BorisFishpaw said:

All these years,I thought Prince was playing a gay male character in these songs Is he really supposed to be a woman? Did Brenda and Vanity really think it was a woman they were talking to? lol

there's two things we can't stand,one's a jive talk man

SoulAlive said:

The lyrics tell us the character is female and the song is called 'If A Girl Answers Don't Hang Up'.... And they didn't!


.
[Edited 6/17/09 1:36am]

NouveauDance said:

then why does Brenda refer to "her" as a "jive-talk man"?

SoulAlive said:

She's talking about Jimmy!

I guess that's also the in joke, but the character is female.

You know, on reflection, the character could be a transvestite, what with the stuff about wearing a wig and being a jive talk man, but I don't know if Prince ever got THAT freaky in his lyrics
[Edited 6/17/09 1:43am]

NouveauDance said:

it's really a bizarre song,but truly hilarious I wonder why Prince didn't just alter his voice to sound like a female.On "If A Girl Answers",he actually sounds like Morris Day!

emesem said:

No they weren't.

Dayclear said:

Agreed - I always thought these lines were about bisexuality (or at least trying) and not just about drug abuse as a lot of fans think. The overall song may be about elements of both.
[Edited 6/17/09 4:36am]

I love this thread.

well sugar,I know about a great party...why don't you bring us your car?

Would Vanity really say this to a woman? LOL.On second thought,would she say it to a gay man? Did she even know if she was talking to a real woman or a man pretending to be a woman? This song raises alot of questions,lol.

johnart said:

I still think it. Wasn't there a story about Mayte having an affair with a woman? It's a brilliant song. It also has Ani Difranco (bisexual) on guitar to add more interest to the theme.

SoulAlive said:

Sure she would. Calling someone other than your lover sugar is a condescending act. I call stupid people sugar. Don't you?

scififilmnerd said:

Ya know,I always wondered why he didn't just have Susan play the "girl".That would have given her something to do in this song,lol.It wouldn't have been nearly as funny,though.

SoulAlive said:

It didn't till you brought it up!

Now I'm so confused, much like the character in question

Erotic City really seems like another one. For years, I thought the lyrics were

All of my purple life
I've been looking for a dream
A man who'd want to be my wife

Even if that's wrong, the other lyrics seem suggestive of gay sex:

All of my hangups are gone

...

If we cannot make babies

NouveauDance said:

Efan said:

I think it's more about creating a space (Erotic City) where sexuality/pleasure can be explored without procreation/stereotypes. The song challenges our conservative culture's approach to sex, relationships, virginity, women, etc. But I like your read and it fits in well with the overall themes of sexual liberation.

Isn't hard to believe that the fundamentalist P of today wrote this revolutionary song?

TheFreakerFantastic said:

[Edited 6/17/09 6:43am]

Dayclear said:

the correct lyric is music late,nothing great
no way to differentiate.He is referring to 'The Black Album'.

music late=the music is outdated
nothing great=the songs are not the best he can do
no way to differentiate=the songs fall into the funk category,so there's not alot of variety on this album.


At least that's how I interpret those lyrics

SoulAlive said:

I believe he is a referring more to the music industry in general. I don't think he thought of the Black Album as "outdated" or boring- just too dark. He continued to play material from the Black Album on the Lovesexy tour. And he would never denounce funk as repetitive.

He ends the verse by stating, "I took a chance" in a sea of sameness.

johnart said:

Yeah, that's a queen part he's playing in Vibrator
the 1st place she goes too is a Woman at the counter

Uh oh, oh no!
Please don't die on me no

(Vibrator)

May I help U?

Yes, I was wondering if U had batteries 4 my bo...

Oh my God!
Look at the size of that thing!
Where did U get this?

Look, U got batteries or not?

Oh sure, we have batteries
They're in the storage room
Tell U what
I'll just take this downstairs and put them in myself

No, I'll tell U what, U and your rubber glove can go downstairs
And I'll take my business elsewheres
Now gimme this! Jeez!



I have to go thru some more outtakes because there are a few more I remember that made me start this thread
[Edited 6/17/09 8:47am]

Just the title of "I Love U In Me" implies gayness as does "If I Was Your Girlfriend". Yes, you have to listen to the lyrics to really understand, but the song titles are a bit misleading.

dannyd5050 said:

That's true, I Love U In Me is really obvious in the gender role play
Women can't be in men

If I Was Your Girlfriend is a play on words, right off the back you think he wants to be a woman

But we get that he's saying what if you treated me(let me in, let down your guard) like you do with your female friends... since women call their friends girlfriends all the time (can you image men doing that?)

Mom: "Hi, what are you doing?"
Me: "Oh I'm just going to the movies with my boyfriends..."

SoulAlive said:

Maybe it was just to make the listener laugh. You gotta admit, Prince sounds silly as hell with that voice. I always thought Prince was playing a woman, I never got that he was trying to be a queen.

dannyd5050 said:

It makes you have to listen to the songs to understand what he means by those titles.

Taurus said:

Not necessarily....he's just commenting on the music in the club being late. as an aside..its deeper than just talking about music..think 'Gregory looks just like a ghost and then a beautiful girl the most...wets her lips to say..."

dannyd5050 said:

Yes, I always thought JACK U OFF was quite a gay sounding title (even the song makes u think that) and IF I WAS YOUR GIRLFRIEND (which in England at least 'Girlfriend' usually means a lover not just a female friend like it does in the US).

TheFreakerFantastic said:

Yep, that's another one!

okok!! some of you guys are really going a little 2 far!!
First of all...Erotic city's lyrics were ALL JACKED UP!!!
NOW i see how Prince gets upset when his lyrics are mis construed..:rolleyes:
he says clearly
all of my Purple life,, Ive been looking 4 a dame
That would wanna b my wife
That was my intention babe..
AND BTW MEN DONT HAVE :cherry:'s

Another thing. "if i was your girlfriend"
related to a womans relationship with he girlfriend or closest friend..Women allways tell their girlfriends things they dont tell their man..he wants or craves that closeness..that bond...

I love u in me...
That is a obvious one..he gets blown away that she would actually say that!! and he expressing his "kicks" from it!!

All of these songs when he "acts" like a woman..or gay or whatever...its him showing his humor..and it is!! its funny as hell!! even funnier than the above lyric confusions..
I personally see prince as being more on the Feminine side..and that is a beautiful quality 4 a man to have...and the whole "gay" relationship thing...in my opinion...there is no "gay or straight" black or white"...and i think Prince at the time when he was pumping this stuff out..and one of the reason why i ADORE HIM>> is that he tended to not wanted to be labeled...we are all HUMAN and we are all SEXUALL..and all GODS CHILDREN..
besides inside EVERY MAN theres a BAD GIRL

SCARLETTPUZY said:

This I think most of us realize. As I stated you have to actually hear/read the lyrics to understand where he's coming from in the song. My point was that just based on the titles alone they seem to imply gender-bending.

dannyd5050 said:

you have point right there. When I look at titles like "Lady Cab Driver" and "Sexuality"... .... knowing Prince, you just don't know what to expect.