| Controversy | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | October 14, 1981 | |||
| Recorded | August 14–23, 1981[1] | |||
| Studio | Kiowa Trail Home Studio,Chanhassen, Minnesota; Hollywood Sound Recorders, Los Angeles, California; Sunset Sound, Hollywood, California[2] | |||
| Genre | ||||
| Length | 37:15 | |||
| Label | Warner Bros. | |||
| Producer | Prince | |||
| Prince chronology | ||||
| ||||
| Singles from Controversy | ||||
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Controversy is the fourth studioalbum by the American singer-songwriter and musicianPrince, released on October 14, 1981, byWarner Bros. Records. With the exception of one track, it was written and produced entirely by Prince. He also performed most of the instruments on its recording.
Controversy reached number three on theBillboard R&B Albums chart and was certifiedPlatinum by theRecording Industry Association of America (RIAA). It was voted the eighth best album of the year in the 1981Pazz & Jop, an annual critics poll run byThe Village Voice.[5]
This was the first of his albums to associate Prince with the color purple as well as the first to usesensational spelling in his song titles.
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Controversy opens with the title track, which raises questions that were being asked about Prince at the time, including his race and sexuality. The song "flirts with blasphemy" by including a chant ofThe Lord's Prayer. "Do Me, Baby" is an "extended bump-n-grind" ballad with explicitly sexual lyrics, and "Ronnie, Talk to Russia" is a politically charged plea to PresidentRonald Reagan. "Private Joy" is a bouncy bubblegum pop-funk tune, "showing off Prince's lighter side", followed by "Annie Christian", which lists historical events such asthe murder of African-American children in Atlanta and thedeath of John Lennon. The album's final song, "Jack U Off", is a synthesizedrockabilly-style track.[6]
| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |    [3] |
| Blender | [7] |
| Chicago Sun-Times | [8] |
| Entertainment Weekly | B+[9] |
| The Guardian | [10] |
| Pitchfork | 9.0/10[11] |
| Rolling Stone | [6] |
| The Rolling Stone Album Guide | [12] |
| Spin Alternative Record Guide | 8/10[13] |
| The Village Voice | A−[14] |
In a contemporary review forRolling Stone, music criticStephen Holden wrote that "Prince's first three records were so erotically self-absorbed that they suggested the reveries of a licentious young libertine. OnControversy, that libertine proclaims unfettered sexuality as the fundamental condition of a new, more loving society than the bellicose, overtechnologized America of Ronald Reagan." He went on to say, "Despite all the contradictions and hyperbole in Prince's playboy philosophy, I still find his message refreshingly relevant."[6]
Robert Christgau was less enthusiastic in a generally favorable review forThe Village Voice, in which he wrote that its "socially conscious songs are catchy enough, but they spring from the mind of a rather confused young fellow, and while his politics get better when he sticks to his favorite subject, which is s-e-x, nothing here is as far-out and on-the-money as 'Head' or 'Sister' or the magnificent 'When You Were Mine.'"[14]
According toBlender's Keith Harris,Controversy is "Prince's first attempt to get you to love him for his mind, not just his body", as it "refines the propulsivefunk of previous albums and adds treatises on religion, work, nuclear war andAbscam."[7]Stephen Thomas Erlewine ofAllMusic remarked that it "continues in the same vein ofnew wave-tinged funk onDirty Mind, emphasizing Prince's fascination with synthesizers and synthesizing disparatepop music genres".[3]
Controversy was voted the eighth best album of the year in the 1981Pazz & Jop, an annual critics' poll run byThe Village Voice.[5]
All songs written byPrince.
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Controversy" | 7:15 |
| 2. | "Sexuality" | 4:21 |
| 3. | "Do Me, Baby" | 7:43 |
| Total length: | 19:19 | |
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 4. | "Private Joy" | 4:29 |
| 5. | "Ronnie, Talk to Russia" | 1:58 |
| 6. | "Let's Work" | 3:54 |
| 7. | "Annie Christian" | 4:22 |
| 8. | "Jack U Off" | 3:09 |
| Total length: | 17:52 | |
Adapted from Benoît Clerc,[15] Liz Raiss,[16] and Guitarcloud[17]
| Chart (1981) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Australian Albums Chart[18] | 55 |
| Dutch Albums Chart[19] | 50 |
| USBillboard 200[20] | 21 |
| USBillboardTop R&B/Hip-Hop Albums[21] | 3 |
| Chart (1982) | Position |
|---|---|
| USBillboard Pop Albums | 59 |
| USBillboard Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums | 15 |
| Region | Certification | Certified units/sales |
|---|---|---|
| United Kingdom (BPI)[22] | Gold | 100,000^ |
| United States (RIAA)[23] | Platinum | 1,000,000^ |
| Summaries | ||
| Worldwide | — | 2,300,000[24] |
^ Shipments figures based on certification alone. | ||
