Hey all:

I wanted to share with you a blog I started last month that I think will be of interest to many on this board. Basically, I'm going through Prince's discography song by song (including side projects and whatever outtakes I can feasibly get my hands on), writing about each track in chronological order; if you've seen the David Bowie blog Pushing Ahead of the Dame, then yeah, I totally jacked the idea from him. This will obviously be a really, really long-term project, but I've been having a blast so far: Prince, as I'm sure you're aware, is a unique figure with a rich cultural position, so writing about him gives me the opportunity to write about a lot of interesting stuff like race, gender, and sexuality, as well as basically the whole history of 20th century pop music.

Anyway, I've been updating pretty regularly--I try to post twice a week or so; we'll see if I can maintain that pace--so I thought I'd start a thread that I can update whenever I make a new post.

Here's a roundup of the first phase of posts: Ephemera, 1975-1976

And now we're starting on the second phase, leading up to the release of For You:

Soft and Wet

Baby

Make It Through the Storm

Loring Park Sessions

My Love is Forever

Just as Long as We're Together

We Can Work It Out

For You
In Love
Crazy You

So Blue

Hope you enjoy it!

[Edited 7/6/16 7:55am]

[Edited 7/11/16 8:40am]

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[Edited 9/1/16 12:49pm]

If your blog is anything like Pushing Ahead of the Dame, it will be well worth checking out.

purplethunder3121 said:

If your blog is anything like Pushing Ahead of the Dame, it will be well worth checking out.

I will be the first to admit I have a long way to go--that dude is on another level. I do my best, though!

JoyInRepetition72 said:

This looks really great, many thanks, I will continue to check it out.

Thank you! It will get better, too.

I just got around to checking this out. It's really good! Please keep at it, I know some others that will dig this, too. Looking forward to new entries!

New post: Nightingale

I'll admit this one isn't a favorite, but it gives me an early opportunity to talk about the "soft rock" influence on Prince's songwriting. And the lyrics really do remind me of, like, Romantic-era poetry--Emily Dickinson was the first name that came to mind.

Kudos! I had started something similar a few years back but never seem to have the time to get round to it.

There's also the motown junkies website (sadly not updated in a year at this point) doing something very similar. www.motownjunkies.co.uk

jaawwnn said:

Kudos! I had started something similar a few years back but never seem to have the time to get round to it.

There's also the motown junkies website (sadly not updated in a year at this point) doing something very similar. www.motownjunkies.co.uk

Oh man, that makes me sad--I am (obviously) a sucker for this kind of chronological longform project. I'm excited to read Motown Junkies so far, even if a year of inactivity suggests they're probably done for good.

Was your project Prince, or someone else? Would love to see it if it's online somewhere.

dystopiandanceparty said:

jaawwnn said:

Kudos! I had started something similar a few years back but never seem to have the time to get round to it.

There's also the motown junkies website (sadly not updated in a year at this point) doing something very similar. www.motownjunkies.co.uk

Oh man, that makes me sad--I am (obviously) a sucker for this kind of chronological longform project. I'm excited to read Motown Junkies so far, even if a year of inactivity suggests they're probably done for good.

Was your project Prince, or someone else? Would love to see it if it's online somewhere.

The motown junkies one has been threatening to come back for a while so i wouldn't write it off quite yet, the essays are pretty spectacular to be honest, here's a great one - https://motownjunkies.co.uk/2014/11/28/681/

My idea was pretty much exactly the same as yours, I had half a dozen essays half finished but never found the time to get them up so they aren't online. I still might do it after a few, eh, life changes in the coming months. Maybe i'll ask to guest post on yours!

jaawwnn said:

dystopiandanceparty said:

Oh man, that makes me sad--I am (obviously) a sucker for this kind of chronological longform project. I'm excited to read Motown Junkies so far, even if a year of inactivity suggests they're probably done for good.

Was your project Prince, or someone else? Would love to see it if it's online somewhere.

