Jio's HoF :NOW:WEEKLY PICKS (5/7/2022)

[jio]

____________________________________________________________
20.SEX SHOOTER (performed by Apollonia 6) (1984)
album "APOLLONIA 6"




..."Listen boys...
no girl's body can compete with mine
no girl's rap can top my lines
no girl's kiss can ring your chimes
Come on boy let's make some time"...

Apollonia 6 was Prince's protege girl-group formed when Vanity 6's lead singer Vanity left the group and was subsequently replaced by Patricia (renamed Apollonia) Kotero. They released just one album, which peaked at #62 on BB 200 and #24 on R&B. The irresistibly catchy "Sex Shooter" was the first single taken from that album, helped greatly by the fact that a full performance of the song was included in the film "Purple Rain" (where Apollonia starred). The song peaked at #85 on the Hot 100, #7 on R&B and #7 on Dance/Club Play. Despite receiving a totally unfair Golden Raspberry nomination for Worst Song, it has become sort of an underground '80s pop/dance classic, which has been covered by Shannon among others.
____________________________________________________________
19.HEAD (1980)
album "DIRTY MIND"



..."and you said, "I must confess I wanna get undressed and go to bed"
With that I jammed, you fool, you married me instead
Now morning, noon and night I give you head"...

Yes, this song is about that certain action that everybody loves receiving but for which opinions widely differ when it comes to giving. Singing about "Head" was not usual (to put it mildly) back in 1980 and this song (and "Little Sister" which is about incest) probably did much to establish Prince as an underground sensation. Shock-factor aside, "Head" is musically one of the funkiest songs he ever released with a killer synth-line. Of course the subject matter guaranteed it wouldn't go anywhere near the charts (although it did climb to #5 on Dance/Club Play as an E.P. featuring also "Uptown" and "Dirty Mind").
____________________________________________________________
18.I WANNA BE YOUR LOVER (1979)
album "PRINCE"



..."I ain't got no money
I ain't like those other guys you hang around
It's kinda funny
they always seem to let you down
And I get discouraged, yes you do baby"...

This was Prince's first ever hit single (it peaked at #12 on the Hot 100, #1 on R&B and #2 on Dance/Club Play (along with "Sexy Dancer"). Musically it's a world away from "Head" and the rest of the deep funk Prince would become famous for in the early '80s. Instead, what we have here is a smooth R&B tune. Take a look at the video though and you'll see the Prince we know shining through. The single helped the "Prince" album to become Prince's first hit album, making it to #22 on the BB 200 and #3 on R&B. "I Wanna Be Your Lover" had been covered by Millie Jackson, 50 Cent and Corinne Bailey Rae among others
____________________________________________________________
17.SEXY M.F. (with the New Power Generation) (1992)
album "SYMBOL"



..."I'm even with the blindfold, gagged and bound
I don't mind, see this ain't about sex
It's all about love being in charge of this life and the next
Why all the cosmic talk? I just want you smarter than I'll ever be
when we take that walk"...

This song was the first single taken from Prince's 1992 "Symbol" album and musically it is rap/R&B meets jazz with an eye on the dancefloor. The word "M.F." on the title made sure it was released only in a censored form in the States and was mostly responsible for its poor performance over there (#66 on Hot 100 and #76 on R&B). Still though, it did become a massive hit in the UK (where it peaked at #4) and was released as a video-single as well. The song is also included in Prince's musical "3 Chains O' Gold"
____________________________________________________________
16.GETT OFF (with the New Power Generation) (1991)
album "DIAMONDS AND PEARLS"



..."Honey, them hips is gone, that's alright, I clock 'em that way
Remind me of something James used to say
"I like 'em fat", "I like 'em proud", "ya gotta have a mother for me"
Now move your big *ss 'round this way so I can work on that zipper, baby
Tonight you're a star and I'm the big dipper"...

I swear, the appearance of all sex-related songs next to each other is a pure coincidence lol. The early '90s saw Prince entering the new decade's musical landscape with more ease than most other '80s superstars. His flirt with rap and new jack swing led to the creation of a new backing band (New Power Generation) which essentially debuted in this single. It also led to this fab groove, which resulted from Prince's experimentation with the James Brown 1969 song "Mother Popcorn", his own 1986 single "Glam Slam" as well as his 1990 songs "Love Machine" and "Gett Off" (the b-side to the "New Power Generation" single). The result was a tune which hardly sounded like it came from an artist with a 13 years of career behind him. It made it to #21 on the Hot 100, #6 on R&B, #1 on Dance/Club Play and #4 on the UK Singles Chart. It was released as a video-single as well and it's the song which basically made me seriously interested on Prince. Unfortunately though, as fantastic as the single was, the use of modern new jack sounds in the whole of the "Diamonds And Pearls" albums led to the huge success of that album in the charts (#3 on the BB 200, #1 on R&B and #2 on the UK Albums Chart) on the expense of the quality of the music itself. The album sounds both hit-and-miss and rather dated today. The success of that album also formed the basis for Prince's later dispute with Warner with the unfortunate late '90s side-effects for his career.
____________________________________________________________

