Remarks:
Prince in 1984. Hard to believe this only went to #2 in America (#4 on its R&B charts). Never fear: “When Doves Cry” was the number one song of the year for the whole country. “Purple Rain” went to #1 in Britain where the general audience seems to have more sense.
This is maybe the only song (outside of Jimi Hendrix and Led Zeppelin) where the guitar solo on the album pretty much lives up to how I remember it – I just wish it went on longer! My memory seems to always make the guitar solos of songs much better than they were. So when I listen to old songs on YouTube I am like, “What? You mean that’s it?”
Lyrics:
I never meant to cause you any sorrow.
I never meant to cause you any pain.
I only wanted to one time see you laughing.
I only wanted to see you laughing in the purple rain.
Purple rain, purple rain.
Purple rain, purple rain.
Purple rain, purple rain.
I only wanted to see you bathing in the purple rain.
I never wanted to be your weekend lover.
I only wanted to be some kind of friend.
Baby I could never steal you from another.
It’s such a shame our friendship had to end.
Purple rain, purple rain.
Purple rain, purple rain.
Purple rain, purple rain.
I only wanted to see you underneath the purple rain.
Honey I know, I know, I know times are changing.
It’s time we all reach out for something new,
That means you too.
You say you want a leader,
But you can’t seem to make up your mind.
I think you better close it,
And let me guide you to the purple rain.
Purple rain, purple rain.
Purple rain, purple rain.
If you know what I’m singing about up here.
C’mon raise your hand.
Purple rain, purple rain.
I only want to see you, only want to see you.
This is my all time favourite Prince song! Ahhhh…..the memories!
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I love this song. That’s Melvoin on the second flanged (rhythm) guitar. She’s playing that beautiful intro. I believe the lead and solo is all Prince.
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@ Shady Grady
That makes more sense. Thanks.
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My sister introduced me to this song and I love it 😀
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Everyone loves prince, but forget Morris and The Time!
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anonymous
Seeing him in concert is worth the money. Seeing him in person is intriguing.
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Prince is fantastic….I remember when When Doves Cry hit the radio in New York, the lyrics just didnt sound like anything you heard before …
I agree with Bulanik about the cut being a little too rocky for my taste, I love Prince doing his James Brown thing. He did a James Brown thing with Sheila E and her brother on timbales and congas and it just knocks me out, monster James Brown funk with sizzling clave on the percusion solos
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(meaning the cut “Purple Rain” being a little too rocky…)
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Prince is great. One of my favorites is “Diamonds and Pearls”: http://www.totallyfuzzy.net/ourtube/prince/diamonds-and-pearls-w-the-new-power-generation-video_17d2524de.html
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Still love ‘Raspberry Beret’. ‘Pop Life’ Supreme chooon
Prince and Sheila E
Prince
Difficult to find Prince’s songs on you tube…
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Randy Crawford is one of my all-time favorite singers, like ‘Rainy Day in Georgia’, ‘Street Life’ and ‘Captain of My Heart’.
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@Demerera
Ooh, Get off, yum yum yum. One of the horniest songs ever.
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Sign of Times is greatness.
Also groundbreaking in the use of typography in music videos, which became a short-lived trend. For example, George Michael was influenced and used it in his videos.
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Sign of Times makes me think of Neneh Cherry’s version of Cole Porter’s song ‘I’ve Got You Under My Skin’.
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SW6
I apologize, and stand corrected! 🙂
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@Bulanik
I love “The Most Beautiful Girl in the World”. Sigh. Makes me feel all romantic…
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Crrreaamm!
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@Bulanik
I knew Prince wrote ‘Nothing Compares to You’. Fantabulous song, and another music video classic using extreme close-up, yet again to be copied multible time. First of it’s kind. Brilliant, briliant and such a touching song.
Never knew of the Chaka Khan version, though. Thanks!
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What about these by the man himself
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@Hannu
Randy Crawford is one of my all-time favorite singers, like ‘Rainy Day in Georgia’, ‘Street Life’ and ‘Captain of My Heart’
‘Rainy Night in Georgia’ Mister 😉 though I prefer ‘One day i’ll fly away’ and ‘Street Life’. I won £250 many years ago singing the latter .
