OldFriends4Sale said:

paulludvig said:

OldFriends4Sale said:

oooohh boy

That's not an answer. We know they co-wrote Mountains and SISIA and play on both songs. They sing background vocals on many of the songs. That's it?

lol yes it is. You ask and get answers to this every time you ask this question...

Most likely they played instruments on the songs and Prince had them in the studio a lot while he was focusing on the movie working on the songs (I would assume outtakes too) not to mention they were all working on Dream Factory music at the same time.

OldFriends4Sale said:

paulludvig said:

OldFriends4Sale said:

lol yes it is. You ask and get answers to this every time you ask this question...

Most likely they played instruments on the songs and Prince had them in the studio a lot while he was focusing on the movie working on the songs (I would assume outtakes too) not to mention they were all working on Dream Factory music at the same time.

Checked with Princevault. Girls&Boys, Mountains and Anotherlover are listed as full band performances (extended Revolution), SISIA as a trio. The rest is almost all Prince with various people doing background vocals and sometimes adding percussion. Then of course there is the great contribution of Fischer. More than anything I see Parade as a collaboration between Prince and Fischer, with Prince in the driving seat.

Paul Paully Paul

Happy 30th Birthdy Parade

Alternative ending/deleted scenes??.. ..Never knew that. Christopher lives and runs off with Mary?

I have a bunch more add to answer your question Paulludvig

So hold on.
.

1985 Interview:
"Old Friends 4 Sale" ends, and on comes "Strange Relationships," [sic] an as-yet-unreleased dance tune. "Is it too much?" asks Prince about playing his own songs in his own car. "Not long ago I was riding around L.A. with [a well-known rock star], and all he did was play his own stuff over and over. If it gets too much, just tell me."

"I got something for you to listen to. Lisa [Coleman] and Wendy [Melvoin] have been working on these in L.A." Prince throws the tape, which the two female members of his band had mixed, and his father catches it with one hand. Nelson nods okay and pulls his car behind his son’s in the alley.

1985/86 MTV interview

Someone in Minneapolis recently told us that several months ago they were in a studio there when David Rifkin, your sound engineer, walked in. They asked him what he thought of the new Prince album, Around The World In A Day. He said, "It's great, but wait 'til you hear the new album." Apparently, he meant you're already working on a new LP, and that this one would be a strong return to your funk roots. Is this true? Can you elaborate? What will it be called? When will it be due out, and what's the music like?

Don't you like surprises? Guess not. Ah, it is true I record very fast. It goes even quicker now that the girls help me -- the girls, meaning Wendy and Lisa. I don't really think I left my funk roots anywhere along the line. Around The World In A Day is a funky album. Live it's even funkier.

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Eric Leeds:

Those were the circumstances that were more intriguing to me, because it was matter of us trying to get into each other's heads. He had that relationship with other people, Sheila E particularly and of course Wendy and Lisa. From a conceptual basis, Wendy and Lisa were the two musicians in any of his bands who were able to tap into him on some subliminal level - they really did have a musical relationship that was closer than with anyone that he worked with.

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Dr FINK: Yeah, but Wendy & Lisa, I’d say from Purple Rain through Parade, were pretty integral to the session work on those records.

Didn't like the movie, loved the CD. Mountains and Girls and Boy my favourite tracks on this one. 30 years old though! My my my, just what happens to time?

