THE TIME - WHAT TIME IS IT?

Back in the day...  When Prince was still defining the Minneapolis sound...  The Time erupted on the scene.  Of course anyone who knows anything about Prince knows that the band was just a pseudonym of sorts.  Prince used the group as a vehicle for his own music.  He wanted to have an outlet for his more funk/R&B sounding material.  As an artist, Prince was calculating and he wanted to be seen as a cross-over talent.  He stacked the deck to make it happen.  His inter-racial band and rock guitar was his ticket to pop superstardom.  But that didn't stop the funk inside of him from bubbling up and looking for a place to sizzle.

Of course you can read countless histories of Prince and The Time so there's no point in repeating the tale here.  However, it is kinda important to point out that The Time was, in essence, Prince.  He wrote all of their material with the exception of one song and played most of the instruments during recording sessions.  The band members you see and relate to The Time were those who played in the live sets.  They appeared on the album covers and in the videos, but had little or nothing to do with the actual music.  With the exception of Morris Day, who did actually perform the vocals.

The album starts off with 'Wild And Loose', co-written by Dez Dickerson.  In keeping with the funk jam styling of the first record, most of the tracks are extended long work outs and the opening is no exception.  The song is funky and features one of Morris Day's call and response bits towards the end.  It's followed by one of the most interesting of all Time numbers, '777-9311'.  The drum pattern and the guitars are absolutely brilliant.  This quirky, off-hinged number demonstrates Prince's writing ability even at such a young age.  He was daring and challenging.  This is a song he did something special with.

If you were listening to a cassette or a record, the next track would be the final cut from the first side.  'Onedayi'mgonnabesomebody' is probably the shortest Time number ever.  Clocking in at just over 2 minutes, this little New Wave ditty doesn't offer much outside of Prince's take on synth pop.  The track ends with Time members and Prince shouting, "We don't like New Wave!"  Of course Prince would later go on to work with New Wave artists so that kinda puts the stopper in that.  It's interesting to note, the music he was doing as a solo artist was more heavily influenced by New Wave at the time and his work with The Time was more about hearkening back to the funk that inspired him as a teen.  Prince has always been known for opposing points of view that co-exist within him and cause internal conflict.  I think this is a good example of that in musical form.

On this particular record, the second side or the last three tracks are the most satisfying of the bunch.  Beginning with 'The Walk', side two starts off sounding more grounded and in step with the previous Time album.  A long, funk track, 'The Walk' is sparse and layered.  There's so much happening in this track it would take forever to go into all the details.  Suffice it to say, even though it sounds like a simple groove, it's got a lot of transitions.  'Gigolos Get Lonely Too' is the ballad on this disc and despite the title sounding completely trite, it's actually a great tune.  Probably my favorite ballad by the band.

The final track on the album is a sleeper track in many ways.  Although it might not rank up there with fan favorites or stand out against some of the more notable tracks on this record, it's my personal favorite.  'I Don't Wanna Leave You' is a great blend of funk, melody and the New Wave sound Prince was adamantly claiming to hate on the previous side.  Of all the numbers to date, this one most represents the Minneapolis sound that was developing at the time.

All in all, this is a pretty good record.  The songs are fun, light and you can see how they would transition well to a live setting.  It's the continued and solid material Prince wrote for The Time that made them a force still going strong today.  My final words:  ONE MORE STEP ON THE ROAD TO SUPERSTAR AND LEGENDARY STATUS.  GREAT RECORD!!!

THE TIME - WHAT TIME IS IT?
01. Wild And Loose
02. 777-9311
03. Onedayi'mgonnabesomebody
04. The Walk
05. Gigolos Get Lonely Too
06. I Don't Wanna Leave You