I know quite a bit of it is true. But did the album really just release? no single, video, or mention. People really just walked into stores and saw ''omg a new Prince album''

Ballsy premise yes, but would WB go for that? since in the end they release the music. Not Prince

So is this story really true?

[Edited 8/27/14 19:45pm]

The album really was released with no singles,no videos and very little pre-release hype.I remember coming home from school one day,turning on the radio and the DJ was saying that "We have the NEW Prince album and we're gonna play some tracks in a bit".I was shocked! The Purple Rain era had barely died down,and here he was again,with a whole new album!

Of course,when radio stations started playing "Raspberry Beret",Prince changed his mind about releasing singles.That song was released as a single and a video was shot for it.

The album was released before any of the singles were. It wasn't exactly a surprise, if you paid attention to music releases. I knew the album was coming--I think there was a Rolling Stone mention and stuff--probably around February (around the same time as the We Are the World recording, I think). It wasn't completely under the radar--but there was so much less entertainment news back then. So, for most people--yeah, they wouldn't have known or expected anything to be coming from Prince. But people who followed music more closely knew and were waiting for it.

.

But yeah, the general idea that it was released without preceding singles (and at least the idea that there wouldn't be any coming even after release) was there at the time, and the idea that Prince wanted it that way was public information at the time. I was honestly kind of disappointed when they started releasing singles from it, because back then I was willing to believe in the "it's one work of art/you listen to it as a whole" argument.

.

Once I flipped "Raspberry Beret" over and heard "She's Always in My Hair," though, I decided I was fine with a few singles from the album.

It had a release date. They had bumper stickers at a record store chain printed on them was Prince and the Revolution new album on this "date."

When it was released it was avaiable at most gas stations, music stores, Kmart, and all Kmart like stores.

Ahh ok! well thanks for the stories everyone no singles was still pretty ballsy in it's time. Especially after an album as big as Purple Rain.

But it always seemed way too good to be true. When it came to the ''it just came out and people had no idea'' myth that i've heard for years. So it did have a release date the public knew about after all.

I have no clue but,
I remember i was 11 or 12 and i seen this on the new album rack
I looked at and walked on by. I had no clue it was prince, or he had one coming out
After Raspberry beret came out a family member bought the cassette

It is a very interesting story, I'm really surprised he got his way with this, imagine if other big 80s acts did the same with their albums...

ATWIAD was supposed to be P's version of the Beatles Sergeant Peppers.

.

Much like the Beatles he....

* Changed the style of music he was producing at the time. ie he and his music went all psychedelic

* Announced that no singles were to be released

* No more touring

* Hidden messages within the artwork of the cover

* The whole "is Prince dead?" rumours, just like Paul McCartney had back in '67. (hence the Prince/God talk at the end of Temptation, and of course The Ladder)

.

.

As a Beatles fan, I found this all to be pretty funny at the time, as you knew what P was trying to replicate, but never really pulled it off.

.

callimnate said:

ATWIAD was supposed to be P's version of the Beatles Sergeant Peppers.

.

Much like the Beatles he....

* Changed the style of music he was producing at the time. ie he and his music went all psychedelic

* Announced that no singles were to be released

* No more touring

* Hidden messages within the artwork of the cover

* The whole "is Prince dead?" rumours, just like Paul McCartney had back in '67. (hence the Prince/God talk at the end of Temptation, and of course The Ladder)

.

.

As a Beatles fan, I found this all to be pretty funny at the time, as you knew what P was trying to replicate, but never really pulled it off.

.

He pulled it off very much , to me it is better than Sergeant Pepper.

I wonder how big Raspberry Beret would have been if it had come out prior to the album?

Didn't the states kind of turn against Prince by the time of ATWIAD, given his shunning of 'We Are The World' and general PR burnout? It might have made top ten, but I guess not no.1?

in the UK/ Europe the leading single was "Paisley Park" (the song).

In the US there was no leading single, I guess because 1 of the Purple Rain singles was still hot on the charts, if I remember right ATWIAD was released in very early 1985, feb/march, only 7-8 months after PR?

^ If all this is untrue, please correct this.. someone..?

Scotsman1999 said:

I wonder how big Raspberry Beret would have been if it had come out prior to the album?

Didn't the states kind of turn against Prince by the time of ATWIAD, given his shunning of 'We Are The World' and general PR burnout? It might have made top ten, but I guess not no.1?

I don't think the States turned against Prince, I believe it was some media that got on him for not participating in the We Are the World song.

And I don't think there was any PR burnout, not that I noticed at all.

thedance said:

in the UK/ Europe the leading single was "Paisley Park" (the song).

In the US there was no leading single, I guess because 1 of the Purple Rain singles was still hot on the charts, if I remember right ATWIAD was released in very early 1985, feb/march, only 7-8 months after PR?

^ If all this is untrue, please correct this.. someone..?

ATWIAD was released in the US on August 22nd, 2 weeks after the Purple Rain tour ended. Radio stations picked up Raspberry Beret very quickly. Take Me With U was released in January 1985 and got to number 25 on top 40.

motherfunka said:

thedance said:

in the UK/ Europe the leading single was "Paisley Park" (the song).

In the US there was no leading single, I guess because 1 of the Purple Rain singles was still hot on the charts, if I remember right ATWIAD was released in very early 1985, feb/march, only 7-8 months after PR?

^ If all this is untrue, please correct this.. someone..?

ATWIAD was released in the US on August 22nd, 2 weeks after the Purple Rain tour ended. Radio stations picked up Raspberry Beret very quickly. Take Me With U was released in January 1985 and got to number 25 on top 40.

