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Rating: Excellent |
With 1999 and especially Purple Rain, Prince had definitively proven in the mid-eighties that there was only one funk master. On his next album, he took things a step further and proved himself to be more than just a horny guy. Sign 'O' The Times took stock of the world without ever leaving the dance floor.
It was his ninth album in as many years, and it was time for the next step. After Prince had shown himself at home in just about every genre on albums like Parade, Purple Rain, and Around the World in One Day—whether it was synthpop, rock, or pure, raw funk—he was now ready to delve a little deeper. After all, it was 1987, and what Prince saw didn't appeal to him.
In the bare title track, he simply sums it up: AIDS. Drugs. Gang violence. "Sign 'O' The Times" is the kind of opening track that immediately grabs you by the scruff of the neck and pulls you into the album: enchanting, compelling, intense; a grim State of the Nation, a "What's Going On?" for the chilly eighties. The enumeration turns to despair: "But if a night falls, and a bomb falls, will anybody see the dawn?" And yet there's only one possible answer: life. "Let's fall in love, get married, have a baby." Man carries on, luctor et emergo: I struggle and emerge.
More than a dry list of what's wrong with the world, that's the message of Sign 'O' The Times: we might as well go down partying. "Play In The Sunshine," as Prince immediately counters that somber opening statement. This is the late eighties set to music: it had been clear for a while that the world was going to hell. If you partied hard enough, you could still pretend for a while that nothing was wrong.
And so, after the dry, minimalist funk of that opener, it moves on to an explosion of synths. Because if Prince had previously demonstrated his mastery of any genre, now it's time to prove he's the best at everything. Even in infectious chart-topping pop like "Starfish & Coffee," but just as good in Parliament funk like "Housequake," with its hilarious "shut up, already! Damn!" Even louder? Then listen to the Nine Inch Nails-foreshadowing "It," five minutes and ten seconds of pure sexual frustration, or the mechanical "Hot Thing." A slow one, please? Prince serves up the soulful, sticky "Slow Love" or the epically blossoming "The Cross."
And then Sign 'O' The Times was actually just a sidestep from what Prince really envisioned: a triple album he'd release under the name Camille, on which he'd sing in falsetto. After the disappointing sales of Parade, however, the suits at Warner Brothers went into a sweat, and only a handful of songs made it onto the final double album he was allowed to release. They're not the least. They're crazy ones who pause on "U Got The Look" or "Strange Relationship"; extremely danceable and robotic, electronic songs.
Just think of the party jam that is "It's Gonna Be A Beautiful Night." Lesser mortals would use such a song as a relentless opener, but Prince buries it way back in the end, as a send-off, just before "Adore." As if the party won't start until the record is over. Prince has spoken, now let the dancing begin. And let's pretend nothing matters, except tonight.
With Sign 'O' The Times, Prince had laid all his cards on the table. What followed was bound to be disappointing. Not that there aren't glimmers of genius on later albums, but a definitive statement like this never materialized. It's the tragedy of a top athlete: once they reach the top, it can only go downhill. And that's been going on for Prince for a long time now, with many dips and occasional peaks. These days, Prince sells his records exclusively through his website. Enough to reach his fan base from that margin, who then buy him a single week at the top of the charts. However, the days when the little man ruled the music world unchallenged are long gone. So, you don't necessarily need to own Prince records. But you do need Sign 'O' The Times.
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