I guess listening to it post-MP3 revolution removes some of the wow factor.

At time people were still shoving CDs into their PC and using willowpond software.

TKO said:

I've been a Prince fan for two years, discovered him in 2013 and i own around 25 of his albums.

The Gold Experience is my last addition to the collection. I enjoy this ride, listening to all this amazing work by the most talented human being in the planet.

But i must confess, i didn't enjoy TGE as much as his other albums, and yes, i'm talking about albums like Planet Earth and 20ten too.

I feel like this is one of his weakest albums.

Maybe u should learn not to claim a piece of work is weak just because you don't enjoy it. It's OK for you to dislike it. It's a bit silly to jump to hasty conclusions about its qualities. + let it grow on you.

EmmaMcG said:

The only real problem I have with it now is that it blows the ears off me when I listen to it with earphones. Lol.

There should be a control somewhere labeled: Volume

Give it a try, should solve your problem...

[Edited 10/28/15 8:35am]

Remove TMBGITW and it's among the greatest pop/rock albums of all time, in my opinion.

jasminejoey said:

Remove TMBGITW and it's among the greatest pop/rock albums of all time, in my opinion.

... Naw... It's good because when Prince fans look back on his 90's releases, this is the most consitant album...

Over produced, corny segues, Pussy Control sounds so outdated now... Holds some great songs... But highly over rated by the fans here... Highly over rated.

TGE isn't an album I find myself returning to with as much regularity as I do others from the say, 1990-1996 time frame. I created my own trimmed version of Emancipation and return to that one frequently.

That being said, I think HNR is his best album since the love symbol album, so feel free to disparage my other opinions as well. I absolutely LOVE this album, can't stop playing it.

I was one of the lucky ones to attend most of the PP shows in the summer of 95 (to this day my only Prince shows) and heard a lot of this music live, so I loved this album. It just hasn't aged well, IMO.

[Edited 10/28/15 11:51am]

feeluupp said:

jasminejoey said:

Remove TMBGITW and it's among the greatest pop/rock albums of all time, in my opinion.

... Naw... It's good because when Prince fans look back on his 90's releases, this is the most consitant album...

Over produced, corny segues, Pussy Control sounds so outdated now... Holds some great songs... But highly over rated by the fans here... Highly over rated.

Thoroughly agree with you

The main concern when u say TGE is one of his weakest albums is that u missed all the periods in its extense and maybe u don´t understand the context of some of his albums yet...

TGE is in my personal Top10.

[Edited 10/28/15 14:53pm]

jasminejoey said:

Remove TMBGITW and it's among the greatest pop/rock albums of all time, in my opinion.

TMBGITW is one of the greatest pop tunes itself imo.

All I can say is Gold...n you're clearly on some something but what is the question

Had to get some gasoline

feeluupp said:

jasminejoey said:

Remove TMBGITW and it's among the greatest pop/rock albums of all time, in my opinion.

... Naw... It's good because when Prince fans look back on his 90's releases, this is the most consitant album...

Over produced, corny segues, Pussy Control sounds so outdated now... Holds some great songs... But highly over rated by the fans here... Highly over rated.

1) It's not over-produced. For an album to be over-produced the production needs to overshadow the songs. That's not the case on TGE.

2) Who rates an album on segues rather than songs?

3) P.Control does sound dated. As does every song over 10 years old.

4) TGE has never been over-rated by fans. It is highly rated because it's full of great songs, and a highly over-looked album by the general public.

"319" should have been a single.That song is so much fun.....it's classic Prince,imo.

Noodled24 said:

feeluupp said:

... Naw... It's good because when Prince fans look back on his 90's releases, this is the most consitant album...

Over produced, corny segues, Pussy Control sounds so outdated now... Holds some great songs... But highly over rated by the fans here... Highly over rated.

1) It's not over-produced. For an album to be over-produced the production needs to overshadow the songs. That's not the case on TGE.

2) Who rates an album on segues rather than songs?

3) P.Control does sound dated. As does every song over 10 years old.

4) TGE has never been over-rated by fans. It is highly rated because it's full of great songs, and a highly over-looked album by the general public.

