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Around the World in a Day

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Around the World in a Day is the seventh studio album by American recording artist Prince, and the third to feature his backing band The Revolution. It was released on April 21, 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.[6]

Around the World in a Day was released to notably mixed reception after the success of Purple Rain, though it nonetheless sold relatively well, eventually going platinum and becoming Prince and the Revolution's second number-one album on the Billboard 200. Two of its four singles reached the top 10: "Raspberry Beret" and "Pop Life".

Background

Recording for Around the World in a Day was begun in sessions dating back before that of Purple Rain.[7] Following six months of touring behind that bestselling album, Prince returned to recording.[7] An initial inspiration for the album's sound came in the form of a demo, recorded by the respective brothers of Revolution band members Wendy Melvoin and Lisa Coleman, which would ultimately become the title track.[7]

The album pursued a dense, psychedelic style that made use of unconventional instruments and cryptic lyrics.[7] Its sound and album cover drew numerous comparisons to The Beatles' Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band album.[2][6] 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."[8]

Reception

Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[9]
Robert ChristgauB–[10]
Entertainment WeeklyC[11]
The Guardian[12]
MusicHound4/5[13]
Pitchfork Media8.8/10[7]
Q[14]
The Rolling Stone Album Guide[4]
Spin Alternative Record Guide4/10[15]
Stylus Magazine(favorable)[1]

Despite the low-key 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, selling seven million copies worldwide. It was met with mixed critical reception.

"I talked to George Clinton, a man who knows and has done so much for funk," Prince told Rolling Stone. "George told me how much he liked Around the World in a Day. You know how much more his words mean than those from some mamma-jamma wearing glasses and an alligator shirt behind a typewriter? . . . I've heard some people say I'm not talking about anything on this record. And what a lot of other people get wrong about the record is that I'm not trying to be this great visionary wizard. Paisley Park is in everybody's heart. It's not just something that I have the keys to. I was trying to say something about looking inside oneself to find perfection. Perfection is in everyone. Nobody's perfect, but they can be. We may never reach that, but it's better to strive than not."[8]

In a positive retrospective review, Pitchfork Media 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."[7]

Track listing

All tracks are written by Prince except where indicated

Side one
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."Around the World in a Day"Prince, John L. Nelson, David Coleman3:28
2."Paisley Park" 4:42
3."Condition of the Heart" 6:48
4."Raspberry Beret" 3:33
5."Tamborine" 2:47
Side two
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
6."America"Prince and The Revolution3:42
7."Pop Life" 3:43
8."The Ladder"Prince, John L. Nelson5:29
9."Temptation" 8:18

Personnel

[16]

  • Prince – lead vocals and various instruments, cello
  • David Coleman – cello, oud, fingercymbals, darbuka and background vocals on "Around the World in a Day", cello on "Raspberry Beret" and "The Ladder"
  • Jonathan Melvoin – tambourine and background vocals on "Around the World in a Day", "Pop Life"
  • Wendy Melvoin – background vocals on "Around the World in a Day", "Paisley Park", "Raspberry Beret", guitars and background vocals on "America", "Pop Life", "The Ladder"
  • Lisa Coleman – background vocals on "Around the World in a Day", "Paisley Park", "Raspberry Beret", keyboards and background vocals on "America", "Pop Life", "The Ladder"
  • Susannah Melvoin – background vocals on "Around the World in a Day", "Raspberry Beret" and "The Ladder"
  • Novi Novog – violin on "Paisley Park" and "Raspberry Beret"
  • Bobby Z. – drums and percussion on "America", "Pop Life", "The Ladder"
  • Brown Mark – bass guitar and background vocals on "America", "Pop Life", "The Ladder"
  • Dr. Fink – keyboards on "America", "Pop Life", "The Ladder"
  • Brad Marsh – tambourine on "America"
  • Sheila E. – drums on "Pop Life"
  • Eddie M. – saxophone on "The Ladder" and "Temptation"
  • Suzie Katayama – cello on "Raspberry Beret" and "The Ladder"
  • Sid Page – violin on "The Ladder"
  • Marcy Dicterow-Vaj – violin on "The Ladder" (as "Vaj")
  • Denyse Buffum – viola on "The Ladder"
  • Laury Woods – viola on "The Ladder"
  • Tim Barr – stand-up bass on "The Ladder"
  • Annette Atkinson – stand-up bass on "The Ladder"
  • Taja Sevelle – background vocals on "The Ladder" (as "Taj")

Singles and Hot 100 chart placings

  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"