(you can click on the song titles to listen to the songs or see the videos)

[jio]

No, "17 Days" didn't make it. I do like the song, just not as much as the others

I didn't really understand if you agree or disagree on my "The Cross" comment, probably you disagree so let me explain what I mean. I am not religious personally, yet I don't really have a problem with anyone's religious beliefs. You might have noticed I listed several songs which are religious and "The Rainbow Children" is among my favourite Prince albums despite its message. "The Cross" is a Christian religious song, even with its original lyrics and that doesn't bother me at all. What I do find annoying is the fact that Prince felt compelled to change one word in the song to be in comformity with his new religious beliefs, because that screams of narrowmindness to me. It's not the word "Christ" which bothers me, I would have said the same if the original song was "The Christ" and the new version was "The Cross".

[Blondini]

Erotic City

"I don't think anyone will be surprised that this is the highest ranking Prince b-side"

Well, yes. To me, 17 days or She's Always In My Hair are more obvious. Did you list 17 Days?
This is a fantastic track but not in the same league as those two.

Sheila E track is good.

U Got The Look is my alltime fave of his (that Numan cover is atrocious and a self-confirmed career low for him! )
The keyboard line - the Easton/Prince seductive call and response, the simplicity of the lyric - it's flawless!

The Cross
"Prince has, rather tastelessly, altered the song's lyrics following his Jehovah's Witness coversion and he is recently performing it as "The Christ"."

How sad. You can't believe in Jesus but not the cross. That's like skydiving without a parachute.
I love that song - it sounds so righteous and so intense - on a level with his other Christian songs God, 4 The Tears In Your Eyes and Temptation.

[NothingFails]

25.EROTIC CITY (with The Revolution feat. Sheila E.) (1984)
from "LET'S GO CRAZY" single (b-side)
Actually this was a huge airplay hit in its own right (and was probably singlehandedly why the rock-oriented Let's Go Crazy went #1 on the dance chart), and still gets played on US "Jammin' Oldies" stations. Definitely an all-time classic and there was space to add this to Purple Rain

24.A LOVE BIZARRE (with Sheila E.) (1985)
album "ROMANCE 1600"
I got to see Prince and Sheila do this when I saw him in Minneapolis in 2007. A night I won't forget. Awesome song and definitely my second favorite Sheila E song

23.U GOT THE LOOK (with Sheena Easton) (1987)
album "SIGN O' THE TIMES"
Awesome awesome awesome.

22.THE CROSS (1987)
album "SIGN O' THE TIMES" (album track)
One of his best rock songs. I always thought Lenny Kravitz took more than a little influence from this track

21.WHEN THE LIGHTS GO DOWN (1999)
album "THE VAULT:OLD FRIENDS 4 SALE" (album track)
Nice song

[jio]

____________________________________________________________
25.EROTIC CITY (with The Revolution feat. Sheila E.) (1984)
from "LET'S GO CRAZY" single (b-side)




..."If we cannot make babies, maybe we can make some time
thoughts of pretty u and me, erotic city come alive
We can f*ck until the dawn, making love 'til cherry's gone
Erotic city can't u see, thoughts of pretty u and me"...

I don't think anyone will be surprised that this is the highest ranking Prince b-side. It is also a song which is so good that could have easily been a #1 hit had it been released as a single. But for some weird reason Prince decided to waste it as the b-side of one of his most average songs ever, "Let's Go Crazy". The inclusion of this song in the "Let's Go Crazy" single was probably a major factor that single went to #1 in the States. "Erotic City" however refused to just die. It appeared again as the b-side to 1986's "Girls And Boys" before finally becoming a proper single in 1989 (albeit only in Germany). It has been covered by George Clinton and Berlin among others, it has been also sampled by both Diddy and Ashanti.
____________________________________________________________
24.A LOVE BIZARRE (with Sheila E.) (1985)
album "ROMANCE 1600"



..."The moon up above, it shines on upon your skin
Whispering words that scream of outrageous sin
We all want the stuff that's found in our wildest dreams
It gets kinda rough in the back of our limousine"...

"Romance 1600" was Sheila E.'s sophomore album which, like her debut, was composed by Prince. The album didn't exactly set the charts on fire (it only peaked at #50 on the BB 200 and #12 on R&B) but did produce this single, which still ranks among both Prince and Sheila E.'s absolutely best. Used also in the soundtrack of the movie "Kush Groove" (in which Sheila E. appeared), the song peaked at #11 on the Hot 100, #2 on R&B and #1 on Dance/Club Play and just refuses to die as an airplay hit in my place lol.
____________________________________________________________
23.U GOT THE LOOK (with Sheena Easton) (1987)
album "SIGN O' THE TIMES"



..."Closin' time, ugly lights, everybody's inspected
but you are a natural beauty unaffected
Did I say an hour? My face is red
I stand corrected"...

