Prince The Holy River UK CD single (CD5 / 5")

1. The Holy River - Radio Edit 4:00
2. The Most Beautiful Girl In The World - Mustang Mix 6:19
3. Somebody's Somebody - Edit 4:30
4. On Sale Now! 0:48

Prince The Holy River Netherlands Promo CD single (CD5 / 5")

Released January 13, 1997

The Holy River
Let's go down 2 the holy river
If we drown then we'll be delivered

U can still see the picture upon the wall
One eye staring at nothing at all
The other one trying 2 focus through all your tears
U can try and try but there's nothin' 2 hide
U can't run from yourself and what's inside
U got 2 find the answers 2 the questions that U most fear

So over and over U ask your soul
Why'd U come down 2 a world so cold?
And the voice inside says 2night the truth will be told

U surrounded yourself with all the wrong faces
Spending your time in all the wrong places
Puttin' your faith in things that only make U cry
People say they love U when they wanna help
But how can they when U can't help yourself?
The more they say they love U, the more U just wanna die
So here we go again, the self analysis
Have another glass of Port and uh.. forget this
The band's playin' at the club 2night and they're bound 2 groove

There U are, U think U're high
U can't ask yourself cuz U'd only lie
If U had a dollar 4 every time U tried

U can't call nobody cuz they'll tell U straight up
Come and make love when U really hate 'em
Relationships based on the physical are over and done
They're over and done (They're over and done)
U'd rather have fun
With only one, with only one
Only one... one (one)

And then it hit 'cha like a fist on a wall
Who gave U life when there was none at all?
Who gave the sun permission 2 rise up everyday? (Ooh, oh yes)
Let me tell it (Go'n)
If U ask God 2 love U longer
Every breath U take will make U stronger
Keepin' U happy (happy) and proud 2 call His name (Go'n and say it)
Jesus (Jesus)

And over and over U ask your soul
Why'd U come down 2 a world so cold?
And the voice inside said 2night the truth will be told
And this time I was listening, hear me

Let's go down 2 the holy river
If we drown then we'll be delivered (Yes we will)
If we don't then we'll never see the light (No)
If U die before U try
U'll have 2 come back and face the light (Oh yes)
When U believe it, U got a good reason 2 cry (Oh my, my)

So I went on down 2 the holy river
I called my girl and told her I had something 2 give her
I asked her 2 marry me and she said yes, I cried
Oh, that night I drowned in her tears and mine
And.. and instead of a glass of sorrow and wine
Looking back y'all, I don't miss nothing except the time
And when I see that picture upon the wall
The one eye staring at nothing at all
My eyes trying 2 focus but these are much different tears
Oh, yes they are

Let's go down 2 the holy river

Let's go down 2 the holy river

© 1996 Emancipated Music Inc. - ASCAP



The Holy River" is a song from Prince's (his stage name at that time being an unpronounceable symbol, see cover art) 1996 album, Emancipation.[1]

The song is pop/rock-based number that tells the story of spiritual enlightenment and of Prince's decision to marry Mayte Garcia. The mid-tempo number is based around a guitar melody without a chorus. The song climaxes in a searing guitar solo.

The UK CD single was released as a two separate discs which fit in a double jewel case that was included with the first disc. Both discs had different picture sleeves and different contents, other than a "radio edit" of "The Holy River" and edit of "Somebody's Somebody" (also from Emancipation). Disc one also included two remixes of "Somebody's Somebody": a "Livestudio Mix" and an "Ultrafantasy Edit". Both were mostly re-recorded versions of the song with additional lyrics. Disc 2 included the previously released "The Most Beautiful Girl in the World (Mustang Mix)" and a one-minute commercial called "On Sale Now!". The UK cassette single was the same as disc 2, but without "On Sale Now".

A US promotional release was sent to Pop radio stations at the same time as "Somebody's Somebody" was sent to Urban radio stations, it was also made available to consumers for free, and only through book chain, Borders Music. It was a cassette single with the previously unreleased "Welcome 2 the Dawn", advertised as being from the upcoming album The Dawn. In reality, the song was later released on The Truth. A music video for the single was produced

The Rise & Fall of Prince

Chapter 16: GONE

page 217

E ven as speculation and innuendo swirled about his personal life. Prince did his best to focus on Emancipation, which he promoted more vigorously than any album of his career. In several interviews, he called it "the album I was born to make."

