Don't act surprised, dammit. Happens every year, as do the gripes. Might be better used on the 5 Blu & Exile threads a week.

Word to the wise: might be a good idea to alter dude's name in the thread. I hear creep or asshole is all the rage. LOL

http://www.zshare.net/audio/12905869ae0332a6/

http://www.zshare.net/audio/1290566716084468/

Ever wondered what Wonderful Ass sounded like before Lendy & Wisa got it?

http://www.zshare.net/audio/129059492d733cf6/

Now that *that* is out of the way & considering how frequently the guy is discussed around here, this month's anchor should be a little more than the requisite b00t requests, "I saw him walk on water", or "He's sucked since 82 but I just can't stop talking about him nearly 30 years later." Its been done. More importantly, those types of topics are discussed ad nauseum.

Regardless of what side of the love/hate/indifference fence folks fall on, many still feel some kind of way about the Kid, years after (to many) his studio material lacked the commercial and artistic viability that made him a solitary force in the 80's. In the spirit of Scorpion's excellent threads last year where (clutch the pearls) music was actually the topic, there are some points of his musical person that remain under discussed. Just throwing a few out there but feel free to add on...

- The de-evolution of bandmembers/musicians from the 80's - present (technical proficience vs. creativity; ex: John Blackwell is unquestionably stronger than Bobby Z skill-wise but Bobby was a better *Prince* drummer)

- Favorite memory indirectly related to an album/concert/song

- The positives/negatives of his latter-day evolution in becoming a brand-name, something he refused to be in the 80's. The most recent culmination of this was the Musicology renaissance.

- "Legendary" standards and their application to his career. Are other still producing "legends" held to the same measure in relation to current output/live-performances, etc?

- One period/tour you wish you could've seen/attended.

- Notable stan observations. Its no secret, dude has the cream of the batshit crop of rabid worshippers. I saw a white girl, dressed in a Gone With The Wind table-cloth meets Morticia Adams cream dress with "Slave" written on her face with a black Sharpie.............in 2000.

- Does the musical format which you receive new work affect your appreciation or how you digest the material? The immediacy a cd or mp3 offers surely allows us to just skip and weed out what we doesn't hit us first. Not so easy with an 8-track, album or cassette. (Say The Rainbow Children was released in 89 instead of 01. No NPG Music Club. No one track downloads. Same material. Available in all in-store formats)

- Living in the past more: P or his fans?

- If someone were just being introduced to his music, what albums should they start with? The breadth of his catalog can surely be intimidating. Official solo material alone is a lot to digest. This coupled with side projects, B-sides, etc. I'm sure make some not want to bother.

- Funniest story you've been told by someone associated or who worked under the Purple Umbrella. (He once fired a bodyguard on the spot for chuckling when P tripped on a video set). That's the only one I can tell without self-incrimination.

- If you could orchestrate the release of remasters, how would you design the material, which albums and what would you include (WB cannot do this without Prince's cooperation. Prince technically "owns" the physical master tapes. He doesn't own the right to release them. WB'S "Ultimate" double disc was hardly remastered as it was touted. Just made "louder"...a fairly common industry practice. Considering WB owns all the artwork associated with the albums and the has the financial muscle, a joint venture is the only way such an undertaking would be done justice.) Can we all agree that Alan Leeds should oversee ALL of it???

_______________
Good...I'm glad