I never really "heard" TRC just as some can't/couldn't hear Jimi..it took these writings for me to appreciate it and go back and see---err..hear the light..these comments were all from one man: Hass..thank you Hass.


This is the most rhodes Prince has ever played on an album and you know thats right...
Very impressive with band arrangements see he should have done
this kind of release after Gold Experience but im not the musical genius he is so I shall hold judgement of what records he should have released.
1 plus 1 plus 1 is 3 is so funky
Prince brought back some analog synths and that funky rhythm guitar and Camille again.
I think this is gonna be a crowd favorite as said before.

I will say one thing not in its favor this slowed down quaylude Bob George changes the momentum of the album. And also alot of people wont play this in their store because its distracting.
He has about 8 minutes of this voice I bet on this album.
I wonder who this song is aimed at.
I think Prince is ultra paranoid.
This is Princes most paranoid conspiracy theory album to date

I like this guitar section on Deconstruction.

Wedding Feast? lol Prince is a madhatter.
Opera ... monty python Prince.
this song after it ... This is the "ballad single" for R&B radio.
I think this song is directed at mayte.

But back to the music...
everything about this album he made for the hardcore fan... he had you in mind. He read the reviews for "Voodoo" and this is what got him on this path.
I mean the Last song he ends the album right.
This breakdown is too ill on "Last December"

Anyways Prince does it right on the music tip...

Prince *****I gotta (he) did it man you came back albumwise as a innovator and not a xeroxin off somebody trying to be down with mainstream. He should be proud of this album.
And ***** should rate it high.
NPG computer Steven Hawkins female version voice.
"Family Name" is crazy.
This is Princes most controversial album of all time. MOST controversial of all time.

I can see why people wrote this off but so far this album is getting a eight point 5 out of ten the quaylude Bob George voice...
This is Princes most funkadelicesque/Sly song of recent.
Prince got the right background vocalists too.
Prince really jams out the funk on this.
This is the album that people were saying "Prince you cant play anymore" And he answered you with this...
The guitar solo on this is so raw ...

This is proof Prince buried his genius with Kirky J.
And the genius comes out again.

that dirty bass line ?
Now I wonder what he will do live now will it be the hits?
I dig the sound bites.. thruit too
John BlackWell goddamn ...

this is Princes answer to music magazines "you cant funk"
he brought out the horns,the bass,the guitars,the keys,the flute, and the background vocalists.
YOU cant count him out...
The everlasting now... .damn...
and the bridge...those horns that wah wah guitar...
I like every song ive heard off this album do you know how long that has been?
When all the musicians hear this album they are gonna freak the heck out.
on a first listen honestly I have to give this album a HIGH mark.
yo this breakdown on Everlasting now is KILLING me.
release stuff like this on the club and I might join.
Now he is in Santana mode...
Prince you did it you made an album people said you never could do. I knew it was coming just didnt know when.

Play Evberlasting Now
To D'angelo and QUestlove and Saul Williams face
and watch them freak...

This breakdown is so UNREAL...

DIG how he changes it...
and dig the background vocals
you know this is funky but I wish he would play like he used to old scragly head (smack) "
thats why Im gonna buy this album.
Prince the bandleader on record has come back...

***** seriously if you dont review this album somethin is wrong with you man.
I wasnt sure on how it sounded from the reaction but damn...

On the 1...SIKE"
that was a big up yours to the critics this whole track about how he couldnt "bring da funk in innovative ways" It is about time he comes out and kills the people who said he couldnt bring something new.
I think Sonny T and Michael B are happy the live band prince is back.
This does really have the best sequencing of a Prince album in a long long time.

I hope it does sell more than RAVE... cuz he deserves it.
after a second listen I will give this a nine out of ten.
all the musician fans of Prince will come back into the fold as said before.

Innovative daring edgy ...
I think I see alot people covering tracks in the future from this
Everlasting Now
Last December
Muse 2 Pharoah
Theres just alot of shit people will get into to cover in the future


and thats pretty damn good for Prince.
I give it a 9 because of the voice thru the record they could have put another song and they could have put that in the liner note text heck it will be in there. I get the idea "I like slowing down my voice! "
I guess what I can say to emphasize the points is Prince deserves his props he came back to the LIVE Band ensemble innovative record.
I will go with better sounding than The gold Experience. Gold had "We march" after all.

