Sign 'O' The Times

Still so rad, listened to this a lot growing up but appreciated it more now. What a talent

Fine

Went for a hot girl walk to this one

How are Summer and Housequake not more widely appreciated.

Titelspåret räddar plattan från bottennotering.

Absolutely one of the best Prince albums.

Jesus this is a long album... double disc with an 80 minute runtime. Prince is often kind of frustrating to me. Very talented man who made some amazing songs, but I just wish he would let loose on a guitar solo. Sign O' The Times has an Emminence Front style synth beat with some funky guitar work and drums. Relative to the rest of his catalog however, its pretty forgettable. I'm surprised this was chosen for the album title. Play in the Sunshine is a little upbeat boppy tune. Feels like Wham! but as sung by Prince. It sounds like a "When Doves Cry" knockoff, but less interesting. I Could Never Take the Place of Your Man is my favorite of the album so far. Happy, poppy, and a little noodly. Also one of the freer sounding Prince guitar solos I think that I've heard followed on by a jammy breakdown that was unexpected relative to the rest of the album. The Cross is an equally surprising track. Heavier with a driving drum line motivating the tracks progression. There are also some more psych undertones complete with an Indian instrument. I'm into it. I think this one is a soft 3/5 for me. This is one of Prince's more forgettable albums that I've listened to, but at the core, he makes good music.

Uh yes yes yes.

Nothing

I’ve tried really hard to enjoy Prince. He is a massive guitar talent and writes good songs but I just can’t get into most of his albums 5/10

Funny, enjoyable, sleek and multilayered.

No conozco ninguna de las canciones, tampoco están entre las 10 más oídas de Spotify. Me he aburrido, es triste pero me ha recordado el disco que sacaron de Bart Simpson. Otro disco prescindible.

Klasse album, funk/pop/rock, imponerende, nyskabende, catchy

Without a doubt Sign o’ the Times is one of the best albums by Prince. He shows his talents as a multi-instrumentalist, songwriter and performer (Camille). It’s the Prince sound, no matter what. ‘Hot Thing’ and later ‘The Cross’ are my favourite tracks with the later being a bit different than the rest of the tracks. Prince made so many other great records and was home in many genres. This albums reminds us that he want too early.

Has a very soul-ish feel to it, whether that makes it good or bad you decide

Good

5/16, 31%

I can see the appeal, but not for me

It wasn’t bad. Probably wouldn’t listen to again but not bad

Fun and freaky, just like the man himself. I have more preferred lps but good overall.

This one is a solid 4 for me. You can’t help but appreciate the musicianship of Prince and the rest of the band. But I gauge these albums with the question, would I listen to this album again/multiple times? And I would have to say no - Prince never really was my cup of tea growing up, but I definitely do appreciate this album.

Still fine

Rollo patatero

Je peux reconnaitre que c'est un album très bien exécuté avec une belle production. Mais généralement je trouve la musique tellement insatisfaisante : elle ne me captive pas vraiment et souvent j'oubliais que ça jouait. Je pense que Prince n'est tout simplement pas mon genre. 5/10

pretty much every song on this album is just candy for the ears.

Prince is Prince, he's a legend for a reason. That said, he's not an artist I enjoy a whole album of at a time. So many of his songs are great additions to playlists for specific times and places, this album was no exception, but for me, he's an ingredient, not a whole dish.

This is a big Meh from me. I few songs are upbeat and hip but I’m just not that into this album.

Funky but I’d need to be in the right mood to listen to the whole album in one sitting.

Good,such a breath of fresh air after medico ore albums for 3 days in a row.Just from the seat I could tell this was different.Every sing feels like prince trying something new and weird in a good way.Album is long though.Probably deserves a re listen.I enjoyed all the songs but none of them were really great but the overall quality gets it a five.

алкоальбом: мартини на хаус тусовке в берлине

Вайбово очень. Только мне кажется, в некоторых песнях я опять мог бы запросто спутать его с Майклом Джексоном. Звук прикольный, минималистично-модный, прям захотелось сесть в лоурайдер и поехать гонять по Лос-Сантосу (зачеркнуто) Анджелесу. Но долго...

не был знаком с принцем и приятно удивился. 3+

Prince solos ripped, otherwise it would have been a 2.

Talent, but not my jam.

Loved it !!! 5 stars

I’ve been listening to this for most of the day. The Apple music version is 92 tracks and over 8 hours. Crazy to try and fit into a day. The songs are good. I can see the appeal of Prince. I only knew Purple Rain before listening to this (which doesn’t appear on the album). I never really heard him growing up either but I guess he must be popular in certain circles. Quite a few tracks sound similar to modern pop songs. It wouldn’t surprise me if they were an influence. My favourite track so far is I Could Never Take the Place of Your Man Quite annoyingly there are several repeats on the album. Like a single having the same track repeated with slight tweaks Well I’ve managed to finish it the day after. I only had 2 hrs left to go. The last two “albums” on the mega album are a live show..so yet more repeats. To be fair it had Purple Rain in it. I Can see why Prince is popular but this album is just too much in one go. Im surprised the recording studio allowed it. It’s so long that you go off it and then enjoy it again all in one listen

A masterpiece of an album by the unique and genius Prince. I adored it.

I get why it might be good but was a DNF for me. Songs outstayed their welcome.

- A cool enough vibe, but not really something I'd go back to - Some good funky beats and vibey vocals - Enjoyed disc 2 better than disc 1 - I Could Never Take The Place Of Your Man

- Very distinctive sound - A little campy for me - feels like one big soundtrack for the 80s

en varsinaisesti tykännyt. tykkäysasteikolla alhainen, varsinaisesti. tupla albumi oisi voinut olla tällä kertaa puol albumia HEH!!!! paskalla kävin tämän aikana, oli huono paska. en muista tarpeeksi että voi objektiivinen olla, vai löytyykö siinä itsessään objektiivisuutta? miettikää huomenna tuota...älä nyt.... i could never take the place of your man

Not the best Pronce album but still solid

I liked two songs from it but it's not really my kind of music.

