South vs. Queen Bitch

Song:  South
Album:  N.E.W.S
Year:  2003

AllMusic says it best:  "The listener, who will have to be a particularly rabid aficionado of all things Prince to be interested, must throw out all expectations and simply revel in the joy of hearing the musician and his cohorts experiment with relaxed musical textures for 56 minutes. Of course, no one else needs to bother."

I listened to this one on my drive home from work last night.  It's not horrible, it's just that there's nothing there to sink your teeth into.  It's a funk/jazz fusion instrumental which, if you lean in that direction, is probably not a very good representation of the genre.  I say probably because this is not my forte at all.  I've listened to some Weather Report and that seems to be the closest association I can make.  I'm not sure what occasion would warrant putting this on even as background music; every time I think of something (office, dinner party, indoor bocce tournament) I always think of something that would be better.  As AllMusic indicated, I was interested but now I'm done.  You probably don't need to bother.  Take a listen to the Isley Brothers funky mandate to Fight the Power instead.

Verdict:  1/5 stars

Would I sing it at karaoke?  Silly of you to ask!

Song:  Queen Bitch
Album:  Hunky Dory
Year:  1971

As I've indicated previously, Hunky Dory spent some time in heavy rotation on my turntable back in college.  I know this song quite well . . . to the point where I almost expect it to show up on greatest hits compilations.  I can't give a better explanation than the one I found on songmeanings so here it is (please note that this was written in 2008; some of our language has evolved since then):

A cruiser is British slang for a homosexual. To "pull" means you're meeting somebody to have sex with them. Sister Flo is a transvestite prostitute. Bowie's on the eleventh floor of his apartment building watching the cruiser try to pull Sister Flo. Sister Flo looks swishy in her frock coat and hat. Bowie's upset with what he sees, his weekend's at an all time low. Why didn't he say to Sister Flo "I could do better than that!" (be a better transvestite). This song was centered around transvestites and homosexuality, as most of his late 60's-early 70's stuff was, such as Rebel Rebel and Suffragette City. 

It's a snappy rocker whose meaning only presents itself with repeated listens.  What's not to like?

The first video above is a live recording featuring Lou Reed.  The second video is a fine cover by Lena Hall.

Verdict:  4/5 stars

Would I sing it at karaoke?  Yes.  And I bet one person in the bar would dig it while everyone else would say they've never heard it before.

Winner:  Queen Bitch.  (A song would have to be pretty sassy to beat something called Queen Bitch)

Running Score:  Bowie 6, Prince 3

Call My Name vs. Sunday - Moby Remix

Song:  Call My Name
Album:  Musicology
Year:  2004

A simmering slow jam from what AllMusic calls Prince's comeback album (given the 8 years wandering in the wilderness of his own self-indulgence after his "emancipation" from Warner Bros.).  It's a solid, competent and relative concise (clocking in at 5:16) slow groove.  For Prince it feels restrained - no virtuoso instrumentals, no spoken word seductions, no vocal acrobatics - and that restraint is welcomed.  The musicianship and backup vocals are tight.  It all blends together well into a laid-back soul/pop offering.  In case you were wondering, he does whisper to you that his name is Prince, just in case you thought it was Mr. Goodnight.

Verdict:  4/5 stars

Would I sing it at karaoke?  I wouldn't dare.

Song:  Sunday - Moby Remix
Album:  Heathen
Year:  2002

Like Call My Name, this Bowie offering represents an accomplished artist making a bit of a comeback.  He brings back producer Tony Visconti, with whom he had not collaborated since 1980's Scary Monsters album.  The sound is restrained and assured, though (and again like Call My Name) there is enough of interest within the track to warrant repeated listens in which more nuance is continually discovered.  The lyrics seem post-apocalyptic and, though listeners have suggested references to 9/11, Bowie has stated that the song was written before those events transpired.  The Moby remix brings some more pronounced electronic flourishes to the forefront and somewhat diminishes the brooding tone of the original.

Verdict:  3.5/5 stars

Would I sing it at karaoke?  Should world events dictate, yes.

Winner:  Call My Name

Running Score:  Bowie 5, Prince 3

Another Lonely Christmas vs. Fill Your Heart

Song:  Another Lonely Christmas
Album:  The Hits / The B-Sides
Year:  1984

This one was originally released as the B-Side to I Would Die 4 U.  I recall feeling like I had a flawed piece of vinyl as the audio always sounded tinny.  I now realize that the production, high on treble and reverb, is actually the culprit.  This one kind of hurts to listen to.

The song itself is both a celebration of simple relationship memories and an elegy for a deceased lover.  In the sense that you don't hear many morbid Christmas tunes I guess this is Prince's "Grandma Got Run Over By a Reindeer"  More likely it's some method of having a song that references Christmas while remaining true to whatever beliefs he held at the time as a Jehovah's Witness.  For what it is it's a decent song.  The reverb works, oddly, but I'd still like to see it remixed to mute some of the high end treble.

Verdict:  3/5 stars

Would I sing it at karaoke?  I certainly hope I never have the opportunity to do so

Song:  Fill Your Heart
Album:  Hunky Dory
Year:  1971

The users on songmeanings.com can't seem to agree as to whether this song is or is not based on Aleister Crowley's primary precept in his Book of Law (Do what thou wilt).  They also cannot agree on whether Bowie is embracing the teachings of Thelema (a spiritual philosophy developed by Crowley in the early 1900s) or whether he is singing the lyrics ironically or in earnest.  Some off the vocal intonations suggest irony, though given Bowie's flair for the theatrical I am inclined to just accept the song at it's face value and assume he is simply adding vocal embellishments as artistic touches to an otherwise simple concept.  Whatever the case, it's a pleasant ditty that I can picture being sung by a dapper gentleman in some late night 1920s gin joint.  Hunky Dory was in heavy rotation for a while in college so I know this song and the entire album quite well, leaving me to appreciate this cut perhaps more than I otherwise would.

Verdict:  4/5 stars

Would I sing it at karaoke?  Yes, but it would have to be a pretty eclectic evening to fit in

Winner:  Fill Your Heart

Running Score:  Bowie 5, Prince 2