Note to Marks & Spencer: Whispering over the top of slow motion footage of food doesn't make it tast...
Note to Marks & Spencer: Whispering over the top of slow motion footage of food doesn't make it tastier or any less fattening.
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SO WHO'S PRINCE? ------------------------------ Prince, born Prince Rogers Nelson, in Minneapolis 46 years ago is a very talented singer/multi-instrumentalist (with the emphasis on "mentalist"). Between 1983 and 1993 he released one album every year until his record company took more control of his work and asked him to slow down his work-rate and spend more time on promotion.
He responded by changing his name to an unintelligible symbol, writing the word "slave" on his cheek and actively not promoting his work.
He returned this year with the apparently fine Musicology album.
WHAT DOES HE SOUND LIKE? --------------------------------------------- It depends what mood he's in. When he's soulful, it's somewhere between James Brown and Rick James. When he rocks out, you're lookng at the 80's answer to Jimi Hendrix and can argue that he influenced Lenny Kravitz. Generally, he'll try his hand at most popular styles and given his high work rate of the 80's coupled with it's near flawless quality, it would be sacrilege to try to label this influential and unique artist.
WHAT'S PARADE ALL ABOUT THEN? ----------------------------------------------------- Aside from music, Prince also fancied himself as something of a movie star. His first bash at the silver screen, in 1984, produced the egotistical and indulgent Purple Rain. It was panned by the critics, of course. Unperturbed, he had another crack in 1986 with Under The Cherry Moon. I've not seen that film, but filmed in "arty" black and white and with a seemingly unparalleled fascination with all things French, the signs aren't good. Parade is the soundtrack to this film.
THE TRACKS -------------------- Covering mild psychadelia, rip-roaring funk workouts and tender ballads, Parade is a very clever cross section of myriad styles that Prince likes to work with. I have listed the tracks below giving marks out of five, along with a Typical Bonkers Moment (TBM) - because he was madder than a bucket
of bananas - for good measure:
**1. Christopher Tracy's Parade (2:11)** Psychadelia City! Mad backwards drums and wayward trupmets are all over the joint on the intro to this song. Normality is restored by Prince's vocal arrival and the very catchy chorus of "everyone come behold/Christopher Tracy's parade". This form part of a segued trilogy at the beginning of the album and melds quite nicely into..... Mark: 4/5 TBM: The backwards drums at the beginning
**2. New Position (2:20)** More backwards drums before a ticking clock and a steel drum resonates throughout. Prince, whilst on doleful form on the previous track, is more aggressive on this track and uses a technique where he sings the words in one key and the backing vocals in another. Brainy! "Let's go fishing in the river of life" is a bit of 6th form lyric, but what Prince is famous for is his dirty talk and "I'm gonna do ya like a good man should" is typical perviness from the purple one. Mark: 4/5 TBM: The two-note steel drum riff
**3. I Wonder U (1:40)** I'm listening to this and reviewing at the same time and a track that lasts a little over 90 seconds is sooooo not helping. The film that Parade soundtracks is apparently very French in feel. A loose thread of Frogness permeates the album and this track is the evidence of that. "I....how you say?...I wonder you" whispers a very sexy-voiced female throughout this track. In fact Prince doesn't even appear on it. And so the trilogy ends. Mark: 3/5 TBM: The lack of Prince!
**4. Under the Cherry Moon (2:57)** It was, by all accounts, a cack film but boy can he write a killer ballad. Beautiful piano and ticking percussion start off the track and his lyrics are so good - you won't find Prince in any of my worst lyrics pieces! "If I don't find my destiny soon/I'll die in your arms under the cherry moon". After a couple of minutes the song meanders away on a jazzy piano tip but every drop of this track is class. Mark: 5/5 TBM: Jazzy piano, I don't think he's done that before
**5. Girls and Boys (5:29)** Hurray! A song over three minutes long! This is one of my favourite Prince tracks because, like all good music, it's ridiculously simple. He's joined on backing vocals by one of his many proteges, Sheila E and the incredibly sexy Wendy and Lisa. "Vous ete tres belle", they purr in the background (big hair, talking in French: bring it on, ladies!). Throughout the track a great three note sax riff farts away and, married to the simple beat and imaginative lyrics ("meet me somewhere after dawn"), makes for great listening. Mark: 5/5 TBM: A mini-rap near the end
**6. Life Can Be So Nice (3:13)** This is the fastest track so far and begins with a catchy whistly looped riff and has Prince spouting a load of nonsensical reason why, indeed, life can be so nice. The symbols and hi-hats bash away in the background and it all comes to messy conclusion a little over three minutes later when the tempo slows down, some foghorn synth come in and that whistly riff from the intro distorts intself into a monotonous groan. Mark: 4/5 TBM: The lyric: "scrambled eggs? so boring!"
