Common + Prince | Track reviews

“Extraloveable”
Prince

Now, Prince, admittedly, is a sexy MF. Or he was, before the mighty Minneapolitan’s self-imposed censorship for religious beliefs. Which is why the Purple One now serves up songs like “Lion of Judah” and biblical jazz fusion albums, not more cuts like “Come” and “Darling Nikki.” If the deliciously blue language has left him, his funk compositional skills have not. Nobody is better at crafting syncopated grooves, in which unctuous bass and brassy keyboards poke in and out of the mix. Isolate any element and it’d sound random. Tossed together, the beat’s like juggling in a wind tunnel. The guy’s a genius. And thankfully, pretty horny again. Well, kind of. Prince begs, “if ever, ever you need someone to take a shower with, call me up, please.” But this song dates back to an ’80s demo. It carries the DNA of his career apex; even a rap from his latest caramel glamazon, Andy Allo, can’t break the spell. May his mind stay dirty.