The motown junkies one has been threatening to come back for a while so i wouldn't write it off quite yet, the essays are pretty spectacular to be honest, here's a great one - https://motownjunkies.co.uk/2014/11/28/681/

My idea was pretty much exactly the same as yours, I had half a dozen essays half finished but never found the time to get them up so they aren't online. I still might do it after a few, eh, life changes in the coming months. Maybe i'll ask to guest post on yours!

Yeah, keep me in the loop! I obviously don't own the concept, just doing this for fun because I'm a masochist. Would be cool to see other people's perspectives on the same material.

I like your writing, thank you for sharing.

But as a true Prince fan I will also start by disagreeing with you

I Spend My Time Loving You is one of my absolute favorite early Prince tracks. So cool, leaned back and mellow. And the fact that it goes on and on may be a problem for some, but for me it just adds to an athmosphere of having all the time in the world. Of spending his time loving someone.

irreverence said:

I like your writing, thank you for sharing.

But as a true Prince fan I will also start by disagreeing with you

I Spend My Time Loving You is one of my absolute favorite early Prince tracks. So cool, leaned back and mellow. And the fact that it goes on and on may be a problem for some, but for me it just adds to an athmosphere of having all the time in the world. Of spending his time loving someone.

Dissent is welcome! I totally get why you love the song. Honestly, his performance is gorgeous. It's crazy to me that these songs were recorded by someone as young as 17; his voice is phenomenal, not just technically (I'm not a good judge of that anyway) but in terms of already having a personal style. He doesn't really sound like anyone else--certainly no other male singer of his era.

cool blog, and great work so far. thanks for sharing.

great work you are doing here! even as a long time fan I already learned a lot from your posts! thanx a lot!

This is an extremely exciting and well-done project, by someone with a keen Prince mind and an incisive writer at that.

I have been researching the pre-For You period in the course of doing what will be an entirely updated and revised version of my book Possessed, which will actually have a new title.

In researching this period, I have learned a couple of things. First, marriage records demonstrate Mattie Shaw and John Nelson were married in 1951, not 1956. In candor, myself and other Prince biographers have been repeating certain inaccurate facts in manner that becomes a "telephone game," some of which can now be corrected based on more easily accessible public records and other information.

Secondly, the widely discussed anecdote of Prince writing a song called "Funk Machine" at age 7, which would have been in 1965, is likely apocryphal. My research indicates that "Funky Broadway" by Wilson Pickett, 1967, was likely the first use of the term "funk" in a song. We can probably trace the definitive emergence of funk as a style that same year with James Brown's "Cold Sweat." So Prince would not have been aware of the term "funk" as such.

The work done by the author of this blog is outstanding and gathers together the existing public record in a thorough and professional matter -- it will a pleasure to keep reading.

AlexHahn said:

This is an extremely exciting and well-done project, by someone with a keen Prince mind and an incisive writer at that.

I have been researching the pre-For You period in the course of doing what will be an entirely updated and revised version of my book Possessed, which will actually have a new title.

In researching this period, I have learned a couple of things. First, marriage records demonstrate Mattie Shaw and John Nelson were married in 1951, not 1956. In candor, myself and other Prince biographers have been repeating certain inaccurate facts in manner that becomes a "telephone game," some of which can now be corrected based on more easily accessible public records and other information.

Secondly, the widely discussed anecdote of Prince writing a song called "Funk Machine" at age 7, which would have been in 1965, is likely apocryphal. My research indicates that "Funky Broadway" by Wilson Pickett, 1967, was likely the first use of the term "funk" in a song. We can probably trace the definitive emergence of funk as a style that same year with James Brown's "Cold Sweat." So Prince would not have been aware of the term "funk" as such.

The work done by the author of this blog is outstanding and gathers together the existing public record in a thorough and professional matter -- it will a pleasure to keep reading.

Very interesting! Yeah, one thing I definitely noticed in writing those earliest posts is that the historical record is quite murky when it comes to Prince's early life (the fact that his management shaved two years off his age in the late '70s obviously didn't help). I always had a suspicion that "Funk Machine" was apocryphal, as it just seemed like a weird thing for a 7-year-old to come up with--especially, as you point out, in 1965, before even James Brown was using the word "funk." I'll make a few edits to reflect this information. Thank you!

