Releases...1989
Prince |
Associates Brownmark - Good Feeling George Clinton - The Cinderella Theory Tony LeMans - Tony LeMans Tyka Nelson - Yellow Moon, Red Sky Mavis Staples - Time Waits For No One Wendy & Lisa - Fruit At The Bottom Bobby Z - Bobby Z Databank Xtra Cheryl Lynn - Whatever It Takes Jody Watley - Larger Than Life Jody Watley (Remixes) - Do You Wanna Dance With Me? |
| Prince - Batman | |||
Highest Pop Chart Position: |
Notes | ||
| The music written for
and inspired by the Batman movie was very much a self contained Prince album than a
soundtrack. It was a big success riding on the back of a blockbusting film and went
on to become Prince's biggest seller in the US since Purple Rain. After the
complex musical arrangements of Lovesexy, Prince was back in commercial mode.
Apart from a foray into house with "Batdance", the album offered little in the
way of what Prince hadn't done before musically. An enjoyable album nevertheless. Standout Tracks: The Future, Electric Chair, Vicki Waiting, Lemon Crush Experience Rating: Holy Purple-funk, Batman! (7/10) |
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| Single Releases: The Future, The Arms Of Orion [UK chart position No.27 Nov 89], Partyman [UK chart position No.14 Jul 89], Scandalous (Scandalous Sex Suite) , Batdance [UK chart position No.2 Jun 89] | |||
| Brownmark - Good Feeling | |||
Producers:
Brownmark, Levi Seacer JR., Stan Sheppard, Jimmy Varner
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Notes | ||
| Brownmark's 2nd album
for Motown was a big improvement over his first. Enlisting the help of his old friends
Prince and Levi Seacer Jr on the opening few tracks seemed to have done the trick
producing a better, more musically varied album than before. Much of his own material
having that 'New Jack Swing' sound which was popular at the time. Standout Tracks: Shall We Dance, Though A Friend Of Mine, My Heart Misses, Luv Touch Paisley Involvement: Low Experience Rating: Play that MF bass! (7/10) |
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| Single Releases: Bang Bang | |||
| George Clinton - The Cinderella Theory | |||
Producer:
George Clinton
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Notes | ||
| In 1988 the funk came
full circle with the signing of funkmaster George Clinton to the Paisley Park label, with
much of Prince's output being influenced by P-funk it seemed like the most logical home
for George. His first release for the label came in '89 with The Cinderella
Theory, a seriously hard, left-field album containing typical Clintonesqe type
mad funk with guest contributions from rap artists of the day. Standout Tracks: Airbound, There I Go Again, (She's Got It) Goin' On Paisley Involvement: None Experience Rating: Hold my jammy while I go pee! (7/10) |
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| Single Releases: Why Should I Dog U Out?, Tweakin' | |||
| Tony LeMans - Tony LeMans | |||
Producers:
David Gamson, Tony LeMans, Coke Johnson, Ray Bardani
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Notes | ||
| Californian Tony LeMans
first release was sadly to be his last (he later died in a motorcycling accident).
His debut was full of promise (produced by Scritti Politti's Dave Gamson), his vocal
styling was very much like a modern Sly Stone. The songs on the album were very
pop/dance and very commercial. If his life hadn't ended so tragically he could've gone
onto a brilliant and successful career. Standout Tracks: Higher Than High, Itchin' To Be, Forever More, Bundle Of Joy, Cookie Crumbles, By The Way Paisley Involvement: None Experience Rating: A bright talent. A sad loss. (8/10)
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| Single Releases: Higher Than High, Cookie Crumbles, Forever More | |||
| Tyka Nelson - Yellow Moon, Red Sky | |||
Producers:
Benny Dellinger, "B Slammin' S"
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Notes | ||
| Second release from Prince's
big sis on an indie label.... sadly no where as good as her debut.
