to receive some serious praise from me.

I have learnt quite a few things during my declaration of respect for Newpower Soul, enjoyment for Emancipation and additionally, my forever love with Diamonds & Pearls.

Suffice to say, I have finally seen the light of Rave Un2 The Joy Fantastic. My developed rationale follows shortly. Until then, please feel free to post any thoughts you may have. I'll need inspiration!

to receive some serious praise from me.

Rave Un The Joy Fantastic. I have never understood people arguing the case for the studio version of this track. The live version's scorching guitar riff and chant, has always been far more electric, and still is. However, I can now say I am enjoying this pop version of what has been turned into funky, elastic groove. Undisputed. The NPG chant has really got me on nerves, none more so than on this track. It's almost a standard declaration on most his 'not so great songs.' That said, I'm quite enjoying the drum programming and I have always liked Chuck D's rap. The Greatest Romance Ever Sold. This is the best song on the album. As soon as the groove begins, the soul cuts through unquestionably. Love the lyrics, love the vocals. An absolute gem. It is not a very good choice for lead single.

Hot Wit U. This reminds me of a slowed down, funkier version of I Wanna Melt With U. How could have ever been considering this as a single is a mystery to me. Only the remix with the Nasty Girl sample would have been appropriate to promote. Tangerine. I love this, simple! So Far, So Pleased. With Gwen's co-operation, this was most likely the top 10 hit of the album. The Sun, The Moon and Stars. I really enjoy his vocals on this one. Quite intimate, in a pop sense.

Everyday Is A Winding Road. This is a major highlight for me on the album. There's something very addictive in the way Prince delivers this song wholeheartedly. Man 'O' War. I still think this is overrated in terms of its conviction. However, it can seem quite powerful at times. Baby Knows. Again, a good choice of single but whilst it is a fun, cheeky number, it really needs a nasty element for it to chart. Sadly, very lacking.

I Love U, But I Don't Trust You Anymore. If I were to compare this to How Come U Don't Call Me Anymore, I would argue that it is very overrated. Surprisingly, I have never seen this as heartfelt either. However, in the context of this album, the song stands out as a 'true' masterpiece. Silly Game. No one appears to like this but I do, very much so. Strange But True. I absolutely love this song, the instrumentation is funky, and the stark vocal delivery and lyrics are for the first time, somewhat challenging. Excellent! Wherever U Go, Whatever U Do. This is a brilliant song, definitely a good choice for single. Perhaps, the best.

Prettyman. had to leave us with this otherwise I would have resigned...


[This message was edited Sat Mar 15 8:06:59 PST 2003 by Anji]

Anji said:

Good job Anji, now 20 more to go!, lol

Anji, I think we may have yet another MISundertanding, but, again, maybe not. I said that I find your threads interesting.

to receive some serious praise from me.

Rave Un The Joy Fantastic. I have never understood people arguing the case for the studio version of this track. The live version's scorching guitar riff and chant, has always been far more electric, and still is. However, I can now say I am enjoying this pop version of what has been turned into funky, elastic groove. Undisputed. The NPG chant has really got me on nerves, none more so than on this track. It's almost a standard declaration on most his 'not so great songs.' That said, I'm quite enjoying the drum programming and I have always liked Chuck D's rap. The Greatest Romance Ever Sold. This is the best song on the album. As soon as the groove begins, the soul cuts through unquestionably. Love the lyrics, love the vocals. An absolute gem. It is not a very good choice for lead single.

Hot Wit U. This reminds me of a slowed down, funkier version of I Wanna Melt With U. How could have ever been considering this as a single is a mystery to me. Only the remix with the Nasty Girl sample would have been appropriate to promote. Tangerine. I love this, simple! So Far, So Pleased. With Gwen's co-operation, this was most likely the top 10 hit of the album. The Sun, The Moon and Stars. I really enjoy his vocals on this one. Quite intimate, in a pop sense.

Everyday Is A Winding Road. This is a major highlight for me on the album. There's something very addictive in the way Prince delivers this song wholeheartedly. Man 'O' War. I still think this is overrated in terms of its conviction. However, it can seem quite powerful at times. Baby Knows. Again, a good choice of single but whilst it is a fun, cheeky number, it really needs a nasty element for it to chart. Sadly, very lacking.

I Love U, But I Don't Trust You Anymore. If I were to compare this to How Come U Don't Call Me Anymore, I would argue that it is very overrated. Surprisingly, I have never seen this as heartfelt either. However, in the context of this album, the song stands out as a 'true' masterpiece. Silly Game. No one appears to like this but I do, very much so. Strange But True. I absolutely love this song, the instrumentation is funky, and the stark vocal delivery and lyrics are for the first time, somewhat challenging. Excellent! Wherever U Go, Whatever U Do. This is a brilliant song, definitely a good choice for single. Perhaps, the best.

Prettyman. had to leave us with this otherwise I would have resigned...


[This message was edited Sat Mar 15 8:06:59 PST 2003 by Anji]

Nice try Anji! You aint foolin' me

It has become trendy to hate this album for some reason, but I adore it. Everything but "Silly Game" is good in my book. The title track is blisteringly funky and the other ballads are very heart-felt. It gets an A.

It has become trendy to hate this album for some reason.

Everything but "Silly Game" is good in my book. The title track is blisteringly funky and the other ballads are very heart-felt. It gets an A.

I take a shining to UNDISPUTED.
That beat makes me wanna shake my bouncy arse.

I like the whole album.

I've never been able to find out the original
tracklist for the version of Rave that Prince
submitted to Arista (though not from want of
trying). From what I can gather, the album
was originally a lot more rock orientated.
With most of the more R&B stuff added later.
I seem to remember it being mentioned as
originally only having 10 or 11 tracks.

Moonbeam said:

Aswell as Newpower Soul and Emancipation. There is a reason though, beyond it just being 'trendy.'

Moonbeam said:

I find your taste somewhat strange.

Moonbeam said:

Aswell as Newpower Soul and Emancipation. There is a reason though, beyond it just being 'trendy.'

Anji said:

BTW, I never really liked NPS from the start, and I genuinely enjoy the title track, "Mad Sex," "The One," "Come On" and "Wasted Kisses." In fact, I felt like I was missing out a bit when it was first release because my brother loved it, but I just couldn't.

I have always enjoyed "Emancipation," though, despite not liking a lot of the slower tracks.

It's funny how an album's reputation becomes so solidly planted here that someone is "wrong" if they don't agree.

Moonbeam said:

I received a 'consensus' bashing for my appreciation thread on Graffiti Bridge.

Anji said:

Yeah, there are other reasons. However, I remember the majority of people liking "Rave" upon first listen on this site. After about a year though, it became almost a cardinal sin to admit to liking it, which I don't understand.

The main complaints I have heard about "Rave" are the sequencing (that the tracks are better as a collection than a cohesive album) and the commercial aspects of the album (with all of the guests, etc.)

I think "Rave" is a consistent listen and I generally love all of the collaborations on there. Eve makes "Hot Wit U" quite memorable. Gwen ups the sexiness of "So Far, So Pleased" considerably. Ani DiFranco's guitar is poignant and meticulous on "I Love U, But I Don't Trust U Anymore."

I thoroughly love this album, and I'm not going to back down simply because everyone else tells me I'm supposed to hate it.