If Emancipation lacks the experimental flair and raw energy of albums like 1999, Parade, or Sign O' The Times, it is nonetheless one of his most focused and consistent works. The three-album set demonstrates thematic coherence, focusing on his union with Mayte, his parting fo ways with Warner Bros., and his spiritual development. Although it runs nearly three hours, Emancipation contains surprisingly little filler. Certainly Prince's most effective album since Sign O' The Times, it is a striking reminder of his talent.

SpikeLee: Right now I have a copy of your Emancipation CD and my wife wanted to kill me because I had "Soul Sanctuary" on repeat. I played that song for two hours straight. It's four minutes long. Divide that into two hours. She was about to go upside my head. But tell me about that song. I love it!

the Artist : Sandra St. Victor helped with that one. The melody is basically mine, but the lyrics were inspired by verses that Sandra wrote. I love the idea of an ex-lover leaving her reflection in the mirror after she's gone. You know, I just hope to see the day when all artists, no matter what color they are, own their masters [tapes].

MUSICIAN (1997)

---

APRIL 1997 * MUSICIAN

The Sound of Emancipation

"Soul Sanctuary" is more of an orchestral experiment, with a mixture off what sounds like Mellotron string lines, harp, and marimba.

I'll start a track like that piece by piece. I'll have a color or a line in mind, and I'll keep switching things around until I get what I'm hearing in my head. Then I'll try to bring to Earth the color that wants to be with that first color. It's like having a baby, knowing that this baby wants to be with you. You're giving birth to the song.

Was that a real or a sampled harp on "Soul Sanctuary"?

That was a sampled harp. I wanted to be able to play it perfectly, and while I can play a few simple things on a real harp, the sample helped me get it the way I wanted it. Samples are good for music; you almost can't compare "It's Gonna Be a Beautiful Night," the uptempo song from Sign o' the Times, with "The Human Body" [from Emancipation] because of the difference that samples make.

It's interesting how different the demo version of "Soul Sanctuary" (bootleg) sounds to the finished product. You always kind of get the impression that the music he records always sounds pretty much the same during the tracking process as it does on the finished album, but that one proves that isn't necessarily the case. I like it how "glassy" the demo sounds (although the detoriated sound quality of the outtake might have something to do with that).

novabrkr said:

It's interesting how different the demo version of "Soul Sanctuary" (bootleg) sounds to the finished product. You always kind of get the impression that the music he records always sounds pretty much the same during the tracking process as it does on the finished album, but that one proves that isn't necessarily the case. I like it how "glassy" the demo sounds (although the detoriated sound quality of the outtake might have something to do with that).

to me ..he "commercializes" his music ..hence the differeNT

Live at the Neil S. Blaisdell Arena, Honolulu, Hawaii, February 16th, 1997.

Tracklist

He plays the harp?

OldFriends4Sale said:

NoVideo said:

There is some great material on this album, and some awful stuff as well. The production is so plastic / 90s.

I was crazy about it when it came out, though - i played it constantly. It hasn't aged particularly well in general, although there are still some things on it I really like.

that's one thing I noticed too the plastic feel

interesting that 1980s stuff sounds so full layered and even timeless

I always thought that it suffered from it's production on day 1 of it's release. That said, I really like this album and always imagined if it got the sign o the times production treatment, that it would have been more appreciated.

OldFriends4Sale said:

Isn't this Prince's debut as a SEARS model? Sweater, mens, small

iZsaZsa said:

He plays the harp?

A harp is used for the seques on the NPG "Exodus" album. Apparently "played" by Mayte (it's really used for simple strumming). But I suppose they really did have one around in Paisley Park.

luvsexy4all said:

novabrkr said:

It's interesting how different the demo version of "Soul Sanctuary" (bootleg) sounds to the finished product. You always kind of get the impression that the music he records always sounds pretty much the same during the tracking process as it does on the finished album, but that one proves that isn't necessarily the case. I like it how "glassy" the demo sounds (although the detoriated sound quality of the outtake might have something to do with that).

to me ..he "commercializes" his music ..hence the differeNT

Yes, the end result sounds more like R&B music instead of sounding like what the demo did (a mix of pop and classical).

novabrkr said:

Oh! Okay, I thought maybe he was getting down on it like Harpo Marx.

novabrkr said:

iZsaZsa said:

He plays the harp?

A harp is used for the seques on the NPG "Exodus" album. Apparently "played" by Mayte (it's really used for simple strumming). But I suppose they really did have one around in Paisley Park.

he says he can play 27 instruments(which ones those are I don't know)

but in that interview he did say: and while I can play a few simple things on a real harp,

In This Bed I Scream

dedicated 2 Wendy Lisa & Susannah

Susannah dna asiL dna ydneW 2 detacided

.

