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Thread started 05/31/16 3:18pm

PurpleColossus

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Chaos and Disorder album Appreciation

With The Gold Experience and Emancipation being released fairly close to Chaos and Disorder I've always felt the album has gotten a little lost in the shuffle. I'm a big fan of this album, and I love how many of the songs have a more guitar heavy sound.

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Anyone else a big fan this album? What are some of your favorite tracks from it?

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[img:$uid]http://i67.tinypic.com/333vh4l.jpg[/img:$uid]

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Reply #1 posted 05/31/16 3:41pm

Cloreen

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It's one of his best works and one of my favorites.

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Yes, it is more guitar-centric than most of his albums; but, heck, one of the best songs on the album doesn't even feature guitar ("Dig You Better Dead").

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I love most of the tracks. The stand out for me, though, is "Into The Light" / "I Will." Real tasty guitar work on that (even backwards guitar!). The first half is full blown arena rock and then that abrupt change into the smooth "I Will"...oh, great stuff.

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I do feel the album is hurt tremendously by Prince's dismissive attitude towards it. That "Originally intended for private use only" liner note I feel was uncalled for. It is conveying to the listener that the stuff on the album is not worthy of release. Also the album's artwork -- that shattered bits and pices motif - conveys the same message: this album is just thrown together piecemeal, pot luck.

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Nonetheless, one of Prince's greatest works. A Prince album you listen to straight through with nary a bum track.

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Reply #2 posted 05/31/16 3:42pm

TrivialPursuit

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A few of the songs sound like half a song, or come off as a medley (besides "Into The Light"/"I Will"). And at under 40 minutes, it comes across more like a mix tape. I ain't hating that. The album is a "dark" one to me. Not miserable, emo, or angry - just pointedly moody. There's a lot of kiss off to WB on it, of course, but moments of lighter fare here and there. Overall, it could easily be in my top 15 probably. However, I sort of keep Prince stuff separate from prince stuff, so it's obviously one of the better prince albums for me. Here's my break down:

  1. Chaos and Disorder: Great rocking number, great hook
  2. I Like It There: Kind of an intermediate track, but good
  3. Dinner with Delores: People panned this, but I really dug it.
  4. The Same December: There's a lot of syncopation type stuff in this that breaks up the flow, but I dig it.
  5. Right The Wrong: People just slam this song sometimes, but I like the country-rock vibe.
  6. Zanalee: Love it. "Big ass".
  7. I Rock: Better with Scrap D edited out.
  8. Into The Light: See #9
  9. I Will: Moments of light on an otherwise darker album.
  10. Dig U Better Dead: It's a bleaker track for me. Mood, production. Yet oddly fits.
  11. Had U: A perfect ending track with "fuck u", considering he started his WB career with "For You". He once said it was fate that it ended that way (we know better).


Overall - out of 5 stars, a solid 4.

"eye don’t really care so much what people say about me because it is a reflection of who they r."
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Reply #3 posted 05/31/16 3:48pm

SPYZFAN1

Love it. I remember reading the hype online before it was released; "This is his most heavy guitar album since 'Dirty Mind'!!!"....I don't know about that, but it still rocks pretty good. "I Like It There" reminded me of alternative garage rock the first time I heard it......"Delores" has a nice psychedelic feel to it and I love the guitar work..."The Same December" reminds me of the "S.O.T.T" era and "Into The Light" and "I Will" are two beautiful pieces of work that seque just right.....I always thought "Chaos" was right up there with "P.R" as one of his coolest guitar rock records.

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Reply #4 posted 05/31/16 4:05pm

PurpleColossus

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^^^ Thanks for all your points. I agree about 'I Like It There' being very garage rock...I actually get that whole mid 90's rock vibe from the whole album.

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I also think if Prince released this album in 2012 fans would see it as his greatest album ever, back in 1996 not so much...It might be one of the most lost in the shuffle albums that Prince has? hmmm

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Reply #5 posted 05/31/16 4:10pm

SPYZFAN1

I think it got lost too. He didn't do much TV promotion except Letterman and the "Today" show. And the few print interviews he did about "Chaos", he mainly hyped up "Emancipation" and talked about his freedom from Warners. The artwork for "Chaos" was pretty graphic and had finger aimed at the WB.

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Reply #6 posted 05/31/16 4:25pm

IstenSzek

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to this day, this is the way i prefer to listen to this album. it's so good:


01. Chaos and Disorder

02. I Like It There

03. Dinner With Delores

04. Same December
05. Calhoun Sq
06. Zannalee

07. Into The Light

08. I Will

09. Da Bang

10. Empty Room

11. Had U


love music



and true love lives on lollipops and crisps
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Reply #7 posted 05/31/16 4:28pm

DiscoBallz

Basically a companion album of outtakes for TGE. Great to see how many different paths he was taking all at one time. With the Emancipation stuff so close behind, it really shows you how quickly he could sonically pivot.

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Reply #8 posted 05/31/16 5:37pm

bonatoc

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A strong contender for the most underrated album.

Reviews were pretty negative at the time it came out,
but when the dust settled, it appeared like one of his most fun,
joyous, rebel records ever.

