Prince: Sign o the Times

Status of copy at Case Memorial Library
Sasha Frere-Jones wrote in the New Yorker: "His songs can be maudlin, clever, obvious, as ornate as Versailles, as simple as pencils, hilarious, crude, breathtakingly wise, corny, and so musically rich that he seems to be working with instruments nobody else owns. Take several songs from his 1987 masterpiece, 'Sign o’ the Times.' On 'Housequake,' Prince turns one of James Brown’s vamps into a hybrid that is simultaneously homage, parody, and elaboration. … The menacing 'Hot Thing' comes from Prince’s Hymnal of Lubricity, a style that he developed on the 1981 'Controversy' album. He pairs tiny music … with a big come-on: 'Hot thang, you should give your folks a call. Hot thang, tell them you’re going to the crystal ball. Hot thang, tell them you’re coming home late if you’re coming home at all.' But 'I Could Never Take the Place of Your Man' is the emotional inverse of 'Hot Thing'’s priapic monomania. The song is breezy pop rock, with lyrics that recall the psychological sophistication of Smokey Robinson’s 'The Tears of a Clown.' … And these are just three songs from one album" ("Dorian Purple: Prince's New Temple," 4/9/07).