Professional ratings
Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic
Blender
Chicago Tribune
Entertainment Weekly	A−
The Guardian
Los Angeles Times
NME	7/10
Q
Rolling Stone
The Village Voice	A

The Gold Experience is the seventeenth studio album by American recording artist Prince (his name at the time being an unpronounceable symbol). It was produced entirely by Prince and released on September 26, 1995 on NPG Records and Warner Bros. Records. The album charted at number 6 on the Billboard 200 and number 2 on the Top R&B Albums. The singles "The Most Beautiful Girl in the World", "I Hate U", and "Gold" charted on the Billboard Hot 100 at numbers 3, 12, and 88 respectively.

The Gold Experience sold 500,000 copies in the United States and peaked at number six on the Billboard 200, failing to meet the record label's commercial expectations. According to biographer Jason Draper, it may have undersold because Prince was losing touch with younger listeners and also because his contractual dispute with Warner Bros. Records overshadowed the album's promotion, which he had done well before it was released.

Nonetheless, The Gold Experience was a success with critics.Melody Maker called it Prince's best record in years, while Vibe said it was his best since Sign o' the Times in 1987. In The Village Voice, Robert Christgau wrote that it showcased not only the unbridled artistry displayed on his other records but also "a renewal. It's as sex-obsessed as ever, only with more juice—'Shhh' and '319' especially pack the kind of porno jolt sexy music rarely gets near and hard music never does." He believed its best songs, specifically "Endorphinmachine" and "P Control", "funk and rock as outrageously and originally as anything he's ever recorded".Jon Pareles was less enthusiastic in The New York Times, finding most of the songs to be minor successes and calling it "a proficient album, not a startling one; most of its songs are variations and retreads of previous Prince efforts."

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Wikipedia