Diamonds and Pearls

This article is about the album. For the song, see Diamonds and Pearls (song). For the video album, see Diamonds and Pearls Video Collection. For the Pokémon games, see Pokémon Diamond and Pearl.
Diamonds and Pearls
Studio album by Prince and The New Power Generation
Released October 1, 1991
Recorded 1989–1991
Paisley Park Records and London
Genre
Length 65:45
Label Paisley Park, Warner Bros.
Producer Prince
Prince chronology
Graffiti Bridge
(1990)		 Diamonds and Pearls
(1991)		 Love Symbol Album
(1992)
International release
Singles from Diamonds and Pearls
  1. "Gett Off"
    Released: June 7, 1991
  2. "Cream"
    Released: September 9, 1991
  3. "Insatiable"
    Released: November 4, 1991
  4. "Diamonds and Pearls"
    Released: November 25, 1991
  5. "Money Don't Matter 2 Night"
    Released: March 3, 1992
  6. "Thunder"
    Released: April 18, 1992 (UK only)
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[1]
Blender[4]
Robert Christgau[5]
Entertainment WeeklyC[6]
Mojo(favorable)[7]
MusicHound3.5/5[8]
The New York Times(favorable)[3]
The Rolling Stone Album Guide[9]
Spin(favorable)[10]
Trouser Press(favorable)[11]
Yahoo! Music(favorable)[12]

Diamonds and Pearls is the thirteenth studio album by American recording artist Prince, and the first to feature his backing band The New Power Generation. It was released on October 1, 1991 by Paisley Park Records and Warner Bros. Records. The album produced several hit singles, including "Gett Off", "Cream", "Money Don't Matter 2 Night", "Insatiable", and the title track. Dancers Lori Werner (then dancing under the stage name of Lori Elle) and Robia LaMorte, known as "Diamond" and "Pearl" respectively, are featured on the holographic cover (re-pressings of the album are non-holographic). Diamond and Pearl also appeared in the music videos for "Cream", "Strollin'", "Gett Off", and the title track, and also participated in Prince's Diamonds and Pearls Tour.

Diamonds and Pearls features a hybrid of music styles, from the funk of "Daddy Pop", "Jughead", and first single "Gett Off", to some of the more mainstream pop/rock songs Prince had recorded in some time, such as "Cream", "Money Don't Matter 2 Night" and the title song. "Willing and Able" was used in a video montage during the closing credits of CBS coverage of Super Bowl XXVI.

Track listing

All lyrics written by Prince; all music composed by Prince and The New Power Generation except where noted.

No. Title Length
1. "Thunder"   5:45
2. "Daddy Pop"   5:17
3. "Diamonds and Pearls"   4:45
4. "Cream"   4:13
5. "Strollin'"   3:47
6. "Willing and Able" (Prince, Levi Seacer, Jr., Tony Mosley) 5:00
7. "Gett Off"   4:31
8. "Walk Don't Walk"   3:07
9. "Jughead" (Prince, Tony Mosley, Kirk Johnson) 4:57
10. "Money Don't Matter 2 Night" (Prince, Rosie Gaines) 4:46
11. "Push" (Prince, Rosie Gaines) 5:53
12. "Insatiable"   6:39
13. "Live 4 Love" (Prince, Tony Mosley) 6:59

Album evolution

One of the earliest songs that ended up on Diamonds and Pearls was "Live 4 Love", a track from 1989.[13] The bulk of the material would be composed in 1990, however. A few songs evolved during Prince's Nude Tour in 1990, notably "The Flow" and "Schoolyard". Prince decided to place an emphasis on rap with this album, handing the reins over to Nude Tour dancer, Tony M. An early version of the album from November 1990[14] consisted of the following:

  1. "The Flow"
  2. "Daddy Pop"
  3. "Diamonds and Pearls"
  4. "Cream"
  5. "Strollin'"
  6. "Willing and Able"
  7. "Violet the Organ Grinder"
  8. "Walk Don't Walk"
  9. "Horny Pony"
  10. "Money Don't Matter 2 Nite"
  11. "Something Funky (This House Comes)"
  12. "Schoolyard"
  13. "Live 4 Love"

Most of these songs went through minor to major revisions before being released, and five of them did not make the cut at all. The five songs that were omitted from the album are "The Flow", "Violet the Organ Grinder", "Horny Pony", "Something Funky (This House Comes)", and "Schoolyard". "The Flow" would be revised for the Love Symbol Album. A later version of the album, closer to the actual release date was identical to the official album, but still had "Horny Pony" in the place of "Gett Off", a newly written track which ended up replacing "Horny Pony" at the last minute. In fact, "Horny Pony" still exists on the track listing, written in red over "Gett Off", and is mentioned in the lyrics to "Push".

