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Cratedigger: Prince, “Sign ‘o’ the Times”

Ken Shane August 22, 2009 16

Prince - Sign 'o' the TimesThere has never been a doubt in my mind that Sign ‘o’ the Times (that ‘o’ is stylized as a peace sign in the title) is the best Prince album. For me, it represents The Artist at his peak, showcasing all of the styles that he’s proficient in. Though it is very much an album of its time, in this case 1987, with references to the AIDS pandemic, the Challenger disaster, Ronald Reagan’s Star Wars program, and the crack epidemic, it still sounds as fresh as today’s newspaper — or, given the state of the newspaper business, maybe I should say the most recent website update.

The album opens with the title track. The sound of a sequencer creates a water dripping effect and Prince takes on the role of a herald, chronicling the events of the day, while warning of the peril ahead:

“In France a skinny man
Died of a big disease with a little name.
By chance his girlfriend came across a needle
And soon she did the same.
At home there are seventeen-year-old boys
And their idea of fun,
Is being in a gang called the Disciples
High on crack, toting a machine gun.”

Chilling is the only way to describe it. Even as I listen now, the dark days of the late ’80s come vividly back to life through this song. All is not gloom and doom however. As I said earlier, this album connects on a number of levels. There’s also the primal electro-funk of songs like “Housequake” and “Hot Thing,” an epic nod to spirituality on “The Cross,” steamy jams like “Slow Love,” and the album closing “Adore.” Of course there’s the great pop songwriting that Prince is perhaps best known for on songs like “Play In the Sunshine,” “I Could Never Take the Place of Your Man,” and the album’s biggest hit, “U Got the Look,” sung as a duet with Sheena Easton. Throw in a little gender-bending with “If I Was Your Girlfriend,” and the simply lovely “The Ballad of Dorothy Parker,” and you have yourself a classic double album.

After a great deal of success with the Revolution, Prince returned to his roots on Sign ‘o’ the Times and made a solo album. He wrote the songs, played all the instruments, and sung all the vocals on this one. Prince has made a lot of great music in the last 20 years, but for me, this was his summit.

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POSTED IN » Cratedigger, Featured, Featured - Frontpage, Music
About the author: Ken Shane View all posts by
Ken Shane, newly arrived in Jamestown, RI, is the New Music Editor for Popdose, and a freelance writer. He is far and away the oldest Popdose writer, in fact, he may be the oldest writer period. Ken wants you to know that he generally does not share his colleagues love for the music of the '80s, and he does not forgive them for loving it.

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  • EightE1

    I love double albums. I love the balls an artist or band has to have to think their muse cannot be contained within the boundaries of a single record. Sign O the Times is one of the finest examples of an artist (sorry — an Artist) with the balls, not the mention the material, to pull it off. A fantastic record from start to finish. Thanks for bringing it back to our attention, Meester Shane.

    Rob
    EightE1

  • zandria1

    Thanks for the reminder of this great album Ken! I am going to have to dig it out and take a listen today!

  • http://playitandbedamned.blogspot.com/ rob

    My favorite track has to be “Starfish and Coffee”: Prnce at his most eclectic, living up to the promise of the Paisley Park label in ways that his previous records couldn't. Just an ecstatic slice of psychedlia, with one of the Purple One's sweetest melodies mixed in.

  • SeagirlX

    Prince is just in a class and category all by himself!

  • http://ickmusic.com pete

    Thanks Ken… always good to see love for Prince during his finest, most creative era. I miss that guy.
    What we have here too is a “concert” movie (most filmed on Paisley Park's soundstage) that is screaming for an official DVD release. Let's GO!

    Now I'm going back to watch “It's Gonna Be a Beautiful Night” again for a closer, more in-depth look at Sheila E.'s nipples.

  • jhallCORE

    As a longtime Prince fan, I concur that Sign O' The Times is Prince's masterwork. It is my favorite album period. It is an eclectic treasure.

    I agree that the DVD is long, long, long overdue. WTF?

    I'd be remiss in not giving more props to your “Bootleg City” columnist for posting the “Paris Affair” tracks earlier this summer. This captures Prince's band of the “Sign” era in peak form. It's playing in the car constantly. Thanks again Popdose.

  • EightE1

    I owe you a disc of that, Paco. Haven't forgotten. Well, yeah, I did forget, but I remembered today. Something else to thank Ken for.

  • http://www.popdose.com DwDunphy

    Sign 'O' The Times was the moment the rest of us understood why people were calling this guy a genius.

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  • mojo

    No question about it, Sign was his masterpiece. Call my cheeezy but “The Cross” is his “Stairway to HEaven.” And I mean that in a good way.

  • rockymtranger

    “Adore” is what every slowjam since 1987 has strived to be, without success. Best Prince CD by a mile.

  • maxx40

    And to think Lionel Richie beat out Prince's Purple Rain for Best Album Grammy

  • Deiter

    In some of his later work Prince used more live instrumentation and other musicians–as opposed to his earlier albums where he Todd Rundgrened all the sounds himself–and the results for me were spectacular. It makes me wonder what he could've accomplished without the crappy electronic drums and nerdy synth sounds that were such a part of his mid-period. The album “Come” is a good example. The track Loose!, while being more electronic but with much cooler updated sounds, is one of the hottest jams of his career, IMHO.

    Without engaging in debates about his sound choices, the fact that he is such a great performer is what saves him. “Erotic City” is a perfect example.

    “Sign O' the Times” is a great moment for Prince, I wholeheartedly agree.

  • Deiter

    In some of his later work Prince used more live instrumentation and other musicians–as opposed to his earlier albums where he Todd Rundgrened all the sounds himself–and the results for me were spectacular. It makes me wonder what he could've accomplished without the crappy electronic drums and nerdy synth sounds that were such a part of his mid-period. The album “Come” is a good example. The track Loose!, while being more electronic but with much cooler updated sounds, is one of the hottest jams of his career, IMHO.

    Without engaging in debates about his sound choices, the fact that he is such a great performer is what saves him. “Erotic City” is a perfect example.

    “Sign O' the Times” is a great moment for Prince, I wholeheartedly agree.

  • Deiter

    In some of his later work Prince used more live instrumentation and other musicians–as opposed to his earlier albums where he Todd Rundgrened all the sounds himself–and the results for me were spectacular. It makes me wonder what he could've accomplished without the crappy electronic drums and nerdy synth sounds that were such a part of his mid-period. The album “Come” is a good example. The track Loose!, while being more electronic but with much cooler updated sounds, is one of the hottest jams of his career, IMHO.

    Without engaging in debates about his sound choices, the fact that he is such a great performer is what saves him. “Erotic City” is a perfect example.

    “Sign O' the Times” is a great moment for Prince, I wholeheartedly agree.