Disc 1 1. “Sign O’ The Times” 😃 2. “Play In The Sunshine” 🔥 3. “Housequake” 💎 4. “The Ballad of Dorothy Parker” 👍 5. “It” 😃 6. “Starfish And Coffee” 👍 7. “Slow Love” 😃 8. “Hot Thing” 🔥 9. “Forever In My Life” 🤷‍♂️ Disc 2 1. “U Got The Look” 🔥 2. “If I Was Your Girlfriend” 💎 3. “Strange Relationship” 🤷‍♂️ 4. “I Could Never Take The Place Of Your Man” 🔥 5. “The Cross” 👍 6. “It’s Gonna Be A Beautiful Night” 🔥 7. “Adore” 💎 Overall rating: 🔥🔞(🏆 is likely eventually) Classic meter: 💮💮💮💮

Prince was a talented & complicated weirdo

Really liked this, was probably my type of vibe. Didn't listen through all of it, and I don't have any standout songs that I particularly like, but all of it was just really good. The songs were also very varying to me - in a good way. My only gripe might be that it was a bit too long of an album.

Samey, meddling and all together way too long. I thought a lot about the perfect length of an album. I heard somewhere that the most difficult thing to do is to cut things out. I think they failed with this one, it's just way to long. The perfect album length for me is probably around 40 min and this album is double that. I just don't see how this album was particularly ground braking. Maybe the problem is I never really liked Prince and this album is no exception.

Prince er liksom ikke mon greie

Oh my. I mean, obvious talent but some of the lyrics - sheesh! Particularly on “If I was Your Girlfriend”. They started off laughable and then got creepy. A lot of ew. I can imagine if Prince was a budding artist now and tried his manipulation techniques on the new generation, I’d like to imagine he’d be laughed at. Sadly he would probably still succeed.

meh

You know, Prince was an incredibly good musician. You also know what? Almost all of his music sounds the same. There's a certain Princey quality to it which makes it unambiguously Prince. I'd like to say that I loved this album. But I don't. It's just OK.

Every time I listen to a Prince album, I almost feel like I'm missing something? The songs were enjoyable, and some songs surprised me by being more upbeat and poppy sounding than I expected. But....idk?

Prince was a genius. An erratic one, sometimes. But a genius. This album is up and down, showing some depth and breadth and never quite scaling all the heights. I like it, though I'll always like Diamonds and Pearls more than any other.

Quite samey and flat for me, I've never really been a fan of this era of pop so this kinda misses the mark for me, still had some toe tapping but not much else to cling on to

Groovy, funky, but not enough bangers

I just don't get the appeal. AT. ALL

A double album's worth of varied funky pop songs with the central recurring theme being that Prince likes sex. At all stages of life, in all weather, at any time of day, and in lots of different ways. If Jay from the Inbetweeners was a musical genius, his album may not be completely dissimilar. That is not to diminish this piece of work. As an 80 minute double album it settles in nicely and the twists and turns on each of the four sides keep you interested and make its length an asset. I liked some sides (especially Side 3) and some songs more than others, but there is nothing on here that I would cut. I can see why many consider this a great album, Prince's magnum opus and perhaps the last great double album. Rating: 4/5 Playlist track: I Could Never Take The Place Of Your Man Date listened: 26/04/23

Masse bra synth, men fortsatt ikkje innertier

Definitely a representation of the 80s. Has a cliched sound, which I admit probably represents an era Prince himself influenced. Not my cup of tea.

I've struggled a bit to get into Prince's music and this album will not help. I'll give it a good rating, as I do think it's an important album, but I can't say I have gotten into the music.

Great stuff, less pop-y and more thoughtful, mature and interesting than much of his work.

IT

I appreciate the talent, but other than the title song none of the tracks move me in the least. Sorry, I tried.

Good

É sempre uma ardua tarefa revisar, observar ou descrever aquilo que está em constante metamorfose. E o que seria Prince, se não o proprio continuo movimento de superação, evolução, o Allen Iverson da Música, the deffinition of cat. Homem ou mulher alguma desbravará a terra com tamanha graça e poder quanto este mesmo, tamanho talento e criatividade que o torna realisticamente 1 de 1. O único verdadeiro poser, no sentido de que sua pose realmente era justificavel, pois seu dom musical transcende a comum realidade. Contextualizando a primeira musica do album começa com a seguinte estrofre : "At home there are seventeen-year-old boys and their idea of fun Is being in a gang called 'The Disciples' High on crack and totin' a machine gun ... Hurricane Annie ripped the ceiling of a church and killed everyone inside You turn on the telly and every other story is tellin' you somebody died A sister killed her baby 'cause she couldn't afford to feed it And yet we're sending people to the moon" Sign o the Times = 5 Top 20 song's ever. IT- 4 Hot Thing- , 4 Slickest Song of all time U got the look - 5 Real Madona and groove Adore - 4

Good album

It's a classic and rightly so.

The third Prince album I got on the list and even being too much "pop" for my ears, it's the best one until now, and it has the best Prince stuff (in my opinion, of course), that is his musical variety on instruments and themes as in the lyrics. It's the third I got and the first I really agree that deserves to be on a list like this.

I've tried many times, sorry world, Prince ain't my jam

A classic. I never got into Prince in his heyday but it's pretty easy to see why he is a legend. 8/10

Top 3: Sign O the Times The Cross I Could Never Take the Place Of Your Man

Love Prince. Like dinner of his music. Some great songs on here though and the musical talent is fun to hear on the live tracks.

Packed full of musical flavours. The ballad of Dorothy Parker is my fave prince song, plus half a star for that.

Groovy as ever especially the second half. Also feel like the synth from Ballad of Dorothy Parker was used by Daft Punk in a song on Discovery (maybe Something About us?)

4/5

Never really listened to Prince before. I'll give it an honest listen. "Slow Love" is a pretty good song. It's the first track that I really think is good. Well I couldn't make it through the rest. It wasn't really keeping my attention. I don't know what all the fuss is about Prince. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

:0

Not a prince fan

I think this is only the second Prince album that I've listened to (I got Purple Rain on this list a while ago). This album is interesting. Very relaxed, yet the music still feels full. I do love the drum machine he uses throughout this album (and apparently most of his other albums 4/5

Part of me is like maybe Prince knew how bad this was and so this whole album is super meta and this album is on 1001 because it’s a parody of itself, and of pop music at that time, and that’s why he named it how he did, but the other part of me had to turn it off because I couldn’t listen to it.

Not my style but i can tell when a hit is a hit. And this is a hit.

"Sometimes maybe good, sometimes maybe shit." Very chaotic album, I expected more to be honest.

