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Controversy, 1981 Podcast

Podcast: 41 Years of Controversy – A Conversation with Harold Pride and De Angela Duff

Here we are again, my first podcast in more than a year, and I couldn’t have asked for better guests than Harold Pride and De Angela Duff to discuss Prince’s fourth and quite possibly most underrated album, 1981’s Controversy. If you’ve been listening to these deep-dive album retrospectives, Harold needs no introduction; and, since the Prince scholarly community is a pretty small one, De Angela may not need one either. Suffice to say that she’s the biggest advocate of Controversy I know, and she makes a convincing case that it’s not only a great album in its own right, but also the linchpin of Prince’s entire career.

One quick note: you will likely notice that there was a significant drop in audio quality this episode; this was due to a perfect storm of technical issues that, unfortunately, left the low-quality Skype call recording as the only usable audio source from our conversation. I think you’ll get used to it, but I will assure you anyway that I’m taking steps to make sure we sound better next time. And yes, speaking of “next time,” I do have plans for more episodes in the coming months–probably not in October, but maybe one more before the end of the year, and then more to come in early 2023. If you want to hear the episodes as soon as they drop, remember to subscribe on your podcast service of choice using the links above!

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Prince Track by Track: “Crystal Ball”

My recent run of guest appearances on Prince: Track by Track has taken me out of my comfort zone, into some albums that I frankly don’t care much for. But now we’ve finally reached Crystal Ball, allowing me to return–however briefly–to the warm embrace of 1986. But first, Darren Husted and I had to address the elephant in the room that is Crystal Ball’s disastrous 1998 release. As I note, there may be a lesson to be learned in this for those who want Prince’s estate to be run “the way he would have done it.” Listen to both episodes below:

Prince Track by Track:
Crystal Ball Album Introduction

Prince Track by Track: “Crystal Ball”

I’ll be back on Track by Track to discuss another epic from Crystal Ball later this month; before then, you can expect another track or two from Controversy. It’s taken some time, but I’m finally getting back to the grind!

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Prince Track by Track: “Dinner with Delores”

Darren Husted’s Prince: Track by Track podcast has reached the end of the W.B. era, and I was lucky enough to discuss O(+>’s final single for the label, the elegaic-but-also-kinda-sexist “Dinner with Delores.” Check it out here:

Prince Track by Track:
“Dinner with Delores”

While I’m in podcast-plugging mode, allow me to shout out the first episode of Muse 2 the Pharaoh, the latest addition to Michael Dean’s purple podcast empire hosted by friend of the blog Darling Nisi. I had the opportunity to hang with KaNisa and three of her guests (Stephanie, Crystal, and Erika) at Celebration last month and they are warm, funny people; so it comes as no surprise that their conversation for the podcast is heartwarming and positive, a perfect balance of intelligence and totally relatable fangirlishness. I can’t wait to hear the second episode:

Muse 2 the Pharaoh #1

And if you enjoy that, then keep an eye out for when Erika shows up on my other podcast, Dystopian Dance Party, on Friday! We’ll be talking about our Paisley Park experiences, and she’ll quiz my sister and I on some Prince songs we love to hate.

Finally, I’m hoping to get back in the weekly-post groove and knock out another song from The Time by the end of the week. Wish me luck!