This topic comes up every once in a while. Let me throw in a quick refresher course. I have interviewed many of the people involved in that book. Prince wasn't always nice to people and was very often just plain cruel. Alex had some errors when it came to a few dates, etc. but the overall tone was accurate.

It was written at a time when Prince's career was on a downward slope according to many. The title was fairly accurate at the time.

regarding Alex. He didn't have a beef with Prince. He defended UPTOWN magazine (for free as I recall) when Prince wanted to sue them for using the symbol that he supplied to the media. He also felt that they were involved in bootlegging his music. As I recall, Alex countersued on UPTOWN's behalf and Prince settled. UPTOWN agreed not to write about bootleg CDs and albums (and stop reprinting the issue that covered that exclusively). They also agreed to post a note on the front of any UPTOWN publication that stated clearly that they were not associated with Prince, Paisley Park or anything else involving Prince. UPTOWN was allowed to continue publishing and Prince would have no say in what they printed.

There are days when I wonder why more fans aren't kissing Alex's ass because he busted his butt (for free) to make sure that the fans could continue reading about how/when Prince's music was recorded and books like DMSR could be published. Alex was instrumental when it came to making sure that Prince had no say in UPTOWN's reviews and articles. MOST of what you know about Prince in the studio would never have been published if it weren't for Alex so y'all should collectively give his butt a smooch.

Also, regarding the accuracy of the book, I suggest you listen to Alan Leeds when he stated that it was fairly accurate. I don't remember the exact phrase, but he said that there was a lot of truth in the book.

Now, if you've got more experience with Prince, be my guest and lay down some science for us, but until then, lets allow the experts to have their say.

Bottom line:
1) Book is mostly accurate when it comes to Prince.
2) Alex doesn't have an ax to grind.
3) Alex defended UPTOWN, which stopped Prince in his tracks and probably is a reason we have the 'org and Housequake.
4) Alan Leeds, Prince's old manager, says the book is accurate.
5) Ya'll should plant lips on Alex's butt since he did it all for free.
6) Read the book. Borrow it from the library if you like, but read it.

Yount.

I found a mistake in Hahn's book. There's a page where he compares Prince's music to U2's, and says Bono's guitar playing is especially good. I think he meant to say The Edge!

markpeg said:

Hahn's 1st edition (and maybe even later ones) is riddled with errors like that. He didn't do as much research when it came to those outside of Prince's story.

i wish there were more pictures

If Prince is so bad why does everyone still play with him? Sheila E., The Time, Flyte Time, Wendy, former band members, etc. The only folks that don't like him is the folks he would get on because of what they were doing or folks he fired. 1) Do you always get a long with your co-workers? 2) It may say Prince and so & so but it is Prince's house and he is the boss. 3) He is human and he can be a jerk sometimes like the rest of us. 4) He lives in his world because he can...if he doesn't want his wife calling him and can do it...do I agree with it...NO...but it's his world.

prime said:

I agree with you. I keep hearing things from people nowadays like "he's actually a really nice guy", really friendly, really cool, Wendy was thrilled to be working with him again - kept hugging and kissing him?

Everything has its sell by date, and yes co-workers get sick of the sight of each other, especially in that line of work, where you're working really closely, and involved emotionally with each other. It's natural for things to break down to a certain degree.... it might not always have been Prince that was the 'jerk'? I get fed up hearing the same old things from the same old people, most of it is WAY in the past, he was probably under a lot of pressure a lot of the time, and I'm sure some of the people around him added to that pressure. You can just imagine it, the petty jealousies and squabbles amongst the band members. I've been in dance groups, where we've mostly been good friends but there are always times when you'd be glad never to see each other again! People feel slighted, or left out - well, I'm going on a bit, sorry, but just my opinion!

And, as for his wife, isn't it up to the two people in the relationship to decide what's ok and what's not - no-one ever knows what really goes on between two people in a relationship...

I saw a clip from ONA the other day, watching Eric Leeds playing in the background, all the while 'betraying' Prince by being interviewed for the book - I know what I think of that! He seemed happy enough to take the jobs at the time

Jeffiner said:

Dang...we should write a book together..."The Real Prince". People don't get it that P and the band are together 24/7 and that is why a lot of the older folks in the band leave after a while (Rosie, Larry G. etc.) because the schedule is so crazy. If you are with folks all day rehearsing, recording, photo shoots, traveling...I am sure folks start getting on each others nerves... I want the book that talks about P paying off G. Clinton's back taxes, treating his family to dinners and trips, buying his mom and dad a house...you know? Carmen was on Howard Stern back in the day and she was talking about how nice he was and all of the shopping sprees she got to on...she just got bored sitting at home all day....but he was nice to her.

Hahn's book is overwhelmingly negative from the title to what is said in the blurbs with the photos (one of the first reader entry points and well known in marketing).

Kudos for writing the post 87 era but half the book was already done by the more informative, objective and well-written DANCE MUSIC SEX ROMANCE by Per Nelson. An enjoyable read.

In contrast, [b]trying to finish Hahn's book in one sitting it's tempting to take a permanent coffee break off a 5th floor. Gossip, rumors are put to the fore-front while discussion of his music takes a backseat, likewise his 90's input is written off as mostly bland which is ludicrous.. the opinions should have remained with the author, likewise the agenda to create Prince as the anti-Christ. The poor writing just reaks of negativity. I wish Per Nelson would come out with a more complete work in the future! [/b]

madhouseman said:

Do you have the page numbers?I have the book and would like to look it up.Also what errors do you see???
[Edited 3/30/08 23:30pm]

Dang...we should write a book together..."The Real Prince". quote]

Let's do it! I started a thread a while back 'Prince's Positives' but there weren't many takers, I guess it's not as interesting to talk about the good sides to Prince. I believe he also bought a house for Larry Graham and his family? Was always good to Andre Cymone's Mum? Kept people on contracts (ie still paid them) even once they've left the fold.

