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Thread started 03/30/17 2:00pm

rusty1

Sign o'The Times album:Appreciation

I just read Questlove's instagram post.
He talked about that magical ride of Prince,
From 1978 to 88...
I agree 100% with him about Prince
Being in a zone from 1982 to 87...
Anyway, this was his last GREAT release..
In my opinion.
This album kicked major ass & covered so many
different styles of music.
Who knew, at the time ,that he would never
come close to topping this piece of work.

Prince at his heights where he would sing about
sex & then turn a 180 with spirtual beautiful tunes.
For example, a song such as "It" to "The Cross" in
a snap of a finger.

I could go on & on all day about this timeless classic
double album.

Happy 30th Anniversary!!
Sign o'The times
[Edited 3/30/17 14:01pm]
BOB4theFUNK
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Reply #1 posted 03/30/17 3:33pm

TKO

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It wasn't his last great album, but it's a masterpiece not only for Prince, but for music in general. It influenced and impacted countless artists.

One of my favorite albums, it shares the spotlight with Parade, Purple Rain and Dirty Mind.

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Reply #2 posted 03/30/17 3:54pm

rusty1

TKO said:

It wasn't his last great album, but it's a masterpiece not only for Prince, but for music in general. It influenced and impacted countless artists.



One of my favorite albums, it shares the spotlight with Parade, Purple Rain and Dirty Mind.


1980 to 87 is why Prince will always be a legend.
Questlove was on the money when he said "it was
his last album that would ever shock us"..

Prince had albums that were ok to good after Sign..
The bottom line is that he never had a classic album after this
BOB4theFUNK
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Reply #3 posted 03/30/17 4:13pm

seanski

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What an amazing album! I remember buying this album 30 years ago in Puerto Rico from the Navy exchange for $13. I also bought the cassette. I still have that same album and cassette. I bought the album knowing damn well I had no record player on the ship but I had to have it for my collection. I also wanted to see what the inner sleeves look like inside. biggrin

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Reply #4 posted 03/30/17 4:21pm

Adorecream

A complete masterpiece, but not his last.

Every song is great and it fits, the best of all is Adore.

Prince was in such a difficult heap space when he wrote it.

It came out of the ashes of Dream Factory, Crystal Ball and Camille.

Warner Brother stifled his creativity, he would not 4get.

The funk justified the pop, pazz and jop.

Great music goes on, Prince bought the music 4rth from the muse.

Every song hit its point, said what it meant.

Critics swooned, the detractors boohooed, 4 Camille had his day

Spooky electric had more in store, Camille cried

Prince decided to put them both away until the Black album.

.

After that doggerel, there was one more masterpiece left

Lovesexy, a great album, yet not as adventurous sonically as

this and Parade before it.

.

I urge all fans who have not heard bootlegs and unreleased jams

he recorded for it to listen to them as well.

[Edited 3/30/17 16:23pm]

Got some kind of love for you, and I don't even know your name
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Reply #5 posted 03/30/17 4:35pm

Doozer

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SOTT deserves the pedastal people put it on. It's an amazing ride, and my favorite Prince album.

I also don't agree that it was his last great album. It might be the last of a STRING of great albums (Lovesexy is really the end of his unbelievalbe string of masterpieces), but there are great albums and certainly a large number of great songs long after SOTT.

Questlove's statement of "it's his last album that would ever shock us" is almost absurd. He was a decade into his career at that point — when you release ten albums (two of them double albums), do you really expect hardcore fans to be SHOCKED anymore? There were countless surprising and delightful moments on Prince's studio albums that followed SOTT, and I think he did plenty to surprise people between 1987 and 2016. The Black Album cancellation that followed SOTT was shocking, and people geeked out over the bootleg releases of it. And that was just a year after SOTT.

But whatever, SOTT is still untouchable today, and does not sound like a 30 year old album.

Check out The Mountains and the Sea, a Prince podcast by yours truly and my wife. More info at https://www.facebook.com/TMATSPodcast/
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Reply #6 posted 03/30/17 4:59pm

thisisreece

Certainly a contender for the best Prince album, and a serious case can be made for it being one of the best albums by anyone. I love how the album seems incredibly cohesive while the album's styles and songs are so varied (especially impressive with the knowledge that it wasn't concieved as a singular project). I listened to the album earlier today and like whenever I take the time to listen to the album from start to finish, I feel like I have been on a journey. The sequencing of the album is perfect. It's an experience.