Ooh, Get off, yum yum yum. One of the horniest songs ever.
Get your mind out of the gutter – lol
@Bulanik
Sign o’ the Times is greatness
How the hell did I forget to mention this – shame on me. I totally agree with you there. Weird, never thought much of it when it came out.
Also like ‘Glam Slam’ and ‘Alphabet Street’ and will always have a special place in my heart for ‘1999’
Someone mentioned Morris Day….I dont know whether Prince participated in the writing or production of this but I lurve ‘It’s your world’ with The Time which again frustratingly I cant find on You Tube though fortunately I have it on my MP4.
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@Bulanik
I think I recall you Robert and I discussing this on the Open Thread. As one of my Uncle’s would say, ‘you must come from good stock’ 🙂
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Big Shout out to Melissa Morgan’s ‘Fools Paradise’ – Sorry, just had to say it when I saw the clip above.
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@Demerera
Congrats for your singing talent! Not an easy task, if you think of the original (?) perfomer.
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….There’s more…
“Lets go Crazy” and
Take me with U
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@Hannu
Congrats for your singing talent! Not an easy task, if you think of the original (?) perfomer.
Cheers Chuck. Certainly no American Idol contestant though
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i’m mad i can’t listen to his music on the internet. i have too many favorites from prince.
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Wow, I never knew Prince wrote so many catchy tunes, especially ‘Manic Monday’ by the Bangles is a huge surprise.
I don’t think he is appreciated enough, if I look at his output in hindsight.
And I looove that Chaka Khan song. I remember buying my first ‘ghetto blaster’ with my summer job money (which my father hated of course, wasting money like that) and this was one of the songs in a hit collection I bought with it.
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I’ve seen Prince in concert three times. It was worth every penny. He is an excellent entertainer.
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My favorite Prince jam is Dance,,Music,Sex, Romance. Soft&Wet. The Controversy CD is the best.
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@Bulanik
Kiss” made Tom Jones cool again…LOL. (Women and girls rule my world…)
Indeed. One of the guys in the Art of Noise didnt feel working with Tom was his finest hour though. Again, the Art of Noise, another innovative act though I appreciate not to the extent Prince has been
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Art of Noise did a good job.
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Choreographer, Louis Falco choreographed Kiss , although some of the dancing is Prince …I worked with Falco on the film Fame, he was great…
I love Princes sensuality…he produced the Time ( 777-9311 is my favorite Time), Vanity 6 ( Nasty Girl), Sheila E and others…he covered a lot of ground…
The greatest time I ever missed Prince was going to see Sheila E at the Ritz in New York, it was packed , and she came out and put on one of the greatest stage shows Ive seen, and, I figured Id beat the crowd and split…Prince came on for the encore..he had produced her
Way to go Demerera
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Love Prince! He’s known for his musical genius, mysterious allure and his beautiful protegees.
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Morris Day and The Time was mentioned. At least on the first two studio albums by The Time, Prince wrote and performed virtually all the music himself except for obviously the vocals. For “777-9311”, Prince played in Jesse Johnson’s style with lots of whammy, feedback, distortion and harmonics. The story I read was after he had finished he threw the master recording to Johnson and told him “nice solo, Jesse”.
I’ve also read that “Purple Rain” was in part influenced by similar Bob Seger anthems, not musically but thematically. I’m not so sure about that because “Purple Rain” is quite similar sonically and thematically to Prince’s own “Free”. Either way I like the song a lot and obviously like Prince. =) Nice post!!!
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Have dearly loved me some Prince since the very beginning, and am surprised that a lot of his early work hasn’t been mentioned more.
@mary burrell – YES! To DMSR and Soft and Wet, and seeing him perform live several times.
The first time I saw him was the late 70s at some club in Hollywood and I was mesmerized. I’d heard his songs, but didn’t realize he was such a great performer. I saw him again in the early 80s when he opened for The Rolling Stones. Stones fans booed him off the stage. I was so hurt by that because I paid my money to see Prince. I could care less about the Rolling Stones, although that was rumored to be their farewell concert. Famous last words… More like the first of MANY. LOL.
Saw him with The Time twice — and on both occasions, The Time’s show was actually BETTER than Prince’s, if you can believe that. But they were still great shows.
His slow songs are so sexy. Adore, Do Me Baby, International Lover, plus so many more. Mmmmm. Dangerous stuff, that.
Here’s Melissa Morgan singing her version of
Do Me Baby
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This is vintage Prince!
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Shady, great info on 777-9311
I could imagine that is Prince on guitar…but, the drums with that monster high hat patern, I wonder ifhe did that or “Dont be so mean Jelly Bean Johnson”, the drummer for the Time. Its a real hip complex high hat pattern and I saw Johnson do it on American Bandstand..but, Prince may well have done it and showed him…but, I dont know
What was so incredibly is that , by Prince producing so much hip music and the groups around him, he started turning , of all places, Minneapolis into a kind of music center, with people flying in to hang out with Prince…If Minneapolis can become a music center with its really cold winters, anywhere can..
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Ooop, @ Bulanik, sorry about that. I wasn’t paying attention — too excited about the well-deserved adulation of the Purple One.
I think what I like most about Prince is that most of his music is so timeless. You can listen to stuff he recorded 30 years ago, and it still sounds current and relevant. In fact, his music from 30 years ago is about 500 times better than almost anything being done today. In another thread someone talked about the disparity between the music that garners publicity and acceptance within any given era, and the music that’s studied and celebrated by later generations. While Prince has certainly won his share of gold records, he definitely fits into the latter category in terms of how he has and will continue to impact popular music.
If I were stranded on a desert island with a solar powered record player and only 20 or so albums, probably half would be Prince albums (only because I’d have to have some Stevie Wonder with me, too).
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And yes, I said RECORD PLAYER! I’m old school like that. 😉
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A who could forget Lady Cabdriver, International Lover. and Head, Private Joy.
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*And who* forgive the typo. Annie Christian.
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@ mary burrell, you’re bringing it all back!
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Love Morris Day and the Time too! I went to one of their concerts two years ago with all of the original members. I was called on stage and danced along side Morris. Though I’m younger, he was energetic and didn’t miss a step. I could barely keep up.lol
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“Let’s Go Crazy”, “1999” and “Little Red Corvette” are my favorites from Prince.
Morris Day and the Time. I love watching Morris Day perform during the song “Jungle Love”…the cool mannerisms and that dance where he swings his legs from side to side….
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Prince has already disabled the video in the OP. Within 24 hours!
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Yes, I have seen Prince videos disabled quickly on other websites too.
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I’d be willing to bet he has someone on staff whose sole responsibility is to troll the internet, removing his music. Too bad. There are probably scores of people who might enjoy his music that might never get the chance because they can’t access it over the web. This is especially true of his older music, which, because of his feud with Warner Bros. people may never get to hear. I know I’ve purchased lots of songs after seeing the video on YouTube or hearing it on Pandora.
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Prince is such a high leval performer , I know Ive seen some shots of him jumping up and doing that fast twirl of the feet in the air that is some advanced ballet tecnique…I dont know what is training was, but, he is doing it…
That alone, his stage performance, “front man / singer dancer” ethic , puts him in a great tradition of artists like the Nicholas Brothers, John Robinson , Fred Astaire, Sammy Davis Jr , James Brown (of course) and his contemporary , Michael Jackson, could be one of the things to be remembered a long time…
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@Hey B.R. I’m not sure about the drums on 777-9311. I believe that part of the pattern is the Linn Drum machine. I’m not sure if it’s also Prince, Morris. drum machine or someone else.
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Yeah, Shady, Morris was a drummer…
I think you are right that part of it is a Linn Drum patern, but, the high hat sounds so cool and is complex, and I saw the drummer doing it on American bandstand, but, they could have shown it to him. The high hat sounds like it could be a live overdub…but, Im not sure….
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@ SW6
I replaced the dead video with a picture.