And, shouldn't we give him CREDIT for being in total control of his life, and keeping true to the music and what he believes in? It can't be easy keeping a grip on things when you have that level of fame. Look what happened to Elvis because everyone else controlled his life! Well, rant over for now!

prime said:

We need more of those

Just promise that you do something different than what I have in mind

Might be a while before I can go all the way with it, though Got 4 new albums to get through and get a feel for before I can begin to write about them.

I think what I'm gonna do will focus more on the music, going through the albums I own and write my opinions mixed in with different facts I've picked up. Of course, it will include a huge chunk of the artist behind the music as well as the person within the music
Still is a work in progress, though

Go for it Dreamy! There's no way I'd get through all that music in the next 20 years, never mind start to analyse it all

Jeffiner said:

Well, I won't be reporting on ALL of his music
I'm only gonna get so much. So I'll be condensing a lot, especially in the 90's. I heard that in the 90's, he wrote a lot of "throwaways" or what he called "spit records" (like he could spit on it and people would still buy it/listen to it)...
"The Truth"... I'll need a while to get through, but it was supposedly a shining light among some sub-par albums he'd released after Emancipation. Should be interesting

DreamyPopRoyalty said:

Oooh, don't let Prince hear you say that

Jeffiner said:

no book, no matter what its about is 100% positive... the only negative thing ill probably ever have to say about it will be about NPS, which im not too crazy about

DreamyPopRoyalty said:

It just reminded me of an interview I saw once, it was some time in the 90's - don't ask me where, what, when but the interviewer said something to P about his recent music being sub-standard! Prince was like "sub-standard? sub-standard? He nearly had a nervous break down!

Jeffiner said:

we're getting off topic

....but that's the reason why I try not to be critical of him. Out of respect, I try to give all of his music a chance. And actually, its easy not being critical because I like a LOT about what he does

toots said:

PAGE 103

"The Police, led by the prolific Sting, blended reggae, rock, and New Wave into a unique sound, while U2, relying on the adventurous guitar work of Bono, took basic pop songs in sonically intriguing directions."

DreamyPopRoyalty said:

It's so hard because there can be 10 die hard fans in a room and everyone will have a different opinion on the same song... I love the R&B Prince but hate the heavy rock ... but I can appreciate it and give my opinion on it. I guess that is the difference between a real fan because I can say "you know I really don't like the rock style but my boy was still rockin' it." Some folks on here tear some CDs to shreds....I guess that really surprises me...

But as I was talking about b4...it would be nice to see some of the inside stuff. I remember a long time ago (mid-90's) my brothers wife said that a DJ was just dogging Prince out and then a family member called in and just ripped them a new one. I guess she was talking about Prince bring food over to his mom's house and spending Thanksgiving with them....

I also remember (I have it tape somewhere) Prince's mom walking into the church for Prince and Mayte's wedding and the reported asked her if she was proud and she said "oh yes, I am so proud of him." The camera was across the street and she was on a walker but it was nice....

Hey Jeffiner, I finished reading Possessed last night and I have to say I have more respect for Alex Hahn than I did in the beginning. At the start, I thought "Oh boy, here we go, another writer jealous of Prince's talent." but by the end I thought it was a pretty even-tempered tome. Hahn is a lawyer and writes like he is building a case. I do disagree with him on his critques of some albums, especially P's work in the 1990s. But I guess I would be what Hahn calls "The Hardcore Fan". I've always found something to like in every Prince album, with the exception of Come and Chaos & Disorder.


Ha ha - by the end I felt like throwing myself out the nearest window


I was glad he included the part about Prince's mail order fiasco with the distrbution of Crystal Ball. I was a victim of that, it took Paisley Park a full NINE MONTHS to get my order straight.

Yeah, that must have been pretty frustrating - seems like he bit off more than he could chew with distributing that?


All in all, Possessed is a good book, one I'd reccommend to the person wanting to get into Prince's work. The discography at the back of book was particularly well-done. I'll be going broke for sure trying to track some of that stuff down.

Peace Mark

I guess it was a full three weeks for me to complete the reading of Possessed, because that's how long the library loans out for and I got it back the day it was due. A nice surprise, they had DanceMusicSexRomance by Per Nilsen waiting for me to pick up at that time. So I'm into that now, and I see parts of it that Hahn lifted for his book.

I guess it was a full three weeks for me to complete the reading of Possessed, because that's how long the library loans out for and I got it back the day it was due. A nice surprise, they had DanceMusicSexRomance by Per Nilsen waiting for me to pick up at that time. So I'm into that now, and I see parts of it that Hahn lifted for his book.

markpeg said:

Just finished reading DMSR - 'parts' lifted from his book? It now seems to me that 'Possessed' is practically a carbon copy of 'DMSR', with a little bit more added at the end and lots more negativity, and as much dirt digging as possible thrown in!!

I much preferred Per Nilson's book, really enjoyable read, much more objective ... AND WHAT'S THIS? Some really positive comments / quotes about some of the things Prince has done - charitable work, kindnesses, good stuff, that were the only things LEFT OUT OF Alex Hahn's book!!