I always rated Chaos & Disorder towards the bottom of Prince's discography. The last few weeks I've been reading how people love this album and one person even said it was P's second best album ever so I thought "Am I missing something, I must be missing something." Then either here or on the Peach & Black podcast soemone stated that Chaos was P's first all rock album. I never thought of that before, I loved Plectarum Electrum and started wondering why Chaos didn't connect with me. I thought about it and I remember thinking back when Chaos was released feeling "this doesn't sound like Prince at all." Minus I Rock Therefore I Am it is a straight up rock album. So today I listened to it again and OMG it clicked I love this album (it isn't his 2nd best for sure). Man what was I thinking? I still could go without I Rock though.

jdcxc said:

Spin Mag called it one of the most underrated albums of the year. I like the immediacy of the tracks. Dinner With Delores is brilliant and beautiful. The first two tracks are punkish jams. P can't make a completely bad album.

But he can fart. Proof positive is Purple and Gold.

I enjoy it.

I never agreed with those that said it was a 'filler' album to satisfy his contract.

I don't think Prince is even capable of putting out 'filler'.

Whatever music he puts out is the music he believes in.

One of my favorites

I agree with everyone here. In no way was it a throwaway album. In fact the album has a nice flow, and the tracks are good (not great, but still good). Always sounds like a Lenny Kravitz album, to me, personally. Even though this album straight up sounds like a TGE follow-up (and I include it in the tight 93-96 era he had going), I think fans don't like it as much because Prince threw it out there, no promotion, no era whatsoever, and then immediately put all his attention into Emancipation. And despite liking this album very much, there's something a little unusual about it. I think maybe it's the fact some of the songs don't seem very inspired, even if still good. But the title track is a masterpiece, and every track is good except IRTIA

[Edited 5/14/15 19:09pm]

I'm not really a big fan of this album.To me,it sounds like a weak Lenny Kravitz album

There are a few good moments.I like the lyrics of "Dinner With Delores"...."Right The Wrong" has a certain charm to it.

Let's be honest,guys....this album is contractual filler.When it came out,Prince's focus was on Emancipation (the "real" album he was excited to release in 1996)

CharismaDove said:

I agree with everyone here. In no way was it a throwaway album. In fact the album has a nice flow, and the tracks are good (not great, but still good). Always sounds like a Lenny Kravitz album, to me, personally. Even though this album straight up sounds like a TGE follow-up (and I include it in the tight 93-96 era he had going), I think fans don't like it as much because Prince threw it out there, no promotion, no era whatsoever, and then immediately put all his attention into Emancipation. And despite liking this album very much, there's something a little unusual about it. I think maybe it's the fact some of the songs don't seem very inspired, even if still good. But the title track is a masterpiece, and every track is good except IRTIA

[Edited 5/14/15 19:09pm]

no promotion? C&D had an awesome screensaver! ACtually I wish I still had it; I always thought it was kind of tight. This is one of my favorite Prince cd's. Fave song? Right The Wrong!!

erik319 said:

If you take off I Rock, Dig U Better Dead And replace them with Calhoun Square & Da Bang & add Empty Room along the way, you get a VERY good album.

I always loved the album with the exception of Dig U Better and I Rock. The placing of I Rock nearly always makes me turn the album off and so I hardly ever hear the excellent Into The Light / I Will double team.

Those are some excellent choices for replacement tracks. I think I' gonna make a disc for the car with those substitutions and also add, What's My Name.

Ohm and I'll drop Had U too.

It may be a little underrated but i personally don't like it alot.

The title track is very good and Zanalee is a hell of a tune (very unexptected). I would have liked those two songs to be on The Gold Experience rather than this record.

The album has a special place in my heart. Back when it was released I was working and living on a small Greek island without a proper record shop. So my girlfriend back then sent over the C&D album and it was the only album with new music that I had there in 6 months. Needless to say I played it till death. It took a bit getting used to, but soon I loved most of the album and I thought (and still think) it is a pretty good rock effort by Prince.

Great album! There's some serioulsy solid gems on this & they are outstanding, well written & performed. It's surprisingly a good follow up to TGE, although not as polished, which at first I didn't like upon initial listening, but like many have said, it's grown on me over time & still sounds great today!

Personal Faves: C&D, Zannalee, Same December, Into The Light

I love this record. Some of the songs sounded like they were rushed but maybe that was intentional. "I Like It There" has garage rock written all over it. "Into The Light/I Will" is fantastic and progressive. "The Same December" reminds me of SOTT era P. This record bring back good memories of the summer of 96. The TODAY show performance was cool too.

It's OK. I have to be in the mood for it though. It's the sort of album you forget about for a while and then bust it out and like a lot of it. It seems like one of the albums where, at the time, if Lenny Kravitz or Beck had released it everyone would have been shitting their pants praising it.

It's an underrated "MasterPiece"! Plus one of the advantages of being emancipated from WbR. Also a soft rock album, that peeps here seem 2 have orgasisms about. So why it's less liked baffles me.

I really enjoyed it then, and still enjoy it, even the "bad songs." At the time, I was actually more disappointed with the over-hyped Emancipation. It was like Prince with an empty scrotum.

SchlomoThaHomo said:

KingSausage said:

SchlomoThaHomo said:

I really enjoyed it then, and still enjoy it, even the "bad songs." At the time, I was actually more disappointed with the over-hyped Emancipation. It was like Prince with an empty scrotum.

Was that the "air-filled sack" he refers to on New World?

SchlomoThaHomo said:

I really enjoyed it then, and still enjoy it, even the "bad songs." At the time, I was actually more disappointed with the over-hyped Emancipation. It was like Prince with an empty scrotum.

Same here. At least C&D had balls, where Emancipation's balls seemed to have been saccharined away with plastic/ non-offensive production.

I love the first half (up 2 Zanalee)...the 2nd half not so much. I played that first half to death back when it came out. The Same December is my fave of the bunch I rate the album it similar to Come. It has some very good songs on it but it seems like he just slapped the others on there to fill it out.

I made a playlist of my own (surprise!) and replaced I rock and Dig with Da Bang, Calhoun Square, and Whats My Name.

Ive always thought it was ok. I like it overall and love Into The Light/I Will. Certainly better than many other Prince albums.

I still think The Vault: Old Friends 4 Sale is the best of the "Contractual Obligation" trilogy.

[Edited 5/18/15 12:42pm]