when doves cry, kiss, raspberry beret, sign o the times, batdance, gett off, sexy mf, the most beautiful girl in the world, nothing compares 2 u, manic monday, i feel 4 u, diamonds and pearls, cream, etc etc etc, so will already know the music is diverse and varied, from rock to funk to pop to soul, dance to ballads, so they will already know some of the points on the map, but to travel it as a journey will give the greatest enjoyment

you might note that i haven't suggested starting from the first album, as i perhaps would with other artists. i think the first album is considerably different to what most people know and expect from prince, so listening to that first, then the second album might put people off continuing for another 30+ albums, but if you do it backwards from purple rain, you can see the genius first, and better understand the early work, and see that early work was a short period that quickly progressed

and why would i suggest watching the movie instead of starting with the album? would you suggest someone listened to the grease soundtrack before watching the movie? or the same with saturday night fever, footloose, dirty dancing, etc? the two things were created together at the same time (actually the music was very much seperete from the creation of all those movies, either written years before, or just added afterwards), and the album is the soundtrack to the movie. you really need to see the movie to understand why someone would say watch the movie first

Unique, I have been reading your posts from years ago and you are knowledgable. This plus your original post are a good guideline how to get into Prince.

So you meant, "wait - no" don't watch Graffitti Bridge - that's excellent advice too.

Peace.

CrabalockerFishwife said:

NeonCraxx said:

I was 13 years old in 2007, I've been listening to Prince for a while. I stole The Hits/B sides from my mom. Then for Christmas I got the Planet Earth and Purple Rain CD's as gifts and I was hooked

I became a fan the same year, and it was just days after Planet Earth was released, and that was the album that got me hooked.

At the time, I was big into another artist who I won't name, and I was hearing a lot of people comparing my then-favorite artist to Prince, so I decided to check him out. I listened to the hits "1999" and "I Wanna Be Your Lover" first, but they didn't connect with me at the time.

Then, I realised he had a new album, so I decided to listen to it, and "Planet Earth" caught my interest, as it was lyrically similar to a lot of songs by my then-favorite artist, who loved to sing about healing the world. I thought "Guitar" was a really fun song; then where I heard "Somewhere Here On Earth", the lyrics really connected with me at the time, and that song made me decide I had to buy the album. To this day, S.H.O.E. is one of my top 10 favorite Prince songs.

another artist "who shall not be named" - you mean Voldemort?

artist76 said:

unique said:

the wait no bit was about the movie - you see after the other albums i put in brackets "and checkout the movie", but after that movie soundtrack i made a joke, as if you watch that movie it will stop you listening to anything else he ever did

some of his best work came in the 90s and later. the period where he was at loggerheads with warners and did come/gold experience/exodus (which i forgot to add, and that's a great album that should be heard after the gold experience)/goldnigga/emancipation and all the surrounding outtakes and stuff like madhouse 24. whilst emancipation is a patchy 3 hour affair, there are many lists from fans making their ideal emancipation album, and my person one i consider would have been on of the finest albums he ever made, critically acclaimed but perhaps not the greatest selling (mostly the material from the second disc and the remaining slow material from the other discs). then you have the truth, one night alone, the rainbow children and NEWS. there is also the war, which isn't an album, but a single 20 minute track, edited from a live 40 minute jam. it's one of the best things he did

the reason i suggest the way i did is because the world was turned onto prince from that movie, that album, that single, that tour. the only other act in history to be number one in the album, single and movie charts at the same time was the beatles, but unlike the beatles, prince got both an oscar and grammys amongst many other awards

once people were then turned onto prince via that movie and album, the only way to experience more music at the time was to look back. 1999 and little red corvette received more airplay as a result of purple rain and they were reissued as a double sided single. those are still two of his most well known tracks, and 1999 is one of the most well known and referred to tracks of all time, so checking out 1999 next is a good progression to find out more music. it's also one of his best albums, plus it's a double, so you get more bang for your buck. you can see straight away that the sound changes, with a bit less guitars than purple rain, more keyboard and funk oriented, and as you move back to controversy you can again see how it has a rougher sound, and to dirty mind which is funkier and less keyboard oriented, so when you move back to prince with the well known track i feel 4 u, and to his first album you can see how the sound changed from the first album sounding like music in my mind by stevie wonder, to the bombastic sound of purple rain

