Chaos and Disorder(1996)
1. Chaos and Disorder
2. I Like it There
3. Dinner With Delores
4. The Same December
5. Right the Wrong
6. Zannalee
7. I Rock, Therefore I Am
8. Into the Light
9. I Will
10.Dig U Better Dead
11.Had U
Another forgotten gem in the sprawling Prince catalog—and believe me, there are more than a few of them. This one, though, came with a built-in curse: it was a contractual obligation album. Even worse, it was one of three records Prince put out in 1996. And when one of those happens to be Emancipation, a triple-CD set with a massive promotional push, guess which album ends up getting no attention at all? This one. Prince handed it in to Warner Bros. like a term paper he just wanted off his desk—and then moved on. So, no one expected much. But here’s the twist: the record is fantastic. Loud, chaotic, messy... and, somehow, absolutely brilliant.
The album kicks off with a guitar riff that sounds like it was lifted straight out of Electric Ladyland-era Hendrix. It’s heavy. And it doesn’t let up. In fact, this might just be Prince’s best guitar album. That’s right—this isn’t the R&B, funk, and soul maestro most people associate with the name. This is Prince the rock god, shredding with abandon. Fans of his more groove-oriented material might be slightly disappointed—but only slightly. Because even though this isn’t his funkiest outing, it’s just so well-executed that you’re drawn in, regardless of genre.
And speaking of genre—this thing is all over the place. Layers upon layers of instrumentation, background vocals, random sound effects, even the occasional guest rapper. It’s a sonic stew. But somehow, it all gels. You get the sense that if anyone else had tried to make a record like this, it would have taken six months and still sounded like a train wreck. With Prince, you wouldn’t be shocked to learn he threw the whole thing together over a long weekend. To be fair, it does sound rushed in spots—and if he had just spent a little more time polishing it, this might have been hailed as a classic. But again, he had other things to do. Like releasing an entire music library’s worth of material that year alone.
There isn’t a bad track in the bunch. Some tunes even flirt with radio-friendliness—Zannalee, Dinner with Delores, and Dig U Better Dead all sound like they could’ve been singles. Maybe they were? Who knows—I wasn’t exactly glued to FM radio in 1996. Either way, the whole album is a delight: a swirling, hook-filled ride with only a few speedbumps. Sure, he throws in a couple of unnecessary profanities here and there, which probably didn’t help the album’s accessibility. But it’s a small price to pay.
Spending time with this record makes you wish Prince didn’t have quite so much great material. There’s just too much of it, and too much of it slipped through the cracks. This one is a prime example—an album that could’ve turned heads, but was sadly overshadowed.
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