The topic has come up before as to what album should be used to introduce Prince to a non-fan... HOWEVER - I feel like my question is a little different, so I wanted to gather your opinions.

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I'm doing a weekly "Album-Club" (much like a book club) where me, and 2 of my co-workers rotate on picking an album to "expand the minds of our fellow music lovers". we listen to the albums and then meet for drinks and discuss - track by track.

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Problem is - my friends have totally different taste for their band obsessions: Oasis, and Nirvana. So we are all struggling to find an album, by our respective artists, that showcase why why love them and/or highlight them to "newbies".

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I like those bands a lot, so I won't mind listening and doing my weekly "homework" for whatever albums they choose during their weeks...

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Mine is a little tricker b/c Prince has literally a different sound for almost every album.

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I don't know WHICH album I should pick as the INTRO for them into Prince and all his talent.

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Every album is so different............ especially from 1978 - 1991 (which is probably the era I want to stick within for this initial excersize).

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Albums I'm debating between:

1. 1999 - b/c it shows his different style, and yet still includes a hit they would know (LRC). is more "mainstream" at that point in his career but shows crazy good talent with the drum machines and "futuristic" music for 1982....BUT.......... I dunno!

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2. Purple Rain - mainly b/c it's amazing, and it's the most commercial - and when I "educate" them on Prince up until that point I could use it as "this was what he built up to every year to achieve his goal of global superstardom - the world saw what he knew was true - that he was awesome. hahaha

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3. Controversy - B/c this album is prior to the 2 more "mainstream" albums - but it's sexy, and would really show his pre-Purple Rain days in full glory - while still being slightly into the 80's...

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4. Sign o' The Times - B/c it's the most "underated" album of the 80's and has a lot of artistically fantastic songs that might show his true depth.... I could talk about Camile, and the 3 disc album he WANTED to put out, etc.

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5. Dirty Mind - b/c it's amazing. My only drawbacks is that it's still very funky/70's vibe and might not show them the "mainstream" reason he is so talented... which brings me back to my original 2 choices.

HELP!

Your options aren't that tricky. You can go in sequential order. Make your own top 30 list, and run with it. Divide up between "Prince" records and "band" records. Minneapolis sound records first (because not all were the MPLS sound, really).

You should pick what you like. Your friends are going to pick their favorite, or the fan favorite, or the radio favorite, or the "one that got them on the lips of America" favorite. You can do the same.

It's also a tad close-minded to think only Prince had different sounds & growth album to album. If you want to expand your mind, don't go into your Tuesday Night Music Club* thinking you're the sole carrier of the diversity-in-music burden. Part of the blessing of music is hearing things you didn't think would be there, based on assumptions or whatever. So don't block your blessing by thinking your struggle is trickier or special.

But, to start, I'd go with Dirty Mind. It's raw Prince, all demos, a great array of styles, hooks, lyrics, instrumentation, etc.
* props to anyone who gets that reference without looking it up

TrivialPursuit said:

Your options aren't that tricky. You can go in sequential order. Make your own top 30 list, and run with it. Divide up between "Prince" records and "band" records. Minneapolis sound records first (because not all were the MPLS sound, really).

You should pick what you like. Your friends are going to pick their favorite, or the fan favorite, or the radio favorite, or the "one that got them on the lips of America" favorite. You can do the same.

It's also a tad close-minded to think only Prince had different sounds & growth album to album. If you want to expand your mind, don't go into your Tuesday Night Music Club* thinking you're the sole carrier of the diversity-in-music burden. Part of the blessing of music is hearing things you didn't think would be there, based on assumptions or whatever. So don't block your blessing by thinking your struggle is trickier or special.

But, to start, I'd go with Dirty Mind. It's raw Prince, all demos, a great array of styles, hooks, lyrics, instrumentation, etc.
* props to anyone who gets that reference without looking it up

Thanks for the input. I definitely don't think he's the only artist that had growth and different sounds (I'm also a huge Beatles fan, and they are like 2 different bands from the begining to the end..) But I appreciate the reality check - you're right, the 4 albums Nirvana came out with probably have different sounds.

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My concern I think was that an album liek "Parade" or "Around the World in a Day" are COMPLETELY different than "Purple Rain" or "Contraversy" - just for my first album, I have been struggling which one to pick.

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I think I've narrowed it down to 1999 or Contraversy.

I think 1999 or Sign O/ the Times would be good. 1999 for all the reasons you listed and Times because it perfectly captures how diverse his sound is. I mean Slow Love and It on the same album? Craziness.

PCEANDBWLD said:

Thanks for the input. I definitely don't think he's the only artist that had growth and different sounds (I'm also a huge Beatles fan, and they are like 2 different bands from the begining to the end..) But I appreciate the reality check - you're right, the 4 albums Nirvana came out with probably have different sounds.

