the Time receiving an award 1981/82

Girl (5:36)
recorded april 1981 by [Prince] at his home studio [1] • performed by [Prince] (all instruments & vocals) with [Morris Day] (additional lead vocals) • final mixing 28th-30th april 1981 at Sunset Sound [7]
written by [Prince (uncredited) • registered to [Prince] (as Jamie Starr)
finally released 1981 on the Album [The Time]

Girl, I called you up to say
That I'm havin' trouble sleepin' ever since you went away
Girl, I know you need a little time
To get your head together, baby, I can't stop cryin', yeah

Girl, why'd you go away?
What can I say to make you stay?
Girl, I was a fool, don't know what to do
Still in love with you, still in love with you, oh baby

Girl, I guess I was a fool to try to tie you down
And make you play by rules
Girl, I guess I finally realized
Keepin' you close to me it would keep me alive

Girl, why'd you go away?
What can I say to make you stay?
Now now, girl, I was a fool, don't know what to do
Still in love with you, don't know what I'm gonna do, no, no, no

What can I say, baby, to make you stay?
I don't know what to do, no I don't
I'm still in love, still in love, still in love

Down on my knees, baby, please
[Incomprehensible]
Oh baby please

Still in love with you
Still in love with you
Called you up to say, baby, I still love you
Still in love, love, love, love
Yeah, I'm in love

Possessed: the Rise & Fall of Prince

Chapter 4: PAWNS

page 44

When Prince offered to build a band around Morris Day in exchange for the song "Partyup" in the summer of 1980, it was the latest shift in a long and complex relationship. For years, Day had shadowed Prince along the road to stardom. When they were teenagers, Day joined Prince's first band, Champagne, on drums, replacing Charles Smith. They developed a strong friendship, and Day's mother, LaVonne Daugherty, helped manage the group. Prince, Day and bassist Andre Cymone(then using his last name Anderson) functioned as a team, sharing leadership responsibilities as they competed with other Minneapolis groups.

...

In the summer of 1980, during the recording of Dirty Mind, Day found his way back, albeit in a less glamorous capacity; he became a "runner" for Prince's band, picking up sandwiches and drinks during rehearsals. But Prince continued to respect Day's musicianship, as his interest in "Partyup" showed. When the deal for the song was struck, events finally seemed to have shifter back in Day's favor.

.

Let's Work

The song was completed at Sunset Sound, Hollywood, CA, USA, between 14 and 23 August, 1981. Prince and Morris Day worked on the Dance Remix of the track on 8 December, 1981, two months after the track's initial release, also at Sunset Sound.

It was revealed in November 2003 on the NPG Music Club website that Morris Day plays drums on the extended portion of the Dance Remix, and that Prince and Morris Day switched drumming duties live as the tape was running. The Dance Remix contains sampled clips from Private Joy, Annie Christian and Controversy, the first time a Prince song sampled another of his songs (something he has done often ever since).

-PrinceVault

was just listening to Saturday Love by Alexander O'Neal and Cherelle and this thread came to mind. I can't SEE him as the Time's lead singer. Strong voice, but the songs weren't suited for him. Will we ever know who Morris Day REALLY was/is. P created a persona that he can never separate himself from it seems

the Ritz NYC Oct 25.1982

1. Intro

2. Get It Up

3. Cool

4. Girl

5. Wild & Loose

6. Gigolos Get Lonely Too

7. 777.9311

8. the Walk

datdude said:

was just listening to Saturday Love by Alexander O'Neal and Cherelle and this thread came to mind. I can't SEE him as the Time's lead singer. Strong voice, but the songs weren't suited for him. Will we ever know who Morris Day REALLY was/is. P created a persona that he can never separate himself from it seems

I agree.
And I think 'allegedly' that Prince was into that 'Twin' thing

So during that first round of 1981-1984 proteges looking like him, probably mattered

I know what you mean, it was so early on in his life, those years where you start fermenting your identity

I wonder what social issues and religious beliefs Morris hold

He has/had a family and children, too

I would love to see he start drumming more (while leading vocals)

Wild and loose (7:34)
recorded 14th-20th January 1982 by [Prince] at Sunset Sound [7] • performed by [Prince] (all instruments and vocals) with [Morris Day] (additional lead vocals) & Vanity 6 (background vocals) • final mixing 20th-21st July 1982 at Sunset Sound
written by [Prince] with Dez Dickerson (both uncredited) • registered to [Prince] (as Jamie Starr) with Desmond D'Andrea Dickerson
finally released 1982 on the Album [What Time Is It?]

