starkitty said:

as far as darling nikki, in the 25th (?) anniversary edition dvd of purple rain, in the extras there's a convo with wendy & lisa, i think, when wendy says "i don't know who the song's about" and lisa leans in and whispers "susannah" or "your sister" and there's a look of disbelief on wendy's face.

Good info, got to watch that again.

[Edited 3/13/13 12:39pm]

NouveauDance said:

Not to pick holes in the list Adorecream, but just a few that stood out to me:

Nothing Compares 2 U - already stated it's been said to be about his personal assistant

She's Always In My Hair is about Jill Jones

Mutiny - I always considered to be about Morris jumping ship, but written for a pop song as about a relationship. Maybe it's in general about people jumping ship then, like Vanity too, but the outro kind of confirms it's a song that was meant for the Family directly as a statement that they rose out of the ashes of the Time.

A Place In Heaven - Not sure at all, never considered it about anyone particular more of a story

Forever In My Life - Definately yes, it's about fidelity (guffaws of laughter from the cheap seats @ Prince and fidelity)

Wonderful Ass is about Vanity

Wonderful Ass predates what is considered the earliest(???) Susannah song - The Beautiful Ones and the lyrics? "I don't usually, have time for babes with no class" -- Doesn't tally with the High Fashion lyrics which seem to be tongue in cheek about Susannah. And from reading biographies it seems Prince felt a little threatened by her interest in art, fashion etc hence those lyrics.

Raspberry Beret I would say no since it's from 1982.

I Would Die 4 U - No I wouldn't say so.

Darlin' Nikki - Nahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!

Irresistible Bitch - Again, nahhhhhhhh and it's 1982 (first version)

Erotic City - Gonna say no on this one too

I will add 'Noon Rendezvous' maybe? Just by it's more romantic theme which go along with the earlier Susannah stuff like the Family songs - Screams, Desire etc.

Also things like Girls & Boys, Life Can Be So Nice that seem to be about that happy, butterflies excitement of an early established relationship.

The feeling I get about the Susannah tracks are they are very romantic, dreamy and emotional - sometimes sexual, but not in a straight up nasty way, more wrapped in flowery language like Screams Of Pssion (which I love) which I why I think about Noon Rendezvous too. Then you get to the fight and confusion songs later on - Go, Empty Room, Witness etc. To all accounts he's still boning other gals all this time, so any song written or sparked from life experience doesn't have to be about Susannah or any specific person just because it's written at a certain time, but some clearly are about a specific relationship and we have interview 'testimony' to back that up. Your honour!

[Edited 3/13/13 3:24am]

But I did want you to pick holes and you done a great job, put my mind at rest. Seems I got a bit carried away, Still with whats left, that would make a fine album of music right there.

I will pat myself on the back for Go though. I am sure no one else mentioned it. Go has a nice laid back reggaeish beat to it, much better than the Max anyday.

WonderU said:

I would add Come Home from Mavis' album. It was written during the Susannah years, "how did it come to this? You living in your world and me dying in mine."

Good catch.

NouveauDance said:

starkitty said:

as far as darling nikki, in the 25th (?) anniversary edition dvd of purple rain, in the extras there's a convo with wendy & lisa, i think, when wendy says "i don't know who the song's about" and lisa leans in and whispers "susannah" or "your sister" and there's a look of disbelief on wendy's face.

Good info, got to watch that again.

Yeah, me too

Susannah was into S&M? a dominitrix?

Hard 4 me to believe that song is about Susannah lol not very respectful picture

What about "Girl" (the B-side)?

The melody/malady "Wally" was of course about his chat with Safford but also about breaking up with Suzy?

Efan said:

"Suzy"

You know it. We all know it. Nobody wants to admit it. But come on.

The Mazarati track penned by Brown Mark?... "But she sounds like a man"?...

Shango said:

The melody/malady "Wally" was of course about his chat with Safford

but also about breaking up with Suzy?