Best album? Best sequenced surely...
Best overall work? Thats a matter of views .
But after listening to it 2 times I dont have any complaints on the music.
I love the horn arrangements,I like the touches of Rhodes,I love the drums and percussion,I love the guitars,I love the different bass sounds and the keyboards and the background vocalists.
ALTHOUGH...one thing was missing
Do you know what?
CLare Fischer no string arrangements
He better hurry up and work with Clare again he is a old timer.
Id like to see a record with all Fischer Strings someday.

but myx just becuz I see it as a 9 now doesnt mean I will see it as a 10 and if it is listening back to it again on a proper stereo system then I will say so.
I like it better than Rave and NPS.
It is a special record and I hope Prince fans come back who were on the art/musician side who talk about his past works and marvel at this one and give it its merits.

THIS is a band record. This is a record where you can listen
to the horn arrangements,the drums,the guitars,the bass,the keyboards,the background vocals,the percussion,
He has taken a band vacation for a while on record he took a one with "Gold Experience"
Now he got on the "Rainbow Chile"Ocean Liner...
and he is taking another "live trip"

I mean have you ever heard as much horns on thisrecord as any Prince album?
Gold Experience didnt have any.
Sign o the times had a few.
Madhouse.. had some
Love sexy had a lil bit.
Symbol album had some

I might even say this is Princes best band record ever.

BUT... I will listen to it on my stereo when it comes out unfiltered.

the arrangements show major thought and the playing is on that supernatural emotional level.
Gold Experience was like the opposite of this.
Gold Experience was clean and polished. It was dope but it was restrained alot places because you know Prince wasnt in that "Free mood" You know what I mean? When you listen to Shhh the guitar solo is restrained in sound its compressed and its low. Its a good record but its clinical I guess trying to play in the "WB Matrix" but still being funky at the same time.
But Princes guitar on this is in TECHNICOLOR and this is not restrained. This is "Somebody let the beast out of the cage and he is loose taking casualties with devastating carnage."
Whoever is Princes guitar tech deserves a medal.
This is rawer than TGE.
The bass is dirty.
the guitars are all mixed top notch you got crystal clear rhythm,distorted searing lead,crunched the eff up riffs in places,wah wah,
the background vocals are defined since the times with Rosie Gaines.
The drummer is a monster.
the keyboards. Prince plays such nice rhodes on this and analog synths and piano
This album is Prince taking his one eyed bass/habibi and swingin at other bands.
This is his response to Beck to say "Why doesnt he kick ass anymore" Will anyone say anything after this release? Only the jealous artists who didnt have this kind of inspiration and this friggin band.
[This message was edited Sun Jan 4 21:38:00 PST 2004 by rdhull]

The layers of vocals that he has on Last December give me chills I also think In the year to come I will take the time out to digest this album more fully, like I did with Lovesexy, because It does deserve a 2nd chance from me.. It just didnt have much shelf life with me, but that doesnt mean its a less of an album, it just means I need more time to develop the sound.
[This message was edited Sun Jan 4 21:54:47 PST 2004 by Sdldawn]

rd...I have always dug TRC 4 the music, and have thought...in musical terms it was one of Prince's best works. I especially love "Last December" and how it builds, much like a classical piece, and has so much going on within the entire piece. This CD IS still in my regular rotation...again...due to the incredible music throughout the entire experience.

And Hass did a great job of laying it down 4 U!

Peace, Love and Light


We need 2 come 2gether, come 2gether as ONE

I remember when I first heard this album. I remember being so nervous about it because I was wanting it to be good for Prince more than myself. I had kinda reconciled myself to the idea that he wasn't able to 'drop one' whenever he chose to.

I had heard 'The Work Pt. 1' before the album came out, so when I was listening to first three tracks ('The Rainbow Children', Muse 2 The Pharaoh, 'Digital Garden') I was pleasantly surprised. Very much so. I mean this wasn't just "Hmmm, not bad" good, it was very good. Then hearing 'The Sensual Everafter' and 'Mellow', I realised he was on some other shit on this one. And then it happened...
...'1+1+1 Is 3'...I immediately got on my cell phone and called my best friend. My heart almost stopped when I heard the 'Parade' guitar and the Synclavier 'horns'. Chicken scratch guitar...Man, it just reminded me of my excitement back in the day and why I loved this cat's music sooo much. In my mind it was like a concession from P that it was okay to reach back and steal some of that old magic. I didn't even need to hear the rest of the album to know... Nevermind the fact that 'The Everlasting Now', and 'Last December' were two of the strongest closing cuts Prince had done on an album since 'SOTT'. On this album, he was back! Back in a way he hadn't been in a looonng time.

Songs. Let me say it again, songs. Fuck that band shit. And I love a tight band, but I don't give a fuck how tight your band is if you ain't playin' shit worth hearing. These are strong, terse, funky, beautiful tracks. This ain't some shit he was on because he thought the radio would feel it. (Ain't no room for no Phony, uh... Tony M.'s on this one) This is pure Prince. You can almost hear him saying: 'I don't wanna be a poet...

