Prince - 1999 [2LP] - Vinyl

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1999 is the fifth studio album by American recording artist Prince, released on October 27, 1982, by Warner Bros. Records. 
It became his first album to be recorded with his band the Revolution. 
1999's critical and commercial success propelled Prince to a place in the public psyche and marked the beginning of two years of heightened fame via his following releases.

1999 was Prince's first top 10 album on the Billboard 200, peaking at number nine, and was fifth in the Billboard Year-End Albums of 1983. "1999", a protest against nuclear proliferation, was a Billboard Hot 100 top 20 hit, peaking at number 12. 
It has since become one of Prince's most recognizable compositions. "Delirious" reached number eight on the Billboard Hot 100, while "Little Red Corvette" peaked at number six, becoming Prince's highest charting US single at the time. "International Lover" was also nominated for Best Male R&B Vocal Performance at the 26th Grammy Awards, which was Prince's first Grammy Award nomination. 

With Dirty Mind, Prince had established a wild fusion of funk, rock, new wave, and soul that signaled he was an original, maverick talent, but it failed to win him a large audience. 
After delivering the sound-alike album, Controversy, Prince revamped his sound and delivered the double album 1999. Where his earlier albums had been a fusion of organic and electronic sounds, 1999 was constructed almost entirely on synthesizers by Prince himself. 

Naturally, the effect was slightly more mechanical and robotic than his previous work and strongly recalled the electro-funk experiments of several underground funk and hip-hop artists at the time. 
Prince had also constructed an album dominated by computer funk, but he didn't simply rely on the extended instrumental grooves to carry the album -- he didn't have to when his songwriting was improving by leaps and bounds. 

The first side of the record contained all of the hit singles, and, unsurprisingly, they were the ones that contained the least amount of electronics. 
"1999" parties to the apocalypse with a P-Funk groove much tighter than anything George Clinton ever did, "Little Red Corvette" is pure pop, and "Delirious" takes rockabilly riffs into the computer age. 
After that opening salvo, all the rules go out the window -- "Let's Pretend We're Married" is a salacious extended lust letter, "Free" is an elegiac anthem, "All the Critics Love U in New York" is a vicious attack at hipsters, and "Lady Cab Driver," with its notorious bridge, is the culmination of all of his sexual fantasies. 
Sure, Prince stretches out a bit too much over the course of 1999, but the result is a stunning display of raw talent, not wallowing indulgence.


Side A
A1.  1999 - 6:15
A2.  Little Red Corvette - 5:03
A3.  Delirious - 4:00

Side B
B1.  Let’s Pretend We’re Married - 7:21
B2.  D.M.S.R. - 8:17

Side C
C1.  Automatic - 9:28
C2.  Something in the Water (Does Not Compute) - 4:02
C3.  Free - 5:08

Side D
D1.  Lady Cab Driver - 8:19
D2.  All the Critics Love U In New York - 5:59
D3.  International Lover - 6:37


Personnel
  • Prince – lead and backing vocals, all other instruments except as noted.
  • Dez Dickerson – co-lead vocals (1), guitar solos and backing vocals (2)
  • Lisa Coleman – co-lead vocals (1), backing vocals (2, 3, 5, 6, 8)
  • Jill Jones – co-lead vocals (1), backing vocals (6, 8, 9)
  • Vanity – backing vocals (8)
  • Wendy Melvoin – backing vocals (8)

While not performance credited for the studio recordings, band members Doctor Fink (keyboards), Bobby Z. (drums) and Brown Mark (bass) do appear in the music videos


Companies, etc.
Credits

Notes
Release:  1982
Format:  2LP
Genre:  Soul, Funk, Pop
Length:  
Label:  Warner Bros. Records


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