Def one of my fave tracks and one that is the most neglected, I'll say. It seems that Sheena was a fave person for P to work with, so I was wondering how it came about, them working on this track. Also, did it chart well?

In my experience, "Arms of Orion" falls into that "black eye" category. It's cool that you love it but a lot of people think it's some of the cheesiest stuff Prince has ever done. Personally, I only listen to it when I'm listening to the Batman soundtrack in its entirety. I don't really love "Scandalous," either. "Arms..." is at least a bit more spritely ("Scandalous" drags on slowly for me), but of the nine tracks on that cd, they're #8 and #9 for me in one order or the other.

I can tell you (by looking at a Billboard book) that "Arms of Orion" cracked the top 40, peaking at #36 and was the third of the soundtrack's hits (behind Prince's 4th ever #1, "Batdance," and the #18 hit "Partyman.") But then again, "U Got The Look" hit #2 two years prior. Unfortunately, I don't personally know the story behind why the worked together on another song, though I'm sure their past success as duet partners and Prince's songwriting history with her probably were involved.

Keith/Kacey

You think it's cheesy? Really? Wow, I just think it is such a pretty song.

It IS pretty!

...but, c'mon....

I haven't listened to that track in over a decade and i'm not sure i want to.

wonder505 said:

Worth it purely for Partyman alone!

I used to love Partyman, but not no more.

I like it too

Seriously, where are those peeps that were engineers that knew about Sugar Walls? Maybe they can shed some light.

Love the Batman CD... and I really dig The Arms of Orion...

BUT... in my honest opinion... Sheena Easton kicks Prince's ass in this song!

Her voice is so much more beautiful than Prince's. It's kinda like a "Beauty and the Beast" thing in my opinion. She's smooth and ethereal... and he's kinda grunting out his lyrics like little troll. lol

Okay... okay... so I'm exaggerating... but I honestly believe that Prince... who DOES have an amazing voice... was blown away by Sheena's excellence.

And by the way... Scandalous is one of my alltime fave Prince slow jams. You can just get lost in it... especially the 20 minute maxi single.

"Where am I?"
"Where do you wanna be?"
"Right here.... riiiiigggghhhtttt... heeeerrrrreeee".

Prince should have added... "Well, where's right here?"
Kim Basinger: Ummm... your house, right?
Prince: To be more specific, we're actually in my piano on the second floor of my Chanhassen Paisley Park Studio, and I'm about to throw you out into the street... so call Alec and tell him to pick you up. That's right Mrs. Baldwin... tonight it's gonna get Scandalous... BIAATTTTCH!!!"
[Edited 4/17/07 14:23pm]

Oh yeah, Sheena tears it up!

MantuaPharoah said:

I tend to ignore the Kim Basinger weirdness

I dunno, if ur British and a certain age it's still hard to see Sheena Easton as some kind of sex kitten Prince person. It was bizarre at the time when she popped up on U Got The Look...

this is a tiny picture but u can just about make her out in her pre-Prince days



NotSexy

Anyway, arms of orion? Don't like it, very MOR

The very reason I don't like Prince dueting with any1...not particularly fond of this song.

that's the first time i ever saw you write you didn't like something Prince did

Dewrede said:

This is the ONLY thing he's done that I don't like!

Sheena wasn't a surprise on Orion. Prince had already "freaked her out" with Sugar Walls and they'd done the very poppy but uptempo U Got the Look, so this was a different type of collab for them.

i realize that most ppl hate it, but i like it. it's not his typical "slow jam ballad" that would get the R & B airplay like Scandalous would (and did), but it's a nice pop ballad. now that i think about it, most of his female affiliates weren't too strong vocally and had limited range (excepting Rosie and Boni; and i don't have Jill Jones' album), so Sheena appears to be the only one who could do it justice. it's not intended to be SOULFUL. Apples couldn't pull it off (see Take Me With U), neither could Sheila, Carmen, etc. To me it revisits Sheena as the "pristine" Scottish pop darling who did Morning Train, so perhaps its origins are in the limited options he had at the time.

I skip Partyman and Trust more than i skip Orion on the Batman album

I actually love this song and I'm just starting to realize that she was a REALLY talented vocalist. I've been watching the Miami Vice re-runs religiously (don't even ask me why ) and they're right at when Sheena married Sonny and she should be getting shot on stage any day now. Watching these episodes now is such a trip! LOL!

I'm noticing stuff that I didn't notice when I was 15 and the episodes originally aired. Like that Tookie Smith was her assistant (Robert DeNiro's baby mama). And how strong Sheena's brogue is when she's speaking. And her cute lil' haircut. Does anybody remember that Prince-penned song 101 Days that was on her album that Babyface produced? I remeber the video was real dark and brooding, as was the song. During this time she looked like a white version of Pebbles, LA Reid's then-wife.

Anywhoo, I think it's odd that Sheena lives in Vegas but we haven't heard of any sightings of her at 3121.

Who is Boni?

Boni Boyer is a keyboardist and vocalist with a strong voice somewhat similar to Rosie Gaines. She played and toured with Prince circa the Lovesexy era and just beyond.

MantuaPharoah said:

You are right, the song just wouldn't be as good without her!!

sexxydancer said:

i figured

I love the song

datdude said:

What Prince did with Sheena kind of reminds me of what Michael Hutchence of INXS did with Kylie Minogue - made her cool just by association, turned her into a bit of a pop-chick-vixen. Okay, Sheena and Prince never dated, but somehow her whole look and sound got 'princified' after hanging out with him and definately extended her career a little further.

I love Arms Of Orion. Haters can suck a bison's pee pee.

[quote][quote]

MantuaPharoah said:

I dont think Sheena ever kicks Prince butt she did a good job on that track but
it was a Prince track and he sounded like Prince it wasnt a singing competition.
As for the song being cheesy I think Prince has done lot more cheesier songs eg "On the Couch"
that I like less than this. I dont mind Arms of Orion at all its something I sont listen to much but it provides some variety to the Batman album.

"Scandalous" is one of Prince best slowjams,I also like "Insatiable" from Diamonds and Pearls, "Call My Name" is ok too but "On the Couch" is way too cheesy.
[Edited 4/21/07 8:09am]
[Edited 4/21/07 8:10am]

LittleSmedley said:

I know exactly where you'e coming from! I'm British and of a certain age, I thought it freakily bizarre at the time when U Got The Look was released. I just have flashbacks to Modern Girl, 9 To 5, For Your Eyes Only, horrible jump suits and that mickey taking sketch on Not The Nine O'Clock News.
[Edited 4/26/07 16:19pm]

Maybe theres no great mystery to the collaboration , Prince had just written a song that was meant to be a ballad duet between Bruce Wayne and Vicki Vale and he needed a sweet-sounding female vocalist who could sing with him but not overpower him like Boni Boyer would have .Besides Boni's gospel voice would not have fitted the white female Vicki Vale character at all , Sheena's did , they knew each other , Prince knew her voice and knew it would work for the song . Of the other ladies he was working with at the time , can you think of anyone else in his stable of artists whose voice would have been as suitable ?
Ingrid Chavez wasn't really a singer , Sheila E's voice , though fine , has
more personality than is really needed for the song , theres other women but I really think Sheena's voice would have jumped out as the obvious choice for a "white female vocal " to duet with him really .

Prince & Sheena had several collaborations during that time..... First in late '88. He wrote and produced two new tracks for her upcoming album on MCA Records THE LOVER IN ME. He wrote the haunting "101" and the pop trip "Cool Love", which were genius Prince songs - strange, cool and pop. Sheena gave a full throttle vocal performance on "101". It gave me goose bumps the first time I heard it. I adore Prince's signature psychedilic guitar solo at the end of "Cool Love". So cool....

Around that time they co-wrote a track which appeared on Patti Labelle's BE YOURSELF album called "Love '89". Prince had been supportive of Sheena's attempts at songwriting which is probably why "The Arms of Orion" was not only a duet but was co-written by Sheena Easton. Prince was a good friend.

Prince was pumping out the BATMAN soundtrack there needed to be a "love theme" type ballad. A duet. Sheena was a natural good choice. Not only had "U Got The Look" been Grammy nominated for Best R&B Vocal by a duo or group, Sheena was in the midst of another career boost with her song "The Lover In Me", It was on the Billboard Hot 100 for six months peaking at #2. It also scored Top 10 r&b and went to number 1 on the dance charts in early '89. Sheena red hot with a new look and sound. The companion video was her sexiest ever. It was even used in a Bally's TV commercial for which she was a spokespersom from 87-92.