Controversy - Prince (CD)

If DIRTY MIND was the one that put Prince on the map, CONTROVERSY was the one where he was all growed up. At least I'm sure, that was the plan.

Opening with a pounding bass that could have been taken directly from Queen's "Flash Gordon", joined by that groovy synth, he lets us know right away he's heard the gossip. "I just can't believe all the things people say / Am I black or white, am I straight or gay?" But he's not having any of it. Yeah, he's heard the gossip and rumors, but if the funk behind this song is any indication, he's got other things on his mind. "Do I believe in God, do I believe in me?" There are a ton of "important" songs recorded every year by a ton of other artists, but in 1981 Prince put all that aside, addressing the issues and then telling us, "Life is just a game / we're all just the same".

I see CONTROVERSY as his "issue" record. It's certainly more political- and world-minded than any of his previous records, but so far the only opinion he's giving us, from the next song, "Sexuality" is, "I'm okay as long as you are here with me / Sexuality is all we ever need." At least, that's the only opinion at first. But soon he sinks into a common trap among young writers--melancholy world-hate, given to us when he starts his monologue in the middle of the song. "We live in a world overrun by tourists. Toursists--89 flowers on their back" and moving into, "Don't let your children watch television until they know how to read," and "No child is bad from the beginning. They only imitate their atmosphere." I remember hearing this song for the first time in high school and thinking, "You tell it like it is, man. This world's gonna come around one of these days and see what's REALLY going on." 11 years later I just think it's a groovy song, DESPITE the monologue. There was a bit of this in "Controversy", for instance where he recites the Lord's Prayer, and then repeats over and over, "People call me rude, I wish we all were nude, I wish there was no black and white, I wish there were no rules.", Yeah, man, I dig it, free love and unity, man. But I'm not 18 anymore and thankfully neither is Prince. I love both of these songs, but I thank God the chances of him writing either of these lyrics today are slim.

We get a break from this as soon as "Do Me, Baby" starts, with its sultry piano and Prince--now in his absolute BEST falsetto--singing, "Here we are in this big ol' empty room / staring each other down / You want me just as much as I want you / Let's stop foolin' around". On four records, he'd sang a dozen or so love songs, but none as seductive as this. If playing this one with some candlelight doesn't set the mood, you've got issues. A precursor to "International Lover" off 1999, "Do Me, Baby" wraps up with Prince talking (to whom is unknown; the story goes that the engineer started the tape, then was kindly asked to leave. The door locked behind him and Prince, supposedly left alone in the studio, recorded this) in his most seductive tone yet: "You're leaving me no choice. What're you gonna do, you just gonna sit there and watch?", finally climaxing--literally, it sounds--with Prince gasping, sighing, and melting into "I'm so cold. Just hold me." Groovy, dirty stuff. Just like I like my early Prince. Was there anyone else doing this in 1981?

Right here is where the record starts to fall apart--no, it's still a GREAT record, don't get me wrong. But these first three songs take up the entire first side, and come to a minute and 24 seconds LONGER than the 5 songs on the second side. Side 1 was what I see as the heart of the album, this is where he said what he had to say, addressing what he saw as the issues. Controversy, Sexuality, and then the slow jam Do Me, Baby, all wrap up the important things. Everything else is just another song. "Private Joy" is a dance song if ever there was one, but it's nothing new. "I ain't gonna tell nobody, nobody 'bout my little pretty toy / All the other kids would love to love you, but you're my little private joy". And then on "Ronnie Talk to Russia" he shows us his true naivete'. This song's got an almost jump rope chant quality to it, with lyrics that, while I'm sure they seemed important in 1981--today they just seem juvenile and uninformed. "Ronnie talk to Russia, before it's too late, before they blow up the world." Come on. Grow up, man. "Let's Work" is a good groove, too, like "Private Joy", but like that song, it's nothing new. At the end of the day, they're both just love songs set to a beat you can dance to. "Annie Christian" is . . . I don't want to say the weirdest song, because that's the cliche', isn't it? That Prince guy, he's so weird, why's he so weird, his music is so weird. But it's just another song where Prince is trying to be political, and only succeeding in showing how young he really is. "Annie Christian was a wh*re / Always lookin' for some fun / Being good was such a bore / So she bought a gun / She killed John Lennon--shot him down cold / She tried to kill Reagan--everybody said 'Gun Control'" Now, I've always prided myself on, if not knowing exactly what he meant in his lyrics, at least being able to divine SOME meaning from them. But the chorus to Annie Christian still, 12 years after I first bought it, leaves me confused: "Annie Christian / Anti-Christ / Until you're crucified, I'll live my life in taxi cabs." What?

Thankfully he wraps up the record with a song few others could pull off. "Jack U Off" is the kind of song you turn off when the kids are in the car. It doesn't SOUND dirty, but that's just the subterfuge talking. Despite it's bouncy, almost sing-song rhythm and cartoony synth line, the lyrics "If you're man ain't no good / Come on over to my neighborhood / We can jump in the sack / And I'll jack U off" are not for the kids. Good song, though.

Since this is an opinion, and not straight fact, I'll state what I BELIEVE to be the truth. CONTROVERSY was supposed to be more important than it actually was. Prince looked at what he'd done to that point and decided he didn't just want to be known as the guy who writes all those sex songs, that he's a deeper person than that, and it's about time that shows through in the things he writes about. I know how he feels, you become known for writing about a certain thing long enough, you want to break out of that mold and prove you're not just a writer of, in his case, love/sex songs, you're a writer period. You're a serious musician who is now going to prove to you what he can really do. However, I don't think, at this point, Prince was ready for this yet. He was still young and "young" is not a good time to decide you're going to write about important things, because it just comes off sounding . . . well, like the lyrics to "Ronnie Talk to Russia" or the "Sexuality" monologue. He does prove he's still a great musician, though, as the music on here is his most mature and accomplished yet. It's a great record, but it's success comes mainly from the music, not the lyrics and certainly not the subject matter. Seen by 18-year-olds around the world as his first important record, age and experience shows it to be just a great record, and another stepping stone on his road to REAL success.