Home / Prince Discography / Associated Artists /
What Time Is It? The Time album
Warner Bros. Records
albumSomebody bring me a mirror.
Under his deal with Warner Bros Records, Prince was afforded autonomy to sign bands at his choosing to the label. Albeit credited to The Time on the sleeve, every track on What Time Is It?, the second album by the band, was in fact written and all the instruments performed by Prince. He is credited on the LP as The Starr ★ Company, so named after his pseudonym Jamie Starr, the fictional record producer who in real life was Prince. Dez Dickerson and Morris Day are credited to writing the lyrics for Wild And Loose. What Time Is It? was recorded throughout 1982 at Prince’s Kiowa Trail home studio in Minnesota.
Despite not wanting other members of The Time to perform on the album itself, the band was required for the live shows and joined Prince as his opening act on both the Controversy Tour and following 1999 Triple Treat Tour. The band’s bassist Terry Lewis’ half brother, Jerome Benton, joined the lineup shortly after The Time’s debut album in 1981 and became popular as Day’s mirror carrying valet at the live shows.
On off days during Triple Threat Tour, operating under the name Flyte Time Productions, Terry Lewis and Jimmy Jam developed a sideline producing for SOS Band who was based in Atlanta. All of Prince’s musicians were subject to the proviso not to work for other acts. Turning a blind eye, Prince’s frustration boiled over on 24 March 1983 when Jam and Lewis were stranded in Atlanta due to a blizzard, causing them to miss The Time’s opening set they were due to perform that night for Prince’s Triple Threat show in San Antonio. Prince covered for Lewis on bass offstage, with Jerome Benton mimicking playing it onstage. Lisa Coleman filled in for Jam on keyboards. Furious, Prince fired Jam and Lewis from The Time. Their work for SOS Band’s Just Be Good To Me delivered the duo’s first production hit and went on to produce albums for Janet Jackson: Control (1986) which won them a Grammy, and Rhythm Nation 1814 (1989) which sold 12 million copies worldwide. Jam and Lewis went on to become one of the most successful writing partnerships in music, producing 16 chart topping singles for the likes of TLC, Michael Jackson, George Michael, Mariah Carey and Usher. The pair went on to win five Grammys and in 1993 received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, then in 2022 was inducted into the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame.
The Time became Prince’s most successful side project and sustained it long after their tenure with Prince. Released two months before Prince’s breakthrough album 1999, What Time Is It? rode on its wave and was certified Gold by the RIAA on 3 November 1982 shortly after 1999‘s release. What Time Is It? peaked in the US at number 26 on the Billboard 200 album chart.
The phone number titling the track 777-9311 was a genuine number which actually belonged to Prince’s bandmate Dez Dickerson. To his chagrin at having received many calls in result, Dickerson was forced to change his private number. Whilst the drum pattern for 777-9311 was recorded using the Linn Drum Machine, in the live shows Jellybean Johnson performed the beat on an acoustic drum, replicating this fiendishly complicated pattern perfectly. What Time Is It? is regarded as The Time’s best record.
The Time
- Vocals
- Morris Day
- Drums
- Jellybean Johnson
- Guitar
- Jesse Johnson
- Bass Guitar
- Terry Lewis
- Keyboards
- Jimmy Jam
- Monte Moir
Performers
- Vocals / Drums
- Morris Day
- All instruments
- Prince
Data
- Producers
- Prince (as The Starr ★ Company) and Morris Day
- Label
- Warner Bros. Records
- Distribution
- Warner Bros. Records
- Cover/Design
- Allen Beaulieu
- Released
- 44 years ago on 25 August 1982
- Running Time
- 38:36
- US Chart Peak
- 26
- US R&B Peak
- 2
- UK Chart Peak
- Did not chart
- Orig. Formats
-
Tracklist
- Wild And Loose (7:32) 1
- 777-9311 (7:57)
- OnedayI'mgonnabesomebody (2:27)
- The Walk [feat. Vanity] (9:30)
- Gigolos Get Lonely Too (4:40)
- I Don't Wanna Leave You (6:30)
Released as a single
1 Lyrics by Dez Dickerson and Morris Day.
Supporting tour
What Time Is It? album review
Whilst Ice Cream Castle may contain The Time’s most familiar work, What Time Is It? certainly houses their best. Prince, albeit hiding in plain sight as Jamie Starr, not only wrote most of it he also plays every instrument throughout. What Time Is It? delivers the stalwarts in The Time’s all-too brief catalogue, kicking off with Wild And Loose a fantastically indulgent seven minute electro funk opener, which then slides into 777-9311 another 7-minute jam which features arguably Prince’s best bass riff laid down on record. And full credit to Jellybean Johnson used to play its hella tricky drum track live in concert. OnedayI’mgonnabesomebody turns up the pace and drives us to the legendary The Walk. Here Morris’ gigolo steps to the fore, and speaks that the immortal line “but, my ass” double entendre – clocking nine minutes it’s pure bliss. His brilliant arrogant confidence stakes claim as the best character in music. His gigolo’s insecurities turn to more reflective tone with this album’s best track, the outstanding Gigolos Get Lonely Too which is certainly for me The Time’s all-time greatest song.
The fun is returned again with I Don’t Wanna Leave You, the 4th song in this six-track album to run over six minutes. What Time Is It? is a confidently delivered and solid entry for Prince’s first side project – who had nothing to fear keeping his name from this project, this stuff of legend became music’s worst kept secret. Hail Prince and long live The Time.
What Time Is It? is rated 4.5 out of 5 by Goldies Parade.
© Goldies Parade, 1998 – 2026 • Privacy