Initial tracking took place on 19 January, 1982 at Sunset Sound, Hollywood, CA, USA (three days after You're All I Want, and the day before Turn It Up). As with much of the What Time Is It album, the recording features only Prince and Morris Day.

What time is it?

Hangin' by the backstage door, decked out like a queen
Your body's sayin' 21, but your face says 17
My intuition tells me, that you're waitin' for the band
Before you get your hopes up, one thing understand

Wild and loose, that's how it's got to be
'Cuz that's the only kind of dame that appeals to me
Wild and loose, the only life I know
Just havin' one big party from show to show

Talkin' trash to Jimmy Jam, tell us where the party's at
We don't care who you came with, we'll take care of that
Just meet us at the motel, room 602
Tell your mama you won't be home, 'cuz we got plans for you

Wild and loose, that's how it's got to be
'Cuz that's the only kind of dame that appeals to me
Wild and loose, the only life I know
Just havin' one big party from show to show

Universal freak delight, where'd you get those thighs?
Where did you get the nerve to wear that miniskirt so high?
Don't worry, baby, I can keep a secret for as long as snow is white
Hey Jesse? Yeah, come here man, guess what I did last night?

Wild and loose, that's how it's got to be
'Cuz that's the only kind of dame that appeals to me
Wild and loose, the only life I know
Just havin' one big party from show to show

Baby, you ain't no saint, 'cuz there ain't no in-between
Either you come or you can't, now get loose, let me hear you scream
Baby, you ain't no saint, 'cuz there ain't no in-between
Either you come or you can't, now get loose, let me hear you scream

Wild and loose, that's how it's got to be
'Cuz that's the only kind of dame that appeals to me
Wild and loose, the only life I know
Just havin' one big party from show to show

Wild and loose, ah pardon me, say it one more time
Wild and loose, I can't hit it baby, maybe I'm blind
Wild and loose, everybody know you got to be
Wild and loose, 'cuz ain't nobody cool but me, slap me

Wild and loose, somebody, somebody sing it
Wild and loose, tell your mama you won't be home
Wild and loose, everybody know you got to be
Wild and loose, ain't nobody cool but me, now break it down

{"Kim, wasn't the concert great?"
"Oh yeah, it sure was"
"Did you see Jesse up there, wasn't he fine?"
"Oh yeah"
"Morris looked so good"
"Yeah, but I think Jesse is cuter"
"Oh yeah"
"I wonder what they are doin' after the concert"
"Oh yeah, I got a strange feelin' they're nasty"
"Yeah, I bet I'll remember this concert for the rest of my life"
"So will I"}

{"Did you see Jesse's eyes, aren't they pretty?"
"Oh, they're so pretty"
"No one at school will ever believe I talked to Morris"
"On the phone last night"
"Oh, I believe you"
"His voice was so soft, he sounded so sweet"
"Oh yeah, he's so cool"
"Yeah, but now I want to meet him in person"}

{"What's happening? You girls don't want to go party tonight"
"Jerk"
"Get out, get away, eh yuck"
"Kim, you ain't gonna believe it"
"The guys from the time are right behind you"
"Are you serious?"
"No, I'm not look, I, I mean yes I am! Over there"}

{"Oh my God"
"Can you believe it? Look"
"Should I look?"
"Should I go over and see if he remembers me?"
"Oh yeah"
"But what should I say?"
"Say somethin'"}

{"Hi, hi Morris"
"Excuse me, hello, do I know you?"
"Yeah, you talked to me on the phone last night"
"Is that right? Well, you sure don't look like you sound"
"Well, excuse me"
"It's okay baby, I got things to do, I'll talk to you later"
"Jerk! That was the worst concert I've ever been to"}

Wild and loose
Wild and loose
Wild and loose
Wild and loose

Wild and loose, that's how it's got to be
'Cuz that's the only kind of dame that appeals to me
Wild and loose, the only life I know
Just havin' one big party from show to show

Wild and loose, I can't hear you singin'
Wild and loose, help me out, help me out, hey
Wild and loose, baby, I got plans for you
Wild and loose, everybody get loose