Once upon a time in France

there lived a bad boy name Christopher Tracey

Only 1 thing mattered 2 Christopher... money

the women he knew came in all sizes shapes & colors

and they were all rich, very rich

Private concertos kind words & fun is what he had 2 offer them

yes Christopher lived 4 all women

but he died 4 1

Somewhere along the way he learned the true meaning of love

Under the Cherry Moon film score

1. Under the Cherry Moon Outro - Piano Instrumental (Intro Voice over)
2. An Honest Man - Piano Instrumental (Titles)
3. Christopher Tracy’s Parade (Nice)
4. Incidental Strings (Mirror, Mirror, 17 fold)
5. Incidental Sax & Strings (That Bela Lugosi look)
6. Incidental Sax & Strings (Bath phone call)
7. Do U Lie? (Mary’s party)
8. Planet Rock (Party Jam)
9. Incidental Drums (Christopher & Mary’s eyes meet)
10. Mia Bocca: Intro (Mary reappears)
11. New Position (Party Conga)
12. Happy Birthday (Jonathan calls)
13. Incidental Strings (Mary & Christopher)
14. Do U Lie? – Piano Instrumental (Mrs Wellington’s phone message)
15. Incidental Organ (Christopher & Mrs Wellington)
16. I Wonder U (Mary thinks of a retort)
17. Alexa De Paris (Dance on the veranda)
18. Do U Lie? – Instrumental (Isaac’s car at Mrs Wellington’s)
19. Incidental Drums & Bass (Mary wants to take boat out)
20. It’s A Wonderful Day – Instrumental (Butterscotch, Chocolate)
21. Incidental Chamber music (Restaurant)
22. Girls & Boys (making a scene at the restaurant)
23. I Wonder U (Mary in bed)
24. ♥ Or $ (I know, let’s spend it!)
25. Life Can Be So Nice (Waiting at the Hippodrome)
26. Junk music (Car race at the Hippodrome)
27. Under the Cherry Moon Istrumental (Christopher & Mary)
28. Venus De Milo (Phone booth)
29. Old Friends 4 Sale – Strings only (Tricky confronts Christopher)
30. Mountains – Part 2 (Let’s run away, for couple of hours)
31. Incidental Drums & Bass (Tricky says something he shouldn’t)
32. Incidental Strings (Mrs Wellington & Christopher)
33. Anotherloverholenyohead (Race to the airport)
34. Incidental Sax (Isaac gets to the plane)
35. Kiss (Define ‘Love’)
36. Incidental Sax (Isaac on the phone)
37. Kiss – Part 2 (Tricky oon the run)
38. Venus De Milo (Mary wakes up in the grotto)
39. Incidental Strings (Tricky fights back)
40. Sometimes It Snows In April (Miami)
41. Mountains (End Titles)

Anyone who doesn't think PARADE is a TOP 5 PRINCE album... Are just coo coo.

feeluupp said:

classic

OldFriends4Sale said:

paulludvig said:

PURPLEIZED3121 said: Anyone knows what they actually did on the album?

oooohh boy

It is a good question, because a lot of Parade was a Prince one man job. The first four ytracks were all recorded in one go at Sunset sound in April 1985, Kiss was modified from the Mazarati version and really Lisa provided some piano parts with Wendy contributing a few guitar lines, most of Parade was Prince. Yes W and L added effects and pieces and bought the music to life on stage with Prince, but only the Venus De Milo and Alexa de Paris have much W and L input. If anything there is a lot more Wendynlisa on the Dream Factory and Crystal Ball. (Not so much SOTT, as Prince removed a lot of W/L material off the finished mixes like Strange Relationship).

.

As much as I love WendynLisa, Parade to me is a PRINCE album and he extended it to the Revolution as a courtesy. Even Kiss started life as a Prince track. There are plenty of horn lines which are Eric and Matt though and of course the Clare Fischer scoring through it and the music on UTCM.

Adorecream said:

OldFriends4Sale said:

oooohh boy

It is a good question, because a lot of Parade was a Prince one man job. The first four ytracks were all recorded in one go at Sunset sound in April 1985, Kiss was modified from the Mazarati version and really Lisa provided some piano parts with Wendy contributing a few guitar lines, most of Parade was Prince. Yes W and L added effects and pieces and bought the music to life on stage with Prince, but only the Venus De Milo and Alexa de Paris have much W and L input. If anything there is a lot more Wendynlisa on the Dream Factory and Crystal Ball. (Not so much SOTT, as Prince removed a lot of W/L material off the finished mixes like Strange Relationship).

.

As much as I love WendynLisa, Parade to me is a PRINCE album and he extended it to the Revolution as a courtesy. Even Kiss started life as a Prince track. There are plenty of horn lines which are Eric and Matt though and of course the Clare Fischer scoring through it and the music on UTCM.