The album also contrains perhaps my two favourite Prince songs, 'The Ballad of Dorothy Parker', and 'If I was Your Girlfriend'.

It's not his last great album though. That would be 'The Rainbow Children' in my opinion.

Hundalasiliah!
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Reply #7 posted 03/30/17 5:35pm

TrivialPursuit

avatar

It's certainly short-sighted to say that an album released 30 years ago (when the career ended just 1 year ago) was his last great album.

I was in bootcamp when SOTT was out, so once I was done in May, I snapped it up and absorbed all of it. "Beautiful Night" was an instant favorite.

The songs, the b-sides, the movie - just a fun and newly fresh time in his career.

Other great albums, in case y'all forgot: Lovesexy, prince, The Gold Experience, Come, 3121, Batman...to name a few. I would even add The Rainbow Children sans the preachy parts.

[Edited 3/30/17 19:09pm]

"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 #8 posted 03/30/17 5:42pm

jaawwnn

It and It's Gonna be a Beautiful Night are as strong as the rest of the album, i'll fight anyone who says different lol

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Reply #9 posted 03/30/17 6:01pm

SanDiegoFunkDa
ddy

His best album project period. I remember Mojo was already playing half of the album on the air in Feb 1987. callers were requesting Hot Thing a month before the album came out. Around March 7th Mojo got fired after a dispute with management. I think if Mojo didn't get fired the album would have been even bigger than it was. So in Detroit the album release was bittersweet because Mojo had a tradition of launching a new Prince project in a grandiose fashion. He even played the first Madhouse album on the air

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Reply #10 posted 03/30/17 6:58pm

UncleJam

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In my humble opinion, Prince has 4 masterpieces...Dirty Mind, 1999, Purple Rain, SOTT...SOTT is the best. I wont call it his last GREAT album, but the argument could easily be made.

Make it so, Number One...
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Reply #11 posted 03/30/17 7:25pm

pdiddy2011

I'm very serious when I say Sign O the Times would likely be my "desert island" pick. I can't think of another album, by anyone, that I would agree is better. There are quite a few GREAT albums, but better than Sign O the Times? eek

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Reply #12 posted 03/30/17 8:23pm

purplethunder3
121

avatar

Nobody did it better.

"Music gives a soul to the universe, wings to the mind, flight to the imagination and life to everything." --Plato

https://youtu.be/CVwv9LZMah0
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Reply #13 posted 03/30/17 9:01pm

gandorb

The incredibly diversity of great songs is what make it so great to me. It is not my favorite album of Prince to play from start to finish, but it has more great and very good songs (10s and 9s) than any Prince album. They work so well when placed in all types of play-lists. In contrast, I think the best way to hear the songs of his other 80s masterpieces is to listen to the whole album in one sitting. The songs seem to cohere together to make a whole that is better than it's parts.

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Reply #14 posted 03/30/17 9:30pm

206Michelle

So I am a special education teacher and am showing my appreciation for SOTT by playing Starfish and Coffee as my "Song of the Week" in my classroom all week long! I use it as a transition song between activities, so every 15 minutes, I play it. It's perfect...it's just under 3 minutes, it's upbeat, it's kid appropriate, it's Prince! S&C has been my "Song of the Week" numerous times this year.

Live 4 Love ~ Love is God, God is love, Girls and boys love God above
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Reply #15 posted 03/30/17 9:30pm

206Michelle

gandorb said:

The incredibly diversity of great songs is what make it so great to me. It is not my favorite album of Prince to play from start to finish, but it has more great and very good songs (10s and 9s) than any Prince album. They work so well when placed in all types of play-lists. In contrast, I think the best way to hear the songs of his other 80s masterpieces is to listen to the whole album in one sitting. The songs seem to cohere together to make a whole that is better than it's parts.

yeahthat

Live 4 Love ~ Love is God, God is love, Girls and boys love God above
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Reply #16 posted 03/30/17 10:07pm

HypnoBlue

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206Michelle said:

So I am a special education teacher and am showing my appreciation for SOTT by playing Starfish and Coffee as my "Song of the Week" in my classroom all week long! I use it as a transition song between activities, so every 15 minutes, I play it. It's perfect...it's just under 3 minutes, it's upbeat, it's kid appropriate, it's Prince! S&C has been my "Song of the Week" numerous times this year.

