eMusic Review 0
In pop, certain years ring out like the Liberty Bell, and for American listeners of a certain age, none rings louder than 1984. Hit radio was healthier than it had been since the mid '60s, a "giddy season," in critic Tom Ewing's words, "when rock and pop and disco and funk all melted together under the MTV studio lights." Or those of the warehouse space in Minneapolis where Purple Rain, Prince's first movie, was rehearsed and, in part, filmed.
Purple Rain owned 1984: No other album came near it. It spent 24 weeks at No. 1, the second-longest run at the top of the decade, after Thriller's 37. This is not a coincidence. Thriller's every-song-a-hit template became the standard for any pop artist serious about both craft and sales, and in its aftermath many albums followed it rigorously. Born in the U.S.A., Private Dancer, Control, Faith: sons and daughters, all — and Purple Rain most of all. Prince made a nine-song chart-clogging monster, just like his great generational pop rival, and if Gary, Indiana's proudest son was making mini-movies, Minneapolis, Minnesota's great cultural export would go one better and make a real movie — complete with wooden acting, ludicrous dialogue,… read more »