I disagree, I find most of Prince's 80s music to have a timeless appeal even if, say, some synth sounds from those albums sound very much of their era. I can only speak from my personal viewpoint, but I do find that TGE does sound very "early-90s" in its production which detracts from its appeal somewhat for me. I am a fair bit younger than most people on this board though, so that might solely be because I didn't grow up with those sounds, but I do find that I don't have the same problem with Come, so idk if it's a problem with all music from this period rather than just the specific production choices made on this album (and tbh I think most people would agree that the "rawer" versions of tracks on here, like the cowbell-less Endorphinmachine, are the superior ones.)

Noodled24 said:

feeluupp said:

... Naw... It's good because when Prince fans look back on his 90's releases, this is the most consitant album...

Over produced, corny segues, Pussy Control sounds so outdated now... Holds some great songs... But highly over rated by the fans here... Highly over rated.

1) It's not over-produced. For an album to be over-produced the production needs to overshadow the songs. That's not the case on TGE.

2) Who rates an album on segues rather than songs?

3) P.Control does sound dated. As does every song over 10 years old.

4) TGE has never been over-rated by fans. It is highly rated because it's full of great songs, and a highly over-looked album by the general public.

Play PARADE then play TGE... and then tell me which sounds more dated.

feeluupp said:

Noodled24 said:

1) It's not over-produced. For an album to be over-produced the production needs to overshadow the songs. That's not the case on TGE.

2) Who rates an album on segues rather than songs?

3) P.Control does sound dated. As does every song over 10 years old.

4) TGE has never been over-rated by fans. It is highly rated because it's full of great songs, and a highly over-looked album by the general public.

Play PARADE then play TGE... and then tell me which sounds more dated.

Parade obviously. Since it dates back to the 80s where are TGE dates back to the 90s. (You don't have to watch dynasty to know that)

Noodled24 said:

feeluupp said:

Play PARADE then play TGE... and then tell me which sounds more dated.

Parade obviously. Since it dates back to the 80s where are TGE dates back to the 90s. (You don't have to watch dynasty to know that)

That's exactly the point. You said as does every song over 10 years old, but Parade is far past 10 years old yet still sounds timeless... So it's not just about how old the record is, but how well it stands the test of time...

TGE sounds dated.

feeluupp said:

RaspBerryGirlFriend said:

Noodled24 said:

1) It's not over-produced. For an album to be over-produced the production needs to overshadow the songs. That's not the case on TGE.

2) Who rates an album on segues rather than songs?

3) P.Control does sound dated. As does every song over 10 years old.

4) TGE has never been over-rated by fans. It is highly rated because it's full of great songs, and a highly over-looked album by the general public.

I disagree, I find most of Prince's 80s music to have a timeless appeal even if, say, some synth sounds from those albums sound very much of their era. I can only speak from my personal viewpoint, but I do find that TGE does sound very "early-90s" in its production which detracts from its appeal somewhat for me.

"timeless appeal" appeal aside. 1999 still sounds like an early 80s album, because thats what it is. The same applies to the TGE, it does sound like a mid-90s album, because thats what it is.

For some reason "dated" has become a term used to imply "not very good". Which is surprising since Prince's "glory years" were the 1980s. A decade of now dated sounding music.

Claiming something from the 90s sounds OLDER (more dated) than an album from the 80s is IMO insane.

I am a fair bit younger than most people on this board though, so that might solely be because I didn't grow up with those sounds, but I do find that I don't have the same problem with Come, so idk if it's a problem with all music from this period rather than just the specific production choices made on this album (and tbh I think most people would agree that the "rawer" versions of tracks on here, like the cowbell-less Endorphinmachine, are the superior ones.)

"Come" is heavily influenced by the sounds of the 90s.

feeluupp said:

Noodled24 said:

1) It's not over-produced. For an album to be over-produced the production needs to overshadow the songs. That's not the case on TGE.

2) Who rates an album on segues rather than songs?

3) P.Control does sound dated. As does every song over 10 years old.

4) TGE has never been over-rated by fans. It is highly rated because it's full of great songs, and a highly over-looked album by the general public.

Play PARADE then play TGE... and then tell me which sounds more dated.