Holy shit this was a long album and I really wasn’t impressed by it. It’s Prince so it wasn’t bad by any means but it felt stripped back production wise and I think that it just made it less interesting 80s pop rock. Starfish and coffee and I could never take the place of your man are both sort of standouts

Some duds like Dorothy Parker, but lots of winners. Slow Love is fantastic. If Prince was my girlfriend then he'd be a pedo. It's Gonna be a Beautiful Night is a certified JAM. I wish I could see Prince perform live. Some good songs, some great songs, some actual duds. Doesn't have me dying to listen to this album again any time soon.

starfish coffee maple syrup and jam is quite a combo. album cover is cool. i like some of prince's other stuff though this is good

I feel like Prince is trying to bang my eardrums the whole time and it is making them very uncomfortable because they are prude Was hoping for more shedding Not my choice album to listen to while entering data into spreadsheets I Could Never Take the Place of your Man shreds like I wanted

Hmm. I just don't get Prince. Had some nice sounds though. Just sounded like wannabe Michael Jackson to me. Idk. I'll give it another spin based on the reaction other publications have for it.

Genius, no question.

ok

After Janet Jackson’s nipple said hello to world at the 2004 Super Bowl, the NFL decided it needed to be more controlling to maintain their wholesome reputation. The following year Paul McCartney was chosen since he’s the last person who would want a wardrobe malfunction in public. Two Super Bowls later, Prince was the half time show so the level of diligence had to be ramped up. During the last song, the lights projected his silhouette on a white sheet. While he played his solo he turned his guitar sideways and placed it at a 45 degree angle from his waist to make it phallic. Apparently when Roger Goodell saw that part of the show he said “Yup- that’s a penis”. Prince: 1 Church of the Sacred Bleeding Heart of Jesus: 0

This is the second Prince album that I've received and I still fail to see what all the hype is about. To me he's just a hyper-sexualized, edgier version of Michael Jackson. Its interesting to see a full drum kit prominently featured on the album cover because most of the songs feature an annoying electronic drum kit. I'm also not a fan of his alter ego "Camille" with his higher pitched voice, it's a bit creepy. Thank gawd the record company convinced him to strip down his triple album concept to a "mere double" album because this was a chore to get through.

I honestly wish I liked Prince more, but it just is not for me. It's some funk music here, but I just do not like it much and I cannot really put my finger on it. Maybe it's his voice.

This was my first sit-down-and-really-listen-to-Prince Prince experience. And I’m sorry to everyone who loves Prince but I didn’t really like it.

So flipping cheesy. Some cool industrial sounds but overall pretty underwhelming. Sorry Prince 🤴

On the sensual scale between Marvin Gaye and Biggie Smalls, this album goes right in the middle. Not really a big fan...

Some real slappers in here! First time listening to a Prince album all the way through. Good fun

6.5/10

This didn't always hit for me, and the remaster on Spotify is weirdly mixed. But I just can't help but admire Prince for making a completely insane one-hour 20-minute album that keeps the same crazy level of energy all the way through.

I generally make a point to not skip through songs, but so many on this album are just way. too. long. Without the overly long songs this album would just be mid, but having to skip songs halfway through for my sanity pulls it down. Best tracks: Sign O the Times, Strange Relationship, and The Cross.

It's really good!

It's Prince. It's ok. It's not Purple Rain.

I don't know a lot about Prince's music, but I liked listening to this one. I might even come back to it. I still need to figure out why he is considered like a true genius though.

Yeah it's good, but I don't see how he's supposed to be a legend.

Not bad but neither is best. A bit too long too.

There is no doubt that this is a strong and creative pop album. However, it hardly stands the 80 minutes length, it's like great peanut butter spread on a one kilometer toast.

This is good but it doesn't lift me often enough to get a really top score. I like I Could Never Take The Place of Your Man, Hot Thing, U Got the Look especially, and there's some great evocative language, but more a 4 than a 5 for me.

Some absolute magic in there, but a bit too bloated to get a 5. Apparently this was due to be a triple album, but the record company insisted they cut it down to two and I'm glad they did. That said, the length of it does give him a chance to really show off his musical versatility, he sings in several different voices, and the songs are in so many different styles and paces. I like it less when it trips into disco, but he nails funk, soul, R&B, and probably a few more genres over the course of this album. 4/5.

Heard it before?: No Enjoy it?: Yeah, not usually what I’m use to hearing from prince, very calming and fulfilling Favourite song: Track 14 - The Cross

Prince, best wel lekker. Paar vette nummers, paar mindere

Fun album overall, but very long and a lot of songs about the same subject.

Well, the production was good.

kinda long

This fucking sucks 1 "Slow Love" is the only song that's not ass

It's catchy. It's prince.

Nothing to add, peak Prince. If Around The World In A Day... was Sgt Pepper, this is The White Album and Abbey Road rolled into one humungous statement. See the concert film for the best live act in the world at the time as well.

Something about Prince's music has never resonated with me. He definitely is a quintessential 80s sound, but a generic 80s sound. This was a long snooze fest for me.

Meh

I think I’ve decided that my beef with Prince is his vocals (which are whiny) and his lyrics. What is the song It anyways? The guy can very much play anything on the guitar. But the rest is not for me. I did like some of the funk elements of this particular album though.

Boring

Pop. R&B

Meh

I skipped over this part of the Prince catalog back when I checked him out previously, jumping from 'Purple Rain' straight to '3121' and 'ART OFFICIAL AGE'. 'Housequake' and 'Adore' are the two songs that stand out to me most. I don't really see how this is the Magnum Opus of the Prince catalog, like others claim, but I wasn't in existence in 1987 so maybe you had to be there. My headphones might not be doing a good enough job isolating the terrible construction noises going on in my building today to handle showcasing this album to the fullest.

Good prince but kinda funky

It was OK, a little long. None of the songs really stood out to me. I doubt I would listen to it again.

Prince e semi goat

A lot of music to digest. Many bangers, some odd production. Strong 3, will probably get better with repeated listens like with Purple Rain

Sku kanske gilla de mer om ja lyssna igen men int jätte många catchy låtar som får en att återvända ? O de e jättelångt så ja vet int om ja vill. Trots att de va trevligt hela vägen igenom ville jag att de sku ta slut efter 40 minuter, ja tror inte ja riktigt förstår mig på Prince?

Not best Prince’s album

An eclectic mix with some good songs. Overall didn't strike a chord with me like his previous albums.

Perfect

I like Prince's voice but can't say any of these songs stood out to me.