It was probably disappointing for everyone to see Prince
coming back to 12 bars blues structure, and 3 chords rock.
The public still expected for him to go back to the subtleties and sophistication
of "Parade" and "Around The World In A Day", but that time had passed for him.
we had to wait for "Rainbow Children" to get some "intellectual" music again.

The Warner Wars is the most interesting part of his career,
after the eighties golden era. Lots of throwouts, errors, bad hip-hop,
boring tunes, but still an unrelentless search, and of course
some masterpieces came out of it.

An orger suggested that women had nothing to do with his inspiration, but that's just stupid.
It's fairly obvious that if Vanity and then Susannah were the propeller for the eighties winning streak, his passion for Mayte brought him out of his comfort zone (from Batman to D&P).

"Intended for private use only": if this is the main reason
for the light-hearted mood of it, so be it.

The Colors R brighter, the Bond is much tighter
No Child's a failure
Until the Blue Sailboat sails him away from his dreams
Don't Ever Lose, Don't Ever Lose
Don't Ever Lose Your Dreams
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Reply #9 posted 05/31/16 5:41pm

FunkiestOne

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Yes it's a pretty good album, but not one of his special ones. But solid and enjoyable enough to listen to. The title track is excellent.

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Reply #10 posted 05/31/16 5:54pm

jdcxc

bonatoc said:[quote]

A strong contender for the most underrated album.

Reviews were pretty negative at the time it came out,
but when the dust settled, it appeared like one of his most fun,
joyous, rebel records ever.

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Reply #11 posted 05/31/16 6:28pm

PurpleColossus

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bonatoc said:

A strong contender for the most underrated album.

.

Agreed nod

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Reply #12 posted 05/31/16 6:57pm

214

I like Dinner With Dolores, Into The Light, I Will and Had U.

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Reply #13 posted 05/31/16 7:01pm

slakk

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Cover Art

I like it.

The color of the Pharaoh's hand is purple
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Reply #14 posted 05/31/16 7:02pm

maplesyrupnjam

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It's pretty unfoccused in my opinion. I hate I Rock Therfore I Am for some reason I can never put my finger on. Into The Light must be the cheesiest chorus he ever came up with. It sounds like Barry Manilow on Acid crossed with Kenny G or something. The Title track is great as is Dig You Better Dead.

Had U is fantastic though. The guitar notes at the end of that are sublime. Too short however.

Overall, I'd say it's a middling Album and not one I revsit much.

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Reply #15 posted 05/31/16 8:02pm

214

maplesyrupnjam said:

It's pretty unfoccused in my opinion. I hate I Rock Therfore I Am for some reason I can never put my finger on. Into The Light must be the cheesiest chorus he ever came up with. It sounds like Barry Manilow on Acid crossed with Kenny G or something. The Title track is great as is Dig You Better Dead.

Had U is fantastic though. The guitar notes at the end of that are sublime. Too short however.

Overall, I'd say it's a middling Album and not one I revsit much.

Indeed.

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Reply #16 posted 05/31/16 9:24pm

bluegangsta

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This album is Exibit A that the "Prince hasn't done anything great since the 80's mentality" has resulted is some amazing stuff being ignored.

Always cry 4 love, never cry 4 pain.
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Reply #17 posted 05/31/16 10:31pm

jimmy3121

Always have had this album close by since the release- even have a huge poster of it AND in a conversation with Mr. Hayes in Tampa Bay after a aftershow.... he confirmed " That's a good album"....at that time I thought I was the only one who recognized....also I saw it only sold 100,000 copies so with my 2 that= 99,998....I have live Zannalee on boots - been to 11 shows total never saw it done live= bummer.

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Reply #18 posted 06/01/16 12:19am

jaypotton

Always loved C&D but was always a bit bothered by Prince's attitude... This was of course a kiss off to Warner Bros along with OF4S to get out of his contract. However, Prince knew fans (who supported him) would still buy it but he shortchanged us a bit too. Had Prince added in a couple more out takes from that era the album would have been an awesome angry rock album it deserved to be. I have the following as the playlist for album...

Chaos & Disorder
I Like It There
Dinner With Delores
The Same December
Calhoun Square
Zanalee
I Rock Therefore I Am (though would prefer no Scrap rap)
Into The Light
I Will
Dig U Better Dead
The Ride
Empty Room
Had U
'I loved him then, I love him now and will love him eternally. He's with our son now.' Mayte 21st April 2016 = the saddest quote I have ever read! RIP Prince and thanks for everything.
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Reply #19 posted 06/01/16 12:21am

jaypotton

IstenSzek said:

to this day, this is the way i prefer to listen to this album. it's so good:


01. Chaos and Disorder


02. I Like It There


03. Dinner With Delores


04. Same December
05. Calhoun Sq
06. Zannalee


07. Into The Light


08. I Will


09. Da Bang


10. Empty Room


11. Had U




love music





Just realised my version is almost the same as yours including order of songs! Left Da Bang as a B side though
'I loved him then, I love him now and will love him eternally. He's with our son now.' Mayte 21st April 2016 = the saddest quote I have ever read! RIP Prince and thanks for everything.
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Reply #20 posted 06/01/16 12:51am

dodger

IstenSzek said:

to this day, this is the way i prefer to listen to this album. it's so good:


01. Chaos and Disorder

02. I Like It There

03. Dinner With Delores

04. Same December
05. Calhoun Sq
06. Zannalee

07. Into The Light

08. I Will

09. Da Bang

10. Empty Room

11. Had U


love music



Nice. I've always loved it but as above it could have been even better if he added the likes of Calhoun Square, which would have fitted perfectly.