**7. Venus de Milo (1:55)** Beautiful semi-classical piano starts this track and the very hint of breathy strings weep away in the background. You can barely hear the hushed percussion as the piano takes centre stage and then it dawns on you that this is going to be an instrumental. Mark: 3/5 TBM: The rarest of thing in Prince's armoury: an instrumental
**8. Mountains (3:57)** The very dated dated drums actually sound great on this tune. For the first time listening to this album I want to get up and dance as a bass and Prince's falsetto verses kick off. Great synthy brass comes in on the soaring chorus. Dare I say it? The nearest this album gets to a proper song. Verse/bridge/chorus and a regular tempo with a little instrumental break in the middle. A nicely timed, refreshing change. Mark: 5/5 TBM: Goes a bit weird at the end with what sounds like the Hawaii 5-0 theme!
**9. Do U Lie? (2:44)** If the Frenchie theme of the film hadn't become apparent to you, then Prince leaves his subtlety at home on this track. A teenage girl opens the track with spoken French before Prince comes in and sings over an accordion and percussion rhythm. Bizarre yet intriguing. Mark: 3/5 TBM: Prince sings in a fake Cockney accent for one line
**10. Kiss (3:37)** "Ding-aling-aling-aling-aling. Uh" Hey everybody, it's Kiss! Everybody knows Kiss! Don't need experience to turn me o-on. This is what he does best: minimal instrumentation, a sexy little falsetto and upfront lyrics. I remember, though, the video featured him in a crop top and the female guitarist in a veil. Not a good look, but when the giotar is as funky and captivating as this, who cares. Look to James Brown as the source of this brilliant track - the guitar sound and the beat are straight out a Brown funk masterclass. Naturaly, released as a single. Stupendous. Mark: 6/5 TBM: Screaming the line: "ain't no particular sign I'm compatible with"
**11. Anotherloverholenyohead (4:00)** The last single to be released from this album it made a paltry number 36 in November 1986. The title is short for the chorus of: "you need another lover like you need a whole in your head" (sounds like a woman in my office!). It's another funk workout in the same vain as Mountains with a very similar beat and is a great track overall. Mark: 4/5 TBM: A backwards guitar intro
**12. Sometimes It Snows in April (6:58)** And just when you think the album in lurching towards predictability with short songs, funk anthems, bonkers backwards instruments and women garbling away in French, Prince plays his trump card: a seven minute piano ballad. Admittedly the opening line: "Tracy died just after a long-fought civil war" kind of sets the tone and it's not one for fans of S-Club! But Prince's wobbly vocals on the verses and husky falsetto on the chorus are just brilliant. I hate ballads, but this one, I don't know, I just gets me right here (**points to heart**). Moving. Mark: 5/5 TBM: The ability to make a seven minute ballad go so quickly!
PRINCE DISCOGRAPHY ----------------------------------- Prince May 1980 Dirty Mind Apr 1981 1999 May 1983 Purple Rain (OST) Jul 1984 1999 Sep 1984 Around The World In A Day May 1985 Parade Apr 1986 Sign 'O' The Times Apr 1987 Lovesexy May 1988 Batman (OST) Jul 1989 Graffiti Bridge Sep 1990 Gett Off Aug 1991 Diamonds And Pearls Oct 1991 Symbol Oct 1992 Hits 1 Sep 1993 Hits 2 Sep 1993 The B-Sides Sep 1993 Come Aug 1994 The Black Album Dec 1994 The Gold Experience Oct 1995 Chaos And Disorder Jul 1996 Emancipation Nov 1996 Rainbow Children Jul 1999 The Very Best Of Aug 2001 Musicology Mar 2004
OVERALL -------------- Not a great place to start for those who are new to Prince and want to find out more. Get one of the "Hits" collections first and work backwards from Symbol to Purple Rain and you'll be well catered for. Still, for those who do know him, this album is cracking stuff and full of surprises from the outset.
You can get it for £6.97 on Amazon and £4.99 everytime HMV have a sale.
One thing about Prince, you never know what he's going to do next.
Thanks for reading!
Wayne
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I love "Sometimes It Snows In April", and when it accompanies the movie, it's quite moving. You missed "Crystal Ball" off the discography. Tut, tut. KT x
ilusvm 19.02.2005 22:36
only ever really heard a few of his songs so interesting review. Em x
Advantages: The most powerful Batman score ever composed; an Elfman classic all the way Disadvantages: So what if it isn't the most sophisticated score in the world?
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