I felt like there was a lack of urgency here. The first half of this is so sparse I kind of forgot it was playing. Nothing bad but just kind of long. Could Never Take the Place was very good.

It's patchy as fuck but title track a classic.

My favorite album. His second best. He's the best musician

Good album

The songs that aren't too sparse and that don't have awful lyrics ("And a side order of ham") are ok. Still feel like I want to like Prince more than I ever will. Bonus point for generating the sample that led 'Late Night, Maudlin Street'.

Meh, it's alright, I guess?

Apple Music a une version de 8 disques et 92 pistes, alors je n'ai pas passé à travers, mais j'ai entendu ce qui correspond à l'original 😅 Je ne connais pas beaucoup Prince, mais il a le don de sonner parfaitement comme les années 80 sans que ses chansons sonnent datées aujourd'hui. C'est pourquoi il est un artiste si important j'imagine.

Obviously.

tarzıma hitap etti, müziğini ve synthlerini beğendim

Great album, has some amazing tracks on here like I Could Never Take The Place Of Your Man, U Got The Look and the title track.

My mom loves Prince so this will be interesting. I don't know if I'll come out of this as big a fan as she is but just like every album, I'm going in with an open mind. This kinda reminds me of Tusk but in a more put together way. Like everything is everywhere but somehow it all ties in. It makes me think that his voice could go out at any second. The song just sounds like he's straining it so much. At times he kind of sounds like Cow from Cow and Chicken and it's really jarring to hear. I wanna know how many people's kids were made to this album because there's no better application for it. I can't imagine putting it on and just hanging out listening to it.

What to say about this genre-hopping, somewhat sprawling 16 songs from one of the greatest songwriters of the era? There's easily an 8 to 10-song mix to be made for each kind of Prince fan out there that would perhaps serve them better than just taking this whole album in. Sexy Pop, Social Commentary, Party-Funk, low-key traditional singer-songwriter, you can have all this and more if you take it all in at once. This record feels made for a different attention span, a different media landscape, for people who are effectively trained to listen in a different way. What even is a "Two Disc Set", he asks rhetorically... In the end, it is Prince penning a few more classics in an album that was a Sign 'O' the Times and in many ways hasn't aged as well as some of his other work due to that fact. And finally, let's be real, Prince needed to be Prince lyrically for greatness to be achieved, for the gold to be struck. You take the good with the cornball writing that sometimes makes its way to tape when listening to him. You forgive the completely goofy lines because they created the space for him to tell the truth and cut to the core elsewhere in the song or maybe on another track entirely. This is one of the Prices of Prince we pay along the way. On a record like this it is even more apparent to me than others.

cool o

very enjoyable, should relisten but it's a least a 4

Not gonna lie, Ik ppl like Prince, I just dont really get it for some reason. dk why.

Some good tracks, but some wayward indulgent ones as well. Still worth a listen though.

This is not my go-to era of Prince, although I recognize the artistry. I feel like it might grow on me if I gave it more attentive listens.

Prince!

Rating: 9/10 Best songs: Sign o the times, Play in the sunshine, Housequake, Starfish and coffee, Hot thing, U got the look, If i was your girlfriend, It’s gonna be a beautiful night

I want to like Prince more than I do. He's fine but I felt like I was missing something. Picked up towards the end.

Endlich wieder ein Album, das vollkommen zu recht in der Liste ist. Keine fünf Sterne, dafür sind zu viele Füllsel darauf und die Platte damit insgesamt zu lang, aber der Titelsong ist ein Meisterwerk, und auch The Ballad of Dorothy Parker und If I Was Your Girlfriend sorgten dafür, dass ein Mann durch die anonymen Straßen der Vorstadt ging und mit schiefer Kopfstimme Songfragmente mitsang.

Did not like this album. Although I could see it being inspiration for Of Montreal

Perhaps I need to devote more attention to these albums, or perhaps it is their responsibility to draw my focus. Either way, this album felt diverse in timbre and spiteful, but lacking in soul.

This one's kinda new to me. Only know one song - the Sheena Easton duet You Got the Look, which is not a terrible 80s hit. Now for the album impressions. First off it's too long by about 20 minutes but it does have 5 or 6 really good songs. The opening title track is a mid-tempo commentary on 80s society that has a great burbling bass line that draws the listener in. The Ballad of Dorothy Parker is a off-beat love song, Hot Thing is hyper dance track that absolutely cooks. I Could Never Take the Place of Your Man has a classic power-pop feel with a sweet melody and hooks that just won't quit. But my favourite track is The Cross which sounds like some classic alternative rock song, complete with a poignant vocal & guitar intro punctuated with a huge kick drum understated guitar figures. It would sound at home on an 80s Springsteen U2 album. This song and inseed the whole album, shows that Prince can adopt any style he likes and make it his own. Sign 'O' the Times is a sprawling messy affair that misses on occasion but when it hits it hits BIG. 4 stars

Good but too long tbh got kinda repetitive

Pop

It’s good but can be a bit of a slog at points and I’m not a massive prince fan still good though 4/5

Not his best but an undeniable force. Taking a bath with pants on sounds terrible. I’d give it a 3 and a half

Prince is usually all a bit too much for me. Too much going on, lots of instruments (and layered voices) seemingly fighting for your attention. So this - apart from the odd Zappa-esque flourish, such as on ‘Sunshine’ - works much better for me with its minimalist grooves and (relatively) stripped down sound. The title track is a classic pop single, and I also love Hot Thing, for similar reasons. And, for me, these are some of his best tunes generally. Probably the only Prince album I would feel the need to listen to again, although it did start to drag a bit at the end with the slushy and live filler tracks. A bit Mariah Carey with all that warbling and vocal gymnastics.

This album flows from start to finish, despite the competing styles. There's great interplay with the other musicians - whenever they are allowed to get a look in. Sheena Easton is a left field, but welcome addition. I could listen to Sign "☮︎" the Times on loop all day long. It was so important to me personally when first released in 1987, and remains so today. Prince's head at the time was somewhere not really on this planet. No bullshit but the concert film is probably the best live movie ever released.

Too long, unfocused

Good musically just not my thing, will try some of his other songs at some point

I've always enjoyed Prince's music but found it hard to get through one of his albums in full. This album was no exception, It took two sittings to get through all 1 hour and 20 mins. I liked a lot of the songs here, but these were the bigger singles that I knew already. I found a lot of the deeper cuts to be longer than necessary and a bit boring. The mixing was also questionable is some cases. I'm not sure if it was intentional, buts in some songs the vocals are ridiculously quiet. I appreciate Prince's singing and guitar playing, but maybe his music just isn't for me.

