Emancipation [PA] - Prince (CD 1996)

I bought this CD because my extensive Prince CD collection was stolen out my car and needed to replace them at reasonable prices. Emancipation is a work of art. It is one of those collections that is a very true and accurate portrayal of an artist at a particular time in her/his life. Prince was finally free of the "chains" that most artists would kill for -- the artistic chains that Warner Bros. was so "progressive" to offer a young Prince way back when. The contract that Prince originally signed with Warner was indeed "good" at the time, offering him artistic freedom. However, it did not give him ownership of the music that he created. Where's the beef? That's the beef! How can you not own something that came out of your heart and soul? Anyway, to the CD, it is quite simply brilliant and diverse. I like "Jam of the Year" musically, though a little indulgent lyrically. The two following songs however blew my mind the first time I heard them (Right Back Here In Your Arms, Somebody's Somebody) -- truly excellent. The rest of Disc 1 is quite good, too, with "Betcha By Golly Wow" taken from the Stylistics is the first time that I know of that Prince ever covered anyone on a recording and the rest just very fun. Disc 2 is great also with "Sex in the Summer" with the baby's ultrasound heartbeat and the inspiring songs of "Soul Sanctuary" "Curious Child" and "Dreamin' About You" -- very beautiful. On Disc 3, my favorites are "Face Down" bite-you-back edgy track with a great beat, "La, La, La" which is a beautiful rendition, "Style" which is quite fun, and "The Love We Make" which is beautifully inspiring. Overall, if I were trapped on a desert island and I had only one CD that I could play, it would be Emancipation.