Around the World in a Day

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Around the World in a Day
Prince Around.jpg
Studio album by
Prince and the Revolution
ReleasedApril 22, 1985
RecordedFebruary–December 1984
Studio
Genre
Length42:33
LabelPaisley Park, Warner Bros.
ProducerPrince
Prince chronology
Purple Rain
(1984) 		Around the World in a Day
(1985) 		Parade
(1986)
Singles from Around the World in a Day
  1. "Raspberry Beret"
    Released: May 15, 1985
  2. "Paisley Park"
    Released: May 24, 1985 (UK only)
  3. "Pop Life"
    Released: July 10, 1985
  4. "America"
    Released: October 2, 1985

Around the World in a Day is the seventh studio album by American recording artist Prince, and the second release where his backing band The Revolution is billed. It was released on April 22, 1985, by Paisley Park Records and Warner Bros. Records. Departing somewhat from the commercial sound of his previous release, the massively successful Purple Rain (1984), the album instead saw Prince experimenting with psychedelic styles and more opulent textures. In compliance with Prince's wishes, the record company released the album with minimal publicity, withholding accompanying singles until almost a month after the album's release.[7]

Around the World in a Day was released to notably mixed reception after the success of Purple Rain, though it nonetheless sold relatively well and became Prince and the Revolution's second number-one album on the Billboard 200. Two of its four singles reached the top 10 of the Billboard Hot 100: "Raspberry Beret" and "Pop Life". Following Prince's death, "Raspberry Beret" re-charted on the Billboard Hot 100 as a top 40 hit, reaching number 33.[8] Around the World in a Day was certified double platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) on July 2, 1985.

Background[]

Recording for Around the World in a Day was begun in sessions dating back before that of Purple Rain.[9] Following six months of touring behind that bestselling album, Prince returned to recording.[9] An initial inspiration for the album's sound came in the form of a demo, recorded by David Coleman, the brother of Revolution band member Lisa Coleman, which would ultimately become the title track.[9]

The album pursued a dense, psychedelic style that made use of unconventional instruments and cryptic lyrics.[9] Its sound and album cover painting by Doug Henders (artist) drew numerous comparisons to The Beatles' Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band album.[3][7] Prince spoke in an interview about the album's cover art, its psychedelic sound, and the comparison:

"The influence wasn't the Beatles. They were great for what they did, but I don't know how that would hang today. The cover art came about because I thought people were tired of looking at me. Who wants another picture of him? I would only want so many pictures of my woman, then I would want the real thing. What would be a little more happening than just another picture would be if there was some way I could materialize in people's cribs when they play the record. I don't mind [the album being called psychedelic], because that was the only period in recent history that delivered songs and colors. Led Zeppelin, for example, would make you feel differently on each song."[10]

The album cover was painted by artist Doug Henders.[11]

Reception[]

Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic3.5/5 stars[12]
Blender2/5 stars[13]
Chicago Sun-Times4/4 stars[14]
Entertainment WeeklyC[15]
The Guardian5/5 stars[16]
Pitchfork8.8/10[9]
Q3/5 stars[17]
The Rolling Stone Album Guide2.5/5 stars[1]
Spin Alternative Record Guide4/10[18]
The Village VoiceB−[19]

Despite the muted promotion and the material on the album being overall not as radio-friendly as Purple Rain, it still had two American top 10 hits, and went double platinum. It was initially met with mixed critical reception.

According to Prince, George Clinton was a fan of the album.[10]

In a positive retrospective review, Pitchfork described the album as "a brave and deeply personal project, exploring sounds and ideas that were almost shocking coming from a pop icon at his peak."[9]

Simon Price wrote for The Guardian that the album "always sounds better than you think it will, when you revisit."[16]

Track listing[]

Side one
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."Around the World in a Day"Prince, John L. Nelson, David Coleman3:28
2."Paisley Park"Prince4:42
3."Condition of the Heart"Prince6:48
4."Raspberry Beret"Prince3:33
5."Tamborine"Prince2:47
Side two
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
6."America"Prince3:42
7."Pop Life"Prince3:43
8."The Ladder"Prince, John L. Nelson5:29
9."Temptation"Prince8:18

Charts[]

Weekly charts[]

Chart (1985) Peak
position
Australia (Kent Music Report)[20] 12
Austrian Albums Chart[21] 7
Canadian Albums Chart[22] 16
Dutch Albums Chart[23] 1
German Albums Chart[23] 10
New Zealand Albums Chart[24] 16
Norwegian Albums Chart[25] 10
Swedish Albums Chart[26] 1
Swiss Albums Chart[27] 8
UK Albums Chart[28] 5
US Billboard 200[29] 1
US Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums (Billboard)[30] 4
Chart (2016) Peak
position
French Albums (SNEP)[31] 134
US Billboard 200 51

Singles[]

  1. "Raspberry Beret"
  2. "She's Always in My Hair" (US)
  3. "Hello" (UK)
  1. "Paisley Park"
  2. "She's Always in My Hair"
  1. "Pop Life"
  2. "Hello" (US)
  3. "Girl" (UK)
  • "America" (#46 US, #35 US R&B) No UK release
  1. "America"
  2. "Girl"

Certifications[]

Region Certification Certified units/sales
New Zealand (RMNZ)[32] Gold 7,500^
United Kingdom (BPI)[33] Gold 100,000^
United States (RIAA)[34] 2× Platinum 2,000,000^

^ Shipments figures based on certification alone.

