It just depends on the mood he is trying to go for. The synth horns on the album Purple Rain give it a very 80's pop feel, which works for a teenage audience.
I like it when Prince uses a real horn texture as inthe original sax sound for the bottom in the original demo of Elephants and Flowers. It's so much better than the album version. Also in a song like Crystal Ball or Come (album version) the horns provide a lot of strength and gravity. How would Hot Thing sound without real sax?
It's funny that up until Purple Rain's tour, Prince had stated that he thought real horns were not cool, and mostly stayed away from them. I bet this was because he was trying to distance himself from more mainstream, safer acts that crossed over like Earth Wind and Fire or the Commodores. He wanted to be a punk funk alien back then with an cartoonish almost parody horn sound of the keyboard.
After Purple Rain it seems like he wanted to use horns almost as a cultural texture, a way of sounding legit or authentic. But with something like Come or Billy Jack bitch , the horns are used as a lead feature and are even the most interesting aspect of those songs. (of course there is a bootleg that shows that those BJB crazy horn parts were recorded in a session that was not even related to Billy Jack Bitch. It's a bootleg that just has that horn section going through tons of musical phrases and patterns)
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in fact, all the crazy horn parts played in that session were intended for BJB. Most of the middle stuff (particularily my arrangement of T. Monk's "Well You Needn't") got edited out.
Cool to know... does that mean if you add back in a looped BJB beat it all lines up? If so, that would be a worthy bootleg remix project.
I guess it didn't seem that way just listening to the bootleg because of the pauses and changes and the fact that it was isolated, and seemed full on its own. I thought he had taken the part and added it to BJB in the same way he sometimes takes strings and added them to a different song (like The Ladder or Crystal Ball).
Analog synth horns all the way. While I love some of his later tunes with a real horn section I get the biggest kick out of his Linndrum/Oberheim creations. The original Minneapolis Sound, like others have said, that is what it's all about for me. Quirky drumcomputer funk with synths and slap bass and funky rhythm guitar.
Yeah, those analog synths are something else. Its seems like you barely had to play them and you got this beautiful, organic sound. The part at 8:00 sounds Princesque.
Yeah, those analog synths are something else. Its seems like you barely had to play them and you got this beautiful, organic sound. The part at 8:00 sounds Princesque.
It's funny to think of synths as being an organic sound nowadays (having seen and heard their rise in the 70's and 80's as a new robotic electronic sound)
He used to do synths as a replacement for horns, then finally did horns and the music got even better. The Eric Leeds, Atlanta Bliss sound was very unique. The later NPG horns were good but more like traditional horns, almost like better Chicago style horn playing--the band Chicago.
Yeah, those analog synths are something else. Its seems like you barely had to play them and you got this beautiful, organic sound. The part at 8:00 sounds Princesque.
It's funny to think of synths as being an organic sound nowadays (having seen and heard their rise in the 70's and 80's as a new robotic electronic sound)
Ufo u should get one analog synth nothing comparest to it,and its not robotic its very warm.digital synths are robotic
in 20 years folks will be saying how warm digital was
before we got 3D sound
thebanishedone said:
ufoclub said:
It's funny to think of synths as being an organic sound nowadays (having seen and heard their rise in the 70's and 80's as a new robotic electronic sound)
Ufo u should get one analog synth nothing comparest to it,and its not robotic its very warm.digital synths are robotic
It's funny to think of synths as being an organic sound nowadays (having seen and heard their rise in the 70's and 80's as a new robotic electronic sound)
Ufo u should get one analog synth nothing comparest to it,and its not robotic its very warm.digital synths are robotic
I understand, but in the past it was considered cold and robotic compared to real intruments. For example, I prefered real rich orchestral soundtracks and then all of a sudden there were synth scores, which went crazy in the 80's. But I did like Giorgio Morodersoundtracks.
That's a great song, but it's an electronic sound at the beginning with the lead synth. A nice electronic sound. I like it.
I think many people criticizing Prince when he uses synth straight outta of the keyboard, with no effects. People think it sounds very dry or simple. The synth keyboard itself has effects like reverb built in that can be dialed up or down. I think he is using some synths, but he is keeping the effects very dry.
