The Time is the 1981 debut album by the Time. The album was largely produced and arranged by Prince, credited as Jamie Starr. Three singles came from the album: "Get It Up", "Cool" and "Girl", with the first two charting within the top ten on the R&B charts.

Recording

Although the individual members of the Time are credited with playing their instruments, the music was almost entirely performed by Prince. The only instrumental performances not by Prince were by Dr. Fink, who played synthesizer solos on "Get It Up" and "The Stick", and Morris Day, who played drums for the majority of the album. Day also sang lead vocals, replacing Prince's guide vocals. The credits list the recording studio as the fictional "Time Studio", but recording took place in Prince's Kiowa Trail Home Studio, Chanhassen, Minnesota, during April 1981. "Oh, Baby" had originally been recorded during the Prince album sessions from late April to 13 June 1979, at Alpha Studios, Burbank, California, but the version on the album is from the April 1981, sessions.

Commercial performance

The album peaked at number 50 on the Billboard 200 and number seven on the Top Soul LPs charts. The album spent a total of 32 weeks on the Billboard 200 and 45 weeks on the R&B Albums chart. The album was eventually certified gold by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) for sales of over 500,000 copies in the United States.

Track listing

The original LP and singles gave no writer credits, only stating that "All Jams Published by Tionna Music". However, all compositions were registered with ASCAP, and the writer credits are derived from that source. All tracks written by Prince unless where noted.

Personnel

Credits sourced from Prince Vault and Guitarcloud The album was mixed at Hollywood Sound Recorders, Los Angeles, California, April 1981

Singles and chart placings

Charts

Certifications