it's been 15 years...does anyone have any songs they would consider a Prince classic?? I am talking on the level of "Adore", "Kiss", etc...

thoughts??

Newer Prince classics...

Very few, although You Will Be (With Me) has all the hallmarks. And there have been some notable strong contenders (but probably not of classic status ultimately) e.g. Somewhere Here On Earth.

Then again, it's worth bearing in mind that very few songs from the 80s can compare to the timelessness of Kiss and Adore, by anynone, so you're asking a next-to-impossible question (not only of us but also of Prince).

love,

Spirit

imo:

Musicology (song)

and

Black Sweat

these 2 are the closest Prince had to a classic hit song..

-- and I really can't think of others that sounds like a "classic"..

3121

By those standards - Classic 10/10 (None)

But many have been great 9/10 such as

Dreamer, Black Sweat, Colonized mine, No more candy 4 u, 3121, ol Skool company.

No modern song will ever be as great as Kiss or Adore. Its not possible.

none on the level of "adore" or "kiss"

but,

somewhere here on earth

black sweat

love like jazz

Colonized Mind

i consider those "classic" to me..

"The One" and "Come On" spring to mind. Personally, I think "Beginning Endlessly" is a classic.

I feel weird calling something classic that is, by definition, not because it hasn't been around long enough to stand the test of time. But I think 'Call My Name', 'Cinnamon Girl', 'Black Sweat', 'Dreamer, 'Dance 4 Me' and 'Screwdriver' are up there with some of his best stuff.

Here is a interesting barometer:

Make a Prince mix for someone that is open to/into Prince but doesn't live and breathe all of his songs. You know, someone that doesn't understand that "Adore" is a stone cold beloved classic (yes, these people exist).

Them, make a mix of what you consider "classic old school Prince", and some "modern classics".

I have done this, and found that the new stuff holds up, or strikes this casual fan as being just as good.

Hell, I made a mix for a girl that swore "Dance 4 Me" was vintage Prince of the late 80's variety. She loves it to this day as much as "U got the Look", etc.

[Edited 1/27/13 18:46pm]

skywalker said:

Here is a interesting barometer:

Make a Prince mix for someone that is open to/into Prince but doesn't live and breathe all of his songs. You know, someone that doesn't understand that "Adore" is a stone cold beloved classic (yes, these people exist).

Them, make a mix of what you consider "classic old school Prince", and some "modern classics".

I have done this, and found that the new stuff holds up, or strikes this casual fan as being just as good.

Hell, I made a mix for a girl that swore "Dance 4 Me" was vintage Prince of the late 80's variety. She loves it to this day as much as "U got the Look", etc.

[Edited 1/27/13 18:46pm]

That's always fun to do. I love getting an unbiased opinion. I made a mix for my sister recently with some old (nothing like Kiss or Adore; she knows all of the hits well) and new Prince songs. The one that she raved about was "Future Soul Song."

I did something similar for an ex and even more than songs like "When 2 R in Love," the big winner was "Elixer."

xpertluva said:

skywalker said:

Here is a interesting barometer:

Make a Prince mix for someone that is open to/into Prince but doesn't live and breathe all of his songs. You know, someone that doesn't understand that "Adore" is a stone cold beloved classic (yes, these people exist).

Them, make a mix of what you consider "classic old school Prince", and some "modern classics".

I have done this, and found that the new stuff holds up, or strikes this casual fan as being just as good.

Hell, I made a mix for a girl that swore "Dance 4 Me" was vintage Prince of the late 80's variety. She loves it to this day as much as "U got the Look", etc.

[Edited 1/27/13 18:46pm]

That's always fun to do. I love getting an unbiased opinion. I made a mix for my sister recently with some old (nothing like Kiss or Adore; she knows all of the hits well) and new Prince songs. The one that she raved about was "Future Soul Song."

I did something similar for an ex and even more than songs like "When 2 R in Love," the big winner was "Elixer."

interesting points, very.

post 1998 classics. hmm.

to be a "classic" a song needs to be remembered by a lot of people. in other words, it needs to have been a hit, in at least one format: radio, clubs, album sales, or video. with that in mind:

Musicology

Call My Name

Black Sweat

that's about it. songs that could be or could've been classics with proper promotion:

She Loves Me 4 Me

Colonized Mind

Future Soul Song

It's all opinion. There is a disease all fans get of all artists. It's called "Every new song so and so puts out is horrible, I only like the old stuff."

I have somehow not come down with it yet, but will admit that I do prefer his old stuff, it's just that I think much of his new stuff is still better than anybody else. We all know that Prince takes old songs from the vault and updates them to become new songs. So many of my favorite 1998 or later songs would have to be considered pre 1998 as well.

The Dance, Call My Name, and Future Soul Song are all better than Adore to me. I felt Forever In My Life was the ballad of choice back in 87 to begin with. Not that Adore is weak by any means.

3121, Fury, A Million Days, Reflection, Colonized Mind, Dreamer, Crimson And Clover, and a few others as well are classics in my book.

