Love Symbol

Love Symbol is the fourteenth studio album by American recording artist Prince,[2] and the second of two that featured his backing band the New Power Generation. It was released on October 13, 1992, by Paisley Park Records and Warner Bros. Records.[3] It was originally conceived as a "fantasy rock soap opera" with various spoken segues throughout (with its storyline becoming the basis for Prince's direct-to-video film 3 Chains o' Gold),[4] and contains elements of R&B, funk, pop, rock, and soul.

This article is about the album. For hearts as a symbol of love, see Heart symbol. For the artist who temporarily changed his name to the symbol, see Prince (musician).
"The Max" redirects here. For other uses, see Max.

Love Symbol
Studio album by
Prince and the New Power Generation
ReleasedOctober 13, 1992
RecordedSeptember 11, 1990; December 1990; May 12, 1991; September 18, 1991 – March 1992; July 1992
Genre
Length75:00
LabelPaisley Park, Warner Bros.
ProducerPrince and the New Power Generation
Prince chronology
Diamonds and Pearls
(1991)		 Love Symbol
(1992)		 The Hits/The B-Sides
(1993)
Alternative cover
Cover without the symbol
Cover without the symbol
Singles from Love Symbol
  1. "Sexy MF"
    Released: June 30, 1992
  2. "My Name Is Prince"
    Released: September 28, 1992
  3. "7"
    Released: November 17, 1992
  4. "Damn U"
    Released: November 17, 1992
  5. "The Morning Papers"
    Released: April 3, 1993

The official title of the album is an unpronounceable symbol depicted on its cover art, which Prince copyrighted under the title "Love Symbol #2", and adopted as his stage name from 1993 to 2000 to protest his treatment by Warner Bros. Records (which had refused to steadily release his back catalog of unreleased music, and trademarked his given name for promotional purposes).[5][6] The release has been referred to under titles such as Love Symbol, Symbol Album, or Symbol.[2]

Its first two singles, "Sexy MF" and "My Name Is Prince", achieved modest success on the US pop chart, though both made the top ten in the United Kingdom. Conversely, the third single, "7", was not as successful in the United Kingdom, but was a top ten hit in the United States.

Storyline

An early configuration of the album contained as many as eight segues as well as an intro. Together, they explained the album's storyline: An Egyptian princess (played by Mayte Garcia, in her debut on a Prince album) falls in love with a rock star (Prince) and entrusts him with a religious artifact, the Three Chains of Turin (or Three Chains o' Gold) during her escape from seven assassins, as referenced in "7".[7] However, in a last-minute attempt to add an additional song ("I Wanna Melt with U", which was originally considered to be a B-side to the "7" maxi single, and which contains several sampled sounds also present in "7"), most of the segues had to be cut for album length. The few that remained were somewhat confusing in context. The unreleased segues have been bootlegged since. Garcia would become Prince's wife in 1996.

On the released album, the segues featuring Kirstie Alley as reporter Vanessa Bartholomew are mostly kept intact. In them, she attempts to interview Prince but fails; at first, he hangs up when being told he is being recorded, but in a later segue, Prince gives nonsense answers to Vanessa's requests. A few lines in which Vanessa inquires about the Three Chains of Turin was edited out of the final version.

3 Chains o' Gold, a direct-to-video film produced and directed by Prince, was released in 1994. The film is based on the storyline and songs of the Love Symbol Album and contains some of the original segues which were planned to be on the album.

Marketing

Warner Bros. Records pushed for "7" to be released as the album's first single. However, Prince pushed for "My Name Is Prince" to serve as lead single, as he felt that its hip-hop sound would appeal better to listeners that had enjoyed his previous album Diamonds and Pearls.[8] "Sexy MF" would ultimately serve as the album's lead single.[9]

Critical reception
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[1]
Chicago Tribune[10]
Christgau's Consumer GuideA−[11]
Entertainment WeeklyA−[12]
The Guardian[13]
Los Angeles Times[14]
Q[15]
Rolling Stone[15]
The Rolling Stone Album Guide[16]
Spin Alternative Record Guide7/10[17]

The Love Symbol Album was voted the 14th best record of 1992 in the Pazz & Jop, an annual poll of American critics nationwide, published by The Village Voice.[18] Robert Christgau, the poll's creator, later wrote of the album: "Designed to prove his utter inexhaustibility in the wake of Diamonds and Pearls, by some stroke of commerce his best-selling album since Purple Rain, this absurdly designated 'rock soap opera' (is he serious? is he ever? is he ever not?) proves mainly that he's got the funk."[11]

Track listing

All tracks written by Prince, except where noted; all tracks arranged and produced by Prince and The New Power Generation.

Love Symbol track listing
No.TitleLength
1."My Name Is Prince" (Prince, Tony M.)6:36
2."Sexy MF" (Prince, Tony M., Levi Seacer, Jr.)5:25
3."Love 2 the 9's"5:45
4."The Morning Papers"3:57
5."The Max"4:30
6."Segue"0:21
7."Blue Light"4:38
8."I Wanna Melt with U"3:50
9."Sweet Baby"4:01
10."The Continental"5:31
11."Damn U"4:25
12."Arrogance"1:35
13."The Flow" (Prince, Tony M.)2:26
14."7" (Prince, Lowell Fulson, Jimmy McCracklin)5:13
15."And God Created Woman"3:18
16."3 Chains o' Gold"6:03
17."Segue"1:30
18."The Sacrifice of Victor"5:41

Every use of the pronoun "I" throughout the song titles and liner notes is represented by a stylized "👁" symbol. Prince fans commonly transliterate this symbol as "Eye".

Special editions

Several editions of this album were released. Early pressings of the album featured an embossed gold love symbol on the jewel case, sometimes matte, sometimes glossy. Later editions feature it printed on the booklet or not present at all. A Special Limited Edition Gold Box CD was released with a purple love symbol engraved in the golden box. One boxed set came with a bonus "Sexy MF" CD single, another with a specially created CD single of "My Name Is Prince" mixes.

Early configuration

Below is the early version of the album with all the original segues. "The Sacrifice of Victor" is slightly longer on the early configuration.

  1. "Intro"
  2. "My Name Is Prince"
  3. "Sexy MF"
  4. "Segue"
  5. "Love 2 the 9's"
  6. "The Morning Papers"
  7. "The Max"
  8. "Segue"
  9. "Blue Light"
  10. "Segue"
  11. "Sweet Baby"
  12. "Segue"
  13. "The Continental"
  14. "Damn U"
  15. "Segue"
  16. "Arrogance"
  17. "The Flow"
  18. "Segue"
  19. "7"
  20. "Segue"
  21. "And God Created Woman"
  22. "3 Chains o' Gold"
  23. "Segue"
  24. "The Sacrifice of Victor"

Personnel

Prince and The New Power Generation

Additional personnel

  • Carmen Electra – guest rap on "The Continental"
  • The Steeles (Jevetta, Jearlyn, JD and Fred Steele) – backing vocals on "The Sacrifice of Victor"
  • Kirstie Alley plays frustrated reporter Vanessa Bartholomew in the two included segue tracks
  • Eric Leeds – saxophone on "Blue Light"
  • Michael Koppelman – bass guitar on "Blue Light"
  • DJ Graves – scratching
  • Mike Nelson, Brian Gallagher, and Steve Strand – horns
  • Airiq Anest – programming
  • Clare Fischer – string arrangements

Production
  • Arranged by Prince and The New Power Generation
  • Produced by Prince and The New Power Generation; additional production by Keith Cohen; additional production on "I Wanna Melt with You" by George Black; strings produced by Clare Fischer
  • Recorded by Michael Koppelman, Dave Friedlander, Steve Noonan, Ray Hahnfeldt and Brian Poer; strings recorded by Larry Mann; Kirstie Alley's voice recorded by Peter Arata
  • Mixed by Keith Cohen, Michael Koppelman, Tom Garneau, Bob Rosa and Steve Beltran; additional mixing by Dave Aron, Airiq Anest, Steve Durkee, Biran Poer, Steve Noonan and Ray Hahnfeldt
  • Mastered by Brian Gardner and Steve Noonan

