Publication: The London Independent [UK]
Date: August 21, 1994
Section: The Sunday Review
Page Number(s): 18
Length: 459 Words
Title: "Records: New Releases"
Written By: Nicholas Barber

Prince: Come (Warner, CD/LP).

His name is Prince. Well, it was Prince, and this album is apparently the last thing he recorded before changing his sobriquet. He gave up writing melodies a while ago: most of the tracks here are James Brown funks and disco grooves, heavy on the brass and synth. The subject matter is what you'd expect. On the 11-minute title track he promises that he can do plenty more with his tongue than sing a song and ''Orgasm'' has an unnamed female vocalist doing an impression of Meg Ryan in When Harry Met Sally. As with Madonna's Erotica, too many one-track-minded tracks can result in a blush of embarrassment rather than of titillation. But Come is saved by some outstanding material: ''Solo'', with its operatic vocals and harp accompaniment; ''Race'', a pro-integration rap; ''Papa'', a creeping tale of child abuse; and the single, ''Letitgo'', which is better than ''The Most Beautiful Girl in the World''. I can't say that Prince has saved his best album until last, but he has gone out with a bang, not a whimper.