This was the third single taken from Prince's 1987 album "Sign O' The Times" and also the rock banger of that album. It was an unexpected (considering the poor performance of the previous single "If I Was Your Girlfriend") success peaking at #2 on the BB Hot 100, #18 on Dance/Club Play and #11 on the UK Singles Chart. The live-performance-in-a-dream video was originally shot for the promotion of the single and only later incorporated in the concert movie "Sign O' The Times", becoming the only performance in that film not being taken from the "Sign O' The Times" tour. The song has been covered by Gary Numan among others and sampled countless times, including in this rather fun '80s greek song
____________________________________________________________
22.THE CROSS (1987)
album "SIGN O' THE TIMES" (album track)



..."Black day, stormy night
No love, no hope inside
Don't cry for He is coming
Don't die without knowing the cross"...

This was the big rock ballad off "Sign O' The Times" and, as with "Strange Relationship", its failure to become a single didn't stop it becoming a fan favourite and a Prince concert staple. The performance of this song in the "Sign O' The Times" film is one of the most memorable moments in that film. Prince has, rather tastelessly, altered the song's lyrics following his Jehovah's Witness coversion and he is recently performing it as "The Christ".
____________________________________________________________
21.WHEN THE LIGHTS GO DOWN (1999)
album "THE VAULT:OLD FRIENDS 4 SALE" (album track)



..."How many ask your number before they even know your name?
How many out there tired of playing this silly old time game?
and when the lights go down it's just you two
It's when you and your lover do what you just wanna do"...

Warner and Prince feuding led to Warner actively trying to sabotage Prince albums of new material by releasing its own Prince albums at the same time. So around the time of the release of "Rave Un2 The Joy Fantastic" Warner released a compilation of Prince previously unavailable for the most part (at least legally) outtakes called "The Vault" which peaked at #85 on the BB 200 and #29 on R&B. The fact that that combination was focused on Prince's more jazzy songs and it included just 10 of them meant that it was a surprisingly cohesive and strong album, dare I say Prince's best late '90s album. So from that album comes this gorgeous jam, which makes me wonder how many more amazing songs could be hidden in Prince's allegedly vast collection of outtakes known to his fans as "The Vault"
____________________________________________________________

(you can click on the song titles to listen to the songs or see the videos)

[NothingFails]

Sorry for the lag

40.1+1+1=3 (2001)
album "THE RAINBOW CHILDREN" (album track)
Funky track, one of the only TRC songs I like

39.LOVE...THY WILL BE DONE (performed by Martika) (1991)
album "MARTIKA'S KITCHEN"
Excellent track that seems to be forgotten now even though it was a US top 10

38.PHEROMONE (1994)
album "COME" (album track)
Good track

37.SHE'S ALWAYS IN MY HAIR (with The Revolution) (1985)
from "RASPBERRY BERET" single (b-side)
Definitely one of his best b-sides and a song that would've been a hit had it been a single on its own

36.AND GOD CREATED WOMAN (with The New Power Generation) (1992)
album "SYMBOL" (album track)
Nice ballad and one of my faves off O+>

35.YO MISTER (performed by Patti LaBelle) (1989)
album "BE YOURSELF"
Good and underrated. When Prince made a rare appearance on Arsenio Hall in 1991 (back when Prince on talk shows was far rarer than it is now), Patti was also there to talk about him

34.D.M.S.R. (1982)
album "1999" (album track)
Pure epic. Also used in the party scene of "Risky Business"

33.SIGN O' THE TIMES (1987)
album "SIGN O' THE TIMES"
A song that remains relevant 24 years later. I'm still surprised a song so minimalistic and melodiless still was such a hit, but that's the sign of a great song.

32.WILLING AND ABLE (with The New Power Generation) (1991)
album "DIAMONDS AND PEARLS" (album track)
One of the best non-singles off D&P

31.FUTURE BABY MAMA (2007)
album "PLANET EARTH" (album track)
Not bad, but surprised it's this high

30.POP LIFE (with The Revolution) (1985)
album "AROUND THE WORLD IN A DAY"
Another great single from the mid-80's. Too bad there was no video

29.STRANGE RELATIONSHIP (1987)
album "SIGN O' THE TIMES" (album track)
Even though SOTT already had 4 (5 if you count Hot Thing charting as a b-side) singles, I'm surprised this wasn't even considered.

28.BAMBI (1980)
album "PRINCE"
While the lyrics are naive and could even be interpreted as homophobic (since he's telling a lesbian sex with him is better), the song rocks and was one of the earliest indicators that he was going to dabble in more than just funk/r&b.

27.THE QUESTION OF U (1990)
album "GRAFFITI BRIDGE" (album track)
Probably the greatest track off Graffiti Bridge (which IMO was an underrated record. The movie sucked but the album was good)

26.LET'S WORK (1982)
album "CONTROVERSY"
This song proves that he was still saving some great funk jams for himself instead of giving them all to The Time at that point.

[Blondini]

Pop Life fantastic, Strange Relationship is a quirky delight, Bambi is an amazing rocker, Let's Work is good. Not so keen on the other song.

