Publication: The London Independent [UK]
Date: August 24, 1990
Section: Arts
Page Number(S): Page 13
Length: 1159 Words
Title: "Records / Taking It To The Bridge, Again; Prince's Graffiti Bridge Reviewed"
Written By: Andy Gill

- PRINCE
Graffiti Bridge
(Paisley Park WX 361)

PRINCE is beginning to resemble the plight of English football under Bobby Robson, a desperate case of workrate over inspiration. Reports about the chap always focus on how much work he does, how long he spends in the studio, and what little else there appears to be to his life, whilst conveniently ignoring the dearth of great material - or even different material - he's produced since Sign O' The Times. Since then, he's settled on a series of retreads of the same skeletal funk sound, a style which invites over-long repetition of the smallest of ideas. This is Prince's third double album, and with it he achieves the unusual feat of making relatively short sides (about 16-17 minutes each) sound almost interminable.

The film for which it provides the soundtrack - directed by and starring Prince, of course - seems, from advance reports, to resemble Purple Rain (it apparently focuses on club rivalry between Prince and The Time's singer Morris Day, again); and here, too, the title-track is the climactic grand finale, all ''uplifting'' anthemic huffing and puffing, though this time the vocal duties are shared by 12-year-old Tevin Campbell and Mavis Staples. These two account for four of the album's 17 tracks, with The Time featured on four others, and George Clinton duetting on another (albeit barely audibly). Which suggests that, as a Prince album, this is only halfway there.

Perhaps it's for the best, though. On her tracks, most notably ''Melody Cool'', Mavis Staples has been far better served than on her Paisley Park solo album; Prince seems to have adapted more to the contours of her voice, which has been recorded with greater intimacy than before. And it has to be said that in most respects, The Time - whose recent Pandemonium is an altogether more propulsive affair than Graffiti Bridge - appear better suited to this straightforward funk- groove business than Prince alone, particularly on ''Shake!'', which uses cheesy organ to get a kind of funky ''96 Tears'' feel.

For his part, Prince avoids confrontation over the essential vacuity of his vision - the usual dual movement towards God and sex - in his now traditional manner, through slogans and buzzwords of questionable import. ''New Power Generation'', according to the soundtrack's closing proclamation, has taken over. Something to do with wind farms and tidal barrages, I imagine.