Some of Prince's influences are very well known (P-Funk, Sly, James Brown, Joni, etc.) but listening to "Soft & Wet" and some unreleased tracks from his early years I'd really like to know where he was coming from. Clearly he was in the classic R&B/Funk vein but I haven't found any artists that sounded just like that (and I know that's probably what made him great). I'm referring specifically to that song, "I Wanna Be Your Lover", "I Feel For You" and the early demo "Don't You Wanna Ride". Who does it sound like he's emulating? Rufus? The Brothers Johnson? Stevie?

I'm asking because I'm trying to make my own music and I'm still at the point where emulating and copying other artists is necessary (something most of the greats probably do at an early age) before finding my own voice and since those songs are early in Prince's career I'm interested in seeing how he drew from and filtered his influences.

Thanks ahead for any replies!

There's no future for you.

Mis read the question here lol
[Edited 8/18/09 4:29am]

I think that an artist who influenced Prince a great deal but is rarely mentioned is Donny Hathaway. If you listen to the track 'everything is everything' - you could easily imagine it being the '95 NPG.

The fact that Prince name checks him on his last record lends itself to this idea.