ForeverPaisley said:

herb4 said:

Stuff

I just replied in your block as it was easier ^^^

And no worries about the rant. Everyone is entitled to their opinon and I appreciate your input

Thanks. I just started talking about Prince's voice and began to spiral, realizing by writing it down his true vocal range. Having said that, go and listen to The Truth album, post haste, if you truly want to hear him sing.

jumanji2016 said:

Insatiable is a vocal favorite of mine. Especially the intro.

Good one, his falsetto sounds amazing on Insatiable!

Personally, I love everything about "The Beautiful Ones," lyrically, vocally, and of course the performance in the movie. Vocally, I love how he varies the emotion in his voice in the song.

--

I typically think of the song in 2 parts, with "What's it gonna be baby?" dividing the 2 parts. In the first part of the song, he sings much of it in falsetto, and the falsetto contrasts nicely with his deep speaking voice of "Paint a perfect picture...". And then in the second part of the song, he totally goes into his rocker voice.

--

The lyrics are the perfect soliloquy of unrequited love.

--

I think another aspect of the song that I love is how well the song flows even though it has a very unusual structure to it. It has this really interesting dialectic of stream-of-consciousness/improvisation feel while also being very structured in the sense of the song being very cohesive.

--

I hope what I've written makes sense. Gosh, I just love "The Beautiful Ones!" It's pure genius!

206Michelle said:

206Michelle said:

Personally, I love everything about "The Beautiful Ones," lyrically, vocally, and of course the performance in the movie. Vocally, I love how he varies the emotion in his voice in the song.

--

I typically think of the song in 2 parts, with "What's it gonna be baby?" dividing the 2 parts. In the first part of the song, he sings much of it in falsetto, and the falsetto contrasts nicely with his deep speaking voice of "Paint a perfect picture...". And then in the second part of the song, he totally goes into his rocker voice.

--

The lyrics are the perfect soliloquy of unrequited love.

--

I think another aspect of the song that I love is how well the song flows even though it has a very unusual structure to it. It has this really interesting dialectic of stream-of-consciousness/improvisation feel while also being very structured in the sense of the song being very cohesive.

--

I hope what I've written makes sense. Gosh, I just love "The Beautiful Ones!" It's pure genius!

OMG yes! It actually makes perfect sense to me!! I feel ashamed for not thinking of this one immediately as it is also one of my absolute faves all of the beautiful facets of his voice are showcased!! I blame Damn U - for not remembering - I've been all up in that song lately

I agree with verything, especially the two parts of the song and how the change in his voice highlight the change in the emotion of the song so brilliantly!!

206Michelle said:

jumanji2016 said:

Insatiable is a vocal favorite of mine. Especially the intro.

Good one, his falsetto sounds amazing on Insatiable!

And the outro

trc1 said:

Adore U. Of course.

Absolutely! A gorgeous song vocally and lyrically as well!

Mercurybebe said:

206Michelle said:

Personally, I love everything about "The Beautiful Ones," lyrically, vocally, and of course the performance in the movie. Vocally, I love how he varies the emotion in his voice in the song.

--

I typically think of the song in 2 parts, with "What's it gonna be baby?" dividing the 2 parts. In the first part of the song, he sings much of it in falsetto, and the falsetto contrasts nicely with his deep speaking voice of "Paint a perfect picture...". And then in the second part of the song, he totally goes into his rocker voice.

--

The lyrics are the perfect soliloquy of unrequited love.

--

I think another aspect of the song that I love is how well the song flows even though it has a very unusual structure to it. It has this really interesting dialectic of stream-of-consciousness/improvisation feel while also being very structured in the sense of the song being very cohesive.

--

I hope what I've written makes sense. Gosh, I just love "The Beautiful Ones!" It's pure genius!

It is my all time favorite of his... Since I was 10! It has so many layers, intonations, and the lyrics... My favorite parts are the oooohh he sings when it goes to the piano break. And the way he sings "confused" .

Listening to it right now. There's so much haunting emotion in his voice during this song.

dodger said:

Damn U is one of his best examples, one reviewer said it was like 'vocal gymnastics.' . Breakdown is another showcase of his falsetto then singing the 3rd verse in his lower register. . The Piano & A Microphone version of Love...Thy Will Be Done is another great example of his lower register . There's so many...I miss the little fella

OMG you are right on the money with Damn U. Probably why I can never listen to it just once at a time.

I am so conflicted with wanting to see/hear anything from The Piano & A Microphone shows. I want to, I really do. I hear such amazing things about those performances. But I'm so apprehensive. A week or so ago, just on a random YT Prince playlist of videos, somehow the audio of Purple Rain from his last show got in there. And I was completely wreck. I think I need to postpone those for now.