Personnel

[15]

Production

Singles and Hot 100 chart placings

  1. "Gett Off"
  2. "Horny Pony"
  1. "Cream"
  2. "Horny Pony"
  1. "Insatiable"
  2. "I Love U in Me"
  1. "Diamonds and Pearls"
  2. "Q in Doubt"
  1. "Money Don't Matter 2 Night"
  2. "Call the Law"
  3. "Push" (UK)
  1. "Thunder"
  2. "Violet the Organ Grinder"
  3. "Gett Off" (Thrust Dub)

Charts

Weekly charts

Chart (1991/92) Position
Australian ARIA Albums Chart[18] 1
Austrian Albums Chart[19] 4
Canadian RPM Albums Chart[20] 8
Dutch Albums Chart[21] 6
French SNEP Albums Chart[22] 8
German Media Control Albums Chart[23] 8
Italian Albums Chart[24] 5
Japanese Oricon Albums Chart[25] 9
New Zealand Albums Chart[26] 5
Norwegian Albums Chart[27] 5
Swedish Albums Chart[28] 8
Swiss Albums Chart[29] 3
UK Albums Chart[30] 2
US Billboard 200[31] 3
US Billboard R&B Albums[31] 1

Year-end charts

Chart (1991) Position
Canadian Albums Chart[32] 47
Dutch Albums Chart[33] 45
French Albums Chart[34] 15
Italian Albums Chart[24] 45
UK Albums Chart[35] 27
Chart (1992) Position
Austrian Albums Chart[36] 17
Swiss Albums Chart[37] 22
UK Albums Chart[35] 38
US Billboard 200[38] 31

Certifications

Region Certification Certified units/Sales
Austria (IFPI Austria)[39] Platinum 50,000*
Canada (Music Canada)[40] Platinum 100,000^
France (SNEP)[41] 2x Platinum 610,100[42]
Germany (BVMI)[43] Platinum 500,000^
Netherlands (NVPI)[44] Platinum 100,000^
Spain (PROMUSICAE)[45] Platinum 100,000^
Switzerland (IFPI Switzerland)[46] Platinum 50,000^
United Kingdom (BPI)[47] 3× Platinum 900,000^
United States (RIAA)[48] 2× Platinum 2,000,000^