from then on, you've experienced the past, so it's time to move on, and to do it in the same way that fans did back then, you will see how the sounds progressed through time, and perhaps understand the music and progressions better, and in turn enjoy the music better. right now to start with prince, most people will know stuff like 1999, when doves cry, kiss, raspberry beret, sign o the times, batdance, gett off, sexy mf, the most beautiful girl in the world, nothing compares 2 u, manic monday, i feel 4 u, diamonds and pearls, cream, etc etc etc, so will already know the music is diverse and varied, from rock to funk to pop to soul, dance to ballads, so they will already know some of the points on the map, but to travel it as a journey will give the greatest enjoyment

you might note that i haven't suggested starting from the first album, as i perhaps would with other artists. i think the first album is considerably different to what most people know and expect from prince, so listening to that first, then the second album might put people off continuing for another 30+ albums, but if you do it backwards from purple rain, you can see the genius first, and better understand the early work, and see that early work was a short period that quickly progressed

and why would i suggest watching the movie instead of starting with the album? would you suggest someone listened to the grease soundtrack before watching the movie? or the same with saturday night fever, footloose, dirty dancing, etc? the two things were created together at the same time (actually the music was very much seperete from the creation of all those movies, either written years before, or just added afterwards), and the album is the soundtrack to the movie. you really need to see the movie to understand why someone would say watch the movie first

Unique, I have been reading your posts from years ago and you are knowledgable. This plus your original post are a good guideline how to get into Prince.

So you meant, "wait - no" don't watch Graffitti Bridge - that's excellent advice too.

Peace.

thanks.

yes, graffiti bridge the movie was basically prince putting his fingers up to MJ and saying fuck you, i can make a move far worse than moonraper. but most viewers wouldn't understand that upon watching for the first time. the movie was banned in the UK for being too awful for human viewing, but they released it on vhs so hardcore collectors could retain a copy of the movie safely without having to actually watch it. it became the most popular movie to be shown to terror suspects at guantanamo bay to force them to give up information, as most terrorists couldn't make it past the opening credits without confessing

true story

I was 15, broke and just out on a walk. It was dark out. I passed by an ATM. On the screen it said "Insufficient funds. Please type a different amount". HUH???? The street was empty, absolutely no one was about. Curious, I typed in a random amount but got nothing. I kept going down in amount until £10 was all that was given out. The street was still eerily empty. With money in hand a made my way to my nearest reckow stow. Soon, I found myself standing in the aisles on the verge of buying my first album. Too many to choose from. Then something sparkled and caught my eye. I picked it up and without hesitation I bought, on cassette, The Gold Experience. It was newly released. I had heard Gold on the radio a few times and loved it. Immediately hooked, pretty soon I was consuming, with gluttony, everything of Prince I could afford. The bank machine never again gave out money, no matter how many times I walked by it again. It was my catalyst. It was my Fortune Teller in 'Big' moment.

leftcoast said:

WinterIsComing said:

Pr1nceQuik said:

artist76 said:

CrabalockerFishwife said:

[...]

At the time, I was big into another artist who I won't name, and I was hearing a lot of people comparing my then-favorite artist to Prince, so I decided to check him out. I listened to the hits "1999" and "I Wanna Be Your Lover" first, but they didn't connect with me at the time.[...]

another artist "who shall not be named" - you mean Voldemort?

If I mention their name, the thread will be locked.

DorothyParker4 said:

Pr1nceQuik said:

He is now, without a doubt, my favorite artist of all time and in my opnion, the greatest musician ever.

Amen to that! I know we are all entitled to our own opinions, but I seriously struggle contemplating how anyone can think otherwise!

I do think he's the greatest musical artist of all time, but it's not hard to see why many disagree. Everyone likes different genres and styles of music, and Prince is certainly not a master lyricist either.

I consider him the best because of the size, quality and diversity of his discography... when one person can make albums like "Dirty Mind" and "Purple Rain", and albums like "Xpectation" and "One Nite Alone...", I can't see anyone beating him.

Anyway, back on topic..

[Edited 2/18/12 10:25am]

unique said:

PurpleSullivan said:

Feelgood said:

unique said:

lexstarr said: