I was just checking out the video room over at the npgmc to get
my weekly fix of the "Dolphin" video on, when I checked out the
clip for "The Greatest Romance ever Sold" again.

And I have to say "hats off" to whomever produced it. It looks
stunning. Ok, the quality of the clip on the site is not all 2
good but the video has some stunning visuals.

Prince never looked much better imo than in those shots of him
and the woman sitting back 2 back on chairs in white clothes..


But my initial thought, on hearing the song again, was howcome
so many people agree that this was "a wrong choice" for first
single from the "Rave Un2 The Joy Fantastic" album?

Ok, it's a slow song, but I don't consider it a ballad as such
since the beat is kind of mid-tempo.

Coupled with the sophisticated beat and arabian flourished, it
makes for a well written en (for a change) not overproduced
track. It's a song I liked on first listen but still like today
without ever being bored of it.

And the video (also for a change) helped to make my love for
the song even deeper.

Despite of what others may say, I think it was a very good
choice for lead off single from "Rave". The reason it bombed
can be many, but not due to it's being not good enough.

Heck "Musicology" charted and that's a much weaker track imo
it's just a funkbynumbers whilst "Greatest Romance" has some
irresistible melodies and very well written lyrics

Ok, besides that stuff about Adam and Eve. I Still don't know
why he never left her



An obvious reason would be that there simply was no other woman
around heheh. But I don't think that's what Prince had in mind
with those lyrics.

In short: for this very cool song from a so-so album.

Due to all my incoherent babble above, I forgot to ask:

who produced the video?

who's the woman in it? Is that Geneva?

Where the hell is Geneva these days? and what did she do?
did she sing back up? or was she just a dancer?

It's a really beautiful vid

Greatest Romance was not a bad song but it was a terrible single. Here you have hype upon hype about how this was going to be Prince's Santana like comeback. Clive Davis was out there talking about how great the album and the single were and there was just so much anticpation. And the song...well, it was just blah. People didn't give a rat's ass about its intricate chord changes or Arabian feel. It just didn't sound like a hit coming out of the radio. It might have not been a bad third or fourth single, if the album had gone that deep, but if the intention was to reintroduce the man, they needed a doorway. Some connection to the pop audience...something they could grab ahold of. One of the duets, So Far So Pleased would have been perfect. "Hey, who is that with Gwen Stefani...is that Prince...that's rocking!" That's what Santana did...connected with Rob Thomas who at the time was hot. Get them in the door and THEN hit them with deeper singles.

I just think the whole project was one big contradiction. How did they expect to reestablish the man on the scene with a mid-tempo number? Either go for the audience or don't but don't say you're trying a comeback and do the same old thing.

Here, for what it's worth, is the order of singles I would have released:

1. So Far So Pleased (Top 40) Man O War (R and B)
2. Wherever You Go (Top 40) Hot With U (R and B)---Wherever You Go would have been a hit; Lenny Kravitz prooved that with Again
3. Baby Knows (AC)
4. Greatest Romance (AC)

I really like this song cause its ssooo sexy!
but I've only seen the video like once. I can't find it anywhere

Yes its a beautiful vid... yeah and who was that woman in it?

GottaLetitgo said:

or, given the way it was mixed and how he made her sound, people more
likely would have gone

"hey I didn't know Vanity was recording with Prince again"

MoonCat said:

it's over at the npgmc in the cyberclips room, along with
some of his other videos like dolphin, america, glam slam
same december, i like it there and more.

IstenSzek said:

Yes Musicology is a weaker track and as a result, it performed much worse on the charts. I'm not quite sure of the exact numbers since my Billboard books are at home, but "Greatest Romance Ever Sold" peaked in the 60s on the Hot 100 and in the 20s on the R&B chart. "Musicology" went to #120 on the Hot 100 and #44 on the R&B chart.

I love this song...the adam & eve version and the q-tip/neptunes versions....

IstenSzek said:

but Im not a member

I think the video was finished weeks after the single was released? That couldn't have helped.

I read a bit in 'The Vault' just the other day that 'Rave unto the Joy Fantastic' originally had a lot more uptempo rockier tracks, but various people, including his lawyer Llondell, thought it didn't have enough r'n'b tracks for his r'n'b audience, so he changed it.

So it could have been a very different album. Originally 'Beautiful Strange' and 'Y Should Eye Do That When Eye Can Do This' were on it.

I really like Beutiful Strange too

Part of the problem, was that the video was a few months late... There was no momentum from any pre-album press to capitalize on.

I also think the word "Sold" in the title was silly, and didn't really make sense in the context of the song, so I think it was hard for a casual listener to really get close to it.

Having said that, I think it is a fantastic groove, with beautiful harmonies. Defintely rises above much of his R & B stuff from the last 10 years...

Still should've releases Baby Knows or SFSP first. Needed to show the world he was more than a BET artist; with some catchy rock/pop stuff.

jpav said:

-----
I guess all you have forgotten that Clive Davis was fired a little bit after the CD came out. Do you think that my have something to do with the RAVE disaster.

In addtion,there is a rumor that L.A.Reid wanted P to bring in outside producers and writers for the next Arista CD.

I love love love this song and video!!
Probaly his second best vid in my opinion. Im telling ya'll if
Rave had, had all the good press and promotion behind it that Musicology
had it could have done MUCH better!

laurarichardson said:

No actually BMG tried pushing out Clive and he said NO so they gave him J Records to leave Arista

IstenSzek said:

Love this video, too! One of his coolest!

I find both the song and the video a bit dull.

I really think Greatest Romance was the best single choice from Rave. So Far, So Pleased? Nah. That's basically a Gwen Stefani song with Prince on backing vocals.