LP Review: The Flag
Released: 1986
Don’t let the anarchic punk design full you. This is Rick James’s Prince album. Not too surprising since Prince was the biggest star in pop music and everyone was taking some bite out of his style at this point.
Despite copping the style, James’s sales slipped badly with this album. The Flag rose to #16 R&B and barely eked its way into the pop 100.
“Forever And A Day” is perfunctory electronic funk with heavy drums. It does have a certain swerve to it including a quickly sung chorus that presages some of the New Jack Swing sound soon to sweep old funksters like James out to sea. It also sounds a bit like “Just Leave Me Alone” from Michael Jackson’s Bad album which came out the next year.
The Minneapolis Sound is big and loud on “Sweet And Sexy Thing”. A good funk song if you’re just wanting something kinda catchy and bombastic. Released as a single it reached #6 R&B. Want some sexy sax? “Free To Be Me” opens up with that quintessential sexy 80s sax to go along with some big 80s drums. The lyrics also presage some of the macho, crotch grabbing New Jack Swing of Bobby Brown’s “My Prerogative”.
In case you doubted whether all funk musicians circa 1986 were keeping an ear on Prince and the MPLS Sound, “Save It For Me” is an absolute rip-off of the Time’s “Jungle Love” mixed with Jimmy Tam and Terry Lewis productions for the SOS Band. “R U Experienced”, which has a good Ernie Isley-esque guitar solo, even has James borrowing Prince’s spelling techniques.
Hey… hey… HEY! We got a message song on “Funk In America/Silly Little Man” that chides the silly men in power who hoarded nuclear weapons that served only to destroy the world. Best song on the album despite its overwhelming 80s-ness. Then again, the mid-1980s were a high water mark anti-nuclear weapons activism so of course this is the musical milieu that would produce such a song.
“Slow And Easy” lives up to its title. Not the best of James ballads, but it’s certainly a lot better than “Spacey Love” (Yuck) from the late 70s.
The most surprising song is the closer, “Painted Pictures”. A very mellow tune that blends that MPLS sound with the groove of Talk Talk’s “It’s My Life”. I know. I couldn’t believe it myself till I heard the music.
Initial Album Grade: C
Not all C grades are the same. For example, Cold Blooded got a C because it had some classic songs “balanced” by some absolute tripe.
Meanwhile, The Flag is shockingly consistent in quality. That means that nothing here is a classic or even great. But that also means nothing here is embarrassing, unless you just can’t stand loud 80s drums, which I perfectly understand. I myself have my limits on that SMASHING sound. James at least was able to find enough interesting musical riffs, hooks, and solos to fill in the space between the big drums.
And if you made it this far, definitely listen to “Funk In America/Silly Little Man” and “Painted Pictures”. Absolutely worth your time.
REAPPRAISAL: B-
Over the last few months, this album has grown on me. A lot. So, I bumped it up.
Reappraised Song Scores
Forever And A Day: 5/10
Sweet And Sexy Thing: 6.5/10
Free To Be Me: 6.5/10
Save It For Me: 6.5/10
R U Experienced: 7/10
Funk In America/Silly Little Man: 8/10
Slow And Easy: 7/10
Painted Pictures: 8/10