.

Regarding Empty Room - I'll always associate that with the Gold era after seeing the video pre-show on the tour so I was surprised to learn the video used 'the original 1985 music' (according to PrinceVault).. Of course it could have been originally wrote/recorded back then but that video version has that 94-95 NPG sound to me so I thought it must have been re-recorded

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Reply #21 posted 06/01/16 1:50am

bluegangsta

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dodger said:

IstenSzek said:

to this day, this is the way i prefer to listen to this album. it's so good:


01. Chaos and Disorder

02. I Like It There

03. Dinner With Delores

04. Same December
05. Calhoun Sq
06. Zannalee

07. Into The Light

08. I Will

09. Da Bang

10. Empty Room

11. Had U


love music



Nice. I've always loved it but as above it could have been even better if he added the likes of Calhoun Square, which would have fitted perfectly.

.

Regarding Empty Room - I'll always associate that with the Gold era after seeing the video pre-show on the tour so I was surprised to learn the video used 'the original 1985 music' (according to PrinceVault).. Of course it could have been originally wrote/recorded back then but that video version has that 94-95 NPG sound to me so I thought it must have been re-recorded

Definitly not re-recorded, all original. The only thing I suspect about it, is that it might be an edit.

Always cry 4 love, never cry 4 pain.
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Reply #22 posted 06/01/16 1:59am

dodger

bluegangsta said:

dodger said:

Nice. I've always loved it but as above it could have been even better if he added the likes of Calhoun Square, which would have fitted perfectly.

.

Regarding Empty Room - I'll always associate that with the Gold era after seeing the video pre-show on the tour so I was surprised to learn the video used 'the original 1985 music' (according to PrinceVault).. Of course it could have been originally wrote/recorded back then but that video version has that 94-95 NPG sound to me so I thought it must have been re-recorded

Definitly not re-recorded, all original. The only thing I suspect about it, is that it might be an edit.

Yes, I believe that to be true as it's on the reliable PrinceVault.

.

But don't you think it has that 94/95 sound? Or is it just a psychological thing with me because the NPG are playing along to it in the video and I've just always associated it with the Gold era

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Reply #23 posted 06/01/16 2:21am

novabrkr

I've always liked it a lot. It's a strangely rewarding record to listen to despite being supposedly a throwaway release.

There's something of a, dare I say, "classic album" vibe to the first three tracks. They're not his best songs, but I really just like the way the album opens with those three.

I don't mind the "dance" tracks on it. Actually, "Dig U Better Dead" works very well after "I Will". The "ragga" stuff from "I Rock Therefore I Am" I could have done without. It's a pretty nice tune otherwise.

Oh yeah, and "Into The Light" is sublime. Maybe his best "proggy" track.

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Reply #24 posted 06/01/16 2:38am

feeluupp

2 b honest it's a great rock album. very underlooked, and much better than Emancipation in my opinion.

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Reply #25 posted 06/01/16 2:52am

MoBettaBliss

i dig it

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Reply #26 posted 06/01/16 3:07am

lynx

One of my favourites and his only "rock" album, really

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Reply #27 posted 06/01/16 4:36am

stoneriver

lynx said:

One of my favourites and his only "rock" album, really




Lotusflower
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Reply #28 posted 06/01/16 5:02am

mightycow

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This is not an album I listen to a lot. I have to say though that - just like with 'The Vault : Old Friends 4 Sale' - it has a very consistent overall vibe. If I'm not mistaken most of these songs were recorded very close to each other in time? I don't consider it a classic album. 6 tracks are really keepers to me (see asterisk)

  1. Chaos and Disorder: high energy (*)
  2. I Like It There: lacks originality but it's okay
  3. Dinner with Delores: LOVED the lyrics (*)
  4. The Same December: solid (*)
  5. Right The Wrong: sometimes I dig it, sometimes it just makes me LOL (so cheesy)
  6. Zanalee: love the guitar on this, bluesy rock. good vocal performance too (*)
  7. I Rock: meh, I feel the same about this as on 'I like It There'
  8. + 9. Into The Light: nice intimate moment (*)
  9. cf above
  10. Dig U Better Dead : a lot of bark, lacks some bite
  11. Had U: this is the most cynical I have ever heard Prince. love this track (*)

[Edited 6/1/16 10:38am]

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Reply #29 posted 06/01/16 5:51am

CAL3

feeluupp said:

2 b honest it's a great rock album. very underlooked, and much better than Emancipation in my opinion.



This is what I have always felt. The only track I'm not that wild about is "I Rock."

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