Fellas? Yeah? Where the party at?
Right here under your shoes
Fellas? Yeah? What time is it?
Time to get wild and loose

Show time fellas? Yeah? Where the party at?
Right here under your shoes
Fellas? Yeah? What time is it?
Time to get wild and loose

Fellas? Yeah? Where the party at?
Right here under your shoes
Fellas? Yeah? What time is it?
Time to get wild and loose

Fellas? Yeah? Where the party at?
Right here under your shoes
Show time fellas? Yeah? What?
Time to get wild and loose

Fellas? Yeah? Where the party at?
Right here under your shoes
That's right fellas? Yeah? What time is it?
Time to get wild and loose, tonight

Fellas? Yeah? Where the party at?
Right here under your shoes
Fellas? Yeah? What time is it?
Time to get wild and loose
Somebody bring me a mirror

Haha! Love this:-) @BrunoMars @MarkRonson @TheMorrisDay @theoriginal7ven it's time for a family reunion! #hot #cool

funksterr said:

Maybe there is hope:

Jimmy JamVerified account ‏@flytetymejam

Haha! Love this:-) @BrunoMars @MarkRonson @TheMorrisDay @theoriginal7ven it's time for a family reunion! #hot #cool

The Time are playing a show in Downey california sometime within the next couple weeks. (oddly under the name "The Time", doesn't Prince own the name?).

Morris Day on the cover of the Downey community guide looking alot like Prince.

ThomasBjj said:

funksterr said:

Maybe there is hope:

Jimmy JamVerified account ‏@flytetymejam

Haha! Love this:-) @BrunoMars @MarkRonson @TheMorrisDay @theoriginal7ven it's time for a family reunion! #hot #cool

The Time are playing a show in Downey california sometime within the next couple weeks. (oddly under the name "The Time", doesn't Prince own the name?).

Morris Day on the cover of the Downey community guide looking alot like Prince.

I don't think he's ever stopped them from performing as the Time, just not record

ThomasBjj said:

funksterr said:

Maybe there is hope:

Jimmy JamVerified account ‏@flytetymejam

Haha! Love this:-) @BrunoMars @MarkRonson @TheMorrisDay @theoriginal7ven it's time for a family reunion! #hot #cool

The Time are playing a show in Downey california sometime within the next couple weeks. (oddly under the name "The Time", doesn't Prince own the name?).

Morris Day on the cover of the Downey community guide looking alot like Prince.

That's not all the originals, but I'll say this: Morris's Day and The Time put on a hot show. Tori has stepped his game up. He's still not as fluid as Jessie but his guitar is on point often enough where I don't miss Jessie when I watch the show. Same with JD. No he's not Jimmy Jam, but he is good. The whole band has stepped up since O7 flamed out. I noticed Jimmy Jam tweeted a congratulations to Jessie Johnson though after the SNL appearance. It's not much but at least he's reaching out. I'd like to see them do something with Mark Ronson.

Vanity 6(l-r Brenda Bennet, Susan Moonsie, Denise Matthews) w/Morris Day

Prince's Hot Rock
The secret life of America's sexiest one-man band

By DEBBIE MILLER
What Time Is It?

Joni Mitchell songs blare out of the PA between the sets of Prince's road show, at his request. Vanity 6, three women in lacy camisoles, open the concert. "I love lingerie," explains Vanity, the leader of the group. "I used to sneak into my mother's closet and try to wear her lingerie to school." She picked her nickname because "a girl's best friend is her pride," she says. Like her cohorts, Brenda and Susan, Vanity gave a demo tape of her songs to Prince a year ago. "He said there were a couple other girls whose minds seemed to run alongside mine," she says. Prince then arranged to bring Vanity, a twenty-two-year-old former model from Toronto, to Minneapolis to meet the other two, flying Brenda in from Boston. Soon, the three were writing songs like "Drive Me Wild" and "Nasty Girls" in which Vanity coos, "I can't control it/I need seven inches or more."

It all seems a figment of Prince's imagination, a living fantasy. "Prince and I happen to think alike," says Vanity.

