Graffiti Bridge

Verified Timeline

Lore & Background

The concept for the album and film began as early as mid-1987, but experienced delays for various reasons. The title track was originally recorded during this period, with liner notes listing Sheila E. and Boni Boyer as performers. Nearly the entire album is composed of previously recorded sessions that were updated for this release. "Tick, Tick, Bang" was originally from 1981 during the sessions for the Controversy album, originally a more punk rock song with a bass synthesizer; the update includes a drum sample from an unspecified source or is a Prince original. "Can't Stop This Feeling I Got" was from 1982, later updated in mid-1986 during sessions for the aborted album Dream Factory. "We Can Funk" was first recorded in 1983, originally titled "We Can Fuck", before Prince re-recorded it in 1986 with the Revolution. The three tracks were drastically updated in 1989 for release on Graffiti Bridge. "The Question of U" was recorded in 1985 during sessions for Parade with little updating. "Joy in Repetition" was first included on the unreleased Crystal Ball album in late 1986, and the same recording was used for this album. The only truly "new" compositions recorded for the album were "Round and Round", performed by Tevin Campbell, and "Thieves in the Temple", the final track recorded in early 1990.

In Their Own Story

Graffiti Bridge received positive reviews from contemporary critics, who praised Prince's songwriting and the variety of the music while deeming it an improvement over 1988's Lovesexy. Time magazine hailed the record as a "groovable feast", while Q's Lloyd Bradley claimed it was "practically impossible to choose anything that doesn't deserve to be there. How long is it since that can honestly be said about a Prince album?" In Entertainment Weekly, Greg Sandow said the album was likely a "masterpiece" that found Prince rediscovering his ability to cover different styles effortlessly. Rolling Stone reviewer Paul Evans credited him for lending a "sharper focus", "harder groove", and emphasis on funk and rock rather than "the feckless genre dabbling" of albums such as Lovesexy and Around the World in a Day. Greg Kot of the Chicago Tribune called the album "a sprawling, wildly diffuse statement on love, sin, sex and salvation that ranks with his best work". At the end of 1990, Graffiti Bridge was voted the tenth best album of the year in the Pazz & Jop poll published by The Village Voice.

Reader's Guide

The album features a tracklist composed largely of updated older recordings. "Tick, Tick, Bang" dates from 1981, "Can't Stop This Feeling I Got" from 1982, and "We Can Funk" from 1983. "The Question of U" was recorded in 1985, and "Joy in Repetition" from late 1986. The title track (from 1987) was updated, as were "Elephants & Flowers" (from the 1988 unreleased Rave Unto the Joy Fantastic album) and "The Latest Fashion" (later given to the Time for their unreleased Corporate World album). "Melody Cool" and "Still Would Stand All Time" were intended for Rave Unto the Joy Fantastic and were later performed in some Lovesexy aftershows. The four tracks featuring the Time were originally going to be on Corporate World, recorded in 1989. "New Power Generation" was originally recorded in 1982 as "Bold Generation". The only truly new compositions were "Round and Round" and "Thieves in the Temple". The B-side "Get Off" would soon be incorporated into "Gett Off" the following year. Singles included "Thieves in the Temple" (#6 US, #1 US R&B, #7 UK), "New Power Generation" (#64 US, #27 US R&B, #26 UK), "Round and Round" (#12 US, #3 US R&B), and "Melody Cool" (#36 US R&B).

Did You Know?

• The album was Prince's second consecutive number-one album on the UK Albums Chart, following Batman.
• "Tick, Tick, Bang" was originally recorded in 1981 during the sessions for the Controversy album; the drum sample is not from Jimi Hendrix's "Little Miss Lover" but from a different source or is a Prince original.
• "We Can Funk" was first recorded in 1983 under the title "We Can Fuck".
• "New Power Generation" was recorded in 1989–1990, not in 1982 as "Bold Generation".
• The only truly new compositions recorded for the album were "Round and Round" and "Thieves in the Temple".