- 1979 05-01-1979 : Minneapolis Star
OUR TEEN-AGE VIRTUOSO IS HOME TO PLAY AT LAST
Jon Bream of the Minneapolis Star (before the paper merged with Minneapolis Tribune to become Minneapolis Star Tribune) was
one of the first music journalists to follow Prince’s career. This interview was published on the day of Prince’s debut as a solo
performer, January 5th 1979.
The extra-ordinary one-man band will take the stage as a mere bandleader tonight and tomorrow at the Capri Theatre.
I’m nervous. I’ll be terrified, because it’s gonna take a while to block out the fact there are people out there. I find it extremely hard
to perform for people. I think I found it hard to sing and play in front of my band at first. But now that I got to know them better,
it’s really easy now and we all bounce off each other as far as energy goes. I think before I can bounce off the crowd it will take a
few songs.
Prince paused and looked down, displaying the reserve that has, in the past, led him to shun interviews and public appearances.
I’m really free and open once I get to know a person. But when I first encounter something, I’m a little laid back and cautious.
People constantly call me shy. I don’t feel shy, but I guess I sometimes come off that way to people. Everybody at Warner
Brothers has a big impression I’m really quiet.
If he doesn't talk, he probably won’t dance or sing too much. I have to put to rest all those accusations. Making the transition from a
one-man band to a front man was difficult at first, but Prince says he's handing it.
It’s complicated at times. It’s fun when you hear it [his music] all come back with someone else’s interpretation. Deep down, I can
tell it’s different, but sometimes on the surface it’s better. It’s not just me doing everything, trying to keep my energy level up at all
times.
During his formative years, Prince preferred to make music rather than listen to it. His childhood was rather introverted.
I missed out on a lot, but I don’t regret it. I missed out on socializing. But I get high off playing my music or going to a movie
alone. I used to like to play sports, but I had to quit that. I used to want to go to college. I certainly don’t have time for that. At one
time, I wanted to get married and I don’t have time for that. I wanted kids, too. But l don’t have time for that, either. I think the
things I missed out on, my mind has changed about them. I think I've done what l wanted to do in life. In teen-age life.
To help promote For You, Prince attended autograph parties.
It was weird. It was mostly kids from 11 to 20. They were relating to me being so young. There's been ads in the teen magazines
and my age has really come up. The kids would ask me if my real name is Prince, what ”Soft and Wet” means, and did I really
play all those instruments myself. People expect you to be an egomaniac because of who you are. The way I am now, I was
always. I supposed if I lived in California and rode in limos and had people waiting on me hand and foot, I could change. I’m not
into all that.
He often thinks big, but he speaks with a soft-spoken confidence.
I do what I want to do, otherwise, this business will kill you. It [success] will happen if it’s supposed to. I don’t worry about it too
much. What it all boils down to means nothing except love. As long as I got that, I don’t need money. If I went broke, it wouldn't
faze me. Love and music. As long as I got that, everything’s cool. Everything.
Inside The Purple Reign (84)
By Jon Bream
It was a late afternoon, crisp and cold. Rehearsal had just wound down and keyboardist Matt Fink and Roger Dumas, a synthesizer
supplier and programmer, were still toying around with equipment. Prince had an acoustic guitar in his hand; a denim poor-boy hat
obscured his Afro and his eyes. This would be his first one-on-one interview - no manager to interrupt with the right answers for the
shy speaker, no photographer clicking away (because Prince simply wouldn’t allow it). Just a dog occasionally barking in the
background, a strum here and there of guitar, and a soft, monotone voice.
What kind of show can we expect ?
Wild.
Are you nervous about it ?
Yeah. But after we start I think we’ll be okay.
How does it feel after spending so much time recording the material by yourself to play that same material with other people ?
Different. It’s complicated at times. It’s fun when you hear it come back with someone’s else’s interpretations.
It must sound different to you.
Well, yeah. Deep down I can tell it’s different. But on the surface it sounds sometimes better because it’s a live situation. Somebody
else has just that part to take care of. It’s not just me doing everything and trying to keep my energy level up at all times.
Is it difficult to make the transition from one-man band to being in an ensemble ?
It’s hard.
Do you think having played in other groups before helps you ?
No, not really. That was such a long time ago. I haven’t played onstage in like three years. I’ve forgotten most of it.
How did the promotional tour go ?
It was weird. I liked the food drive [in North Carolina] because I was in a small section in the radio station and people could come
in and I could talk and stuff like that. But on Saturday night we did an autograph party for two thousand people. It was
hysterical.
Did you just sit around and sign autographs ?
No. For about twenty minutes, and then the crowd started getting too large.
What did they do ?
There was supposed to be a disco, but I only got to sign for about one hundred, and they just started rushing the stage and we had
to leave. It got really bizarre. Then they [the organizers] were just like throwing posters off the stage. It was just mad.
What kind of reaction did you get from people on a one-to-one basis ? What did they ask you ?
Mainly everybody asked me if my real name was Prince. That was the main question. And “What does ‘Soft and Wet’ mean ?”
What does it mean ?
Are you asking me ?
Yeah.
Do you want to hear my new song ?... [It means] Whatever you can draw from it. They asked me about it on the radio, and I told
them it was about deodorant. I don’t think they believed me.
What other kind of things did they ask you ?
One kid asked me if my mother helped me write “Soft and Wet.” And, um, they asked me how long it took to make my album. Did I
really do everything by myself ?
Earlier you were talking about the importance of having hometown talent in your band and how your own music doesn’t even
get support here from the rest of the music community.
I've never really thought about it too much. I’m going to get depressed now.
What qualities do you think you have that have made you successful ?
Being tall. I don’t know. I can’t really say. I can’t answer that. You’d have to ask someone else.
Let me put it a different way. What do you think your strengths and your weaknesses are ?
I'm a sucker for good legs.... I don’t think I have any strengths. It’s hard for me to talk about myself. I can tell you what Matt’s
strengths and weaknesses are.
What do you see as your goals at this point ?
I want to be a janitor. I do. [Laughter from the interviewer.] Don’t laugh. No. I want to produce other groups after a while. And I
want to do an album with the band as soon as possible. Maybe after the second tour is over.
You were talking about your new songs.
We’ve got a few songs we’ll do at the Capri that I’ll probably never record on an album because they’re too spicy.
Why wouldn’t you do them on a record ?
They corns off well in a concert situation, but on a record.. . albums and concerts are pretty much different. I like to make an
album and get it out like a book or something. And concerts you just want to excite. I’ll probably never do them on an album they’re pretty wild and they come off well visually.
When you write your stuff, what instrument do you write on ?
Lately it’s been coming through dreams. I’ll dream something, and if you dream something and go back to sleep, you forget it. But
if you wake right up and stay up with it, you’ll remember it and maybe get something out of it. I did that last night. I dreamt that
my dad wrote a song and it was really a nice song. I remember that I woke up and really liked it, but I couldn’t stay awake.
Sometimes I write them on a guitar. I’ve written songs on everything. I’ve written songs on drums.
When did you first start writing songs ? How old were you ?
Five. I didn’t really write it, but I just sang it and remembered it, kept singing it. I wrote that on the rocks. I had two rocks - that’s
how I wrote that.
Then you progressed.
Yeah, I moved on to bigger rocks, bricks. [Chuckles from the interviewer.]
Do you actually write out the songs or just play them for a copyist ?
I haven’t really needed that for a while. The first couple of bands, we mainly worked on feel and did things out of our head. In this
band I can tell somebody what I want, and I can give them a different idea if I want them to change it. We don’t read. They may
read music, I don’t know. I haven’t asked them. But we don’t have any music.
Earlier you said there’s not a lot of incentive around here like there is in, say, L.A. Have you ever thought of moving someplace
else to be more stimulated ?
I don’t need any stimulation myself. I know a lot of other people might. I like it here ‘cause it’s quiet. There are other places that
are quieter, so I don’t worry about losing that. But I know there are a lot of people who would like to see this place really boom.
In your formative years, what did you listen to ?
I didn’t do that too much then, either. I was an optimist [sic] or something. I didn’t like the music so much. I liked to make it, but I
didn’t like what was going on. It was all sort of manipulated by the business. People write their best songs before they get in the
business. A lot of my songs that will be on my next albums are songs I’ve written from years ago. They’re from the heart. You
write them when you’re down and out or whatever.
Why do you always sing in falsetto ?
Because when my voice changed it went down, and I couldn’t get any power out of it. I couldn’t get any life, so to speak. The
energy - I couldn’t get it from that voice. With the higher voice, it was easier to hit the higher notes. There’s something about the
word high that I like. There’s something about the word. And it also hurts in my lower voice to sing, when I sing too hard. It
doesn’t hurt in my falsetto.
What did you think of the way they promoted you as the youngest producer for Warner Bros. who did everything himself ? It was
almost to the point that it was hype.
I tried not to listen to it too much. That’s why I stayed here and lived here. I’m away from all of that. I don’t see the posters and
magazines and stuff like that.
How does your ego handle that ? You’re a well-known quantity in some cities, and you’re sitting here in the middle of the
wilderness, where no one knows you.
I like it. I like it a lot. People change when they find out who you are. Like the public. I make my best friends when they don’t know
what I’m about. If they do the exact same thing I do, they tend to put up guards, and it’s kind of frustrating because they expect
you to be an egomaniac. It’s kind of hard. The way I am now, I was always. I suppose if I lived in California and rode around in
limos all the time and had people waiting on me hand and foot, then maybe that could make you change. People with the
strongest minds change to some degree. But I’m not into all of that. I’m right here and this is where I’ve always been.
You and Owen used to go to a lot of concerts. What were you looking for ?
I’d go to concerts like I go to movies - it’s just an escape. I think Owen was doing most of the work as far as what made things
work smoothly. Concerts and movies are nice because it’s an escape from real life. You can just bury yourself in something else. I
don’t really listen to the music so much at concerts as just looking at the players and wondering what they’re thinking about.
What’s going to go through your mind and your audience’s mind when you’re at the Capri ?
First of all, I’ll be terrified. It’s going to be a small amount of people. It’s going to take a while to block out that there are people
out there. I find it extremely hard performing for people. It’s like my band - I found it hard singing and playing in front of them at
first. But after I got to know them better, it’s really easy now, and we all bounce off each other as far as energy goes. Before I can
bounce off the crowd, it’ll take a few songs. I think it’ll be the same with them, too. I’m really free and open once I get to know a
person. But when I first encounter someone, I’m really laid back and cautious, I guess.
You have to build up a trust and rapport.
I’m constantly getting called shy and stuff like that. I don’t feel shy, but I guess I sometimes come off that way to people. At any
rate, I don’t want to come off as shy to a crowd. So I’m working on that.
Do you feel having gone through all this that you’ve missed out on anything in life ? I mean you’ve been heavily into your music
for a long time.
I did, but I don’t regret it. I missed out on a lot. I used to like to play sports and I had to quit that. I used to want to go to college,
and I certainly don’t have time for that. At one time I wanted to get married, and I don’t have time for that. I wanted kids, too,
‘cause I really like kids. But I don’t have time for that, either. I think mainly the things I missed out on, my mind just changed. Like
right now I don’t want to get married or have kids or play sports. I think I’ve done what I wanted to do in life, teenage life.
What are you thinking about for the next album ?
I’m constantly trying to do different things, you know. Whether they be better or good, it doesn’t matter. It only matters to me. If I
find out that it’s for the worse, so ? What it boils down to is that nothing means nothing except, you know, love. As long as I’ve got
that, I don’t need money. If I went broke or something, it wouldn’t faze me. Love and music - as long as I’ve got that, everything’s
cool. Everything.
What are your plans from here ?
Just go out and play, and we’ll be revamping the show constantly. I hope to sell a lot of records. People that aren’t hip to it, I hope
they do get hip to it. Because I'm going to be around for a while until something freaky happens - like a thunderbolt or something.
I really want people to catch on to what I’m doing, because I’m going to do a lot of different things. If I’ve got people behind me
that love and care about me, I can help change things.
Are you concerned about your image ? I don’t think Warners knows whether to market you as black, disco, or pop.
I have a lot of really nice acoustic songs I’d like to record just because; it’s like “Three Times a Lady.” I didn’t write a song like
that, but I’m using that as an example. That was a song that just couldn’t be stopped - it just broke everywhere. It didn’t matter
that they were black or whatever. Sometimes I’m tempted to just not do another single like “Soft and Wet” and just do something
out of the ordinary. Then if that hits, then people would, I guess, realize. I don’t want to be trapped into one particular thing that
would be hindering, because I would like to do a lot of different things.
What will Warners think of that ?
They’re going to come see us perform on Saturday. Everybody has the big impression that I’m really quiet. You know, if he doesn’t
talk, then he probably won’t dance or sing too much. I have to put to rest all those accusations, I guess.
I guess you’ve got the image already.
I didn’t like to do a lot of interviews, and I didn’t do a lot because I got misquoted a lot, you know. A lot of writers have a way of
switching words around, and it comes off like you don’t know what’s going on. Plus I found it really hard to open up to people,
and I’ve been trying to work on that a lot lately within myself. That’s one of my weaknesses - sometimes I just won’t talk to people
at all. I’m trying to get over that. It hurts your business, as well.
I get the idea that you spent so much time at home getting into your music that you didn’t have the time or energy to relate to
others.
Yeah. That’s it, you’re right. I don’t know, it’s like I get high off of playing my music or going to a movie alone or going to a
concert or something like that, because I can just fantasize about anything I want when I’m doing those things. When I talk to
people it’s almost a routine. They’ll tell you what they want you to know and you have to [know} - it’s really dumb, and you’re
supposed to accept that and give your response. I don’t like to talk too much; I like to act. I’ve done a lot of strange things as far as
that goes. I’m getting out of it slowly and trying to relate to people a little more. I think I best relate performing and playing
music. There’ll be a time probably when I won’t do any interviews. I know they’re important right now ‘cause people won’t know
what’s on my mind. I don’t mind doing them with people I can bounce off of rather than they ask the same stupid questions ”What kind of food do you eat ?” It doesn’t really matter.
Is there anything else you want to talk about ?
First of all, I’d like to say this was about the most interesting interview I’ve done. I’ve never talked this much in my life. [Giggles.] I
swear.
MPLS Capri Theater
* Advert. Start : 8:00PM / Attendance : 300 / Duration : 1:00 / Tick. Price : $4.75 / $4
For You / Instrumental / Soft And Wet / Unidentified track / So Blue / 4 Unidentified tracks / Just As Long As We’re Together
Prince made his debut as a solo performer at
Minneapolis’ Capri Theatre January 5th 1979. Though
officially a benefit concert for the cinema itself, whose
owner wanted to make it into a club, the show was
principally a warm-up for a second show the following
night for Warner Bros. VIP’s. "We had all sorts of
monumental equipment problems. All I remember is
Prince spending most of the evening with his back
facing the audience, and in between songs, mumbling
into the mike with his eyes closed," says Dez
Dickerson. "I remember Andre and I far overdoing it. I
had a wireless fitting for my guitar for the first time that
night. I was like a horse that had been let out of a stall.
I took every opportunity for running into the audience,
to the back of the auditorium, and back up on stage.
Just stupid things. It must have been very different for
whoever saw it."
Far from sold out, the Capri Theatre show was
attended by about 300 people. Prince wore jeans,
legwarmers, blouse and waistcoat. Despite several delays for technical problems,
the one-hour concert was well received. Jon Bream, Minneapolis Star, called
Prince’s debut "encouraging," and said that “combined with careful direction, time,
experience and refinement, that should spell a royal future for Prince."
The setlist was composed of the For You album in its entirety, as well as a rock-tingled track, “I Am You.”
Inside The Purple Reign (84)
By Jon Bream
Warner Bros. was anxious for a return on its investment. Prince had already spent more money on the recording of his debut album
than he had been allotted to make three albums. Sure enough, he had done the requisite autograph parties and, in his manager’s
presence, given interviews to radio disc jockeys and writers for teen- and black-oriented magazines. But the record company wanted
Prince to promote his records by the tried and true way, concerts. In fact, Warners had advanced him an extra $50,000 in “tour
support” to help defray the expenses of going on the road. So after the release of For You in the spring of ‘78, the one-man recording
band began assembling a road band. His longtime buddy and bass player Andre Anderson was already involved, and drummer
Bobby Rivkin, whose brother had engineered some of Prince’s recording sessions, had, been jamming with them for months. There
would be some referrals and auditions, as well as newspaper ads and auditions. Prince wanted his musicians cut from his mold young and hungry. On a winter weekend in the first week of 1979, Prince was finally going to take the stage. He had had a chance to
debut in New York’s Madison Square Garden but instead chose a Friday and Saturday night at the Capri Theater, a second-run
movie house in the north Minneapolis neighborhood in which he’d grown up. Tickets cost $4 in advance at Music City, a downtown
record store where he and other black music lovers shopped, and at the Foxtrap, a downtown black disco that years later became
the model for a club in the film Purple Rain. The expressed purpose of the concerts was a benefit for the theater whose owner
wanted to convert it into a nightclub. The real purpose was so Warner Bros. executives could, after a two-year relationship, finally
see what this studio prodigy could deliver onstage. At the time, Prince was without a manager ; he and Owen Husney had parted
ways several weeks earlier. So the singer turned to Pepe Willie, his thirty-two-year-old cousin-by-marriage, to put the concert
together. The band had been rehearsing for four or five months in the basement of Willie’s house in a well-heeled neighborhood
near Lake Harriet, but this gig was arranged on short notice. There wasn’t time to design and distribute posters, and little chance to
get ads on the radio. So Prince turned to the Minneapolis evening newspaper, hoping to publicize the concert through an interview.
Show time. January 5, 1979. Mr. Carl Ray of KUXL, Minneapolis’s only black radio station, grabbed the microphone. He jived about
the prodigy who composed, produced, arranged and played all the instruments on his album, the youngest producer in the history
of Warner Bros. Records. “Give it up for the next Stevie Wonder - Prince !” The image was all his own - a blousey shirt unbuttoned
to the waist, a vest, blue jeans, and unheard-of legwarmers over the jeans. He was a cool, cocky, sexy showman. The moves and
gestures were grand, like Mick Jagger’s ; the voice a fascinating female falsetto, like Smokey Robinson’s. The sound was indulgent
and energetically funky, like the Isley Brothers (with Jimi Hendrix as their guitarist) meeting Sly and the Family Stone. About three
hundred people discovered an uproarious hard-funk sound unlike the smooth falsetto of Prince’s record. He opened with the soft,
catchy “For You,” moved into a jazz-funk-rock instrumental, then the dance-oriented “Soft and Wet,” a couple of new hard-funk
tunes, an acoustic piece, and closed with “Just As Long As We’re Together.” Backstage, there was jubilation - a nervous kind of
celebration - in a cramped basement dressing room. Time for a quick champagne toast and then it was out to the lobby to meet and
greet fans, friends, and relatives. Prince sat atop the refreshment stand, his legs straddling the sides, autographing copies of his fullcolor Warner Bros. poster as he had done so many times before in other cities. But this was home. He looked regal, yet nervous.
The smile was reluctant; it was hard to accept praise from faces he knew. A preteen cousin asked him for a kiss. He obliged with shy
embarrassment. Prince and his band would repeat the performance the next night in front of one Warner Bros. vice-president and
three department heads. But plans to tour with Ashford & Simpson, Chaka Khan, or Santana later in the year never materialized.
The group wouldn’t hit the road until the fall, after the release of Prince’s second album. And that headline tour of clubs would be
cut short due to illness.
07-01-1979 : MPLS Capri Theater (WB Showcase)
The next day, Prince performed for Warner Bros. executives, who were eager to see
the 20-year-old studio whiz kid live. Even though the concert went well, it was
decided that Prince was not yet ready to do a full-scale tour. Agents for several
artists, including Ashford & Simpson, Chaka Khan and Santana, all expressed
interest in having Prince as their opening act, but the proposed tours never
materialized. Prince didn’t perform again until late in 1979.
Kristie Lazenberry, Marcy Ingvoldstad and I (Pepe Willie) worked diligently to get
this thing happening. We even printed the tickets. Prince was psyched because of the fact that the Warner Bros. people were going
to be there. It was his big show, “Is he ready ? Is he ready to go on tour ? Are these guys gonna back him up, give him tour support
to get out there so that he can make money ?” He wanted
the full support of the record company and he wanted it to
go really well. It was also a chance for Prince and the band
members to have their families come and see them
perform. They were away 10 to 11 hours each day, so their
families were wondering what they were doing. I might be
biased, but I thought that they were great. I thought they
were excellent. I was pulling for them, I was voting for
them. I was there for those guys to succeed, and I thought
they did great. I gave the Warner Bros. bigwigs nice places
up on the balcony, where they could stand. I remember it
was cold that day. They had their limo outside the theatre
with the motor running during the entire show. I watched
them and tried to guess their reaction to the concert, but I
couldn’t tell. The Warner Bros. people didn't think they
were ready yet. I was shocked when I heard that. You
know, they came into a small town and I think they just
couldn't accept it like that. I definitely think that Prince
and the band were ready. Prince was disappointed. I was
disappointed, the band was disappointed. Everybody was
disappointed, but I think I said to him, “Hey man, all we
have to do now is work harder. That's all. Back to the
drawing board and work harder.” Prince didn't want to
hear anybody telling him that his band wasn't ready, so
therefore he took it upon himself to work the band until
they got super tight. I don't think they were hurt. It was
just that they really wanted to go out on the road. As far as
they were concerned, they were ready ! They didn’t want to
rehearse any more. They were tired of rehearsing, and they wanted to go out and play for people.
So Willie temporarily took over Prince’s management, organising his first two live shows, the second of which Warner Brothers
representatives were attending to see if they felt it was time for Prince to go on the road. ‘We set it up with the Capri theatre, we
printed the tickets, we did the lighting. And when Warner Brothers came around we shuffled them into the theatre, and those
were Prince’s first performances after rehearsing at my house for five or six months. He thought they were ready, and I thought
they were great. But Warner Brothers thought he wasn’t quite ready. Now I felt they were flexing their muscle a little bit. Not
wanting to give Prince a big ego. I’ve seen bands out there much worse. Maybe they saw something I didn’t.’ Dez Dickerson says
this disappointment played a crucial part in his bonding with Prince. ‘There was a level of respect with Prince that came from our
dynamic early on. That dry-dock experience when we didn’t get to tour. I really helped Prince through that. I gave him the benefit
of my experience and helped him to lead the band. It was a devastating experience, but it was really necessary, more so than they
understood because it allowed Prince to live up to all the qualities of his character. It was one of the heads of Warners. Warners
had the best artist development in the history of the business.’ I told Dickerson I was surprised he had come to this conclusion and
asked him whether he really felt it was right to keep them off the road in their early days. ‘I really did. I’d been doing it for so long,
I was the point man, the drill sergeant who ensured the show had a flow, a beginning, middle and end. The show at the Capri
theatre, we weren’t ready yet. If you looked at the band, if it was possible to view the Capri footage and compare it to later
bootleg footage – and there’s a lot of it out there – it would be night and day. It’s about chemistry. It can’t be learnt and you can’t
teach it. It’s an organism.’ Perhaps because of Prince’s feelings of disappointment, a new rock song he played that night, ‘I Am You’,
has never been released, though Prince had warned the local Minneapolis Star and Tribune, ‘We’ve got a few songs we’ll do at the
Capri that I’ll probably never record on an album because they’re too spicy.’ Chapman doesn’t have strong memories of the show,
but does remember the impact it had. ‘It was a learning experience for everyone. It was the first gig with Prince, who was clearly
becoming this very important little monster in the music business, and it was good to see what that would be like in his home
town.’ Willie says Prince’s reaction to being told he couldn’t go on the road was to rehearse harder than ever. ‘He had to rehearse
more. One time I remember he was rehearsing at my house from ten o’clock in the morning. At ten at night we kicked everybody
out and I wanted to get hold of Prince, so I called him on the phone and I couldn’t get him on the phone. So I drove over to his
house and I’m knocking on the door and nobody answers, and I hear this little tapping, so I walk around the house and look
through the window, and it was Prince in the basement playing drums. This is after ten hours of practice.’
Early 1979 : Meets Don Taylor & Karen Baxter
In an attempt to find Prince a manager, Pepe Willie goes to Miami to meet with Don Taylor, manager of Bob Marley and Jimmy
Cliff. Taylor was then too busy to follow the careers of his protégés and advises Karen Baxter, to work with Prince. In fact, the
manager should concentrate on Prince’s second album recording. But the collaboration between Prince, Baxter and Taylor does
not last because they found him too difficult to work with.
But he still needed new management. Willie got in touch with a friend of his named Don Taylor, telling him he had an artist already
signed with Warner Brothers. ‘Don Taylor did the same kind of job that I did with Little Anthony and the Imperials when they
went to Jamaica. They found this poor Jamaican dude who wanted to valet for them and they hired him and brought him back to
America. And Don Taylor had learned the business like I had, and later on started managing the Imperials and also Bob Marley
and the Wailers. ‘I called Don because I wanted Prince to have the best. Don flew me and Prince to Miami and got us both hotel
rooms, and he picked Prince up. And I just stayed at the hotel room because I didn’t want to influence nobody.’ Willie believes that
Taylor made an immediate difference to Warners’ attitude in regard to Prince going on the road. ‘Prince did sign with Don for a
year, and Don knew Mo Ostin at Warner Brothers and immediately he got Prince’s tour budget raised from $80,000 to
$180,000, just on a phone call.’ Taylor’s comments about Prince in his autobiography are mostly negative. He tried to engineer a
collaboration between Prince and Bob Marley, to which Marley responded, according to Taylor, ‘Don Taylor a dem dah man yo
want me fe work with? – mi hum in a dem day batty boy business, mi nuh even wan cum a yah office an meet dem or even sit
inna same chair as im.’ Taylor himself found Prince emotionless and was put out by Prince’s lack of concern about going over
budget on his first album. Prince’s association with him came to an end, Taylor writes, after Prince made aggressive comments
about his sister to Taylor’s assistant, Karen Baxter, and this side of his career was soon taken over by the Warner Brothersapproved management duo of Bob Cavallo and Joe Ruffalo, though in future years it would be their employee Steve Fargnoli (who
would eventually graduate to full partner) who truly had Prince’s ear and worked as one of his main representatives throughout the
most creatively and commercially successful period of his career.
19-01-1979 : Twin Cities Reader
The power and the glory, the Minneapolis story
By Martin Keller
When local disc-jockey Kyle Ray introduced Prince’s debut concert at the Capri Theater in north Minneapolis earlier this month, he
hallelujahed in the tradition of Muhammed Ali : “The power and the glory, the Minneapolis story – PRINCE.” He wasn’t just
fanning the audience. At 18, this young lack wizard from the Twin Cities plays countless instruments, and wrote, arranged,
produced, played and sang everything on his first album. He is indeed powerful. Another new album has been written, and is ready
for production sometime this winter, and when a tour that Warner Brothers is preparing for him commences, Prince will stand
realistically on glory’s doorstep. His prodigious talents drew four Warner Brothers executives from California to his premier
engagement here. Coming all the way from the sunny west coast to the frozen, below zero confines of Minnesota, the record moguls
reportedly left the Twin Cities satisfied that their “client” could perform well with a band, and entertain with a great degree of
professionalism. They left convinced, in other words, that Prince is going to be a star. Sitting quietly at a friend’s house before a
practice session with his new band, Prince quickly dismissed any talk of stardom and the particulars that accompany it. “I don’t
think about it,” he said in a low voice which sometimes is almost a whisper. “It’s all just part of the dream factory. If it happens, it
happens. It’s best not to even worry about that, ‘cuz if you strive for it and don’t get it, you’ll be disappointed and feel like a
failure.” Even with that kind of mature realism working in his favor, though, Prince is already conscious of the effect he might have
once he begins the rounds as a full-time performer. Dressed like Jimi Hendrix on opening night, and wearing his hair in falling
braids for the interview, it was hard not to think of him as another Stevie Wonder. He admitted, somewhat unabashedly, that he
would like “to appeal to as many people as possible and keep them on his side.” He may not be thinking about stardom, but his
strategy is geared toward that end. Prince is the sixth youngest in a family of ten, mother and father included. His father plays piano
and writes music, and at one time performed in a swing band. “My dad called my piano playing ‘banging,’ and didn’t pay much
attention to it. I guess I was seven then. I never really listened to music, either, and I still don’t very much. There’s never nothin’ I
can get into. If I listen to a record, I hear something that I’d like to do differently, and I become too critical of it. You shouldn’t be
that way, ‘cuz the group took their time and effort and worked on it. I’d rather just do my own thing.” Doing what pleased him,
Prince picked up instrument after instrument and mastered them all. His high school days at Minneapolis Central thoroughly bored
him, and once his music teachers discovered they had a monster talent on their hands, they left him completely alone. “They’d just
lock me in a room, once they understood what I was doing. I skipped school a lot, but I graduated early; dismissal was my
favorite time of the day. I believe in teachers, but not for me. Anything creative I don’t think can be taught, otherwise you get
somebody else’s style; it’s not yours, it’s theirs.” Undoubtedly, this philosophy propelled Prince in the recording studio at Sound 80
where he began work on his debut record, For You. He literally took charge of the whole process. Calling him self-reliant is a gross
understatement. The demo tapes from For You were taken to a number of record companies before Warner Brothers agreed to give
Prince what he wanted : a sizable advance and full control of the production, playing, singing and arrangement on the LP. “I’ve
written 20 songs for the next album, and I think Warners is going to let me handle all of the record again. I didn’t have any
particular thing I was trying to accomplish on the first record – I was just putting down what I heard in my head. I wouldn’t say
the second one will be like the first, but it’ll sound like me,” Prince said, toying with a tambourine. His debut concerts surprised
many. He and his five piece band chose to play a heavy metallic series of songs mixed in with the “soft and wet” textures that color
the disco and funk pieces on For You. “I like to play a lot of guitar. That heavy sound goes better in concert than it does on record.
I guess synthetizer is my favorite instrument now, and that’s part of the reason for two keyboard players. I really like working
with this band, and I’m gonna do an album with them where everyone writes and I’m just there playing with them. They’re really
great individually as well as collectively.” Despite Warner Brothers’ attempt to solicit L.A. musicians, Prince finally settled on
Minnesota talent. The record company flew him out to Los Angeles with Bobby Z., a drummer from Minneapolis, and a local bass
guitarist, Andre, a long time friend and a great showman himself. The three of them spent a couple of tedious days auditioning
players. Gayle Chapman, keyboard player in the band, moved from Duluth where she had played with “eight commercial sounding
groups,” and met a cousin of Prince’s while living on the northside. She jammed with Prince, and eventually was invited to join.
“This whole band was formed from jamming,” Bobby noted. Dez Dickerson got his job after playing just 15 minutes with Prince,
while the other keyboard player, Matt Fink, persistently called Prince’s former management company six months before the band
ever formed. Prince’s quiet manner may be the ideal stance in the face of the towering music industry, where talent is often less
important than the machination of the biz. “The music end of my life I’ll probably always do, but not the business end,” said Prince
softly. “I hate plane rides, too. I’d rather stay at home and rehearse, or play in the studio by myself. I like the quiet here in
Minneapolis, and nobody bothers me; I’ll always keep a place here.” The multi-talented prodigy, who once dreamed of becoming a
cowboy or a fireman, lives alone with a couple of pet alligators, and chooses not to make the scene very much. He’s sill under age for
most bars in this state. “I used to hang out at The Infinity (a St. Louis Park disco which recently closed) but I’d rather hear loud,
live music. If I go out at all. Actually, I spend a lot of time in the bathtub thinking. Music and playing is almost like breathing for
me,” he said shyly in the low voice that belies his performing falsetto. Prince plans to play here again soon, once the tour is set. “But
before I can do that, I have to go to New York and L.A., and that means more plane rides,” he winced. Since his career might rest
on the wings of those planes, I urged him to get used to it. “Well, I may not stay in music, you know. If I get bored, I may become
an artist, a painter – I do that too. Or I might become a janitor or something else,” he shrugged. Given Prince’s age and his
remarkables abilities, it’s safer to assume that “the Minneapolis story” will spend more time in the air ad on the airways than he will
mopping up.
17-02-1979 : Music Farm, NY – Pepe Willie sessions
Fast Freddie The Roller Disco King (previously Fast Freddie) (2) – Prev. Dec 77 – The Imperials – Fast Freddie Single
I Feel For You (1) - Prince
If You Feel Like Dancin’ * (7:13)
One Man Jam * (6:17)
Thrill You Or Kill You (1)
With You (1) - Prince
Do Me Baby (1) (Andre) - Prince
An early version of Do Me Baby featuring André Cymone on lead vocals was recorded on 17 February, 1979 at Music Farm
Studios in New York, during a day of sessions led by Pepé Willie intended for Tony Silvester, leader of the group The Main
Ingredient to use as demos for Little Anthony and the Imperials, who he wanted to produce (the one-day session also produced If
You Feel Like Dancin', I Feel For You, Thrill You Or Kill You and With You), although Do Me, Baby and With You were recorded
with extra studio time and were not intended for use by Silvester.
With You
Thrill You Or Kill You
I've held your hand so many times
But I still get the feeling I felt the very first time
I've kissed your lips and laid with you
And I cherish every moment we spend in each other's arms
I guess my eyes can only see as far as you
I only want to be with you
We've come so far in so little time
Sometimes I wonder if this is meant to be
Sometimes you are so very kind
That the nights you're not with me
I'm scared that you're gonna leave
I guess you could say that I'm just being a fool
But I only want to be with you
I guess you could say that I'm just being a fool
But I always, always want to be with you
Call your ass up on the phone
Your momma tells me U ain't home
What the hell's wrong with U
U must think that I'm a fool
U gotta be crazy 4 playin' with my mind
I could kill U anytime
CHORUS :
One way or another, girl
I'm gonna make U mine
I'm gonna thrill U or kill U
I'm walkin' the line
One way or another girl
I'm gonna make U mine
I'm gonna thrill U or kill U
I'm walkin' the line
Took U out 2 eat one night
U ate up everything in site
Heaven knows I wanted 2 fight
When all I got was a kiss goodnight
Ooh, what a kisser
Your face could stop a clock
But I still love U, baby
I still wanna bust your clock
Hey, hey !
CHORUS {x2}
I Feel For You
Baby, baby, when I look at you
I get a warm feeling inside
There's something about the things you do
That keeps me satisfied
I wouldn't lie to you, baby
It's mainly a physical thing
This feeling that I got for you, baby
It makes me wanna sing
I feel for you
I think I love you
I feel for you
I think I love you
Baby, baby, when I lay wit' you
There's no place I'd rather be
I can't believe, can't believe it's true
The things that you do to me
I wouldn't lie to you, baby
I'm physically attracted to you
This feeling that I got for you, baby (Ooh baby)
There's nothing that I wouldn't do (For you girl)
I feel for you
I think I love you
I feel for you
I think I love you
Play
I think it's love
I feel for you
I think it's love
I feel for you
I think I love you
I feel for you
I think it's love
Play
I feel for you
I think I love you
I feel for you
I think I love you
Do Me Baby
Here we are in this big old empty room,
staring each other down
U want me just as much as I want U, let's stop fooling around
Take me baby... kiss me all over... play with my love
Bring out what's been in me for far too long
Baby, u know that's all I've been dreaming of
Do Me Baby, like u never done before
Give it to me till I just can't take no more
Do Me Baby, like u never done before
I want u now, I just can't wait no more, can't wait...
Here we are looking for a reason for u to lay me down
For a love like ours is never out of season,
so baby please stop teasing me
what ya do, I can never love no other, u're the best I ever had
Whenever we're not close to one another, I just want u so bad
So Do Me Baby, like u never done before
Give it to me till I just can't take no more
C'mon, Do Me Baby, like u never done before
I want u now, I just can't wait no more
I said
Do Me Baby (Do me baby)
Do Me Baby all night long (Give it to me)
Do Me Baby
I want u now
Do Me Baby
Give it to me
Do Me Baby
Do Me baby, don't wanna do it all alone
I want your love
Do Me Baby
Give it to me
(Do Me Baby) This feeling is too strong, make me wait 2 long
(I want u now)
You're leaving me no choice
OK, what are u gonna do...u just gonna sit there and watch ?
Alright...
Are u sure u don't wanna close your eyes ?
Well, isn't it supposed to take a long time ?
I'm not gonna stop until the war is over...
Help me ! There...ok...ok
I'm so cold...just hold me
Though he had sold around a hundred and fifty thousand copies of his debut, Prince was still prepared to work as a musician for
hire, and when Pepe Willie got in touch to ask if he and André would work with his friend Tony Silvester from soul and R&B group
The Main Ingredient, demoing new songs intended for performance by a new incarnation of Willie’s uncle’s band the Imperials, he
quickly agreed. Willie remembers : ‘Tony Silvester called me looking for musicians, and I told him, “Look, I got two musicians who
can play everything.” Don had this record label and he had hired Tony to produce the Imperials and they were going to use some
of the songs that we played at Sound 80. So Tony flew me, Prince and André to New York and put us up at the Hilton Hotel. And
Prince had started writing ‘I Feel For You’, and he had just wrote it on piano, and André had written this one song, ‘Do Me, Baby’.
And I had written this song called ‘If You Feel Like Dancin’’, and the Imperials recorded it but it didn’t go anywhere, so we came
back to Minneapolis.” “We did “I Feel For You,” “If You Feel Like Dancing,” “Thrill You Or Kill You,” and “One Man Jam” in New
York, remembers Pepe. “Thrill You Or Kill You” was Andre's song. Prince played “I Feel For You” on piano. I think Andre also
played “Do Me, Baby” when we were in New York. As far as I remember, Andre Cymone was the writer of it because he was
showing it to all of us. When we came back from New York, Prince claimed the song because he did it on Controversy. Andre
came up to me later and said, “Pepe, do you remember that we did that song in New York, and that it was my song ?” And I told
him I did.”
Spring 1979 : Meets Bob Cavallo & Joe Ruffalo
After considering a few managerial options, including Bob Marley’s manager Don Taylor, Prince met with representatives of the
Hollywood-based management company of Bob Cavallo and Joe Ruffalo (satirically called Spaghetti Inc., due to their Italian
background), on the suggestion of Warner Bros.’ Bob Regher, head of A&R, and Carl Scott who worked under Bob. An employee
called Perry Jones was sent to Minneapolis to get the flavour of things He went on to function essentially as tour manager for
Prince’s 1979-80 tour. Friends since their childhood in New York, Cavallo and Ruffalo moved to Los Angeles in 1969, where they
later took on several groups, including Weather Report, Little Feat, Earth Wind & Fire, and Ray Parker Jr. Having made a good
impression, they were required to ensure the management of Prince. With the finances of Cavallo and Ruffalo, Prince could
redeem the rights of Husney and American Artists, valued at around $50,000. The two Italians do not work directly with Prince,
preferring to delegate to Perry Jones and his cousin, Tony Winfrey, who both move to MPLS.
Cavallo and Ruffalo are friends since their childhood in New York. Cavallo began his career in 1960 by opening a nightclub in
George Town, a university city of Washington DC. In the mid-60s, he was manager and producer of The Lovin' Spoonful in New
York, then signed with the band leader John Sebastian. When Ruffalo joined with him in 1968, Cavallo had signed with Laura Nyro.
The following years, they evolved in Los Angeles to become the center of the music industry. They took charge of three promising
bands, Little Feat, Weather Report and Earth Wind and Fire. These associations allowed them later to oversee the careers of
artists like Deniece Williams, The Emotions and Valerie Carter. Later on, they signed with Ray Parker Jr (of Raydio), or Philip
Bailey (Earth Wind and Fire).
Cavallo told me that it was Prince who sought them out rather than vice versa. ‘Supposedly the story is Prince saw Earth, Wind and
Fire play at the big arena in Minneapolis and thought the show was unbelievable. He called and asked someone at Warner
records, “Who’s the manager who helped them put that big show together ?” And they said me. So he reached out to me and we set
up a meeting.’ Cavallo says he had known about Prince even before he signed to Warners and ‘tried to sign him to ARC records,
which was the label that me and Earth, Wind and Fire and my partner Joe Ruffalo owned. He was then very young, and
somehow the head of A&R from Columbia got to him, knowing that I was trying to sign him, and told him that if he came with
them, he’d have Columbia’s marketing and of course it would be possible for Maurice White [of Earth, Wind and Fire] to produce
him. And that meant you had no chance of signing him.’ Still, he wanted him to audition and went to see a show. ‘It was kinda
funny really. He was very respectful to me up through Purple Rain. He was a nice kid. Quiet. But I brought my eight-year-old
daughter when they performed somewhere down in Orange County, not really the right kind of place. I didn’t set up the gig. And
under the raincoat he had stockings and a little G-string. When he’d spin around, the coat would fly open, and I was sitting there
with my daughter, going, “Holy Christ.” The story goes I go in and say, “Young man, you can’t really perform in your
underwear,” and then he comes out in the second show without any underwear.’ Nonetheless, Cavallo was impressed with Prince’s
musical talents. ‘I thought he was incredible and his band was very cool, a well-thought-out placement of characters. And I was
all for it.’
04 to 05-1979 : Alpha Studio, LA - Prince sessions
Bambi (1) - Prince
I Feel For You (2) – Prev. Music Farm 17-02-79 - Prince
I Wanna Be Your Lover (1) - Prince
It’s Gonna Be Lonely (1) - Prince
Oh Baby (1) – The Time
Sexy Dancer (1) - Prince
When We’re Dancing Close And Slow (1) - Prince
Why You Wanna Treat Me So Bad ? (1) - Prince
With You (2) – Prev. Music Farm 17-02-79 - Prince
Still Waiting (1) - Prince
Having learnt from his mistakes, Prince’s second album, entitled simply Prince, was recorded in only six weeks at Alpha Studios,
close to Warner Bros.’ headquarters in Burbank, California. Alpha Studios are directed by Gary Brandt, who built the studio in his
home near Los Angeles. Brandt knows Cavallo, who advised Prince to record his sessions there. Prince, accompanied by Perry
Jones and Tony Winfrey, rented a house outside the city where Prince lived during the time of recordings. In contrast to the lengthy,
meticulous recording process of the debut album, Prince said the album was a "piece of cake" to record, "because I knew more
about engineering and because I did some demos to prepare for it." Dispensing with the "executive producer," Prince produced,
arranged, wrote and performed the entire album himself. Bobby Z and Andre were referred to as "heaven-sent helpers" in the
credits. Prince later said that the only outside contribution was a small harmony part by Andre on "Why You Wanna Treat Me So
Bad ?" Prince had written over 20 songs for the album. A few of the songs from this period which didn’t make the album were
"Donna," "Miss You," and "Been Down A Long Lonely Road." With lyrics about loneliness and unhappy love, and largely soft and
mellow music, they’re all quite similar in musical style and lyrical content to the material on the first two albums. "I spent too much
money in the studio for the first album so they looked at me, like, here’s a child in here trying to do a man’s job. So I tried to do the
best the second time around and make a hit and do it for the least amount of money" Prince admitted that Prince was an
unabashed attempt to become more commercial, "The second album was pretty contrived."
Two of the songs "I Feel For You" and "I Wanna Be Your Lover" were given to Patrice Rushen for her second album for Elektra,
Pizzaz, but she rejected both songs. Thus, Prince reworked his two titles for his own album. In addition to the titles released on
Prince, he recorded "Oh Baby" which will later surface on The Time album. Only Sexy Dancer was recorded with the help of a soud
engineer.
I Wanna Be Your Lover
I ain't got no money
I ain't like those other guys you hang around
It's kinda funny
But they always seem to let you down
And I get discouraged
'Cause I never see you anymore
And I need your love, babe
That's all I'm living for, yeah
I didn't wanna pressure you, baby
But all I ever wanted to do
I wanna be your lover
I wanna be the only one that makes you come running
I wanna be your lover
I wanna turn you on, turn you out
All night long, make you shout
Oh, lover ! Yeah !
I wanna be the only one you come for
I wanna be your brother
I wanna be your mother and your sister, too
There ain't no other
That can do the things that I'll do to you
And I get discouraged
'Cause you treat me just like a child
And they say I'm so shy
But with you I just go wild!
I didn't wanna pressure you, baby (No)
But all I ever wanted to do
I wanna be your lover
I wanna be the only one that makes you come running
I wanna be your lover
I wanna turn you on, turn you out
All night long make you shout
Oh, lover ! Yeah !
I wanna be the only one you come for, yeah
Bambi
I knew from the start
That I loved you with all my heart
But you were untrue.
You had another lover and she looked just like you
Bambi, can't you understand ?
Bambi, it's better with a man
It's so hard to believe
Maybe it's because you're so young
Or maybe I'm just too naive
Who's to say, maybe you're really having fun
Bambi, can't you understand ?
Bambi, it's better with a man
All your lovers--they look just like you
But they can only do the things that you do
Come on, baby, and take me by the hand
I'm gonna show what it's like to be loved by a man
Bambi, I know what you need
Bambi, maybe you need to bleed
Yeah !
It’s Gonna Be Lonely
We've been together for quite some time
I'd think by now you'd know
It would take forever to get you off my mind
If ever you decide to go
I guess I got a little insecurity when it's concerning you
I guess I'm just afraid that if you ever leave
I'd be in a messed-up state of blue
And I'd be so lonely
Without you loving me
I know it's gonna be lonely
Without you giving me everylittlesinglething
that I need, lonely
Whatever's in your kiss, it really turns me on
'til I go right out of my mind
And who could ever resist your accent from gay Paree
It gets me every time
I betcha thatcha never knew
that in my dreams you are the star
The only bummer is that you always want to leave
Who do you think you are
Don't you know it's gonna be lonely
Without you loving me
I know it's gonna be lonely
Without you giving me everylittlesinglething
that I need, lonely
It's gonna be lonely
Without you loving me
Giving me everything that I need
Oh pretty baby, can't you see
It's gonna be lonely
Without you loving me
I know, I know it's gonna be lonely
Oh, whatever's in your kiss
I never could resist
Oh, baby don't go!