Publishing
  • All songs published by Controversy Music/WB Music Corp.; except:
    • Track 1 (Copyright NPG Music/Michael Anthony Music), track 15 (NPG Music)
    • Track 12 (Controversy Music/WB Music Corp; contains a sample of "I Know You Got Soul" by Eric B. & Rakim which is published by Songs of Polygram International Inc./Robert Hill Music; contains a sample of "Jazz It Up" originally by C.F.M. Band and also a sample of "Niggaz 4 Life" by N.W.A; copyright Ruthless Attack Muzik/Sony Songs/Bridgeport Music).
    • Track 14 published by Controversy Music; additional publishing by Powerforce Music/Budget Music; sample of "Tramp" by Lowell Fulsom published by Blues Interactions, Inc.

Singles

Charts
Weekly chart performance for Love Symbol
Chart (1992) Peak
position
Australian Albums (ARIA)[19] 1
Austrian Albums (Ö3 Austria)[20] 1
Dutch Albums (Album Top 100)[21] 6
Finnish Albums (Suomen virallinen lista)[22] 8
German Albums (Offizielle Top 100)[23] 5
New Zealand Albums (RMNZ)[24] 4
Norwegian Albums (VG-lista)[25] 10
Spanish Albums (AFYVE)[26] 5
Swedish Albums (Sverigetopplistan)[27] 10
Swiss Albums (Schweizer Hitparade)[28] 4
UK Albums (OCC)[29] 1
US Billboard 200[30] 5
US Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums (Billboard)[31] 8

Certifications and sales
Certifications and sales for Love Symbol
Region CertificationCertified units/sales
Australia (ARIA)[32] Platinum 70,000^
Austria (IFPI Austria)[33] Gold 25,000*
France — 200,000[34]
Japan (RIAJ)[35] Gold 100,000^
Spain (PROMUSICAE)[36] Gold 50,000^
Switzerland (IFPI Switzerland)[37] Gold 25,000^
United Kingdom (BPI)[38] Platinum 300,000^
United States (RIAA)[39] Platinum 1,000,000^

* Sales figures based on certification alone.
^ Shipments figures based on certification alone.