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My concern I think was that an album liek "Parade" or "Around the World in a Day" are COMPLETELY different than "Purple Rain" or "Controversy" - just for my first album, I have been struggling which one to pick.

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I think I've narrowed it down to 1999 or Controversy.

People have their own conceptions of who Prince was, or what he sounded like. So to worry about Parade vs. 1999 is irrelevant. They're going to draw their own conclusions anyway. However, since casual Prince fans know him more for things like "1999" or "When Doves Cry", at least start with a Minneapolis sound album. Controversy is a good length, lots of variety including funk, ballad, rockabilly, rock, R&B, etc., and certainly paints a wide canvas of color, texture, politics, religion, social issues, sex, and love in just eight tracks.

In contrast, 1999 could prove to be too long, and overwhelming so early on in this experiment of listening & hashing. (You might even consider dividing SOTT into 2 disks over 2 weeks, too.) While we might love 9 minutes of "Automatic", they might lose interest after 4 or 5 minutes.

NorthC said:

Controversy is not a bad one to start with. It has a bit if that rebellious rock & roll spirit that may appeal to Nirvana fans. And imagine them hearing The Lords Prayer all of a sudden! I think you guys would have plenty to talk about. Also 1999 being a double album, it may be a little too long for a newcomer.

Very true. The Nirvana album we are listening to this week is "In Utero" which is not their most commercial album. My friend picked it b/c it is one of her favorite albums, and introduces us to songs that maybe only true Nirvana fans know. As for 1999 being too long, I see your point - this is GREAT FEEDBACK! THANK YOU!

aaroncanderson said:

I think 1999 or Sign O/ the Times would be good. 1999 for all the reasons you listed and Times because it perfectly captures how diverse his sound is. I mean Slow Love and It on the same album? Craziness.

See, I agree with you about both of these - however one of the things that NorthC said that I am leaning towards is that it might be too long for a newcomer - and both of these albums are long. As for SOTT, although it's artistically a fantastic album (my ringtone is If I was your GF) - I am not sure it would stand out as the best "intro" album for non-Prince listeners... I struggle. You can now see my delima. Thank you for your input!!!

TrivialPursuit said:

PCEANDBWLD said:

Thanks for the input. I definitely don't think he's the only artist that had growth and different sounds (I'm also a huge Beatles fan, and they are like 2 different bands from the begining to the end..) But I appreciate the reality check - you're right, the 4 albums Nirvana came out with probably have different sounds.

.

My concern I think was that an album liek "Parade" or "Around the World in a Day" are COMPLETELY different than "Purple Rain" or "Controversy" - just for my first album, I have been struggling which one to pick.

.

I think I've narrowed it down to 1999 or Controversy.

People have their own conceptions of who Prince was, or what he sounded like. So to worry about Parade vs. 1999 is irrelevant. They're going to draw their own conclusions anyway. However, since casual Prince fans know him more for things like "1999" or "When Doves Cry", at least start with a Minneapolis sound album. Controversy is a good length, lots of variety including funk, ballad, rockabilly, rock, R&B, etc., and certainly paints a wide canvas of color, texture, politics, religion, social issues, sex, and love in just eight tracks.

In contrast, 1999 could prove to be too long, and overwhelming so early on in this experiment of listening & hashing. (You might even consider dividing SOTT into 2 disks over 2 weeks, too.) While we might love 9 minutes of "Automatic", they might lose interest after 4 or 5 minutes.

Yea - I'm trying to overcome their preconceived notions by possibly introducing them to something outside of what they think they know... 1999 COULD be too long and overwhelming - I like your point about losing interest after 4-5 minutes.

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Do you think the same could happen possibly during the album versions of "Controversy" and "Do Me Baby"? if I were to pick that album? Those are pretty long as well and some of the best parts of the song are at the end.

PCEANDBWLD said:

Do you think the same could happen possibly during the album versions of "Controversy" and "Do Me Baby"? if I were to pick that album? Those are pretty long as well and some of the best parts of the song are at the end.

It's still just a one-disk album. I think if they know there are only 8 or 9 songs, they're more likely to listen to a 7-minute track, then two disks worth of 8-minute songs. It's psychological, really. "One disk - how long can it be?" I'd stick with 1-disk albums for now, and just for whatever peanut butters your jelly.

Want more contrast, go from Parade to Chaos and Disorder, or ATWIAD to Come. Also, think about bands like The Moody Blues or Steely Dan, or even Donna Summer who might take up a whole side with a medley of songs, or just one song for 17 minutes (a la "Love To Love You Baby", or "MacArthur Park Medley"). ELO put a 4-song concerto in the middle of a double-LP set. It's all relative. Stick with one-disk albums, and start with Controversy. You can't baby them into something. Everyone has a common agreement that they're going to listen to this record this week.