....just what would his legacy have been??

So many great artists died young, i'm just wondering whether he would've been even more held up than he is now, had a cult following etc, a la Hendrix!!

What says you?

In the whole scheme of things, Prince will still be remembered for his masterpieces and not for his current state of banality.

James Brown's passing pretty much showed that the bad shit get's swept under the rug as media coverage of his career and legacy focused on the greatness.

Let's just hope that we don't have to see Prince go "high-heeled boots up" for a long time.

Well, people still talk about Jeff Buckley as if he were some sort of god...& Prince had considerably more output by 1984 than Buckley did before he died.

Well, it's not about quantity, it's about quality. If Prince died or shut down his studio in 84' (after the Purple Rain release, of course), his memory would be filled with honor since his legacy would've been filled with his enormous growth from his slow escalation (For You, Prince, Dirty Mind & Controversy) to his sudden musical maturation with 1999 and P.R. All convo would've centered on an icon who died too soon, while speculation would dominate music news on what he COULD'VE been.

gam19566 said:

That's when he made Purple rain, he'd still be a star that's for sure.

He was pretty much solidified as a star after Purple Rain came out in 1984. So if he would have died then, I think he may be an even bigger star. And it all depends on how he died too. Buddy Holly hadn't been in the spotlight for very long when he died but because of the circumstances involved with his untimely death, he's still regarded as one of the greats.

If Prince hadn't continued being in the headlines after 1984, Prince probably would have been making 200 dollars a night as a Pianist, and been happily married at the same time.

FlexiTime said:

I still don't think, as far as the media is concerned, that Prince has ever made it 'out' of 1984.

That man has released 20'odd years of music, changed his hair, changed his clothes, his name, had wives - etc. and yet he is still always referred to as

The Purple Prince of Pop!

The only time that this title was ever overshadowed was when he became The Artist ..... but as soon as he went back to Prince - the media went back to Purple!!!!

I have to agree with mentalist. Sadly, most people only know and remember him for Purple Rain.For whatever reason Prince doesn't receive the credit he deserves! The man is one of the greatest musicians and life performers ever and all people remember him for is Purple Rain.
One of my co-workers thought that rasberry beret was one of his 'most recent' songs. Another asked me if Prince was still making music and if he was still alive.
The media seems to cover MJ, Madonna and other 80's icons more than Prince.
I don't get it.
For me Prince is the best of all and lasted the longest. It's depressing that only a few people realize how brilliant and gifted Prince truely is.

mentalist said:

that's cause Prince wont play by anyone's rules.. cause of that and the WB incident.. he's somewhat blackballed ..