2 these walls I talk
Tellin' 'em what I wasn't strong enough 2 say
2 these walls I talk
Tellin' 'em how I cried the day U went away

How do we ever lose communication?
How do we ever lose each other's sound?
Baby, if U wanna, we can fix the situation
Maybe we can stop the rain from coming down

Yeah

In this bed I scream
Lonely nights I lay awake thinking of U
And if I'm cursed with a dream
A thousand times I feel whatever I've put U through

Tell me, how're we gonna put this back 2gether?
How're we gonna think with the same mind?
Knowing all along that life is so much better
Living and loving 2gether all the time

Living and loving

In this bed I, in this bed I, in this bed I scream

In this car I drive
I'm looking 4 the road that leads back 2 the soul we shared
With my very life
I'd gladly be the body upon the cross we bear (Cross we bear)

How do we ever lose communication? (How did we?)
How do we ever lose each other's sound? (I don't know)
Baby, if U wanna, we can fix the situation
Maybe we can stop the rain from coming down

Maybe we can't, maybe we can
Stop the rain, stop the rain

In this bed I, in this bed I, in this bed I scream
I scream

In this bed I scream

It was created using feedback noise produced when put a guitar on the floor. It is dedicated (in reversed text) in the album's booklet to "Wendy and Lisa and Susannah", and sent the song to Wendy Melvoin and Lisa Coleman prior to its release for their input (in what could be interpreted as an apology for his past actions to them); they responded with some suggestions, but they did not hear back from him and their suggestions were not included on the released track.

OldFriends4Sale said:

Loving you in silence, knowing that it's right
Under your gaze I ponder this love tonight
Unbothered by the chaos swirling 'round outside
In your arms is where I want to live and die

Someplace where your face is all that I see
Where the love we make intoxicates intensively
In a mirror where your sweet reflection used to be
There is hope, there is joy, my soul sanctuary, my soul sanctuary

Loving you in silence, never-ending kiss
Under your gaze I can peacefully exist
Sanctuary baby, nothing compares to this
In my darkest hour you can be my bliss, bliss

All of me, I give to thee, down at your feet
The reassurance in your rhythm speaks to me
Over and over, your screams are like a prayer
In the dark, you are there, you are there
My soul sanctuary, ooh, my soul sanctuary

Loving you in passion unmolested in this garden
Mango and nectarine, sweet honeydew, I beg your pardon
My mouth runneth over from ecstasy
It's true, it's true baby, I love the taste of you

Loving you in silence, knowing that it's right
Under your gaze, I ponder this love tonight
Unbothered by the chaos swirling around outside
In your arms is where I wanna live and die

Someplace, someplace, where your face is all that I see, all that I see
Where the love we make intoxicates intensively, intensively
In a mirror, mirror, where your sweet, sweet, reflections used to be
There is hope, there is joy, my soul sanctuary, my soul sanctuary
My, my, my, my, my soul, my soul sanctuary, oh, my soul sanctuary

Beautiful lyrics.

myseven said:

OldFriends4Sale said:

Loving you in silence, knowing that it's right
Under your gaze I ponder this love tonight
Unbothered by the chaos swirling 'round outside
In your arms is where I want to live and die

Someplace where your face is all that I see
Where the love we make intoxicates intensively
In a mirror where your sweet reflection used to be
There is hope, there is joy, my soul sanctuary, my soul sanctuary

Loving you in silence, never-ending kiss
Under your gaze I can peacefully exist
Sanctuary baby, nothing compares to this
In my darkest hour you can be my bliss, bliss

All of me, I give to thee, down at your feet
The reassurance in your rhythm speaks to me
Over and over, your screams are like a prayer
In the dark, you are there, you are there
My soul sanctuary, ooh, my soul sanctuary

Loving you in passion unmolested in this garden
Mango and nectarine, sweet honeydew, I beg your pardon
My mouth runneth over from ecstasy
It's true, it's true baby, I love the taste of you

Loving you in silence, knowing that it's right
Under your gaze, I ponder this love tonight
Unbothered by the chaos swirling around outside
In your arms is where I wanna live and die

Someplace, someplace, where your face is all that I see, all that I see
Where the love we make intoxicates intensively, intensively
In a mirror, mirror, where your sweet, sweet, reflections used to be
There is hope, there is joy, my soul sanctuary, my soul sanctuary
My, my, my, my, my soul, my soul sanctuary, oh, my soul sanctuary

Beautiful lyrics.

co-written by Sandra St. Victor