Musicology and 3121 are both 2LP vinyl editions on limited PURPLE vinyl.
Prince got his big bucks from the corporation but the sorry looking card wallet and the ‘free’ status was ultimately detrimental to the art.Īll three albums will be released on vinyl and CD. He initially embraced the internet but by 2007 wasn’t so keen and ended up giving away 2007’s ultimately disappointing Planet Earth album with The Mail on Sunday. Prince was restless and sometimes contradictory in his search for ways to market and sell his albums in the era of illegal downloading and declining sales. The rather atypical ‘Te Amo Corazón’ was chosen as the first single. 3121 in particular harks back to the glory days in parts with some fine songs like the title track (echoing Sign ‘O’ The Times era), ‘Black Sweat’, and the funk workout of ‘Get On The Boat ‘. Both records saw Prince rein in his penchant for self-indulgence (no bloated triple-album sets!) and deliver tight 12-track studio outings. These albums saw Prince re-establish himself as a creative and commercial force with 2004’s Musicology winning two Grammys and 2006’s 3121 debuting at number one on the Billboard 200. All three will be reissued on CD and released for the first time on vinyl in February next year, with limited PURPLE vinyl pressings available. That said, it's an enjoyable listen, and it's perfect background music for a candlelit dinner or any intimate interaction of your choosing.The Prince Estate and Sony’s Legacy Recordings have announced reissues of a trio of Prince albums: Musicology, 3121 and Planet Earth. It's likely not an even an album Prince himself cared much for, since only "Avalanche" was ever performed live he didn't even revisit it for his final 'Piano And A Microphone' tour, which would have maybe gave the album a chance to be revisited and reassessed. Still, Prince's playing is lovely, tasteful and serves each song perfectly. The piano playing on the record isn't outstanding, serving to forward the melody of the songs rather than show off Prince's chops as if his keyboard work was on the same level as his guitar playing.
It's one of his best deep cuts and one that reads as profoundly relevant in today's climate. Prince's falsetto has never sounded more phantasmal, giving it a snake like sound that works for the sting carried for the lyrics. The best song, however, is "Avalance," which veers thematically from the rest of the album by being the most politically charged song Prince had written since maybe "Sign O' The Times," taking direct aim at America's whitewashing of Abraham Lincoln and other intellectual injustices that still plague the African American community even today. There's also the sarcasting spurn "Pearls Before Swine," and the lovely instrumental "Arboretum," which closes the record. The rest of the record is a bit more light thematically, with Joni Mitchell's "A Case Of U" (a song that had been in his live repertoire on and off throughout his career) being a real highlight, a truly tender and sincere rendition with one of Prince's best vocals. Sandwiched between the title song and "Here On Earth" (which contains lyrics about a "young woman running for her very life, trying to get away from the one who loves her," this makes up arguably the creepiest three song arc of any Prince record. The second song, "U're Gonna C Me," is even quieter but also even more sinister, the longing presented in its lyrics bordering on obsessive or even stalkerish. with a sort of menacing quality he rarely displayed. "The undulating acrobat ready to do your bidding saysĭo you like fast? Or do you like it slow?"" The opening title track is remarkably eerie, with its stabbing chords and Prince's carnal baritone reciting passages such as: As with most of Prince's more obscure works, however, there are several hidden gems that make it a real sleeper and a very pleasant listen. It's not hard to understand why at first: with its bland cover and stunning lack of any song that made it into Prince's live repertoire on any sort of basis, it's like child's play to think the album offers nothing special. And yet, even in comparison to some of his other 'lost years' records, it still remains one of the easiest to overlook in his catalog, if not the easiest. Review Summary: A pleasant and underrated listen with a unique sound.Īs an album, "One Nite Alone" sounds like it should rank among one of Prince's most interesting - a stripped down, mostly 'piano and voice' affair, unlike any other one in his category.