Extra:
Music from the Motion Picture "Purple Rain" (West German ''Target'' Pressing)
Prince and The Revolution
Originally Released August 6, 1984
AMG EXPERT REVIEW: Prince designed Purple Rain as the project that would make him a superstar, and, surprisingly, that is exactly what happened. Simultaneously more focused and ambitious than any of his previous records, Purple Rain finds Prince consolidating his funk and R&B roots while moving boldly into pop, rock, and heavy metal with nine superbly crafted songs. Even its best-known songs don't tread conventional territory: the bass-less "When Doves Cry" is an eerie, spare neo-psychedelic masterpiece; "Let's Go Crazy" is a furious blend of metallic guitars, Stonesy riffs, and a hard funk backbeat; the anthemic title track is a majestic ballad filled with brilliant guitar flourishes. Although Prince's songwriting is at a peak, the presence of the Revolution pulls the music into sharper focus, giving it a tougher, more aggressive edge. And, with the guidance of Wendy and Lisa, Prince pushed heavily into psychedelia, adding swirling strings to the dreamy "Take Me With U" and the hard rock of "Baby I'm a Star." Even with all of his new, but uncompromising, forays into pop, Prince hasn't abandoned funk, and the robotic jam of "Computer Blue" and the menacing grind of "Darling Nikki" are among his finest songs. Taken together, all of the stylistic experiments add up to a stunning statement of purpose that remains one of the mostexciting rock & roll albums ever recorded. -- Stephen Thomas Erlewine
Amazon.com essential recording
Maybe this music by Prince & the Revolution will never quite sound as, well, revolutionary as it did in 1984 (and nothing else has ever sounded like the extraordinary cooing and fluttering of "When Doves Cry"), but it's a pop landmark in Prince's Artist-ic career. The hit movie was really just a big-screen showcase for Prince to perform these songs (some of them in tear-the-roof-off "live" versions set in a Minneapolis club). I don't know why that warped sermonette introduces "Let's Go Crazy" (one thing you've got to love about Prince: he's always been weird), but somehow I'm glad it's there. Other highlights include the sexual scorcher "Darling Nikki" (with its crazy backwards coda) and that anthemic title tune. Don't you miss Wendy and Lisa, too? --Jim Emerson
AMAZON.COM CUSTOMER REVIEW
The very best Prince album, September 12, 2006
Reviewer: C. Tolley "Chris Tolley" (hampton, tn United States)
There is no understating how huge this album was in 1984. All the various styles and influences of Prince's career intersected in this one album. From beginning to end, this stands as Prince's most unified, cohesive, accessible work. Many Prince classics are here, from "Let's Go Crazy", the ultimate party track, to "When Doves Cry", possibly the most perfect song Prince ever did, to the title track. The other songs on the disc are not merely filler, either. "I Would Die For U" was a hit song in its own right, and "Darling Nikki" is perhaps the most notoriously famous song on the whole album. Yes, "Darling Nikki" was the reason Tipper Gore got so hot and heavy into album ratings for children. Actually, it's not as erotic as most of Prince's earlier work, it's just Mrs. Gore never noticed until this. Anyway, this album equaled the record for most consecutive weeks at #1 on the album chart, and had two #1 songs and a couple more hit top ten. Of course, Prince has never equaled the impact or achievement he got with this album, and really there's no way he could. With the #1 soundtrack, movie, and single all at the same time, Prince was everywhere in 1984. While the album doesn't seem so ahead-of-its-time anymore, hardly a surprise 20 years later, the music is still incredible. I consider this Prince's finest work, and so very worth being in anyone's music collection.
AMAZON.COM CUSTOMER REVIEW
No praise is undue., February 7, 2006
Reviewer: Lucas W. Reynolds "doctor_mindbender" (VA USA)
Prince is an artist who polarizes most music fans. To some, he is an unparalleled genius and even his apparent mis-steps are merely "beyond our scope" to understand. Others are confused by his sexuality, vulgarity or general behavior and find it more convenient to dismiss him as a overhyped wierdo. I tend to think of him as a genius who sometimes makes bad music (and I don't toss around the g-word lightly), but it doesn't really matter. Regardless of what you think of Prince personally, I can't imagine that anyone wouldn't recognize the monumental talent required to write and perform the songs on Purple Rain.
Barely a minute into "Let's Go Crazy", the tone is set. This is Rock. This is Funk. This is Pop. This is something else entirely. This is music with the cockiness and strut of an artist who is in full command of his considerable skills and knows it. What follows is a journey that is more vibrant and dramatic than the movie that bears the same name. Prince is demonstrating that he is beholden to no convention, but doesn't throw that fact in our faces. When he makes a decision on this album, there is no ulterior motive to show off or be controversial. His only purpose is to advance the "musical narrative". The level with which he succeeds can only be matched, not surpassed.
