Publication: Chicago Tribune [US]
Date: October 15, 1992
Section:
Page Number(s):
Length:
Title: "O{+> Review"
Reviewed By: Greg Kot

Prince
(Paisley Park) (STAR)(STAR)(STAR) 1/2

The new Prince album, hereafter known as "the one with the funny title" (actually a merger of the symbols for male and female), doesn't break any ground and is, in some ways, a step back. Which is anything but a disappointment, because whatPrincedoes best is give old-line funk a new life in the studio.

Like its less-consistently enthralling predecessor, " Diamonds and Pearls, " this marriage of grit and technology findsPrinceplaying catchup with the hip-hop era by incorporating some turntable scratching and turgid raps by the gruff Tony M.Prince'slyrics are still exploring the fine line between the sacred and the secular, sex as redemption, sex as sacrament, sex as sex. Giving the album a loose conceptual feel is an inane running dialogue between a coy (what else?)Princeand a female "reporter" trying to get aninterview:"Is this reality or just another facade?"

It's best to ignore these tepid attempts at remaining "cutting edge" and "mysterious," and just luxuriate inPrince'simpeccable grooves and studied nonsense. There's a lot going on here, so tiny musical moments may slip past unnoticed the first time, such as this timely aside from "Love 2 the 9's": "Who's the president now?" "Does it matter?"

There are a few obvious rip-offs of Hammer's chant-and-stomp choruses, particularly on the leadoff "My Name isPrince, " butPrincealso borrows from everybody else. What's electrifying is how he cuts and pastes together these Funkadelic keyboards and crooning ballads, reggae lopes and screaming guitar solos, Godzilla bass lines and strutting horns, Middle Eastern accents and gospel choruses into a relentless and dazzling stream of body music.

Ratings:
Excellent (STAR)(STAR)(STAR)(STAR)
Good (STAR)(STAR)(STAR)
Fair (STAR)(STAR)
Poor (STAR)