The Prince that went on tour in 2002, and 2004 is a legendary live act. The one that was on tour from 2006 on has been hit or miss, with Prince sleepwalking through many shows, but Montreux was a clear indication he can dominate live when he feels like it with a serious show.

Well in 1998 in one of P's less regarded albums (NEWPOWER SOUL), I thought he had three really good tracks. "Come On" with that wicked hypnotic grove, "The One," and the haunting "Wasted Kisses."

That's a start.

everlasting now

rainbow children

family name

cinnamon girl

a million days

3121

the word

black sweat

resolution

the one u wanna c

lion of judah

boom

crimson and clover

4ever

colonized mind

wall of berlin

dreamer

old school company

f.u.n.k.

SpiritOtter said:

Then again, it's worth bearing in mind that very few songs from the 80s can compare to the timelessness of Kiss and Adore, by anynone, so you're asking a next-to-impossible question (not only of us but also of Prince).

I disagree with you on that. For me, there's at the very least 20 Prince timeless classics in the 80s.

Lets see...

Adore

Kiss

Little Red Corvette

Erotic City

Uptown

Beautiful Ones

Raspberry Beret

When Doves Cry

Controversy

1999

Something in the Water

Joy in Repetition

Old Friends 4 Sale

Purple Rain

Sign o the Times

If I Was Your Girlfriend

Ballad of Dorothy Parker

Darling Nikki

I Would Die 4 U

I Wanna Be Your Lover

etc etc etc.......

Yes, 20 at the very least.

[Edited 1/27/13 21:26pm]

billymeade said:

Personally, I think "Beginning Endlessly" is a classic.

Sheer creative keyboard arrangement.

Worthy of the 1999 keyboard-genius era.

stillwaiting said:

It's all opinion. There is a disease all fans get of all artists. It's called "Every new song so and so puts out is horrible, I only like the old stuff."

I have somehow not come down with it yet, but will admit that I do prefer his old stuff, it's just that I think much of his new stuff is still better than anybody else. (I wrote the exact same thing the other day. Yes, his more recent work is no 80s, but it's still among the best in contemporary music)

The Dance, Call My Name, and Future Soul Song are all better than Adore to me. I felt Forever In My Life was the ballad of choice back in 87 to begin with. Not that Adore is weak by any means. (Totally agree again. I love Adore, but I'm not THAT crazy about it. Off the passionate love songs from him (not heartbroken or any other mood), I also prefer Forever in my life ABSOLUTELY, but would elect different examples than yours, like Do Me Baby, Scandalous, And God Created Woman, She Loves Me 4 Me and Somewhere Here on Earth.)

[Edited 1/27/13 22:22pm]

Very interesting experiment, guys. I'd like to make that test for someone one day.

xpertluva said:

skywalker said:

Here is a interesting barometer:

anthonyxanzaldo said:

I feel weird calling something classic that is, by definition, not because it hasn't been around long enough to stand the test of time.

That's very true. Very rare are the instant-classic cases. For example, critical-wise, by the end of the decade, songs like Beyoncé's Crazy in Love and Gnarls Barkley's Crazy been hailed as classics by almost all decade-end lists. But were not viewed as defining era's classics when they were releassed back in 2003 and 2006.

[Edited 1/27/13 22:08pm]

As for the thread's question, I'd say are post-1998 Prince CLASSICS:

Illusion, Coma, Pimp and Circumstance

Somewhere Here on Earth

I Love U, but I Don't Trust U Anymore

She Loves Me 4 Me

Sticky Like Glue

Begining Endlessly

$

Wall of Berlin

Fury

[Edited 1/27/13 22:19pm]

BrazilianOnRaspberryBeret said:

SpiritOtter said:

Then again, it's worth bearing in mind that very few songs from the 80s can compare to the timelessness of Kiss and Adore, by anynone, so you're asking a next-to-impossible question (not only of us but also of Prince).

I disagree with you on that. For me, there's at the very least 20 Prince timeless classics in the 80s.

Lets see...

Adore

Kiss

Little Red Corvette

Erotic City

Uptown

Beautiful Ones

Raspberry Beret

When Doves Cry

Controversy

1999

Something in the Water

Joy in Repetition

Old Friends 4 Sale

Purple Rain

Sign o the Times

If I Was Your Girlfriend

Ballad of Dorothy Parker

Darling Nikki

I Would Die 4 U

I Wanna Be Your Lover

etc etc etc.......

Yes, 20 at the very least.

I agree completely, with BrazOnRasberryB:

> The Prince albums 1980 to 1988 were filled with loads and loads of "Prince classics" just as great -- and some even greater than -- Adore and Kiss.

Prince was a genius back then, a 100% complete genius, not so much a genius anymore...

Not on the level of "Kiss" or "Adore", but many songs from 1998-2013 are better than some of the "classics" from the early-90s. Stuff like "Cream" and "Sexy MF" might be sort of "iconic" songs for him, but I much rather listen to what's on the newer records than those.

