Review Summary: The presence of a band elevates his vision and adds a finishing touch of magic to his sound from the last two albums and pushes him into rock and pop royalty!
1999 is the perfection of the Minneapolis sound; the style Prince had forwarded and had a hand in creating, and lyrically pushing the envelope to the very edge of the table. It's full of impressive Linn-M1 drum machine work which can sound soulless with many Pop and 80's Rock artists yet Prince made it sound just as great as real drums and just as tasteful, and quite exploratory as well. The synthesizers may be heavily present but rather than crashing in waves, it's smooth, gentle sailing.
1999 is the start of the artist's true peak.
Despite it being once again mostly done by him, He even let his band contribute heavily to the album. Lisa Coleman, Matt Fink, Brownmark, and Dez Dickerson, and for the first time Wendy Melvoin, all get to have input and matter! It's no wonder why the album gets credited to "The Revolution", if you look in the 'i' in Prince's name on the cover, you'll see "and the revolution" written backwards. Prince was honoring Dez, who wanted to leave for religious reasons so he held off on making the name 100% official but still had it there to let everyone know of this new era.
1999 may not be Prince's absolute best album, but it is definitely his most influential, and one of his strongest. Many R&B artists, Pop, and even some rock took a large scoop out of the Purple One's flavor to craft their own wonderful music (Michael Jackson, Krist Novacelic of Nirvana, GNR as big examples!) Recorded during a period of uncertainty and worry of the end of the world, this album is a statement of the times and just as catchy and well-made as ever.
"1999" is an amazing opening track and the first pop song made to be about an apocalypse, dancing and enjoying yourself in the face of the end of the world, with some fantastic lead vocals from Dez, amazing ones from Jill Jones and Lisa Coleman as Prince trades vocals with them and Bobby Z plays alongside the Linn-M1, creating a unique, fun, and thought-provoking song.
"Little Red Corvette" follows as Prince's first breakthrough hit and the one that propelled the former track even higher on the charts. Skillfully combining a slow synth and Linn-M1 buildup with a catchy hard rock chorus, the purple one uses creative metaphors to do with cars and others to his advantage to recount the tale of a one night stand (Dez and Lisa provide backing vocals alongside Dez letting out a ripper of a solo that stands as one of the most memorable. It may be about sex, but not just fun, but rather everything to do with it from the psychological and emotional vulnerability to the physical and pleasurable.
"Delirious" is a rockabilly number that takes influence from the 50's and gives it a more futuristic feel with the synth and guitar complimenting each other in a danceable, fun, masterful composition. While it may be a standard 8-bar blues number, the mix of instruments and futuristic sound propels it to greatness, alongside Lisa's fantastic chops.
"Let's Pretend Were Married" uses keyboards and drums to make a danceable synth rock anthem with some provoking sexual lyrics before going into a breakdown and switching up and ending with an a capella of a philosophy on life.
"DMSR" and
"AUTOMATIC" are phenomenal funk songs that echo the greatness of the artist,
"Free" is a beautiful power rock anthem on how one should be grateful for their life, the things they're gifted, and what they are given. It's empowering and beautiful with commendable guitar work from Prince. Wendy, who would join the band as Dez's replacement gives her first role on a song doing backing vocals with Jill Jones and Lisa.
The two very best cuts however are the funk rock jam
"Lady Cab Driver" which takes experimentation to the max with vocal ad-libs from Jill, and impressive synthesizer wizardry, and the Grammy-winning
"International Lover" which is a r&b ballad about a one night stand using a clever metaphor of a flight. Prince's vocals explore a large range with some soft piano strokes reminiscent of jazz.
The album does fall a bit short on some songs, notably
"Something in the Water" which, while good, feels like rushed filler that never had time to develop and remains a weird sci-fi blues song and
"All The Critics Love U in New York" which has a great bassline but is unnecessary. Some unreleased cuts are so amazing as Prince has a whole large pile of songs as he was on a creative spree like the rocker
"Moonbeam Levels" or the heart-tugging
"How Come U Don't Call Me Anymore?", listening to these makes you wonder why they aren't on the album.
Closing things off, I'd say that this is an incredibly strong entry to his peak, and a phenomenal album that stands the test of time. One of the best of the 80's, and though way further down than the other three he made with The Revolution, it is one of the best of all time.
Track by Track:
1. 1999: ★★★★★
2. Little Red Corvette: ★★★★★
3. Delirious: ★★★★★
4. Let's Pretend We're Married: ★★★★★
5. DMSR: ★★★★
6. AUTOMATIC: ★★★★
7. Something In The Water (Does Not Compute): ★★★
8. Free: ★★★★
9. Lady Cab Driver: ★★★★★
10. All The Critics Love U In New York: ★★★
11. International Lover: ★★★★★ 🎖️