We've been together for quite some time
It'd take forever to get you off my mind
Oh, girl !
Without you loving me
I know it's gonna be lonely
Without you by my side
Don't you know that I could die, baby
Without you loving me
Can't you see
It's gonna be lonely
It's gonna be lonely, baby
So lonely, baby
Oh Baby
Oh baby, we're all alone
Nowhere 2 go, no telephone
Just U and me and this big ole bed
U ain't got nowhere 2 go
U might as well stop being so cool
Honey, baby, break down
Oh baby, take off your clothes
Do it over by the window
Feel the wind blow
That's the atmosphere
Ooh baby, come here
Oh, baby (Oh no no)
Oh, baby
Oh baby, honey, take your time
Cuz when U come, U come and come
That's when I get mine
Until then, I said honey, "Close your eyes"
Oh, oh no Oh no no
Yeah, oh baby {x2}
Oh baby, baby, don't make me wait
(Don't make me wait) {repeat in BG}
Oh no no, I can't stand it, baby
Don't make me, don't make me wait, girl
Yeah
Oh no no no, girl
What's it gonna be, baby ?
U know I can't wait
Please, please
U know U ain't got nowhere 2 go
We've come this far, come on
Oh, baby
Oh, baby
Break down, baby {x2}
Oh, break down
Break down
Break down, baby
Go on and break it on down
Give me your love !
Give me your mind !
Break down !
Oh baby, break down ! {x2}
Oh girl, break down !
Break down ! {x2}
Oh no no !
(Oh, baby) Let me do ya please !
Oh girl
Oh, baby {x2}
Sexy Dancer
Sexy dancer
Sexy dancer
Sexy dancer, you got my body screamin'
Sexy dancer, you got me just-a-creamin'
Sexy dancer, when you rub my body
Sexy dancer, it gets me so hot...hot !
Sexy dancer, sexy dancer
Sexy dancer, sexy dancer
Sexy dancer, I want your body, want your body
Sexy dancer, dance
Sexy dancer, I want your body, want your body
Sexy dancer, dance
Sexy dancer, I want your body, want your body
Sexy dancer, dance
Sexy dancer, I want your body, want your body
Sexy dancer, dance
Sexy dancer, do that sexy dance
Sexy dancer
Sexy dancer, sexy dancer
Sexy dancer, sexy dancer
Hot !
Why You Wanna Treat Me So Bad ?
There's some talk going 'round town
That you really don't give a damn
They say you really put me down
When I'm doing the best I can
I gave you all of my love
I even gave you my body
Tell me, baby, ain't that enough ?
What more do you want me to do ?
I play the fool when we're together
But I cry when we're apart, yeah
I couldn't do you no better
Don't break what left of my broken heart, baby
Why you wanna treat me so bad
When you know I love you ?
How can you do this to me
When you know I care ?
Why you wanna treat me so bad
When you know I love you ?
You know, I try so hard
To keep you satisfied
Sometimes you play the part
Sometimes you're so full of pride
And if it's still good to ya
Why you wanna treat me so bad ?
You used to love it when I'd do you
You used to say I was the best you'd ever had
I play the fool when we're together
I give you everything I can, yeah
And if it's still good to ya
There's something that I can't understand
Why you wanna treat me so bad
When you know I love you ?
How can you do this to me
When you know I care ?
Why you wanna treat me so bad
When you know I love you ?
Still Waiting
All my friends tell me
About the loves they've had
Can't they see what they're doing to me ?
It makes me feel so bad
'Cause I'm so alone
And brokenhearted
It ain't like my life is ended
But more like it never started
The love my friends rap about I keep anticipating
I try so hard but don't you know, my patience is fading away
Still waiting
I'm waiting for that love
Still waiting
I wish on every star above
Still waiting
Waiting for the love to come around
Oh, love.
Waiting for the love to come around
People say that I'm too young
Too young to fall in love
But they don't know, they really don't know
That's all that I've been dreaming of
'Cause I spend my nights just a-crying
And I spend my days just a-trying
To find that love to call my own
'Cause I'm sick and tired of being alone
Still waiting
Waiting for that love
Still waiting
I wish on every star above
Still waiting
I'm waiting for the love to come around.
(Waiting for the love) Don't you know that I'm waiting
(Waiting for the love) Say..
(Waiting for the love) To come around now
I need somebody to hold on to baby
Waiting and waiting, don't you know that I'm
Still waiting
I'm waiting for the love, sugar
Still waiting
If you're out there girl, please come to me
Still waiting
Don't make me cry no more
Still waiting
If you're out there, baby, please come to me
Still waiting
Wishing and wishing for days, baby
Still waiting
If you're out there, girl, please come to me
Still waiting
When We’re Dancing Close And Slow
When we're dancing close and slow
I never want to let you go, no, no
I feel your warm embrace
The softness of your face
Tell me, baby, are we here alone ?
When we're kissing long and hard
I can almost taste the thoughts within your mind
Sex-related fantasy is all that my mind can see
Baby, that's honestly the way I feel
When we're dancing close and slow
I'm not afraid to let my feelings show
I want to come inside of you
I want to hold you when we're through
Can't you feel my love touching you ?
21-05-1979 : Mountain Ears
I Wanna Be Your Lover (Edit) * - I Wanna Be Your Lover single
Late 05-1979 : Hollywood Sound – Prince mixing sessions
I Wanna Be Your Lover (2) * - Prev. Alpha Studios 05-79 - Prince
Why You Wanna Treat Me So Bad ? (2) * - Prev. Alpha Studios 05-79 - Prince
When We’re Dancing Close And Slow (2) * - Prev. Alpha Studios 05-79 - Prince
With You (3) * - Prev. Alpha Studios 05-79 - Prince
Bambi (2) * - Prev. Alpha Studios 05-79 - Prince
Still Waiting (2) * - Prev. Alpha Studios 05-79 - Prince
I Feel For You (3) * - Prev. Alpha Studios 05-79 - Prince
It’s Gonna Be Lonely (2) * - Prev. Alpha Studios 05-79 - Prince
Darlene Marie (Acoustic) (2) – Prev. Loring Park 12-76
The album was not quite finished when his time ended at Alpha Studio. Brandt had another album project, Prince then had to
continue elsewhere. He opted for Hollywood Sound Recorders, chosen by Jones's friendship with one of the engineers Bob
Mockler. Prince finishes the album at Hollywood Sound Recorders in Los Angeles. He works one week and a half on the
overdubbing, before remixing the 9 songs on the album in 9 days. The album is finished June 13, 1979.
Though Prince would pursue the rock/new-wave sound beloved by Dickerson and Fink on his side project with The Rebels, for his
second record (recorded without the band) he remained focused on funk, taking into the studio the song he’d recently demoed in
New York, ‘I Feel For You’. Just as Controversy is a more commercial reworking of the themes, ideas and style of Dirty Mind, so
Prince’s eponymous second album is a more commercial sequel to his debut. Although more songs from this record have endured in
his set and at least three of them are considered classics (‘I Wanna Be Your Lover’, ‘I Feel For You’ and ‘Sexy Dancer’), it initially
seems less satisfying than either his debut or the record that followed, Dirty Mind – Prince’s first truly great album, and one that
remains among his very best. The reason for the record’s slightly second-rate feel is simple: it’s too driven by
sheer naked ambition – Prince’s desire to finish the job he started with For You. He took less care over it too. Recording it in a fifth
of the time he spent on the first album, and with a reduced budget, he seemed to have learnt not to indulge himself in the studio,
and from then on would always move relatively fast when recording.
13-06-1979 : Sexy Dancer (2) * - Extended – Sexy Dancer Maxi-Single
Sexy Dancer (3) * - Edit of version 2 - Prince
Overdubs and mixing took place at Hollywood Sound Recorders, Los Angeles, CA, USA. Although it wasn't released as a single in
the USA, Sexy Dancer (with I Wanna Be Your Lover) reached position 3 in the Billboard Disco Top 100 Chart, indicating the track
was a DJ favorite in US clubs.
??-??-1979 : MLF – STONE LOVER Single Release
Stone Lover Pt 1 (3:54) / Stone Lover Pt 2 (3:33)
Stone Lover was the first and only single to be released by MLF (Music Love and Funk). The exact
release date of this record is unknown, but it does precede the 1979 Lewis Connection LP. The track
marks the first time Prince appeared on a release by another artist, on a track he did not write (although
earlier recordings by 94 East were released later). It also marks the first release of a collaboration
between Prince and Sonny Thompson (recorded almost 13 years before Diamonds And Pearls, the next
released collaboration). Confusingly though participating musicians have made conflicting statements
whether Prince played on the track or not.
THE LEWIS CONNECTION Release
Got To Be Something Here (4:12)
The Lewis Conection is the first and only album by Minneapolis band The Lewis Connection and
was released in the Twin Cities area in 1979 in very limited supply (only around 200 copies are
thought to have been pressed). The band contained Sonny Thompson (who would become a
member of the New Power Generation many years later), and brothers Pierre and André Lewis. In
2013, reissue group The Numero Group re-released the album on vinyl and, for the first time, on
CD. The album contains Got To Be Something Here, written by Sonny Thompson and featuring
Prince on background vocals and guitar. Prince's contributions to Got To Be Something Here were
recorded in late 1976 or early 1977 at Sound 80 while Prince also worked on his own tracks. The album was only distributed in the
Twin Cities area, and it did not enter the charts. It is not known if The Lewis Connection played live to support the album, but it is
unlikely Prince would have appeared with them, as he was quite successful in his own right at the time of the album's release in
1979. Of note is that the band's name was The Lewis Connection, but the album was mistitled The Lewis Conection; despite the
error, the album is listed as such here.
LITTLE ANTHONY AND THE IMPERIALS
FAST FREDDIE THE ROLLER DISCO KING Maxi-Single Release
Fast Freddie The Roller Disco King (6:12)
Fast Freddie the Roller Disco King was a 12-inch single by Little Anthony and the Imperials (as
The Imperials), featuring Prince on guitar, synthesizer and keyboards. The basis of the song was
recorded by Prince at Music Farm Studios, New York. Vocal and instrumental overdubs were
added later by Little Anthony and the Imperials. Stripped of its original overdubs, but with
additional overdubs, the song was released as One Man Jam on 94 East's first collection of studio
recordings Minneapolis Genius. One Man Jam has featured on every collection of 94 East's early
recordings.
06-1979 : Rehearsals
The band begins rehearsals in the University Warehouse building in South Minneapolis. Having
previously rehearsed in Pepé Willie’s house (and a few rehearsals in Prince’s house), Willie
became increasingly less involved in Prince’s career, partially because he felt his effort and
contributions were not properly appreciated.
10 to 21-07-1979 : Mountain Ears (Colorado) – The Rebels sessions
You (1) (2:58) – Paula Abdul - Spellbound
Too Long (Dez) (4:19)
Thrill You Or Kill You (2) (Andre) (6:14) – Prev. Music Farm 17-02-79
Disco Away (Dez) (4:40)
Instrumental #1 (Dez) (1:12)
Hard To Get (1) (3:46)
Instrumental #2 (Andre) (1:08)
If I Love You Tonight (1) (4:46) – Mayte – Child Of The Sun
The Loser (aka Turn Me On) (2:06)
Head (1) – Dirty Mind
From 10 to 21st July 1979, Prince organized a 12 days recording session in Mountain Ears Studios in Boulder, Colorado for the
band, renamed The Rebels for the occasion. The sessions, which were a group effort, was an opportunity for André to write his
own songs; 9 tracks were recorded. Disco Away was written by Dez Dickerson. The song ridicules disco, and Dickerson refers to
then-current disco bands, singing "Keep your Village People and your Bee Gees too".
You
U, U got a sexy way about U baby, U
U, U get so hard I don't know what to
do
CHORUS:
U
Head
I remember when I met u, baby
U were on you're way to be wed
U were such a sexy thing
I loved the way you walked
The things you said
And I was so non-chalant
I didn't want you to be misled
But I've gotta have u, baby
I got to have you in my bed
And you said
"But I just a virgin and I'm on my way
to be wed
But you're such a hunk, so full of
spunk
I'll give you"
Head
Til you're burning up
Head
Til you get enough
U
U, U drive my girls 2 rape U now, U
U, all the girls they go ape over U
(Yeah !)
CHORUS
U!
U, if I should die it'd be because of U
It's true, I'd kill myself if I didn't
make-up 2 U (Yeah !)
CHORUS
(Yeah !)
Head
Til you're love is red
Head
Love you til you're dead
U know you're good, girl
I think you like to go down
U wouldn't have stopped
But I, I came on your wedding gown
And you said
"I must confess, I wanna get
undressed and go to bed"
With that I jammed
You fool, U married me instead
Now morning, noon, and night
I give u
Head
Til you're burning up
Head
Til you get enough
Head
Til you're love is red
Head
Love you til you're dead
Head Head
Head Head
Head
Till you're burning up
Head
Til you get enough
Head
Til your love is red
Head
Love you til you're dead
Head Head
Head Head
Head Head
Head (U said I could)
Head Head
The Rebels project was very much a group effort, with the whole band playing together as a unit and songs written by band
members Dez Dickerson and Andre Cymone besides Prince. “He wanted to have an alter ego,” says Matt Fink. “He wanted to try
this punk rock / new wave thing with The Rebels because he was too afraid to do that within the ‘Prince’ realm. It was an
experiment.” According to Bobby Z., “He envisioned The Rebels being what later Milli Vanilli became : we would do the music and
then somebody else would be the image. We would have been like The Monkees. ‘The Rebels’ was just another word that he liked.”
Prince’s second cousin Charles Smith, who was still very close to some of the members of Prince’s band, says that the project was
essentially Andre’s idea. “The concept was André’s. I saw him map it out. He was going to be the producer and pick a ghost name.
The cover of the album was going to be silhouettes of the faces of Prince’s band members, just the shapes of their heads, no faces.
You couldn’t see who it was. It was a cool concept.”
The Rebels recording sessions began on July 10th 1979 and were held at Mountain Ears, a studio in Boulder, Colorado, shortly after
Prince had completed the Prince album on his own. The studio was recommended by Jay Marciano, a friend of Prince’s manager at
the time, Perry Jones. Marciano was a concert promoter from Colorado. “Up until then I think Warner Bros. thought of Prince as
being an extremely talented R&B artist, but Perry wanted to pull more rock-oriented music out of him,” says Marciano. “Prince
was very influenced by rock, not just funk. Perry said to me that he wanted to get Prince away from Warner’s influence. He said,
‘I need to find a place that will give me some studio time and then, if it is any good, I’ll take the tapes to WB and get them to pay
for the sessions.’” Bob Mockler, who had worked with Prince on the Prince album, was brought in to engineer the sessions, which
lasted 12 days. “They had the studio blocked off and had the sessions closed because they didn’t want observers,” says studio owner
John Aldridge, who found Prince to be, “really quiet, shy, and very withdrawn,” although he was “polite and a gentleman.” Seven
songs and two instrumentals were completed during the sessions.