Title track is a good one, rest are a bit eclectic. His music is definitely free of constraints and are expressive. Not an album I would likely return to.

I had this album on cassette. Purple Rain was legendary, but I wasn't really interested in Prince's music since then (Parade and such...). This just sounded different. Sign was fun again. So I bought it. 120 minutes of good music. That was a fucking deal. When you made an investment in an album before even hearing all of it, you kinda lean into it. This album was the shit at the time and it all hinged on U Got The Look (b/c Sheena Easton). I don't think I've listened to this album since I've given up on cassettes (and probably long before that). But it hasn't aged well for me. This doesn't scream 'life of the party' anymore, but it's still a well crafted album. Side 4 is overall the best IMO. Starfish And Coffee

Listened to this in RS500. I thought it was good, but nothing really blew me away 3/5

5* if it was a tad shorter

Immaculate, grand and refined. Prince was a modern day Mozart.

Not to be confused with Harry Styles song

Super diverse and groovy and fun. The production or something about it sounds very 80s which I feel like doesn't age super well, but overall the music still felt relevant. Some songs hit right, others were a miss for me. A few felt like they were numbers in a musical, kind of corny. Also the album was pretty long, and it started to feel like a chore to reach the end

Good

Nothing really stood out, but it was alright.

I have never listened to Prince before, and it turns out I do not like Prince.

Soooo long

There's an ebullience and willingess to throw everything behind the idea of funking freely that's a mark of genius. And plenty of quality matieral here – title cut, of course, but also “Dorothy Parker” and “Starfish and Coffee” and “If I Was Your Girlfriend” (which shows how less is more in terms of layering instruments and sounds) “Never Take the Place of You” (with pure ‘80s synth feel) and “Adore.” But there's also general sense of excess and indulgence that suggest the vision might've been better served with a bit of trimming and some general restraint (not the Purple One's groove, one knows). There are blind spots, too, an overrliance on those whooping little screams, for instance, on maximalist arrangements and on drum machines that have not helped up too durably and threaten the sub-top-shelf tunes, of which there's a surfeit here. The planned triple album would not have much helped. Put another way: there's a lot to like here mainly because there's a lot.

T3B 1. Sign O’ The Times 2. I Could Never Take The Place Of Your Man 3. Housequake Really enjoyable album. Heavy 3

Great album, second favorite Prince album

Average Prince.

Not my favorite Prince, but still Prince.

Jesus, Sign O'The Times has the bleakest lyrics of any Prince song I have ever heard. The whiplash is even further enhanced because of Play In The Sunshine. Prince's lyrics are this amazing blend of specificity and impeccible groove. The effect is this really enrapturing musical experience. That slap bass on The Ballad Of Dorothy Parker. Starfish And Coffee is a great song. U Got The Look is killer. I Could Never Take The Place Of Your Man has the magic. The Cross is a nice respite, but a little tooooooo religious feeling for me.

I’m a fan cause the album was Fan fucking tastic

As always Prince delivers tight grooves that have the ability to stray out of the lines for either a ridiculous guitar solo or the horniest sexual yelping you've ever heard. Even the more serious tracks manage to land. Favorite tracks: "Housequake", "Strange Relationship", "I Could Never Take The Place of Your Man"

I have heard all of Prince's hits in the past, but I am not familiar with many of the songs on this album. All of Prince's songs that I know, I like, so I am looking forward to listening to this album today. This is Prince's first solo album after the break up of his supporting band "The Revolution". This is a double album, so the run time is a little long, but it doesn't feel like it, because Prince has a way of keeping your interest, and there aren't many bad songs on this record. The one song I was very familiar with before listening to this album was Starfish and Coffee. Back in 1997, Prince was on an episode of Muppets Tonight. I was a big fan of the show, and remember that episode well. The whole show the muppets keep teasing him, and keep "forgetting" to call him "The Artist (Formerly Known As Prince)". Prince was a good sport through the whole thing, and when they got him up to sing a song, Starfish and Coffee was the song he sang. I remember thinking "what a great song, with some of the weirdest lyrics I've ever heard". That song is the definition of an ear worm, and I'm sure, now that I've listened to it again, I will be singing it for the next little while. Overall, a solid album. I wasn't much a fan of the drum machine he used, but his ability to write, and perform far overshadows that slight blemish on an otherwise great album! I think nostalgia drove this choice, but: Favourite songs: Starfish and Coffee, Hot Thing, Sign O' the Times, Strange Relationship, I Could Never Take the Place of Your Man, The Cross, Adore Least favourite songs: If I Was Your Girlfriend, Housequake, The Ballad of Dorothy Parker, It (I wasn't as much a fan of the songs he sang as his "female alter-ego, Camille") 3/5

Prince's voice is so unique. This album is both so funky and chill. I haven't listened to many Prince songs, but I definitely think this has to be some of his best work. Also, the bass lines are so good. Face track(s): The Ballad of Dorothy Parker

Genius oozes from every bar, the virtuoso Prince showing he can make music from damn near any genre out of any damn subject. Social commentary, pop whimsy, deep funk, jazz and soul, all here. Prince out Springsteen’s Springsteen, out Beatles the Beatles, almost out Wonders Steve Wonder. Stand out track - If I Was Your Girlfriend. No other artist at the time had the balls to sing as a woman. Quite a number. Prince singing as he damn well please. Damn.

Hard to decide what is Prince's best music in the 80s. But this is a tour de force and should be on any list. Audacious scope, exemplary ability, from an artist in only his late 20s. Not as much genre hopping as seamlessly moving from one to another. Very few artists have been able to do this at this level (Stevie, Paul McCartney perhaps).

A very eclectic mix of styles but they don’t all seem to fit together. Adore is a great song but for me most of the rest are just ok.

This was pretty good but like most double albums there were some songs I’d cut. My favorite was “I Could Never Take The Place Of Your Man”. I’m surprised it was remastered to recently as the whole album sounded a bit tinny to me.

very 80s commercial "hip-hop"

Horny boy

A lot of swings between songs. I liked it

Dunno man, 3 i guess

Ballad of dorothy Parker, Slow love I Don know much prince but enjoyed it will listen more

groovyyyy

Amazing album. He truly was one of a kind.

