The 500 - #163 - 1999 - Prince

I was inspired by a podcast called The 500 hosted by New York-based comedian Josh Adam Meyers. His goal, and mine, is to explore Rolling Stone Magazine's 2012 edition of The 500 Greatest Albums of All Time. 

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Album: #163
Album Title: 1999

Artist: Prince

Genre: Dance Pop, Art Pop, Minneapolis Sound, R&B, Funk

Recorded: Kiowa Trail (Prince's Home Studio), Chanhassan, Minnesota; and Sunset Sound Recorders, Hollywood, California

Released: October, 1982

My age at release: 17
How familiar was I with it before this week: Fairly

Is it on the 2020 list? Yes, at #130, elevating 33 spots
Song I am putting on my Spotify Playlist: 1999

"You know that feeling you get on a roller coaster, when you are slowly climbing to the top...and it seems to take forever? That's turning 30. You'd better look around...because the rest of the ride is damn quick."

Those astute words by my pal, Paul Dawson, were uttered at the time we were entering our thirties. Paul has always been a clever wordsmith and I laughed off his amusing hyperbole. However, as I prepare to turn 60 this summer, I'll admit that the last 30 years came and went with alarming speed.

Paul Dawson, at his 30th birthday party.

The first time I heard the debut single 1999 from Prince's album of the same name, was in late autumn, 1982. I was a passenger in the car of another pal, Rob Cummings, when it came on the radio. Oddly, I can even remember the road we were on. The music wasn't my cup of tea at the time, but the lyrics sure got me doing some mental math:  "How old will I be in 1999...and what will I be doing? Will I be married? Have kids? What job will pay my bills?"

The idea of being 34 seemed like the stuff of science-fiction to my 17-year-old brain. Besides, as Paul later put it, I was still slowly climbing the first hill on the roller coaster. Now, with that birthday a full 26 years behind me, it feels like contemporary history. Such is our strange perception of time, a topic I tackled in my January, 2025 blog post about The Definitive Collection, from ABBA.

However, the wonderful thing about revisiting music from my youth, especially after a long hiatus, is that it can rekindle some of those vibrant, emotional feelings. There is something about the sound of 1999 that evokes such powerful nostalgia for me. It is likely the distinctively ‘80s "synth and electronic drum" sound that permeates so many of the tracks. That sound reminds me of how much I loved being 17. It was a time of great freedom and discovery. I had money, limited responsibility and incredible health. I didn't know how lucky I was. The curmudgeonly man on the porch in It's A Wonderful Life was right when he lamented to George Bailey and Mary Hatch. "Youth is wasted on the wrong people".

My friendships were also fantastic, including the time I spent with Rob and Paul. I am still in contact with Paul...we've actually been texting about the NFL draft as I write this piece. However, Rob and I drifted apart after high school. After listening to this record, I decided to try to find him through social media. He worked in construction, as a bricklayer, in the early ‘90s, and I found a website for Rob Cummings Contracting Company. I sent a message...we'll see what comes of that.

The album 1999 was the fifth studio production from the multi-talented and influential musician/songwriter Prince. On the strength of three hit singles, it propelled the flamboyant, androgynous entertainer to stardom. Consequently, it is not surprising that 1999 was the first song of his I heard.  In fact, for many years, I assumed this was his debut record and that he was an overnight sensation.

Prince, in his video for Little Red Corvette, the second single from 1999.

Released as a double record on vinyl in 1982, 1999 set the stage for Prince's meteoric rise to superstardom. Two years later, The High Priest of Pop released the landmark record Purple Rain, which also served as the soundtrack to his 1984 film of the same name, at which point he  became one of the biggest artists in the world – rivalled only by The King of Pop, Michael Jackson. Purple Rain appears at #76 on The 500 list. That is 87 weeks away...but on this roller coaster ride that will be here, in the words of Paul Dawson, "damn quick".