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Jeez, trying to find information about this release online is virtually impossible. Nobody wants to talk about it. Of course there were all kinds of rumors and stories floating around when the disc came out. Prince was looking to help some of his childhood heroes. He signed George and Mavis Staples, two influential artists from the 60's and 70's to his Paisley Park label and tried to help them both make a come back of sorts.
I remember reading something at the time about George being in financial trouble with the IRS and Prince bailing him out. I'm not sure what the actual story is, but I do know he was a fan of George and that style of funk largely influenced Prince's own sound.
And so, "The Cinderella Theory" was released.
This was my first exposure to George Clinton himself. But it was not my first exposure to his music; as I later learned.
One of the most interesting aspects of being a Prince fan is the exposure you get to musical genres, artists and sounds. Through Prince, I've discovered Jazz, Gospel, Funk and classic R&B. I've also gained an appreciation for electric guitar and other sounds I wouldn't have looked for on my own. I've also developed an ear for hearing qualities in music I love even if I'm not partial to the genre itself. Because of this, I've discovered new bands in all types of music.
George Clinton was one of the first artists, who truly existed outside of Prince, I gained exposure to.
Now, for those of you who knew George Clinton before this record, probably had a hard time with it. The music incorporates the style he was famous for, but it moves away from his previous material through sound engineering and approach. He uses more modern sounds to create the songs. Probably based on what Prince had at Paisley Park and you get the feeling the songs were written to appeal to a larger pop sensible audience.
George's best material is his deep groove funk. Those heavy bass rhythms, simple hooks and deep tones add up to some heavy booty shaking. And his tunes were usually much longer than the average album cut. He let his funk ride along with no reason to go anywhere in a hurry. I remember seeing him live back in 95/96 and he played a show that went on for hours. At a couple points, they swapped out drummers so they could keep going. The songs lasted 10 to 20 minutes and it's this groove, that gives him a lot of his notoriety.
By contrast, "The Cinderella Theory" seems more like Clinton attempting to write a hit record than another groovy album. Now don't get me wrong... I'm not saying it's bad. In fact, I love the disc! But in comparison, it isn't his strongest material either. And the lack of a Prince collaboration is quite disappointing to say the least. His second Paisley Park album, "Hey Man...Smell My Finger" is more of a traditional funk record from him and it hits the nail right on the head. There's nothing you can take from this record but a cold chill that runs up and down your body like melting ice on a hot day.
'Airbound' is a decent track. It features a lot of the choir sound vocals Clinton uses and it's got an interesting flow. Still, it doesn't cross over into hard funk space. It just lingers. 'Tweakin'' is the closest he comes to making a tune more in his style. It's got a subdued drum track but it does feature Clintonesque style vocals. It's followed by the title track. 'The Cinderella Theory' has a certain Prince sound too it, but it sounds more 80's. The lyrics are at an almost odd angle to the music. It's wonderful!
'Why Should I Dog U Out?' was the obvious choice for a Prince collaboration, but it's not. George delivers a good track here and it's one of the best on the record. I really do enjoy this one. 'Serious Slammin'' is indeed a Clinton jam. You don't have a lot of vocals, just a chant and some excellent drums banging along. 'There I Go Again', is a slower number with an infectious groove. It utilizes Prince sounds from the time period blended with Clinton, vocal arrangements and an almost Caribbean vibe. This song has elements of some of the jazz work Prince was doing at the time and I wouldn't be surprised to discover Prince was responsible for the music.
'(She Got It) Goin' On' is another track that starts off sounding like something Prince would of put on a Madhouse album. 'The Banana Boat Song' sounds more like something Levi Seacer Jr., would produce. I can hear him all over this track. I do like the song and I think Clinton's take is quite funky. 'French Kiss' sounds like an outtake from the 70's that Clinton revived for this project. The driving rhythm guitars add an urgency to the track it probably didn't have originally. It moves at an interesting pace and it's an interesting number.
'Rita Bewitched' is pure Clinton even if it uses some newer sounds, it's all over the place in the great way George's most interesting material usually is. 'Kredit Kard' is probably the one song that sounds almost completely like an attempt to write a hit pop song. It uses a lot of sounds big in the charts at the time.
A reprise of 'Airbound' rounds out the album and it's a flashback to a great song. In all, it's an interesting blend of sounds and I suspect Prince's involvement is much more prominent then we're led to believe. I think he had a hand in writing more than he lets on.
No matter how you look at it, Clinton did something not many artists who pigeon hole their sound get to do. He takes the opportunity of using new sounds and new equipment to venture out into new territory and create a record that explores new worlds of sound and vision. What we have here is a complex artist being truly creative and that's a visionary thing to experience.
This album gets written off by most people and it's left off most fans' fav lists. His second Paisley Park release fares much better, but this little record is an absolute gem for those who know what they're listening to. I think it's a strong record and one of the reasons Paisley Park was such an innovative record label.
My final words: A FUNK TOUCHDOWN BY A FUNK MASTER!!!
