What do you all think?
My opinion on this : Prince was innovative when it came to his graphic design in every sence of the word (as well as his personal style and fashion) during the eighties.
It was kitschy but daring, and most of all, completely original crossing boundaries.
I think he lost it completely when it comes to those kind of arts for the last couple of years. (13 to 14 years!)
I didn't like the "OneNiteAlone" boxset- the layout sucks big time! It even looks cheaper than a regular bootleg release. That 'big' booklet that accompanies the 3CD set, is full of bad lay-outs. Even the subjects of the pictures, the way Prince is portrayed here, it really is so outdated. The text is overall way too big, and the style of the text is cheap. (let alone the subject: fams telling us about him..)
The same goes for 'One Nite Alone', the piano album: a birdsnest on a fucking piano? It reminds me of those posters when i was 10 years old; glossy girls with waving hair floating in a full galop of horses.. with blurry adges and a strong airbrush feel to it! Jesuschrist!
As well as for the new oldlooking 'N.E.W.S.' package. My god what a complete idiot design, the pictures inside, the text design, the foldout thin carbon paper shit that doesn't work properly, the corners just get all slappy. It's just plain aweful! (pyramides.. again?)
'The Rainbow Children' too was weak and crappy when it comes to the booklet. Even prince at the side of the CD in 'green'! it doesn't suit him at all (not in that particular 'green' or sweater whatever). Let alone the design for the 'RaveUn2..' and 'Rave In2..' CDs they are to be forgotten as well - Prince in that spacesuit, like he's ready to take a 1920's rocketship to a paper moon with someone's face into it. If only it was like that, it would be great!
'Grafitti Bridge'? My god, RUN!
'Diamond and Pearls'? the costumes of the bandmembers were so wrong! and prince's hair 'n shirt 'n tie. those video's!
The 'O{+>' album. the so called 'city' on the cover, the bellydancing.. the sword and the lightnings in the video's..
'The Hits & B-Sides' were more or less ok, but not much of an interesting package, except for the foreword. but hey, that was WB playing it safe for once! Prince had no hand in that.
'The gold Experience'? (but i liked what Versace did to him: 'printless' clothings and a good haircut, a combination of male and female looks, still kitsch but stylish and very masculine in some ways).
'Come'?? (although i think some of the black and white pics where pretty ok, if it wasn't for that hairdo, oh brother!)
'New Power Soul'???
'Emancipation' (that's the worst, those fists and the chains, come on!)???
I realy try to look and see something realy good in there (the nineties releases i mean.) And the reason why i'm pointing out at this is that i always looked at, and listened to Prince's music with all my sences. Ears and eyes and all the rest - it was a demanding nescesity to understand the whole 'Prince and his music' image and idea. One thing i learned from this, Prince is very very kitchy. But that's ok. I didn't dare to admid it at first.
But also with kitsch there is qualitly and bullshit!
If i look at the graphic design of the NPGMC webdsign, i start to cry, and my heart starts to bleed. It even looked better in the days of 1993 when the 'Interactive' CDro was released, although it also looked a bit dated back then when it came out. Typical Prince in many ways, but hardly no imagination in it's whole.
The world of the NPGMC nowadays.. I CAN'T believe Prince wants to live within these walls, record in this studio, hang out in that misserable vault (the furnishings, oh my god!), that chatroom interior; spew, puke! The uncombined styles of it all! The hallways, the unforgetable 'church-alike' main hallway, with it's (plastic?) plants (yuck) everywhere, that's how they look like. And then not to forget the hugeness of the building itself with the surrounded park! RUN people RUN!, shoot the birds! (don't u dare!)
PRINCE? U hear me? hire someone who knows something about graphic design.. (someone younger than 25 or so). U lost i my boy! you failed! (but i dig your music )
I once read that Susannah was important in his life. She tried to bring to him the 'finer things of life'. I understand that. I really loved the dreamy - old style but a bit kitschy - but very well meant so - design for the 'The Family' album. When u have the album 'LP' release, look at the centrefold: it shows a lot of polaroids taken by Prince. (as i remember it right). Most of these were great. And i can imagine Susannah having a great deal to do with it, just being around Prince... althogh those glimming pyjamas... Ahhh, that was edgy, but ok!
I love the lay outs for every album till 1990! Realy do!! Great class, good choices and ideas, and that little 'underground' touch is everywhere. if you know what i mean. (except for the romantic 'For You' and 'Prince', but still...)
The Black album by the way was the bomb as an idea for a release. Why? it actually was never planned to be called like this. Inside Paisley Park it was rumoured to be called 'The Funk Bible' (am i right about this?!).. Black and orange were the colours, sparse was the info, crazy were the song titles: "2 nigs United 4 West Compton", "Superfunkycalifragisexy", "Bob George", etc. No pictures and just your imagination. But he chooses 'black' instead of any other color for the cover. Now what color is a more worse 'funky' colour than 'black'? and therefor making it to be the most 'funky' album colour of all time?

Look at other major artists' releases nowadays. That's a little bit better sometimes. MJ's latest is also a bit crappy, but still it belongs to now! Which can't be said of any of Prince's latest releases, they all seem very dated! very very much so!
Prince albums were topleading graphicdesign as well as he was a fashionmaster untill 1990 i think. After that it went down the drain.
Try to look at Björk for instance, what she's doing these days. Or Beck (super good kisch). Or Radiohead, Coldplay, R.E.M., even the Rolling Stones or Moby, or D'Angelo (Voodoo), or The SugarBabes, Kylie, Justin Timberlake. Even Robbie Williams is delivering a great job..

definately OO i would say

who thinks is the best prince picture? I think it's the one where he is standing in the shower (1980-81 era i think), with that crusifix hanging on the wall?
cool like hell.

...and to think warner bros. wanted this in color. it woulda been ultra-gaudy if it were, imo...then again, i've noticed that all of the dirty mind-era pix that are in b & w look awesome, as opposed to color. it added with the punkiness of it all.



yeah, this is an edit
[This message was edited Sun Aug 17 17:12:31 PDT 2003 by Handclapsfingasnapz]

Hey DorothyPark, what happened to YOUR pic? You looked kinda hot

I think the worst thing about nineties Prince design is his continued use of 2 instead of to, 4 instead of for, U instead of you, etcetera. It was kinda cool at first, but now it's just so old. A reversion to regular spelling could show a little gained maturity. As it is, I take it he hasn't grown much as a person, lately.

I like the pic of him in bed on the 1999 innersleeve, but also the live pics of him licking his guitar back in the Ditty Mind/Controversy era.
He was such a rebel and leader of style. I'd say his trend setting fashion days ended with the look he sported on the Nude Tour - about the same time as the decline in the quality of his music. Apparently those two things go together.
[This message was edited Sun Aug 17 17:09:54 PDT 2003 by scififilmnerd]

P.S.: Oh, you got a new pic. What happened to yo hair?

DorothyPark is cool
[This message was edited Sun Aug 17 18:25:55 PDT 2003 by scififilmnerd]

what??? :d i look even hotter these days. just back from a two weeks vacation in Barcefuckinglona, got muself a serious suntan.. and i was nude on the beaches all the time.. so no string or bathingsuit lines on my body!
now u! Hey even my armpits and dick 'n balls got a tan!

Hail to the Spanish! i found and bought over 12 bootlegs and old vinyl in secondhandshops! And all for not even 10 Euros/$. greattt! But then again, i had the worst sex in my life overthere in spain.. whats wrong with them?
i'm deffinately going back in september!

DOROTHYPARK said:

But of course - you gotta keep them Spaniards trying until they get it right