1999 - Prince (Cassette 1987)

Although previous releases such as Dirty Mind and Controversy had made electro-funk maestro Prince a critical hit, it wasn t until 1982 s double album "1999" that his commercial reception reached equally rapturous levels. Originally running across four vinyl sides, "1999" consists of seventy minutes of meticulously measured synth-dance pleasure. Above all else, this is a party record, and while dissuading being over-cerebral about it would be a disservice to Prince s talents as a composer, you are simply not going to enjoy this album if you don t like getting your dancing and drinking shoes...

Chock full of funky jams but overlong by a third, the double album, neo-psychedelic covered groove-a-thon 1999 showcases some of Prince's best work as well as some of his excesses. Lyrically, Prince still has sex on his mind, be it on the dance floor or in the back of a taxi cab, but he backs it up with some deftly layered music credited to his backing band, The Revolution. Heavy on synthesizers, most tracks also feature Prince's lead guitar, and rhythm guitar, popping bass and either drums or a drum machine. The first three songs, "1999," "Little Red Corvette," and "Delirious," all became...

With moderate success from his first two records (FOR YOU and PRINCE), and even more success with albums three and four (DIRTY MIND and CONTROVERSY), Prince finally hit the REAL big time in 1983 when he released the dance-floor double-album "1999". With three top-ten singles (1999, Little Red Corvette, and Delirious), Prince was setting himself up to become a major player in the music industry, FINALLY. "Don't worry, I won't hurt you. I only want you to have some fun" he tells us in a computer-altered bass voice, opening the record and preparing us for the fun to follow. And follow it does...

Every once in a while I hit this mood where the only music I can listen to is Prince. Seeing as I have a large amount of his discography, this does not pose a problem. It also gives me an, I hope, informed opinion on an album that is easier to ooh and ahh over than to make intelligent statements -- or say anything new, really -- about the music. Let's start with a few basics. The art has shrunk to such a degree when being moved from its original double-album configuration to CD that you can only make out the words "and the Revolution" and "Dirty Boy" if you know where to look, and you won't...