Memory did not serve me well then


^ ATWIAD was released on 22. april (not august).

In the UK and Europe "Paisley Park" was released as 1st single, 24. may, a month after the album, and (like you write): long after the final Purple Rain single, "Take Me With U"......

callimnate said:

ATWIAD was supposed to be P's version of the Beatles Sergeant Peppers.

.

Much like the Beatles he....

* Changed the style of music he was producing at the time. ie he and his music went all psychedelic

* Announced that no singles were to be released

* No more touring

* Hidden messages within the artwork of the cover

* The whole "is Prince dead?" rumours, just like Paul McCartney had back in '67. (hence the Prince/God talk at the end of Temptation, and of course The Ladder)

.

.

As a Beatles fan, I found this all to be pretty funny at the time, as you knew what P was trying to replicate, but never really pulled it off.

.

Sgt Peppers had a no single announcement?

When it came to the ''it just came out and people had no idea'' myth that i've heard for years. So it did have a release date the public knew about after all.

Well, I think some people probably did exerience it that way. Pre-internet, you didn't have a page with Prince news you could look at every day. You had to wait to hear stuff on the radio, read it in mags or talk to the people behind the counter at the record shop to get future release dates. If you didn't do any of that, you might well have walked into a record shop and seen a new album you had no idea was coming.

LiveToTell86 said:

It is a very interesting story, I'm really surprised he got his way with this, imagine if other big 80s acts did the same with their albums...

He was able to get away with it because he had reached such lofty heights (beyond what many thought he would) with PR, WB would've let him get away with almost anything he wanted.

bobzilla77 said:

Its true WB followed P's wishes to have no lead single or video, but WB did spend a large amount promoting the release.

Four weeks prior to the album release, there was a huge in store promotion with cut outs and pop ups, as well as full page press adverts. IT WAS big. WB were treading the tightrope of meeting P's wishes (Who was golden boy at the time) and promoting what they had hoped to be their big release of 1985.

P's only promotion for the project was The Raspberet Beret video and the Rolling Stone Interview.

If people only remember the album appearing out of nowhere, then they had their heads buried in the sand. Most major stores had big graphic displays in the weeks proceeding.

SoulAlive said:

bobzilla77 said:

Well, I think some people probably did exerience it that way. Pre-internet, you didn't have a page with Prince news you could look at every day. You had to wait to hear stuff on the radio, read it in mags or talk to the people behind the counter at the record shop to get future release dates. If you didn't do any of that, you might well have walked into a record shop and seen a new album you had no idea was coming.

Exactly

That actually would happen with a lot of albums, though. Yes, most albums had a pre-release single--but usually only one (unlike the ridiculous numbers some albums have now) and often only a short time in advance of the album. And a lot of times those singles might not get anywhere on the charts (even for established artists), which would mean that many people wouldn't have heard them at all, and actually seeing the album on the racks would be the first many or most folks would know about the album.

.

The plan to not have singles was a little more unusual--but not (I think) unique. And besides, that plan fell apart pretty quick. What was more interesting, to me, was the speed at which it came out after the Purple Rain period. Only two weeks after the end of the Purple Rain tour--no break at all in between, really.

EddieC said:

SoulAlive said:

bobzilla77 said: Exactly

That actually would happen with a lot of albums, though. Yes, most albums had a pre-release single--but usually only one (unlike the ridiculous numbers some albums have now) and often only a short time in advance of the album. And a lot of times those singles might not get anywhere on the charts (even for established artists), which would mean that many people wouldn't have heard them at all, and actually seeing the album on the racks would be the first many or most folks would know about the album.

.

The plan to not have singles was a little more unusual--but not (I think) unique. And besides, that plan fell apart pretty quick. What was more interesting, to me, was the speed at which it came out after the Purple Rain period. Only two weeks after the end of the Purple Rain tour--no break at all in between, really.

It might've been unusual for the US due to the tours, but everywhere else, where we got an album per year, it was pretty standard.

I remember walking into the chain record store at the mall, and there was a large white poster (about 24x36) with an outline sketch of Prince's face reading "Around the World In A Day" at the top, and something like "the new album, April 22, 1985". This was probably a week or so before the release.

I've regretted since never asking that store if I could have the poster, because they took it down once the album came in. It didn't resemble anything from Purple Rain or ATWIAD. It was very spare, just a pen-and-ink type drawing.

EddieC said:

SoulAlive said:

bobzilla77 said: Exactly

.

What was more interesting, to me, was the speed at which it came out after the Purple Rain period. Only two weeks after the end of the Purple Rain tour--no break at all in between, really.

It's not that surprising, really, when you consider that Purple Rain was in the can well before the tour began. My recollection is that half the ATWIAD tracks were recorded before the movie was even released.

The more surprising detail is probably that Warner Bros. signed off on the release so soon after the last of the Purple Rain singles.

I gotta admit,when ATWIAD was released,I thought Prince was insane for releasing a new album so soon after Purple Rain I remember in early 1986,hearing "Kiss" on the radio and thinking the same thing,lol.He wasn't leaving any "gaps" between the different eras.Warners were probably going crazy at that point.

Gunsnhalen said:

Ahh ok! well thanks for the stories everyone no singles was still pretty ballsy in it's time. Especially after an album as big as Purple Rain.

But it always seemed way too good to be true. When it came to the ''it just came out and people had no idea'' myth that i've heard for years. So it did have a release date the public knew about after all.

The only way you would know that it was going to be released is the postings in the record stores announcing the release date. So, if you didn't go to a record store regularly, it would have "come out of nowhere."

I think Beyonce just might be the only artist who ever truly released a "surprise" album...but even so,her fans had to have known that she was working on new material.