I’m sure I’ll only get about halfway through this review before the lightning strikes. So be it.
With all the hype and attention and great reviews Prince’s MUSICOLOGY is getting, I grabbed it the day after it was released and took it home, expecting, hoping, praying to love it. But one thing I’ve learned lately is that there are certain categories Prince’s songs fall into these days. There’s the party jam (“Musicology” “Life ‘O’ the Party”), the love song (“A Million Days”, “Call My Name”, “What Do You Want Me 2 Do?”, “The Marrying Kind”, “If Eye Was the Man in Ur Life”, and “On the Couch”) and, apparently the political tirade (“Cinnamon Girl” and “Dear Mr. Man”). MUSICOLOGY does offer a few misc. tunes just to break things up (“Illusion, Coma, Pimp & Circumstance” and “Reflection”)
Now, there’s nothing wrong with sticking with certain trends in your songwriting. Prince was always the best when it came to a funky party jam. But lately they all amount to the same thing.
“We gonna have us a party / All r welcome 2 / We ain’t down with nobody / That don’t party like we do / Once we get it started / We got to go all night / This is the life ‘o’ the party / We gonna do it right.”
Not bad. If he weren’t simply re-writing “Jam of the Year” from EMANCIPATION. Even the music sounds the same.
And there ain’t NO ONE in the world who writes a love song like Prince. Used to. But, again, they all amount to pretty much the same thing anymore.
“But it let me know that my name / Had never really been spoken b4 / B4 the day I carried U / Thru the bridal path door” (“Call My Name”)
“I see U picked me out like U want something / But shame on U, baby, can’t U see this ring?” (“What Do U Want Me 2 Do?”)
“Honey, I tried 2 tell him / That U were the marrying kind / A faithful one-man woman / Best he would ever find” (“The Marrying Kind”)
“I know we agreed / I know we agreed 2 b married” (“On the Couch”)
All right. I get the point. You like being married. Great. Stop telling me how much you love being married and go back to telling me how you wanna f**k your wife!!! What happened to the man who sang “Erotic City”? “I Love U in Me”? Hell, even “Let’s PRETEND We’re Married”?
I got nothing against someone growing as both an artist and a person. But there was one thing you could always count on from a Prince record--no matter what he was singing about, it was gonna be sexier than anything else on the shelves that year. Not anymore.
(halfway point. no lightning? good.)
And then there’s the political ramblings.
“Tearful words of love 4 people / She had never met b4 / Asking God to grant them mercy / In this face of holy war” (“Cinnamon Girl”) and “What’s wrong with the world 2day? / Things just got 2 get better / Dear Mr. Man, we don’t understand / Maybe we should write a letter” (“Dear Mr. Man”)
No, maybe you should write a good song again. PLEASE!!!
Or this, “Section 1, the 14th Amendment says: / No state shall deprive any person / Of life, liberty or property / Without due process of law” (“Dear Mr. Man”). Wow, that’s really melodic. Can’t believe it hasn’t found its way into more soul albums.
If I want politics, I’ll watch CNN.
And is it just me, or is the reclusive and enigmatic Prince the last person you want handing out advice on the way to run the world? You know what, come join the world before you try to influence the way it’s run.
It’s not all tired, recycled jams and bad lyrics--although there is plenty of both of those.
The last song, “Reflection” is a brilliantly subtle piece. And it’s like nothing he’s written before, lyrically.
“Remember all the way back in the day / When we would compare whose afro was the roundest?” This is a song I could listen to over and over. Why? Because unlike EVERYTHING else on MUSICOLOGY, it doesn’t sound like I’ve heard it on another record already.
I can understand his reasons for this record. After THE RAINBOW CHILDREN, he needed something to show people he wasn’t THAT far from who he used to be. But Prince’s constant growth was what I always loved about his music. THE RAINBOW CHILDREN was like nothing before , during, or since, and there’s no one in the world who could have pulled it off. Hell, lots of people could have written MUSICOLOGY.
But that’s just the lyrics. Musically, it’s still Prince. That perfect blend of rock and funk that only Prince can do so convincingly permeates every sound wave. Plus, the CD has those 6 wonderful words missing from too many recent albums “All instruments and voices by Prince”. Not Prince and the NPG, not Prince and Anybody Else. Just Prince. That’s always nice to see. His best stuff is always the stuff he does alone. Well, it was anyway.
I wanted to love MUSICOLOGY. I really did. I still want to love it. I listen to it over and over, learning the songs, singing along with him and grooving. But it’s just . . . not Prince. I don’t know who this guy is. He does a good imitation, but this is NOT the Prince I pledged allegiance to after hearing SIGN “O” THE TIMES. I hope to God he comes back very soon. MUSICOLOGY is nice to hear, but nice isn’t good enough when I’m listening to Prince. No one kicks my a$$ like he does. MUSICOLOGY only causes a minor ache, quickly eased with a little Starfish and Coffee.
Now, bring on the lightning. I’m not afraid. It’s not my fault MUSICOLOGY is mediocre.
As much as it KILLS me, I have to say Not Recommended.
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