IMHO: Prince

Plop yourself down on your keisters, lil' kiddies, let grandpa give you a music history lesson:

1982 was a great year. For one, I was born, but I don't remember much because I was pretty tired. Second, some of the best pop music of all time was released. In October, Prince released 1999. In November, Michael Jackson released Thriller (officially it was released in 1983). Both artists have a lot in common too: They were both born in 1958, have totally crazy personas, can dance the hair off a cat (that means they dance well, I think), have released music over a similar period of time (although MJ was first), and both are alive today... wait, a sec.

Prince on a motorcycle in a dark alley wearing a purple suit with a floral print in the background. Nothing out of the ordinary here.

Most people have heard the singles from Thriller, if not the entire album. The highlight of the album is obviously the song Thriller, and it's music video could be considered a piece of Americana.  Here are the tracks and and writer's below. 

Song Title                                                 Writer(s)

Wanna Be Startin' Somethin'* Michael Jackson

Baby Be Mine                 Rod Temperton

The Girl Is Mine*            Michael Jackson

Thriller*                    Rod Temperton

Beat It*                     Michael Jackson

Billie Jean*                 Michael Jackson

Human Nature*                Steve Porcaro, John Bettis

P.Y.T. (Pretty Young Thing)* James Ingram, Quincy Jones

The Lady in My Life"         Rod Temperton

(* - also released as singles)

On the other hand, most of the travelers I've met only know one song by Prince: "Purple Rain". Once upon a time, I was just as naive. Somewhere in Russia, Ethan began an on-and-off obsession with Prince (and Lady Gaga) that lasted for several more countries. Every once in a while Ethan would serenade me with the catchy lyrics to Prince's 1999 while we headed out for drinks (ostensibly a song about partying, but actually a protest against nuclear proliferation). 

Say, Say:

Two-thousand, zero, zero, party over, oops, out of time.

So tonight we're going to party like it's nineteen ninety-nine. 

In Vietnam, Ethan performed a karaoke version of "When Doves Cry" on a boat in Ha Long Bay. Not an easy song to sing to, and I'll be the first to tell you, it wasn't great, but his passion carried him through. After seeing that train wreck, my perception of Prince as a one-hit wonder changed. I figured if Prince could make a song so good that someone else would want to imitate it so poorly and so willingly (and enjoy it), then the real song must be off the fuckin' charts. 

I now have 321 songs by Prince, consisting of 25 albums, and spanning almost thirty years. I'd like to tell you all of the songs are single material. For all I know they might be, but I've only been able to listen to about three albums on repeat because they are all so damn good. He is so prolific I think most people know his music but don't know its Prince. (Did you know Prince did the album for the Tim Burton directed movie Batman?) And if you don't know any Prince, you are probably listening to his ripple of influence in music that has been composed over the past three decades.  

For me though, Prince's album 1999 stands out. Sex is the major theme, although a few of the songs stray. Some of the lyrics are so raunchy and explicit its like they exude a sticky residue (ew, sorry).  The songs blend funk, R&B, pop, rock, and electronic, along with catchy lyrics and pulsing drum machines. It is hard not to get caught up in the music. 

So much so that the other day at the Perth subway station, I imagined myself setting down a boombox (that's a portable stereo for the young whippersnappers reading), and busting out a Napoleon Dynamite style dance to 1999 or Delirious or Let's Pretend We're Married for the on-lookers at the opposite platform. Thankfully I don't dance well enough to have the courage to do something that ridiculous. Nor do I have the guts to embarrass myself that much. But if you can dance and are shameless, I've given you fair warning about listening to the album 1999 in a respectable public venue. 

Song Title                                                                                Writer

1999*                                      Prince

Little Red Corvette*                       Prince

Delirious*                                 Prince

Let's Pretend We're Married*               Prince

D.M.S.R. (Dance. Music. Sex. Romance.)*    Prince

Automatic*                                 Prince

Something in the Water (Does Not Compute)  Prince

Free                                       Prince

Lady Cab Driver                            Prince

All the Critics Love U In New York         Prince

International Lover                        Prince

(* - also released as singles)

The first six songs of 1999 are an 80's powerhouse of music. It is such a strong beginning I tried brainstorming other pop artists that had released albums of a similar tour de force. The first that came to mind was Jackson's Thriller. While Thriller is indisputably a, maybe the, quintessential pop album, and it's culture impact and world-wide success indisputable, I humbly think Prince's 1999 is a stronger all around album and more enjoyable to listen to. I also hear more of Prince in today's electronic-indie music, than I do of MJ's. So I think it is unfortunate that more people don't know him. Hopefully, this post has inspired you to give him a try if you haven't before. 

And while you are at it, can you think of other pop albums released that might stand up to the listenability challenge of 1999? Or, how about stellar albums in any genre? Some others I thought of, in no particular order:

1. Madonna's Like a Virgin (also born in 1958)
2. Any number of Beatles Albums: Self-titled album, Sgt. Peppers, Magical Mystery Tour, Revolver, Please Please Me, With the Beatles
3. Elton John's Goodbye Yellow Brick Road
4. Lady Gaga's The Fame
5. Led Zeppelin's Fourth (IV) Album
6. Nirvana's Nevermind
7. Bruce Springstein's Born In The USA
8. Pink Floyd's The Wall
9. Spice Girls (sorry... just throwing it out there)
10. U2's Joshua Tree
11. David Bowie's Let's Dance
12. Britney Spears' Oops I Did It Again
13. Aerosmith's Get a Grip (one of my personal favorites)