Best Song: Adore. The actually legitimately sexy song to conclude an album full of songs trying to be sexy. Worst Song: Housequake. The beat is sufficiently funky, but the vocals here have a kind of chipmunky quality that I can't quite get behind. Overall: It seems like this whole album is centered around the thesis explicitly defined in "Slow Love". Maybe I didn't have enough candles playing while listening to this album, but I consistently wished to hear more of the upbeat, dance-worthy songs that I know Prince is capable of. Instead, it's full of Love so Slow it might be sleeping.

Prince is cool. I like the title and The Cross the most.

Great, interesting, funky album that spans the gamut of Prince sounds. "Ballad of Dorothy Parker" and "Housequake" were good tracks to revisit outside of the obvious hits.

2.75

favourite song: play in the sunshine least favourite: the rest of them i judt dont get this at all. wasnt into it and it was way too long.

This is an alright album. As someone who isn't a major Prince fan, I didn't recognize any hits but there were some good songs on it. I felt like this was more of a chore to get through though and don't think I'll revisit this one again, aside from the track "The Cross", which stands alone as a unique sounding track on this album that I really enjoyed. Standout Tracks: Play In The Sunshine, Starfish And Coffee, U Got The Look, The Cross, It's Gonna Be A Beautiful Night

4.5 stars. Great album. Prince shows phenomenal talent. Crosses multiple genres. Very well-produced, crisp and clean but doesn't lose emotion. Standout is "The Cross".

When the ballads are too frequent and the pitching up of the vocals take over, it can be a bit of a drag. The classic double record that should've been one. But that one, hot damn.

Another great album from Prince.

Nice album with some very weird songs lyrically (creeped me out a bit). Good listen though Saved tracks: Play In The Sunshine, Housequake, It, Hot Thing, The Cross

The Purple One flexes his genius. Funky, slinky and sexy. Best Tracks: Sign O' the Times; Starfish and Coffee; I Could Never Take The Place of Your Man

I honestly had a hard time listening to this. 80s music is just not my thing.

I don't think I'm much of a Prince fan. This is the first of his albums I've listened to in it's entirety, and while there were a couple songs I liked, a lot of songs felt like filler. Really the whole album felt like a filler album, and that's a shame. I thought giving Prince a proper shot would change my thoughts on his music.

This would be his masterpiece, but he also made Purple Rain. But holy shit is this great, especially for a double album. An apt comparison would be to call Purple Rain Prince's Sgt. Pepper and this his White Album. I'll always ride hard for Purple Rain to the point that I often argue it's perhaps the most perfect album ever. But I have no qualms with anyone saying this is the Purple One's finest hour.

I didn't realize how familiar this album was going to be. It came out when I was in college in Minnesota (where Prince was king), and apparently was the soundtrack to many a gathering there in the late 80s. Listening, I definitely had some vivid and nostalgic flashbacks, despite never owning this album other than having some of the tracks on mixtapes (and "U Got the Look" being a favorite party tune). I really enjoyed this, more so even than 1999.

It surprises me that I have never listened to this album before...at least it did not seem familiar. It is a masterpiece! Loved it, even more the second time through, and bummed I didn't make time for a third today, but I will soon.

Incredible. Didn't want it to end. Until the last song. I was kind of glad when that one ended. But overall, super-top-notch!

One of my favorite Prince albums with some of my favorite Prince songs (Sign O’ The Times, Play in the Sunshine, Housequake, U Got The Look, I Could Never Take The Place of Your Man, The Cross, It’s Gonna Be A Beautiful Night, Adore - to name a few), Sign O’ The Times is an astonishing accomplishment the shows off all the things I love about Prince.

Pretty damn revolutionary in its day. Still sounds brilliantly fresh today.

Sí

Starfish and Coffee is a fun ditty! But outside of this, this album was full of songs that I could see would be loved by all of the Prince fans. Unfortunately, I wouldn’t count myself amongst the diehards out there. The songs had their moments and there was a lot to listen to, as this was a double album apparently, but at the end I didn’t love too much about this offering from Prince. But I did appreciate this “forced” listen, as it’s hard not to know about this legend and I’d avoided any sort of deep dive up until now. I’m interested to see if any of his other albums show up here and how they fare in comparison. If you haven’t heard Prince before outside of his big hits, I feel this could be a decent gateway listen.

4.5

Not a huge prince fan, the album was good though.

Endlessly (and brashly) creative, but sometimes self-indulgently so, as if he might have been better served by having less studio gadgetry to hand or more rigid structure. (One likes sex jokes and references and sexiness as much as the next guy, but perhaps there is too much of it here – gets a little tedious. Certainly the synths and drum machines sound awfully dated (occupational hazard for musicians of this era). Opening title cut is pretty great, and other outright (and oddball) winners include “Dorothy Parker” and “Starfish and Coffee” and “If I Was Your Girlfriend” and “Never Take the Place of You” (which has an all-time ‘80s synth hook) and “Adore.” Given the richness of the quality here, one struggles to understand how there weren’t more hits; on the other hand, given public taste, it’s not so surprising.

Repetitive drums. Kind of boring. Sounds like the crew is just warming up. Maybe this was interesting when drum machines were first invented.

A bit boring really. Prince has some real great stuff (Purple Rain for example) but I found this album just so-so.

I don't like the alter ego vocals, but otherwise great album musucally

Did not enjoy this one at all - most tracks were bogged down in misguided synth melodies and rarely offered Prince a chance to let his vox shine. Feels like a stale relic of the 80s more so than any kind of lasting classic.

Despite only ever hearing the bigger hits from Prince (his greatest hits were on loop in my car for a good while), I still always had a great admiration for him. He pushed gender boundaries and sexuality in a time when it was far more taboo, and that’s frankly a very easy thing to love. Songs I already knew: none Favourites: Starfish and Coffee, I Could Never Take The Place Of Your Man It’s hard not to compare these songs to hits like Raspberry Beret and Little Red Corvette. Personally, I don’t think that the tracks on this album were quite as strong as some of his other work. However, there isn’t a single song I didn’t enjoy, and it definitely has that funk-charm that Prince is known for. There are no blazing guitar solos here like you’d find in Purple Rain, but it’s is still a strong album for what it is. I’ll likely be returning to some tracks from this, but with such a big Prince discography out there I do not think that this is up there with his best. But again, to be clear, it is still excellent.