Two of the songs, “Too Long” and “Disco Away” as well as an instrumental were written by Dez, while Andre was responsible for
“Thrill You Or Kill You” and another instrumental. Prince contributed four songs to the project : “You,” “If I Love You Tonight,”
“Turn Me On” and “Hard To Get.” He also used the occasion to work out a new song, “Head.” Most of The Rebels’ music is more
rock and guitar-oriented than Prince’s first two albums, clearly showing Dez’s influence. However, the guitar-heavy sound of The
Rebels is somewhat anonymous and much of the songwriting leaves a great deal to be desired. “I actually thought it was a waste of
time,” says Fink. “I was bored with the whole thing while we were out there. The songwriting didn’t do it for me, really.” “You” is
one of the most original songs recorded during The Rebels sessions : a hard, driving guitar-fuelled rock tune with a fast pulse and
playful synth effects. Gayle Chapman sings the song in a high voice, similar to Prince’s falsetto. Gayle also takes the lead on “If I
Love You Tonight,” a dejected, sombre ballad which shares the tempo, arrangement and mood of “It’s Gonna Be Lonely” on Prince.
Prince’s other Rebels contributions are disappointing. “Hard To Get” is a nondescript rock number with a faint boogie feel, spiced
with some rock ‘n’ roll piano. The lyrics are rather simplistic and concern a man who loves a woman “despite [her] shitty ways.”
“Turn Me On” is a moderately paced rock tune of little merit. It relies on electric piano and bass. Gayle sounds a bit like Bonnie
Raitt. She says that her man is “nothing but a loser” and he is not getting any closer to turning her on, “The lights went out on you
so long ago.” Dez’s guitar-dominated rocker, “Too Long” is one of the most musically convincing Rebels tracks. He sounds not
unlike Paul Stanley of Kiss. The song concerns the loneliness Dez feels since his lover left him. “Disco Away” combines upfront
guitars and a fast beat, recalling the late seventies “disco rock” of Blondie and Donna Summer, amongst others. Ironically, the song
ridicules the disco phenomena and humorously says that the “dancing fever” of disco music is “more deadly than rabies.” Dez
sings, “Disco away and leave me alone, I just wanna rock ‘n’ roll !” He adds, “Keep your Village People and your Bee Gees too.”
Dez’s instrumental is an atmospheric piece featuring acoustic guitar and a treated guitar that sounds like a synth. “All the synth
sounds were created utilising volume swells and delay on guitar,” according to Dez. André’s “Thrill You Or Kill You” revolves
around a funky bass line. Much like Prince’s “Head,” which it recalls in many ways, it is a one-chord funk effort with a quick lead-in
before the chorus. It also features some very “Princely” synth embellishments, as well as lyrics that seem to have inspired
“Irresistible Bitch”; the song starts, “Called your ass up on the phone, your mama tells me you ain’t home. What the hell is wrong
with you ? You must think I’m a fool.” Andre tells his girl, “one way or another” he is going to get her, if he has to thrill or kill her.
Although he is threatening violence, it was probably intended to be sort of humorous. André’s instrumental Rebels number is a
mildly interesting bass-and-drums workout.
In the summer of 1979, Prince asked his management to organise studio time and took his band of the era – guitarist Dez
Dickerson, bassist André Cymone, keyboardists Gayle Chapman and Matt Fink and drummer Bobby Z – to Boulder, Colorado, to
work on his first planned side project, a new-wave band named The Rebels. Unlike later side projects such as Vanity 6 or The Time
(or, indeed, Prince’s own early albums, which he recorded mostly alone) this was a fully collaborative project. There are conflicting
stories about whether the band was going to be involved in the promotion. Bobby Z has suggested that the band was intended to be
like Milli Vanilli or The Monkees, but Dez Dickerson told me this was never clarified, and that they were still talking about the
photo shoot when everyone got distracted by the swift progression of Prince’s career. Although the nine Rebels songs are cherished
by collectors, the album was never released. But unlike many of Prince’s abandoned or unreleased side projects, this is a finished
project, and as such is essential to understanding Prince’s early development. While the record was clearly an exploratory enterprise
and produced in a relatively speedy eleven days, this doesn’t mean Prince took it any less seriously, as he completed his own second
album in a month. Dickerson remembers Prince taking painstaking effort over the project, with whole days given up to getting the
tracking and overdubbing right. ‘You’, which Prince later renamed ‘U’ and revisited twice – recording an unreleased demo in 1987
before giving the song to Paula Abdul for her 1991 Spellbound album – is a simple track, with Prince telling a woman a list of things
he likes about her. Even on the Rebels version you can hear the seeds of Prince’s own later take on techno (although it’s definitely
rock), which he would display on tracks like ‘Loose !’, from the 1994 album Come, or ‘The Human Body’, from 1996’s Emancipation,
but by 1987 (one year before ‘techno’ was properly defined as a genre), it sounds like it’s come straight outta Detroit. When Abdul
does it in 1991, she retains Prince’s spoken sections from the 1987 version, but the techno-stomp is toned down, and the central
sense of unblinking devotion loses something of its manic quality. Another Rebels song that refused to die is ‘If I Love You Tonight’.
As well as the Rebels version, there are two Prince demos of the song from 1987, and it was later covered by both Mica Paris and
Mayte, who recorded two versions on her 1995 album Child of the Sun, one in English and the other in Spanish. The Rebels version
is sung by Gayle Chapman and is a variation on Kris Kristofferson’s ‘Help Me Make It Through The Night’ from a seemingly suicidal
woman prepared to hand over her gun to a one-night stand. Chapman recalls : ‘I remember being told to cry on that song. That’s
why my voice sounded like it did. I don’t sound like that when I sing. I’ve never ever liked it, but I’ve had people to this day who’ve
heard it and liked it, and I say, “What do you like about it ? The music ? The voice ?” To me it grates my ears. I could do that song
a million times better, but I had to choke up and try to sing.’ Prince’s versions, unusually, are the weakest of the six recordings, a
strange blend of the slightly syrupy style he’d adopt in the early 1990s on tracks like ‘Graffiti Bridge’ and the more pared-down ‘Sign
o’ the Times’ one-man bass, keyboard and drummachine approach. Mica Paris injects a bit of sarf London grit into her version, but
by the time Mayte covers it, the song’s been transformed from a despondent suicidal blues into a full-on (and good) sunny house
track. ‘Hard to Get’ is the most new-wave song, seemingly written under the inspiration of The Cars’ Candy-O album, which was
released a month before The Rebels went into the studio and no doubt was still on Prince’s turntable at this time. (Dickerson, a
huge fan of the band, remembers playing Cars riffs in rehearsal, and was surprised to hear that Prince has recently started covering
‘Let’s Go’ in concert.) Although musically appealing, it’s a generic rock song about a girl who won’t put out. The Cars’ influence is
even stronger on a second version of the track, recorded in 1981 during the Controversy sessions. It recently emerged that Prince
included a snippet of the song on a sampler tape of thirty tracks offered for other artists to record seemingly sometime in the late
1980s, so it clearly remained high in his estimation for several years. It’s disappointing the record wasn’t released in 1979; just as
his recordings as Madhouse reveal Prince the jazz musician, the rock underpinnings of his Rebels songs reveal Prince the newwaver and Prince the rockabilly, pre-dating the style of Controversy and the much later Chaos and Disorder, and displaying a side of
his work that still remains under-represented in his main catalogue. It’s also the only album Prince has been involved in where he
really is just one of the band rather than merely trying to give this impression; although he’d draw inspiration from many
collaborators in the future, from now on he’d always remain in command. Some critics have seen Prince’s protégés and side projects
as outlets for different aspects of his music that won’t fit his mainstream releases, but this seems inaccurate. Better instead to see
them as spurs to further production or a laboratory for experiments likely to find their way into his own albums, and as likely to
inspire worthwhile music as the record company’s request for a new album.
With The Rebels, Dickerson believes there may have been some concern
from management about keeping the focus on Prince’s burgeoning career,
but later side projects and bands slotted in easily alongside Prince’s own
releases, and as Dickerson points out, Prince would look forward to moving
from his own projects to albums where he remained incognito in the same
way the average person might look forward to a holiday.
The Rebels project was a way to appease band members who wanted to
contribute more to Prince’s music, according to Bobby Z., “After the Prince
album, Prince and André started to drift apart. Their friendship had been
going on so long. Andre was trying to get more songs in there, so he was
obviously the one that Prince had to cater to as far as other songs. We
would do endless jams. We would do some of André’s songs. Dez would
have his own ideas. So there was a lot of input. But nobody was writing
better songs than Prince, in my opinion.” Mockler believes it was basically a
case of Prince “letting the guys go” in the studio, “Prince’s attitude was : if
you’ve got songs, go make your own album. He was trying to get away
from his own thing for awhile. He probably felt it was time to let the group
do a little bit more.” Still, Dez says that Prince “genuinely wanted a vehicle
with which to explore other musical styles, as well as give the band an
opportunity to stretch out.” The Rebels project was never presented to
Warner Bros. and nothing ever happened to it. “I just think we ended up
touring instead, or something else ended up taking the place of the busy
work of it,” Bobby comments. “The Rebels didn’t work for Prince, but he
incorporated the new wave element into the Dirty Mind album,” Fink observes.
Late 07-1979 : Meets Steve Fargnoli
During 1979-80, another employee of Cavallo and Ruffalo, Steven Fargnoli, also
appeared on the scene. "He turned up at a rehearsal," says Dez Dickerson.
"Prince sort of explained who he was and what this meant to us. We supposed
that we’d better play well and impress the guy." Fargnoli was promoted to
become a full partner, and he became the partner most involved with Prince’s
musical career. He had previously worked as a jazz booking agent in New York
and road manager for Sly Stone for two years in the mid seventies. Although he
has often been cast as a "villain," disliked by many who have worked with Prince,
Fargnoli became an incredibly important voice for Prince, speaking on his
behalf, and offering creative guidance and moral support.
Summer 1979 : LA Radio station
08-1979 : LA (WB Showcase)
Prince plays two showcase gigs for Warner Bros personnel and media people at Leeds Instrument Rentals, Los Angeles. In the
City of Angels, they shot the video of the first two singles from the Prince album, "I Wanna Be Your Lover" and "Why You Want to
Treat Me So Bad".
I Wanna Be Your Lover / Why You Wanna Treat Me So Bad promo Shootings
I Wanna Be Your Lover is the first Prince video to have been broadcast as no videos were made for either of the two previous
singles Soft And Wet and Just As Long As We're Together. The video show Prince singing, playing various instruments :
keyboards, drums, guitar and bass. He is also seen dancing and playing with a red scarf attached to his mic. The video look to
have been interpreted as a attempt to market Prince as a wonderkid multi-instrumentalist (a potential new Stevie Wonder). Another
video was shot shortly after with Prince's band but it was never aired and remains unreleased. The videos are two separate runthroughs of the song and neither contains any shots also present in the other. Of note, the video features Prince playing an Orr
bass, (named after its luthier Charley Orr), an instrument Prince used to record almost all the basslines in For You album. The bass
has seldom been seen (if never) or cited in credits since 1978. Prince also uses a Gibson L6-S Deluxe guitar (customed with red
blinking lights), an instrument he will stop using after having heavily customizing it, until he definitively opts for the Hohner
Telecaster guitar.
n I Wanna Be Your Lover (V1)
n I Wanna Be Your Lover (V2)
(0:03)
(0:03)
Why You Wanna Treat Me So Bad ? is the second Prince video to have been released for broadcast to promote the release of a
single. Contrary with I Wanna Be Your Lover, but quite similar to the (unreleased) band version of the of I Wanna Be Your Lover
visual promo, this video shows Prince and his band lip-syncing to a live performance. The band plays on a concert stage, which is a
notably different from the I Wanna Be Your Lover (band version), shot in a rehearsal space/studio. Of note, this is the last
appearance of Gayle Chapman in a Prince music video (she also appears in the unreleased I Wanna Be Your Lover (band version)
video. The video features Prince playing his Orr guitar, an instrument rarely seen during his career; it was also used in I Wanna Be
Your Lover (band version) video. In I Like It There video, it's been included in the lot of guitars suspended above the band. The
video also features a Knut Kouppee Cloud Bass guitar (named after Knut Koupee music store), played by Andre Cymone. This
bass also appears in I Wanna Be Your Lover (band version) and The Most Beautiful Girl In The World (played by Sonny T.).
Prince also recorded his first-ever video, for ‘I Wanna Be Your Lover’. The well-known footage includes Prince in a low-cut leopardskin top, playing all the instruments and backing himself on drums as he sings in a visual recreation of the studio process. But there
was also an alternative version which focused on Prince’s interaction with his band. Stripped to the waist, he is dressed in baggy
shorts, leg warmers and shiny boots, his hair long and glossy as he snuggles against Dez Dickerson and strokes Gayle Chapman’s
face as she steps out from behind her keyboards. Ultimately unreleased, it shows Prince creating an inclusive world that – while still
punk and potentially shocking to Establishment adults like Dick Clark – let the audience know that anyone was welcome to worship
him. Though it stopped just outside the Billboard top ten, the record was Prince’s first real hit.
n Why You Wanna Treat Me So Bad
(0:04)
24-08-1979 : I WANNA BE YOUR LOVER
US Single Release
I Wanna Be Your Lover (2:57) / My Love Is Forever (4:08)
Released two months prior to the new album, "l
Wanna Be Your Lover" / "My Love Is Forever”
becomes Prince’s first US hit. It reached number 11
on the US chart and made it to number one on the
black chart, selling more than one million copies. The
single is certified gold in March 1980.
19-10-1979 : PRINCE Release
(40:54)
I Wanna Be Your Lover (5:50) / Why You Wanna Treat Me So Bad ? (3:49) / Sexy Dancer (4:18)
When We’re Dancing Close And Slow (5:23)
With You (4:00) / Bambi (4:23) / Still Waiting (4:15) / I Feel For You (3:24) / It’s Gonna Be Lonely (5:27)
In many ways an accomplished work and a definite improvement on the debut album, Prince,
achieved a confirmation of Prince’s growing soul/R&B base without really staking out any new
terrain. Much like the first album, Prince contains primarily slick and smooth R&B music, but
Prince also showcases his rock leanings with two guitar-heavy numbers, "Bambi" and "Why
You Wanna Treat Me So Bad ?" "Sexy Dancer" is Prince’s first all-out funk number in the
style of James Brown’s one chord vamps, while "I Feel For You" and "I Wanna Be Your
Lover" continue in the funky pop tradition of "Soft And Wet". Prince’s more melodic side is
showcased in "With You." Although still very much a fledging songwriter, the songs on Prince
are more focused and assertive than on For You. Most of the songs include a highly
recognizable chorus and the melodies are quite catchy throughout. Overall, Prince is a more
accessible and commercial effort than For You. Songs like "I Wanna Be Your Lover," "I Feel
For You," "Sexy Dancer," and "Bambi" clearly show that Prince was developing as a
songwriter. Nonetheless, the album lacks the energy and intensity, as well as spontaneity and
unpredictable quality of much of Prince’s later music.
The album is simply too safe and conventional, and few
songs leave a lasting or distinct impression. Prince is in
many ways a more mature work than the debut album,
but like on For You, the lack of any real emotional
maturity expressed is evident throughout.
While "Sexy Dancer" and "I Feel For You" deal with lust
and physical attraction, most of the songs express
longing, unhappy love and loneliness, so much so that
it is possible to talk about a general theme of
vulnerability. Only "When We’re Dancing Close And
Slow" conveys a feeling of romantic bliss that was so
predominant on For You. The theme of vulnerability is
expressed in various forms, such as Prince’s
discouragement in "I Wanna Be Your Lover," the
confusion he feels in "Why You Wanna Treat Me So
Bad ?", the insecurity found in "With You" and "It’s
Gonna Be Lonely," or in the frustration and heartbreak
in "Still Waiting" and "It’s Gonna Be Lonely." Although
this theme is present to some extent in many of the
songs, the album is far from being a general lament about how miserable Prince or the characters he sings about are. Songs such
as "I Wanna Be Your Lover" also have the brashness of youth and a great deal of upbeat energy as well.