That's awesome. You're a super cool teacher cool

Despite everything, no one can dictate who you are to other people - prince 1958-2016 storm
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Reply #17 posted 03/31/17 12:03am

Adorecream

My tribute

.

3rd video in the series. Hope u all love, it is 25 minutes.

Got some kind of love for you, and I don't even know your name
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Reply #18 posted 03/31/17 5:17am

hardwork

TrivialPursuit said:

It's certainly short-sighted to say that an album released 30 years ago (when the career ended just 1 year ago) was his last great album.

I was in bootcamp when SOTT was out, so once I was done in May, I snapped it up and absorbed all of it. "Beautiful Night" was an instant favorite.

The songs, the b-sides, the movie - just a fun and newly fresh time in his career.

Other great albums, in case y'all forgot: Lovesexy, prince, The Gold Experience, Come, 3121, Batman...to name a few. I would even add The Rainbow Children sans the preachy parts.

[Edited 3/30/17 19:09pm]

'

Thank you. That is the best song on an entire double LP of truly great songs. I am not sure there has ever been an LP that closed stronger than "The Cross" "It's Gonna Be A Beautiful NighT" and "Adore" in the entire history of recorded music. I suspect Prince knew this too...

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Reply #19 posted 03/31/17 8:55am

ISaidLifeIsJus
tAGame

avatar

OMG Harry Styles just announced his first single is titled

"Sign of the Times."

WTF?

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Reply #20 posted 03/31/17 9:44am

2freaky4church
1

avatar

A true fans never ducks the 90s. Quest never mentions the 90s.

All you others say Hell Yea!! woot!
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Reply #21 posted 03/31/17 9:57am

rusty1

TrivialPursuit said:

It's certainly short-sighted to say that an album released 30 years ago (when the career ended just 1 year ago) was his last great album.

I was in bootcamp when SOTT was out, so once I was done in May, I snapped it up and absorbed all of it. "Beautiful Night" was an instant favorite.

The songs, the b-sides, the movie - just a fun and newly fresh time in his career.

Other great albums, in case y'all forgot: Lovesexy, prince, The Gold Experience, Come, 3121, Batman...to name a few. I would even add The Rainbow Children sans the preachy parts.

[Edited 3/30/17 19:09pm]



He never made a great album ever again
His best post 1987
Lovesexy
The gold experience
Emancipation
TRC
Let's be fair even those 4 albums
Are good to very good

Nothing beats his 80's best albums
BOB4theFUNK
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Reply #22 posted 03/31/17 11:37am

ldmendes

avatar

Listening to it right now... music

..Hello, who is it?
Yes, this is a prettyman, Princey!
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Reply #23 posted 03/31/17 11:54am

khill95

SanDiegoFunkDaddy said:

His best album project period. I remember Mojo was already playing half of the album on the air in Feb 1987. callers were requesting Hot Thing a month before the album came out. Around March 7th Mojo got fired after a dispute with management. I think if Mojo didn't get fired the album would have been even bigger than it was. So in Detroit the album release was bittersweet because Mojo had a tradition of launching a new Prince project in a grandiose fashion. He even played the first Madhouse album on the air

eek eek Now that radio is ruled by iHeartMedia, you know damn well that wouldn't happen today lol lol A whole album played on the radio?? Ha...good luck!

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Reply #24 posted 03/31/17 12:10pm

purplerabbitho
le

This what questlove said...

there will be no high like the high music fans felt when Prince was releasing magic every year like it was chewing gum.
he made it look THAT easy. i feel some sort of way about Sign O The Times. I'm one of those spoiled cats that appreciate his output.
but i also cap "the genius period" from 78-88 (and if you REALLY wanna get to the zone, i say 1982-1987 were the core years in the magic 10)--- #SignOTheTimes was essentially a catalog album showing a collection of his range and perfect songwriting, pop craftsmanship. ace musicianship, and just plain weirdo magic. this would mark the last time Prince's music would shock and surprise me. not to be mistaken for "the last time Prince made music i cared about" or "his last good album"---most artists get 2 albums to blow our minds before they start coasting on autopilot. the fact that Prince has 12-14 albums worth of grade A material is a miracle (dont forget his prolific pen game on Sheila E., Vanity/Apollonia 6, The Time/The Family & Jill Jones projects) each album making you "WHOA!" more than the last time. this is Jordan winning 6 rings on The Bulls. This is Curry shooting 8 3pt shots in a row from half court. i can't come up with a more explosive definition of why on its 30th anniversary, Sign O' The Times is just as magic today is it ALWAYS was. if you are in the "what's the big deal?" zone. brush up on your history. songwriting and arranging is a dangerous game. you gotta be effective. hit bullseye. be original. shocking, digestible, and 14 other things i haven't mentioned. if you are a @prince newbie i say start from the top w 78's For You and move forward. or the very end and work backwards. this way you get the full scope of his range. it doesn't get any better than this. Happy 30th Anniversary #SignOTheTimes