I know this album well.

One of Prince's best.

Love Prince and this album is one of his best. It's all over the place while still sounding cohesive. Somehow simultaneously minimalist and lush. And above all else, funky as fuck.

Prince was amazing especially as a guitarist.

Rating: 4.6 Best Track: The Ballad of Dorothy Parker

L'obra més variada i completa de Prince. Comença amb un dels millors temes de la década i es va deixant desenvolupar en tota una orgia de cançons, festa, erotisme, ball... no tot està a nivell d'obra mestra, però és un dels pocs discs dobles que no es pot imaginar com a senzill... res hi sobra

still don't get the tiny purple pervert, but this is the closest i've got to enjoying anything other than the famous singles.

Look, I just don't get Prince. Leave me alone.

Lots and lots of perfect purple pop pixie business.

Gotta love Prince. 🔥

Yksi parhaista.

While Prince was clearly ahead of his time - that time has long since passed and the music feels quite dated. And while I do appreciate the wide variation in his music, it frequently feels all over the place and sometimes lacking in coherence.

I’d listen again

Pretty descent

2, I respect the uniqueness of the album but wasn't for me

I know Prince is revolutionary but I still don't fully hype

The music was great, however I can't seem to get into Prince. I recognize his talent but his voice bores me a bit.

Should listen to this more often.

Yes, very good

This was wonderful. Sexy, soulful, funky, marvelously textured arrangements. Arguably Prince's best album. Fave Songs: U Got the Look, Slow Love, I Could Never Take the Place of Your Man, Starfish and Coffee, Adore, If I Was Your Girlfriend

I quite like his early stuff.

I couldn't give Prince less than 4 stars for anything that he ever did.

I just don’t like prince. I said it.

It's a solid effort from Prince. I appreciate this album is pretty consistently solid all the way through. There are no mind-blowing tracks, but if I'm measuring this album on it's own and not against other Prince releases, it's def a 4.

Serious Prince is the worst

Well the idea of an 80s double album seemed like a daunting until the title track came on and Prince woo’ed me into enjoying over an hour and a half of his music. So much groove, so much soul with a dash of tongue in cheek and plenty of sexiness - it’s Prince - sans his most popular songs but still a great album.

I don't think I was really in the right frame of mind for this one unfortunately. There were a few really good and funky tracks but it felt like a few songs just dragged on a bit. Might revisit eventually though. Favourite: Housequake

I'm sure Prince was extremely talented - but I'm not really vibing this. It's great quality stuff - but it's not something I would put on on the regular.

It’s a great album but just short of his absolute pinnacle.

Prince is een goede artiest, maar ik vond dit album wat veel van het zelfde

It's a diverse, funky, soulful album. Prince's best album for sure. Deserving of being on this list. I can appreciate the genius behind it. I just don't enjoy it much at all. Not for me

me gustó mucho uwu 8 /10

Weird. Cool songs but not for me.

Impeccable for its time, but doesn't sit well with my current taste in music

I could never take the place of your man is a timeless Prince classic. Most of this album unfortunately stuck in its time. I can appreciate its influence at the time but I don’t feel it holds up

Meh.

Super funky! Hard not to groove to this one. Definitely don’t listen to this type of music that often but it put me in a good mood. No stand out tracks, but solid album.

Remains the most expensive gig I ever bought tickets for, worth every single dollar. Just Prince and a piano, people were crying, it was superb. He died a month later.

Prince is good! Not my favorite so far, but good still.

this album is fun as hell

There’s an interesting argument about whether this or Purple Rain is the more essential Prince album. I enjoyed that debate more than the album itself. It’s definitely more intellectual and maybe breaks more ground sonically - it’s certainly fun to pick up its influence on more recent artists, but makes me more excited to jump forward to D’Angelo or jump back to Purple Rain.

This album is proof that Prince was actually a genius. Mixing rock, pop, r&b, disco and funk in such a organic way, all of the songs of this record are classics, there's not a single bad song in the whole album, none feels forced or out of place. This album was released during the time were Michael Jackson was in his peak of popularity, and you can definitely hear his influence on this album in songs like "Play in the Sunshine". I don't know why, but I can also sense a certain James Brown influence too, specially in the more "funky" songs. In short, this album is just great.

A good album! Will probably listen to it again. Not much of a coherent opinion right now, but definitely enjoyed it.

Stunningly good stuff (and not at all surprising, this better not be the only Prince album, especially as we get 12 Dylan albums)

Just uneven for me. Some gems, some dull tracks. A revisit maybe.

Yeah, pretty Michael Jackson sounding. Honestly better lyrics than I had been expecting though, so props to this guy for that. Not really my thing though, and probably wouldn't give it another listen. Because holy shit you can only hear about this guy's sex life so many times before you want to cry. Favourite track was Housequake.

Just not my cup of tea, didn't really enjoy.

I enjoyed this, it's not as memorable as Purple Rain, but still a good album

"Sign O' The Times" is ninth studio album by Prince, a double album at that and the first following his disbanding of The Revolution. And what an album it is at that. It contains songs from the disbanded albums "Dream Factory" and "Camille" which he intended to make into a triple album "Crystal Ball." The record company nixed that idea and now we have "Sign O' The Times." The styles range from funk, soul, pyschedelic pop, rock and ballads...he covers a lot ground. Prince played most of the instruments including the Linn LM-1 drum machine, state-of-the-art-at-the-time Fairlight CM1 keyboard and introduces us to his androgynous alter-ego voice in Camille. Lyrically, he is all of the place too...social commentary, stories, love, sex. It is considered the most expansive R&B albums of the 80's, one of the best overall albums of the 80's and to many his best. The album journey begins with his first single "Sign O' The Times." A serious, dark one at that...social commentary on drugs, poverty, hurricanes, the Challenger disaster, AIDS and gang violence. Idiosyncratic drum machine, his stud keyboards, sampled bass and eventually funky guitar. The second song "Play in the Sunshine" lightens things up and sounds like it belongs on "1999." Dance beat, keyboards, great guitar solo. Let's forget the world of the first song and party. The third song "Housequake" introduces us to Camille. Great dance beat. Funky. Another let's party song. A great song on side two is "Starfish and Coffee." Here's his soulful and funky album song. About a girl who ate starfish and coffee. Is she autistic (serious)? Or just carefree ( less serious)? The third side contains the big hits. "U Got the Look" starts big and grand. Dance beat. Funky again. Oh, and Sheena Easton and Camille again on vocals. I forget the weird guitar part in this song. Camille appears again on the second single " If I Was Your Girlfriend." Organ intro. Mechanical drum beat and great groove. And then side three ends with one of my favorite Prince songs "I Could Never Take the Place of Your Man." Maybe a perfect rock-pop song. Great, great melody and vocals. A classic Prince guitar solo. I like the album song version which give us that extended Stone-esque "Can't You Hear Me Knockin" part. And if you thought that was enough, here comes side four with three completely different songs rubbing his talent in our face. The slow rock-epic of "The Cross." He goes totally Parliament-Funkadelic in the nine minute "It's Gonna Be A Beautiful Night." And the albums ends with "Adore " Prince at his most soulful. A ballad of sorts. Slow. Horns. Prince goes falsetto ( not Camille though). A fantastic ending. Even if you do not like Prince (I don't know how you cannot at some level), this should be a required listen. An amazing achievement from an amazing talent.

