Money Don't Matter 2 Night

Patrick Corcoran from Albumism said, "As lyrically scathing as anything he'd written to that point, it included the scarily prescient line "anything's better than a picture of a child in a cloud of gas"." He added, "Capturing the zeitgeist as Iraq was invaded for the first time, but also heartbreakingly, perpetually relevant to our times too, Prince's restrained delivery fits perfectly."[3] Stephen Thomas Erlewine from AllMusic noted "the extraordinary Philly soul" of "the neglected masterpiece", adding it as a "terrific" pop single.[4] Mike Diver for the BBC stated in his 2010 review, that "there's no doubting Money Don't Matter 2 Night is the heart and soul of this album. A slow-paced strut, the track's a celebration of realising that hard cash isn't the be all and end all of one's existence".[5] Cashbox noted, "The single is real mellow and more laid-back compared to most of his previous material. This cut should attract R&B, adult contemporary, pop and easy listening radio stations with ease. Mark down another hit."[6] David Browne from Entertainment Weekly called it "one startling moment" from the album, that "is sung in a soulful growl that sounds utterly unaffected". He also added that it "sports a slinky, subtle groove that recalls the maturity of Stevie Wonder’s early-’70s heyday."[7] Gavin Report commented, "Strictly a lyrical record in which Prince speaks of the priceless and the invaluable as well as the here-today and the gone-tomorrow. An easy going, if not carefree musical treat."[8] Simon Price from The Guardian picked the song as a "higlight" from the album, describing it as "thoughtfully mature".[9] Another editor, Alexis Petridis said it is "a fantastic song, the smoothness of its sound and delivery masking a punchy, politically engaged lyric that takes in both consumerism and Operation Desert Storm."[10] Music & Media wrote that after a ballad, "Diamonds And Pearls", "his royal badness speeds up the tempo just a little bit, for a nicely floating and immediately catchy number."[11] Tom Doyle from Smash Hits stated that it is "the best song" on the LP, and "the best tune he's done for years." He added that here, Prince "gets into a laidback groove".[12]

The song was an overall modest hit, reaching numbers 23 and 24 on the US Billboard Hot 100 and Hot 100 Airplay charts respectively, number 14 on the R&B/Hip-Hop Singles chart, and number 27 on the Airplay chart. It also reached number 19 in the UK, number 18 in Australia, and number 7 in the Netherlands.

The song is notable for its promotional video, directed by Spike Lee.[13] Featuring a poverty-stricken African-American family, with no shots of Prince, it was considered overly political and not "MTV friendly". A second version was issued, which included footage of the song performed by Prince and The New Power Generation, which was directed by Sotera Tschetter.

• Lyrics of this song at MetroLyrics