Most Underrated Prince Songs and Albums

Anytime a musician passes away, their catalog gets some extra attention. The same is happening for Prince, who shockingly passed away at the age of 57. Typical hits like "1999" and "When Doves Cry" have surely gotten most of the attention, but he has so many fantastic albums and songs to choose from.

Songs:

"The Cross" - Sign o' The Times, 1987. Sign o' The Times is one of Prince's most well known albums, though as a double album some songs can get less attention than others. "The Cross" stands out to me in showcasing his strong and sincere vocals. The progression of the instruments works well also, building up slowly from a quieter ballad into some heavy guitar and drums, with a sitar thrown into the mix.

"So Far, So Pleased" - Rave Un2 the Joy Fantastic, 1999. Gwen Stefani joins Prince on this track from his 1999 album, which of course was a big year for the man who made the hit song "1999" years earlier. The album itself is hit-or-miss, but definitely contains some gems, with this track being the best. Gwen & Prince go well together vocally, and it doesn't feel forced.

"Bambi" - Prince, 1979. The early Prince albums released during the days of disco give more of a dance feel to them. Yet on "Bambi," Prince also showed that he could play a heavier guitar sound as well as anyone else, kicking things off with a crunching guitar intro.

"Thunder" - Diamonds and Pearls, 1991. "Thunder" is simply an infectious song that brings together many of Prince's hallmarks into one song. Its R&B, Rock, Pop, Funk & Soul all rolled up into one, which Prince could always do so expertly. It kicks off the Diamonds and Pearls album with a bang,

"Cinnamon Girl" - Musicology, 2004. If "Cinnamon Girl" were released in as a single in the 80's or early 90's during the height of his popularity, it probably would have been a big hit. Yet in 2004 it flew under the radar in the US, though did gain traction on the UK chart. The chorus will quickly have you singing along, and Prince crafts quite the guitar solo.

Albums:

Chaos & Disorder, 1996 - Prince released this as his final album with Warner Bros. to fulfill contracutal obligations after years of hoping to get out of his contract. Yet the album is powerful, not some throwaway that was half-assed. Prince released a kick ass, hard rock album without any filler on it. His guitar skills are on full display, letting it known he could play as hard as any Grunge or Alternative band popular at the time.  He didn't do any promotion for the album or release any US singles, he simply moved on to his next project, which is partly why it didn't gain much traction.

PlectrumElectrum, 2014 - Prince had put together an all-female band named 3rdEyeGirl who he played and toured with. One of the great things about Prince is how he was able to find other talented musicians and give them  a platform, not afraid to share the spotlight. They churned out this hard rocking album and the amount of fun they're having comes across on each track. Check out Prince with 3rdEyeGirl performing "She's Always in my Hair."

Around the World in a Day, 1985 - This album hit #1 and sold 2 million copies, as well as spawning two hit singles in "Raspberry Beret" and "Pop Life." Yet, it tended to be forgotten in the years since aside from the two singles which is why I consider it underrated. A lot of that has to do with it following the smash Purple Rain and with Sign o' The Times coming two years later. Its also not as radio friendly and one of his more experimental albums. That all makes for a rewarding experience though, instead of Prince just coasting on Purple Rain, he decided to challenge himself and listeners with a psychedelic soundscape.

The Gold Experience, 1995 - Prince's dispute with his record label was in full force at this point, which of course overshadows the release of The Gold Experience. The album is filled with fast rock, funk you can move to, and some of his best songs dealing with sex. The ballads here are also well done, never getting into an overly sappy territory. Its the type of album you can listen to straight through and wonder where the time went. Even the interludes are enjoyable.

Most Memorable Super Bowl Halftime Shows

We've got another Super Bowl and Super Bowl Halftime Show in the books. This year featured Coldplay, Beyonce & Bruno Mars in what was an okay performance. It wasn't outstanding, it wasn't terrible. The best part was when the three joined together for a "Fix You"/"Up&Up" performance that showed clips of previous Halftime shows (which for some reason left off Janet Jackson/Justin Timberlake...hmm). Overall though, it just felt like something you'd watch at the VMA's or Grammy's.

