Artist: PrinceAlbum: Planet EarthLabel: NPG/ UniversalRating: 3 Raspberry Berets out of 5
Let’s face it: The hit-making Prince was beloved in the 1980s but that’s long gone.
Lacking a substantial hit in over ten years (at least on pop radio; urban radio still shows some love), many will say his last album of pure brilliance was his amazing 1995 album The Gold Experience. Some will go further, saying it was 1988’s LoveSexy.
Clearly, Prince hasn’t made an amazing album in a long time.
That said, he’s still one hell of a live performer (rocking out the Super Bowl recently), and his recent albums have come close to reaching the glory of his heyday.
After his 2004 back-to-basics pop comeback Musicology and 2005’s more synthesized and much better 3121, Prince seems to have come full circle with his recent offering, Planet Earth.
Prince hasn’t sounded this, well, Prince-like in years. The first single “Guitar” features some funky guitar riffs and playful sarcasm while others like “The One U Wanna C” show Prince at his poppiest. For those who love his ballads, there’s the jazzy “Somewhere Here on Earth” and the very nu-soul sounding “Future Baby Mama.”
The highlight? Seeing Prince can still make some funky stuff, as is evident in the disco styled “Chelsea Rodgers.”
Even this doesn’t measure up to his heights of yesteryear. Next to 1987’s Sign O’ The Times (regarded as his best by some), Planet Earth wouldn’t stand a chance.
But at least Planet Earth can be called an enjoyable Prince album.