Emancipation (Prince album)
| Emancipation | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
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| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | November 19, 1996 | |||
| Recorded | January 1995–October 1996 | |||
| Genre | ||||
| Length | 180:00 | |||
| Label | ||||
| Producer | Prince | |||
| Prince chronology | ||||
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| Singles from Emancipation | ||||
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| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |    [1] |
| Blender | [2] |
| Entertainment Weekly | B[3] |
| The Guardian | [4] |
| Los Angeles Times | [5] |
| NME | 5/10[6] |
| Q | [7] |
| The Rolling Stone Album Guide | [8] |
| Spin | 7/10[9] |
| The Village Voice | A−[10] |
Emancipation is the 19th studio album by American recording artist Prince. It was released on November 19, 1996, by NPG Records and EMI Records as a triple album. The title refers to Prince's freedom from his contract with Warner Bros. Records after 18 years, with which he had a contentious relationship. The album was Prince's third to be released that year (along with Chaos and Disorder and the soundtrack album of the Spike Lee movie Girl 6), which made 1996 one of the most prolific years for material released by Prince.
Overview[]
Emancipation is something of a concept album, celebrating his release from Warner Bros. as well as his marriage to Mayte Garcia, who became his wife on Valentine's Day earlier that year. With his newfound freedom, Prince experimented more openly with varying genres, including house and blues. He also freely commented on his fame and dealings with Warner Bros. ("White Mansion", "Slave", "Face Down") while also returning slightly to the "computer" theme he explored a decade earlier ("Emale", "My Computer").
"Jam of the Year" is the opening song on the album. It features Prince singing in his falsetto range and Rosie Gaines on backing vocals. It later became the name of the tour for the album and a live version of the song was released as part of a single called "NYC Live" in 1997.
Prince wrote several songs and ballads dedicated to his wife, Mayte Garcia, and his unborn child, most of which appear on the second disc of the album. The child, born in October 1996 (about one month before the album's release), suffered from Pfeiffer syndrome type 2, a rare skull disease, and died shortly after birth. A recording of the child's heartbeat is featured as part of the percussion of "Lets Have a Baby ".
"My Computer" is a collaboration with British art pop musician Kate Bush, featuring lyrics examining the burgeoning online dating scene and its implications on how romantic relationships can develop in the internet age. Prince previously collaborated with Bush on the song "Why Should I Love You", released on Bush's 1993 album The Red Shoes.
Emancipation marked the first album in Prince's career to include cover versions of songs written by other songwriters. He said that he had wanted to cover songs in the past, but was advised against it by Warner Bros. Four such covers appeared on the album: "Betcha by Golly Wow!" (previously a hit for the Stylistics), "I Can't Make You Love Me" (previously a hit for Bonnie Raitt), "La-La (Means I Love You)" (previously a hit for the Delfonics) retitled "La, La, La Means