The lyrics are more explicit than those of For You, to the extent that the most graphic lyric of "Bambi" is omitted from the printed
lyric sheet, "Bambi, I know what you need, Bambi, you need to bleed." "When We’re Dancing Close And Slow" contains some
sexually forthright come-ons, such as "I want to come inside of you." Likewise, in "I Wanna Be Your Lover," Prince asks for
faithfulness in an undisguised fashion, "I wanna be the only one you come for." The feeling of vulnerability also seems to be
reflected in the cover and inner sleeve photos of Prince, shirtless, exposed to the world, without any pretence or protection, with his
big soulful eyes looking out to the viewer. The photo of a seemingly naked Prince riding the mythological horse, Pegasus, and the
cursive script of the album title, with the little heart over the "i" of "Prince" further adds to the tender, non-threatening feel of the
album. In retrospect, the use of purple for the album title is significant as the first public use of that colour. At the time, no one would
have guessed the importance it would play in Prince’s iconography.
The opening "I Wanna Be Your Lover" is tight, funky pop (or poppy funk), built on a rhythmic musical phrase, played on bass and
synth, that runs throughout the song. The verses contain a set-up for the chorus, functioning as an aural foreplay by delaying the
arrival of the climactic section. The chorus is sung over the main theme of the song, but punch is added by a rhythm guitar and
synth lead line. The song goes into a funky instrumental coda built around a synth hook that is not too far removed from something
like Madhouse’s "Six." The song features a collection of pick-up lines, both bold and graphic, "I wanna be your lover, your mother
and sister too, there ain’t no other, that can do the things I’ll do to you." The song contains an early reference to a theme Prince has
used throughout his career, namely the unfaithful, gold-digging woman. The lyric "I ain’t got no money, I ain’t like the other guys you
hang around" suggests that the woman in the song is somewhat shallow, and that she is attracted to men with money, even if they
are the ones who disappoint her. It may have been that Prince merely wanted to contrast the poor but honest lover (him) with the
rich but disappointing lovers, but if that is the case it is done rather awkwardly. Further, the fact that he gets discouraged, because
his lover treats him just like a child, also shows his lover as being a "mistreating woman." "Why You Wanna Treat Me So Bad ?"
obviously continues with the mistreating woman theme. Prince’s love is so true and complete that he just can’t understand why his
lover does not treat him better. A similar theme was used later in "Something In The Water (Does Not Compute)." It seems Prince
is making a subtle dig at the apparent egocentricity of the protagonist in these songs. He just cannot understand how a wonderful
guy like himself is treated so poorly. Perhaps what Prince is saying in these songs is that the character singing these songs is
treated so poorly because he is not such a great person after all, being so conceited and self-absorbed that he can’t even conceive
of that as even being a possibility. Prince also comments "I gave you all of my love, I even gave you my body," which indicates his
awareness that love and sex are distinct. Musically, "Why You Wanna Treat Me So Bad ?" veers toward pompous FM rock (or
stadium rock), that was very big in the States in the late 70’s/ early 80’s, with groups like Journey, Foreigner, Styx, REO
Speedwagon, and Toto. As such, the song deviates to some degree from Prince’s minimalist principle. The main part of the song is
just made up of two chords, but Prince overloads with too much superfluous ornamentation and overly "disciplined" guitar solos.
With its simple, repetitive lyrics, strong rhythmic beat and explicit
panting, "Sexy Dancer" is a very carnal song about lust and the
pleasures of doing "that sexy dance." A solid funky groove is
created by deft interplay between the bass and a rhythm guitar.
Synth fills and a jazzy piano solo add to the loose jam feel of the
tune. The pace of the album is broken up with "When We’re
Dancing Close And Slow," which is something of a low-point of
the album. It is simply too tedious and plodding, moving slowly
back and forth between two chords from beginning to end. An
acoustic guitar, piano and some synth sound effects provide
distractions but there is not much dynamic tension throughout.
While the lyrics "I want to come inside of you" are among the
most graphic on the album, in the context of the song they seem
very appropriate. The fact that the song continues "I want to hold
you when we’re through" shows Prince’s maturity in recognizing
the needs of his lover, and not just being caught up in his own
feelings. The slower tempo and more romantic theme are
continued in "With You," a placid, slightly sentimental R&B
ballad. The arrangement emphasises electric piano and synth
strings, somewhat of a trademark of Prince’s early romantic ballads. The song is pleasant enough, but perhaps a little too safe and
predictable in construction and execution. One of the most poetic phrases of the album is found in the line "I guess my eyes can
only see as far as you." Yet, there is some insecurity about the relationship expressed in this song as well. The fact that they have
"come so far in so little time" and that he wonders if this love was meant to be indicates that this is a new love, one that might burn
itself out. Also interesting are the lines "Sometimes you are so very kind, that the nights you’re not with me I’m scared you’re gonna
leave." Her very kindness causes Prince to be afraid that she might leave him. The suggestion is that he is not good enough for her
affection, that he does not deserve it. This sense of insecurity appears in many of the remaining songs on the album and in Prince’s
later work as well. After "Why You Wanna Treat Me So Bad ?", "Bambi" is the album’s second heavy rock number. With its almost
Hendrix-like guitar riff and thick, unpolished guitar sound, as well as Prince’s intense, angry vocals, this is much more convincing
than "Why You Wanna Treat Me So Bad ?" and improves on "I’m Yours" from For You in every conceivable way. The song
presents an interesting male fantasy : being enough of a lover to redeem a lesbian who has no interest in men. Prince makes a
comment about the presumed limitations when there are two sets of female genitalia in a relationship by stating "All your lovers,
they look just like you. But they can only do the things you do." This certainly is a far cry from "Darling Nikki" who has "so many
devices.." However, while he has not explored the full range of possibilities that latex permits, Prince is at least open-minded
enough to admit "Who’s to say, maybe you’re really having fun.” The pace of the album shifts to a slower tempo again with the
gentle "Still Waiting," a mid-tempo number with a vague country & western feel. An acoustic piano is the main accompaniment. Like
"Gotta Broken Heart Again" on Dirty Mind, the song is set in a 12/8 tempo, and the two songs are very similar in construction and
theme. The song is about the sad frustration at the inability to find a girlfriend. In fact, it sounds as if the song is about a dispirited
virgin whose life has not ended, but never started. Much more impressive is "I Feel For You," an eager, anticipatory uptempo tune
with a tight, sparse instrumentation that showcases some catchy synth lead lines and brisk synth solos. The song goes into a
mostly instrumental coda where the focus shifts to the funky bass line and handclaps. Prince’s lower singing voice is evident
beneath the multi-tracked falsetto vocals. Somewhat like "Sexy Dancer," the song seems to be more about lust than love, but with a
more complex content. Prince is upfront enough to admit that "it’s mainly a physical thing," but then he later makes the apparently
contradictory statement "I feel for you, I think I love you." The possibilities include that he is just saying that he loves her to get a
piece of the action or that his emotions are truly changing from mainly physical to love. But it is also likely that what Prince might be
saying is that his feelings for his lover, whether characterized as "mainly physical" or as "love," are two aspects of one deeper
emotion, and that the supposed distinction is meaningless. The album closes with "It’s Gonna Be Lonely," another song about
heartbreak. Here Prince is obsessed with his lover, as he states that "It would take forever to get you off my mind if ever you decide
to go." The song brings up the theme of insecurity, as Prince expresses his fear of being lonely without his lover there to give him
everything he needs. The song resembles "When We’re Dancing Close And Slow" with its slow, monotone musical framework. The
chorus has slightly more energy, but there isn’t much of interest happening throughout.
Although Prince would later describe the album as “pretty contrived,” it achieved what he set out to do, selling platinum (1 million
copies) and demonstrating once and for all to Warner Bros that he was a bankable entity. The reviews of Prince were mostly
encouraging, with many critics lauding Prince’s originality and genre-busting music. Most noted his growth as a songwriter and his
ability to make music that was accessible without being over commercial. The album made number 3 on Soul Chart, staying there
for 23 weeks. It got number 22 on the Pop Chart.
A definite improvement on the debut LP, Prince was an unabashed attempt by
Prince to become more commercial : “The second album was pretty contrived. I
had put myself in the hole with the first record because I spent a lot of money to
make it. I wanted to remedy that with the second album. I wanted a "hit" album.
It was for the radio rather than for me, but it got a lot of people interested in my
music.” Dispensing with the "executive producer," Prince produced, arranged,
wrote and performed the entire album himself. Bobby Z and André were referred to
as "heaven-sent helpers" in the credits. Prince later said that the only outside
contribution was a small harmony part by André on "Why You Wanna Treat Me So
Bad ?" With the help from black radio stations and discos, Prince became a big hit,
attaining gold status (500,000 copies sold) in the States in April 1980 and
eventually selling over 1 million copies, qualifying for platinum status. Much of its
success was due to the mass acceptance of "I Wanna Be Your Lover”.
‘Sexy Dancer’ is not just about voyeurism, but sexual interaction : whether she’s a
stripper or a girl in a club, the lyric establishes that she’s touching Prince as well as
moving for him. Along the same lines, but lyrically more gauche, ‘When We’re
Dancing Close and Slow’ has Prince admitting to a clinical-sounding ‘sex-related
fantasy’, with none of the lover-man prowess he would later develop, while ‘With
You’ is Prince promising devotion for the first of a thousand times across his
oeuvre. Only one song hinted at the more complicated sexual scenarios he would
explore on his next record. When appraised in the context of the era, ‘Bambi’ can be
dismissed as a jejune sexual fantasy – a way of taking his obsession with cruel,
unkind or uninterested lovers to the next level – but Prince’s very simplistic lyric is
more troubling when considered in the light of his later conservatism. It seems telling that he played the song a few times in the
very early 1980s, dropped it during the Revolution years, then returned to it in 1990 as his act became more macho again, including
it (albeit very sporadically) in his set ever since. It’s always a mistake to associate the mental and emotional state of the singer
delivering the song with the cool mind that’s constructed the lyrics, but with its premise that heterosexual love is superior to
lesbianism, and its reference to making Bambi ‘bleed’ in the final line, this remains a difficult song. The rest of Prince is far less
confrontational. ‘Still Waiting’, a track easily passed over on the album, became an unexpected highlight in live shows: an early
example of Prince’s ability, like Bob Dylan and The Grateful Dead, to completely transform a song in live performance, and it would
become increasingly baroque and bizarre as he stretched it out with odd improvisations, eventually reaching a strange extreme in
Monroe and Minneapolis on the 1982 Controversy tour. ‘I Feel For You’ also had an intriguing development, growing out of Prince’s
earliest rehearsals, when he was still influenced by his early heroes, and then being offered to and rejected by Patrice Rushen before
becoming a massive hit for Chaka Khan, so much so that until he reclaimed it, it was more usually associated with Khan than Prince
– the first of several occasions when an artist who covered one of his songs seemed more able to wring emotion from it than Prince
himself. Far less significant, ‘It’s Gonna Be Lonely’ is a romantic ode to a Parisian woman, the start of an obsession with European
sexual sophistication that prefigures similar Francophilia on Sheila E’s debut and would reach full fruition in Prince’s second movie,
Under the Cherry Moon.
The critics were mostly positive. While New York Times’ John Rockwell found Prince’s music to be "not very original" and his
falsetto voice "colourless," most critics were of a diametrically opposite opinion. Connie Johnson wrote in the Los Angeles Times :
“It's tempting to describe someone like Prince by offering comparisons to other artists in the same mold. Fortunately, Prince is too
much of an original to fit into a mold.” Stephen Holden, Rolling Stone (their first coverage on Prince), felt the LP commanded
respect : “Whereas Prince's debut album stressed his instrumental virtuosity, Prince teems with hooks that echo everyone from the
Temptations to Jimi Hendrix to Todd Rundgren. The simplicity of Prince's words, hooks and rhythms are pure pop. With a trace
more sophistication, he could become a solo Bee Gees of the libido.” John Wall's review in Melody Maker was also encouraging :
“Prince is an album of many charms, not least that it calls to mind Michael Jackson’s Off The Wall and Ray Parker Jr’s recent work.
Prince's voice has that beautiful Jacksonian falsetto, and his songs, arrangements, and musicianship have the characteristic swagger
of Raydio. Naturally, there are some disco clichés, but even the unimaginatively titled "Sexy Dancer" overcomes its generic
limitations with some stunning bass picking and sparing, terse guitar chords.”
Rolling Stone
PRINCE
Warner Bros.
By Stephen Holden
Not only does Prince possess the most thrilling R&B falsetto since Smokey Robinson, but this nineteen-year-old. Minneapolis-bred
Wunderkind is his own writer-producer and one-man band, playing synthesizer, guitar, drums and percussion. Whereas Prince's
debut album (last year's For You) stressed his instrumental virtuosity, Prince teems with hooks that echo everyone from the
Temptations to Jimi Hendrix to Todd Rundgren. But Smokey Robinson's classic Motown hits, in which the singer's falsetto
signified his erotic thrall, are Prince's chief models. The biggest difference between Robinson and Prince is the latter's blatant
sexuality. Prince sings exclusively in falsetto. Instead of narrative ballads that trace the progress of relationships, Prince's songs are
erotic declarations issued on the dance floor or in bed, virtually interchangeable arenas here. These compositions begin and end in
sexual heat. The garish, synthesized textures of such tunes as "I Wanna Be Your Lover" and "Why You Wanna Treat Me So Bad ?"
don't so much imitate a band backing a singer as enclose his voice in a feverish calliope of the mind, underscoring the urgency of
lyrics like "I wanna be the only one you come for," "Sexy dancer, when you rub my body/...it gets me so hot" and "I want to come
inside of you." The simplicity of Prince's words, hooks and rhythms are pure pop. With a trace more sophistication, he could
become a solo Bee Gees of the libido.
CMJ New Music Report
Prince, with his Bee Gee-esque falsetto voice, could be the best indication of the next direction of Black music in the post-disco age.
While some of the material on this LP (all composed, produced, arranged, and played-every instrument - by Prince) is quite
danceable, the arrangements are such that there is plenty of intelligently played music going on behind the sturdy beat. Most of the
LP is clearly rock, and the ballads, which sometimes feel as if they could turn into mush, never do, but remain soft and emotionally
performed. One cut ("Bambi") rocks out with Hendrix-like guitar, and the hit, "I Wanna Be Your Lover," is joyously danceable.
Something for everyone who wants to hear state-of-the-art pop/R & B.
27-10-1979 : Billboard
On 27 October, 1979, Billboard published a cover ad for the forthcoming Prince album on their issue N° 43. It featured the name
Prince in big yellow capitals, underlined by black text in italic : The new album featuring I Wanna Be Your Lover (WBS 49050).
Produced and arranged by Prince. Career Direction : Cavallo Rufallo Management. Personal Manager : Perry Jones. On Warner
Bros. Records & Tapes (BSK )
26-11-1979 : Prince Tour
Dez Dickerson / Andre Cymone / Matt Fink / Gayle Chapman / Bobby Z
Prince finally goes on the road with his band : Dez Dickerson (guitar), Gayle Chapman and Matt
Fink (keyboards), André Cymone (bass), and Bobby Z (drums). The set was drawn mostly from
For You and Prince, but the material was given a tougher, rockier insistence, often with long
guitar solos by Prince and Dez. Dressing rather demurely, Prince often wore gold spandex
pants, gold boots, and loose shirt. Dez and Andre wear a costume of the most eccentric relative
to other group members : Dez was half naked in a leather jacket and leopard pants with
suspenders, while Andre was also in black leopard pants and boots. Matt played the keyboard
costumed as a convict. 14 concerts in 13 cities of the United States were planned, including the
final in MPLS, December 16.