On their record, Vanity 6 is backed by the Time; onstage, they're followed by the Time (who, in turn, are followed by Prince). At one point in the Time's set, frontman Morris Day, a terrific dancer, calls out his valet. The valet -- who often follows Morris' own dance steps like a shadow -- brings out a table, sets it with a white cloth and a vase of flowers, and uncorks a bottle of champagne. Morris, meanwhile, in his trademark two-tone Stacy Adams shoes, waltzes with a girl chosen from the audience. This sort of classy deportment was the starting point for the Time, as organized by Morris. "The image was cool. That's the key word," he says. "That's what we built the Time around. Cool is an attitude, a self-respect thing."

Morris didn't exactly put the group together -- all but guitarist Jesse Johnson had been playing around Minneapolis in a band called Flyte Tyme (known familiarly as the Tyme even then). But it is Morris who has led the band to the point where it now often steals the show from the scantily clad Vanity 6 and even from Prince. Morris, the former drummer, has stayed closer to traditional R&B but, by injecting his good humor, has developed one of the best live acts in the country.

Prince, says Morris, helped the band get its Warner Bros. contract in 1981. Asked why the Time shares the same teenage-sex themes as Prince, Morris says, "Sex is present in everybody's life. I don't think anybody owns the rights to that." Asked if Prince influenced their sound, Morris says what Vanity says: "We believe in the same things." Asked about Jamie Starr, an icy tension descends. Although Morris Day and one Jamie Starr are credited as producers on the Time's first record, there is reason to believe that the record was, in fact, produced by Prince. One source very close to the situation says that not only is all the material written by Prince (mysteriously, there are no writing credits on the LP), but that the instruments are played by Prince and the voice is Prince's doubled with Morris Day's. This insider claims that the record -- a more commercial, more straightforward R&B album -- is a project Prince offered Warner Bros. because his own bolder stuff wasn't selling impressively. So, goes this theory, Prince set the Time in motion -- and created a pseudonym, Jamie Starr, for his new project.

Prince did tell a reporter in an early interview with the Minnesota Daily, when he was just seventeen, that someday he would make jazz recordings under an alias. (In that same interview, Prince claimed not to be averse to choreography, but he drew the line at spins -- "I get nauseated.") So the idea of working with a fictitious name had occurred to him at the beginning of his career.

And although Morris says that he and the band wrote the songs on their first LP, The Time, a call to the American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers (ASCAP), with whom the songs are registered, casts some doubt. The composer of the hits "Get It Up" and "Cool" is Prince Rogers Nelson (with Dez Dickerson on "Cool"), says an ASCAP spokesman. Prince's manager says that the fact that Prince's name is registered for the Time's record is "a filing mistake."

"Let me clear up a few rumors while I have the chance," Prince told the Los Angeles Times. "One, my real name is Prince. Two, I'm not gay. And three, I'm not Jamie Starr."

"Jamie Starr is an engineer, the coproducer of our record. Of course he's real," says Morris Day, whose band now outplays whoever it was on the first Time record.

But if there is a Jamie Starr, why can't he be reached? Manager Steve Fargnoli says it's because he's "in and out of Minneapolis," because he's "a reclusive maniac" like Prince) and because "it could be months before I see him." Can he be reached by phone? "No." Well, you wouldn't need to call him over to Prince's home studio if he's already there. "Prince is Jamie Starr" says former Warner Bros. artist and fellow Minneapolitan Sue Ann (Carwell), who has been a friend of Prince's for years -- ever since he wrote and produced her first demo tape. Others who are close to Prince also say that he is Jamie Starr, but they refuse to be quoted in print. But, says one, "everybody knows who's the main man behind everything."

April 28, 1983 (RS 394)

Producer, Arranged By - Morris Day , The Starr ★ Company


Time, The - 777-9311
Label:Warner Bros. Records
Catalog#:PRO-A-1066
Format:Vinyl, 12", 45 RPM, Promo

Country:US
Released:1982

Baby, what's your phone number?
I know I'm kinda fast, but I hate 2 waste time
Baby, what's your phone number?
Girl, I have 2 ask cuz U're so fine
CHORUS:
777-9311
I wanna spend the night with U if that's alright
777-9311
Ooh baby, please can I come 2 night?

Baby, what's your phone number?
How can U be reached on a lonely night?
Baby, what's your phone number?
How can I get into U when I'm feeling right?