[jio]

____________________________________________________________
30.POP LIFE (with The Revolution) (1985)
album "AROUND THE WORLD IN A DAY"




..."What's the matter with your world?
Was it a boy when U wanted a girl?
Don't U know straight hair ain't got no curl?
Life it ain't real funky unless it's got that pop"...

So what do you do when you have scored one of the most successful albums of all time? If you are Michael Jackson, you wait five years, you release something roughly similar with big budget promotion and you repeat the feat. If you are Prince you wait less than a year and you come back with the most musically different album possible with no promotion at all. That was "Around The World In A Day" for you: Prince's statement that he is more of an artist than a chart star with a bigger need of releasing music than trying to achieve maximum chart impact. "Around The World In A Day" was released approximately 10 months after "Purple Rain" without Prince's presence on the cover and without a promo-single. This bizarre strategy was chosen because of Prince's own wishes. He just wanted the music to shine by itself. And shine it did: the album became Prince's second US #1 album and peaked at #4 on R&B and #5 on the UK Albums Chart. The first single from the album was released a full month after the album itself, but it was the third overall single, "Pop Life", which sounded the closest to Prince of old and thus it is the highest ranking song from the album in my Top 100. "Pop Life" peaked at #7 on the Hot 100, #8 on R&B, #5 on Dance/Club Play but missed the Top 40 in the UK. A cover of the song by Elvis Costello was never materialised because of Prince's refusal to permit it.
____________________________________________________________
29.STRANGE RELATIONSHIP (1987)
album "SIGN O' THE TIMES" (album track)



..."I came and took your love, I took your body
I took my self respect you ever had
I took you for a ride and baby, I'm sorry
The more you love me, sugar, the more it makes me mad"...

"Strange Relationship" is actually a song which sat in Prince's vault for five years before Prince let it shine in "Sign O' The Times". Originally composed in 1982, it was re-recorded numerous times and considered for a number of aborted 1986 projects such as "Dream Factory", "Camille" and "Crystal Ball". Thankfully Prince included it in his 1987 "Sign O' The Times" album. The song remained an album track for 18 years, during which it became a concert sing-a-long favourite. Finally in 2005 a live version of the song tour was released as a single, making "Strange Relationship" the Prince song with the longest from-album-to-single history.
____________________________________________________________
28.BAMBI (1980)
album "PRINCE"



..."All your lovers, they look just like you
but they can only do the things that you do
Oh come on baby and take me by the hand
I'm gonna show you what it's like to be loved by a man"...

Although Prince flirted with rock also on "Why You Wanna Treat Me So Bad", it was this single which saw him going all the way. As a skilled guitarist (among other musical instruments he plays) rock songs almost always feature in Prince's albums but, to be honest, he rarely (if ever) surpassed this gem. The song was released, in most of the world, as the b-side to the rather unspectacular ballad "Still Waiting", although Belgium got a better deal. In that country the single was flipped over with "Bambi" becoming the a-side and "Still Waiting" the b-side. T.C. Ellis recorded a rather dull rap version of this rock banger.
____________________________________________________________
27.THE QUESTION OF U (1990)
album "GRAFFITI BRIDGE" (album track)



..."Which way do I turn when I'm feeling lost?
If I sell my soul, now what will it cost?
Must I become naked, no image at all?
Shall I remain upright or get down and crawl?"...

Everybody knows the "Purple Rain" film, few know that it actually had a sequel. And that was 1990's "Graffiti Bridge", written and directed by Prince and starring Prince himself and Morris Day of The Time. The film entered the Box Office Weekend Chart at #8 (on the strength of "Purple Rain"), dropped down like a rock and became another enormous success at the Golden Raspberry Awards where it was nominated for Worst Picture, Worst Actor (Prince), Worst Screenplay (Prince), Worst Director (Prince) and Worst New Star (Ingrid Chavez). Even though it lost in all categories (I am shocked by this), I have to say that the film was so bad that made "Shanghai Surprise" look like "Gone With The Wind" in comparison. In fact it was so bad that Madonna herself, not exactly famous for her talent in picking movie roles, refused to star in it. Still though, the film had a soundtrack performed by Prince and related artists and that soundtrack was pretty good. It became Prince's third UK #1 album and peaked at #6 on both the BB 200 and R&B. So from that album comes this amazing ballad (originally composed in 1985), which sounds like it came out of some stage musical rather than a pop album.
____________________________________________________________
26.LET'S WORK (1982)
album "CONTROVERSY"



..."I'd love to turn you on
I'd work you all night long
if I could get you in the raw
I'd make you climb the walls"...

This was the second single from Prince's 1981 album "Controversy". Originally refering to a Minneapolis dance craze called "the rock", Warner refused to release it as a non-album single so Prince reworked it and changed its name from "Let's Rock" to "Let's Work" and the result was this fab funk song. Musically,it is typical early '80s Prince and it was the first Prince US single to feature a non-album b-side (the UK single "Gotta Stop (Messin' About)" which narrowly missed my Top 100). It peaked at #9 on R&B
____________________________________________________________

(you can click on the song titles to listen to the songs or see the videos)

[Blondini]

All good - that Patti song is great - should have been bigger than that.