One evening shortly after Susannah's departure, Susan Rogers could tell something was very wrong when Prince came down to the basement studio. Looking disconsolate and barely speaking, he began constructing a song around a meloncholy piano pattern. His spoken lyrics portrayed a fictional dialogue between himself and Wally Safford, a dancer in the band. Sounding sad and lost, Prince asks Wally to borrow $50 and some sunglasses so he can impress his lover, but then changes his mind and returns the items telling Wally that since he is alone now, he has no one to spend the money on. Prince was accompanied only by piano throught the verse, but guitar bass and drums enter as the song built to a chorus on which he sings the phrase "o-ma-la-di-da"


Watching Prince construct the song which he called "Wally", Rogers was stunned by the honest emotion and wistfull resignation it conveyed. She saw the song both as a farewell to Susannah and a means of expelling the poison of failed relationship.

"Do you know that malady means sickness, illness in French?" Prince asked Rogers. Refering to the phrase he sings in the chorus. "It's almost like the word melody, isn't it?" Prince who rarely exposed his inner feelings, even in his music, was groping for a metaphor that would convey his feeling of loss. Rogers felt it was a turning point in his songwriting.

But as the session continued, Prince started to distance himself from the creation. He added extraneous instruments to diminished the songs clarity. A percussion part that cluttered the verse, detracting from the lyrics.

Don't you think it was better before, Prince?" Rogers said. "Maybe we should stop"
He ignored her, adding the synthizer riff. Soon it became clear to her: He was intentionally destroying the song. After larding the piece with additional instruments, he finally spoke. "Now put all 24 Channels on record and erase it." he told Rogers

"No, you can't do this!" Rogers said dismayed by the prospect of losing the statement at the core of the song.

"If you don't I will," Prince responded
Rogers stood her ground, and Prince was forced to operate the soundboard himself, as he destroyed his own music.

"Wally" like his relationship with Susannah, Wendy & Lisa involved more emotional intensity than Prince was willing to accept. "I thought it was the greatest thing he had ever done" says Rogers. I had waited years to hear a Prince song like this. I ached for him to be this honest.

OldFriends4Sale said:

Shango said:

The melody/malady "Wally" was of course about his chat with Safford

but also about breaking up with Suzy?

One evening shortly after Susannah's departure, Susan Rogers could tell something was very wrong when Prince came down to the basement studio. Looking disconsolate and barely speaking, he began constructing a song around a meloncholy piano pattern. His spoken lyrics portrayed a fictional dialogue between himself and Wally Safford, a dancer in the band. Sounding sad and lost, Prince asks Wally to borrow $50 and some sunglasses so he can impress his lover, but then changes his mind and returns the items telling Wally that since he is alone now, he has no one to spend the money on. Prince was accompanied only by piano throught the verse, but guitar bass and drums enter as the song built to a chorus on which he sings the phrase "o-ma-la-di-da"


Watching Prince construct the song which he called "Wally", Rogers was stunned by the honest emotion and wistfull resignation it conveyed. She saw the song both as a farewell to Susannah and a means of expelling the poison of failed relationship.

"Do you know that malady means sickness, illness in French?" Prince asked Rogers. Refering to the phrase he sings in the chorus. "It's almost like the word melody, isn't it?" Prince who rarely exposed his inner feelings, even in his music, was groping for a metaphor that would convey his feeling of loss. Rogers felt it was a turning point in his songwriting.

But as the session continued, Prince started to distance himself from the creation. He added extraneous instruments to diminished the songs clarity. A percussion part that cluttered the verse, detracting from the lyrics.

Don't you think it was better before, Prince?" Rogers said. "Maybe we should stop"
He ignored her, adding the synthizer riff. Soon it became clear to her: He was intentionally destroying the song. After larding the piece with additional instruments, he finally spoke. "Now put all 24 Channels on record and erase it." he told Rogers

"No, you can't do this!" Rogers said dismayed by the prospect of losing the statement at the core of the song.

"If you don't I will," Prince responded
Rogers stood her ground, and Prince was forced to operate the soundboard himself, as he destroyed his own music.

"Wally" like his relationship with Susannah, Wendy & Lisa involved more emotional intensity than Prince was willing to accept. "I thought it was the greatest thing he had ever done" says Rogers. I had waited years to hear a Prince song like this. I ached for him to be this honest.

Kinda puts a new slant on the "to these walls I talk" line on In This Bed I Scream..........

I almost hat reading stories like this - makes me desperate to hear that song now.

alxndrstff said:

OldFriends4Sale said:

One evening shortly after Susannah's departure, Susan Rogers could tell something was very wrong when Prince came down to the basement studio. Looking disconsolate and barely speaking, he began constructing a song around a meloncholy piano pattern. His spoken lyrics portrayed a fictional dialogue between himself and Wally Safford, a dancer in the band. Sounding sad and lost, Prince asks Wally to borrow $50 and some sunglasses so he can impress his lover, but then changes his mind and returns the items telling Wally that since he is alone now, he has no one to spend the money on. Prince was accompanied only by piano throught the verse, but guitar bass and drums enter as the song built to a chorus on which he sings the phrase "o-ma-la-di-da"


Watching Prince construct the song which he called "Wally", Rogers was stunned by the honest emotion and wistfull resignation it conveyed. She saw the song both as a farewell to Susannah and a means of expelling the poison of failed relationship.

"Do you know that malady means sickness, illness in French?" Prince asked Rogers. Refering to the phrase he sings in the chorus. "It's almost like the word melody, isn't it?" Prince who rarely exposed his inner feelings, even in his music, was groping for a metaphor that would convey his feeling of loss. Rogers felt it was a turning point in his songwriting.

But as the session continued, Prince started to distance himself from the creation. He added extraneous instruments to diminished the songs clarity. A percussion part that cluttered the verse, detracting from the lyrics.

Don't you think it was better before, Prince?" Rogers said. "Maybe we should stop"
He ignored her, adding the synthizer riff. Soon it became clear to her: He was intentionally destroying the song. After larding the piece with additional instruments, he finally spoke. "Now put all 24 Channels on record and erase it." he told Rogers

"No, you can't do this!" Rogers said dismayed by the prospect of losing the statement at the core of the song.

"If you don't I will," Prince responded
Rogers stood her ground, and Prince was forced to operate the soundboard himself, as he destroyed his own music.

"Wally" like his relationship with Susannah, Wendy & Lisa involved more emotional intensity than Prince was willing to accept. "I thought it was the greatest thing he had ever done" says Rogers. I had waited years to hear a Prince song like this. I ached for him to be this honest.

Kinda puts a new slant on the "to these walls I talk" line on In This Bed I Scream..........

I almost hate reading stories like this - makes me desperate to hear that song now.

lol I know what you mean

But these stories catch U off guard

U almost get a strong sense of the lyrics

o-ma-la-di-da
o-ma-la-di-da

a meloncholy piano pattern.

His spoken lyrics portrayed a fictional dialogue

between himself and Wally Safford, a dancer in the band.

Sounding sad and lost,

Prince asks Wally to borrow $50

and some sunglasses s

o he can impress his lover,

but then changes his mind

and returns the items

telling Wally that since he is alone now,

he has no one to spend the money on.

o-ma-la-di-da
o-ma-la-di-da
o-ma-la-di-da

Prince was accompanied only by piano throught the verse,

but guitar bass and drums enter as the song built to a chorus on which he sings the phrase

OldFriends4Sale said:

alxndrstff said:

Kinda puts a new slant on the "to these walls I talk" line on In This Bed I Scream..........

I almost hate reading stories like this - makes me desperate to hear that song now.

lol I know what you mean

But these stories catch U off guard

U almost get a strong sense of the lyrics

o-ma-la-di-da
o-ma-la-di-da

a meloncholy piano pattern.

His spoken lyrics portrayed a fictional dialogue

between himself and Wally Safford, a dancer in the band.

Sounding sad and lost,

Prince asks Wally to borrow $50

and some sunglasses s

o he can impress his lover,

but then changes his mind

and returns the items

telling Wally that since he is alone now,

he has no one to spend the money on.

o-ma-la-di-da
o-ma-la-di-da
o-ma-la-di-da

Prince was accompanied only by piano throught the verse,

but guitar bass and drums enter as the song built to a chorus on which he sings the phrase

if only she had a phonographic memory

and she would share