(Symbol) [PA] - Prince (CD 1992)

How many artists do you know of that still have something to say once their album output drifts into the double digits. Particularly in this age of disposable music, who thinks Britney Spears will last 10 albums? Yeah, I thought so.

Minneapolis native Prince has made interesting (and mostly, good-to-excellent) albums through 28 years and as many albums. With a style drawn from years of listening to diverse bands like Santana and Sly & The Family Stone, he is easily the most musically schizophrenic artist of the past 25 or so years. He can do pop, soul, funk, jazz, techno, soft rock, hard rock. Hey, who knows? The man might even have a polka album in him.

1992's "Symbol" (named after the unpronounceable amalgam of male & female signs that would temporarily become the man's name) album found him riding off the high of the previous year's 'Diamonds & Pearls". This album, which introduced Prince's funky new backing band, The New Power Generation, was his biggest commercial success since 1984's monster "Purple Rain", and also marked Prince's first extended foray into hip-hop waters, thanks mainly to a rapper named Tony M. Personally, I don't think "Diamonds & Pearls" was a fantastic album, although it had it's moments. I also don't think Prince and hip-hop have ever been a good match, except for isolated moments but more on that later.

"Symbol" isn't exactly a retread. The NPG is back on board, for the most part. Female foil Rosie Gaines, the group's most exciting member, had already left the fold. "Symbol", ultimately, remains a more enjoyable album than "Diamonds", but is really the first hint of extreme inconsistency that would mark the rest of Prince's output to date. A few years ago, someone made a remark about fast-forwarding through three bad Prince songs to get to every good song on hids album, and that theory applies here.

Jumping back a paragraph, for a minute, I can say this unequivocally: Prince is not a rapper. "Diamonds" and "Symbol" saw Prince moving more towards an "urban" style than any of his previous albums, and the swagger and machismo of hip-hop doesn't prove to be a good match for a dude that wears buttless pants at award ceremonies. Songs like "Arrogance" (AKA "pimp rag, tootsie pop and a cane!"), "The Flow", and the weird techno experiment "The Max" flat-out stink. Prince is no gangsta (although he might be a pimp), and his rapping cohort, Tony M., is one step away from Tone-Loc in the rapping skills department.

There are spots where the songs are good enough that they transcend the sops to hip-hop. "My Name Is Prince" features Prince shouting raspily about how damn great he is ("In the beginning, God made the sea/but on the second day/he made me!!"), but the lyrics are tongue-in-cheek enough to make you laugh and it sounds more like Prince having a good time than it does Prince trying to be Dr. Dre. "Sexy MF" and "Love 2 The 9's" are other good examples of the rap/rock fusion. "Sexy MF" goes on for about a minute and a half too long, but no one can deny it's James Brown-esque funk groove and the crazy horn charts. "9's" marries a jazzy groove and a creamy falsetto groove around frenetic turntable scratching and a melody that recalls Prince's first two albums in the Seventies.

Despite being overlong (running well over an hour), there are enough memorable moments to make this album well worth the purchase. "Damn U" is a languidly placed, passionaltely sung ballad with major jazz overtones. You can practically feel the sexual tension on this song. "Blue Light" is an easygoing reggae groove that Prince seems to sing with a raised eyebrow and a smirk, while the hit single "7" marries an acoustic framework with a bit of an Asian/Indian influence and tasteful turntale scratches. It also has the most memorable chorus of any song on the album, which is probably why it wound up being this album's highest charting single.

The album's two most interesting tracks appear towards the end. "3 Chains O' Gold" is-to put it mildly- a f*cking mess. Containing tons of separate musical movements that jump from jazz to near-metal, it seemed to many to be a shameless rip-off (or one might say tribute) to Queen's "Bohemian Rhapsody". It contains the best guitar playing on the album (Prince remains an underrated guitarist), but the song is just way too overambitious. On the other side, "The Sacrifice Of Victor" is a funk/gospel romp that could easily be subtitled "The Biography Of Prince". In the song, he mentions being bused to white schools and enduring racial hatred, moving in with former bandmate Andre Cymone's mother ("Bernadette the lady") after his parents divorced when he was a teen, and calls out former associates who imploded due to drug problems (the initials M.D. are listed on the lyric sheet-clearly nodding to former Time leader Morris Day). Gospel group The Steeles help out on the chorus, and the song offers a rare glimpse into Prince's private life.

Of course, no Prince album would be complete without the official "Prince Is Mucho Pretentious" Moment or P.I.M.P. for short. Unfortunately for us, this moment occurs several times across the album. "Symbol" was originally conceived as a "rock opera" which would tell the story of Prince's pursuit of a teenage royal figure (introduced as "Arabia" during "Love 2 The 9's"). This figure was "played" by new band member/future Prince wife (and ex-wife) Mayte Garcia. Meanwhile, Prince was also being chased by an aggressive reporter named Vanessa Bartholomew, who was played by...drumroll please...the one and only...KIRSTIE ALLEY. Yes, the "Fat Actress" once got major airtime on a Prince album. All this nonsensical mess does is provide a couple of eye-rolling moments and turns an already long CD into something that borders on intolerably long.

The funny thing is, with a bit of an edit (taking maybe 4 or 5 tracks out), "Symbol" would rank as Prince's best alum since 1987's definitive masterpiece "Sign 'O The Times" (get thee to record store and buy "Sign" now if you don't have it already). In between the endless skits and the awkward rapping of Prince and Tony M., there's a solid album. Too bad, then, that Prince's taste for excess gets the best of him and it ultimately leads to a bloated, wildly inconsistent piece of work.


Prince & The New Power Generation "Symbol"


Released 1992 on Paisley Park/Warner Brothers Records.


3 1/2 out of 5 stars (rounded down)