Emancipation
was a critical moment for
Prince
, one that he designed as an artistic rebirth and, optimistically, as a commercial comeback. In a typically perverse fashion,
decided to make the album a triple-disc set running exactly three hours, easily making it the longest album of all-new original material ever released by a popular artist. As the first album he released since leaving
Warner Brothers
,
was supposed to dazzle, proving that he had not lost any of his creative skills or power. And it does dazzle, but it's hard to digest a full three discs of music, even if it is almost all of high quality. Fortunately,
made each disc into a distinct entity in its own right, with the first being the most
pop
, the second being a song cycle devoted to his new marriage, and the third being a
dance
/
funk
extravaganza. Throughout all three discs,
tries on a variety of styles, from
jazz
to
R&B
, but he doesn't break any new ground; instead, the album is simply reaffirmation of his strengths as a composer and a musician.
doesn't have the bristling, colorful eclecticism of
Sign 'o' the Times
nor does it have the wildness of early one-man projects like
1999
or
Dirty Mind
, but with its gentle
ballads
and complex jams, it signals that
has evolved into middle-age gracefully. It's a mature effort, to be certain, but in this case that doesn't mean that it's an album bankrupt of ideas -- it means that
's craft continues to grow. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine