Tag: 1985
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Computer Blue
Prince’s portrayal of a sentient, lovelorn CPU tapped into contemporary anxieties that society’s dependence on computers would have a dehumanizing effect, with cold logic taking the place of feelings and empathy.
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Purple Rain (Verse 3)
It’s Prince’s contribution to the Great American Songbook, a modern-day standard that transcends (almost) all categories of generation, genre, and taste.
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Purple Rain (Verse 2)
Listening to the recording today, almost 40 years after it was captured from a mobile unit parked outside First Avenue, is an almost eerie experience.
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Darling Nikki
“Darling Nikki” would become Purple Rain’s standard-bearer for the “danger” of Prince albums past.
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I Would Die 4 U
More, perhaps, than any other song in Prince’s catalogue, “I Would Die 4 U” has transcended its original meaning to become something bigger than all of us.
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Velvet Kitty Cat
A mildly naughty bit of fun, its lyrics loaded with winking references to “man’s best friend[,] furry, cuddly & fat.”