Nice work here. Addicting to read I want to read more already! We all know that Prince spoke through his music and he wanted us to really focus on that. So writings about is music and how it evolved is awesome. Keep it up I will be looking out for new additions!

AnnaStesia10 said:

Nice work here. Addicting to read I want to read more already! We all know that Prince spoke through his music and he wanted us to really focus on that. So writings about is music and how it evolved is awesome. Keep it up I will be looking out for new additions!

Thank you! I know Prince would have hated my interpretations of his music anyway, hahaha, but this is how I choose to engage.

Also, not an "official" new post, but my sister and I recorded a podcast about the 30th anniversary of Under the Cherry Moon and I threw it up on the site: https://princesongs.org/2...erry-moon/

Frankly it's not the same quality as the rest of the blog (I'm better on the page), but it's been a good break for me from all the awful news coming out the last couple of days.

dystopiandanceparty said:

AnnaStesia10 said:

dystopiandanceparty said:

Thank you! I know Prince would have hated my interpretations of his music anyway, hahaha, but this is how I choose to engage.

Also, not an "official" new post, but my sister and I recorded a podcast about the 30th anniversary of Under the Cherry Moon and I threw it up on the site: https://princesongs.org/2...erry-moon/

Frankly it's not the same quality as the rest of the blog (I'm better on the page), but it's been a good break for me from all the awful news coming out the last couple of days.

Awesome, I will read about your blog about UTCM I love Parade and that movie I dont care what some say it holds a special place in my heart! I cannot believe it has been 30 years since it came out!! Feels like just yesterday!!

I'm with you on that--it's not a "good" movie, but I've spent more time watching it (and quoting it) than I should probably be OK with. And the aesthetics are absolutely gorgeous.

Hey Zach, I just heard your podcast on 30 year anniversary UTCM review and info on the movie. What, it received a Golden Raspberry for Worst Original Song for "Love or Money?" Ok, now I agree with you and Callie, you can say what you want about the bad acting, no plot line, it sucks this and that. But you cannot say crap about the songs. In fact, for me that is why I love the movie the music is insane to me. And Prince's humor was so refreshing to see! Self indulgent movie?, well I never thought of it like this but I get why someone would think that. But hello, the man was hot back then and till his passing, why wouldn't he be confident but that was Christopher Tracy's character, a cocky, self-absorbed gigolo (or suga baby : )

+++

My sister and cousin love this film too, we actually saw it in the movie theatre when it came out.

We too like you two are huge 80's girls and loved the bad, cheesy B-rated movies back in the day.

So I agree if can't deal with films like that or are not Prince fans, then yeah it maybe not for you.

But I so appreciate your thoughts on the film. I wanted to see this film on the big screen for the anniversary and was not able to find any viewing of it and I live in the Los Angeles area!! I could only see Purple Rain and Sign O' The Times in a small theatre this past weekend. So sad!!

The points you two brought up were so funny (the bathroom scenes, why is Jerome in the movie, the pillow up her..I could go on and on). You two are funny together!!

+++

Thank you for your views and again for digging into the life and work of our musical hero, Prince.

All your hard work is appreciated. Are you promoting your podcast and blog on any of the Prince Facebook sites or any other social media outlets? You should people would be interested in your thoughts.

Oh shoot Zach, didn't mean to lump you into 80's girls in one sentence, I type too fast. Sorry, dude...

dystopiandanceparty said:

Hey all:

I wanted to share with you a blog I started early this month that I think will be of interest to many on this board. Basically, I'm going through Prince's discography song by song (including side projects and whatever outtakes I can feasibly get my hands on), writing about each track in chronological order; if you've seen the David Bowie blog Pushing Ahead of the Dame, then yeah, I totally jacked the idea from him. This will obviously be a really, really long-term project, but I've been having a blast so far: Prince, as I'm sure you're aware, is a unique figure with a rich cultural position, so writing about him gives me the opportunity to write about a lot of interesting stuff like race, gender, and sexuality, as well as basically the whole history of 20th century pop music.