Charts

Chart (1985) Peak
position
Australian Albums Chart 12
Austrian Albums Chart[17] 7
Canadian Albums Chart[18] 16
Dutch Albums Chart[19] 1
German Albums Chart[20] 10
New Zealand Albums Chart[21] 16
Norwegian Albums Chart[22] 10
Swedish Albums Chart[23] 1
Swiss Albums Chart[24] 8
UK Albums Chart[25] 5
US Billboard 200[26] 1
US Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums (Billboard)[27] 4
Chart (2016) Peak
position
French Albums (SNEP)[28] 134
US Billboard 200 51

Certifications

Region Certification Certified units/sales
United Kingdom (BPI)[29] Gold 100,000^
United States (RIAA)[30] 2× Platinum 2,000,000^

* Sales figures based on certification alone.
^ Shipments figures based on certification alone.

References

  1. ^ a b Drimmer, Josh (November 30, 2004). "Prince - Around The World In A Day". Stylus6. Retrieved September 14, 2011.
  2. ^ 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.
  3. ^ "Prince Biography". Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. Retrieved June 16, 2016.
  4. ^ a b "Prince: Album Guide". Rolling Stone. Retrieved August 1, 2012. {{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  5. ^ Price, Simon. "Prince: Every Album Rated—and Ranked". The Guardian. Retrieved April 27, 2016.
  6. ^ a b Freeman, Kim (May 4, 1985). "Radio Is Mixed On Prince Album". Billboard. 97 (18). New York: 1, 72.
  7. ^ a b c d e f Light, Alan. "Around the World in a Day Review". Pitchfork Media. Retrieved April 30, 2016.
  8. ^ a b Karlen, Neal (September 12, 1985). "Prince Talks: The Silence is Broken". Rolling Stone.
  9. ^ Erlewine, Stephen Thomas. "Prince & the Revolution: Around the World in a Day > Review" at AllMusic. Retrieved 14 September 2011.
  10. ^ Christgau, Robert (July 30, 1985). "Christgau's Consumer Guide". The Village Voice. New York. Retrieved October 28, 2012.
  11. ^ Browne, David (September 21, 1990). "Purple Products". Entertainment Weekly. No. #32. ISSN 1049-0434. Retrieved September 14, 2011.
  12. ^ Price, Simon (April 22, 2016). "Prince: every album rated – and ranked". The Guardian. London. Retrieved April 25, 2016.
  13. ^ Graff, Gary; Durchholz, Daniel (eds.) (1999). MusicHound Rock: The Essential Album Guide (2nd ed.). Farmington Hills, MI: Visible Ink Press. p. 897. ISBN 1-57859-061-2. {{cite book}}: |first2= has generic name (help)
  14. ^ "Prince/Prince & The Revolution - Around the World in a Day CD Album". cduniverse.com. Retrieved September 14, 2011.
  15. ^ Weisbard, Eric (October 10, 1995). Spin Alternative Record Guide (1st ed.). Vintage. ISBN 978-0-679-75574-6. Retrieved September 14, 2011.
  16. ^ "Around The World In A Day". Prince Vault. January 7, 2016.
  17. ^ "Prince & The Revolution - Around the World in a Day". Austrian Album Charts (in German). Hung Medien. {{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |work= (help)
  18. ^ "Top Albums/CDs - Volume 42, No. 15, June 22 1985".
  19. ^ "Prince & The Revolution - Around the World in a Day". dutchcharts.nl. Hung Medien. {{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |work= (help)
  20. ^ "Prince & The Revolution - Around the World in a Day". dutchcharts.nl. Hung Medien. {{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |work= (help)
  21. ^ "Prince & The Revolution - Around the World in a Day". charts.org.nz. Hung Medien. {{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |work= (help)
  22. ^ "Prince & The Revolution - Around the World in a Day". norwegiancharts.com. Hung Medien. {{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |work= (help)
  23. ^ "Prince & The Revolution - Around the World in a Day". swedishcharts.com. Hung Medien. {{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |work= (help)
  24. ^ "Prince & The Revolution - Around the World in a Day". hitparade.ch. Hung Medien. {{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |work= (help)
  25. ^ "UK Albums Chart - April 28, 1985". UK Albums Chart. Official Charts Company.
  26. ^ "Billboard 200 - June 1, 1985". Billboard.
  27. ^ "Billboard Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums - June 15, 1985". Billboard.
  28. ^ "Lescharts.com – Prince & the Revolution – Around the World in a Day". Hung Medien. Retrieved May 16, 2016.
  29. ^ "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.
  30. ^ "American album certifications – Prince – Around the World in a Day". Recording Industry Association of America.
Preceded by Billboard 200 number-one album
June 1–21, 1985 		Succeeded by
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