Ok, let me warn you Rick James fans out there! Rick's new album, "Deeper Still", which will be released May 15th, is not what most of you are going to bargain for. Just after listening to the samples on Allmusic.com (still no review up yet for this record!) I have come to consider this to be one of the most disappointing albums of the year. To my understanding, it's a compilation of the unreleased material he was working on before his death. If this was the stuff Rick was working on before his untimely death, then it is pretty shocking and worst of all, half-baked. Almost nothing on this album is funk-inspired as the material he recorded almost 30 years ago when he was in his good-shape prime. The production sounds very synthesized and cheaply done. There were only two cuts that were decent, but the rest just doesn't catch my attention. I'm appalled because the recent Lady T releases (La Dona and Sapphire) was better than this. Maybe if those 2 worked together for this anticipated project, it would've been one of the best things he did since the early to mid 80's. I'll probably just have to check out his 1997 joint, Urban Rhapsody to upliften my funk spirits, if that's any good.
[Edited 5/14/07 16:44pm]

I'M FROM BUFFALO, AND I'M STILL GONNA BUY IT!!!!! RICK JAMES REST IN PEACE!!!!!
"KICKIN'" WAS NEVER RELEASED!!!!! AND FROM WHERE I STAND, "WONDERFUL" WAS SUPPOSED TO BE HIS MOST DISAPPOINTING LP (EVEN THOUGH IT'S "THE FLAG" HANDS DOWN!!!!).....
AND SINCE WE'RE ON THE SUBJECT OF DISAPPOINTING, A LOT P'S 90'S STUFF WAS "DISAPPOINTING", BUT Y'ALL STILL BOUGHT IT!!!!! ME TOO!!!!
WE CAN JUST AGREE THAT THEY DON'T MAKE 'EM LIKE RICK OR PRINCE ANYMORE!!!!!



GO GET THA CD!!!!!

I'M FROM BUFFALO, AND I'M STILL GONNA BUY IT!!!!! RICK JAMES REST IN PEACE!!!!!
"KICKIN'" WAS NEVER RELEASED!!!!! AND FROM WHERE I STAND, "WONDERFUL" WAS SUPPOSED TO BE HIS MOST DISAPPOINTING LP (EVEN THOUGH IT'S "THE FLAG" HANDS DOWN!!!!).....
AND SINCE WE'RE ON THE SUBJECT OF DISAPPOINTING, A LOT P'S 90'S STUFF WAS "DISAPPOINTING", BUT Y'ALL STILL BOUGHT IT!!!!! ME TOO!!!!
WE CAN JUST AGREE THAT THEY DON'T MAKE 'EM LIKE RICK OR PRINCE ANYMORE!!!!!



GO GET THA CD!!!!!

I'm gonna buy it today.I'm not expecting some great album but it'll be cool to hear his final recordings.I do like the title track.

silverchild said:

I just came home from buying it... after one 1/2 listen:

I wish I had seen this thread last night- I would have still bought it, but at least I would've gone into it with different expectations!

I've been a Rick James fan since junior high school- NOT middle school- almost the beginning. Before there was PRINCE, there was RICK in my world; I discovered P much later on. I was so into the whole "punk-funk" thing!

I'll always love Rick- R.I.P. - but this album

(Urban Rhapsody hurt my feelings, BTW)

dancerella said:

By the way, Do you like the Wonderful cd? It's dissapointing too but not horrible.

I've never heard the Flag before.....

I'm going to buy the album tomorrow also, strictly to complete my collection of Rick James albums. However, if I see the Betty Davis reissues that are due out, Rick will have to wait because funk comes first, and from what I've heard, Rick is not delivering funk it on this album.

I've always loved Rick as much as Prince. Rick has talked about Prince like a dog over the years but Prince got the last laugh on this one because Prince still delivers the funk when no one else will.




I was very disappointed with that one when I bought it on the day of it's release. I just knew that Rick was coming back with some funk and there was not one damn funk song on the entire album. I eventually warmed up to:

Good Ole Days
Players Way
Never Say You Love Me Again
Mama's Eyes

However, Rick needed his ass beat for not putting any funk on the album.

OK, I bought the album Friday and it was absolutely horrible. I wasn't expecting it to be good but this was worse than I ever imagined. The whole entire album was a bunch of sellout shit hop sounding shit. I skimmed through each track and didn't like even one song. As a matter of fact, I couldn't even listen to one song on the entire album all the way through without skipping to the next track.

It's very apparent that Rick was desperate for a hit because everything single song on the album could easily fit in with today's music.....which is the ultimate sin if you are an artist worth a damn and have any talent whatsoever.

SoulAlive said:

I must say that I like the album. But I think he may have been trying to expand his talent as an artist. I agree it's not like his previous work but think about this: before he was on drugs and living a life he didn't like but later on he cleaned up. So his later work reflects his clean life. I like all of Rick's music. I am certainly gonna buy is autobiography.

FuNkeNsteiN said:

Yeah, drugs were found in his system. Apparently though, when he recorded that latest album, his head must have been totally clear because he definately knew what type of music to record that would fit in with today's music. If he had been high on drugs, he might have jammed on the album.

well it looks like last december dosent known anything about rick james because if he did he would known that rick was never jealous of prince. all of that was just talk rick was a talent producer went prince was in high school.rick can do any kind of music that prince can do and better but funk at that time at least for rick paid the bills.you guys really need to knock it off with this prince is better then rick tthread, cuz its getting lame. rickhad work with neil young and they were in the same band together, rick wrote a hit song for the temps can prince write a hit song for a five man singing group. rick made a million dollars an hour for street songs what did prince get for purple rain 35 cents pert record..

After hearing "Glow" and "The Flag", I wasn't disappointed with "Wonderful" because I knew Rick wasn't making them as strong as he had before. I love the title track and "So Tight".



I would say this is his worst album of the 1980s. I like "Sweet and Sexy Thing" and "Funk in Amerika/Silly Man". Other than that, it ain't so hot.

Dag..is the new CD THAT bad?

I don't think the cd is as bad as everyone is saying. Although I have only listened to it twice, I like it. You have to look at this cd as a stand alone and not compare it to others. Rick hadn't made a true funk record in many many years. If going into it you thought it would be a funk record the yes you'd be disappointed.

But....let's give it another try folks

Probably not going to buy it. Probably never gonna buy Urban Rhapsody either. Oh and, The Flag is waaay better than Wonderful. Wonderful is a pile o' turd with not a single good cut on the entire album... (yes, Loosey's Rap sucks balls.)