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Ironically, it would be [Michael Jackson]'s success with "Thriller," and particularly the various "Thriller" videos, that would override the subtle apartheid of pop, opening up MTV and subsequently the pop market for Prince. Before that, Prince was at best a popular cult figure whose records-"Dirty Mind" and "Controversy" in particular-received little air play. His reputation was built on precociousness (he wrote, produced, arranged and played all 27 instruments on his debut album) and on his outrageous concerts. From his first album, Prince has been a pop polymath, touching down on assorted funk and rock styles, mixing and matching, sometimes hitting the groove ("1999" and "Purple Rain"), but more recently misfiring, at least commercially. Prince's reward for risk taking has been (relative) failure, particularly in America (there's even talk that Prince is so disillusioned by his stateside acceptance that he's planning on abandoning Minneapolis and moving to Paris). Like radio programmers, audiences have apparently had a difficult time getting a fix on "Lovesexy," a bracing but often confusing exploration of sexuality (an old Prince obsession) and spirituality (a more recent one). The fuss over "Lovesexy's" cover-Prince reclining naked except for a crucifix-could be interpreted as just one more willful controversy, but the album itself bristles with doubt, confusion and tension between the carnal and the holy, and advance reports on Prince's concert tour suggest that those spirit-flesh tensions are addressed on stage as well.
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