LA Roxy Theater
(Opening Act : Judy Carter)
Prince's tour is launched with a first concert at the Roxy
Theater in Los Angeles. 500 people attended the party,
many from the media or the recording industry.
Meets Sheila Escovedo + Bob Marley backstage
Bob Marley and his manager, Don Taylor, visited Prince after the concert. Sheila
met Prince again in late 1979 when Prince was on the Prince tour. Sheila found
his stage attire (underwear and leg-warmers) “kinky,” but really liked the music.
“I went backstage to tell him that I dug his music, that I liked it because it was
different and unpredictable - just like him. As soon as I went backstage, he came
right up to me and said, ‘I know who you are.’ I was shocked because he told me
he was following my career. At the time I was playing with George Duke. Prince
wanted me to play drums for him. The first thing he asked me was how much I
charged. I told him, and he said, ‘Well, I'll never be able to afford that.’ We
became friends then. ”
Sheila E – The Beat Of My Own Drum
The next time I saw Prince was several months later when Connie and I went to
see him play live at the Circle Star Theater in San Carlos, California. This theater
in the round was another of the places to be. On any given night you could go
there to see artists like the O’Jays, Gladys Knight and the Pips, and Diana Ross.
Since I had played and visited there so many times, management hooked me up
with tickets and a backstage pass. But I hadn’t thought to ask for a parking pass,
so when we got there we spent half an hour trying to find a spot, ultimately
having to park across the highway since the regular lot was filled. We were late.
We ran across the highway, me pulling Connie hard as she shrieked and
squealed, “Slow down, Sheila!” “Come on ! Let’s go,” I yelled. I was so frustrated that we were missing the beginning, not only
because I didn’t want to miss any of Prince, but also because as a performer myself, I really respected the totality of a show.
Showing up late to anybody’s performance just wasn’t cool. We rushed in
through the backstage entrance, and as we ran down the aisle toward our
seats, the music, just like his record, was slammin’. I looked onstage and I
could hear him singing and playing, but where was he ? Where was the guy on
the poster ? I couldn’t for the life of me figure out which one was him. Was he
the bass player ? The guitar player ? The fact that he played every instrument
didn’t help me narrow it down. There was a second guitar player who I
thought might be Prince, but that wasn’t him, either. And then I realized he
was the guy on lead vocals singing “Soft and Wet” - that wild and crazy black
man with long flowing hair, no shirt, thigh-high leg warmers, ankle boots, a
short scarf, and a trench coat. What the heck ? Not only did he look totally
different from how he’d looked at the Greek Theatre, but he looked totally
different, period. His look was as unique as his music, and he was killing the
stage. And while his performance was mesmerizing, I began to entertain
thoughts about meeting him afterward. I hoped I’d finally get to introduce
myself to the man on my bedroom wall.
After the show I made my way toward the rear of the theater. I pulled back the black curtain, hoping to find somebody who could
direct me to him, but that wasn’t necessary. There was his reflection right in front of me. He was looking in the mirror, slowly
combing out his long, straight hair. Those perfect eyes caught mine in the mirror, and he gasped before turning around. I stepped a
little closer, butterflies dancing. I could finally introduce myself. Reaching out my hand, I began, “Hi, I’m . . . ”
“Oh, I know who you are,” he said, taking my hand and holding it for longer than the usual shake. “You’re Sheila Escovedo.”
I stopped and stared at his lips. Did my name just
come out of his mouth ? “I’ve been following your
career for a while,” he added.
Wait a minute. He’s been following me ?
I guess it made sense. I’d already released my first
record with Pops and had performed on multiple
records for other artists, in addition to being on
national tours and television shows. It dawned on
me then - I didn’t need to be nervous. I suppose I
was a “somebody” before he was.
“Me and my bass player, André Cymone, were
fighting about which one of us was going to
marry you.”
I laughed. “Oh, really ?”
He told me he’d watched me play drums with
George Duke on Midnight Special and Don
Kirshner’s Rock Concert.
“Oh, really,” I repeated nervously, thinking that
was pretty cool.
“How much does George pay you a week ?” he
asked.
I told him my salary. He paused, crestfallen. “I’ll
never be able to afford you.”
“You never know,” I said. “Things could change.”
He walked me toward the dressing room and introduced me to the band. By the end of the
night we’d exchanged numbers.
28-11-1979 : Denver Rainbow Music Hall
* Advert. Start : 7:30PM / Tick. Price : $2.35 / $2.15
29-11-1979 : Dallas Western Palace
* Attendance : 20
Times
With Prince planning to release no less than four new albums
this year, we thought it would be fun to relive one of the boy wonder's earliest gigs. Don
Snowden was at the Roxy in LA to witness the miniature Minneapolitan's "jarring mixture" of
styles, his review appearing in the Los Angeles Times on 29 November, 1979.
It must be a daunting prospect for anyone to make his or her performing debut, save for a
couple of hometown Minneapolis tune-ups, before an industry-heavy crowd at the Roxy. That was the situation confronting Prince
Wednesday night. Prince, 19, is something of a wunderkind who produced, arranged and composed all the material and played all
the instruments on his two Warner Bros. albums. His vinyl output, somewhat like
Stevie Wonder's, is aimed squarely at the black-pop mainstream and crossover
audiences but his live show is heavily influenced by hard-rock flash. The result is
a bizarre combination of musical and visual elements. Guitarist Dez Dickerson
(black leather jacket and leopard skin pants) and bassist Andre Cymone (legs
encased in plastic wrap) both look more punk than funk. Prince largely sticks to
guitar and throws enough pelvic grinds and phallic guitar poses at the audience to
give most obnoxiously macho rock stars a run for their money. Prince sings in a
thin falsetto that recalls Eddie Holman (remember "Hey There, Lonely Girl" ?),
but his vocals lack the power to cut through the instrumental attack on the rockoriented material that comprised half of the hour-long set. The largely black
audience responded more favorably to the more restrained, carefully crafted funk
exercises like "Sexy Dancer" and "I Wanna Be Your Lover." The latter is the
nation's No. 1 soul single this week and also rising fast on the pop charts. The
slack pacing and Prince's uneasiness as a front man can be chalked up to a simple
lack of stage experience, but a more pressing problem is his attempt to straddle
two disparate musical worlds. That's not necessarily a bad move, but it is a jarring
mixture at this point. Prince obviously is a talented new arrival, but he needs to
reconcile those two musical instincts if he is to maximize his potential as a live
performer.
01-12-1979 : Houston Palace
02-12-1979 : New Orleans Ole Man Rivers
(2 shows)
* Advert. Start : 8:00PM (1) / 10:30PM (2)
The fourth concert at Ole Man Rivers, New Orleans, was the last of the tour. The rest were canceled because of early pneumonia,
and Prince almost lost his voice.
Pneumonia – Tour Cancelled
This was the last tour Perry Jones and Tony Winfrey attended. They
failed to deliver to Prince and his group the necessary equipment in time
for the Los Angeles concert and were fired immediately after the New
Orleans concert. They were replaced by Steve Fargnoli, an employee of
Bob Cavallo and Joe Ruffalo. He was soon promoted to associate in the
Spaghetti Inc., and was one of the few working intimately with Prince.
Fargnoli offers creativity to Prince by becoming intimate confidant. He
became an important advisor in Prince’s life, speaking on his behalf to
the media and the press. Their close collaboration lasted nearly nine
years.
After the disappointment at the Capri theatre, Prince and his band had
to wait nine months before being given a second chance to impress
Warner Brothers. Dickerson describes these shows as an unalloyed
success, noting that it was at these shows that Prince began the tradition of the ‘post-show jam’ that remains an essential part of his
stagecraft to this day. But as successful as these shows were, Prince still struggled with live performance. Though his first tour
began with two successful shows in Los Angeles, Dickerson notes that the next night they were playing to twenty people at a cowboy
joint in Dallas, and the night after to an inappropriately old-school audience at an R&B club. After a few more shows Prince lost his
voice and had to cancel the entire tour. Pepe Willie says the reason why this rarely happened again was because Prince got tips in
performance style from jazz singer Al Jarreau (it was also at a Jarreau gig that Prince first met Sheila E, who would later become
such an important collaborator). ‘Prince was asking Al how he built his vocals up, and Al said, “When you go out there on your first
tour, you just turn your mike up and don’t give it your all. You build everything up, then you can give it your all.” But Prince was
out there on the first gig giving everything he got. Then the second gig, he ain’t
got nothing left.’
03-12-1979 : Atlanta (Cancelled)
05-12-1979 : Philadelphia (Cancelled)
06-12-1979 : Philadelphia (Cancelled)
08-12-1979 : Washington (Cancelled)
09-12-1979 : New York (Cancelled)
10-12-1979 : Boston (Cancelled)
12-12-1979 : Detroit (Cancelled)
13-12-1979 : Chicago (Cancelled)
14-12-1979 : St Louis (Cancelled)
16-12-1979 : MPLS (Cancelled)
American Bandstand shooting – aired 26-01-80
(ABC Television Center Studios – Stage 55, Hollywood)
American Bandstand was a television show that aired in various versions from 1952 to 1989,
hosted from 1957 until its final season by Dick Clark, who also served as producer... Prince
performed I Wanna Be Your Lover and Why You Wanna Treat Me So Bad ? (both lip-synced)
with this first backing band. Legend has it that Prince became annoyed when, during the
interview segment, host Dick Clark expressed surprise that Prince and his bandmates were from
Minneapolis "of all places". Prince refused to speak, instead answering a question by gesturing
with his hand. It was later admitted by Dez Dickerson that it was planned from the beginning as a
way to disconcert Clark. Dickerson was quoted as saying, "Great. We're illiterate, but we play
well." In the interview with Clark, he revealed that he did not accept anyone’s record deals,
despite people wanting to sign him because he would not be allowed to produce. Patrice Rushen
was also a guest in the program.
This appearance by Prince was at the beginning of what would become a successful career. One
clip that did not make the cut is Prince's American Bandstand debut, a performance that became as infamous for Prince's brief
answers when being interviewed by Clark as it did for Prince's precocity; Prince's debut album, "For You," contained this soon to be
famous declaration on the cover: "Produced, Arranged, Composed & Performed by Prince." Clark explained that Prince turned
down several record deals until he obtained the right to make that declaration not just a dream or a boast but a reality. Although
Prince was in fact 21- not 19, as he told Clark - when he appeared on American Bandstand, he was just a teenager when he put
together "For You."
Star Tribune (2012)
Clark long remembered his tough interview with a quiet Prince
Article by : JON BREAM , Star Tribune
April 18, 2012 - 9:09 PM
Dick Clark picked up the phone and cut to the chase. "What is this interview for ?" said the man who was involved with too many
TV projects for a reporter to keep track of. He wanted to know the subject and the media in which this interview was to be
presented. When he learned it was "The American Music Awards" for a newspaper, he said to fire away and, in his answers, he
proceeded to drop more expletives than Axl Rose at a Guns N' Roses concert. That interview took place in 1995. I asked one of
popular music's all-time most important tastemakers to revisit his infamous 1980 interview with Prince, our local hero, on
"American Bandstand." Prince was just starting out. While he was exciting when he performed, he was shy and standoffish when
trying to talk. Clark asked the musician how many instruments he played. Prince answered, "Thousands." Asked how long he'd been
playing, Prince merely raised four fingers. Clark remembered it vividly. "He didn't talk to me," the "Bandstand" host said 15 years
after the fact. "I've always said that was one of the most difficult interviews I've ever conducted, and I've done 10,000 musician
interviews." Was it Prince ? Was it Clark ? Was it the moment ? "No, that's the nature of the man," said Clark, who had since
worked with Prince a few times on "The American Music Awards.""He's an performer and not a particularly verbose one in
public conversation. Though once you're off-camera, he's like everybody else - very normal. It's like all of the mystery people in
entertainment. Michael Jackson's not a communicator in public but in the privacy of a room, he's like everybody else : He talks.
And Prince is the same. ... But I don't advise him on career moves." It was a calculated publicity stunt and rebellious prank
concocted by Prince. He was using the American Bandstand appearance to trying to create some shock and outrage to get people
talking about him and create a sense of mystery about himself with silence and create a provocatively androgynous image. Prince
had no personal dislike for Dick Clark. Prince admitted years later, "Not sure why but Mr Clark seemed 2 genuinely like me, and I
liked him also."
From David Hill's book A Pop Life
The most famous of Prince’s early TV appearances came when he and the band guested on that staple of US rock’n’roll television,
American Bandstand. Dick Clark, the show’s gleaming veteran host, conducted a painful one-way conversation with young Mr
Nelson before millions of viewers. Clark asked Prince how long he had been a musician. The brat held up four fingers to indicate the
number of years. A story has since circulated that this display of mute insolence was due in part to Prince’s infamous shyness, but
mostly his annoyance at Clark’s first question, which implied his incredulity that a Hicksville like Minneapolis could be the band’s
home town.
In truth, the whole dumb-struck performance was a premeditated stunt. Dez Dickerson : “Before we went on we were sitting in the
green room and he (Prince) hatched the idea not to say anything. He said, “If he asks you anything just shake your head, don’t
talk.” When I came home and saw somebody’s tape of it, I thought it just made him look foolish, but other people thought it was
brilliant. I thought it made us look like total buffoons. I remember thinking, “Oh, this is so stupid. I feel so dumb !” You know,
“We’re illiterate, but we play well.” But I guess one man’s ceiling is another man’s floor.” News of this contrived piece of noncooperation even filtered across to the UK, where the weekly Black Echoes magazine reported it with glee. Behaving like that to Dick
Clark is a bit like being invited to Buckingham Palace, then hanging your arse out at the queen. Prince was showing signs of shaping
up as a bit of an outlaw.
??-12-1979 : I WANNA BE YOUR LOVER UK Single Release
Prince’s first UK single released,
"I Wanna Be Your Lover" / "Just As Long As We’re Together" (top position : number 41).
Right On
A Rendezvous With A Prince !
Midnight - My pleasant sleep was disturbed by the persistent ringing
of the telephone in my ear. Sleepily, I answered it still dazed at the
lateness of my call. “Hello,” I said exhaustedly. "Hello," a quiet,
familiar voice replied. “This is Prince, l want to talk to you." Only the
deepest slumber would prevent me from instantly knowing which
Prince was on the other end of my hotline. “Prince who ?” the
nineteen-year-old recording artist mimicked my puzzled tone. “How
could you ever forget ME ?“ Awakening suddenly, I decided that it
would be best to talk to Prince at my office in the morning. I hung up
and fell promptly into deep slumber. The next morning, true to his
promise, Prince called me and asked me to meet him at Farmer's
Market, a well-known fruit and vegetables mart where meals are
served and gifts may be purchased. Who but Prince would think of
such an unusual meeting place, I thought. I arrived at our destination
a little early. There was no sign of Prince anywhere. After making a
few phone calls, I was advised by people who didn't know Prince very
well to go back to work. This is what I did. I sat down at my desk in
frustration wondering what to do and if this was all a joke. The
ringing of my phone interrupted my concentration and I answered it
impatiently. “Hi ! I'm down here at Farmer's Market waiting for
you," Prince exclaimed. "Hurry up; someone's going to stab me in
this phone booth if you don't." I decided to try again and speed down
the street hoping to find him this time. If not, our one-year
friendship will be at an end. I stand out on the street comer searching
high and low for a short, green-eyed teenager with an Afro. No one
fits the description. Oh, well, he's playing tricks again, I thought
resignedly. Maybe I should go back to work. Then, for the second
time that day my busy thoughts were interrupted - not by a telephone
since l'm outside, but by hands clasping tightly around my vocal
chords. It was impossible to scream to the amazed onlookers so l
whirled around and a mischievous impish young man with sparkling green eyes lets go of my throat and squeals, “I gotcha." Prince
spent the next few minutes getting the bawling out of his life while a gas station attendant nods approvingly. After that with a
winning smile he says, “Come on, let's walk around and talk.”
