Thank you NUMBERTWOFANATIC!

Prince gets his groove back


PRINCE
"Musicology"
(Columbia)


Prince wants his career back. That's the message of "Musicology." And he's likely to get it, given the force of the CD's funk and the singability of its songs.

It doesn't hurt that the groove master is now on a major label for the first time in five years. Or that he's staging his first arena tour in eons and promising to feature his biggest hits - if "for the last time," as the ads threaten.

But don't dance around in your raspberry beret just yet. "Musicology" isn't "Dirty Mind" or "1999" or, God knows, a rival to his masterpiece, "Sign 'o the Times."

But it does feature Prince's most accessible tunes since 1995's "The Gold Experience." Its 12 songs breeze by, flitting from rhythm-driven tracks to ballads to rockers. None of the artier or more improvisational leaps of albums like "N.E.W.S." or "The Crystal Ball" turns up. And you'll find finer tunes than on his last major-label foray, the meandering "Rave Un2 the Joy Fantastic."

Prince spices "Musicology" with sly references to his purple reign, quoting old hits at the start of "Illusion," alluding to "Nothing Compares 2 U" in "A Million Days," and offering a nod to the Sheila E. era in "Life 'o the Party." But the songs hardly rate as rote recyclings. They stand on their own.

"Call My Name" has the falsetto-laced eroticism of his silkiest ballads, while "Cinnamon Girl" (no relation to Neil Young's classic) ranks with his best rockers.

The latter is one of several songs to eschew Prince's normal muse (sex) in favor of politics. It addresses the government's civil-rights violations in the wake of 9/11. Other songs make reference to the Iraq war.

Given Prince's usual fixation on eros, this has to rate as a step ahead. If the commerciality of the music represents a "step back" to the old days, we shouldn't consider that a sell-out, but a treat.
Originally published on April 18, 2004