Today, the 8th of October is
the 32nd anniversary of the release of 'Dirty Mind' by
Prince. This was Prince's third studio album and was recorded
between May and June of the same year. I was just six years old in
1980, but got my hands on a copy some eight years later. As a Prince
fan and a former music junkie, Dirty Mind is one of my hot
favourites. Sex, politics, war and partying are heavy themes on this
eight track album.
Looking at the album cover, Prince
in his open trench coat with only his underwear underneath and a
loosely tied neckerchief, you know your in for a mighty ride:
Dirty Mind the
opening track, refers to lusting after a lover and wanting to lay her
down “in my Daddy's car”, When
You Were Mine, a
heavy guitar track which Prince sings of his love for a former lover
who cheated on him with his best friend. Do It
All Night,
a funky disco(ish) track about lust again, Gotta Broken Heart Again, a beautiful ballad of a lost love. Uptown
is the ultimate party anthem and a song I always play whenever I need
a spiritual uplifting. Head is
about an affair with a bride-to-be. Back in the 80's, I could only
listen to this song if my grandparents were out of the house or via
headphones. On Sister,
Prince sings about incest and abuse, a real mind opener, graphic, yet
guilt-ridden funkiness. The last track, Partyup,
is anti-war funk, “fighting war is such a fucking bore”. Give up
the fighting and lets all party...and have some damned good sex too.
Prince on Dirty Mind:
“When
I first played the Dirty Mind album for him (my father), he said
'You're swearing on the record. Why do you have to do that?' And I
said “Because I swear'. The point for me is that you can do
anything you want. My goal is to excite and provoke on every level.
I like danger. That's what's missing from pop music today.”
The
boundaries Prince pushed 32 years ago, some of the biggest selling
artists of current times wouldn't have the balls to do. Art of a
living genius. If you don't have a copy, go visit Amazon and enjoy
the ride.
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