Peak 80s, incredible energy. Prince is a glaring black spot in my musical awareness

Prefs: Sign "O" The Times, Play in the Sunshine, The Ballad of Dorothy Parker, It, Starfish and Coffee, Slow Love, Hot Thing, Forever in My Life, U Got The Look, If I Was Your Girlfriend, Strange Relationship, I Could Never Take The Place Of Your Man, The Cross, It's Gonna a Beautiful Night Moins pref: Housequake

Guess I'm a Prince fan. Listened to it twice and watched the concert film. The drum machine tracks are almost abrasively filtered, but they work really well in these songs and create an addictive pocket with the wide variety of synths and instruments utilized. Whether it's the evocative bass of the title track or the hair rock guitar in U Got the Look. Then the second half has a live band feel that's reminiscent of Talking Heads' Stop Making Sense with infectious horn lines and workout video energy. And Prince's voice of course, which soulfully inflects standard funk mantras like Hot Thing and funny surreal stories like Starfish and Coffee. The Cross is also a great song.

I was going to give this a four for the fun bops, but If I was Your Girlfriend kinda creeped me out and it moved into three star status. the rest of the album actually moved it back into four stars. Good stuff.

Never listened to much Prince. Loved the opening track! The rest just drifted by.

Don't get why Prince is so hyped, every time I listen, still not for me

Disc 1 HL: Housequake, Starfish & Coffee, Slow Love Disc 2 HL: I Could Never…, Strange Relationship, Adore Not 1st listen, but I appreciated it more this time around. The slower, minimalistic songs give way to an O.TT. finale that reminded me what a tour de force Prince must have been in the 80s August 29, 2022

An incredible album start to finish. Prince mixes loads of genres from pop, funk, jazz, soul, r&b. The performances, the song writing, the instruments. Prince has it all. This album is just further proof to why he is one of the best artists of all time. And arguably one of the biggest influences in Pop history.

Sounds very dated. 2/10

Nope. Is there less than 0 stars?

Did not like at all. All the songs were way too long and didn’t go anywhere.

ALBUM GRADE: C- ALBUM RATING: 2.96 TRACK RATINGS: 1. Sign "☮︎" the Times - 3.5 2. Play in the Sunshine - 2.5 3. Housequake - 3.0 4. The Ballad of Dorothy Parker - 3.0 5. It - 3.5 6. Starfish and Coffee - 2.5 7. Slow Love - 2.5 8. Hot Thing - 3.5 9. Forever in My Life - 2.5 10. U Got the Look - 3.5 11. If I Was Your Girlfriend - 2.5 12. Strange Relationship - 2.5 13. I Could Never Take the Place of Your Man - 2.5 14. The Cross - 3.0 15. It's Gonna Be a Beautiful Night - 3.5 16. Adore - 3.0

Great album that I was not at all familiar with. Prince's guitar tones seem to have never changed throughout his career, thanks to his consistent use of BOSS pedals. Solid, confident, aggressive playing throughout, by a new group that was not The Revolution. This is after Purple Rain, it was very noticeable that there were far fewer hits (none) on this album than on Purple Rain. This album is definitely more raw and has less synth than what he did in the past and what most people typically associate with the 80's.

I had forgotten how much I liked this album, all great tracks

Not bad. Just a couple of songs liked.

I should love this since it's an 80s funk record, but only one song hits for me

That was the quickest 80 minutes of my life. Usually a double album tends to drag. But this just barrels through a barrage of different genres until it's finished. Which is disappointing because I don't want it to end. Then I remember that I can start all over again. This is the best double album I've heard. Sorry White Album. Sorry Physical Graffiti. Sorry Frampton. (Only kidding there. That album begins to pall by song 3) The teeny-tiny genius truly came from another planet. How can you get so much variety from a solo songwriter. Oh. Yes. He invents a new persona. Camille is breathtaking. So is this album. Sometimes Spotify gets out right. After the last strains of "Adore" faded, I was greeted by Strawberry Letter 23, the Brothers Johnson version. This is one of my favourite songs and definitely fits the vibe.

Misto, ușor ușor a început sa îmi placa

Felt a bit disjointed to me. Not sure if that was the point. If so, I didn't get it.

I knew the day would come where Prince would pop up. I mean, I can appreciate His Royal Highness’ virtuose talent and his take at bringing down gender barriers, but I am always bored, disappointed and wishing that the runtime of almost every track had been halved.

I was lucky enough to experience Prince live twice. Two of the greatest musical moments I’ve ever witnessed! Listening to his albums doesn’t quite bring out the same magic though. It sounds like no one told Prince no in quite some time (and why would they think to do so, he’s a genius)… It might have been healthy once in while. Enduring tracks such as Housequake and Forever In My Life makes this feel way too long… Prince is simply better with a band than stripped down; as beautifully showcased on I Could Never Take the Place of Your Man. At least 20 minutes could easily have been cut.

Really diverse and good. No weak songs.

I'll always enjoy Prince but I didn't feel like this album had that many hits

For me the is last great Prince album, some really great songs, a few not so great, always a problem with double albums. For me it's not quite 5 stars, Dirty Mind, 1999 and Purple Rain I think are much stronger albums and are all 5 stars.

I’ve tried and tried, but I just don’t like Prince. Not his voice, not the music, just not for me.

It wasn't bad but I'm never going to listen to it again. It wasn't for me.