References[]

  1. ^ Jump up to: a b Matos, Michaelangelo (2004). "Prince". In Brackett, Nathan; Hoard, Christian (eds.). The New Rolling Stone Album Guide (4th ed.). New York: Simon & Schuster. pp. 654–57. ISBN 0-7432-0169-8.
  2. ^ Price, Simon. "Prince: Every Album Rated—and Ranked". The Guardian. Retrieved April 27, 2016.
  3. ^ Jump up to: a b Palmer, Robert (April 22, 1985). "Records: Prince's 'Around the World'". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. OCLC 1645522. Retrieved September 14, 2011.
  4. ^ Hasted, Nick. "Prince: In appreciation of a virtuoso, enduring genius". The Independent. Retrieved December 8, 2016.
  5. ^ Aretha, David (2012). Awesome African-American Rock and Soul Musicians. Enslow Publishers. ISBN 9781598451405.
  6. ^ "Prince Biography". Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. Archived from the original on June 1, 2016. Retrieved June 16, 2016.
  7. ^ Jump up to: a b Freeman, Kim (May 4, 1985). "Radio Is Mixed On Prince Album". Billboard. New York. 97 (18): 1, 72.
  8. ^ https://hiphopdx.com, HipHopDX- (April 30, 2016). "Hip Hop Single Sales: Prince, Desiigner & Drake". HipHopDX. Retrieved November 30, 2019.
  9. ^ Jump up to: a b c d e f Light, Alan (April 29, 2016). "Prince / The Revolution: Around the World in a Day". Pitchfork. Retrieved April 30, 2016.
  10. ^ Jump up to: a b Karlen, Neal (September 12, 1985). "Prince Talks: The Silence Is Broken". Rolling Stone.
  11. ^ Around the World in a Day (liner notes). Prince. Warner Bros. Records. 1985.CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  12. ^ Erlewine, Stephen Thomas. "Around the World in a Day – Prince and the Revolution / Prince". AllMusic. Retrieved October 7, 2017.
  13. ^ Harris, Keith (June–July 2001). "Prince — Every Original CD Reviewed: Around the World in a Day". Blender. New York (1). Archived from the original on August 20, 2004. Retrieved April 8, 2017.
  14. ^ Keller, Martin (April 4, 1993). "A Prince Discography". Chicago Sun-Times. Archived from the original on April 8, 2017. Retrieved April 8, 2017.
  15. ^ Browne, David (September 21, 1990). "Purple Products". Entertainment Weekly. New York (32). Retrieved January 1, 2010.
  16. ^ Jump up to: a b Price, Simon (April 22, 2016). "Prince: every album rated – and ranked". The Guardian. London. Retrieved April 25, 2016.
  17. ^ "Prince/Prince & The Revolution - Around the World in a Day CD Album". cduniverse.com. Retrieved September 14, 2011.
  18. ^ Weisbard, Eric; Marks, Craig, eds. (1995). "Prince". Spin Alternative Record Guide. New York: Vintage Books. ISBN 0-679-75574-8.
  19. ^ Christgau, Robert (July 30, 1985). "Christgau's Consumer Guide". The Village Voice. New York. Retrieved October 28, 2012.
  20. ^ Kent, David (1993). Australian Chart Book 1970–1992. St Ives, NSW: Australian Chart Book. ISBN 0-646-11917-6.
  21. ^ "Prince & The Revolution - Around the World in a Day". Austrian Album Charts (in German). Hung Medien.
  22. ^ "Top Albums/CDs - Volume 42, No. 15, June 22 1985".
  23. ^ Jump up to: a b "Prince & The Revolution - Around the World in a Day". dutchcharts.nl. Hung Medien.
  24. ^ "Prince & The Revolution - Around the World in a Day". charts.nz. Hung Medien.
  25. ^ "Prince & The Revolution - Around the World in a Day". norwegiancharts.com. Hung Medien.
  26. ^ "Prince & The Revolution - Around the World in a Day". swedishcharts.com. Hung Medien.
  27. ^ "Prince & The Revolution - Around the World in a Day". hitparade.ch. Hung Medien.
  28. ^ "UK Albums Chart - April 28, 1985". UK Albums Chart. Official Charts Company.
  29. ^ "Billboard 200 - June 1, 1985". Billboard.
  30. ^ "Billboard Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums - June 15, 1985". Billboard.
  31. ^ "Lescharts.com – Prince & the Revolution – Around the World in a Day". Hung Medien. Retrieved May 16, 2016.
  32. ^ "New Zealand album certifications – Prince – Around the World in a Day". Recorded Music NZ. Retrieved January 7, 2020.
  33. ^ "British album certifications – Prince – Around the World in a Day". British Phonographic Industry.Select albums in the Format field. Select Gold in the Certification field. Type Around the World in a Day in the "Search BPI Awards" field and then press Enter.
  34. ^ "American album certifications – Prince – Around the World in a Day". Recording Industry Association of America.

External links[]

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