Her voice is still 'one dimensional', the songs are unmemorable and lack
the production quality of her previous release (it's hard to distinguish
one track from another - it all sounds so very similar). The uptempo
numbers are lightweight and the ballads are pleasant but ever-so sweet and
sugary. Some albums can stand the test of time... this one will
forever remain in the 80's. Standout Tracks: Boy Do You Feel Lucky, Chosen One, Night Hawks Paisley Involvement: None Experience Rating: Get some advice from little Bro... (4/10) |
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| Single Releases: Boy Do You Feel Lucky | |||
| Mavis Staples - Time Waits For No One | |||
Producers: Prince, Al Bell, Homer Banks, Lester Snell
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Notes | ||
| Mavis Staples marked a
departure to the kind of female artists Prince usually associates himself with and finally
gave the Paisley label some much needed weight and "seriousness" in the eyes of
its critics. The album was praised by the critics and introduced Mavis to a whole new
younger audience with a collection of mature songs that did her distinctive
and legendary voice justice. Standout Tracks: Come Home, Jaguar, I Guess I'm Crazy, Time Waits For No One Paisley Involvement: High Experience Rating: Excellent traditional soulful album with a purple twist (8/10)
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| Single Releases: 20th Century Express, Jaguar | |||
| Wendy & Lisa - Fruit At The Bottom | |||
Producers:
Wendy & Lisa, Jesse Johnson
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Notes | ||
| The Valley Girls return
with their second release for Virgin Records displaying a confident, brighter more
funkier sound (Jesse Johnson guests on "Satisfaction"). Many of the tracks carried hit potential. The Virgin label in the UK really
pushed out the promotional boat (along with a highly successful sell-out tour of small venues
around Europe) which in turn made this their biggest selling record to date. Standout Tracks: Take your pick! Paisley Involvement: None Experience Rating: The fruit at the bottom's sweeter (9/10)
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| Single Releases: Lolly Lolly [UK chart position No.64 Apr 89], Are You My Baby [UK chart position No.70 Feb 89], Satisfaction [UK chart position No.27 Jul 89] | |||
| Bobby Z - Bobby Z | |||
Producers:
Bobby Z, David Z, Oliver Leiber
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Notes | ||
| Former Revolution
drummer releases his debut self-titled album on Virgin Records. Soft rock/pop which
fits into the mold of maybe Phil Collins. The songs aren't particularly memorable
apart from his own original version of 'River Run Dry', a song which he gave to The
Family. His vocals tend to be unconvincing and monotonous. Standout Tracks: Lie By Lie, River Run Dry, Believe Paisley Involvement: None Experience Rating: Don't give up the day job Bob... (5/10) |
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| Single Releases: Lie By Lie | |||
| Cheryl Lynn - Whatever It Takes | |||
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Producers:
Jesse Johnson; Cheryl Lynn;
Carl Sturken; Evan Rogers; Andy Goldmark; Bruce Roberts; Michael
Carpenter; Art Zamora
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Notes | ||
| For her eighth album, the
R&B/disco diva (Got to Be Real) chose to work with Jesse Johnson on a
majority of the songs. The result is not quite as exciting as it should
be. Lynn’s vocal ability is undeniable, as she ranges from soulful wails
to understated sultriness. But the songs come across as assembly-line
R&B. JJ’s work on "Upset!" and "Overworked ‘N’
Underloved" definitely helps to bring in da funk, and the non-JJ
track "The Bottom Line" certainly has bounce. The rest of the
tracks, however, seem slightly stale, especially when considering the
possibilities with the talent involved. Standout Tracks: Upset!, Overworked ‘N’ Underloved, The Bottom Line Paisley Involvement: None Experience Rating: Doesn’t quite have Whatever It Takes… (6/10)
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| Single Releases: Upset!, Every Time I Try to Say Goodbye, Whatever It Takes | |||
| Jody Watley - Larger Than Life | |||
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Producers:
Andre Cymone
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Notes |
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| On Ms. Watley’s second solo
outing, Andre Cymone took full control, writing and producing every song
on the album. This resulted in three more huge hits for Jody, and critical
accolades for both her and Cymone. The production this time is more bass
heavy and has a deeper R&B flavor, with an eye still on the dance
floor and a couple sweet ballads thrown in for good measure. The result is
a funky ride, though the uniformity of the songs makes them a little
repetitive at times. But when it ain’t broke, don’t fix it… Standout Tracks: Real Love, Once You Leave, Lifestyle, L.O.V.E.R. Paisley Involvement: None Experience Rating: With friends like Cymone, Jody keeps shining. (8/10)
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| Single Releases: Real Love, Friends, Everything, Precious Love | |||
| Jody Watley (Remixes) - Do You Wanna Dance With Me? | |||
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Producers: Andre Cymone, David Z., Bernard Edwards, Patrick Leonard
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Notes |
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| Consisting entirely of dance
remixes of Jody and Andre Cymone’s best songs from her debut and Larger
Than Life, this is a non-stop party mix. The mixes don’t alter the songs
terribly from their original forms, they just extend them. The single
remixes of Some Kind of Lover and Don’t You Want Me, which differ from
the original album mixes, found their way here. This came out during the
genesis of the remix album craze, and can claim partial responsibility for
similar future albums by the likes of Paula Abdul and Milli Vanilli! Standout Tracks: All or none, depending on your opinion of remixes…
Paisley Involvement: None
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| Single Releases: N/A | |||
