When Prince followed up his blockbuster Purple Rain with 1985’s Around the World in a Day he steered pretty hard hard into a sonic palette that owed as much to late-’60s psychedelia as to his own Minneapolis funk. The title track hints at that eclectic story and signaled a more technicolor sound was to come. And while the funk and gospel DNA of his earlier work still pulsed through the arrangements, it was clear from the jump that the warm swirl of psychedelic pop and dreamlike atmospheres was where the focus was going to be.
The cultural response at the time was (predictably) mixed. Released with no pre-launch single and minimal marketing, Around the World in a Day was designed to be experienced as a complete album and an intentional departure from the radio-friendly rollout of Purple Rain. In retrospect its softer and more whimsical direction makes it an incredible addition to his immensely deep discography. The bold pivot risked alienating his newly expanded pop audiencem but instead cemented his reputation as a fearless, unpredictable artist. That was always Prince’s superpower frankly. His ability to explore the depths of musical creation and be completely unbothered by how anyone but himself felt about it.
Standout Songs: “Raspberry Beret”, “Around the World in a Day”, “America”
