We all know who's credited for most of the horns on all his albums. Some of which are really great! Especially the ones where the Hornheads do some really tight fills that make your face do something on it's own.

What I want to know is if Prince perhaps writes the arrangements and gives it to the horn players or does he ask them to write the horn sections?

by the way:

http://www.bone2bwildmusic.com

cool site!

often wondered this..i reckon he does almost all the arrangeing for the parts.

he certainly dont pay anyone else to do it..unless its fischer..

There was an occasion during the last half of the '90s where one of the Hornheadz stated (I think on the web) that they had written some of the accompaniments to Prince songs. The statement made no mention of Prince in connection with the writing and implied that it therefore had no Prince involvment.

This came to Prince's notice who I believe passed comment about it, and a correction was posted on that Hornheadz members' website to make very clear that Prince (at least on the occasion in question) wrote the lead horn line, and that member of the Hornheadz helped with subsequent arrangement.

I'm pretty sure it was Michael B Nelson after the release of RUTJF. Nelson is co-credited with Prince or horn arrangements on the album.

I think Prince writes the Parts because Hearing the Horn Arrangements they Sound just like they would if He played them off Keyboard Horns.Eric Leeds use to write His Parts on Horn when he was with Prince&Atlanta Bliss got credit for His as well.but the Grooves&whatnot don't really change much when Prince writes out the Horn Parts or what I've heard on some songs so I feel He did.

In this interview Michael B Nelson states he arranges (seemingly on his own) on some songs:

http://www.thedawn.freeuk...chaelb.htm

He arranges most of them.Eric did most of his own,as yous tated earlier.He does them with his voice,like Jay Kay of Jamiroquai does.Then the horn players have to make it happen.

I have a cd of Prince rehearsing in Europe somewhere (can't remember now)but between the songs he tells Leeds and Bliss how he wants the horns to sound using his own vocals...SOTT era

I belive in most cases, Prince originally writes and recordes it using a keyboard, and then gets Eric Leeds or Michael Nelson (whoever it is at the time) to check and make sure it's possible to play on various horns (range and timbre etc), and then he transcribes it, makes a few little changes and then gives the parts to the other horns, who again make a few little changes.

@ toejam

i'm sure he could write it down, too, if he wanted and probably has on occasion...although at his prolific rate, it would be time consuming.

I read that James Brown would sing the horn lines to his band and they would play it back to him.

Wondered if Prince did that too as well as composing the horn sections on the keyboards. (that's what i do)

?
[This message was edited Tue Apr 29 21:59:00 PDT 2003 by daysofwild]