Sign is of course a masterpiece.

[jio]

____________________________________________________________
35.YO MISTER (performed by Patti LaBelle) (1989)
album "BE YOURSELF"




..."Her father cried when I told him that Cara twice got knocked up
He said"Just like her mama, aha, she shows her body
when she wants to show love, she tried that stuff with me
and I beat her down, there's no way I could let her stay
Couldn't let her stick around"...

Pati LaBelle needs no introduction at all: a legend, a twice Grammy Award winner, a Grammy Hall Of Fame inductee and of course an amazing voice. In 1989, the two legends worked together in two songs from Patti's album "Be Yourself" and this Prince-penned fab single peaked at #6 on R&B, becoming one of just 11 R&B Top 10s for Patti. Enjoy.
____________________________________________________________
34.D.M.S.R. (1982)
album "1999" (album track)



..."I say everybody scr*w the masses
We only want to have some fun
I say do whatever we want wear lingerie in a restaurant
Policeman got no gun, you don't have to run"...

Prince's "1999" album was a major step in Prince's career. It was the album that first included The Revolution (as a backing band without a leading co-credit, in contrast with Prince's next three albums), it was Prince's first prolific album clocking in at 70 minutes instead of the more usual, for its time, half-an-hour and bringing the electronic sounds, which Prince started using since the beginning of the '80s, to the forefont. If you only want to listen to one song to understand how the album sounds, you should choose "D.M.S.R.". It's a record of 8 minutes of pure, deep funk which, rather tastelessly, was not included in the short edition of the album released along the main one. This was never released as a single or even as a b-side but still remains one of Prince's best songs ever. Oh and "D.M.S.R." stands for "Dance, Music, Sex, Romance", in short everything Prince stood for at the time
____________________________________________________________
33.SIGN O' THE TIMES (1987)
album "SIGN O' THE TIMES"



..."Is it silly no, when a rocket blows
and everybody still wants to fly
Some say that man ain't happy, truly
until a man truly dies. Oh why?
Sign o' the times"...

"Sign O' The Times" was an ambitious project and its lead single, the title track, was similarly an ambitious song. The song has a very minimal production, not unlike Prince's biggest hit ever "When Doves Cry", and the lyrics provide a caustic commentary on the ethos of the period the song was written and released, a commentary which doesn't sound out of place even today, 24 years later. Prince wanted the public to pay attention to the lyrics which is why the video of this song (which luckily can be found in youtube) consists of a black screen with just the lyrics passing through. This didn't stop the song from becoming a sizeable hit peaking at #3 on the Hot 100, #1 on R&B, #2 on Dance/Club Play and #10 on the UK Singles Chart. It has been covered by the Simple Minds, Nina Simone and Chaka Khan among others
____________________________________________________________
32.WILLING AND ABLE (with The New Power Generation) (1991)
album "DIAMONDS AND PEARLS" (album track)



..."Let me take a bite to see if you're ripe
I'm kinda thinkin' about takin' a hunk chunk
A piece of your love tonight"...

Even though "Diamonds And Pearls" is one of the most dated Prince albums ever IMO, it does include more than its fair share of gems. And this is one of them. Here Prince incorporates perfectly both gospel (courtesy of Rosie Gaines) and rap in a pop-structured song and creates an energetic timeless tune which simply stands out. Despite this not being a single or a b-side, a video was filmed for inclusion in Prince's home music video release "Diamonds And Pearls" (albeit Prince himself is not featured in it)
____________________________________________________________
31.FUTURE BABY MAMA (2007)
album "PLANET EARTH" (album track)



..."Yeah, I know you might be fine but I've seen it all before
Cinderella was a waste of time and oops, she's out the door
To build a house together, the thing that matters more
is under the floor, a strong foundation that last forever more"...

Some people consider "Planet Earth" a dissapointment coming after the commercial breakthroughs of "Musicology" and "3121". I disagree. "Planet Earth" was definitely not as ambitious or as chart-oriented as those two albums were, but it still did its job of keeping Prince in the spotlight. It peaked at #3 on the BB 200, #1 on R&B and reached thousands of homes in the UK as a free give-away with both tickets for Prince's concerts and the "Mail On Sunday" newspaper, a technique Prince used also with his latest album "20Ten". The music was ranging from bubblegum rock to soft rap to more serious rock and R&B. Despite the album having three different single releases, this retro sounding R&B ballad was the definitive highlight, since it managed to become the only charting song from the album by peaking at #39 on R&B and to win a Grammy for Best Male R&B Vocal Performance, all of this without even being released as a single
____________________________________________________________

(you can click on the song titles to listen to the songs or see the videos)

[Blondini]

She's Always In My Hair was one of two b-sides that really should have been a-sides. It's insane that he would hide such a song away (17 Days being the other one).

Love... is a great little track.

And God... is cute.

[jio]

Why nobody told me that I messed up the "3121" and "Fury" years of release?

