Artist: Prince
Album: Dirty Mind
Label: Warner Bros.
Released: 8 October 1980
UK Album Chart: Did Not Chart
US Billboard 200: #45
Produced: Prince
File Under: Raw, funky and filthy. Prince’s 3rd album shows the first real flash of genius.
Listening Status
Discovered this one thanks to a “Top Albums of the ’80s” list — the kind you scroll through, scoff at, then go back to anyway because it reminds you of something you missed.
I’d always stuck to the classic Prince stuff (Purple Rain, 1999, Sign o’ the Times) but Dirty Mind? Somehow skipped it. Not anymore.
Background
By 1980, Prince was 23 and already writing, performing, and producing everything himself. Dirty Mind was recorded largely at home and has that DIY energy — it’s scrappy, sizzling and completely unapologetic. Released just before he blew up globally, this is Prince loosening the reins and turning up the funk and filth.
Notes
Clocking in at just over 30 minutes, this one doesn’t hang about. The title track kicks things off with a hypnotic, synth-driven groove that sets the tone: funky, minimal, and brimming with attitude. “Uptown” is an early highlight — infectious, rebellious, and wrapped in a bassline that won’t quit. And then there’s “Head”, where Prince really stops pretending, he’s playing nice.
Even the ballad (“Gotta Broken Heart Again”) refuses to wallow — it still bounces along with that lean Minneapolis funk. It’s the only breather before we’re back in the sweat and grind.
The production is raw but tight. The vocals are squealed, sighed and shouted. There’s a cheeky brilliance to it all, especially in closer “Partyup” where things get political and profane all at once — “You’re gonna have to fight your own damn war” has rarely sounded so catchy.
Conclusion
Dirty Mind might not have the grand ambition of 1999, but it’s got something else: nerve. It’s wild, weird, and completely confident. Prince wasn’t just finding his voice here — he was already running with it.
This is where the legend properly begins.
The Listening Log 
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