Planet Earth (2007)
Sitting at the midpoint of one of his worst albums and saddled with an off-putting name, Future Baby Mama’s chances in life weren’t looking good. It’s crowded out of the spotlight by taller slow-jam poppies – the R&B playboy-masterclass Mr Goodnight and the sublime future-ballad Somewhere Here On Earth – and it’s easy to mistake for one of Planet Earth’s many low-key fillers. But once you get past the cringeworthy title and allow the Linn-drummed gorgeousness to hammer hosannas into your cynical heart, you surrender fully to the heady Moments In Love aromas. It even won a Grammy which proves Juliet right: that which we call Future Baby Mama by any other name would sound as sweet.
I agree about the title : 100 % pure NARM. It really is a wonder, then, that the song is okay.
However, I have a strange, if distant affection for the whole “Planet Earth” album. Maybe because while quite forgettable in the long run, it’s also very catchy, and I have an instant attraction to forgettable, but catchy pop fluff. It’s the “easy listening” album of Prince’s universe. The throaway fun of tracks such as “Guitar” and “Chelsea Rogers” cannot be underestimated. Maybe also because through the cracks, I see the portrait of an ageing rock star having good fun and smiling at his own Casanova persona, still crooning about buying you stuff and inviting you to his pool and giving you stars, even if it’s ultimately only for a little while.
I also like the easy-going, poppy bass work on this album.