Thanks!

Are you sure about VdM and AdP? Never heard that before. But seems to have Sheila E on drums though.

Just reading some books, it seems they may have had more of a role, CT parade was originally called "Little girl wendy's parade" and I wonder U has the Lisa vocals.

.

Also it seems many of the tracks after the first 4 were cut at Eden Prairie warehouse in July and November of 1985, with the scoring done later.

Parade era rehearsals, a boot I have, includes many other songs such as Sexual Suicide, An Honest Man and Movie star which have roots in this era.

.

Am loading a video about the album now.

feeluupp said:

Adorecream said:

OldFriends4Sale said:

oooohh boy

It is a good question, because a lot of Parade was a Prince one man job. The first four ytracks were all recorded in one go at Sunset sound in April 1985, Kiss was modified from the Mazarati version and really Lisa provided some piano parts with Wendy contributing a few guitar lines, most of Parade was Prince. Yes W and L added effects and pieces and bought the music to life on stage with Prince, but only the Venus De Milo and Alexa de Paris have much W and L input. If anything there is a lot more Wendynlisa on the Dream Factory and Crystal Ball. (Not so much SOTT, as Prince removed a lot of W/L material off the finished mixes like Strange Relationship).

.

As much as I love WendynLisa, Parade to me is a PRINCE album and he extended it to the Revolution as a courtesy. Even Kiss started life as a Prince track. There are plenty of horn lines which are Eric and Matt though and of course the Clare Fischer scoring through it and the music on UTCM.

The first 3 tracks were Prince going through the drumming. But he wasn't the only person who was on those tracks. On New Position there are steele drums along with regular drums. Wendy Melvoin was skilled in playing the steele drums. So that could easily have been her -Especially since she and Lisa pulled that one out of the Vault for the album. Susan Roger as well talked about Lisa & Wendy's work in the studio on Parade.

Dr FINK: Yeah, but Wendy & Lisa, I’d say from Purple Rain through Parade, were pretty integral to the session work on those records.

Mountains Girls & Boys AnotherLoverHolenYohead are all full band compositions

But also remember Parade is a very sparse album as well. In a creative way very simplistic in a lot of of the songs. New Position I Wonder U, Under the Cherry Moon, Do U Lie? Venus de Milo Sometimes It Snows In April

Jonathon Melvoin is playing drums on Do U Lie?

I Wonder U is Wendy Melvoin Prince & Lisa Coleman on vocals. Wendy's vocals are up front.

Sheila E played cowbells on Life Can Be So Nice and vocals on Girls & Boys

And the creation of Kiss. Is not an all Prince composition. That is David Z BrownMark Mazarati Prince and anyone elso he used to play over what was there -if so,.

Prince: Don't you like surprises? Guess not. Ah, it is true I record very fast. It goes even quicker now that the girls help me -- the girls, meaning Wendy and Lisa.

paulludvig said:

Adorecream said:

It is a good question, because a lot of Parade was a Prince one man job. The first four ytracks were all recorded in one go at Sunset sound in April 1985, Kiss was modified from the Mazarati version and really Lisa provided some piano parts with Wendy contributing a few guitar lines, most of Parade was Prince. Yes W and L added effects and pieces and bought the music to life on stage with Prince, but only the Venus De Milo and Alexa de Paris have much W and L input. If anything there is a lot more Wendynlisa on the Dream Factory and Crystal Ball. (Not so much SOTT, as Prince removed a lot of W/L material off the finished mixes like Strange Relationship).

.

As much as I love WendynLisa, Parade to me is a PRINCE album and he extended it to the Revolution as a courtesy. Even Kiss started life as a Prince track. There are plenty of horn lines which are Eric and Matt though and of course the Clare Fischer scoring through it and the music on UTCM.

Thanks!

Are you sure about VdM and AdP? Never heard that before. But seems to have Sheila E on drums though.