[jio]

____________________________________________________________
40.1+1+1=3 (2001)
album "THE RAINBOW CHILDREN" (album track)




..."This is how it's gonna b
If u wanna b with me
Take ur tie and think it thru
If this is what u wanna do
I ain't really that hard 2 please
'cause 1+1+1 is 3"...

"The Rainbow Children" was the album where Prince stopped trying to score a hit and just focused on what was at his heart at the time: religion and, specifically, the Jehovah's Witness' narrative. Yes, it's a religious album through and through and that probably explains why it was such a flop on the charts peaking at #109 on the BB 200, #33 on R&B and #4 on Independent Albums. If you can get over the message though, you'll discover a fab album musically, definitely his best since "The Gold Experience". Much more jazzy than anything he did under his own name, this album was for me Prince being back as a great musician and as a controversial figure (albeit for different reasons). Even though the line "There's a theocratic order" is hard to ignore, the deep funk of "1+1+1=3" more than makes up for it and that's why this track is my favourite from the album. And Prince can certainly do mathematics, can't he?
____________________________________________________________
39.LOVE...THY WILL BE DONE (performed by Martika) (1991)
album "MARTIKA'S KITCHEN"



..."Even when there's no peace outside my window
There's peace inside
And that's why I can not longer run
Love... thy will be done"...

Martika was a somehow more sophisticated version of the female teen idols standard which had emerged in the late '80s, mostly known for her 1989 US #1 hit "Toy Soldiers". But as the early '90s proved disastrous for the careers of fellow teen sensations Tiffany and Debbie Gibson, Martika turned to Prince to give her a hand with her material. "Love...Thy Will Be Done" was the first single to be released from her sophomore album and peaked at #10 on the Hot 100, #9 on the UK Singles Chart and #1 in Australia. Like "Nothing Compares 2 U", Prince has sang his own version of this song on tour numerous times. And Martika? She has been successfully recording Latin music the past years.
____________________________________________________________
38.PHEROMONE (1994)
album "COME" (album track)



..."Her eyes are closed but there's no penetration
He just makes her point the pistol to his nose
while he masturbates and now I see a tear
heading down towards her smile "...

This drum-heavy song is the highest entry from an album very few people appreciated. And this of course is 1994's "Come". That album came out in a time of extreme tension between Prince and his label. Prince had already decided to release the best of his material independently without using the name "Prince" while giving Warner enough songs to release a string of albums and thus terminate his contract earlier than expected. That was also the point behind the "1958-1993" inscription on the cover of the album: Prince, the Warner's artist, had died. That meant of course that the album was released with almost no promotion at all, which resulted in peaking at a mere #15 on the BB 200 and #2 on R&B. The album did manage though to become Prince's fifth (and final) #1 album in the UK despite dropping down the charts relatively fast. A common misconception (thanks to the "1958-1993" inscription) is that the album contains older material. In fact the vast majority of the songs were recorded in the exact same sessions which produced "The Gold Experience" songs and were intended for the aborted musical "Glam Ulysses", except of the lovely Orgasm which was recorded in the early '80s (no surprise there).
____________________________________________________________
37.SHE'S ALWAYS IN MY HAIR (with The Revolution) (1985)
from "RASPBERRY BERET" single (b-side)



..."Whenever I feel like givin' up, whenever my sunshine turns to rain
Whenever my hopes and dreams are aimed in the wrong direction
She's always there tellin' me how much she cares
tellin' me she's always in my hair"...

And here is another case of what the hell Prince was thinking releasing this song as a b-side. Well, to be fair, it didn't match the style of his "Around The World In A Day" album much, which is probably why this gem ended as the b-side to the first single from that album ("Raspberry Beret" in the US, "Paisley Park" in the UK) despite being probably better than both of its a-sides. The song apparently refers to Jill Jones, a Prince backing singer and protege. D'Angelo did an interesting cover of the song for the soundtrack of the film "Scream 2"
____________________________________________________________
36.AND GOD CREATED WOMAN (with The New Power Generation) (1992)
album "SYMBOL" (album track)



..."And if I never see u again
It's alright, for I am guilty of no sin
They can have you, I'll have your love in the end
Soul of my soul"...

This is the best ballad in Prince's 1992 "Symbol" album IMO. It is another ode to women and I don't really have anything to say about it, other than "Symbol" was the first Prince album I ever bought and "And God Created Woman" was an early favourite song from that album and remains one until now.
____________________________________________________________

(you can click on the song titles to listen to the songs or see the videos)

[Blondini]

^Good find!

Dolphin is good.

Fury was not among my faves on that album.
Allen song is interesting.

Dirty Mind great, TMBGITW also great.

[ShayLaB]

Not heard Telepathy before...not bad. Will play it again.

I was glad when TMBGITW hit number 1 but I wouldn't rank it among his best.

Dirty Mind, Fury and Dolphin are all fab.

I notice there has been very little from the O(-> album...expecting to see at least three tracks coming up.

A few years ago I came across a site that was entirely devoted to scans of newspaper/magazine articles about Prince stretching way back to the early 80s. It was a really terrific Prince resource but, alas, I seem to have forgotten the URL.

