Just as he had done with 1999’s album opener, “Let’s Go Crazy” sets the tone for the whole album. The purple preacher intro against gospel inspired organ makes a bold statement from that initial power chord strike. And unlike previous outings that were purely a Prince affair, here for the first time was a fuller band sound with the members of The Revolution given the chance to bring their skills to the table.

With its four-to-the-floor beat and one of the hookiest riffs ever to emerge from a guitar, “Let’s Go Crazy” is pure funk rock energy. Building with every passing bar, the song hits you like a wave of sonic electricity that explodes in that blissful swirling guitar solo. Not given enough credit for his prowess on the guitar, this is undoubtedly one of Prince’s most iconic solos that rivals the rocking, shredding solos of contemporaries like Eddie Van Halen. In this tightly wound 4:39, Prince combines blues, gospel, funk and rock in a seamless aural trip that created a sonic boom across the globe, and gave the album its second number 1 hit.

Cascading drum fills herald the arrival of “Take Me With U,” Prince’s most pure pop orientated track to date. Originally written for his side project Apollonia 6, Prince quickly came to his senses and pulled the song into the lineup. Credited as a duet with Apollonia (“thank you”) that might a very liberal definition of the term. Regardless, “Take Me With U” is a journey of pop perfection, accentuated with a string section (a first for Prince and something he would continue to use with great success for the remainder of his career) and a joyous abandon.