CalhounSq said:

has anyone suggested Ur Gonna C Me?

You just did.

luvgirl said:

There are so many. "Space"

Ooh a lot of nice suggestions, thank you! Will go listen to Space and Here - just queuing up the list!

Mercurybebe said:

206Michelle said:

Personally, I love everything about "The Beautiful Ones," lyrically, vocally, and of course the performance in the movie. Vocally, I love how he varies the emotion in his voice in the song.

--

I typically think of the song in 2 parts, with "What's it gonna be baby?" dividing the 2 parts. In the first part of the song, he sings much of it in falsetto, and the falsetto contrasts nicely with his deep speaking voice of "Paint a perfect picture...". And then in the second part of the song, he totally goes into his rocker voice.

--

The lyrics are the perfect soliloquy of unrequited love.

--

I think another aspect of the song that I love is how well the song flows even though it has a very unusual structure to it. It has this really interesting dialectic of stream-of-consciousness/improvisation feel while also being very structured in the sense of the song being very cohesive.

--

I hope what I've written makes sense. Gosh, I just love "The Beautiful Ones!" It's pure genius!

It is my all time favorite of his... Since I was 10! It has so many layers, intonations, and the lyrics... My favorite parts are the oooohh he sings when it goes to the piano break. And the way he sings "confused" .

I also love when he sings "confused." And then when he sings "looooooose," it's like he's going off an emotional cliff, seriously. At the beginning, when he sings "Baby, baby, baby, is it him or is it me?" - The way he sings him is like he can't bear the thought of her with another man.

--

Putting the movie aside, I would say that my favorite part of the song is probably where he says "Do you want me, I gotta know, I gotta know, Do you want me?" I love the way he sings it with such desperation, like his life depends on it.

--

But then WITH the movie, my favorite parts are "I know what I want" with that sexy shirt-pull and the devilish look in his eyes, and "YEAAHHHHHH, YES I DO, BABY BABY BABY BABY, I WANT YOU!" (in that screaming falsetto voice) while he writhes around on the stage...absolutely epic stuff.

[Edited 7/18/16 19:58pm]

Lyrics

Kiss (One of my favorite Prince songs):

"Act your age, mama, not your shoe size"

--

Cream: I like this song, but it's not one of my all-time favorites. But the lyrics to this song are SO clever. My favorite lines:

"U're filthy cute, and baby you know it."

"Make the rules, then break them all cuz U R the best."

--

Let's Go Crazy: "Dearly beloved, we are gathered here to get through this thing called life."

--

The Cross is amazing lyrically, it's hard to pick out just one line.

--

The Love We Make:

Sacred is the prayer that asks 4 nothing, oh
While seeking 2 give thanks 4 every breath we take, oh
Blessed are we inside this prayer
4 in the new world, we will be there

The only love there is, is the love we make

ForeverPaisley said:

206Michelle said:

Good one, his falsetto sounds amazing on Insatiable!

And the outro

And when he sings, "I can't have a hug, unless I have a kiss."

herb4 said:

ForeverPaisley said:

I just replied in your block as it was easier ^^^

And no worries about the rant. Everyone is entitled to their opinon and I appreciate your input

Thanks. I just started talking about Prince's voice and began to spiral, realizing by writing it down his true vocal range. Having said that, go and listen to The Truth album, post haste, if you truly want to hear him sing.

I hear you there friend! That's why I was inspired to start this convo/thread. When people (NON PRINCE FANS or fly-by fans) comment on things like 'he didn't have much range'I want to throttle them and of course feel it's my duty to...kindly lead them to examples that could open their ears and their mind. Prince was very underrated (and under promoted by WB including the most recent releases but don't get me started on that one *sideglancesWB makdes me soo made! BUT we weren't talking about that...)

by those that DON'T KNOW, but talk about him like they do (please know I'm referring to 'them' not anyone in here). It got me thinking though. When each person listens to music, their brain focuses on different things. Some people only really listen to the melody or beat and it could be their FAVOURITE SONG but when you ask them about a certain line, they are like, "where does it say that?" Because their brains just don't listen to music the same way. I have a very strange auditory memory/voice recognition thing and am very much into lyrics and the voice and the melody/music accompaniment is secondary. And then of course there are the people whom just naturally do not pick up certain tones well. I am almost always commenting on a song on the radio like 'Oooh I like this guys falsetto." And my bestie will be like "Surprise, Surprise. You are all about the falsetto" (which actually isn't TRUE because I love the other end of the spectrum too (the singer of The Tea Party...?! That low register is AMAZING) but I'm sidelining as usual. Nut shell is there are a lot of factors as to why some of us like or hear parts of a song/voice versus other. It's really neat to have peoples suggestions here and why because I feel like I can listen to the song with another perspective. KEEP EM COMING!

