coolgirlM said:

its aparently about Susannah Melvoin , Prince was slightly jealous of the close relationship she had with her twin sister Wendy , the songs about him wanting to be the the kind of friend ( as well as lover ) to her that she can tell all her intimate thoughts and secrets to , like she was with Wendy .

ohlala said:

If I Was Your Girlfriend is one of my absolute favorites. This song is the tighest game any man will ever have. It is the song of a man who envies the closeness of the relationship that his woman has with her girlfriend. Many men secretly wish that they had the kind of bond with their women that girlfriends do. P was one it with that one. He broke down how girls pick out their clothes together, share all their thoughts, go to the movies and cry together. That song was the shit!

I guess at that time it was probably inspired by Susannah, which is funny because I always thought she (oh, and Ingrid Chavez) was the lamest of all of Prince's women. Although as a twin, I know how men that my sister and I have dated have felt about the closeness of our relationship. So, I can see him writing it about her from that standpoint.
[Edited 6/5/06 17:51pm]

COMPUTERBLUE1984 said:

its partly about his transformation from Prince to and also about
reincarnation generally . If I recall he was reading some book about people
who'd died on the operating table and come back to life and thier experiences of it , and apparently one or more of them either recall seeing Dolphins
during their passing away state or had had dreams featuring them afterwards.
Prince thus saw the Dolphin as being linked to the state of rebirth / reincarnation hence the aquatic imagery throughout the song . Can anyone recall
precisely the book I'm referring to and what it was about ?

luv4all7 said:

3 Chains O' Gold (from princelyrics.co.uk.com)

If I don't think about the fact that she left me
If I don't see the pearls fall from the sky
If I don't hear the accusations of blasphemy
If I don't feel the tears in my eyes
This is the best day of my life
U say u'll call me and then and then u don't
I'll want 2 kiss u and then I won't
We both do nothing and call it love
Is this love?
Is this love?

This morning I wanted a cup of coffee
But I didn't have any cream
Last night I wanted some inspiration
But I didn't have any dreams
Coupled with the fact that u belong 2 another
Whose name is self-righteousness
So evil girl, if one of us has a date
with the undertaker, which one will it be?
U can cry 4 ever, but u'll get no sympathy
This is the best day of my life

I've got 3 chains o' gold
And they will shine 4 ever
They are the nucleus of my soul
Melt down, no, they will never

I've got 3 chains o' gold
And they will shine 4 ever
They are the nucleus of my soul
Melt down, no, they will never

Give back the chains - if you don't you will die
Nothing should come between you and I

I've got 3 chains o' gold
And they will shine 4 ever
If one of us has 2 go
U will go before me

If one of us has 2 go (3 chains o' gold)
U will go before me
(3 chains o' gold)
u will go before me, baby (they will shine 4 ever)
cuz I sho 'nuff say u will

(3 chains o' gold)
(u will go before me)
(u will go before me)
(u will go before me)
(u will go before me)

I've got 3 chains o' gold
They gonna shine...

Forever, forever, forever

(3 chains o' gold)

©1992 Controversy Music - ASCAP

combray said:

There is no such thing as "West Compton." Compton is Compton. I'm quessing Prince didn't know this, since is not a native Southern California. Well there used to be a difference between east and west


Compton grew quickly in the mid-1900s. In the late 1940s with the dismantling of segregation, middle class blacks began moving into the area, mostly on the west side. One reason for this was Compton's proximity to Watts, California, where a significant number of blacks lived at the time. However, the eastern side of the city remained predominantly white into the 1960s.
[Edited 6/5/06 22:13pm]

coolgirlM said:

That is a good call. I always thought because they were the only man and woman..they didn't want to be lonely..they wanted companionship?

bellanoche said:

Ah yes one of the reasons I was convinced Prince was a genius. But was is also his actions that made this closeness impossible?

[Edited 6/6/06 1:24am]

p0et said:

"Lemon Crush" was a song he wrote about Anna Garcia, aka Anna Fantastic. She was a girlfriend/protege in the late 90s, and according to her, Lemon Crush was her favorite drink. But I only remember Orange Crush, and apparently so does Google:



BTW, "Vicki Waiting" was also supposedly about Anna. He changed it from "Anna Waiting" to fit the Batman theme.

Krystal666 said:

But of course. Partly, anyway.

moonshine said:

Thanx for clearing that one up for me.I love that song so much, so its even better to know exactly why and who it was written for

luv4all7 said:

I guess that one's pretty clear, other than the "gregory looks just like a ghost" part.

What about Emale?

BlackBuddy said:

yup,i did it...looked like u were tryna say im slow "It's not that hard"
i guess not its whateva

The song I never understood was and now to this day is "The Ballad of Dorothy Parker" with the argument in a violent room, something was done by a witch's curse,taking a bubble bath with his pants on, why did Dorothy ask did he want a bath.

QwEsTdeKeV said:

It's all metaphoric

Graycap23 said:

it was a dance that went worldwide, not just stateside, like the bartman

QwEsTdeKeV said:

The "violent room" is about arguing with your girlfriend, or "lovers past"

An angry Prince storms off to get a fruit cocktail wher he meets Dorothy. He's & Dorothy hit it off & start to get together, but realize they shouldn't, and decide not to go too far.

"She didn't see the movie cuz she hadn't read the book first"--she didn't want to sleep with him because she didn't know him. One of my favorite Prince lyrics.

So when his pants get wet and come off, rather than look, she pretends she's blind with "an affliction..." just as a joke to lighten the mood. I never understood specifically why the bath, but it struck me as a situation people get into. Like "sure let's take a bath, but I'll just leave my pants on and that's not cheating, right?"

Then Prince goes back to the girl he was fighting with and all's well.

NDRU said:

I think the bath was just Dorothy's attempt to calm him. Completely innocent and he felt better afterwards and said "Next time I'll do it sooner" meaning next time he gets in an argument with his lady, he'll just take a bath and relax

BlackBuddy said:

Maybe. But with the pants on? I always assumed they were in the bath together, and maybe it was about being close without sexuality, since he's kinda going with someone.

Maybe the fighting stops when you get close to your woman without trying to have sex with her.

NDRU said:

I am so loving these interpetations people are coming up with!

Krystal666 said:

Thanx
But like i said, it was just my opinion so your guess is every bit as good as mine

Krystal666 said:

In the video to the song, when he sings that line there's an image of a pregnant woman.

That's kind of cynical to think Adam only stayed because he knocked up Eve, but then The Greatest Romance Ever Sold sounds kind of cynical, too.

1nonly said:

this song was easy inthe first paragraph prince says he is SO LOW =SOLO= Alone=Lonliness

dorothy parker is (sort of) a true story, based on something that happened after he had a fight with susannah

acjohns said:

This song was fascinating the first time I heard it since he'd just changed his name, and here he reveals his name is No One. Now I think the two are unrelated, but it was very dramatic (and very sad) to hear "My name.....is.....No One!"

He co-wrote that with someone, though, right? I assume he wrote the music?

Pink Cashmere

" I'm Mkaing you a Coat of Pink Cashmere"


Never Understood that one..

pink cashmere is literal, i believe. at least, it's about an actual coat he gave anna garcia, or something

Snap said:

I have often wondered if this song was about a former love interest of his that died from AIDS complications. This would be supported by the following lyric:

Your father said it was pneumonia
Your mother said it was stress
But the doctor said you were dead
And I said, "Senseless."

Then again, this could be about as speculative as the one person on here who said Incense and Candles is about Bible Study.

dearlybeloved said:

Purple Rain, written for the movie, is basically an apology set to lyrics and music. Go back and read the words, and you'll see it crystal clear.

rbrpm said:

Starfish and Coffee is reportedly about a gifted child.