Anyway, I've been updating pretty regularly--I try to post twice a week or so; we'll see if I can maintain that pace--so I thought I'd start a thread that I can update whenever I make a new post. If that's a problem, just let me know.

Here are the posts so far. We're still in early 1976, by the way, so plenty of time to hop on board:

Funk Machine: Prehistory, 1963-1968

Sex Machine: Grand Central, 1973-1976

If You See Me (Do Yourself a Favor)

Home Recordings, 1976

Sweet Thing (Chaka Khan/Rufus cover)

I Spend My Time Loving You

Don’t You Wanna Ride?

Rock Me, Lover

Nightingale

I anticipate getting to the songs that ended up on For You next week. Hope you enjoy it so far!

[Edited 7/6/16 7:55am]

Hey man, this is quality writing about Prince. Thank You!

AnnaStesia10 said:

Oh shoot Zach, didn't mean to lump you into 80's girls in one sentence, I type too fast. Sorry, dude...

Hahaha no worries, I can be an '80s girl. I'm glad you enjoyed the podcast! I have a lot of affection for Under the Cherry Moon, even if it doesn't always sound like it. And even at my most critical, I would never knock the music or the visuals. It's a gorgeous, silly, ridiculous movie. I also wish some theaters would show it--watching the DVD again, especially after seeing Purple Rain on the big screen, made me long for a sharper picture. You're right about Prince in this film, by the way: not only was he beautiful, but his screen presence was just magnetic.

Yep, he sure was!

I'm wondering if anyone has any information -- or even semi-informed speculation -- about how the recordings in the Anderson basement were created. Four-track cassette recorders were not widely available until about 1979. Four-track reel-to-reel machines were available by 1976, but probably would have cost nearly $1K. That's a lot of money in those days. If Prince and Andre had that kind of money, they probably would have used it for actual studio time. Also, if they had a credible multi-track machine in the basement, why wouldn't they have used it for band recordings?

Is it possible he actually used several standard cassete machines, recording the first performance on one, and then recording that performance on to another while adding vocals? That would explain the terrible fideility. However, some of the cuts which can be streamed on Youtube seem to have stereo panning. How to explain that?

I would love to have more information about the creation of these songs in Anderson basement.

AlexHahn said:

I'm wondering if anyone has any information -- or even semi-informed speculation -- about how the recordings in the Anderson basement were created. Four-track cassette recorders were not widely available until about 1979. Four-track reel-to-reel machines were available by 1976, but probably would have cost nearly $1K. That's a lot of money in those days. If Prince and Andre had that kind of money, they probably would have used it for actual studio time. Also, if they had a credible multi-track machine in the basement, why wouldn't they have used it for band recordings?

Is it possible he actually used several standard cassete machines, recording the first performance on one, and then recording that performance on to another while adding vocals? That would explain the terrible fideility. However, some of the cuts which can be streamed on Youtube seem to have stereo panning. How to explain that?

I would love to have more information about the creation of these songs in Anderson basement.

Oh, I think it's pretty obvious he did a soundon sound thing with two tape recorders. I used to do that, too, and the sound is pretty recognisable.

JudasLChrist said:

AlexHahn said:

I'm wondering if anyone has any information -- or even semi-informed speculation -- about how the recordings in the Anderson basement were created. Four-track cassette recorders were not widely available until about 1979. Four-track reel-to-reel machines were available by 1976, but probably would have cost nearly $1K. That's a lot of money in those days. If Prince and Andre had that kind of money, they probably would have used it for actual studio time. Also, if they had a credible multi-track machine in the basement, why wouldn't they have used it for band recordings?

Is it possible he actually used several standard cassete machines, recording the first performance on one, and then recording that performance on to another while adding vocals? That would explain the terrible fideility. However, some of the cuts which can be streamed on Youtube seem to have stereo panning. How to explain that?

I would love to have more information about the creation of these songs in Anderson basement.

Oh, I think it's pretty obvious he did a soundon sound thing with two tape recorders. I used to do that, too, and the sound is pretty recognisable.

This frankly seems the most logical conclusion. Thank you.