Pandemonium

Pandemonium
Studio album by The Time
Released	July 10, 1990
Recorded	1982-1989
Genre	Funk, R&B, pop
Length	65:12
Label	Paisley Park/Reprise/Warner Bros. 27490
Producer	The Time
The Time chronology
Ice Cream Castle (1984) Pandemonium (1990)

Professional ratings
Review scores
Source	Rating
Allmusic	[1]

Pandemonium is a 1990 album by The Time. Much like the three previous albums, the album consists of music in the funk-pop or ballad genre, although this album breaks the 6-song album tradition. Originally, the album began life as Corporate World, with nearly all of the material written and performed by Prince with Morris Day and Jerome Benton providing vocals. However, due to Warner Bros. Records orders that the original band be involved, more songs were written and performed with various band members. Jesse Johnson adds a rock and roll-influenced sound to several tracks, while Jimmy Jam & Terry Lewis provide their songwriting skills. The album is a tie-in with the film Graffiti Bridge and several songs from the album appear in the film.

The album was certified Gold by the RIAA and "Jerk Out" became one of the band's biggest singles. The second single, "Chocolate" didn't fare as well.

Album origin: Corporate World

When Prince decided to use The Time in Graffiti Bridge, he once again composed an album for them, performing all the music as well as most background vocals. The album was to be called Corporate World and was quite a different album from Pandemonium. Two songs were never released: "9 Lives" features a female chorus and was initially meant for Prince's dancer/vocalist Cat Glover. The title track "Corporate World" also remains unreleased; another danceable number with a positive message, much like "It's Your World" from Pandemonium. The opening track for the album was to be "Murph Drag", a dance later mentioned in the song "My Summertime Thang". It uses the "Fellas, I'm back" chant later used in the title track of "Pandemonium". (An edited version of "Murph Drag" was later released on Prince's website.) Four songs made it onto the Graffiti Bridge soundtrack. "Shake!" and "Love Machine" were slightly edited. "Release It" was identical to the Graffiti Bridge version, however "The Latest Fashion" is quite different: not a battle between Prince and Day, and totally different music. The tracks that survived to Pandemonium ("Data Bank", "Donald Trump (Black Version)" and "My Summertime Thang") were all edited.

When the tracklist was changed for Pandemonium, Prince pulled out two more outtakes from his vault: "Jerk Out" and "Chocolate". "Jerk Out" was originally intended for What Time Is It? but shelved and later revisited for the group Mazarati before finally being rerecorded for Pandemonium. "Chocolate" was an outtake from Ice Cream Castle, based partially on "Cloreen Baconskin", a Prince/Morris Day jam later released on Prince's Crystal Ball; a version is circulating with Prince on vocals. Some of his vocals even made it into the release version as a waiter arguing with Day. The remaining tracks on Pandemonium were written by various members of the band. One of the tracks, "Sometimes I Get Lonely", painted a very distinct picture of the signature slow jams that the production team Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis would be known for in the 1980s and 1990s.

Track listing

1. "Dreamland" – 3:08
2. "Pandemonium" – 4:11
3. "Sexy Socialites" – 0:23
4. "Jerk Out" – 6:49
5. "Yount" – 0:22
6. "Blondie" – 6:27
7. "Donald Trump (Black Version)" – 4:33
8. "Chocolate" – 7:31
9. "Cooking Class" – 0:42
10. "Skillet" – 6:11
11. "It's Your World" – 5:25
12. "Sometimes I Get Lonely" – 6:15
13. "Data Bank" – 5:36
14. "My Summertime Thang" – 6:52
15. "Pretty Little Women" – 0:46

Singles and chart placings

• "Jerk Out" (#1 R&B, #9 Pop)

1. "Jerk Out"
2. "Mo' Jerk Out" – 7" single
3. "Get It Up" – 12" single
4. "Jerk Out" (Sexy Mix) – 12" single
5. "Jerk Out" (Sexy Edit) – 12" single
6. "Jerk Out" (A Capella) – 12" single
7. "Jerk Out" (Sexy Dub) – 12" single
8. "Jerk Out" (Sexy Instrumental) – 12" single

• "Chocolate" (#44 R&B)

1. "Chocolate"
2. "My Drawers"
3. "Chocolate" (12 Inch Remix) – 12" single
4. "Chocolate" (Tootsie Roll Club Mix) – 12" single
5. "Chocolate" (Instrumental) – 12" single
6. "Chocolate" (Percapella) – 12" single

Notes

External links

• Pandemonium lyrics