So I was listening to "Fury" obsessively over the last couple of days and remembering a comment Romera made to me after the SNL performance where we first heard it. She wondered if this song was directed to his fans, and I started thinking. It's a definite possibility. Prince is known for writing songs that sound like they're about love relationships but are really about something else. Examples: countless songs about his relationship with Warner Brothers, and "Pearls B4 The Swine," which is widely believed to be directed at fans who came to his Celebrations.

If you listen to "Fury" with this idea in mind, a lot of the lyrics seem applicable.

Y’all must have dug it
When you did your thing
It’s like the song everybody wanna sing
You were all happy when he was in his heyday. Every album was a hit, and everybody was singing along.

Your ears are ringing with a voice that says “Queen got no King”
This could be referring to all the constant rumors/speculation about his marriage breaking up.

He got a message saying
You tried to reach him on the phone
He didn’t wanna answer cuz he’s so afraid
You’d probably tell him just to leave you alone
Is he confessing that he really does care whether or not his fans still love him? In Pearls B4 The Swine he sang, “Are we better off just fighting? You on your side, me on mine? (We don’t have to fight, no we don’t)"

You must have heard he got another band
They’re makin’ money, they’re makin’ plans
You feel left out, but you need to understand
Word on the street – he’s still your man (he’s still your man)
People have been bitching for a long time about the company keeps. That he’s abandoned his old self to be accepted by Larry Graham and the Jehovah’s Witnesses. Is he saying here that he’s “still our man”? Call me General FunkMistress of the Delusional Fam Brigade, but I feel like he’s talking to me when he sings “he’s still your man.”

Look out, here comes your rainy day
Now you think you got a good reason to say
Everything that’s in your heart, come what may
Even if his might get broken?
As soon as people feel disappointed or betrayed by Prince (their “rainy day”), some feel free to get on message boards or other outlets and bitch to their hearts’ content, at times being unbelievably mean-spirited and personal. Some of these folks believe they have “good reason to say” some really fucked-up and bizarre shit. Is Prince telling us how much it has the power to hurt him?

2 sides to every story
One man’s gloom is another man’s glory
Could be directed at those who seem to take pleasure in the hard times of others (including Prince) when they feel bitter or slighted.

Sun to a shadow, rose to a thorn
There ain't no fury like a woman scorned
Once these folks felt nothing but love and happiness (sun and roses) about Prince and his music. Somewhere along the line it turned to bitterness (shadows and thorns). Some of these people act like spurned lovers, hanging around sites like prince.org like rejected stalkers, spewing the "fury of a woman scorned."

What do you think?

"love" is getting the same treatment too.

first.

Handclapsfingasnapz said:

Yeah, but the difference is I'm right.

FunkMistress said:

good interpretation of the lyrics, but when it comes to matters such as discerning what the lyrical content of a song means and sitting around and dissecting it, it sorta bugs me a little.

Handclapsfingasnapz said:

Sometimes it bugs me, sometimes I find it fun. I mean, Prince is the dude who put backwards messages in his songs, hidden words in his videos, and speaks in code. Dissecting it is all part of the fun.

FunkMistress said:

yeah...but 'round here some folks take it to a whooooole 'nutha level.

huh? now that you put it that way...it sure do seem like it could be bout us....
I actually had Mayte in mind...hmmm...
Love seems to be about us too...but that could be about him and larry..or mani
hey now....what if the whole album is in that vein? I hope not..that would certainly say Prince is thinkin' bout what we all say wayyyyy too much but...maybe he's tryna teach us sumthin'??
good thought's funkmistress..thanx for sharin'

Shorty said:

It's all in good fun...I'm sure ten different people could give you ten completely different interpretations of the same lyrics.

I actually had Mayte in mind...hmmm...

me too

As if Prince is getting worked up about his fans to write songs about them.

I think this is a dis to Mani

Handclapsfingasnapz said:

.... so whatchatryin2say Handclapsfingasnapz?

....this one can't help But have another point of view, afterall: 2 sides 2 every story.....right

B

FunkMistress said:

This could be dead on right.

I ,at first, thought it was about Mani
feeling left out etc.

Dont know if it IS about some fans but
your comments about what he would feel
about these things sounds right.

Cool, I like this idea.

I hate to think that I think Prince writes lyrics about his fans, but a few tracks over the years have certainly sounded that way.

Prince is a pretty insular guy by all accounts, and in the late 90s he was very into his net presence, so it wouldn't surprise me if certain tracks did reference his fanbase directly.

SupaFunkyOrgangrinderSexy said:

Totally agree.. my first thoughts when i heard it

Very interesting theory about this song!

And I wouldn't be surprised at all if you are right. I personally think Prince definitely uses his music & lyrics as a way to communicate his feelings about many aspects of his life, because (imo) his music is the way in which he feels the most articulate and comfortable expressing himself (and maybe also, the most heard).

My immediate thought was that it was about Mani, but as always, the songs are open to individual interpetation.

rozilla said:

He seems to be moving on, so I thought it was about Mani too. But interpreting songs is part of the fun...bring it on.

I can totally feel this.

Truly no fury like a fan scorned.

I dont feel scorned by Prince, if anything it seems like he has become more accessible, these past few years.

I don't feel scorned either. ... but we're not talking about just us or this moment...but the possible interpretation of the song.


And considering the past...there have been many tense moments between Prince and his fans, myself included.


I can clearly see the song being interpreted as a message to bitter fans.

I think it may be directed towards either Wendy and Lisa or Rhonda. Remember, when he changed bands and they got all bent out of shape and shit, Throwin their purple tampons away and stuff.

Well, atleast he isn't suing people over their websites!


2freaky, purple tampons!

2freaky4church1 said:

rozilla said:

yet.

NouveauDance said:

which other tracks reference the internet community?

dearlybeloved said:

Are you schitzophrenic?

nice thoughts...maybe true...but who gives a shit about a crappy grooveless tired ass song like this ??

prettymansson said:

At least he knew he fucked it up in the studio and gave it life on SNL.

you make some good points, funkmistress! i can't quite figure out who it is directed at, i kinda thought maybe the music industry - namely, warner bros - but this is a good theory as well.

love, on the other hand, is surely an older song written about mayte. i just can't shake the feeling that it was written around the time of newpowersoul. lyrically i think its in the same vein as come on.

.
[Edited 3/23/06 22:03pm]

no doubt about it for me
"love" is a recent song for his beloved fanbase
"fury" be a bit more direct
[Edited 3/24/06 0:09am]