Only thing on Venus de Milo percussion wise is cymbol chiming

Prince: Don't you like surprises? Guess not. Ah, it is true I record very fast. It goes even quicker now that the girls help me -- the girls, meaning Wendy and Lisa.

You have worked with Prince during the most productive period of his career (83-88).
Is there a song, period or album that you cherish the most?
Susan Rogers: I think that would be the Parade album. I enjoyed the direction he took with that album, musically and lyrically. I think it shows some of his best melodic work.

The albums with The Revolution (Purple Rain, Around The World In A Day and Parade) were presented as group efforts. Was it really that way or was most of the work done by Prince himself?
Susan Rogers: Well, they were not group efforts in the writing or arrangements but each band member contributed his own sound on many of the tracks. Some were performed entirely by Prince while others were recorded at rehearsals, with Prince leading the direction and each musician adding his own part. Prince would include what he liked of their ideas. In nearly every case, Wendy and Lisa were around to provide backing vocals and input.

^ Wow. Great info. Thank U.

P + W & L

OldFriends4Sale said:

Some 30th anniversary articles from the net:

http://uproxx.com/music/p...niversary/

http://www.popmatters.com...ar-parade/

http://diffuser.fm/prince...niversary/

http://blog.siriusxm.com/...h-31-1986/

OldFriends4Sale said:

paulludvig said:

OldFriends4Sale said:

You have worked with Prince during the most productive period of his career (83-88).
Is there a song, period or album that you cherish the most?
Susan Rogers: I think that would be the Parade album. I enjoyed the direction he took with that album, musically and lyrically. I think it shows some of his best melodic work.

The albums with The Revolution (Purple Rain, Around The World In A Day and Parade) were presented as group efforts. Was it really that way or was most of the work done by Prince himself?
Susan Rogers: Well, they were not group efforts in the writing or arrangements but each band member contributed his own sound on many of the tracks. Some were performed entirely by Prince while others were recorded at rehearsals, with Prince leading the direction and each musician adding his own part. Prince would include what he liked of their ideas. In nearly every case, Wendy and Lisa were around to provide backing vocals and input.

Would be nice with some hard facts though. SR is not very specific (as usual ). Seems like only the backing vocals can be confirmed.

I don't think you are going to get hard facts for any Prince album into 2016 lol

I highly doubt Prince is talking about just backing vocals.

Prince: Don't you like surprises? Guess not. Ah, it is true I record very fast. It goes even quicker now that the girls help me -- the girls, meaning Wendy and Lisa.

Dr FINK: Yeah, but Wendy & Lisa, I’d say from Purple Rain through Parade, were pretty integral to the session work on those records.

Adorecream said:

OldFriends4Sale said:

The first 3 tracks were Prince going through the drumming. But he wasn't the only person who was on those tracks. On New Position there are steele drums along with regular drums. Wendy Melvoin was skilled in playing the steele drums. So that could easily have been her -Especially since she and Lisa pulled that one out of the Vault for the album. Susan Roger as well talked about Lisa & Wendy's work in the studio on Parade.

Dr FINK: Yeah, but Wendy & Lisa, I’d say from Purple Rain through Parade, were pretty integral to the session work on those records.

Mountains Girls & Boys AnotherLoverHolenYohead are all full band compositions

But also remember Parade is a very sparse album as well. In a creative way very simplistic in a lot of of the songs. New Position I Wonder U, Under the Cherry Moon, Do U Lie? Venus de Milo Sometimes It Snows In April

Jonathon Melvoin is playing drums on Do U Lie?

I Wonder U is Wendy Melvoin Prince & Lisa Coleman on vocals. Wendy's vocals are up front.

Sheila E played cowbells on Life Can Be So Nice and vocals on Girls & Boys

And the creation of Kiss. Is not an all Prince composition. That is David Z BrownMark Mazarati Prince and anyone elso he used to play over what was there -if so,.

Prince: Don't you like surprises? Guess not. Ah, it is true I record very fast. It goes even quicker now that the girls help me -- the girls, meaning Wendy and Lisa.

