I have been buying the new Prince album more or less on the day it comes out since "Controversy" in 1981. Those mid 2000 download only albums, I did not, but every year or so when the new Prince album came out, bang, right to the record store to buy it, hurrying home to listen to it. One of the great annual joys in life. New Prince album!

Well, I just got back from "Barnes And Noble" where I purchased "Hit N Run: Phase Two" which was just released in the stores today. On the way home it dawned on me that this is the last album of new Prince material that I will buy. Bummed out. Sad.

It was a great run, Prince. 35 years of that joy of getting your latest, anticipating what I will find on it, listening, laughing, dancing, grooving to it. All fresh. A new Prince album day was always a pleasure. But not this one.

Damn, I just bought my last new Prince album.

[Edited 4/29/16 10:46am]

I bought it as soon as it was available in Electric Fetus. But today i wrote a small review for Amazon.

Prince goes out on a high note.

I just got it myself, and I'd call it easily his strongest album since Lotusflower, at least.

I think it's his best since 3121.

TKO said:

I think it's his best since 3121.

Now that was a great album. On new Prince album day while I was playing that for the first time I definitely got a sense that Prince really worked on this one. "3121" didn't seem at all cut and paste put together. Prince's last truly great album.

violectrica said:

If "new to you" stuff gets released from the vault? There's that...

Nah, that's no good. It will not be stuff Prince is releasing to the public...it will be stuff Prince's executors will be releasing to the public.

The fun of a new Prince album was knowing this is Prince's next phase in his career that he wants to reveal to us. My God, an instrumental jazz album??? Whether we liked "N.E.W.S" or not, it was what that guy from Minnesotta wanted us to hear at that point in his career. The vault releases are going to be...money grabs. Not artistic choices by the artist.

I agree that Hit n Run Phase Two is great. I would place it on the top shelf with the rest of his best albums. I'm happy that he delivered it to us exactly the way it is. I'm kind of sad about it, too, due to the reasons mentioned by the OP.

Cloreen said:

violectrica said:

If "new to you" stuff gets released from the vault? There's that...

Nah, that's no good. It will not be stuff Prince is releasing to the public...it will be stuff Prince's executors will be releasing to the public.

The fun of a new Prince album was knowing this is Prince's next phase in his career that he wants to reveal to us. My God, an instrumental jazz album??? Whether we liked "N.E.W.S" or not, it was what that guy from Minnesotta wanted us to hear at that point in his career. The vault releases are going to be...money grabs. Not artistic choices by the artist.

...except it's very, very possible there is a new album or two (or three) that Prince finished since Phase Two was completed that may eventually see the light of day. Beyond that, I agree with you though. :-/

I preordered mine through Amazon. It shipped today and, oddly, says delivery is Sunday??? Didn't realize till I read this thread that this would be our last new Prince album. Shouldn't be this way.

The last album release by Prince and the last lyric on the closing track is, "that's it"!

It's an elegant, incredibly funky affair. The only track that doesn't quite work with the rest of the songs is Screwdriver (we've debated this since the Tidal release). Black Muse and Big City are some of the best tunes he's ever produced, the rest are excellent, very very good!

I hope we see Phase 3????? Free Urself>>????

I'm going to find a corner now and sob like a little fucking boy. Destroyed by this loss.

Yup. I've bought every "regularly available" Prince album first day they came out since "Purple Rain" or "Around the World" (forgot if I bought PR the first day.)

Had to search around a little bit today; Target and WalMart didn't have it. Very few wrecka stows around.

Called Barnes and Noble and had them hold one of the *2* copies they had!

Giving it my first listen right now.

[Edited 4/29/16 13:21pm]

TheEnglishGent said:

The last album release by Prince and the last lyric on the closing track is, "that's it"!

Yeah, I just came across that. Real sad. The Beatles always get that mysterious cryptic crap because the last song on their last album is called "The End." I used to think it was strange myself. But, man, that doesn't come close to the way Prince's career output ends. The last thing we hear on the final song of the final album of his career is "That's it"....

Cloreen said:

Yeah, I just came across that. Real sad. The Beatles always get that mysterious cryptic crap because the last song on their last album is called "The End." I used to think it was strange myself. But, man, that doesn't come close to the way Prince's career output ends. The last thing we hear on the final song of the final album of his career is "That's it"....

Honestly, the end of The Black Album would have been more appropriate... lol

It's your latest, not your last.

HitnRun 2 is full of great Prince tracks, I only wish the whole thing could be merged with the best songs on HitNRun 1 (Hardrocklover, 1000sXOs, June).