CHORUS

Jellybean

Ain't nothin' worse than rejection
I'd feel a little better if U slapped my face

Hey, what's your phone number?
Can't U see the agony I'm goin' through?
Baby, what's your phone number?
Girl, it's getting hard baby, won't U let me love U, love U?

CHORUS

Yeah, ooh

Hey baby,what's your phone number?
I know it sounds fast, but I ain't got all night
Come on baby, what's your phone number?
U know I got 2 be cooler than this cat U're sittin' with
I'll do U right, baby
Come on! {x3}
Oh no, come on!
Oh, hey

CHORUS

Come 2 night if it's alright (777-9311)
Honey, please can I come 2 night?
Can't U see what I'm gonna do? (777-9311)
I wanna do it 2 night, baby, I wanna do it 2 U
It's on fire, U burn me out (777-9311)
It's getting higher, U know what I'm talkin' about
Help me out good Lord above (777-9311)
Marry me girl, give me some of that love
Terry...

777-9311 {x13}

© 1982 Tionna Music - ASCAP

777-9311 (8:04)
recorded May/June 1982 by [Prince] at his home studio [1] • performed by [Prince] (all instruments and vocals) with [Morris Day] (additional lead vocals) • final mixing 20th-21st July 1982 at Sunset Sound [7]
written by [Prince] (uncredited) • registered to [Prince] (as Jamie Starr)
finally released 1982 on the Album [What Time Is It?] • 1982 on the promo 12"-Single [777-9311] • 1982 on the 12"-Single [777-9311] • 1995 on the sampler [Planet Funk] • 1997 on the sampler [Phat Trax]

777-9311 (edit) (3:28)
finally released 1982 on the 7"-Single [777-9311] • 1982 on the 7"-Single [The walk]

Grace (non-album track) (2:37)
recorded May/June 1982 by [Prince] at at his home studio [1] • performed by [Prince] (all instruments) with [Morris Day] (lead vocals) and Vanity (co-lead vocals)
written by [Prince] (uncredited) • registered to [Prince] (as Jamie Starr)
finally released 1982 on the 7"-Single [777-9311] • 1982 on the promo 12"-Single [777-9311]

While reflecting on the track's history on Facebook in 2014, Jesse Johnson wrote "777-9311 Was A Stock Drum Beat In Prince's Linn LM-1 ($5,500 drum machine you know it wasn't The Time's) ... The beat was programed into the Linn LM1 by [ Tower of Power drummer] David Garibaldi ... for Roger Linn." (David Garibaldi's drumming would also be sampled, uncredited, years later on The Time's Release It.) He also added "Prince used my $179.00 Hondo Strat to play the chords on 777 (that's why the guitar sounds so nice and dull...cause it was cheap!)"

The title of the track was Dez Dickerson's home phone number at the time, and he was allegedly upset that it was used in the song; when the album was released he received several unwanted calls and changed the number as a result.

-PrinceVault

3. What Time Is It?

In late December 1981, during a break at his "Controversy"-Tour, [Prince] starts the recording sessions for THE TIME's second album. He recorded Gigolos get lonely too and Jerk out at his home studio again. The last mentioned song didn't make it on this album, but a reworked version surfaced on THE TIME's 1990 reunion-album [Pandemonium]. From 14th to 20th January 1982 the sessions continued at Hollywood Sunset Sound, where he recorded The walk, Wild and loose and a previously unreleased track called Colleen. Another previously unreleased leftover from this sessions was a song called Bold generation, recorded 11th January 1982 either at [Prince]'s home studio or Hollywood Sunset Sound.

On 8th March 1982, [Prince] plays a one-off gig in front of 700 people at First Avenue in Minneapolis. The loose 80-minute set was taped using a mobile recording unit. After a break THE TIME joined on stage to perform a previously unreleased song called Dance to the beat for the first time. [Prince] introduced this track with: "Y'all can play, but you gotta play some rock'n'roll. Don't come up here and play none of that old you-know-what!". The set continues with The stick with [Prince] teasing [Morris Day] by asking "Can you still play the drums?". Indeed [Morris] could and he played a monster drum solo at a raunchy performance of the set's finale "Partyup". The final show of [Prince]'s "Controversy"-Tour was played on 14th March 1982 at the Riverfront Coliseum in Cincinnati. The show turned into a funny full-scale food fight between THE TIME and [Prince]'s own band. During THE TIME's opening set, [Prince] and several members of his own band starts tossing eggs across the stage. [Prince] even sent his 6-foot-6 bodyguard, Big Chick Huntsberry, onstage wearing a woman's wig during a song in which frontman [Morris Day] flirts with a woman from the audience. While they were still playing, they rushed on the stage, grabbed [Jerome Benton] and took him to the dressing room, where they poured shaving cream all over him. After this, they took [Jesse Johnson], handcuffing him to the wall in the dressing room, while [Prince] jumped on stage and took [Jesse]'s place playing guitar for THE TIME. Once the show was over, THE TIME members went chasing after [Prince] and his band was armed with eggs and miscellaneous food too. "After the show, he fined us," [Jimmy Jam] later recalled, "and made THE TIME pay the overtime bill for the union crew to clean up the eggy mess."