So what are the most memorable Super Bowl halftime shows ever?

U2 (2002) - U2 were tasked with performing just a few months following the 9/11 attacks. And really, no band is better to handle that sort of moment. They were the first band to resume concerts in New York City with some shows at Madison Square Garden just a few weeks after the attacks. They delivered in a big way at the Super Bowl. It started out with an upbeat performance of "Beautiful Day." That led into the more somber "MLK," which is when the giant screen of the names of every victim scrolled upwards to the top of the Superdome. That led into "Where The Streets Have No Name," which picked up the pace again and left viewers feeling hopeful for the future. It culminated in Bono revealing an American flag on the inside of his jacket, a visual that still resonates. U2 were able to take viewers along for a ride through so many different emotions, which might never be possible again.

Prince (2007) - If any word could be used to describe Prince's Halftime show, it would be: electric. It was a rainy night in Miami, but that didn't stop him from putting on an energetic show, utilizing the weather to his advantage, even featuring simulated lightning on top of the stadium. He featured numerous cover songs that surprised and delighted people: "We Will Rock You," "Proud Mary," "All Along The Watchtower," and the more recent Foo Fighters hit "Best of You." He ended the night by playing "Purple Rain" in the rain, which became the signature moment that people remember. Since then the NFL has basically forced Miami to put a canopy over the seats for them to host future Super Bowls in the Dolphins' stadium, in case it were to rain. I guess the rich folks insanely spending hundreds-thousands of dollars on tickets can't handle a little water. Prince, however, went out there and showed that a little rain never hurt anyone.

Diana Ross Leaves in a Helicopter

Diana Ross (1996) - Diana Ross ran through a string of her Motown hits, but the memorable part was at the end when she declared that her ride was there. A helicopter came down onto the field and whisked her out of the stadium, in what is clearly the most memorable exit from the Super Bowl halftime of all time. The show left such an impression that the NFL went for a Motown/1960s theme in the a few of the shows after this one.

Michael Jackson (1993) - This was the first halftime show that truly went for being a major event in itself, something that would become talked about alongside the game in the following days. Jackson memorably walked out and basically just stood there to a roaring crowd for a while. He then performed some of his biggest hits ("Billie Jean," "Black or White") in a large scale spectacle that hadn't been done at any of the previous halftime shows. The set ended a bit cheesy with "Heal the World", but overall it kicked off the Halftime show as we know it today.

Janet Jackson featuring Justin Timberlake (2004) - This one doesn't even need an explanation. Its memorable for Nipplegate, and we've all heard the story. Of course, the whole reaction was overblown and showcased how ridiculous the FCC is.

Paul McCartney (2005) - Let's be real: if the NFL went by without ever having one of the Beatles play the Halftime show, something would be missing from its lore. Paul delivered a stellar set as he always does, and the show featured a healthy amount of crowd participation, ending with "Hey Jude" that featured the whole crowd singing along.

Bruno Mars featuring the Red Hot Chili Peppers (2014) - Bruno Mars was one of the younger performers, as they usually get someone with a large back catalog of hits. Bruno rose to the occasion though, including a memorable drum solo, which probably gave him a number of new fans. The show made for a good mix of slower moments with high energy, while the Red Hot Chili Peppers proved to make a solid pairing with Bruno and his band.

The Rolling Stones (2006) - The Stones did what they did best, rocked the house with a rollicking performance that could probably put people half their age to shame. What was memorable about this is how the NFL & ABC aired it on a five second delay and turned off Mick Jagger's microphone for two songs with lyrics that were too "sexually explicit." The band agreed to that beforehand so it wasn't a surprise, but it just goes to show how worried networks had become about live TV after Nipplegate in 2004.

Aerosmith, Britney Spears, 'N Sync, Mary J. Blige, Nelly (2001) - This one isn't really memorable for the performances aside from when they were all on stage to join together and play "Walk This Way." It perfectly encapsulated the pop culture landscape of 1999-2001, while having something for everyone. It was an odd mashup, but one that actually worked.