Upon first hearing TRC, it thought it was too weird and not easily accessable.You really have to listen to it a good few times to really appreciate it.Musically it's fantastic, so organic and warm sounding.

I still have misgivings about the voice and some of the lyrical content, but it's a solid enough effort, possibly in the top 10 Prince albums.

Musically, this CD was a collaboration with John Blackwell, and I think alot of credit should go to him as well for getting Prince his "groove back". John manages to achieve success on 2 levels:

1 - John took it back in the day

John is a huge fan of Prince's early work, especially the "controversy" era, and purposely wanted to re-capture that era. Take the beat of "1+1+1=3", he bought back in that "clap" sound, reminisant of the linn drum machine and drew comparisons to Erotic City. If u also listen to alot of the recent live recordings from One Night Alone Live and the 2003 Australian tour, check how John interprets songs that originally used a linn drum. He mimics it LIVE! No other Prince drummer b4 has even attempted at even trying that (Listen to the Hi-Hat patterns John plays during "The Ballad Of Dorthy Parker" & "All The Critics Love U...") It's absolute brilliance!


2 - John took it to the next level

No doubt, Michael B, Shelia E, Bobby Z (and maybe not live, but Kirky J's drum programming to a certain extent), were solid drummers, especially Michael & Shelia.
John seperates himself from the pack though with his drumming. Every song is interesting to listen to. He just doesn't play a "Solid Beat", he plays interesting patterns, adds color and contrast, and he makes it unique to himself.

Without a doubt, if Prince never tops The Rainbow Children, to me, I would concider it his "Bitches Brew", it's just so refreshing to hear such a masterpiece like this!

THE RAINBOW CHILDREN is one of my favorite Prince albums when it comes to music. It could have been a true masterpiece without that distorted voice and the weird lyrics. I think some of the songs could have been so much more accessible with different lyrics, lyrics people can relate to, but anyway, musically it´s one of my all time favorites...this album, the Xenophobia celebration and the ONA tour plus shows like ONA Hamburg and ONA Bataclan just showed me why I still have big respect and love for this guy and his music.
I had similar problems with some of the "religious" content and preaching in the 80´s , like, for instance, the "talk with God" interlude during the Purple Rain show or some of the lyrics on Lovesexy( like Jesus being God´s son, etc. , not really my thing)but on TRC he goes a bit further, like in Family Name. I understand where he´s coming from and it´s good to see him being controversial and politically and historically aware BUT it´s stupid to mention some so-called "good sounding" Jewish names like Rosenbloom, Pearlman , Goldstruck and so on and then compare them with names given to black people, like Clay and Blackwell.
Doesn´t make any sense really because in the past, those names were "given" to European Jews in Poland by Poles and Germans , that´s were all these names originate from, and they were just as much discriminating as those names given to African slaves in the US. So it is a bit unfair and unjustified to compare.He should have read some history books. But I don´t want to start another endless discussion about the lyrics on TRC...most of the lyrics are OK, and the music is incredibly good.It´s a good sign and makes me curious (again).Another good sign for things to come are tracks like TOKYO and OSAKA...

dnaplaya said:

I AGREE. You know Miles could care less what anyone thought when he did 'Bitches Brew'. I got the same vibe here with Prince. People have always said "yeah, Prince doesn't care what others think", but I've never truly heard an example of that until the first time I listened to the title track of TRC. I thought, "man, Miles would dig this".

All the best Prince albums are never the ones that are 'immediate'. They take some time 2 digest - a little effort on your part even, but it makes the pay-off when it finally 'clicks' that much sweeter!

I found that with ATWIAD,
I found that with Lovesexy,
...and I found that with TRC.

Maybe (just throwing something in2 the pot here) the slowed-down Quaalude voice was Prince's way of not distracting those who just wanted the immeadiacy of the music etc, but on another level, it could be digested if concentrated upon. If that was his intention, im not convinced it worked (and personally, the cod-opera-fest that is 'Wedding Feast' just leaves me cold - kinda leaves a sour taste in my mouth, spoiling what is in essence, a truly special album.

Like a fine wine, TRC needs time 2 breath before u consume it.

*Analogy Edit*
[This message was edited Mon Jan 5 8:01:19 PST 2004 by bananacologne]

bananacologne said:

Well, I found I loved it first time I ever heard it (), and I listened to it from beginning to end loving every song (save the WEDDING).

bananacologne said:

I think my copy is corked.

Spookymuffin said: