KCOOLMUZIQ said:

Andre is the only band member of his that knows the truth of how things really got started with Prince. He was there from the beginning. I know NO old members are coming back! Because Prince doesn't like to go back. But I mean as far as guest appearing when Prince decides to summons them at his command. Andre guest appeared on "Dance Electric" during Prince's Sayer's Club gig in Oct 2012 in the beautiful Hollywood Ca after his Jimmy Kimmel appearance.

prince and andre were much different back in the 80s both were very cocky andre has grownup now but back then i think the dispute was both ways. andre wanted to be the next prince.

prince has a very assertive personality too and he gets along better with yes man

I will also add that I believe Andre when he says he's not the kind of guy who'll just go along with things..that he is too independent to just follow. HIs solo career seems short but I do believe he must have had loads of opportunities back in the 80s to blow up. You had so many Prince sounding bands....surely he could play the part as a rival to P but he probalby just wouldn't go along with it.

It strikes me as incredible that from this small place, so many incredible talents were developed....not just musicians who became famous for a hit or two....we're talking people who shaped popular music for the next 25 yeras...

Prince

Jam and Lewis

Andre's prod work

Incredible.

JoeyCococo said:

Great hearing from Andre. I'd love to hear how Michael Dean got this arranged. Long time Prince fans love to hear stories that bring him down to earth...carrying his equipment down the street, taking the bus, telling Andre to 'cool it' when Rick pointed the Love Gun at him etc...great stuff. Andre connected with us.

I did notice a few things -

- he seems to say he came up with the Let's Work bassline. Wow! One of the greatest bass lines ever. I would believe it b/c I have never seen Prince do that bassline live as I have never seen Prince do the Little Red guitar solo live. I say this b/c I bleieve Prince has some real old school values in this regard. He's not going to come out and credit Andre (or DEz) for those parts but he's not going to play them either.....I think....

- Andre seemed to want to leave the impression that he and Prince are equal talents. Maybe I'm wrong but that seemed to be the tone at times.

- I loved hearing his comments about Prince's dad and the work ethic and piano playing. Again, it reminds us that this whacked out character Prince is only the image he portrays. There is a guy who has played 1000s of hours to be as good as he is.

- NOt the right place but when Andre started some social commentary, it seemed to go over like a led balloon with Michael and his hosts. I wish talked more about this instead of switching the subjecdt to Jodey Watley.

Andre should write a book. If he's willing to talk after 35 years, give us some more.

It was also nice to know that Prince went to visit Andre's mom. I wonder if he helped carry those pizzas!

I think Andre didn't want 2 b another Prince clone. He wanted his own sound just like Prince had. But the labels wanted him 2 b Prince.

Eye feel Prince not playing the guitar solo live on LRC is him giving credit 2 Dez. Its never been a secret that Dez did that solo anyway. Andre plays humble sometimes not wanting to discredit Prince. But why throw these darts that he has the original recordings with him playing the parts and not Prince? Either way they are still Prince's songs & hits.

If Andre created that original "Let's Work" bassline. Prince must of took it to a whole other level. Because it is still slammin to this day! But the way Andre is explaining it, that is him playing it everything else around it is different.

[Edited 4/11/14 0:41am]

thebanishedone said:

R you living under a rock? PRINCe played Little Red Corvette solo since 2009

yes, i thought of this when i wrote what i did. however, it took him 27 years to play the solo on one of his biggest hits. A guitarist never plays one of the solos he's known for for 27 years...

I believe he finally played it b/c 27 years had passed....somehow it makes sense. He alos changed the Little Red song a lot by that point.

Havin said all this, it takes more than a bassline to make a great song...no doubt, that bassline is INREDI|BLe but it was Prince doing th rest..

Andre,

I loved your commentary, especially about politics. I would love to discuss your thoughts on the barely veiled racism thsi first Black President has been subjected to. The indigniities of having to prove his birth place and being blocked at ALL points during one of the biggest crisis' America has seen in modern times. I am going off on a tangent.

About your music and place in history...if you are to be even thought to be Prince's equal, you have a mountain to climb. Prince is not the nicest gy so you already get a pass from many of us but the man is a MOUTAIN. He did it his way for the most part. A the Peach and Black guys said, he and LUcas are the only heavyweights that would not compromise. Prince does not have to put out another song for me to respect his greatness as a musician and as a 'leader'. This guy is not going to be todl what to do. I get the feeling you are the same but the stakes are high when it comes the man, Prince.

JoeyCococo said:

thebanishedone said:

R you living under a rock? PRINCe played Little Red Corvette solo since 2009

yes, i thought of this when i wrote what i did. however, it took him 27 years to play the solo on one of his biggest hits. A guitarist never plays one of the solos he's known for for 27 years...

I believe he finally played it b/c 27 years had passed....somehow it makes sense. He alos changed the Little Red song a lot by that point.

Havin said all this, it takes more than a bassline to make a great song...no doubt, that bassline is INREDI|BLe but it was Prince doing th rest..

hey Joey i think tht Prince never intended to play guitar live on Little Red Corvette.He used to dance during solo breakdown . I think he started playing guitar on Little Red Corvette

because he got bored with the same arrangment of the song. Same goes

with When Doves Cry,icon intro and solo but he never played it live.

[Edited 4/11/14 18:57pm]

yes, i thought of this when i wrote what i did. however, it took him 27 years to play the solo on one of his biggest hits. A guitarist never plays one of the solos he's known for for 27 years...

I believe he finally played it b/c 27 years had passed....somehow it makes sense. He alos changed the Little Red song a lot by that point.

Havin said all this, it takes more than a bassline to make a great song...no doubt, that bassline is INREDI|BLe but it was Prince doing th rest..

hey Joey i think tht Prince never intended to play guitar live on Little Red Corvette.He used to dance during solo breakdown . I think he started playing guitar on Little Red Corvette

because he got bored with the same arrangment of the song. Same goes

with When Doves Cry,icon intro and solo but he never played it live.




Don't know what to say. Any normal talent would likely show off that opening solo for When Doves Cry live whenever he could. The fact that he has never done it live has always made me wonder why. I have seen many try I. YouTube.
Only one guy had it bang on.

JoeyCococo said:

yes, i thought of this when i wrote what i did. however, it took him 27 years to play the solo on one of his biggest hits. A guitarist never plays one of the solos he's known for for 27 years...

I believe he finally played it b/c 27 years had passed....somehow it makes sense. He alos changed the Little Red song a lot by that point.

Havin said all this, it takes more than a bassline to make a great song...no doubt, that bassline is INREDI|BLe but it was Prince doing th rest..

hey Joey i think tht Prince never intended to play guitar live on Little Red Corvette.He used to dance during solo breakdown . I think he started playing guitar on Little Red Corvette

because he got bored with the same arrangment of the song. Same goes

with When Doves Cry,icon intro and solo but he never played it live. Don't know what to say. Any normal talent would likely show off that opening solo for When Doves Cry live whenever he could. The fact that he has never done it live has always made me wonder why. I have seen many try I. YouTube. Only one guy had it bang on.

One thing I never understood was why let Wendy tackle it!?

[Edited 4/12/14 11:33am]

Very enjoyable - well done guys.

Lordy said:

Doesn't sound wrong to me that Andre Cymone wrote the bassline for Let's Work if you listen to songs like Trouble from his first solo album. Also his style is not as minimalistic as Prince when it comes to his early songs in the 80s. He also would often do weirder choices when it comes to timing etc. Andre Cymone was a talented and passionate music nerd, while Prince was a super talented superstar with an ear for hits and BIG songs.

[Edited 4/13/14 10:50am]

robertgeorge said:

robertgeorge said: Halfway through and this is already the best Prince associate interview I have heard. Andre is so full of praise for the piano playing of Prince's dad John L. He describes his playing as very influential on them both. Andre sounds like a cool and normal guy without any of Prince's faux mystique. laurarichardson said: The mystic that you do not understand is why Prince is where he is and Andre is where he is. Andre has the talent but he never had the mystic that Prince has. Prince's mystique comes from his music, style and soul. Prince's faux mystique is him trying to rest on his persona money and laurels when he at times has not had the tunes to live up to his legend. Prince is intelligent, eloquent and deep but his main form of expression is music. At times in interviews he can be specious and deliberately obtuse. For example Sonny T or your current band may be a great inspiration but the interviewer was asking you about Hendrix. When he wants to Prince can be funny and charming. When he feels insecure or petulant we get Faux Prince. I guess it's a Gemini thing. Obviously this is an objective call, but come on, don't you ever feel like Prince could be a bit more open and relaxed in interviews?

[Edited 4/11/14 0:41am]

-------

Over the last 10 years he has been very relaxed and open. I think the Tavis Smiley interviews are good and I am basing that off of his demeanor not what he had to say about "Chemtrails". I think he handled himself well with Arsenio Hall despite Arsenio not being prepared to interview him at all.

I think he was always good with Jay Leno. He had taken down the mystic as he has gotten older but he kind of needed it back in the day.

Just excellent, thank you so much. It was great to hear Andre just talk on and tell everything, he is a nice contrast to the very private Prince. He just spilled his guts and really gave us an insight into those early days. Its obvious how sincere he is and how much Prince and him were alike.

He's not bitter about Prince's treatment and seemed truly happy at his success. I still wish him and Prince could get real close again and see if their musical ideas could bounce off each other and make one hell of a collaboration album called "Stoneflow3r" .

This was great to listen too, and found myself aware and attentive for the whole two hours. Andre did not ruch them or worry about time like Dez and I was amazed to hear he did not really get on with Dez (He is mentioned once, when they shared a room). I think Andre did not really dig the rest of the band as they were hardly mentioned. But I was glad he was open and just talked and talked, his early life was amazing and we can see the role Bernadette Anderson played in both men's lives. Prince really did always respect her. I liked that.

A bumper month for Prince collaborations on podcasts, as Peach and Black had Larry Graham Check it out guys if you haven't already. We have had Shelby, Dez and Andre, now we need Prince to get on the podcast.

And I kind of agree what all these people are saying about "mystic" (I think they mean mystique). Prince created and kept this aura of mystique and weirdness about him, it was like you always wanted to know more about Prince, yet when you found out more, you were even less satisfied in your curiosity than before. Here I will refer to what happened in the time, Andre was playing with Prince as a Warner Brothers recording artist between 1977 and 1981.

Prince's mystique came from his raw and talent and bizarre image as portrayed by the media such as the inner sleeve photo of "For You", the Pegasus thing on "Prince" and the holding up of fingers on American bandstand. This is interesting as Andre did not, he was just a normal guy who loved to play funky music, talented and clever yes, but he had no mystique, he was preceived as too normal and sane (Even the clear pants on the Dirty Mind tour did not create much).

Whereas Prince was a superfunky and bizarre individual, Andre was just like several hundred other guys in musical groups, a player. Only Michael Jackson would approach Prince on the weirdness scale. Also I never thought Andre had the same appeal to fans as Prince, they liked him, but his personality was dull next to Prince's and it didn't help that Prince was the real star of the show and Andre merely played his bass along to Prince penned songs.

Needless to say I still respect the guy, and I think he was happy succeeding on his own aims and has retained his respect by not riding on Prince's coat tails like many of Prince's lesser talented proteges may have. The other problem is we will never know how much Andre contributed to Prince's early sound, did he write whole songs and dream up the Time, or was it merely bass riffs that Prince borrowed for Do Me Baby, as the lyrics in that are pure Prince sex. I mean how many dirty, creamy ballads sit on Andre albums? Unfortunately we won't know until Prince or another member of his first group produces evidence of who did what.

Nabbing it now from iTunes, thanks looking forward to hearing it

Prince visited Bernadette and reunited with Andre

Very good, Prince. You did something right for once.

[Edited 4/17/14 18:58pm]

PoorLonelyComputer said:

Very good, Prince. You did something right for once.

So there might be light at the end of the tunnel:

On his deathbed he migth release the contents of the vault...

.

Or sooner: he migth simply press those PlectrumElectrum discs and sell them at shows.

It's been done before.

.

But currently he still fishing for a situation he remembers from his CONtract time with a Major Label.

Big advances. Pampered with promotion. Pointing fingers.

KCOOLMUZIQ said:

Aren't you tired yet? Tired of LYING TO YOURSELF about who your "hero" Prince really is?

damn...

KCOOLMUZIQ said:

JoeyCococo said:

yes, i thought of this when i wrote what i did. however, it took him 27 years to play the solo on one of his biggest hits. A guitarist never plays one of the solos he's known for for 27 years...

I believe he finally played it b/c 27 years had passed....somehow it makes sense. He alos changed the Little Red song a lot by that point.

Havin said all this, it takes more than a bassline to make a great song...no doubt, that bassline is INREDI|BLe but it was Prince doing th rest..

hey Joey i think tht Prince never intended to play guitar live on Little Red Corvette.He used to dance during solo breakdown . I think he started playing guitar on Little Red Corvette

because he got bored with the same arrangment of the song. Same goes

with When Doves Cry,icon intro and solo but he never played it live. Don't know what to say. Any normal talent would likely show off that opening solo for When Doves Cry live whenever he could. The fact that he has never done it live has always made me wonder why. I have seen many try I. YouTube. Only one guy had it bang on.

One thing I never understood was why let Wendy tackle it!?

[Edited 4/12/14 11:33am]

Because the woman could play it [Snip - No flaming, please - Militant]

KCOOLMUZIQ said:

JoeyCococo said:

Great hearing from Andre. I'd love to hear how Michael Dean got this arranged. Long time Prince fans love to hear stories that bring him down to earth...carrying his equipment down the street, taking the bus, telling Andre to 'cool it' when Rick pointed the Love Gun at him etc...great stuff. Andre connected with us.

I did notice a few things -

- he seems to say he came up with the Let's Work bassline. Wow! One of the greatest bass lines ever. I would believe it b/c I have never seen Prince do that bassline live as I have never seen Prince do the Little Red guitar solo live. I say this b/c I bleieve Prince has some real old school values in this regard. He's not going to come out and credit Andre (or DEz) for those parts but he's not going to play them either.....I think....

- Andre seemed to want to leave the impression that he and Prince are equal talents. Maybe I'm wrong but that seemed to be the tone at times.

- I loved hearing his comments about Prince's dad and the work ethic and piano playing. Again, it reminds us that this whacked out character Prince is only the image he portrays. There is a guy who has played 1000s of hours to be as good as he is.

- NOt the right place but when Andre started some social commentary, it seemed to go over like a led balloon with Michael and his hosts. I wish talked more about this instead of switching the subjecdt to Jodey Watley.

Andre should write a book. If he's willing to talk after 35 years, give us some more.

It was also nice to know that Prince went to visit Andre's mom. I wonder if he helped carry those pizzas!

I think Andre didn't want 2 b another Prince clone. He wanted his own sound just like Prince had. But the labels wanted him 2 b Prince.

Eye feel Prince not playing the guitar solo live on LRC is him giving credit 2 Dez. Its never been a secret that Dez did that solo anyway. Andre plays humble sometimes not wanting to discredit Prince. But why throw these darts that he has the original recordings with him playing the parts and not Prince? Either way they are still Prince's songs & hits.

If Andre created that original "Let's Work" bassline. Prince must of took it to a whole other level. Because it is still slammin to this day! But the way Andre is explaining it, that is him playing it everything else around it is different.

If you listen, he said it sounded the same. He didn't say that he actually played on the record. Prince just played a close to identical bass lick, with different "wrapping". Prince has this sponge brain being able to recreate stuff pretty easy, especially if his "brother" made it. It's a style he understands. Prince talent was being able to see concepts to put this great pieces in, and create a monster song out of it. Of course, he was incredible at creating riffs also. But his skills of crafting a song together with his work ethic and extreme passion for every sound that came out of him is what made him different imo.

donnyenglish said:

It is so long. Can someone give us the highlights? Thanks

The longer the better!

Not into listening while you drive? Work? Clean house?

Excellent interview!! See, I've been saying Prince Podcast deserves the same recognition as the also excellent Peach & Black. Glad to see them getting some love on the org!

[Edited 4/18/14 5:54am]