And a shout out to Katy Perry, Missy Elliott, and Lenny Kravitz. While the jury is out, it did feature a few possible memorable moments: Left Shark, Missy Elliott returning to the public eye unexpectedly, and Katy Perry on a platform that "flew" around on a wire, which made for quite a stunt.

New Year's Music

When people think of Holiday themed music, Christmas obviously dominates, with hundreds of songs for the season. Halloween follows in the distance with a good chunk of music. Yet, there are numerous songs you can listen to as you ring in the New Year as well! So while you

"What Are You Doing New Year's Eve?" by Various Artists. This gem dates back to 1947, when it was independently written by Frank Loesser. It has since been covered by numerous artists, and my vote for the best versions go to The Carpenters and Ella Fitzgerald. Nobody did Christmas songs quite like The Carpenters, and "What Are You Doing New Year's Eve" was added to their album "An Old-Fashioned Christmas". Fitzgerald also delivers a perfect rendition of the classic, as expected from a legend.

"New Year's Day" by U2. Released in 1983 on their album War, "New Year's Day" has stood the test of time as one of U2's most well known singles. It wasn't meant for that though, being a more politically charged song. The lyrics were inspired by the Solidarity Movement in Poland. So while New Year's isn't the main subject of the song, it is a piece of it.

"Auld Lang Syne (The New Year's Anthem)" - Mariah Carey. "Auld Lang Syne" is the most well known New Year's song, played every year on New Year's Eve. So for this list I just decided to include the Mariah Carey version from her 2010 Merry Christmas II You album, being one of the more recent versions, and from the woman who gave us a modern Christmas classic in "All I Want For Christmas Is You".

"Happy New Year" by ABBA. Released in 1980, this New Year's song from ABBA was a big hit in Europe, though a lot of its success came during reissues after the initial recording of the song. The English version wasn't released as a single until 1999. It did get a cheesy music video though even without a single release in 1980, which is worth watching:
                    
I mean, I know the video was probably filmed on some sound stage, but did the party need to be surrounded by total blackness? Not even a disco ball? And what was with the random horses in the background? Its cheesy, but you just can't help to love it.

"1999" by Prince.  Leading up to December 31st 1998, this song was played by pretty much every radio station and on every TV broadcast, as well as a year later in the lead up to Y2K and the new millennium. It was originally released in 1982. It made the Top 40 in 1998 as well, becoming the last single by Prince to chart that high. You can still party like its 1999, so fire this track up.

"Sleigh Ride" by TLC. Released on the Home Alone 2 soundtrack, Sleigh Ride is mainly a Christmas song that also gives some love to New Year's, so why not celebrate both?

"Maybe Baby (New Year's Day)" by Sugarland. Much like "Sleigh Ride" this song shows some love to both Christmas and New Year's. The country/rock/pop duo released it on their Christmas album "Gold & Green" in 2009. It features Kristian Bush on lead vocals rather than Jennifer Nettles, who gives background vocals this time around.

Kate Middleton Has The Royal Baby

So the Royal Baby was born to Kate Middleton and Prince William, and it's a boy. He wasn't born with a lightning bolt scar on his forehead, so my interest level waned very quickly from "mildly curious" to "who cares I just want some fish and chips."

The real star of the day however was the Royal Town Crier, whose name is Tony Appleton. He announced the birth in a fierce outfit. His shouting of the announcement made me worried that he would pop a blood vessel. Easy does it next time, no need to strain yourself, we all have twitter now.

Now please don't follow the Kanye West/Kim Kardashian model for naming a baby.

Amazon MP3 Black Friday Deals

Amazon MP3 is known for giving great deals on MP3 albums, which has helped them slowly carve out a following from the mighty iTunes. They've released their Black Friday week deals early, with 29 pages worth of albums starting at $3.99, which you can see by clicking here.

I'll list some of the better deals for you here, though there are plenty more. You might want to stock up on some new music like a squirrel stocking up on nuts for the winter. Or maybe you just need some new tunes to block out the Thanksgiving family arguments and/or critical in-laws. You're welcome!