Notes
  1. Erlewine, Stephen Thomas. "Prince & the New Power Generation: The Love Symbol Album" at AllMusic. Retrieved 25 October 2009.
  2. Carter, Andrew (June 23, 1999). "The People Formerly Known as Fans". City Pages. Archived from the original on October 14, 2008. Retrieved July 5, 2018.
  3. "Prince & The New Power Generation Discography". Discogs. Retrieved April 15, 2009.
  4. Willman, Chris (October 11, 1992). "Prince's Latest Fleshed-Out Fantasy". Los Angeles Times. ISSN 0458-3035. OCLC 3638237.
  5. Lussenhop, Jessica (April 22, 2016). "Why did Prince change his name?". BBC News. Retrieved May 20, 2020.
  6. Rhodes, Margaret (April 22, 2016). "The Fascinating Origin Story of Prince's Iconic Symbol". Wired. ISSN 1059-1028. Retrieved May 20, 2020.
  7. "The lost album segues / original version". dawnation.com.
  8. Hahn, Alex. (2003). Possessed : the rise and fall of Prince. New York: Billboard Books. ISBN 0-8230-7748-9. OCLC 50868280.
  9. Hajari, Nisid (July 24, 1992). "Video Capsule Review: Sexy M.F. (1992)". Entertainment Weekly. Time. Retrieved February 25, 2022.
  10. Chicago Tribune review
  11. Christgau, Robert (2000). Christgau's Consumer Guide: Albums of the '90s. Macmillan Publishers. p. 252. ISBN 0312245602.
  12. Sandow, Greg (October 23, 1992). "The Artist Formerly Known As Prince(1992): Prince". Entertainment Weekly. No. #141. ISSN 1049-0434. Retrieved September 16, 2011.
  13. Price, Simon (April 22, 2016). "Prince: every album rated – and ranked". The Guardian. London. Retrieved April 25, 2016.
  14. Los Angeles Times review
  15. "Prince/Prince & the New Power Generation – Love Symbol Album CD Album". CDUniverse.com. Retrieved September 16, 2011.
  16. "Prince: Album Guide". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on March 20, 2011. Retrieved April 23, 2016.
  17. Weisbard, Eric (October 10, 1995). Spin Alternative Record Guide (1st ed.). Vintage. ISBN 978-0-679-75574-6.
  18. Pazz & Jop 1992
  19. "Australiancharts.com – Prince and The New Power Generation – %5BLove Symbol%5D". Hung Medien. Retrieved May 2, 2016.
  20. "Austriancharts.at – Prince and The New Power Generation – %5BLove Symbol%5D" (in German). Hung Medien. Retrieved May 2, 2016.
  21. "Dutchcharts.nl – Prince and The New Power Generation – %5BLove Symbol%5D" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved May 2, 2016.
  22. Pennanen, Timo (2021). "Prince". Sisältää hitin - 2. laitos Levyt ja esittäjät Suomen musiikkilistoilla 1.1.1960–30.6.2021 (PDF) (in Finnish). Helsinki: Kustannusosakeyhtiö Otava. p. 204.
  23. "Offiziellecharts.de – Prince and The New Power Generation – %5BLove Symbol%5D" (in German). GfK Entertainment Charts. Retrieved May 2, 2016.
  24. "Charts.nz – Prince and The New Power Generation – %5BLove Symbol%5D". Hung Medien. Retrieved May 2, 2016.
  25. "Norwegiancharts.com – Prince and The New Power Generation – %5BLove Symbol%5D". Hung Medien. Retrieved May 2, 2016.
  26. Salaverri, Fernando (September 2005). Sólo éxitos: año a año, 1959–2002 (1st ed.). Spain: Fundación Autor-SGAE. ISBN 84-8048-639-2.
  27. "Swedishcharts.com – Prince and The New Power Generation – %5BLove Symbol%5D". Hung Medien. Retrieved May 2, 2016.
  28. "Swisscharts.com – Prince and The New Power Generation – %5BLove Symbol%5D". Hung Medien. Retrieved May 2, 2016.
  29. "Prince | Artist | Official Charts". UK Albums Chart. Retrieved May 2, 2016.
  30. "Prince Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved March 25, 2018.
  31. "Prince Chart History (Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved March 25, 2018.
  32. "ARIA Charts – Accreditations – 1992 Albums" (PDF). Australian Recording Industry Association. Retrieved November 15, 2021.
  33. "Austrian album certifications – Prince – Love Symbol" (in German). IFPI Austria. Retrieved September 11, 2019.
  34. "Billboard". May 22, 1993.
  35. "Japanese album certifications – プリンス＆ザ・ニュー・パワー・ジェネレーション – ラブ・シンボル・アルバム" (in Japanese). Recording Industry Association of Japan. Retrieved September 11, 2019. Select 1994年4月 on the drop-down menu
  36. Sólo Éxitos 1959–2002 Año A Año: Certificados 1979–1990 (in Spanish). Iberautor Promociones Culturales. 2005. ISBN 8480486392.
  37. "The Official Swiss Charts and Music Community: Awards (Prince; 'Love Symbol')". IFPI Switzerland. Hung Medien. Retrieved September 11, 2019.
  38. "British album certifications – Prince – Symbol". British Phonographic Industry.
  39. "American album certifications – Prince – Symbol". Recording Industry Association of America. Retrieved March 24, 2023.

References
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