GEORGE CLINTON - THE CINDERELLA THEORY
01. Airbound
02. Tweakin'
03. The Cinderella Theory
04. Why Should I Dog U Out?
05. Serious Slammin'
06. There I Go Again
07. (She Got It) Goin' On
08. The Banana Boat Song
09. French Kiss
10. Rita Bewitched
11. Kredit Kard
12. Airbound (Reprise)
Not many people may remember this short lived band from the 80's. They were a band on Prince's new label, Paisley Park. Members were culled from various side projects. Jerome Benton, Paul Peterson and Jellybean Johnson were all members of The Time. Susannah Melvoin is the twin sister of Revolution member, Wendy Melvoin, and Eric Leeds was a standby Revolution member in his own right. It was an interesting blending of characters. But this disc is important for more than just the performers.
All of the tracks, barring 'River Run Dry'; which was written by Bobby Z., are Prince compositions. And they're important Prince compositions. In typical Prince fashion, in order to distance himself from the project and also help the band members come into their own, he gives songwriting credit to the various members and takes credit for only one track, 'Nothing Compares 2 U'. That song later became a huge hit for Sinead O'Connor.
The music represents a transition of sorts for Prince. On the heels of 'Purple Rain', Prince released the unprecedented 'Around The World In A Day'. This album was the first disc on Paisley Park. It was also seen as a slap in the face as Prince did the unthinkable... Instead of trying to recapture the success of his previous records, he moved into new territory. Not always a smart move. The Family record showed us even more the direction he was going in. It laid the foundation for projects spanning the next few years and impacted Prince's writing to this very day.
Two songs, 'Yes' and 'Susannah's Pajamas' are Prince's first attempts at writing jazz. With his future long time jazz partner, Eric Leeds, he crafted two tunes that later spawned albums worth of instrumental jazz mostly under the Madhouse moniker. 'The Screams Of Passion' and 'Desire' both include instrumentation and orchestration by Clare Fisher. Fisher became incredibly influential on Prince during 'Parade' and his work continued to filter down through new projects for years.
Prince was experimenting with more continental styles of songwriting and expanding his horizons through exposure to different genres of music.
The tragedy of The Family is that the group didn't last. The potential for more great music and future collaborations were all laid out. But lack of promotion caused St. Paul to leave and the band quickly became defunk sans it's lead vocalist. Shortly afterward, Prince ended his relationship with Susannah Melvoin and she moved on as well.
There's another reoccurring Prince theme happening here... The Family name was created to suggest the band was a family of sorts. All of the pictures and artwork were created to stress that relationship. It's important to note Prince created a band that crossed gender and color lines and called them a family. The significance shouldn't be ignored. Granted, you can say it's a knock off of Sly & The Family Stone, but I think Prince was looking at something more apt for a time when black artists were finally being accepted and played right along white bands on the music charts.
This disc has wonderful funk, exciting rhythms, beautiful orchestration, tongue-n-cheek lyrics and an overall laid back, feel good vibe. It's an extremely positive disc. It represents hope.
It's long out of print and difficult to find. But if you can find it, I suggest picking it up. Even today the music has an appeal. Years later. Give it a try and see if you don't agree. My final words: AMBITIOUS, BEAUTIFUL & ENDURING.
THE FAMILY - THE FAMILY
01. High Fashion
02. Mutiny
03. The Screams Of Passion
04. Yes
05. River Run Dry
06. Nothing Compares 2 U
07. Susannah's Pajamas
08. Desire
Recorded February 06, 2003 at Paisley Park Studios, 'N.E.W.S' was a continuation of sorts from the previous Madhouse albums Prince had done. While the first Madhouse disc was mostly a solo effort on Prince's part, he later opened the project to include other musicians he was working with like Sheila E., Levi Seacer and notably Eric Leeds. Leeds is the only constant having participated in virtually every incarnation of the Madhouse projects. And 'N.E.W.S' is no exception. Although it doesn't carry the Madhouse name, there's no denying the similarities.
This time around the group consists of Prince, John Blackwell, Renato Neto, Rhonda Smith and Eric Leeds. Similar to the NPGMusic Club release, 'C-NOTE', 'N.E.W.S' gets its title by combining the first letter of each song title. The album is a free-flowing jazz disc with each track clocking in at roughly 14 minutes in length. The first number is a breezy piece. 'North' has a very sensual second half. The song moves into a slow phase towards the end that is peaceful and quite lovely. 'East' is my favorite cut on the disc. It's unusual and relies heavily on a traditional Asian and somewhat wooden sound. The highlight of this track is the amazing staggered guitar progression. It's exciting and is a fine example of what sets Prince apart from other artists. 'West' starts off with a soulful lullaby that is relaxing and laidback. The song quickly transforms into a piece of 70s disco funk before becoming some type of Carlos Santana freak fest. Thankfully, it fades into some soft flute and sax playing. A harpsichord sounding keyboard eventually fades the song out giving it a full circle feeling back into a lullaby-like denouement. 'South' starts out like a continuation of 'West''s disco groove. The heavy bass and quick notes make it sound like something Sly & The Family Stone would've done. I wanna sing 'Hair'. The breakdown in this piece really picks up quickly and crescendos in a most satisfying way; but never really gains your attention again the way the first segment does. The cut eventually dissolves into a lovely Latin 'ish' soft jazz.
Although the songs are kinda long, they are enjoyable all the way through. One of my favorite pieces of Prince jazz and easily accessible, even for non-Prince listeners. My final words: PERFECT MOOD.
PRINCE - N.E.W.S
01. North
02. East
03. West
04. South
