It has over-taken Parade and Sign in being my all time favourite Prince album.

I hated it at first. I gave it two listens and put it back on the shelf to collect dust for months. But watching him perform the album on the One Nite Alone tour completely changed my mind.

The Everlasting Now is definately in the same class (if not higher) as tracks like Strange Relationship and It's Gonna Be A Beautiful Night. The Last December is definately up there with fellow epic anthems such as Purple Rain and Anna Stesia.

Tracks like Digital Garden and The Sensual Everafter are beautifully atmospheric and moody and the title track is just one long climax building to the beautifully composed ending (that piece of music used on the opening of the live DVD).

He explores new ground with the content and format - in a far more innovative and experimental way than Lovesexy.

This album is heartfelt, sincere, emotional, funky and spiritual... just like Lovesexy and Sign it is an album with a mission. And in my opinion, it is an album of a career.

U R now one of us!

Well said!

I 100% agree.

you're all idiots. no explanation required.

Marrk said:

4give him. He hasn't been converted yet!

Marrk said:

And if you play both records backwards at the same time, Prince will tell a childrens story.

If I wasn't a Michael Jackson fan, I'd ridicule you for being one.

Who else do you like?

MattyJam said:

MattyJam said:

I can't say it's my all time favorite Prince album, so far. But I can say that I like it better than all three albums you've brought up, overall. However, you won't get many fans on this site to agree with you, and I'm sure you know that given the title you chose for this thread.

Here comes the incredulous flood...

rudedog said:

That's actually not true is it?

MattyJam said:

Supernova said:

Intresting view. Normally everyone around here is either a Sign fan or a TRC fan. If neither is your very favorite do U mind if I ask which one is / ones are?

I'm still not convinced with TRC. Bought it as soon as it was available, listened to it once and put it away. Listened to it again a few months ago, still not convinced, put it away.
Now I've heard a number of the tracks being performed live on boots, and I really enjoy them. But I still can't bring myself to actually put the album on and listen to it all in one go. Which is a major failing for a concept album!
Some of the lyrical content puts me off, even though musically it is very interesting. Maybe as time passes I'll be able to listen to the music and tune out the lyrics.

G

CAMILLE4U said:

CAMILLE4U said:

My top tier Prince albums in chronological order:

Dirty Mind
1999
Purple Rain
SOTT
TRC

This doesn't mean I don't enjoy any of the others, or that they're not quality albums, it's just that they don't qualify in my top tier Prince list. Grafitti Bridge has more weaknesses than quality material, but the quality material on it is some of Prince's best: songs like "The Question Of U", "We Can Funk", "Joy In Repitition", and a couple of other songs are worth listening to. I just think there are too many artists on it to give that album focus. Controversy is fabulous because it's Outlaw Prince doing his new wave/funk/rock thing. But it misses my top tier cut too. I could go on, but Prince has too many albums for that.

Holy crap, I just saw a big ass pig fly past my window!

Supernova said:

Cool. Some nice early choices there. Do U like 'Around the world in a day'? That's a very diverse album. People either love or hate that one I find. Personally I it.

MattyJam said:

Quick! Get the doctors in.

CAMILLE4U said:

I like some of the songs on it, but it suffers from lack of a consistent flow, cohesiveness, among other things. In some areas it's way too poppy for me. And even though I rarely ever play it, it's not an album I would discard from my collection.

`
[This message was edited Sat Oct 18 14:09:36 PDT 2003 by Supernova]

No way is TRC superior to SOTT or Parade , I cant pick one track off TRC that I honestly think is better than anything off SOTT to be honest , and although Parade and TRC both contain a few tracks that are filler in my opinion (e.g Wedding feast and Life can be so nice ) I can listen to Parade as one complete piece of music ,its got a wonderful cohesion to it that I think TRC wishes it had but doesnt quite achieve.I think TRC is as good as Lovesexy though,but thats because Lovesexy doesnt rate as highly in my book as it does for a lot of you.

gonna disagree with you there.

