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Purple Rain, 1984

Baby I’m a Star

“The MUSIC segues into a fierce BEAT.
The CROWD lets out a ROAR! Prince
strips off his guitar, streaks center-
stage. The Band launches into ‘Baby,
I’m A Star.’

“…And the CROWD laughing, dancing,
shouting and loving. The CLUB is ALIVE!

“And the MUSIC continues…forever…”

Draft screenplay for Purple Rain by Albert Magnoli, 1983

In the spring of 1983, Prince’s contract with managers Cavallo, Ruffalo, and Fargnoli was up for renewal. They had, on the face of it, little reason to worry: the 1999 tour was selling out arenas, “Little Red Corvette” was in the Top 10 of the pop charts, and 1999 was well on its way to Platinum certification by the RIAA. By the end of April, Prince would make the cover of Rolling Stone: a coveted opportunity for which his managers had netted a Richard Avedon photo shoot without granting an interview. “I thought we did an incredible job, we had a creative relationship, I’m sure he’s gonna sign another contract,” Bob Cavallo later told music journalist Alan Light. But Prince sent his main handler, Steve Fargnoli, back to Cavallo with a surprising ultimatum: “he won’t sign with us again unless we get him a movie” (Light 51).

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Prince Track by Track: “Sex in the Summer”

It’s been a minute since my last appearance on Prince: Track by Track, but I’m back again to chat with host Darren Husted about one of my guilty pleasures from Emancipation:

Prince Track by Track:
“Sex in the Summer”

Also in semi-related news, my other project Dystopian Dance Party has launched our fifth annual celebration of wet, silky ’80s R&B, Jheri Curl June. If you’re a fan of Prince’s ’80s work, you’ll find a lot to like about the stuff we cover. Check out the podcast kicking of the festivities here:

Dystopian Dance Party Podcast:
Jheri Curl June 2K18

You should also check in on the blog, as we’ll be posting a vintage Jheri Curl track every weekday this month. Some of them, I’m sure, will be Prince-related. Meanwhile, over here I’ll have an end-of-year-two wrap-up post this week, and then it’s on to our next Prince track, “She’s Just a Baby.”