Questlove talks about 12-14 albums worth of Grade A material..unless he is talking about just 80's Prince and his proteges (and who in their right mind would say the Apollonia 6 album penned by prince is better than the Love Symbol Album) then he must like some of his later work a great deal.) If he is talking about Prince's 80's albums between 82 and 88 and the Apolonnia 6 music being equal in quality then he is suffering from serious nostalgia.
He is also not saying Prince's 90's work didn't have quality. I think he was essentially saying that the magic it-factor/consistency wasn't there any more. And apparently if he thinks great musicians can only churn out 2 great albums before autopilot than he is one extremely picky mofo. But remember, he reviewed all of P's warner brother releases in an article once (minus the most recent AOA) and he gave a four star review (out of 5) to both the Truth album and Dirty Mind. So let that one sink in.
Questlove's opinions about P's 2000 onward work are a mystery to me. But he sees Prince's consistency to be gone after 88, but still seemed to recognize his talent.
Also, Rusty1, stop acting like Questlove's opinion and your own are the only ones that matter.
In my opinion, P needed a better editor in his later music, needed to leave behind new jack swing and hip-hop but the quality of much of his work later in life ( individual songs) still blew my mind. . I love the Sign of the Times. (its one of the handful of vinyls I actually own.) But I can't pretend to love the song "IT" more than "7" or "The Question of U".

[Edited 3/31/17 12:16pm]

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Reply #25 posted 03/31/17 12:13pm

FullLipsDotNos
e

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I music to Starfish and Coffee today. My most favourite piece off the album smile

full lips, freckles, and upturned nose
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Reply #26 posted 03/31/17 12:21pm

rusty1

It's a shame how Prince ruined this release.
Always thinking about the next project did him in,
With this album.
If he releases any of those pop accesible songs
as the 2nd single.. The album would've stayed in
the top 10 for awhile.
Secondly, that tour had the makings of his best ever.
Just think about it..
The classic album cover as the backdrop for his stage set was
amazing looking in the movie.
Plus he had a cool image going on as well.

That album should've sold 5 to 6 million , In the U.S.
"ICNTTPOYM" was an obvious second single choice.
An easy top 5 hit single.. Instead of it barely hitting
number 10 later on.
Then release " forever in my life" next,etc

This album had so much potential to rival " Purple Rain"
With the album sales..
Oh well..
What's frustrating is that the average music fan looks
Past this great album.
After he died, people were nostalgic for the PR era.

If Prince played his cards right, in 1987..
The public as a whole would've thought about this era as well.
He had 3 top 10 hit singles which could've easily been
5 to 6 if handled the right way.
Prince's biggest mistake was never touring the states
With one of the greatest double albums of all time
[Edited 3/31/17 12:27pm]
BOB4theFUNK
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Reply #27 posted 03/31/17 3:02pm

GiggityGoo

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Spent the morning listening to the album, and reading all the online analysis-in-hindsight articles.

.

This was the album that made me a believer. I listen to it all the way through multiple times a year. But today I really sat and listened, concentrating on it. What an achievement.

.

And I listened to the B-sides and extended versions and remixes, too, because I'm that kind of fan.

.

Days like today make me remember that he's no longer here, but man, did he leave us an amazing legacy.

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Reply #28 posted 03/31/17 3:13pm

lrn36

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Three decades later, Prince’s Sign O’ The Times keeps showing different sides of itself

http://www.avclub.com/art...sho-252625

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Reply #29 posted 03/31/17 6:41pm

luvgirl

Watching the movie tonight... heart heart heart fallinluv fallinluv
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