This is another obvious choice, and probably a good one, although I'm not much of a fan. There is not doubt in my mind that he influenced many that followed him in the latter part of the 80s. And the choice this week is Prince and the Revolution - Purple Rain (1984)

Prince had been plugging away with limited success for several years when the man in the tiny pants reinvented himself as a purple-clad movie star. Like Michael Jackson, he felf that the way to gain crossover appeal was to run the musical gamut: in this case, from the minimalist funk of his earlier albums to the volume-at-11 rock of Jimi Hendrix. The title track is a monumental, fist-clenching rock ballad that, perversely, whetted our appetites for far worse examples by Christina Aguilera among others. Without this...no Janet Jackson, no Peaches, and certainly no Beck.

Like I said, I'm sure there are countless others who were influenced by Prince, although Prince probably owes a lot to James Brown. What say you?

Swish