Prince Rocks on Planet Earth
His Royal Highness Hammers Out Best Funk Album Since Purple Rain
Prince returns to full funk form on new album 'Planet Earth', easily his most accessible disc since 'Purple Rain' and his late eighties heyday.
Back in the day, Prince made even the simplest guitar riff sound sultry, if not smutty. Then he changed his name to a jacked-up version of the male and female symbols and the good times went downhill.
The rare bright spot, such as stand-alone single "The most beautiful girl in the world", renewed faith that Prince still possessed musical brilliance, but for the most part Prince’s nineties output was either largely ignored or caused little commotion.
Present Decade Redemption
After strange antics (2003’s N.E.W.S) and odd themes (2001’s Rainbow Children) at the beginning of the decade, Prince produced some material that not only landed him back in the critic’s good books but also back in fans’ CD players.
2004’s Musicology and 2006’s 3121 revived his smouldering career and propelled the now re-christened Prince back in the limelight. With Planet Earth, his career expands even further. Though not as provocative as his late seventies / early eighties material, the album is as accessible as anything recorded between 1984 and 1994, before all the weird happened.
With all the junk stripped away, Planet Earth showcases the eclectic talents that made Prince a household name – catchy hooks, toe tapping funk pop and some great tracks to sing along with.
While those looking for another Purple Rain should put away their umbrellas, Prince delivers some bold new tracks that hold their own against any of his earlier material.
Guitar Rock Meets Soulful Jams
Starting with a slow burning title track, Prince begs for a world full of love, void of the people you don’t care for. The strange piano driven power ballad soon gives room for the more rock-fused lead single. "Guitar" rocks the listener while Prince belts out kiss off lyrics such as “I love you but not like I love my guitar”.
Shooting off "Guitar", "Somewhere here on Earth" melts into a jazzy mid tempo ballad reminiscent of earlier hits before returning to the funky hand clapping fun of "The one U Wanna C". Possibly his most upbeat and disposable track in years, "The one U Wanna C" hums along like a high school dance while remaining grounded in pure pop perfection.
While many of the tracks on Planet Earth like Grammy nominated "Future Baby Mama" and "Mr. Goodnight" wane on the more ballad driven side of Prince’s genius, funk-infused tracks like "Chelsea Rogers" sound as fresh and relevant as anything currently spinning on urban radio.
Prince loves to experiment and while some of his lyrics and tendencies may veer off into a world of their own with few visitors, Prince has never sounded like a Christmas carol. On the ballad "All the Midnights in the World" a pretty tune based around a budding romance, the opening refrain sounds bizarrely like "Here comes Santa Claus".
Echoing the opening guitar riff of "Purple Rain" on "Lion of Judah" Prince salutes his past musical genius while birthing another brilliant album for the future. Planet Earth is a solid album worthy of numerous spins and a bucket load of chart topping singles. And while he may not be as popular today as in the past, Planet Earth redeems Prince once again as the most creative and influential artist of the last four decades.
