It's The Pleasure Princi-POLL -- ILM Artist Poll #103 -- JANET JACKSON Results Thread

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19. GOT 'TIL IT'S GONE (from The Velvet Rope, 1997; 1,004.5 points; 20 votes)

Got til it's gone is the only Janet single I like.
― ◦ ⃝◦ ⃝◦ ⃝◦ ⃝◦ ⃝◦ ⃝◦ ⃝◦ ⃝◦ ⃝◦ ⃝◦ ⃝ (Moka), Saturday, July 2, 2011 6:54 AM (nine years ago)

i don't hate "got til it's gone" or anything now but picking it as the BEST on this album is an opinion that seems increasingly insane the more i think about it
― lex pretend, Wednesday, January 14, 2015 12:47 PM (five years ago)

i mean, i love 'got til it's gone' so fucking much, like few other things. it was such a huge record for me — that was my entry point into joni mitchell and it just felt like a really poignant moment for everyone involved, possibly one of the first major jay dilla productions. it brings me to tears, truly
― Totally different head. Totally. (Austin), Thursday, July 23, 2020 11:03 PM (two weeks ago)

J-Joni Mitchell never lies!

Ballsiest lead-off single of her career, if not single overall.

for which the public duly rewarded her with her lowest placing.

I was surprised to learn it wasn't Hot 100 eligible, as I remember it as maybe the most omnipresent among her 90s singles. Broke through my musical bubble like nothing else from Velvet Rope, at least.

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18. ANY TIME, ANY PLACE (from janet., 1993; 1,105.5 points; votes)

"any time, any place" is like proto-voodoo
― mellon collie and the infinite bradness (BradNelson), Friday, July 3, 2020 1:46 PM (one month ago)

it's so weird to hear kendrick's "any time, any place" sample on the radio and think, damn that song is 20 years old
― some dude, Thursday, June 27, 2013 6:50 PM (seven years ago)

I never heard "Any Time..." on pop radio, was surprised to learn how well it did R&B.

I heard it a lot, but then again I live in Minneapolis.

She included a Kendrick verse when she played this in 2015, and sorta pantomimed the delivery iirc, it was great. There was a time when I'd anticipate his voice when I'd play this but I find that's faded a bit recently, remembering this song as its own universe. Had it at #4 at one point, only fell a few spots.

really how it spends a few minutes jamming on that groove at the end

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17. ALRIGHT (from Rhythm Nation 1814, 1989; 1,251.5 points; 26 votes)

I could listen to "Alright" anytime anyplace.
― Eric H., Saturday, September 22, 2007 11:12 PM (twelve years ago)

i'm flabbergasted at all the love for the title track and alright, which are both ALRIGHT WITH ME but definitely not first billing
― Surmounter, Wednesday, September 26, 2007 7:25 AM (twelve years ago)

best one chord song?

I have distinct memories of hearing "Alright" at the same time as tracks from PE's Fear of a Black Planet got blanket rotation on college radio and thinking, "Man, Janet belongs here."

such a relentless groove

I know I've said it before, but I associate this song with the Minneapolis sound more than the earlier songs that actually defined the Minneapolis sound. I was 10. I had a sunnier view of Minneapolis back then.

Have said it already itt but everyone should check out this amazing deep house mix of Alright

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=EaI954eZqdg

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16. TOGETHER AGAIN (from The Velvet Rope, 1997; 1,309 points; 24 votes; 2 first-place votes)

Listening to the album sequentially for the first time in a frickin ever and I think I've been underestimating just how much of a cool drink of water it is when "Together Again" finally rolls around. Would've been amazing if they'd held it until even closer to the end instead of pulling the old backloading-ballads trick again.
― Vulvacura (Eric H.), Friday, January 16, 2015 8:57 AM (five years ago)

cool drink of water after the rope burn
― guess that bundt gettin eaten (Alfred, Lord Sotosyn), Friday, January 16, 2015 9:02 AM (five years ago)

Oops, clipped the last quote off:

"Together Again" by Janet Jackson sounds like one of the levels in the first Sonic the Hedgehog game where you have to walk along a wall outside and jump over some water/bridges I think (haven't played it for about eight years though).
― ailsa (ailsa), Friday, October 15, 2004 5:34 PM (fifteen years ago)

okay, a lot of my picks are showing up now!

'alright' and 'got til it's gone' were top five for me.

We're definitely in big point jump territory now.

I voted "Together Again" #1, it's perfect in so many ways.

I have gone back and forth and back again w/r/t "Together Again." Thought it was just about her best single ever back in '98. Got tired of it really quick and regarded it as tacky and instantly dated for awhile. Have now settled on it being much closer to the first take.

Verse after the key change is gut-wrenching.

happiness (noun): 1. together_again.mp3

albeit from a place of grief. what a song! kept swapping it in and out of my #1 spot.

I hear it as the cheerful sequel to Pet Shop Boys' "Being Boring."

It feels hokey at a glance but it covers so much ground, from almost like a classic Motown-style simplicity to something more layered. The groove helps too. The part where her singing is isolated for a moment is stunning, every time. The music fading out at the end always feels super sad (before leading into my #3 pick, which I almost put at #1, "Empty".)

I have it on good authority that Brad thinks "I Get Lonley"'s placement is disgustingly low.

Please keep bringing the telephoned missives from Brad.