If you want a "best of" collection from the previous decade I think just taking those songs that were released as singles or had a promotional video would make a nice enough collection. It's not like what was on "The Hits" collections represented his absolute best.

Throw in a few fan favourites like "Dreamer" or "Future Soul Song" and there you go.

It also has to do with how popular a song was when it was released. His 80's stuff was constantly on the radio, you know these songs, if you like it or not.

He hasn't had a hit in years, songs are quicker forgotten that way, at least to me. i listen to it a few times, maybe like it, but than forget about it.

Exceptions maybe "3121"and "musicology", but that's about it.

even some songs of artists that weren't hits are classics, because everybody knows them, that hardly did happen to any of the songs Prince released since 1998,

robertlove said:

It also has to do with how popular a song was when it was released. His 80's stuff was constantly on the radio, you know these songs, if you like it or not.

He hasn't had a hit in years, songs are quicker forgotten that way, at least to me. i listen to it a few times, maybe like it, but than forget about it.

Exceptions maybe "3121"and "musicology", but that's about it.

even some songs of artists that weren't hits are classics, because everybody knows them, that hardly did happen to any of the songs Prince released since 1998,

Reading the Billboard charts from the last years, if I lived in America, I'd rather turn off the radio. Justin Bieber, Taylor Swift, Kelly Clarkson, Florida, Empty and noisy dance music. No, thanks.

Not counting Crystal Ball & The truth & Kamasutra (the copyright is 1997):

The War

Van Gought

Supercute

When I lay my hands on u

Juda's Smile

Props'n Pound

Object in the mirror

Avalance

East

Xpedition

Xhalation

Xenophobia

Digital garden

Family name

Tha dance

Elixer

TGRES

Prettyman

I love u, but I don't trust u anymore

The Work prt 1

The everlasting Now

When eye lay my hands on you

Supercute

Elixer

Musicology

ICP&C

Call my name

Dear Mr. Man

3121

Fury

Black Sweat

Lolita

Beautiful, loved and blessed

Guitar

SHOE

Future baby Mama

Mr.Goodnight

Dreamer

Colonized Mind

No more candy 4 u

Sticky like Glue

Screwdriver

Now most P fans will not agree on any list, especially mine, but if I were to make a Cd(s) or a playlist to show what he has been up to lately this would be it.

Incidentally, I have done a 3rd hits disc starting with the gold experience onward.

The bolded 3 are the stand outs for me and would think most fans would like them.

thedance said:

imo:

Musicology (song)

and

Black Sweat

these 2 are the closest Prince had to a classic hit song..

-- and I really can't think of others that sounds like a "classic"..

Not even these ones?

Illusion, Coma, Pimp and Circumstance

Somewhere Here on Earth

I Love U, but I Don't Trust U Anymore

?

I thought you'd like them, or maybe some others. But especially the last one. Very tender and beautiful. I thought you'd like it.

kewlschool said:

TGRES

Prettyman

I love u, but I don't trust u anymore

The Work prt 1

The everlasting Now

When eye lay my hands on you

Supercute

Elixer

Musicology

ICP&C

Call my name

Dear Mr. Man

3121

Fury

Black Sweat

Lolita

Beautiful, loved and blessed

Guitar

SHOE

Future baby Mama

Mr.Goodnight

Dreamer

Colonized Mind

No more candy 4 u

Sticky like Glue

Screwdriver

Now most P fans will not agree on any list, especially mine, but if I were to make a Cd(s) or a playlist to show what he has been up to lately this would be it.

Incidentally, I have done a 3rd hits disc starting with the gold experience onward.

The bolded 3 are the stand outs for me and would think most fans would like them.

I pretty much agree with your list, but you are missing She Loves Me 4 Me, A Million Days, Te Amo Corazón, $, Wall of Berlin, Valentina and Beginning Endlessly.

thedance said:

BrazilianOnRaspberryBeret said:

I disagree with you on that. For me, there's at the very least 20 Prince timeless classics in the 80s.

Lets see...

Adore

Kiss

Little Red Corvette

Erotic City

Uptown

Beautiful Ones

Raspberry Beret

When Doves Cry

Controversy

1999

Something in the Water

Joy in Repetition

Old Friends 4 Sale

Purple Rain

Sign o the Times

If I Was Your Girlfriend

Ballad of Dorothy Parker

Darling Nikki

I Would Die 4 U

I Wanna Be Your Lover

etc etc etc.......

Yes, 20 at the very least.

I agree completely, with BrazOnRasberryB:

> The Prince albums 1980 to 1988 were filled with loads and loads of "Prince classics" just as great -- and some even greater than -- Adore and Kiss.

Prince was a genius back then, a 100% complete genius, not so much a genius anymore...

back it up to 1979:I Feel for You – 3:24 Bambi – 4:22 Sexy Dancer – 4:18 I Wanna Be Your Lover – 5:49