After the 2nd leg of the "Controversy"-Tour and various sessions for his own new album "1999" as well as another project, the girl group Vanity 6, [Prince] continues the work for THE TIME. During May/June 1982 he recorded Onedayi'mgonnabesomebody, I don't wanna leave you, 777-9311 and Grace once again at his home studio. The last song ends finally up as the b-side of 777-9311. The sessions finished with final mixing at Hollywood Sunset Sound on 20th and 21st July 1982.

[What Time Is It?] was released by Warner Bros. Records on 25th August 1982. This time The Starr*Company is listed as producer of the album. [Prince] isn't credited on the sleeve, but in truth he wrote or co-wrote all songs as Jamie Starr again, except Wild and loose, with lyrics registered to Dez Dickerson. Vanity 6 provides some background vocals on Wild and loose and The walk. [Morris Day] adds lead vocals to all tracks again, but [Prince]'s own voice is often audible in the final mix of the songs.

THE TIME members wanted to contribute more to the music and they were becoming increasingly frustrated by [Prince]'s firm control on the band. [Jimmy Jam], [Terry Lewis] and [Monte Moir] had started writing music for their own and went beginning to contemplate independent careers. Following the "Controversy"-Tour [Jimmy Jam] and [Terry Lewis] went to Los Angeles to collaborate on their own material, which they felt didn't quite fit to the image and sound of THE TIME, as they considered the band to be more of a vehicle for [Morris Day]. [Prince] was opposed to their outside production work, which he felt detracted from their commitment to THE TIME.

What Time Is It?] shows a distinct improvement over THE TIME on almost every level. The production and arrangements are consistent with the debut album, but the melodic content is much stronger. At the same time, the record is much more funkier than its predecessor. It contains three mid-tempo funk songs, 777-9311, Wild and loose and The walk. The ballad Gigolos get lonely too is funky too, but has a looser, more relaxed feel. One of the highlight is I don't wanna leave you, an excellent pop/funk hybrid, drawing on the best of both idioms by combining an appealing melody and chorus with a funky beat. It's a real pity that this jewel never was performed live by THE TIME. Less impressive is Onedayi'mgonnabesomebody, a quick little rockabilly-flavored pop song of little merit.

Also the lyrics of [What Time Is It?] continues the theme of the first album. I don't wanna leave you concerns a do-wrong woman who has a reputation for running around. 777-9311 finds [Morris Day] trying to talk a woman into giving him her phone number. The title was actually Dez Dickerson's real telephone number, which created a lot of problem for him as soon as the album came out. Wild and loose is a straight forward party song about living life to the fullest and having a good time, while The walk stresses the importance of having a positive outlook on life and being honest to oneself. Onedayi'mgonnabesomebody is very much about [Morris Day]'s own life and the song is his declaration to be a star some day. The most atypical song on this album is Gigolos get lonely too, in which [Morris Day] sings the part of a Gigolo confessing to a woman, that even a professional seducer, such as himself, gets lonely once in awhile.

A non-album track, Grace, appeared as b-side of "777-9311". Employing the musical backing from 777-9311, the song consists an interview by a fictitious female journalist named Brigitte Harrington (performed by Vanity) with [Morris Day] and is sporting his self-assured and cocky attitude throughout. The song-title comes from his insistence on calling the interviewer "Grace" instead of her proper name "Brigitte".

