Prince - Controversy (1981)

Prince’s fourth album. Most performances by him again.

Tracklist:

1. “Controversy” 💎
2. “Sexuality”
3. “Do Me, Baby”
4. “Private Joy”
5. “Ronnie, Talk to Russia”
6. “Let’s Work” ⭐️
7. “Annie Christian”
8. “Jack U Off”

Comments

“Controversy” 💎

Prince’s greatest song to-date, has a fatter sounds than anything he’d done before. The bass just bump bump bumps on the beat but it works. The synth, the guitar, and the bass all sound great together. The bridge is fantastic and the track just keeps trucking along at 119bpm. Video here.

People call me rude,

I wish we all were nude,

I wish there was no black and white,

I wish there were no rules.

Includes the Lord’s Prayer for no reason I can fathom than just creating controversy.

“Sexuality”

More New Wave-y, less funk than much of what he’s done up until now. No bass that I can hear, just a synth bass line.

“Do Me, Baby”

Slow jam that builds up quite a, um, climax. It works.

“Private Joy”

Regrettably 80s synth pop, though there is a some nice bass work buried under there and it end with distorted guitar.

“Ronnie, Talk to Russia”

Anti-nuclear war jam that sounds like Jimi Hendrix covering “Wheels on the Bus” in 1981. Not very good, though “Don’t blow up the world” isn’t a bad message.

“Let’s Work” ⭐️

Reminiscent of “Head” but with the thicker sound that he found on this album. Solid bass driven dance tune.

“Annie Christian”

Weird song.

“Jack U Off”

The first appearance of the Prince “U” that later shows up in “I Would Die 4 U”. Has some retro Rock n’ Roll elements that I am not a fan of.