Prince – American Music Awards 22-11-2015
Introduction
After one of the worst Prince albums ever, HITnRUN Phase One, HITnRUN Phase Two was released three months later on December 12, 2015. The naming did not bode well. Hype or genuinely interesting?
Announcement
Following the release of HITnRUN Phase One, a question was posed in early December to the official Twitter account @Prince#EG: “is there a HitNRun Phase 2 coming out someday?”. Surprisingly, a response followed:
WB HAS IT ALREADY. PETITION THEM 2 RELEASE IT.
@Prince3EG Twitter account, 12-2015
When asked why Warner Bros. had been chosen for the release, the reply was:
OLIVE BRANCH
@Prince3EG Twitter account, 12-2015
Not long after, several track titles followed, including Big City, followed a day later by this tweet:
WARNER BROTHERS “BIG CITY” SHOUT … C’MON U’ALL, WE CAN WORK THIS OUT!
@Prince3EG Twitter account, 12-2015
The tweet included a link to a soundfile containing a snippet from the mentioned track. Shortly thereafter, the song Revelation was also confirmed.
Prince – HITnRUN Phase Two – Singles
A number of tracks that ended up on the album had already been released well in advance, often in different versions and under slightly different titles:
- Extraloveable
(released November 23, 2011) - Rock And Roll Love Affair
(released November 22, 2012) - Screwdriver
(released February 4, 2013) - Baltimore
(released May 26, 2015)
Not everything was equally good, but Extralovable was particularly enjoyable. However, this is a song that originally dates back to 1982 and was recorded during the 1999 sessions….
On December 12, 2015, HITnRUN Phase Two was released completely unexpectedly as an exclusive on the streaming service TIDAL, followed three days later by a release on Apple’s iTunes. On January 21, 2016, a physical edition was sold during concerts at Paisley Park Studios. The worldwide physical CD release was scheduled for April 29, 2016.
Prince – HITnRUN Phase Two
HITnRUN Phase Two
The album opens with Baltimore, a protest against police violence and the murder of Freddie Gray. Prince was invested in the story, but never truly sounds angry. Still, with a line like “Peace is more than the absence of war”, he manages to strike a chord. Rocknroll Loveaffair is pleasant but somewhat insignificant. 2 Y. 2 D. swings and features a great groove. Thanks to the addition of horns, the sound also becomes more dynamic. But it’s not until Stare that the album really gets going – a deliciously funky track where Prince sounds genuinely inspired for the first time.
Then comes Xtralovable, a song fans knew he still had in him, but that the general public had long given up hope for. Everything fits here: the lyrics, the vocals, the drums, the horns. Glorious Prince funk.
If ever, whenever you need someone to take a shower with
Call me up please
Extra lovable, honey don’t you wanna, don’t you wanna
Take a bath with me?© 2015 Xtralovable – Prince
The high level continues with Groovy Potential and the beautiful, intimate, jazzy When She Comes, complete with accordion! Screwdriver follows – a solid Prince rocker that would actually have fit better on the 2014 album PLECTRUMELECTRUM.
Towards the end of the album, Revelation stands out – a delightful Prince ballad: sultry, subtle, beautifully sung. Big City is a bit ‘Prince by numbers’, but still enjoyable. The track (and the album) ends with the words “That’s it”…
Prince – HITnRUN Phase Two – Tidal advertisement
Review
“Hype or genuinely interesting?” was the question posed in the introduction. The answer is simple: genuinely interesting. It’s incredible but true. Within a period of just over three months, Prince managed to release one of his worst albums and follow it up with one of his better ones – and by far the best of his final decade. Everything that made HITnRUN Phase One so cringe-worthy has disappeared on HITnRUN Phase Two. The music is better, the production is much better, the lyrics are better – on every front it’s an improvement, and not by a small margin.
Prince – HITnRUN Phase Two – Back cover
Songs
All songs written by Prince, credited to Prince And The New Power Generation.
- Baltimore
- Rocknroll Loveaffair
- 2 Y. 2 D.
- Look At Me, Look At U
- Stare
- Xtraloveable
- Groovy Potential
- When She Comes
- Screwdriver
- Black Muse
- Revelation
- Big City
Black Muse segues into the uncredited 1000 Light Years From Here.
Musicians
- Prince – all vocals and instruments, unless otherwise noted
- Eryn Allen Kane – vocals on Baltimore
- Stringenius – strings on Baltimore
- John Blackwell – drums on Rocknroll Loveaffair, 2 Y. 2 D., Look At Me, Look At U, Xtraloveable, When She Comes, Screwdriver, Black Muse, Revelation, Big City
- Michael B. – drums on Groovy Potential (sample)
- Ida Nielsen – bass on Rocknroll Loveaffair, Screwdriver, Big City
- Andrew Gouché – bass on When She Comes, Revelation
- Justin Stanley – keyboards, handclaps on 2 Y. 2 D.
- Xavier Taplin – keyboards on Look At Me, Look At U, Revelation
- Cassandra O’Neal – keyboards on Big City
- Michael B. Nelson, Steve Strand, Dave Jensen, Kenni Holmen, Kathy Jensen – horns on Baltimore, 2 Y. 2 D., Xtraloveable, Groovy Potential, When She Comes, Black Muse
- NPG Nornz (Keith Anderson, Marcus Anderson, Lynn Grissett, Joey Rayfield, Adrian Crutchfield, BK Jackson, Sylvester Onyejiaka, Steve Reid, Philip Lassiter, Nick Marchione, Roy Agee) – horns on Rocknroll Loveaffair, Stare, Big City
- Marcus Anderson – saxophone on Revelation; flute, saxophone on Look At Me, Look At U, When She Comes
- Adrian Crutchfield – flute on Groovy Potential
- Shelby J., Elisa Dease, Liv Warfield – backing vocals on Black Muse, Big City
- Ledisi – backing vocals on Big City
Prince – HITnRUN Phase Two – CD
After HITnRUN Phase Two
At the very end of 2015, a minor controversy arose. On December 22, 2015, Ebony magazine published an interview with Prince, reflecting meetings in August and September of that year between Prince and Miles Marshall Lewis. A day later, the interview was taken offline at Prince’s request. According to Prince, the conversations had been ‘off the record’. Read the interview here.
In the four months Prince still had left on this earth, he launched his final tour, Piano & A Microphone, a solo tour in which he accompanied himself on piano. After Australia, the tour moved to the U.S. On April 21, 2016, Prince was found dead in his own Paisley Park Studios in Minneapolis.
In closing
What is your opinion on HITnRUN Phase Two? Let us know!
Video/Spotify
This story contains an accompanying video. Click on the following link to see it: Video: Prince’s HITnRUN Phase Two: another hit or miss?. The A Pop Life playlist on Spotify has been updated as well.