$3.99:
"Battle Born" - The Killers. "4th Street Feeling" - Melissa Etheridge. "My Head is an Animal" - Of Monsters and Men. "Channel Orange" - Frank Ocean. "Ceremonials" & "Lungs" - Florence + The Machine. "R.E.D." - Ne-Yo. "The Spirit Indestructible" - Nelly Furtado. "Greatest Hits" & "Appetite for Destruction" - Guns N' Roses. "Speak Now" - Taylor Swift. "Push and Shove" - No Doubt. "Evanescence" & "Fallen" - Evanescence. "Greatest Hits" - Queen. "Rocket Man: Number Ones" - Elton John. "MDNA" & "Confessions on a Dance floor" - Madonna. "My Life II" - Mary J Blige. "Merry Christmas II You" - Mariah Carey. "Life is Good" - Nas. "Hands All Over" & "Overexposed" - Maroon 5. "Kisses on the Bottom" - Paul McCartney. "1984" - Van Halen. "Tuskegee" - Lionel Richie.

$4.99/$5.99:
"Wasting Light" - Foo Fighters. "Funhouse" - Pink. "Icky Thump" - The White Stripes. "Whitney Houston" - Whitney Houston. "Purple Rain" - Prince. "50 Big Ones" - The Beach Boys. "The Lumineers" - The Lumineers. "¡UNO!" - Green Day. "El Camino" - The Black Keys. "Doo Wops & Hooligans" - Bruno Mars. "The Doors" - The Doors. "Aim and Ignite" - Fun. "Rumours" - Fleetwood Mac. "R&B Diva" - Faith Evans. "The Band Perry" - The Band Perry. "Jagged Little Pill" & "Havoc and Bright Lights" - Alanis Morissette. "Kaleidoscope Dream" - Miguel. "The Suburbs" - Arcade Fire. "Clockwork Angels" - Rush.

2012 Grammy Awards Thoughts

The 2012 Grammy Awards are in the books, and here are the Best Performances (By the way, the awards now take a backseat to the performances, it's basically a long concert now):

Adele - Recovering from throat surgery, she gave an amazing performance of "Rolling in the Deep." She swept the night, and deserved it for saving the music industry. 2011 was the first time since 2004 that sales increased, and she was the reason. Without her album, they would have decreased again. And she may have spurred people into actually buying other albums as well. 21 has currently sold 6.5 Million Copies (the biggest sales total since 2004), and is on its way to 7 million, and possibly even 8 million before 2013.

Bruno Mars - It was like a mix between Elvis with his moves and Prince with his sound, and I was surprised how good it was. I didn't know much about him before the show, besides "Grenade", but I may have to download "Runaway Baby."

Paul McCartney - He ended the night with an outstanding performance of the "Golden Slumbers Medley" (joined by Bruce Springsteen & Dave Grohl) from the epic 16 minute Abbey Road Medley, which is the ending to The Beatles' 1969 album Abbey Road. Music lovers should own Abbey Road already, if you don't, well what are you waiting for?

Jennifer Hudson - Performed Whitney Houston's classic "I Will Always Love You." She really did the song justice, one of the few who can, and it was a fitting tribute to Whitney and all the musicians lost in the past year. Alicia Keys and Bonnie Raitt also did a wonderful job performing a tribute to Etta James. And none of them needed auto-tune or lip syncing, which brings me to the worst...

Worst performance of the night: Chris Brown. I just don't get him. After beating Rihanna he did another thing that irked me, allegedly, when he performed a tribute to Michael Jackson in 2009 and its rumored someone saw him use eye drops to make tears. Trying to use a death to your advantage? Not the way to go. Jennifer Hudson showed how it is done.

WTF? - Nicki Minaj. She performed that seemed based on 1975 horror classic The Exorcist. It was strange even for Lady GaGa. And the song was weak. She would have been better off performing "Super Bass" and bringing Sophia Grace and Rosie on stage. It would have been a feel good moment that still had people talking.

The Foo Fighters also gave two killer performances, and The Beach Boys reunited. The Beach Boys don't sound quite as good, but it was still nice to hear some classic songs. They forgot to call Uncle Jesse aka John Stamos.