Rave Unto The Joy Fantastic is an unreleased album by Prince, and was worked on in the second half of 1988 and early 1989 before Prince committed to work on the Batman movie soundtrack.

If Prince had indeed released Rave Unto The Joy Fantastic, instead of being called to work on the Batman album, where do you think it would rank amongs his other albums of the 80's?

Do you think the Batman album was worth it instead of Rave?

27 October, 1988, configuration

• The specific sequence of tracks is unknown, but tracks known to have been included are:

The Voice Inside

Melody Cool

Rave Unto The Joy Fantastic

God Is Alive

If I Had A Harem

Stimulation

Still Would Stand All Time

Elephants & Flowers

Big House

We Got The Power

No details are known about the sequence, other than that The Voice Inside is known to have segued intoMelody Cool.

27 November, 1988, configuration

1. Rave Unto The Joy Fantastic
2. If I Had A Harem
3. The Voice Inside
4. Melody Cool
5. Stimulation
6. Elephants & Flowers
7. God Is Alive
8. Still Would Stand All Time

Mid-January, 1989, configuration

1. Rave Unto The Joy Fantastic
2. If I Had A Harem
3. Good Judy Girlfriend
4. Pink Cashmere
5. Electric Chair
6. Am I Without U?
7. God Is Alive
8. Still Would Stand All Time
9. Moonbeam Levels

I really like the cold/stark sounding drum machines (yet strangely funky!?) he was using at the time, I for one would of loved this album, but i doubt it would of been a commercial success.

[Edited 1/25/15 15:58pm]

Dandroppedadime said:

I really like the cold/stark sounding drum machines (yet strangely funky!?) he was using at the time, I for one would of loved this album, but i doubt it would of been a commercial success.

[Edited 1/25/15 15:58pm]

I agree with you, I think after Lovesexy if Rave was released it wouldn't have been a big success at all...

In terms of a commercial standpoint Batman put Prince back on top of the charts after the commercial dissapointment of Lovesexy.

feeluupp said:

Rave Unto The Joy Fantastic is an unreleased album by Prince, and was worked on in the second half of 1988 and early 1989 before Prince committed to work on the Batman movie soundtrack.

If Prince had indeed released Rave Unto The Joy Fantastic, instead of being called to work on the Batman album, where do you think it would rank amongs his other albums of the 80's?

Do you think the Batman album was worth it instead of Rave?

Mid-January, 1989, configuration

1. Rave Unto The Joy Fantastic
2. If I Had A Harem
3. Good Judy Girlfriend
4. Pink Cashmere
5. Electric Chair
6. Am I Without U?
7. God Is Alive
8. Still Would Stand All Time
9. Moonbeam Levels

I think thats the most interesting configuration of that instance of RAVE. I think "Batman" stacks up pretty well against it.

It's weird - the title track he seemed really confident in it. First the album with different configurations same feel. Then he referenced the song in the b-side "200 Ballons". I could kind of understand him holding it back from the Batman soundtrack but then referencing the song again in the GB film but once again holding it back from that soundtrack.

I'd love to hear the original version of RaveITJF. The sample (if you can call it that) in "200 balloons" sounds completely different to the eventually released version. Who knows what state these other songs were in at any given time.

I think there are a couple of singles on there. Coming off the back of "Lovesexy" I think he'd have appealed to a similar audience. The title track has a great hypnotic hook, in 89 that could have been huge... I'm not sure it'd have been as big a seller as the Batman soundtrack but you never know. There are at least 3 strong singles in that config.

Personally, I'm glad he went with the Batman soundtrack. There isn't a bad song on that album. Like Purple Rain he seemed focused on making a great album as a project. Which can't have been an easy task. Whats the frame of reference for a Batman soundtrack? It's not like a Bond theme. I think he nailed it.

I've always liked the first configuration best. Kind of an EDM ATWIAD. Baffling, colorful, corny, but endearing and unexpectedly cohesive. The Voice Inside is an explosion of an opening track.

Shockedelicus said:

I've always liked the first configuration best. Kind of an EDM ATWIAD. Baffling, colorful, corny, but endearing and unexpectedly cohesive. The Voice Inside is an explosion of an opening track.

I agree with you The Voice Inside is a great opening track, the only problem is it's so Lovesexyesque... It sounds like another version of Lovesexy, and I'm glad he scrapped it because although it's a good song, I don't think any other Prince album opening sounds the same as the previous album, that would have literally made it sound like Lovesexy 2.

This album would have been a commercial flop if it had been released back then.There are some good songs,but I don't really hear a surefire "hit" among these tracks.And let's be honest...after Lovesexy (a brilliant album that was overlooked by the mainstream),Prince needed a surefire hit album,which he achieved with Batman.

I think there is some great stuff from this period. It would nice if some more of it leaked and we got the voice inside in better quality and the full Big House and Stimulation.

I know there is a tape of one configuration within the inner circle.

Boris also heard a tape of one configuration. There is a really good thread about it if you search.

[Edited 1/26/15 13:26pm]

I think a double album of this era's material would of been better as you need to hear the full gamut of what he was doing at the time to fully appreciate it. Editing down 20+ songs to 8/9 seems a shame and almost impossible to do - but that was the skill during the vinyl album era I suppose.

C'mon Prince we need some '88 type shizznitz asap! (After PR remaster of course).

Meh.

Rave era, Batman, Graffiti Bridge are unsatisfying collectively as albums but still contain great individual songs. The effect of being cloistered up in Paisley Park is taking full effect at this time and it shows in the music. He has all these studio toys at his disposal in his private playground 24/7 but (maybe predictably) the results are far more slapdash and less imaginative than the material from the previous couple of years.

SoulAlive said:

This album would have been a commercial flop if it had been released back then.There are some good songs,but I don't really hear a surefire "hit" among these tracks.And let's be honest...after Lovesexy (a brilliant album that was overlooked by the mainstream),Prince needed a surefire hit album,which he achieved with Batman.

It was overlooked by the mainstrain in the US, Lovesexy was a big hit in Europe.

Batman was a very American thing. Although it sold well, Europe was more impressed by lovesexy.

NouveauDance said:

Meh.

Rave era, Batman, Graffiti Bridge are unsatisfying collectively as albums but still contain great individual songs. The effect of being cloistered up in Paisley Park is taking full effect at this time and it shows in the music. He has all these studio toys at his disposal in his private playground 24/7 but (maybe predictably) the results are far more slapdash and less imaginative than the material from the previous couple of years.

Now, this is interesting. Are you suggesting that if Prince had still had to pay for studio time in the late 80s, his output would have been more focused and/or better simply by virtue of time being money? (Not saying you're wrong - just looking for an elaboration.)

[Edited 1/28/15 10:42am]

Genesia said:

Now, this is interesting. Are you suggesting that if Prince had still had to pay for studio time in the late 80s, his output would have been more focused and/or better simply by virtue of time being money? (Not saying you're wrong - just looking for an elaboration.)

Yes. I think being bunkered in at PP had an effective on his creativity. Not immediately, but gradually over the late 80s, I think it was one of the contributing factors.

Noodled24 said: