|
From the Vault...
07/31/2005
#953 |
|
info
The Artist Formerly Known As Prince
"Crystal Ball"
© NPG Records
Year of Release: 1998
Rating:
|
track listing
Disc One:
Crystal Ball
Dream Factory
Acknowledge Me
Ripopgodaziipa
Lovesign
Hide The Bone
2morrow
So Dark
Movie Star
Tell Me How U Wanna B Done
Disc Two:
Interactive
Da Bang
Calhoun Square
What's My Name
An Honest Man
Sexual Suicide
Cloreen Bacon Skin
Good Love
Strays Of The World
Disc Three:
Days Of Wild
Last Heart
PoomPoom
She Gave Her Angels
18 And Over
The Ride
Get Loose
P. Control
Make Your Mama Happy
Goodbye
Disc Four:
The Truth
Don't Play Me
Circle Of Armour
3rd Eye
Dionne
Man In A Uniform
Animal Kingdom
The Other Side Of The Pillow
Fascination
Out Of Your Tears
Comeback
Welcome 2 The Dawn
|
WSVNRadio Archives
The Artist Formerly Known As Prince related sites:
|
|
The Artist Formerly Known As Prince "Crystal Ball"
Throughout many popular artists/bands' careers, songs are recorded, then
carefully selected for each major release. Some songs are thrown on the back
burner, or simply dropped, because the songs didn't fit with the final cut.
Two artists who are similar in this situation were Bruce Springsteen and this
week's artist chosen for review, Prince. Box sets are mostly the result
Springsteen's Tracks were unreleased tracks; Prince, (who was now known
in 1998 as The Artist [Formerly Known As Prince]), dug into his vaults of
never before released tracks, and the result was the 4-disc set Crystal
Ball.
The title track has its moments, and yet at its end, it seems it was
going in a lost direction. "Dream Factory" was probably recorded during
the time of another non-album track "Erotic City." And just as energized
as "Dream Factory," the funky "Acknowledge Me" is a very
good danceable tune. "Ripopgodaziipa" almost has a reggae feel, yet
not as exciting as most songs that would make the final cut for most of Prince's
albums. "Lovesign" is quite mellow, and this song was in a dispute with
Prince's record company, Warner Bros., which Prince would change his name to
The Artist, due to the bitter feud that would evolve for many years.
"Hide The Bone" is another interesting dance club tune, having its
typical energized sound. "2morrow" has a groovy funky beat, "So
Dark" has a soulful touch, snappy and jazzy best describes the humor of
"Movie Star," as you easily hear the Prince-inspired band The Time
performing this song, as the liner notes indicate, regarding this tune.
Another funky tune is "Tell Me How U Wanna B Done," having a very easy
danceable beat, and enjoying to listen to.
The second disc leads off with "Ineractive," a jumpy little number,
recording during The Gold Experience release. "Da Bang" is also
a good song, yet it's easy to hear how this song may or may not have made the
final cut for a major release. It has its moments, but it just didn't make it.
However, "Calhoun Square" definitely could have made it easily on a major
Prince release. It's funk and rock rhythms will easily get the repeat button
on this particular number. "What's My Name" is fair, its energized
choruses are interesting though. "Crucial" has its soulful moments,
"An Honest Man" has an interesting accapella, as this short tune was
recording during the sessions of Under The Cherry Moon.
"Sexual Suicide" is another energized dance tune, as Sheila E.
helped out Prince with the beginning stages of this particular song.
"Cloreen Bacon Skin" is a song that just didn't seem to work for me,
as I could easily hear how this song got placed on the back burner. And
besides, this song being just a little over 15 minutes, its too much to stomach.
However, there's hope for "Good Love" -- it's a typical Prince
funky number, as this song was recorded shortly after the breakup with The
Revolution. Also another hopeful number is the smooth "Strays Of The
World," a song which was intended for a Broadway musical.
"Days Of Wild" leads off the 3rd disc, as it has a rap/hip-hop
style. This song was not a favorite, as most rap styled songs Prince attempted
really didn't have as much potential as the typical dance/soul style songs from
past releases. "Last Heart" is another good soulful danceable number,
as it was intended as a demo, which Prince wanted to keep working on, but
didn't get around to completing it.
"PoomPoom" is kind of distracting -- not a song that would make a
final cut for an album, as its obviously heard here. "She Gave Her Angels"
is a beautiful ballad, "18 And Over" combines soul with a bit of rap
style, as this song is just ok. "The Ride" is a live performance, as
it shows Prince in a rare form of musical style -- the Blues. "Get Loose"
has an eerie atmosphere, it could be good for a James Bond soundtrack. Another
version of "P. Control" is here, as this song would be a popular club
favorite from The Gold Experience release.
"Make Your Mama Happy" sounds like a song that could easily fit the
1999 release; very jumpy, and very energized. "Goodbye" is
beautiful ballad, as Prince has always perfected himself in recording such
songs. I could see this song in the Purple Rain soundtrack.
The 4th disc is titled The Truth, as it starts out with a blues
number, "The Truth," as again, Prince shines as a blues performer.
There are some other blues songs that are just as exceptional: The accoustic
"Don't Play Me" and "The Other Side Of The Pillow", the very
bluesy "3rd Eye" and the bluesy pop with a good groove, "Man In A
Uniform" are great songs showcasing The Artist (Prince) as a blues artist.
There are some very good pleasant pop styled songs here; "Circle Of
Armour" has a very pleasant pop sound, likewise the two songs "Comeback"
and "Welcome 2 To The Dawn." "Dionne" is quite different than
the standard pop by Prince, his soulful voice (as if he hasn't recorded songs
such as this before...) has a slight resemblence to that of Smokey Robinson.
Another different pop sound for Prince is "Animal Kingdom." Although we
have heard Prince in very soulful songs, "Out Of Your Tears" fits the
songs which were contained on his self-titled album Prince.
"Fascination" has a jazz style, another style not commonly recorded in
the past from Prince's music.
Crystal Ball are songs from Prince's archives. Some have their
moments, and others are quite obvious how they were left on the shelf.
The Truth (the fourth disc) seems to be the best disc from this set,
and could easily been released as a major album. The dance tunes from the
first 3 discs are more entertaining, yet these are songs that were dropped
from major releasees. All in all, it's a set of music taken from the vaults
of a music performer's library, and given the light for the fans to listen.
Prince's major albums are fine in their own right, Crystal Ball is
giving the fans a little more than what they could have listened to, if these
songs were included on the major releases.
© WSVNRadio.net. All rights reserved.
Review or any portion may not be reproduced
without written permission. Cover art is the
intellectual property of
NPG Records
and is used for reference purposes only.
|
|