Categories
Uncategorized

#PrinceTwitterThread: “Endorphinmachine”

As I’ve alluded a few times recently, the last couple of weeks have been pretty hectic in my neck of the woods; but I still had to make the time to participate in this month’s #PrinceTwitterThread series on 1995’s The Gold Experience. I know I remain, somewhat unfashionably, an ’80s Prince guy, but The Gold Experience is one of my faves from the ’90s and “Endorphinmachine” is an absolute banger. Check out the thread below, and be sure to also make your voice heard on the poll I posted pitting the raw original mix against the clunktastic album version. Also, stay tuned to @PrinceThread on Twitter; the series just got started, and is going all the way through the Record Store Day release of The Gold Experience on Saturday the 18th!

Categories
Ephemera, 1984 Lacunae

Lacuna: The Dawn

While shooting Purple Rain in the last two months of 1983, Prince had uncharacteristically little time to spend in the studio. But as production wound down in late December, he dove back in, returning to Sunset Sound to work on new material for his manifold projects. On December 27, he recorded the basic track for “The Glamorous Life”–originally intended for Apollonia 6, but later given to (and made famous by) Sheila E. The following day, he added vocals and cut another track that would end up on Sheila’s album, “Next Time Wipe the Lipstick Off Your Collar”; as well as a song yet to be released anywhere, “Blue Love.” The day after that, he completed his first version of “She’s Always in My Hair.” Finally, on December 31, he rang in the New Year with an enigmatic new number, listed on the studio work order as “The Dawn.”

As readers of Duane Tudahl’s Prince and the Purple Rain Era Studio Sessions are no doubt aware, though, the last song Prince recorded in 1983 was not “The Dawn.” It was, in fact, “We Can Fuck,” a title deemed too explicit for an official Sunset Sound document; it would also be known by the euphemisms “Moral Majority” (not to be confused with the actual recording by that title) and, anecdotally, “Sex” (also not to be confused with the 1989 song later released as the B-side for “Scandalous”). But Prince clearly thought the dummy title was too good to waste on an act of self-censorship; because just a week later, on January 7-8, 1984, he recorded a new song bearing the same name.

Categories
Podcast Prince, 1979

Podcast: Prince (1979) Revisited

October 19, 2018 marks the 39th anniversary of Prince’s self-titled second album–not the most glamorous occasion, perhaps, but reason enough to reassemble the review panel from our For You podcast for a reappraisal. Once again, Zach is joined by Harold and KaNisa for a track-by-track discussion of this underappreciated album, its resonances throughout Prince’s career, and why it still matters.

Categories
Uncategorized

Prince Track by Track: “Dinner with Delores”

Darren Husted’s Prince: Track by Track podcast has reached the end of the W.B. era, and I was lucky enough to discuss O(+>’s final single for the label, the elegaic-but-also-kinda-sexist “Dinner with Delores.” Check it out here:

Prince Track by Track:
“Dinner with Delores”

While I’m in podcast-plugging mode, allow me to shout out the first episode of Muse 2 the Pharaoh, the latest addition to Michael Dean’s purple podcast empire hosted by friend of the blog Darling Nisi. I had the opportunity to hang with KaNisa and three of her guests (Stephanie, Crystal, and Erika) at Celebration last month and they are warm, funny people; so it comes as no surprise that their conversation for the podcast is heartwarming and positive, a perfect balance of intelligence and totally relatable fangirlishness. I can’t wait to hear the second episode:

Muse 2 the Pharaoh #1

And if you enjoy that, then keep an eye out for when Erika shows up on my other podcast, Dystopian Dance Party, on Friday! We’ll be talking about our Paisley Park experiences, and she’ll quiz my sister and I on some Prince songs we love to hate.

Finally, I’m hoping to get back in the weekly-post groove and knock out another song from The Time by the end of the week. Wish me luck!

Categories
Uncategorized

Prince Track by Track: “Shy”

My latest guest appearance on Prince: Track by Track actually went up last Wednesday, but I was too busy to write anything up about it, so here it is now:

Prince Track by Track: “Shy”

The subject this time around is one of my favorite songs from The Gold Experience, which also happens to be one of my favorite Prince/O(+> albums of the ’90s. Hopefully my affection for it comes through. Also, because I forgot to do it while we were recording, allow me to shout out friend of the blog Erica Thompson for her excellent writeup of the song for Diffuser’s 365 Prince Songs in a Year series.

Despite appearances to the contrary, I’m currently working on the last few posts for the Time album, which I hope to wrap up in May; then, it’s onward to Controversy. Those of you who have been following along, thanks for bearing with me while I juggled other projects for the past few months. Looking forward to getting back into the regular routine!