1999 (album)

1999
Album by Prince
Released	October, 1982
Recorded	1982
Genre	Pop, Rock, Funk
Length	XX:XX
Record label	Warner Bros. Records
Producer	Prince
Lyrics	External link
Chart positions	N/A
Reviews
Prince album chronology
Controversy 1981	1999 1982	Purple Rain 1984

1999 is Prince's fifth album, released in October 1982. It became his first Top 10 album on the Billboard 200. Nearly every fan and critic recognises 1999 as Prince's coming-of-age and turning point into greatness. The album was originally released on vinyl as a double set and opens with the classic title track.

Not for the last time, Prince is concerned about the possibility of armageddon and nuclear attack and urges his listeners to "party like it´s 1999". The song reached number 12 on the Billboard Hot 100 (later making number 2 on the UK charts, with "Little Red Corvette" as the double A-side). "Little Red Corvette" was the song that propelled Prince towards stardom in the USA. With the music video, he became one of the first black artists to be played on the new music video channel MTV. The song peaked at number 6 stateside. Whilst "Little Red Corvette" is a decisive foray into the world of white radio–friendly rock and roll, the rest of the album is dominated by funk and synthesizer dance tracks. The 3rd US single "Delirious" is a lightweight pop music number which still managed top 10 status in the USA. "Let´s Pretend We're Married" is a tight, funk track with typically smutty lyrics. "D.M.S.R." is classic Prince, with outrageous lyrics and an irrestistable bassline.

Side 3 starts with "Automatic" is almost 10 minutes of synthesizers, with bawdy bondage imagery in the lyrics, as well as the unreleased music video. "Free" is a delicate piano ballad expressing patriotism, while "Something in the Water (Does Not Compute) is an ode to a harsh lover that dabbles in the new Computer Age. "Lady Cab Driver" and "All the Critics Love U in New York" are both experiment with synths and sound effects, while delivering sex-soaked lyrics. The final track, "International Lover" is a seductive ballad in the tradition of Controversy's "Do Me, Baby".

This album secured Prince a place in the public psyche and within two years, following massively successful tours and a selection of hit singles, Prince was, arguably, the biggest musical star on the planet. In 2003 the TV network VH1 named 1999 the 49th greatest album of all time.

Track listing

1. "1999"
2. "Little Red Corvette"
3. "Delirious"
4. "Let's Pretend We're Married"
5. "D.M.S.R."
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"

Singles and Hot 100 Chart Placings

"1999"

• "1999" #12

1. "1999"
2. How Come U Don't Call Me Anymore?"

"Little Red Corvette"

• "Little Red Corvette" #6

1. "Little Red Corvette"
2. "All The Critics Love U In New York"

"Delirious"

• "Delirious" #8

1. "Delirious"
2. Horny Toad"

"Let's Pretend We're Married"

• "Let's Pretend We're Married" #52

1. "Let's Pretend We're Married"
2. Irrisistible Bitch"

Trivia

• "Irrisistible Bitch" is not featured on the album, but received significant airplay as "Let's Pretend We're Married"'s B-side to have it listed as a double-sided hit in Billboard.

• "Little Red Corvette" was Prince's first Top 10 on the Hot 100.

• "1999" was originally the first single released from the album and it peaked at #44. After the Top 10 success of "Little Red Corvette", it was rereleased and hit #12.

• 1999 was originally released as a double vinyl album. When the compact disc was a new product on the market and many albums were bring transferred to this new media, technological limitations of CD players did not allow playing discs longer than approximately 70-74 minutes. Thus, in early CD pressings of 1999, the track "D.M.S.R." was omitted.

• The song "1999 (song)|1999" was originally to be sung entirely in three part harmony between Prince, guitarist Dez Dickerson and Lisa Coleman. While mixing the track, Prince split up the vocal parts and decided it sounded better with each line of the lyrics sung by a different individual.

• The 1999 cover makes the first reference to Prince's band The Revolution. Shown within the letter "I" in "Prince" (some say it also looks like the numeral "1") the words and the Revolution appear, written backwards.

• The cover also features elements from the cover of Prince's previous album Controversy, namely the eyes and the "Rude Boy" pin in the "1999", the jacket studs in the "R" and the smile in the "P".