^shipments figures based on certification alone

See also

References

  1. 1 2 Erlewine, Stephen Thomas. "Prince & the New Power Generation: Diamonds and Pearls > Review" at AllMusic. Retrieved 15 September 2011.
  2. ↑ Williams. Stereo (April 29, 2016). "Let Love Decide: Prince's 'Diamonds and Pearls'". Spin. Retrieved June 6, 2016.
  3. 1 2 Watrous, Peter (1 January 1992). "The Pop Life; Top 12's, or So". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. OCLC 1645522. Retrieved 15 September 2011.
  4. ↑ Blender review Archived August 24, 2007, at the Wayback Machine.
  5. ↑ Christgau, Robert. "Prince [extended]". robertchristgau.com. Retrieved 15 September 2011.
  6. ↑ Browne, David (4 October 1991). "Diamonds and Pearls: Prince". Entertainment Weekly. No. #86. Time. ISSN 1049-0434. Retrieved 15 September 2011.
  7. ↑ Simmons, Sylvie (1996). "Prince: The Best of the Patchy Years" (free registration required). Mojo. Bauer Media Group. ISSN 1351-0193. Retrieved 15 September 2011.
  8. ↑ Graff, Gary; Durchholz, Daniel (eds.) (1999). MusicHound Rock: The Essential Album Guide (2nd ed.). Farmington Hills, MI: Visible Ink Press. p. 897. ISBN 1-57859-061-2.
  9. ↑ "Prince: Album Guide". rollingstone.com. Archived from the original on March 20, 2011. Retrieved April 23, 2016.
  10. ↑ Poulson-Bryant, Scott (November 1991). "Prince and the New Power Generation: Diamonds and Pearls". Spin. Spin Media. ISSN 0886-3032. Retrieved 15 September 2011.
  11. ↑ Green, Jim; Ira Robbins; Delvin Neugebauer. "Prince". Trouser Press. Retrieved 15 September 2011.
  12. ↑ Clay, Jennifer (October 1, 1991). "Diamonds and Pearls". Yahoo! Music. Archived from the original on July 22, 2010. Retrieved 15 September 2011.
  13. ↑ "Prince Songs List (Released & unreleased)". housequake.com. Archived from the original on 25 October 2007.
  14. ↑ "The Prince Alternate & W.I.P. Albums List '79 - 2001". prince.org. Retrieved 2016-07-08.
  15. ↑ http://princevault.com/index.php/Album:_Diamonds_And_Pearls
  16. ↑ "Diamonds and Pearls > Credits at AllMusic. Retrieved 15 September 2011.
  17. ↑ "Prince & The New Power Generation - Diamonds And Pearls/ Images". discogs.com. Retrieved 15 September 2011.
  18. ↑ "australian-charts.com Prince and The New Power Generation - Diamonds and Pearls" (ASP). Australian Recording Industry Association. Retrieved 2014-04-09.
  19. ↑ "austriancharts.at Prince and The New Power Generation - Diamonds and Pearls" (ASP). Hung Medien (in German). Retrieved 2014-04-03.
  20. ↑ "Top Albums/CDs - Volume 54, No. 25" (PHP). RPM. 1991-11-23. Retrieved 2014-04-03.
  21. ↑ "dutchcharts.nl Prince and The New Power Generation - Diamonds and Pearls" (ASP). Hung Medien. MegaCharts. Retrieved 2014-04-03.
  22. ↑ "InfoDisc : Tous les Albums classés par Artiste > Choisir Un Artiste Dans la Liste" (in French). infodisc.fr. Retrieved 2014-04-03.
  23. ↑ "Album Search: Prince and The New Power Generation - Diamonds and Pearls" (in German). Media Control. Retrieved 2014-04-03.
  24. 1 2 "Hit Parade Italia - Gli album più venduti del 1991" (in Italian). hitparadeitalia.it. Retrieved 2014-04-03.
  25. ↑ "ダイヤモンズ・アンド・パールズ／プリンス-リリース-ORICON STYLE-ミュージック" [Highest position and charting weeks of Diamonds and Pearls by Prince and The New Power Generation]. oricon.co.jp (in Japanese). Oricon Style. Retrieved 2014-04-03.
  26. ↑ "charts.org.nz Prince and The New Power Generation - Diamonds and Pearls" (ASP). Hung Medien. Recording Industry Association of New Zealand. Retrieved 2014-04-03.
  27. ↑ "norwegiancharts.com Prince and The New Power Generation - Diamonds and Pearls" (ASP). Retrieved 2014-04-09.
  28. ↑ "swedishcharts.com Prince and The New Power Generation - Diamonds and Pearls" (ASP) (in Swedish). Retrieved 2014-04-08.
  29. ↑ "Prince and The New Power Generation - Diamonds and Pearls - hitparade.ch" (ASP). Hung Medien (in German). Swiss Music Charts. Retrieved 2014-04-03.
  30. ↑ "Prince > Artists > Official Charts". UK Albums Chart. Retrieved 2014-04-03.
  31. 1 2 "Allmusic: Diamonds and Pearls: Charts & Awards: Billboard Albums". allmusic.com. Retrieved 2014-04-02.
  32. ↑ "RPM 100 Albums (CDs & Cassettes) of 1991". RPM. 1991-12-21. Retrieved 2010-12-06.
  33. ↑ "Dutch charts jaaroverzichten 1991" (ASP) (in Dutch). Retrieved 2014-04-02.
  34. ↑ "Les Albums (CD) de 1991 par InfoDisc" (PHP) (in French). infodisc.fr. Retrieved 2014-04-02.
  35. 1 2 "Complete UK Year-End Album Charts". Archived from the original on January 11, 2012. Retrieved 2013-09-16.
  36. ↑ "Austriancharts.at - Jahreshitparade 1992" (ASP) (in German). Hung Medien. Retrieved 2014-04-02.
  37. ↑ "Hitparade.ch - Schweizer Jahreshitparade 1992". Hung Medien. Retrieved 2014-04-02.
  38. ↑ "Top Billboard 200 Albums". billboard.biz. Archived from the original on December 8, 2012. Retrieved 2013-04-05.
  39. ↑ "Austrian album certifications – Prince – Diamonds & Pearls" (in German). IFPI Austria. Retrieved 2012-02-02. Enter Prince in the field Interpret. Enter Diamonds & Pearls in the field Titel. Select album in the field Format. Click Suchen
  40. ↑ "Canadian album certifications – Prince – Diamonds and Pearls". Music Canada. Retrieved 2012-02-02.
  41. ↑ "French album certifications – Prince & NewPower – Diamonds and Pearls" (in French). InfoDisc. Select PRINCE & NEWPOWER and click OK
  42. ↑ "Les Albums Platine". infodisc.fr (in French). SNEP. Retrieved 2012-02-02.
  43. ↑ "Gold-/Platin-Datenbank (Prince; 'Diamonds and Pearls')" (in German). Bundesverband Musikindustrie. Retrieved 2014-02-02.
  44. ↑ "Dutch album certifications – Prince – Diamonds and Pearls" (in Dutch). Nederlandse Vereniging van Producenten en Importeurs van beeld- en geluidsdragers. Retrieved 2011-02-02.
  45. ↑ "Solo Exitos 1959–2002 Ano A Ano: Certificados 1991–1995". Solo Exitos 1959–2002 Ano A Ano. ISBN 8480486392.
  46. ↑ "The Official Swiss Charts and Music Community: Awards (Prince; 'Diamonds and Pearls')". IFPI Switzerland. Hung Medien. Retrieved 2012-02-02.
  47. ↑ "British album certifications – Prince & the New Power Generation – Diamonds and Pearls". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved 2014-04-04. Enter Diamonds and Pearls in the field Keywords. Select Title in the field Search by. Select album in the field By Format. Select Platinum in the field By Award. Click Search
  48. ↑ "American album certifications – Prince and the New Power Generation – Diamonds and Pearls". Recording Industry Association of America. Retrieved 2012-02-02. If necessary, click Advanced, then click Format, then select Album, then click SEARCH
Preceded by
Soul Deep by Jimmy Barnes		 Australian ARIA Albums Chart number-one album
January 26 – February 1, 1992 		Succeeded by
Baby Animals by Baby Animals
Studio albums
Live albums
Remix albums
Compilation albums
The NPG albums
The NPG Orchestra albums
Madhouse albums
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