[What Time Is It?] became an even bigger success than the last album, with going gold (about 750,000 sold units) again and hitting position #2 on the Billboard R&B-Charts and #26 at the Pop-Charts. The album yielded three singles. 777-9311 becomes THE TIME's biggest hit so far, reaching #2 at the R&B-Charts and #88 at the Pop-Charts. The walk made it to #24 and Gigolos get lonely too hits #77 at the R&B-Charts only.

On 11th November 1982, THE TIME left to tour with [Prince] again as support on his "1999"-Tour at Memorial Auditorium in Chattanooga. Named the so-called "Triple Threat Tour", it also features Vanity 6 as the 2nd supporting act. Vanity 6's usually brief 20-minute set was accompanied by THE TIME always playing the music part unseen behind a pink stage curtain with Jill Jones providing additional backing vocals. However, it was obvious that the performance of Vanity 6 was very silly and didn't have enough stage presence to make it a successful live-act. By contrast, THE TIME came alive when they hit the stage for their own usually 40-minutes set. The tight dance grooves, high-spirited stage moves and routines made them an exciting live band. They often got a very positive reviews and the reception from the audience was phenomenal, which created a professional rivalry between THE TIME and [Prince]'s own band.

On 21st November 1982, [Prince] used an interview, published by the Los Angeles Times, to scotch some rumors: "One: My real name is Prince. It's not something I made up. Two: I'm not gay. Three: I'm not Jamie Starr.".

On 16th December 1982, during a soundcheck for the "1999"-Tour show at Municipal Auditorium in Nashville, the disagreement between [Prince] and THE TIME came to a boil. [Prince] felt they were upstaging him and wanted to change a few things in their performance, which caused loud protests. There had been an underlying tension between [Prince] and THE TIME on the entire tour. The "1999"-Tour continued after a one-month break in January of 1983. On this 1983 part of the tour, THE TIME were sometimes demoted from the bill. No official reasons were given for their occasional exclusion, but it's quite likely that [Prince] didn't want to risk being upstaged in some of the major cities. For example, at the shows in Los Angeles and New York in March 1983, as well as at the Detroit Show in April 1983, the bill was just [Prince] with Vanity 6. On 15th March 1983, [Prince] returns in triumph to Minneapolis for a concert at 13,500-seat Met Center in Bloomington. A post-show bash was held at the Registry Hotel in Bloomington. At 2:00 am, some members of [Prince]'s band, Vanity 6 and THE TIME played a short jam session with [Prince] on the drums and Sue Ann Carwell singing. On 24th March 1983, THE TIME members [Jimmy Jam] and [Terry Lewis] failed to make it to the concert at the Hemisfair Arena in San Antonio. The duo had been working on sessions with the S.O.S. Band in Atlanta, but they were snowed in at the airport and couldn't make it back on time to San Antonio. To cover up for their absence, [Jerome Benton] strapped on the bass guitar and pretended to play it, while [Prince] stood in the shadow of the stage and played the bass line instead. Lisa Coleman replaced [Jimmy Jam] on the keyboards. No explanation was demanded and the "1999"-Tour continued. Both were fined with $3,000 each, which was a considerable amount of money considering how small their salaries were at this time. [Jimmy Jam] and [Terry Lewis] fulfilled their "1999"-Tour commitments, but things between them and [Prince] were never the same. In a later interview [Jimmy Jam] doesn't attribute it only to their non-attendance: "Prince didn't really want to break the band up, but the snowstorm provided the excuse he needed to fire us two. He thought we were off seeing some girls. Then he saw our picture in Billboard Magazine or something with the S.O.S. Band and all that changed. Seems like it was OK to be off meeting girls, but not OK to be furthering our own independent careers". Without a doubt, THE TIME's unpretentious and humorous performance contrasted with [Prince]'s more ambitious and elaborate theatrics. [Morris Day] later reported, that THE TIME were becoming a threat to [Prince], adding that THE TIME's success caught many by surprise: "I think the whole thing was never expected to be anything more than an opening act. There used to be some arguments before going onstage about things that I would do that were conflicting with the things that [Prince] would do. I was ever told not to do certain things and certain dances.".

.... Hi. I'm Bridgette Harrington and I'm here to interview Morris Day, lead singer of THE TIME.
.... Mr. Day, How are you?

Need you ask?

.... I'll take it that you're fine.

Yes, I've been told that.

.... Oh, OK. Tell me. Are you really so cool?

Is money green?

