Prince & The Revolution - Purple Rain
This was my introduction to the Purple One, and this is such a good place to start.
Lets Go Crazy is a great opener. It's uptempo pop with both keyboards and guitars featuring heavily yet neither dominates the other. Take Me With U encapsulates the appeal of Purple Rain, the movie. Breathlessly romantic yet edgy, sweet but still sexy , and a little dangerous to boot.
The Beautiful Ones is probably my favourite song ever. It starts as a gentle plea to a lover to choose Prince over another. It builds and builds, gradually ratcheting up the tension as he becomes more and more desperate, until it reaches a crescendo with Prince screaming his ultimatum. In the movie, the band come on stage for a show, play this one song and then leave. Given the intense performance, this would be the greatest gig of all time.
Computer Blue includes a superb instrumental break featuring some great guitar work. Darling Nikki's musical whimsy is in stark contrast to the lyrics, a filthy tale of sex, masturbation and bondage which ruffled some feathers when it was released. When Doves Cry is a stone cold classic. Epic pop with an electronic edge which sounded very futuristic when it was originally released in 1984 and still sounds contemporary now.
'I'm not a woman, I'm not a man, I am something that you'll never understand' are telling lyrics in I Would Die 4 U and go some way to explaining part of Prince's appeal here - his mystique. He has the ability to be feminine, masculine or androgynous at any given moment. Consequently, the music can be hard, soft or mysterious when required.
Baby I'm A Star is Hi NRG, high camp pop music. The album closes with the title track which is the most mature track here. It's epic, mournful rock music, the sadness accentuated by the use of strings.
This is arguably Prince's finest album. This is arguably the greatest soundtrack of all time. One thing that is not in doubt, however, is the album's brilliance.
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