I like TRC, and prefer it to Lovesexy(in fact, i prefer A LOT of things to lovesexy), but SOTT and Parade are more enjoyable to me than TRC.

'The Rainbow Children' is Prince's most cohesive, warmest sounding, satisfying album. Probably the best he has yet released. Maybe his most heartfelt statement.

I'm just a little disturbed that he now seems to be 'going commercial' again. His Hong Kong set list looks a bit boring. Prince on auto-pilot, I'd imagine. How many times has he played those songs? He'll probably be bored witless by half-way thru the tour.

I'm half-expecting another 'Rave'- style album for next year. I was hoping he'd take the TRC, 'Xpectation', 'NEWS' sound further with a new 'TRC +' vocal album (but maybe with less JW-centric lyrics). But then, our man's nothing if not fickle ...

Bring on the wierded out electro-acoustic funk/jazz/rock/pop twisted music history book genius we know he can be!! Prince has started building a viable and interesting musical future away from the mainstream, and it'd be a shame to throw that away now.Bring on the new controversy!

I'll have a nice lie down now.

TRC is his 4th classic

Dirty Mind
1999
Sott
TRC

MattyJam said:

...you gots to

Supernova said:

Cool. I'll agrees there is no flow of theme. To me it's simply a collection of diferent songs.

if he keeps recording albums like TRC he's gonna have to start touring kingdom halls instead of theatres...

Miles said:

I agree, it really does seem to make some of us skeptical. Me included. Let's hope he proves our theories wrong.

come on !, trc is a great album. but its not better than the 3 u picked , r u being controversial on purpose ? i think so !.

i listened 2 trc when it was released and thought it was ok, i thought there were some really good songs on it trc,muse...,the work,mellow,she loves me...,family name,last december and the wonderful 1+1+1 is 3 !!!.

then a couple of weeks later i listened 1 night, through headphones and i got it ! pow ! trc wot a great album!

then the tour last year , i saw him play a london gig "predominately trc show"and was blown away by trc live !!! f**kin awsome !!!

but , theres alway's a but , better than sott parade lovesexy NO CHANCE !

trc great album and tour

sign/parade/lovesexy CLASSIC albums and TOURS !!!

ON REFLECTION / WHY CANT WE JUST LIKE EM ALL ???

Come on. There's nothing new on TRC, musically. It continues in the same vein as all his other uninspired albums since Emancipation. The Last December sounds like all his other guitar anthems. 1+1+1 is 3 is derivative of his own past work, mainly Erotic City. Mellow is as bland as 2morrow and The Work Pt.1 as dull as Courtin' Time. Wedding Feast and Family Name are downright embarrassing. The other tracks are so instantly forgettable, I can't recall the titles and reading them don't make melodies spring to mind - I assume because there are no melodies, justa more endless jamming like on Newpower Soul. Ha, ha, ha.
[This message was edited Sat Oct 18 17:16:30 PDT 2003 by scififilmnerd]

Family Name is emabarassing? Why? Are you a KKK member?

Seriously, though. TRC is a fantastic album. People keep gibbering about it being a big JW rant. Well, I am not a religous person, but I am fascinated with religion (in a non-judgemental way) & I can't find anything on that album that is anything to do with JW religon. It's just a Prince storey, so all you bedwetters who keep bringing up the JW in regards to TRC are just jumping the gun & talking shit in my book. These people have knocked on my door and I've chatted with them because I was genuinely curious to find out what they believed in. They told me their beliefs and these beliefs did not include 'banishes ones', 'digital gardens' or 'rainbow children'.

When he's on about 'rainbow children', he means a multi-racial gang of people who are not prejudiced about race. 'Rainbow' because they are of many colours & 'children' because they are innocent.


Back on the music track, all the best albums are NOT instand. Emancipation was the last penny to drop because it takes so long to 'digest'. TRC was a slow grower, but once you've really wrapped your ears round it, you realise it's a gem. There's no wallowing in past glories, just a forward thinking vision. Definitely one of his best 5 albums.