Anybody know the site I am thinking of?

Edit: The one I was thinking of appears to be long gone...however, there was this which seems rather good.

Edit: I see a couple of his early albums being re-released on vinyl next month. Start of a reissues/remasters?

[NothingFails]

Actually I don't think this list is bad

45.TELEPATHY (performed by Deborah Allen) (1987)
album "TELEPATHY"
You know, until now I always thought it was Debbie Allen, aka Ms. Grant from Fame he worked with LOL. I like the song.

44.THE MOST BEAUTIFUL GIRL IN THE WORLD (1994)
album "THE GOLD EXPERIENCE"
Overrated (sad that its his only UK #1) but at least it proved he didn't need Warner to have a big hit single... although it seemed to be the only big one he had in the 90's after the name change.

43.DIRTY MIND (1980)
album "DIRTY MIND"
Love it. So minimalistic yet effective. The leadoff to one of his best albums IMO

42.FURY (2005)
album "3121"
Decent track but the album version always came short to the version he performed on SNL shortly before the albums release.

41.DOLPHIN (1995)
album "THE GOLD EXPERIENCE" (album track)
A little on the preachy side but always enjoyed it, like pretty much all of The Gold Experience.

[jio]

____________________________________________________________
45.TELEPATHY (performed by Deborah Allen) (1987)
album "TELEPATHY"




..."I know your kind like the back of my hand
You're a hungry wolf in a valley of lambs
Don't talk, boy I understand
The heat in this room speaks loud enough"...

It is hard to believe from this single but Deborah Allen is actually a country singer with a string of country hits over the period 1980-1994. She only once crossed over to the pop charts way back in 1983 with "Baby I Lied". In 1987, Deborah released this fab Prince-penned pop single which was too much of a shock for her fanbase to be a hit. It still though constitutes something of a guilty pleasure. Just check out the video
____________________________________________________________
44.THE MOST BEAUTIFUL GIRL IN THE WORLD (1994)
album "THE GOLD EXPERIENCE"



..."And if the stars ever fell one by one from the sky
I know Mars could not be 2 far behind
Cuz baby, this kind of beauty has got no reason 2 ever be shy
Cuz baby, this kind of beauty is the kind that comes from inside"...

I know NothingFails dislikes this song but I absolutely adore it. This was technically the first single released from "The Gold Experience" although, in reality, the Prince album which was released shortly after this single was "Come" (which didn't include "The Most Beautiful Girl In The World") and "The Gold Experience" which did include it (in an improved more "live"-sounding version) came out about a year later. Confusing? Well the fact that most songs for both albums were recorded in the same sessions may provide some explanation for that anomaly, Prince's rocky relations at the time with his label Warner may provide another. Whatever the cause, the single (essentially an ode to love and female beauty) was a huge success becoming the only Prince-performed single to top the UK Singles Chart (he had another two #1s with songs he composed but did not perform) and peaking at #3 on the BB Hot 100 and #2 on R&B. Also an E.P. of remixes called "The Beautiful Experience" charted separately at #18 on the UK Singles Chart. Prince's then-wife Mayte has recorded her own versions of the song, including one called "The Most Beautiful Boy In The World".
____________________________________________________________
43.DIRTY MIND (1980)
album "DIRTY MIND"



..."It doesn't matter I just wanna lay ya down
In my daddy's car
It's you I really wanna drive
but you never go too far "...

This party anthem is the second single taken from Prince's third studio album of the same name. Although it wasn't much of a success (#65 on Soul and #5 on Dance (as an E.P. including also "Uptown" and "Head"), it is a very typical example of Prince's synth sound at the time and also of his transition from his more R&B 70s sound to the more funky 80s sound which would eventually turn him into a superstar. The early '80s was also the time when Prince became a much-talked-about underground sensation and the performances of this single can easily explain why.
____________________________________________________________
42.FURY (2006)
album "3121"



..."2 sides in every story
One man's gloom, another man's glory
Sun 2 his shadow, rose 2 a thorn
Ain't no fury like a woman scorned"...

This fab rock banger was the third release from Prince's album "3121" and peaked at #60 on the UK Singles Chart. It is also my favourite song from that album, I just adore its retro rock sound. The "3121" album itself was a huge success for Prince back in 2006. Building on the already positive environment created by his previous album, "Musicology", the album debuted at #1 on the BB200 becoming the first Prince album to reach the top of the main chart in 16 years' time. It also topped the R&B Albums Chart and peaked at #9 on the UK Albums Chart. The title of the album refers to a verse out of the Bible (Psalms 31:21) which reads: "Blessed by Jehovah". An alternative more down-to-earth explanation however is that it just refers to his Los Angeles mansion, for which Prince received a lawsuit for painting the numbers "3121" on its exterior.
____________________________________________________________
41.DOLPHIN (1995)
album "THE GOLD EXPERIENCE" (album track)



..."If I came back as a dolphin
would u listen 2 me then?
would u let me be your friend?
would u let me in?"...