.... When did you first notice your coolness?

I didn't. The doctor did.
You see, most people were born in birthday suits. I was born in a zute suit.

.... You got to be joking.

Baby, I ain't got time for jokes. What time is it anyway?

.... It's time for us to continue this interview.
.... How does THE TIME go about generating such a funky sound?

Pardon me. I know you didn't say "funk.".

.... Well?

Let me just say one thing. Funk is dead.
Funk is something you can learn in school and ain't nothing funky about being cool, ... Grace.

.... OK, but my name is Bridgette.

Oh I'm sorry, ... Grace.

.... It seems your image has a lot to do with your approch to music.
.... Your clothes for example.

My clothes, fuck. Hold it.
Let me, let let me just say something to all the fellas out there.
Take off them blue jeans and them "New Wave" clothes and go get you some "Baggies."
It's about the freedom, right?
In other words, stay at the hotel with the biggest ballroom.
Don't get me wrong. Some of my best friends wear blue jeans.
I'm just not ever seen them in it.
What time is it?

.... Why are you concerned with the time?

'Cause I got somewhere to go.

.... Where's that?

To the Cork, Johnny.

.... I told you my name is Bridgette.

Sorry, Nella.

.... I don't think I like you at all.
.... Is there anything else you would like to say before we close this interview?

Yes!!!!
What's your phone number?

.... Uuh! - 7..., 7..., 7..., 9..., 3..., 1..., 1.

Ain't nobody bad like me?

777-9311
777-9311

Grace was released as the b-side of 777-9311, the first single from The Time's second album What Time Is It?. The song uses the musical backing of 777-9311 as its basis, with a staged interview between Morris Day and a fictitious journalist known as Bridgette Harrington (played by Vanity) overlaid, and was written and produced by Prince, although the song is officially credited to Morris Day.

Morris Day insists on calling the interviewer "Grace" throughout, giving the track's title.

While specific recording dates are not known, initial tracking of 777-9311 took place in May-June, 1982 at Prince's Kiowa Trail Home Studio, Chanhassen, MN, USA (during the same set of sessions that produced Onedayi'mgonnabesomebody, I Don't Wanna Leave You, and several other tracks that were released over the next several years).

It is likely that the interview portion was recorded soon after, also at Prince's Kiowa Trail Home Studio, although this is unconfirmed.

-PrinceVault

OldFriends4Sale said:

December 1982 @ the American Bandstand ABC

1.) the Walk
2.) 777-9311

iZsaZsa said:

OldFriends4Sale said:

Why do Morris' shoes lean over? I've always hated that!

lmao Lean over? like he is resting on the outter part of his feet? lol
I noticed his shoes/feet in standing pictures looking like the fronts were lifted

OldFriends4Sale said:

OnedayI'mgonnabesomebody (2:27)
recorded May/June 1982 by [Prince] at at his home studio [1] • performed by [Prince] (all instruments and vocals) with [Morris Day] (additional lead vocals) • final mixing 20th-21st July 1982 at Sunset Sound [7]
written by [Prince] (uncredited) • registered to [Prince] (as Jamie Starr)
finally released 1982 on the Album [What Time Is It?] • 1982 on the 7"-Single [The walk]

Onedayi'mgonnabesomebody (2:27)

One day I'm gonna be somebody, one day I'm gonna be rich.
I'm gonna say my prayers and work real hard, so that I never have to dig a ditch.
The only way I'd work at a carwash, is if I owned the whole damn place.
But if gettin' to the top means washin' a car, I'd be scrubbin' with a smile on my face.

(chorus)
One day I'm gonna be somebody, gonna stand out in a crowd.
One day I'm gonna be somebody, gonna make somebody proud.

One day I'm gonna be a star, I'm gonna do whatever it takes.
Why should I starve when I could be elsewhere, makin' what the rich man makes.
If I should die before I'm rich, I pray the Lord my soul to keep.
But if I'm rich before I die, I wanna work cuz nothin' comes cheap.

(repeat chorus)

Somebody bring me a mirror so I can look at my cash.

We don't like new wave!

iZsaZsa said:

OldFriends4Sale said:

lmao Lean over? like he is resting on the outter part of his feet? lol
I noticed his shoes/feet in standing pictures looking like the fronts were lifted

I miss The Time! Such an exciting band!!