I agree with you on all points but one. . Kiss started life as a 90 second acoustic song by Prince, who gave it to Mazarati as a song for their album, after they rejected Jerk out as it was too explicit, but accepted 100MPH. They added the drums, beat and funk to it and they deserve that credit, when Prince took it back and turned it into the hit we know now.

Yes, I know about Kiss, but that again is another song that is not all Prince, it is a bunch of people.

DAVID Z

"We did a bunch of songs for Mazarati's album,” Z recalls. "Then, when we needed a single, Prince gave me this demo of him just playing straight chords on an acoustic guitar — one verse and one chorus — while singing in a normal pitch; not the falsetto that's on the finished record. To us, it sounded like a folk song and we were wondering what we could do with it. No way was it funky. Anyway, starting with a LinnDrum, I programmed the beat and began experimenting. Taking a hi-hat from the drum machine, I ran it through a delay unit and switched between input and output and in the middle. That created a very funky rhythm. Then I took an acoustic guitar, played these open chords and gated that to the hi-hat trigger. The result was a really unique rhythm that was unbelievably funky but also impossible to actually play... I'm sure that sound influenced the fabulous new Daft Punk song 'Get Lucky', because it uses the same trick, with the guitar gated to some sort of rhythm and sequencer.

"Next, I remembered a little piano part from a Bo Diddley song called 'Say Man' and put it on there, and then Tony Christian sang the lead part, an octave lower than what Prince wound up doing. The background vocals I adapted from the Brenda Lee song 'Sweet Nothings' — good music is always taken from somewhere else — and that was that. The whole thing was done in a day.”

Or David Z and the guys in Mazarati thought it was. The fact is, in this form 'Kiss' sounded OK — a so-so dance number. However, Tony Christian's lead vocal was a little soulless and uninspiring, and when Prince heard the track he decided to head in a different direction... with himself at the helm.

"When I came back into the studio the next morning, Prince had already taken it off the machine, replaced the vocal with his own falsetto performance — which, I guess, he felt it needed — got rid of the bass part and added a James Brown 'Papa's Got A Brand New Bag' guitar lick,” Z recalls. "'What happened?' I asked, to which he replied, 'It's too good for you guys. I'm taking it back.'”

Boasting a four-octave range, Prince sang virtually the entire song in head voice, reverting to chest voice for the final line, as well as a single note before the last chorus. "At the time, I think he was into using a [Sennheiser MD] 441,” says Z.

"We only used nine tracks for that song, including a bass drum on one track, the rest of the drums on another and the hi-hat on a separate track. As for the lack of bass guitar, we always ran the kick drum through an [AMS] RMX16 and put it on the Reverse 2 setting to extend the tail of the reverb. That served as a kick drum and a bass, and it was a signature sound that we used all the time with Prince. We didn't need a real bass. And there was no reverb on anything else; just the kick. The guitar was dry and gated, and everything else sounded kind of different to the corporate rock that was on the radio at that time.”

Mazarati's backing vocals ended up on the finished record, yet this was scant compensation for what they had hoped would be their breakout hit.

"They were pissed,” says Z. "Prince had promised everyone a share of the songwriting credit, but that never happened and they were kind of mad about it.”

more beautiful Parade era photography

I clearly remember the day that record came out. I was a fan since "Purple Rain". ATWIAD already hit me hard but this record was overwhelming. Obviously I didn't get the whole thing at first listen but I was immediately and utterly impressed not only by the music but by the whole work of art. The pictures of the Revolution in the inner sleeve made me wake up with a burning desire to look like them, to be a part of them, TO BE like them. Parade is without doubt one of his best albums ever, truly a masterpiece and one of the best albums of all time. I hope there will be a Vinyl-remaster one day!

Best lyric

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"No one plays the clarinet, the way you play my heart"

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My new video about it, more 2 come.

[Edited 4/1/16 16:50pm]

Since it was brought up, I've always tried to figure out who was the "well known rock star" that P was riding around with......."All he did was play me his music"...I wonder if it was Miles or George Clinton? (Rolling Stone 1985 Neal Karlen interview).