To be fair, Parade has always sounded like it was from the 60's.

hhhhdmt said:

I disagree. I think dated means the music sounds more like an specific sound of a certain year. For example, Lady Gaga songs to me sound like they were made in 2009 because that was the year when electro was a trend and everybody was following it.

Prince sound during the 90s with all the basic rap reminds me of that specific year. Other albums he released in the 80s of course you will notice because of the sound and the production you know they weren't recorded in 2010, but there isn't an specific sound following any trend of that moment, except for some disco/dance songs. Songs like When Doves Cry and Purple Rain are timeless to me and i don't really connect them to any year.

Noodled24 said:

RaspBerryGirlFriend said:

"timeless appeal" appeal aside. 1999 still sounds like an early 80s album, because thats what it is. The same applies to the TGE, it does sound like a mid-90s album, because thats what it is.

For some reason "dated" has become a term used to imply "not very good". Which is surprising since Prince's "glory years" were the 1980s. A decade of now dated sounding music.

Claiming something from the 90s sounds OLDER (more dated) than an album from the 80s is IMO insane.

I am a fair bit younger than most people on this board though, so that might solely be because I didn't grow up with those sounds, but I do find that I don't have the same problem with Come, so idk if it's a problem with all music from this period rather than just the specific production choices made on this album (and tbh I think most people would agree that the "rawer" versions of tracks on here, like the cowbell-less Endorphinmachine, are the superior ones.)

"Come" is heavily influenced by the sounds of the 90s.

thedoorkeeper said:

Could you send me a lock of your hair please? I need that to burn you.

If you use a lot of "cutting edge" technology and trendy techniques in the production that's going to date the album more, like gated reverb on drums from the 80s or songs with excessive Auto Tune from today.. where as it's sometimes harder to pinpoint which year something like an all acoustic album was recorded. The Gold Experience sounds so dated because of all the 90s computer glop he added to it, in addition to the cheesy rap tracks.

I think we have a different understanding of the term "dated". To me the word is innately perjorative, as it imo carries the connotation that the work in question isn't fully able to transcend the mores of the period in which it was produced and be appreciated fully in a modern context. So while I do obviously recognise that the sound and the production of 1999 was wholly shaped by the musical landscape in which it was produced I personally feel that this "sound" isn't an impediment to my enjoyment of the album in the current day, unlike with TGE where I do find some of the production choices and the overall sound of that album to be not as appealing due to the trends in production of that era. So while I find 1999 to be an album very much "of its era", I don't find it to be "dated" in the same way in which TGE does to me. I still quite like the album and certainly don't find it to be one of his weakest, but this is a problem with it for me.

Incidentally another problem I have with TGE is that there are some real clunkers on there lyrically, I mean "I'd rather do you after school like some homework", "If all the water's dirty and I wanna lay the pipe, my dammy, The river that I drink from, will it be the same as your mammy?" and "There's a mountain and it's mighty high, you cannot see the top unless you fly" are all really cringeworthy to me, and there's a lot more where those come from elsewhere on the album.

Noodled24 said:

RaspBerryGirlFriend said:

"timeless appeal" appeal aside. 1999 still sounds like an early 80s album, because thats what it is. The same applies to the TGE, it does sound like a mid-90s album, because thats what it is.

For some reason "dated" has become a term used to imply "not very good". Which is surprising since Prince's "glory years" were the 1980s. A decade of now dated sounding music.

Claiming something from the 90s sounds OLDER (more dated) than an album from the 80s is IMO insane.

I am a fair bit younger than most people on this board though, so that might solely be because I didn't grow up with those sounds, but I do find that I don't have the same problem with Come, so idk if it's a problem with all music from this period rather than just the specific production choices made on this album (and tbh I think most people would agree that the "rawer" versions of tracks on here, like the cowbell-less Endorphinmachine, are the superior ones.)

"Come" is heavily influenced by the sounds of the 90s.

thanks2joniandu said:

The only real weak track on TGE for me is We March. There is so much great stuff on here!!! Urgent pleading sexy heady stuff. Emancipation was a huge let down after this album.

I think emancipation is possibly his worst album - you'd struggle to find a CD's worth of decent stuff.