Another rock song (albeit softer than "Fury") is the highest ranking song from "The Gold Experience" album. This one was originally intended to be released as part of a live album called "The Undertaker" but, as usual, Warner's objections led to the release of that project as a music video only (which is still not available on DVD, thank you Warner) and the inclusion of "Dolphin" in the 1995 "Gold Experience" album. The album itself is considered Prince's best moment of the '90s and I agree (although I would consider it a tie with both "Symbol" and "Come"). The album peaked at #6 on the BB200, #2 on R&B and #4 on the UK Albums Chart, chart heights Prince wouldn't see again with a studio album until "Musicology" almost a decade later
____________________________________________________________

(you can click on the song titles to listen to the songs or see the videos)

[ShayLaB]

Every one a winner this time. I'd probably place the two PR tracks lower than the others.

Seeing Paisley Park here reminds me of the way the album was released. No promotion, no lead single and a cover that did it's best to disguise who made the album.

The whole situation with that album is a major factor in why I respect him so much. He followed one of the biggest sellers of the decade barely 10 months later with an entirely different sound and look, and with an album that Prince knew would separate the Purple Rain bandwagoners from the people who are really interested in seeing Prince's maturation artistically. Most artists would take a long break afforded to them after Purple Rain.

It's a comparison we have made before but he was to the 80's what Bowie was to the 70's...a niche artist that, on occasion, sold an awful lot of records.

[jio]

Lol you're all so excited with these 5 songs (can't blame you they're great) you're bound to get a dissapointment with the next bunch, especially NothingFails (as far as I understand what he likes lol).

And yes, although ATWIAD is the weakest album he did 1979-1987 in my book, it shows the reason why I love him. He does care about the charts obviously, but not enough to stop him doing what he wants to do. I believe Prince is at heart a non-commercial act who had a lot of huge hits rather than a commercial act who stopped being commercial at some point. That's why I love him

[NothingFails]

Every one a winner this time. I'd probably place the two PR tracks lower than the others.

Seeing Paisley Park here reminds me of the way the album was released. No promotion, no lead single and a cover that did it's best to disguise who made the album.

The whole situation with that album is a major factor in why I respect him so much. He followed one of the biggest sellers of the decade barely 10 months later with an entirely different sound and look, and with an album that Prince knew would separate the Purple Rain bandwagoners from the people who are really interested in seeing Prince's maturation artistically. Most artists would take a long break afforded to them after Purple Rain.

[ShayLaB]

Every one a winner this time. I'd probably place the two PR tracks lower than the others.

Seeing Paisley Park here reminds me of the way the album was released. No promotion, no lead single and a cover that did it's best to disguise who made the album.

[jio]

I had no idea about this either... thanks

[Blondini]

Didn't know about this:

At the 2008 Coachella Music Festival, Prince performed a cover of Radiohead's "Creep", but immediately after he forced YouTube and other sites to remove footage that fans had taken of the performance, despite Radiohead's demand for it to remain on the website.[135] Days later, YouTube reinstated the videos, while Radiohead claimed "it's our song, let people hear it." In 2009, Prince put the video of that Coachella performance on his then-official website LotusFlow3r.com.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-goL5UuXAo4

Sorry it has nothing to do with the chart but seeing as this is the place Prince fans are hanging out at...

[Blondini]

NOW you're talking! 5 absolute classics! I love the album version of Hot Thing, though. :-?

Mountains is one of his most underachieving singles - how that sold far less than Paisley Park is bizarre (indeed, Pop Life is better than PP but i suspect PL was under-promoted in UK.)

[NothingFails]

Great selection of singles that outside of "I Would Die 4 U" generally don't get much recurrent airplay on radio.

50.PAISLEY PARK (with The Revolution) (1985)
album "AROUND THE WORLD IN A DAY"
A lot of people say ATWIAD is very Beatle-oriented, but honestly it's really this song that gives it those comparisons. Great track that somehow wasn't a US release (we went straight for Raspberry Beret)

49.TAKE ME WITH U (with Apollonia & The Revolution) (1985)
album "PURPLE RAIN"
The least successful Purple Rain single in the US (but I think it has to do that the album had already moved 9-10 million by the time the single had hit so most who would've bought the single had the album already) but a great track. Prince and Apples' voices blended well together.

48.HOT THING (1987)
album "SIGN O' THE TIMES" (album track)
Such a stripper anthem LOL. Fun track that as radio proved was too good to *just* be a b-side

47.I WOULD DIE 4 U (with The Revolution) (1984)
album "PURPLE RAIN"
I remember when I first heard this song as a kid thinking he was singing "Apple Dapple You". A short, sweet spiritual song with a fantastic synth-line.

46.MOUNTAINS (with The Revolution) (1986)
album "PARADE"
Great beat to this one. Too bad it performed so poorly as the followup to "Kiss" which I think has been overplayed over the years. I too love Under The Cherry Moon. We saw a side to Prince in that film that we rarely see and it was an amusing film just to see him so far out of his normal element.