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SW6, I mean that compared to something like Smokey Robinson”s “OHH Baby”, or ” Tracks of my Tears” , Purple Rain is more of an “anthem rock” aproach…Im not saying it cant be beautiful, but, its not my favorite aproach by Prince , for example I like When Doves Cry and Kiss more, and, I like some of his productions with Sheila E the most…
Prince has so much depth, sometimes he is going to cover ground I love and sometimes he will do things that arnt my favorite. I think Prince will make a mark as being one of the most dynamic stage performers of his time. With the great influence of James Brown, and , he has elements of dressing like Little Richard and implying Hendrix on the guitar. I think he will be more remembered for the breath of his production and this stage presence and performance rather than songs like ” Rasberie Beret”. Purple Rain the movie I think will have more impact in the future than the song Purple Rain
That is just my opinion , not meant to be some final word…
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I think its easy to quantify the influence of rock on Prince , and see when he is playing to that element and when he is playing to other elements. The stuff he was doing with Larry Graham was much more his influence of soul and gosple music.
Prince is perfect for people like me that dont love rock, so, he will be doing monster soul with some killer scratch guitar in the blink of an eye.For one kind of person, the Sheila E stuff , when she is playing congas with his James Brown thing, might be insignificant, but, for me, to put pure driving clave and ram it up against mainline James Brown funk, is astounding , and innovating and will hold up in 50 years, I have the dvd of part of that hit, and, it kills me everytime
In Purple Rain, he definitly is doing a rock style guitar solo, with licks that Eddie Van Halen might have, which is a rock guy I know can play , and his brother is a kicking drummer also, just to show Im not anti all kind of rock…but, you can quantify it against what deep funk and rhythm and blues styles are, and Prince had them both
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prince film purple rain by lepoulpe33
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Beleive me,SW6, I understand why you love the song, and, I sure dont hate it, its just not my favorite Prince. If you think of it, the whole movie, Purple Rain, The Time, Vanity 6( had another name in the movie and originily had Vanity as the singer, but, Apalonia took over in the movie , another complicated Prince story I dont know the whole details), The Revolution etc, are all Prince…Sheila E, was produced by Prince….Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis, formed their own production team that eventualy produces Janet Jackson, who combines her brother and Prince concepts, all of them pushing a dance ethic that is admirable beyond words in my estimate…
This is what I think part of the legacy of Prince will be, and, his stage dance ethic is one of the things that gives him great lasting power remembering , its something in American music and movies , even into rock and roll….its a valid catagory of remembering the uniqueness of an artist , as well as other things also
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Here is a young artist who has been influenced by Prince :
(http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wd9yYfPYvQk&list=UU-pd9IT71oivlEcSw5o3m9A&index=1&feature=plpp_video)
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Yeah, SW6 , he is my son….so, I know first hand how he is infulenced by Prince and understands the James Brown to Michael Jackson to Prince connection and how it plays out with Neo, Usher and Chris Brown…He also understands how “Snake Hips” came before James Brown and how dances like the Charleston and Lindy Hop and Tap came before that with the Nicholas Brothers doing the splits and stuff…the mic between the legs is straight from Prince , but, James Brown might have done it first, I just know he saw Prince do it on a video
It doesnt hurt he has some really killer musicians doing the tracks , Alex Foster just taking care of funk business on sax and master funk bass player Tony Cimorosi….and me kicking the kit
Bottom line, Prince is being picked up on in a big way by young entertainers like him , which is a great thing
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By the way…
The ex-members of The Revolution collaborated recently with French producer RoxyParis. Eric Leeds contributed his amazing saxophone part to the first single from the album, you can listen it here: http://soundcloud.com/publicdifferent/sets/roxy-paris/
Here is the full information about the whole project: http://www.publicdifferent.com/roxyparis/
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His Royal Tremendousness is on the cover of this month’s MOJO.
🙂
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‘1999’ is still one of my top ten all-time albums.
By the time ‘Purple Rain’ came out I was pretty much over Prince yet one of my younger brothers thought he WAS Prince.
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