Prince O(+> (November 19 1996) Emancipation - Album
Updated: May 26
Emancipation is Prince’s nineteenth studio album and his first triple album, released under his symbol name shortly after fulfilling his Warner Bros. contract. It marked his artistic freedom with NPG Records / EMI.
RELEASE DETAILS
Label: NPG Records / EMI Records
Catalogue: 7243 8 54982 2 8
Format: 3×CD
Country: Worldwide
Released: November 19, 1996
Length: 3×60:00 (180:00 total)
THE STORY
A celebratory triple album showcasing Prince’s freedom after leaving Warner Bros. It blends original funk, soul, rock, ballads, and covers across three exactly 60-minute discs, reflecting Prince’s fascination with numerology and Egyptian symbolism.
CONTEXT & NOTES
Recorded primarily between 1995–1996, Emancipation was Prince’s first major independent release. It includes covers like “Betcha By Golly Wow!” and “One Of Us.” The album was heavily promoted with tours (Love 4 One Another Charities Tour and Jam Of The Year World Tour) and marked a new era of independence.
TTRACK LISTING (1996 Original 3CD)
Disc 1
Jam Of The Year — 6:09
Right Back Here In My Arms — 4:33
Somebody’s Somebody — 4:43
Get Yo Groove On — 6:31
Courtin’ Time — 2:46
Betcha By Golly Wow! — 3:30
We Gets Up — 4:17
White Mansion — 4:47
Damned If Do — 5:20
Can’t Make U Love Me — 6:37
Mr. Happy — 4:46
In This Bed Scream — 5:40
Disc 2
Sex In The Summer — 5:56
One Kiss At A Time — 4:40
Soul Sanctuary — 4:41
Emale — 3:37
Curious Child — 2:57
Dreamin’ About U — 3:52
Joint 2 Joint — 7:51
The Holy River — 6:55
Let’s Have A Baby — 4:07
Saviour — 5:48
The Plan — 1:46
Friend, Lover, Sister, Mother/Wife — 7:37
Disc 3
Slave — 4:51
New World — 3:42
The Human Body — 5:41
Face Down — 3:16
La, La, La Means Love U — 3:58
Style — 6:40
Sleep Around — 7:41
Da, Da, Da — 5:15
My Computer — 4:36
One Of Us — 5:19
The Love We Make — 4:38
Emancipation — 4:12
PERSONNEL Musicians Prince (as ) — all vocals and instruments (except where noted)
ADDITIONAL MUSICIANS AND BACKGROUND
Kirk Johnson — drums, associate producer
Rosie Gaines — additional vocals
Eric Leeds — saxophone, flute, horns
Rhonda Smith — bass, additional vocals
Kat Dyson (Kathleen Dyson) — guitar, additional vocals
Mr. Hayes (Morris Hayes) — keyboards, additional vocals
NPG Hornz (Michael B. Nelson, Steve Strand, Dave Jensen, Kathy Jensen, Brian Gallagher) — horns
Sonny T., Michael B., Tommy Barbarella — on select tracks
Scrap D. — rap, shouts
Mayte — Spanish vocals, background vocals
Ninety-9 — vocal samples, spoken word
Savion Glover — tap performance
Kate Bush — additional vocals
Chanté Moore — additional vocals
Various others including Ricky Peterson, Brian Lynch, Walter Chancellor Jr.
Production
Prince (as ) — producer, arranger, engineer
Kirk Johnson — associate producer, engineer
Multiple engineers including Tom Tucker, Ray Hahnfeldt, Steve Durkee, Hans-Martin Buff
Vlado Meller — mastering
Steve Parke — art direction & design
PACKAGING HIGHLIGHTS
3CD jewel case set with extensive booklet
Symbolic artwork and liner notes emphasizing freedom
Photography by Jeff Katz and Randee St. Nicholas
CHARTS
America
USA: Billboard 200 | 7 Dec. 1996 | 11 | 21 weeks
USA: Billboard Top R&B Albums | 7 Dec. 1996 | 6 | 26 weeks
Europe
Belgium: Ultratop Albums Flanders | 7 Dec. 1996 | 8 | 11 weeks
Belgium: Ultratop 200 Wallonia | 7 Dec. 1996 | 22 | 8 weeks
France: Top 50 Albums | 16 Nov. 1996 | 9 | 4 weeks
Germany: MusikWoche Top 100 Albums | 2 Dec. 1996 | 21 | 10 weeks
The Netherlands: Album Top 100 | 30 Nov. 1996 | 13 | 10 weeks UK:
UK Albums Chart | 25 Nov. 1996 | 18 | 6 weeks
Certifications
RIAA (USA): 2× Platinum – 7 Feb. 1997 (2 million units)
CRIA (Canada): Gold – 22 Nov. 1996 (100,000 units)
Emancipation marked the first album in Prince's career to include cover versions of songs written by other songwriters. He said that he had wanted to cover songs in the past, but was advised against it by Warner Bros. Four such covers appeared on the album: "Betcha by Golly Wow!" (previously a hit for the Stylistics), "Abstract eye shape with simple lines. Black pupil looking left with white iris with black outer border. Can't Make You Love Me" (previously a hit for Bonnie Raitt), "La-La (Means I Love You)" (previously a hit for the Delfonics) retitled "La, La, La Means Abstract eye shape with simple lines. Black pupil looking left with white iris with black outer border. Love U", and "One of Us" (written by Eric Bazilian, and previously a hit for Joan Osborne). Notably, Prince changed the chorus of "One of Us" from "What if God was one of us / Just a slob like one of us" to "... Just a slave like one of us".
The album is notable for its format: it consists of three discs, each containing 12 songs with exactly 60 minutes per disc. Prince insinuated to the press at the time that the number of songs, discs and length of the album had a connection with the Egyptians and Egyptian pyramids.
In the United States, the album debuted at number 11. Though not a major seller, it did sell over 500,000 copies. Being three discs, it qualified to being certified double platinum (the RIAA certifies based on the number of discs sold - 3 disc set).
The subsequent Jam of the Year World Tour was a major success (though very few songs from Emancipation were included in the concerts and the vast majority of the album's tracks remained unperformed), resulting in a significant comeback for Prince after the commercial and critical disappointment of Chaos and Disorder from four months earlier.
The song "The Love We Make" was used as the finale of 2020 TV series We Are Who We Are.[
SOURCES Album liner notes, Discogs, 45cat, Official Charts, Wikipedia, Prince Vault.
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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