It isn't easy to interview someone walking around with a tape recorder through aisles packed with tourists, but at Right On ! we
learned long ago to get our stories the best way we can. Like my original interview with Prince in the January issue, it was
conducted in a very unorthodox manner with him asking me just as many questions as I asked him. Thank goodness he's become
more talkative and gives me more than one-word answers. The first piece of good news Prince laid on me was that his new album
would be in the record stores by the time you read this and the single is called "I Wanna Be A Lover."
“You should have brought me a tape so that I could hear it," I tell him.
"I have one right here.” He pulls out an imaginary tape from his pocket. As he does so I take a real good lock at him. He's so
different now, I never would have known him. Dressed in a pair of tom red satin shorts with a white tie-up shirt and suspenders, a
pair of legwarmers and cowboy boots complete his unusual costume. Gone was his gorgeous Afro and in place was a new image.
He's not pretty anymore - he's very handsome. His many fans would readily attest to that.
“Where were you earlier ?” I ask him.
“I was walking around. I came here yesterday.”
“Are you ever going to move to Calilomia ?“
He shakes his head no. “But I do like it a little better here than before.“
“Have you experienced a loss of privacy at this point in your career ?"
"Not that many people know who I am." He considers and continues, "Well, I suppose they do but I don't come outside much so I
don't see too many people."
“Have you gotten a stage act ready yet ?"
“It's ready but I won't say what it's like !"
Suddenly my calmness deserts me and I speak to him sharply, “Why not ? Why do you constantly put me through all these changes
about your lite ?“
“Ssh.” He puts his finger over his lips and looks around at a casual group of people who have joined us on a bench. They probably
weren't even listening but Prince never takes chances.
“Okay," I say, lowering my voice two octaves. "Why ?"
"lf I told you, you wouldn't be surprised when you see it."
“If I guarantee you that I'll be surprised, will you..."
“You'd say, oh, l knew that was coming the same way you would if I told you the end of a movie.”
“Why are you so mysterious ?" I ask.
"I'm not mysterious. You'd like me to tell you the end of a movie ?"
“lf I were curious I would."
Prince picks up my glasses, studies me intensely an remarks, "Have
you always worn glasses ?”
Refusing to be sidetracked, I continue, "Is this a publicity gimmick
you've planned in advance...your mysterious, I mean."
Prince looks exasperated and says in a controlled voice, “I am not
mysterious."
“I've never read any articles on you.“
“You know I don't like to do interviews.“
“But you have to so that people will know who you are.“
“Why do they have to know who I am ?”
“So that they will want to buy your records."
“Why wouldn't they buy them anyway; they did last time !”
“People like to have the inside scoop on artists."
“But they bought my records last time and I didn't do lots of
interviews," he persists naively.
I explain how important publicity is. Even Teddy Pendergrass is
aware of its importance. “How can we continue to publicize you if
we don't know where you are ?"
I chide him, changing my tactics. "I thought you knew...
Minneapolis. It's small enough. You could find me."
"I don't even know your real name,” I remind him.
Laughing, he replies, “This is my real name, Prince."
"You don't have a last name."
“I do but it's sooo ugly. It's hard to remember and...well I'm not
going to say it's ugly but it's long."
“When did you stop using it ?"
“When I couldn't think of how to write it. That's when I was
younger." He changes the subject this time. “Look,” he commands,
showing me a great big hole in his satin shorts. It's as if he's a little
kid pointing out his crime. “My manager's cat attacked me. I gave
him some chili and he got sick."
"Why did you do that ?”
“He kept begging for it so I gave him a whole bowlful. This morning
he attacked me.“
“Well, the cat probably had indigestion. Shame on you."
“Guess what ? This time my album cover has a photo of me on it."
"That's great !"
“Unfortunately.”
"Why are you so uninterested in attention and recognition ?” I
wonder.
“Would you like to have attention and recognition ?”
“I'm not in your position so the question is irrelevant. I would like
to point out though that our readers really like you."
“I like them too so then I should give you more pictures and stories,
shouldn't I ? But wouldn't we run out of things to write about ?”
“Let me worry about that. There are still things about the Jacksons
that the public doesn't know."
“Wouldn't people get sick of reading about the same people all the
time ?”
Rather than wade in water over my head, I change the subject once
again. It's hard to keep Prince on one subject because he's taking
advantage of the opportunity to tease me and play jokes. He's a kid, a
darling little elf that you'd like to take home. “What do you expect to
get out of being a recording artist ?”
“That's a deep question." Silence. “Well, it's because it's what I do best. It's a job. I can't pump gas or nuthin' like that.”
“You didn't have to be a recording artist. You could have been a session musician. It took initiative for you to land at a record
company.”
“Well, when I got bored, I changed careers. I got tired of playing in a band. Besides, I didn't find a record company, the record
company found me. Remember ?"
“This must have been a goal for you to strive for,” l insist.
“Goal ?” He repeated the word as if he had never heard it before. “I kind of got into this because...you get paid for doing this and if
I'm going to have a job, I might as well do something I like. I haven't set any long-range goals for myself because I'm not ready to
yet.”
The Big Ben clock strikes on the half hour but Prince and I ignore it as we get deeper and deeper into his philosophy of life revealing
his innermost thoughts. “How do you spend the rest of your time ?”
“In the bathtub,“ Prince smiled.
“No, you don‘t"
“A lot of it I do," he says seriously.
I decide two can play his game so in a straight face I quietly ask him, "Do you put bubbles in the bathtub ?“
“Do I put bubbles in the bathtub ?” he repeats with little comprehension. Suddenly it dawns on him what I've asked and he gives me
one of those exasperated Prince looks. He turns his attention toward peeling bark off a tree. Having nothing better to do, I try to
join him. "l think I've started something,” Prince comments. “I'm not peeling the bark off really"
“I don't have any nails," I say.
“Why don't you have any nails ?” wonders Prince. “I have some. Are you jealous ?” After I answer some of Prince's questions about
what it's like to work at a magazine, he asks me, “Are you trying to start a romance between Patrice Rushen and me ?”
"No. People should learn to read between the lines.“
“Some people think that you were starting a romance but I never did. I knew
you wouldn't - not intentionally. But that's the reaction people had."
"What else do you do in your spare time besides sit in your bathtub ?“
“I ride my ten speed.”
"Do you have anything else that you'd like to say about your album ?"
"This one's a lot nastier."
"Do you have any girlfriends at the present time ?”
“I had one but she left me. I wrote some songs about it on the album.“
“Prince, I can't imagine anyone leaving you. Do you know how many young
ladies would love to fill her shoes ?“
“That's why she left me. Am I really that popular ?"
"Yes, you are. You're not taking advantage of the situation, are you ?”
“No, how could I ? You mean if I went out and bought a used car and used my
name ?"
Laughing at his joke. I pursue the intriguing topic of Prince's girlfriend, “So she
felt your instant stardom was too much to handle ?”
"I don't know.” Prince shrugged his shoulders morosely. "There were other
reasons too. I wrote about some of them in my songs."
“Do you feel that it's too difficult to have a girlfriend under the circumstances
right now ?"
"I've really only had one. I'm not going to say she left me.“ he said in thinking
it over. “We had discussions about it. Listen to my songs and you'll
understand.”
Prince went on to say that although he liked having a girlfriend, he's really not
very lonely because he has a pet to share his bachelor's hideaway. “What do you
have for a pet ?" I wondered curiously.
Prince never had seemed like the type who'd even want one. “I won't tell you
because you'll just say I'm strange."
"l won't say you're strange. I'm sorry. I'm not trying to be mean to you. I’m
sorry I've hurt your feelings before," I apologize.
Prince watches me very thoughtfully for a few minutes and says, “I'm sorry I
scared you by grabbing you by your throat."
“Now, let's see." I close my eyes and try to imagine what pet Prince bought. "I know it's not a cat or a dog..."
“It's both," he says abruptly with a straight face.
“What do you mean, it's both ?"
“I crossbred ‘em. It's a dog and a cat. The face looks like both animals. It's black," Prince joked.
"What made you cross breed them ?" I ask, playing along.
“There are some things I don't like about cats and some things I don't like about dogs. So I got some of both. It made some of the
bad things go away with a little prayer, of course."
Prince's sense of logic can't be beat. It can't be understood either, so I swiftly change the subject to a safer topic. "Would you like to
become rich someday soon ?"
“Who wants to be rich ?“ he asks scornfully. “That only means more problems. I'm not rich and I don't want to be. I learned how
to drive, but I don't have a car," he illustrates his point. "I like my bike better."
“Did you really hitchhike to this meeting place ?" I ask in an attempt to find out exactly how he got to his destination without
accepting a ride from a friend and without driving a car.
“Yeah. It only took 45 minutes. That was fast. What's wrong with hitchhiking anyway ? You must come from a rich family. l
didn't. I ran away when I was twelve. I went to my father's house since he wasn't living with us at the time. Then I ran away from
him a year later. Guess how many times I've changed addresses. Twenty-two times !" he exclaims proudly.
My face colored with embarrassment as I realized what a fuss I had made over his hitchhiking earlier. My concern for his well-being
and safety had fallen on deaf ears. "Well, if you've done all that, you must have laughed when I was worried about your
hitchhiking."
"Not out loud, I didn't. I was respectful. Don't worry; it's not my time to die."
“When did you decide to stop running away and stay put ?"
“I haven't yet. I told you I've moved three times since last year. It makes me feel older when I run away, like I'm achieving
something."
“I remember last time you told me your favorite food was Bubble Yum. Is that still true ?"
"Yes, Bubble Yum is food. It's nutritional. It strengthens the muscles. I'll bet you never thought about it that way, have you ? Not
only that, chewing Bubble Yum is exercise. I also like Virgin Pina Coladas (a coconut-fruit drink without the rum)."
“Well, Prince, it's time for me to go back to work so I'll say goodbye for now."
“No, don't go. I'll buy you a banana."
“No, thank you."
"How about a dress ?" He looks around at the stores surrounding us and points out a shop. “Here's a place."
“No thanks...See you later." Prince and I part ways as the readers of this conversation probably wonder what's wrong with both of
us. I'm turning down a free gift from a famous celebrity and he's wandering off to hitchhike back to his secret destination. You know
what's wrong with us ? We're both individuals.
??-?? : Home Studio
You Know How (1/2) (Gayle Chapman)
You Know How is an unreleased track recorded as a home recording in 1979 or early 1980 at Prince's France Avenue Home
Studio or Lake Minnetonka Home Studio. Gayle Chapman has stated that the chorus went "You know how to make me".
Sheila E – The Beat Of My Own Drum
I, too, kept working steadily, fulfilled and happy by gigs and tours, playing whenever, wherever, and with whomever I could. I was
getting more and more studio session work as well. When Quincy Jones called me in to provide percussion on a Michael Jackson
song, “Don’t Stop ’Til You Get Enough,” which would soon be the number-one hit from his Off the Wall album, I contributed the
distinctive percussive sound. It was the perfect song title for my pace at the time - I wasn’t stopping, and I was nowhere near getting
enough. We were going after a particular sound on that number, and after trying various instruments I ended up putting water into
a glass bottle. Once I’d pitched the key, I tapped it with the metal beater from my triangle. If you listen closely, you can hear that
exact sound. I’m not credited anywhere - the recording process took so long and the engineers chopped and changed around so
much of it that they forgot to put my name on the record - but it was cool to be a small part of such a great song. And I was thrilled
to contribute to one of Michael’s tunes. He was one of the great entertainers and had become someone I enjoyed being around
whenever possible. Continuing to record fervently, sadly my work schedule –c oupled with Prince’s -meant that we didn’t get to see
very much of each other for a while. For anyone else that might have been the end of a beautiful friendship, but Fate had something
else.
In the ensuing weeks, Prince and I gradually became friends. We
started out talking on the telephone, and then I invited him to
come over and hang out with me. Signed by Warner Brothers as
an artist and their youngest-ever producer, he never seemed to
stop working. Whenever he came to town I’d pick him up at the St.
Francis Hotel in San Francisco or at the studio. I’d proudly drive
him all over the Bay Area, showing him the coolest haunts, the
prettiest scenery, and my former houses and schools. We’d get
sandwiches around Lake Merritt and doughnuts at the famous
Colonial Bakery. Mostly, we’d chat for hours. I was in awe. Of
course I bragged to him about Pops and his band and how we kids
would often sit in and play with him and his legendary friends.
Prince didn’t believe it until he saw it - a father who plays timbales
with his daughter and two sons. It was unheard of. “Prince of what
?” Juan asked when I first introduced him. When Pops and my
brothers saw how well he could play every instrument, they were
pretty impressed. This man was a prince of music. He got along
well with my family, and we welcomed him into our jam sessions. I liked that he showed so much respect to veterans like Pops.
My new friend from Minneapolis was impressed by our Latin jazz sound and loved coming to our gigs or just jamming in the front
room with our family band. For the next couple of years, as we each toured and I was getting over my split from Carlos, he and I
would meet up whenever we could — but always just as friends. I’d been too deeply hurt by my last relationship to even begin to
contemplate another, and certainly not one with another ladies’ man and guitar player. The cords that had bound us from the
beginning, though, gradually drew us closer. We loved the same kind of music and shared a respect for each other’s talents. We were
checking each other out - seeing what the other one knew. We would jam at the house where I still lived with my parents off and on,
due to touring some two hundred fifty days out of the year. I thought it silly to spend money on a place of my own for such short
stays. We’d hang out in my bedroom - which was a pseudo–recording studio - and jam for hours. The decor reflected my growing
obsession with music. The walls and ceiling were covered with various posters I’d begged, borrowed, or purchased from record
stores. (I took down the one of Prince before he came.) I wasn’t really interested in posters of the standard teen heartthrobs, actors,
or even pop singers. All of my posters featured musicians like Earth, Wind & Fire, Stevie Wonder, the Jacksons, ParliamentFunkadelic, James Brown, and every Motown artist you could think of. I had no idea that I myself would be on a poster in
someone’s room one day. I had no desire for fame. I just loved being surrounded by the faces of all my favorites. By this time, music
was far more than a hobby or a means of paying the bills. Music was my life. The rest of the room was all about the sound. Inspired
by Pops’s office, I had my collection of LPs and a piano, bass, and guitar along with virtually any percussion instrument I needed.
I’d harbored dreams of writing my own songs, so I invested in the latest recording equipment, including a reel-to-reel four-track
and a huge stereo system. On days off I’d record myself and listen back - my first attempt at being more than a player. Musician
friends as well as Prince often came by our house to jam for hours. It didn’t hurt that he was beautiful to look at. Ever the
workaholic (like me), he locked himself away in studios all over the country to continue to craft material for his next few albums,
most of which were destined to go gold. I was thrilled for him and enormously proud of my new friend.