Please forgive me, and don't flame me,

-- but my guess is:

Prince does not even like his own 'Sign “☮” The Times' album... because this fine & brilliant SOTT-album is just "too great"!

My claims:

1. the 'Sign “☮” The Times' album is his masterpiece and overshadows his "new" music (very often makes the "new music" these days look weak - out watered, "watered down", like a shadow of what he had to offer BACK THEN).

2. Prince will never "live up" to the 'Sign “☮” The Times' standards (we knows it and he knows it too), that's the reason he wanna forget this album and the other BIG succesfull albums from the 1980's.

3. it's just too great an album, overwhelming with all these fantastic different styles and genres, that's the reason he won't re-release a remastered version of SOTT, this is just too brilliant, compared to his post Warner music. He would, also, have problems with a follow up to a SOTT re-master.

4. Prince is a prolific artist: always looking forward for new ground, never looking back.

5. Prince hates his owns successes because it puts pressure on him in the creative process.

6. See, he had huge problems following this SOTT album, with: the (also) very artistically brilliant album Lovesexy, did not sell well - although it was artistically brilliant as well, people were "saturated". And then there after, his career never became the same. People weren't hungry anymore, after the overwhelming string of album releases - especially this release: SOTT.

Will we ever see a 'Sign “☮” The Times' RE-Master, on CD/ Vinyl - in our lifetime....?

My guess is, no we won't...

[Edited 3/7/13 11:01am]

[Edited 3/7/13 11:02am]

[Edited 3/7/13 11:03am]

Susan Rogers was so right on this one..

well u don't have to try hard to find any hidden gems on Sign .. even the b-sides and crystal ball outtakes are pure gold .. not just glitter .. during its making prince had the best team all working at their peak .. prince chucked that team just prior to its completion .. his career has not been the same since because he fired everyone from that era .. eye have a feeling the tribute will sound more like a real prince concert than prince in concert these days ..

however .. prince does play a lot of Sign material on a regular basis, so eye wouldn't conclude he hates the record .. prince always sais PR is his albatross and eye could see him getting tired of singing lets go crazy for the bazillionth time .. Sign has such variety and less oversaturation eye would imagine it easier to pull up a song here and there and not get bored

what eye really doubt is that prince likes SEX anymore .. not the song .. the act .. all his seductive songs sound so stupid and uninspired these days .. nothing that even resembles genuine flirtation .. just the same old cheeky nods to how much chicks want to fuck him .. but nothing that sounds passionate or lustful .. with all that make up, jewelry and unsexy pajama bottoms that he wears on stage .. it is hard to imagine prince would let anybody ruffle his feathers and smear his make up .. and what girl/boy isn't gonna say .. 'are u really gonna wear those pj's out to dinner?' ... sho nuff!!

Sign O' The Times is my favorite album of all time.

Yet, it is interesting, SOTT didn't blow the world away in 1987. Instead, it has grown to become regarded as, arguably, Prince's crowning achievement.

It was highly regarded by critics and nominated for Grammy's, but it wasn't a blockbuster saleswise. It had some monster hit singles, yet a chart "flop" single as well. Some of the most beloved songs from the album weren't even released as singles.

That said, it really showcases all that is great about Prince. Even more so than Purple Rain or 1999, etc.

To say Prince doesn't like it is stupid and uninformed.

I have seen him live dozens of times and, more often than not, he plays material from SOTT.

I'm sure SOTT and Purple Rain have been albatrosses to Prince over the years, but to say he doesn't like them, I can't agree with that.

There's an "I" and a "think" missing from the title of this thread!

Thought I was gonna read some reflections from the man...

historically in the sense that he didn't get Crystal Ball, 3 disc set, but not the material in general

eyewishuheaven said:

There's an "I" and a "think" missing from the title of this thread!

Thought I was gonna read some reflections from the man...

Misleading title.

