i have been a Prince fan for over 20 years, i think he is a true musical genuis. That being said i got over how The Work and Prettyman were basically a James Brown Clone but when i i finally was able to get a copy of one of Sly Stone's comeback albums for the 80's i was shocked. Listen to The Ride, one of my favorites, and then try to find and listen to We Can Do It from Sly's album Ain't But One Way. Many of the Ride's lyrics are there. Check it out and let me know if i am just going crazy.

i don't have this album or song... i'm gonna have to look for it... but i know what you mean... the first time i heard funkadelic/parliament songs i was shocked to hear how many of them had bits and pieces i'd heard in Prince tunes

Snap said:

I had the same experience when I first heard James Brown. It was like "oh shoot! That's HOUSEQUAKE!"

Prince is an encyclopedia of pop music history. Stuff from all over makes its way into his music.

He's still the baddest cat alive...

You can hear Sly in Prince's "style" of guitar playin in a lot of songs.... e.g. Sex in the Summer and Dear Mr. Man.