Prince (December 30, 1980) “Prince, Dirty Mind” – The Morning Union
- GlamSlamEscape
- Dec 30, 1980
- 4 min read
A year-end album ranking and review in The Morning Union (Springfield, MA) placing Prince’s Dirty Mind at #8 on the paper’s 1980 best albums list, hailing the 20-year-old as the pop-rock surprise of the year and a major artistic arrival.
Publication: The Morning Union Date: Tuesday, December 30, 1980 Country: United States
Section / Pages: Music / Year-End Album Rankings
Title: Prince, Dirty Mind (Warner Bros.)
THE STORY
The clipping ranks Dirty Mind highly and reviews Prince’s rapid evolution from a Stevie Wonder-style prodigy (noted via his early “I Wanna Be Your Lover” single) to a bold, racy rock-R&B artist. It praises the album’s sensual Al Green-like elements mixed with Donna Summer’s pulsating energy, highlighting the X-rated lyrics and overall impact as a breakthrough.
CONTEXT AND NOTES
Published at the close of 1980, this reflects growing critical acclaim for Dirty Mind despite its initial modest commercial performance. It captures the moment when Prince’s provocative shift was being recognized as a defining artistic leap, solidifying his reputation as a fearless innovator far ahead of his peers.
FEATURE HIGHLIGHTS
Event: Year-end album ranking and review
Era: Dirty Mind (1980)
Tone: Enthusiastic, appreciative of boldness and innovation Photography: None (text-only ranking block)
Visual Motifs: Clean newspaper year-end list format with bold numbering
WHAT THE CLIPPING SHOWS
Strong critical endorsement of Dirty Mind as a top 1980 release
Insight into Prince’s artistic growth and boundary-pushing style
Early mainstream recognition of his uniqueness compared to contemporaries like Michael Jackson
RELATED MATERIAL For other relevant posts, see the tags at the foot of the page.
All magazine scans, photographs and original text excerpts remain the property of their respective copyright holders. This entry is a transformative, non-commercial archival summary created for historical documentation and educational reference.
Dirty Mind is Prince’s third studio album, released in October 1980. A daring, raw, and sexually explicit masterpiece, it marked a bold artistic leap and established Prince as one of the most provocative and innovative artists of his generation.
RELEASE DETAILS
Artist: Prince
Label: Warner Bros. Records
Date: October 8, 1980
Catalogue: BSK 3478
Format: LP
Country: United States (international releases followed)
THE STORY
Dirty Mind is a short, explosive album that fully embraces funk, new wave, and rock influences. Recorded quickly at his home studio in Orono, Minnesota (credited as “Somewhere in Uptown”), the album features Prince playing nearly all instruments himself. The songs are direct, explicit, and full of attitude, tackling themes of sex, freedom, and rebellion with a punk-like energy.
CONTEXT & NOTES
Coming less than a year after his previous album, Dirty Mind shocked many with its explicit content and minimalist sound. Though it received mixed commercial response at the time, it is now regarded as one of Prince’s most important and influential records, laying the groundwork for his revolutionary 1980s output.
TRACK LIST
Side One
Dirty Mind (4:11)
When You Were Mine (3:44)
Do It All Night (3:42)
Gotta Broken Heart Again (2:13)
Side Two
Uptown (5:30)
Head (4:40)
Sister (1:33)
Partyup (4:24)
PERSONNEL
Musicians
Prince — all vocals and instruments (except where noted)
Dr. Fink — synthesizer on “Dirty Mind” and “Head”
Lisa Coleman — vocals on “Head”, keyboards and background vocals on “Partyup” (uncredited)
Production
Prince — producer, arranger, remixer
Jamie Starr — engineer (Prince pseudonym)
Mic Guzauski — remixer
Bob Mockler — remixer
Ron Garrett — assistant
Bernie Grundman — mastering (A&M Records)
Allen Beaulieu — photography
Bob Cavallo, Joe Ruffalo, Steve Fargnoli — personal management
Special Thanks "Special thanks to God, Jamie and Steve, Fink, Bobby Z., Andre, Dez, Lisa, Gayle, Russ Thyret, Mo Ostin, Tom Draper, Cortez T. and the 'baddest promotion staff around'; Fred Moultrie, Lee Phillips, Bob and Joe, Cynthia Horner, Kim, Nick, Debbie Dominico, Rob Marcher, Fred Lapin, Dave, Chip, Paul and Steve M., Mena, Joni and U."
PACKAGING HIGHLIGHTS
Iconic black-and-white cover photo of Prince in a trench coat and bandana
Minimalist design with bold pink lettering
Striking and controversial visual identity
WHAT THE SLEEVE SHOWS
The front cover shows a bare-chested Prince wearing an open trench coat, bandana, and dark underwear, staring directly at the camera with a provocative expression. The bold pink “Prince” logo dominates the top. The image perfectly captured the album’s raw, rebellious, and sexually charged attitude.
CHARTS America
Country: Chart | Entry Date | Peak Position | Weeks in Chart
USA: Billboard Top LP’s & Tapes | 8 Nov. 1980 | 45 | 31
USA: Billboard Soul LPs | 8 Nov. 1980 | 7 | 32
USA: The Billboard 200 | 14 May 2016 | 56 (R) | 2
SINGLES RELEASED
“Uptown” (b/w “Crazy You”)
“Dirty Mind” (b/w “When We’re Dancing Close and Slow”)
“Do It All Night” (UK only)
“Head” (promo only)
“When You Were Mine” (12" promo only)
Dirty Mind received widespread praise from critics. Simon Reynolds noted its rave reception, with rock writers hailing Prince as a genre-blending, gender-bending, and race-bridging savior of modern music. Barney Hoskyns called it “the glam-funk Let’s Get It On” in his New Musical Express review. Ken Tucker of Rolling Stone observed Prince’s shift from the romantic tone of his earlier albums to a liberating lewdness, mixing provocative wordplay with simple, catchy melodies over an electric sound. He praised Prince’s effortless delivery, blending Smokey Robinson’s sweetness with Richard Pryor’s raw humor, calling the record “cool music dealing with hot emotions” and, at its best, “positively filthy.” In The Village Voice, Robert Christgau compared the metallic textures and drum patterns to Funkadelic and the Rolling Stones, noting Prince’s falsetto linked him to the “love-man” tradition but with a bolder eroticism. Retrospective reviews, like Jim Green’s in The Trouser Press Guide to New Wave Records, also celebrated the album’s catchy tunes, witty lyrics, strong production, and Prince’s signature falsetto—provided the overt sexuality doesn’t turn listeners away.
SOURCES Prince Vault, The Beautiful Ones (2019), Discogs, Warner Bros. archives.
COPYRIGHT NOTICE All album artwork, photographs, logos, and original text excerpts remain the property of their respective copyright holders. This entry is a transformative, non-commercial archival summary created for historical documentation and educational reference.
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