TrevorAyer said:

well u don't have to try hard to find any hidden gems on Sign .. even the b-sides and crystal ball outtakes are pure gold .. not just glitter .. during its making prince had the best team all working at their peak .. prince chucked that team just prior to its completion .. his career has not been the same since because he fired everyone from that era .. eye have a feeling the tribute will sound more like a real prince concert than prince in concert these days ..

however .. prince does play a lot of Sign material on a regular basis, so eye wouldn't conclude he hates the record .. prince always sais PR is his albatross and eye could see him getting tired of singing lets go crazy for the bazillionth time .. Sign has such variety and less oversaturation eye would imagine it easier to pull up a song here and there and not get bored

what eye really doubt is that prince likes SEX anymore .. not the song .. the act .. all his seductive songs sound so stupid and uninspired these days .. nothing that even resembles genuine flirtation .. just the same old cheeky nods to how much chicks want to fuck him .. but nothing that sounds passionate or lustful .. with all that make up, jewelry and unsexy pajama bottoms that he wears on stage .. it is hard to imagine prince would let anybody ruffle his feathers and smear his make up .. and what girl/boy isn't gonna say .. 'are u really gonna wear those pj's out to dinner?' ... sho nuff!!

eyewishuheaven said:

There's an "I" and a "think" missing from the title of this thread!

Thought I was gonna read some reflections from the man...

Indeed! There's nothing here other than assumptions!

eyewishuheaven said:

There's an "I" and a "think" missing from the title of this thread!

Thought I was gonna read some reflections from the man...

the headline is fixed now...

Ok?

swdee said:

Although this thread is pointless, I'd like to say that Sign is my least favourite album of his.Different strokes for different folks.I can't understand all the fuss about it. I enjoyed the concert film though.

wow, do you take Musicology, 3121, Planet Earth etc. over SOTT..?

OK, but to most people the 'Sign “☮” The Times' album was/ is his greatest moment,

SOTT - the album - is a massive monument, sure one of the best albums ever,

and it's your least fave Prince album... wow..

my "point" with this thread.. is that he can't just make that kind of music anymore.

Speculation..? yeah maybe, but I think he won't re-release this fine masterpiece,

for the reasons mentioned in post #1.

And that makes me really sad.

Gent 2010 (or was it 2011?) when starting If I was your Girlfriend : "I like this song so much",...

didn't he want it to be 3 records instead of 2?

anyone know what that 3 record set would have looked like?

He hasn't performed that much material from Lovesexy (as far as I know). That doesn't mean he doesn't like that album either.

Did you know that James Brown and Michael Jackson and Prince......

3rdeyedude said:

I never really cared for that cd like evryone else does. To me its overated. I like 5 or 6 songs ok but never really been a big fan of this one.

Play in the Sunshine, Housequake, Hot Thing, U got the look, ICNTTPOYM and Adore is really about it for me. The other tracks have always been boring to me.For me the B-sides were better than the album tracks in this time frame. Same goes for Lovesexy.

I DO wish he would remaster his catalogue though

Timmy84 said:

He hasn't performed that much material from Lovesexy (as far as I know). That doesn't mean he doesn't like that album either.

I know, I mean this big conversation, and after that rather wonderful period, Alphabet St & Anna Stesia are the only 2 that are ever touched.

He should be relieved it wasn't a Thriller...

thedance said:

Please forgive me, and don't flame me,

well, there goes my post

If he doesn't like it, why does he often play songs from it live? If I was your girlfriend, Strange Relationship, U Got The Look, I could never take the place of your man, Adore, Forever in my life. They've all been played on the ONA tour or more recently. He uses Housequake chants during controversy and will tease the title track during sampler sets.

Why play them if he doens't like the album? Why keep reminding the audience about it?

I'm sorry but your theory does not really hold up.

swdee said:

Although this thread is pointless, I'd like to say that Sign is my least favourite album of his.Different strokes for different folks.I can't understand all the fuss about it. I enjoyed the concert film though.

TheEnglishGent said:

If he doesn't like it, why does he often play songs from it live? If I was your girlfriend, Strange Relationship, U Got The Look, I could never take the place of your man, Adore, Forever in my life. They've all been played on the ONA tour or more recently. He uses Housequake chants during controversy and will tease the title track during sampler sets.

Why play them if he doens't like the album? Why keep reminding the audience about it?

I'm sorry but your theory does not really hold up.

Oops.

Didn't he say sometime around the release of Rave that he had been listening to SOTT a lot during the sessions?

Not that I think Rave is a very good album (or a good album at all, let's put it that way), but if it's a throwback stylistically to any of his earlier eras it's got more of a SOTT thing to it than the early synth funk stuff. A few of the songs at least.