First, I like both albums, but me personally I would go with 3121. But Prince made such a BIG deal about real musicians playing real instruments for him doing the complete opposite with 3121, I could never understand. Anyone have their own theroies as to why he would do this?

donnyenglish said:

Probably a tie but both among his very best work.

Not in the Prince fan universe, only yours

I'm more of a Musicology person on balance... it's got more personal favourites on it. I can't think of a single 3121 track I like as much as "Illusion, Coma", but as an entire piece of work, 3121 sounds fine while it's playing.

3121 is the classier, more polished work. But Musicology has some great high points.

Also, 3121 doesn't have Life O The Party on it

Musicology for me.

It has two of Prince's worst tracks on it - Life O' The Party and Cinnamon Girl - yet it still trumps

3121, which is half good, half deathly dull.

For me, Lolita, Beautiful, Bored and Dead, Love, Fury, The Word are all half assed nonsense.

I like 3121, Te Amo Corazon, Black Sweat, Satisfied.

The Dance and Get On The Boat are okay songs performed in a very boring way, and Incense & Candles in cringily embarrassing, yet somehow emerges as a guilty pleasure.

It's one of his most muted and underwhelming albums for me, where none of his unique flair really shines through. It's like the album he would make if he was really forced to under duress. THere's nothing natural or energetic about it. It feels stiff and uninspired.

So while Musicology is no classic, it's more engaging and fun to me, particularly the sequence in the back half.

feeluupp said:

Both for me.

2/3 of musicology and 1/3 of 3121

leecaldon said:

3121 is the classier, more polished work. But Musicology has some great high points.

Also, 3121 doesn't have Life O The Party on it

Agreed, but it does have Incense and Candles on it , 3121 4 me 2 also, haven't heard it in 4ever tho .

These two albums finished very close together in the recent album poll I hosted: 3121 finished as the 18th most beloved Prince studio album, and Musicology finished as the 20th most beloved.

I have a pretty strong preference for 3121, which I think is one of his best post-80s albums. It has the mainstream appeal of Musicology but returns with the Princely weirdness that I felt was lacking in Musicology. I rate 3121 an 8.8/10 (11th on my list of Prince studio albums) and Musicology a 7.1/10 (29th).

As for the return of the synths and a relaxation of the "real music by real musicians" stance, I welcome it. Synths are such a huge part of Prince's sound, and while Musicology does have some, they are both more prominent and better on 3121. The title track alone blows anything on Musicology out of the water synth-wise, sound-wise, and "essence of Prince"-wise.

donnyenglish said:

feeluupp said:

Not in the Prince fan universe, only yours

Nope. Lots of people in the fan universe feel the way I do. I have been in that universe since 1980 so my frame of reference is not 1984, like most in that universe.

Intersting point Donny. I wonder how many other fans from the 80s would rank 3121 and Musicology as up their with his best? To me his 80s work was the pinnacle. He was a force of nature back then, breaking new ground with awesome song writing inspiration. I was instantly amazed at the ingenuity of every new album that came out. Whereas in the 00s, with the exception of possibly TRC and Lotusflower, everything seemed like the drummer, Bland. In comparison to his 80s work I mean. Still awesome by anyone elses standards. 3121 the title track stands out to me, as a new world funk anthem.

milesb said:

MIRvmn said:

milesb said:

luv4u said:

Empress said:

luv4u said:

Both for me.

Me too! I enjoy both albums very much. I guess we're not part of the Prince fan universe

Never said they weren't good albums... But in my opinion, when you talk about the BEST PRINCE ALBUMS Musicology and 3121 are not apart of that list, for me at least... When you say BEST Prince albums I think of SOTT, PURPLE RAIN, 1999, PARADE, etc... Musicology does not immediatley pop in my head... Doesn't mean it's not a good album, but I can't consider it one of Prince's BEST works.

MattyJam said:

MIRvmn said:

I think I prefer Musicology. It doesn't have any strong tracks but the album flows well.

You wouldn't consider Call My Name a strong track? [Edited 1/27/19 5:02am]

That's actually one of the tracks that drags down Musicology for me. It's a slog to sit through.

macaylasdad said:

First, I like both albums, but me personally I would go with 3121. But Prince made such a BIG deal about real musicians playing real instruments for him doing the complete opposite with 3121, I could never understand. Anyone have their own theroies as to why he would do this?

I like 3121 more, come on! Black Sweat! Love! I like musicology as well, but i prefer 3121.

I would have to say that I listened to 3121 more, Musicology is weird to me because when I went to the concert, I loved the songs & on the car ride home I really enjoyed the CD. The very next day it changed for me (lol), I couldn't get into it. Over the years I would go back to certain songs, like Musicology, What Do Want Me To Do & Call My Name. But the other day I listened to it all the way thru again & enjoyed it. I was on wine & weed @ the time (lol).