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15. CONTROL (from Control, 1986; 1,352 points; 24 votes; 2 first-place votes)

the 12" mix of "Control" is one of the eighties' greatest pieces of music.
― Alfred, Lord Sotosyn, Sunday, 5 October 2008 01:43 (eleven years ago)

this is the album where janet is "janet" for the first time. the opening of the album is burned into my memory forever.
― Totally different head. Totally. (Austin), Thursday, July 23, 2020 10:15 PM (two weeks ago)

THIS IS A STORY ABOUT CONTROL
― lex pretend, Saturday, May 12, 2007 9:42 AM (thirteen years ago)

Such a formidable, steely track.

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14. SOMEONE TO CALL MY LOVER (from All For You, 2001; 1,364.5 points; 24 votes)

i LOVE "someone to call my lover" so much, voted for that -- def my fav janet single from that album. gymnopedie no 1 in the chorus = amazing.
― teledyldonix, Thursday, June 24, 2010 11:18 AM (ten years ago)

someone to call my lover is really fun. like a better version of jordan knights give it to you but with the ventura highway sample built in.
― Spottie, Tuesday, July 7, 2020 7:41 PM (one month ago)

Someone to Call my Lover is the new single by Janet Jackson. Am I insane or are does this song sound like it could have (minus Janet's lyrics and voice) been ripped from the Sea and Cake's album the Fawn??? Is anyone with me on this?!
― Chaz A. Bartok, Wednesday, July 18, 2001 7:00 PM (nineteen years ago)

another one that climbed my ranks quickly.

any time any place was an important song for my uh... development.

really how it spends a few minutes jamming on that groove at the end

― ufo, Friday, August 7, 2020 7:24 AM (one hour ago) bookmarkflaglink

otm love this

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13. MISS YOU MUCH (from Rhythm Nation 1814, 1989; 1,423 points; 25 votes)

actually, the only imperial era single I find meh is "Miss You Much."
― TikTok to the (Alfred, Lord Sotosyn), Sunday, July 5, 2020 12:32 PM (one month ago)

I suppose theoretically there's an argument to be made that "Miss You Much" is too similar to "Escapade" to stand tall on its own, but in practice "too similar to one of the best songs ever made" is the opposite of a put-down.
― Tim F, Sunday, July 5, 2020 6:22 PM (one month ago)

Miss You Much >>>>>>>> Escapade (and I like Escapade)
― shout-out to his family (DJP), Sunday, July 5, 2020 10:35 PM (one month ago)

ugh I just discovered that the chair dance is NOT a part of the actual standalone "Miss You Much" video and I am OUTRAGED
― vision joanna newsom (Stevie D(eux)), Tuesday, July 14, 2020 2:20 PM (three weeks ago)

Still a meh.

The bridge still lifts it to the exalted plane most of the rest of the album exists on.

I guess it underwhelmed me because after my lukewarm reaction she releaesed "Rhythm Nation" and I thought, "Oh, I get it now."

Then "Escapade," and I thought, "OH shit."

Then "Alright."

Well.

It does sort of function as a transitional point between Control and Rhythm Nation, retaining the earlier album's hard edges while indicating there would be sweeter rewards.

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12. NASTY (from Control, 1986; 1,485 points; 27 votes; 1 first-place vote)

show me a more perfect drum track than the one on "nasty"
― mellon collie and the infinite bradness (BradNelson), Wednesday, July 1, 2020 9:25 AM (one month ago)

I listened to "Nasty" for the first time in a long time recently, and that syncopated percussion still sounds like the future to me. Plus some cool change-ups in between those sections. I'd put it in the running for GOAT
― Vinnie, Wednesday, July 1, 2020 10:00 AM (one month ago)

"Nasty" is of course one of the worst things ever to have happened to music, but the rest of the album is nice enough.
― Geir Hongro, Monday, 24 September 2007 10:47 (twelve years ago)

geir with the challop

"Nasty" outside the top ten? I don't know what to expect anymore.

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11. RHYTHM NATION (from Rhythm Nation 1814, 1989; 1492.5 points; 27 votes; 1 first-place vote)

i had a solo in chorus when i was 9 singing the title track from rhythm nation. no one else knew the words and i was quite incensed
― purp (roxymuzak), Saturday, April 13, 2013 11:43 AM (seven years ago)

title track is really addictive - my biggest thing is that I can't separate the song from the choreography now, as soon as I hear it I see the shoulders and those pivots and UGH she was so unstoppable
― set the controls for the heart of the sun (VegemiteGrrl), Friday, April 5, 2013 1:29 PM (seven years ago) bookmarkflaglink

The title track is one of the all-time great sample-into-song transformations.
― Josh in Chicago, Friday, April 5, 2013 6:55 PM (seven years ago)

another just absolutely epic intro. the title track is still an "oh shit!" moment when i hear it on the radio or out and about. that was like my national anthem as a kid. still kicks so much fucking ass. man! that is the music of the gods.
― Totally different head. Totally. (Austin), Thursday, July 23, 2020 11:03 PM (two weeks ago)

half of the beats on Rhythm Nation could be lifted wholesale by KMFDM and people wouldn't blink
― shout-out to his family (DJP), Wednesday, July 1, 2020 9:36 AM (one month ago)

the album's clanking industrial heart

She got that long beat breakdown into the top five.

lmao "Empty" really gonna beat out "Rhythm Nation" and "Nasty", huh

hey y'all, taking a brief hiatus from my hiatus to say you're all legends for getting "go deep" in the top ten

"Control" was my #1. The greatest artist statement in music history.

hey y'all, taking a brief hiatus from my hiatus to say you're all legends for getting "go deep" in the top ten

― mellon collie and the infinite bradness (BradNelson), Friday, August 7, 2020

besos

^^^^^^^

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10. Luv Me, Luv Me (with Shaggy, 1998; 1,492.5 points; 27 votes)

why does shaggy hate women so much?