PS I still use a Roland XP-80 for my music and film scoring. It's sitting right behind me. Listen to this demo sketch: https://soundcloud.com/uf...edley-2005
Yeah, those orchestral sound libraries are amazing. Check out these guys work. They are composers who also create sample libraries. You can't even tell its all digital.
Yeah, those orchestral sound libraries are amazing. Check out these guys work. They are composers who also create sample libraries. You can't even tell its all digital.
If you're interested, their company is called orchestral tools. Here is a video of the composers discussing their process. It would be cool to see more pop musicians using these kinds complex sample libraries.
in fact, all the crazy horn parts played in that session were intended for BJB. Most of the middle stuff (particularily my arrangement of T. Monk's "Well You Needn't") got edited out.
Cool to know... does that mean if you add back in a looped BJB beat it all lines up? If so, that would be a worthy bootleg remix project.
I guess it didn't seem that way just listening to the bootleg because of the pauses and changes and the fact that it was isolated, and seemed full on its own. I thought he had taken the part and added it to BJB in the same way he sometimes takes strings and added them to a different song (like The Ladder or Crystal Ball).
Not sure what you are referring to. We have the long, unedited version of BJB on boots and there's the acapella horns version by the Hornheads that was released on their first album (minus the Monk part).
It just depends on the mood he is trying to go for. The synth horns on the album Purple Rain give it a very 80's pop feel, which works for a teenage audience.
I like it when Prince uses a real horn texture as inthe original sax sound for the bottom in the original demo of Elephants and Flowers. It's so much better than the album version. Also in a song like Crystal Ball or Come (album version) the horns provide a lot of strength and gravity. How would Hot Thing sound without real sax?
It's funny that up until Purple Rain's tour, Prince had stated that he thought real horns were not cool, and mostly stayed away from them. I bet this was because he was trying to distance himself from more mainstream, safer acts that crossed over like Earth Wind and Fire or the Commodores. He wanted to be a punk funk alien back then with an cartoonish almost parody horn sound of the keyboard.
After Purple Rain it seems like he wanted to use horns almost as a cultural texture, a way of sounding legit or authentic. But with something like Come or Billy Jack bitch , the horns are used as a lead feature and are even the most interesting aspect of those songs. (of course there is a bootleg that shows that those BJB crazy horn parts were recorded in a session that was not even related to Billy Jack Bitch. It's a bootleg that just has that horn section going through tons of musical phrases and patterns)
-
in fact, all the crazy horn parts played in that session were intended for BJB. Most of the middle stuff (particularily my arrangement of T. Monk's "Well You Needn't") got edited out.
Thanks for posting
Was Prince aware that there was a Monk interpolation on the long version of BJB or did he think it was part of New Dell Inn and composed by you (he's known to have made this mistake before, believing Cat had written the Music Is The Key rap before realizing it was in fact a cover).
Cool to know... does that mean if you add back in a looped BJB beat it all lines up? If so, that would be a worthy bootleg remix project.
I guess it didn't seem that way just listening to the bootleg because of the pauses and changes and the fact that it was isolated, and seemed full on its own. I thought he had taken the part and added it to BJB in the same way he sometimes takes strings and added them to a different song (like The Ladder or Crystal Ball).
Not sure what you are referring to. We have the long, unedited version of BJB on boots and there's the acapella horns version by the Hornheads that was released on their first album (minus the Monk part).
I'll have to check the boot of the horns vs the BJB long version (I don't even knoe where it would be on all these drives) to see, but I guess I never had the official hornsheads album. It just had the BJB horns alone as a long track?
Not sure what you are referring to. We have the long, unedited version of BJB on boots and there's the acapella horns version by the Hornheads that was released on their first album (minus the Monk part).
I guess I never had the official hornsheads album. It just had the BJB horns alone as a long track?
Yeah, the track is called New Dell Inn, but it's the horn parts from BJB.
Yeah, those orchestral sound libraries are amazing. Check out these guys work. They are composers who also create sample libraries. You can't even tell its all digital.
That one, the OB-8, is quite different sounding to the OB-Xa that was used on 1999 and Purple Rain. I've understood the OB-8 was used live later on though.