Many people will point to Sign of the Times or 1999 as Prince's best effort, but neither of these albums boast a collection of songs that cling together so organically, or pulse with so much energy. This is a soundtrack that renders the movie unnecessary. Each new song unfolds like a fresh scene or chapter, evolving out of the previous music. Check out the transitions between "TheBeautiful Ones" and "Computer Blue" and "Darling Nikki", or the melding of "I Would Die 4 U" and "Baby I'm a Star". Whether it's the squeal of the purple one's guitar or his voice, the conviction is clear. He has committed fully to his work, and so will you.
Purple Rain is the rare album that is perfect to throw on at party, but also holds up through a pair of headphones with all of your focus on every note. One of the top ten albums of all time.
AMAZON.COM CUSTOMER REVIEW
"The Revolution" will not be televised........., April 29, 2004
Reviewer: hiphopforlife (Dunnellon, FL)
Prine is having a great 2004; inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall Of Fame, he has a new album coming out called "Musicology" (go check it out) and his 1984 masterpiece "Purple Rain" is being re-mastered. Speaking of that.....
While it serves as the soundtrack of one of the WORST movies of all time, it's influence on modern popular music cannot be denied. This album has been influenced people like The Neptunes(and their side project N.E.R.D), D'Angelo, Musiq, Bilal, Beyonce, Pink and TLC just to name a few. The music is so inventive, yet would not sound as good without his long time backing band, comprised of Wendy and Lisa, Dez, Fink and Bobby Z. This album rocks, and I don't mean it in the metaphorical sense; this album truly ROCKS! With its Hendrix-like guitar solos is "Let's Go Crazy", and "When Doves Cry" (which is played without a bassline; UNSPEAKABLE for a black artist!) will apease any rock fan. This album is also revolutionary in another way; "Darling Nikki" (which the Foo Fighters did a wonderful cover of recently), got Tipper Gore in a tizzy, which would eventually lead to all record companies requiring warning labels for explicit content. The title track ballad is one of the best title tracks in music history; it's closes the album in resounding fashion. This album would make His Royal Badness into a mega-star, rivaling only Michael Jackson and Madonna in popularity. While he would hit his true accomplishment with "Sign O' The Times", this worthy of anybody's music collection.
AMAZON.COM CUSTOMER REVIEW
I'VE GOT A SECRET!, July 31, 2000
Reviewer: Matt Cox (St Helena, SC USA)
The weird backwards-sounding ending to "Darling Nikki" with the rain and chanting vocals is actually another "song"!
If you play this part backwards (which I did back in the 80's on my dad's turntable - remember those?), it says:
"Hello. How are you? I'm fine, fine, 'cuz I know that the Lord is coming soon. Coming again soon."
These words are sung to a very strange tune in an erie, almost unsettling harmony of voices. Haunting and unforgettable!
Half.com Details
Contributing artists: Apollonia
Producer: Prince & The Revolution
Album Notes
Prince & The Revolution: Prince (vocals, guitar, keyboards); Wendy Melvoin (vocals, guitar); Lisa Coleman, Matt "Dr." Fink (vocals, keyboards); Brown Mark (vocals, bass); Bobby Z (percussion).
Additionalpersonnel: Apollonia (vocals); Novi Novog (violin, viola); David Coleman, Suzie Katayama (cello).
Engineers include: Susan Rogers, Peggy Mac, David Riukin.
A soundtrack to a movie so appalling that it is infinitely wiser to let the record stand on its own merits. While Prince cavorted in purple kitchen foil and rode his Harley in high heels, the real star of the film, the music, was doing all the talking. A knit of funk and rock, a heavily stylized Hendrix guitar lick here and there, and a wilfully danceable backbeat all made for a huge commercial smash, and the first real international introduction for many people to a star-in-waiting. 'Darling Nikki' accidentally set the PMRC ball rolling, but the heady lilt of the title track and the crushing 'When Doves Cry' can pardon him that.
Industry Reviews
Ranked #2 in Rolling Stone's 100 Best Albums Of The Eighties survey.
Rolling Stone (11/01/1989)
Included in Vibe's 100 Essential Albums of the 20th Century
Vibe (12/01/1999)
Ranked #9 in EW's 100 Best Movie Soundtracks - ...A genre-bending smorgasbord...a monument to mad ambition...
Entertainment Weekly (10/12/2001)
Ranked #15 in CMJ's Top 20 Most-Played Albums of 1984
CMJ (01/05/2004)
Ranked #72 in Rolling Stone's 500 Greatest Albums Of All Time - ...[The album] showcases Prince's abilities as a guitarist...
Rolling Stone (12/11/2003)
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