Times Squared

Times Squared is a tricky listen, being a Madhouse project but not quite, as was formed out of the remnants of what was supposed to have been the third album for the series. Yet, like what came to all Prince’s side projects it no longer held his interest. Still, do not underestimate Madhouse’s achievement to hold Prince’s attention to dedicate three albums to a single project, has only been matched by The Time. So as Prince’s focus on Madhouse dwindled, its leftover material was passed to Eric Leeds to reconstitute as he wished and form his very own debut album. Leeds reworked the material at Paisley Park, adding two of his own – Lines, which begins the album with a Moroccan feel, is well produced. The instrumentation remains strong throughout, as the album continues with the vibrant Andorra, Night Owl, Over Night, Every Night – all three are gleaned from 16’s sessions of 30 July 1987. Those sessions are significant, being the first to take place at the newly operational Paisley Park Studios. The latter could easily be mistaken for the older cousin of Xenophopia and the roots of The Rainbow Children. The dainty Cape Horn is from 1988 and sets the low tempo middle section of the album, maintained by the dreamy Little Rock – the best track as well as the oldest, dating from 1985. The next is the soft samba groove Easy Does It, from 1986, with cool guitar embellishment. The Dopamine Rush, from 1988, albeit in the outer rim of leftovers from Madhouse’s sessions is the only track largely in its original form, although originally some 18 minutes longer. The tempo shifts gear with Kenya, Leeds’ second penned track and the album’s fourth from the July 1987 sessions. The title track, having a movie soundtrack feel, is the latest track, albeit from 1988, and therefore the most contemporary sounding of the bunch. The album closes with Once Upon A Time, another from 1987, a quite reflective track as if to bid a fond farewell to the Madhouse era. Times Squared was released on Paisley Park Records in 1991 as Prince and the music-buying world had moved on to hip-hop. Lacking the snappiness of previous Madhouse outings, Times Squared was a casualty to the NPG’s purple haze and at the time of its release and somewhat a ready-made relic of the past, yet it today performs stronger in the second-hand market due to the provenance that it keeps with Prince and the legend of his 1987 catalogue.