(now who's the one on a rant )

herb4 said:

ForeverPaisley said:

I just replied in your block as it was easier ^^^

And no worries about the rant. Everyone is entitled to their opinon and I appreciate your input

Thanks. I just started talking about Prince's voice and began to spiral, realizing by writing it down his true vocal range. Having said that, go and listen to The Truth album, post haste, if you truly want to hear him sing.

Oh and no wonder why I couldn't find this album it's PART of the Crystal Ball set!! Super pricey right now but will keep my eye out. In the mean time might just select those few you mentioned Sounds like a must have!

Good lawd. I just stumbled across one of my absolute favourites.

His rendition of I Can't Make You Love Me... (an exceptional song in general!)

The range is exquisite - the scratchy/breathy falsetto - haunting, along with his comments sprinkled throughout. (The saxophone is pretty spectacular as well, but that's a different topic).

Holy hell

Peach came on in my shuffle just now! So Damn good.

Is there other great examples of him using that low low register throughout the whole song like this?

The Beautiful Ones..

blueshouse21 said:

The Beautiful Ones..

I think The Beautiful Ones is an exceptional example of his full range, not just vocally but the varius emotions we listen to in the way he sings those words! Definitely top 10!

ForeverPaisley said:

Wow. SOLO is a FANTASTIC example of his impressive range. Very moody and emotional...LOVE it! Someone made a lyric video (in spanish but whatevs) but the video accompaniment was superb!

.

Thank you for that suggestion Roxy831 & Blakbear! Looking forward to checking into the rest of these, if not tonight, then tomorrow evening. Have an ULTRA early shift tomorrow - first in EONS - so need to shut 'er down.

Keep 'em coming guys. I am LOVING these!!

It certainly is. One of the few songs he didn't write...

purplethunder3121 said:

ForeverPaisley said:

Wow. SOLO is a FANTASTIC example of his impressive range. Very moody and emotional...LOVE it! Someone made a lyric video (in spanish but whatevs) but the video accompaniment was superb!

.

Thank you for that suggestion Roxy831 & Blakbear! Looking forward to checking into the rest of these, if not tonight, then tomorrow evening. Have an ULTRA early shift tomorrow - first in EONS - so need to shut 'er down.

Keep 'em coming guys. I am LOVING these!!

It certainly is. One of the few songs he didn't write...

Oooh that's interesting! He sure does the song justice. I think the same of his rendition of I Can't Make U Love Me.

ForeverPaisley said:

purplethunder3121 said:

It certainly is. One of the few songs he didn't write...

Oooh that's interesting! He sure does the song justice. I think the same of his rendition of I Can't Make U Love Me.

I like that, too, but not as much as Bonnie's original, in this case. I need to make a correction--Prince didn't write the lyrics for Solo but he wrote the music. Info on Solo from Princevault:

Solo is the eighth track on Prince's fifteenth album Come, and, a week before the album's release, was included as the b-side of Letitgo, the album's first single, released worldwide.

Although specific recording dates are not known, basic tracks were recorded in mid to late May 1993 at Paisley Park Studios, Chanhassen, MN, USA (during the same set of sessions that produced Space, Pope, Strays Of The World,What's My Name, Interactive, Zannalee, and an updated recording of Race).

The lyrics had been written by David Henry Hwang, writer of the play M. Butterfly, which Prince had been to see in 1989. Hwang was contacted in 1993 by Prince about the possibility of writing a stage musical, and they met soon after in New York City to discuss the project.

When discussing the project, Prince asked Hwang to write a poem for him "about loss", to use as a spoken word interlude in a song. At some point later, Hwang wrote the lyrics of Solo as a poem and faxed them to Paisley Park Studios. A few days later, Hwang received a cassette containing the full song Solo, with the lyrics sung, rather than as a spoken interlude.

Hwang was notified when the song was released in 1994 on Come and on the Letitgo single, and he received writing co-credit and an RIAA gold album, although he was not paid for his contribution. The musical that the song was originally intended for, believed to have been titled Come, was abandoned, however.

Although released after Prince's name change to , the track (and album) were credited to Prince, as it was recorded prior to the change (although Hwang's recollection of their initial phone calls was that he had already changed his name to , which did not happen until the month after the track was recorded).

[Edited 7/26/16 15:44pm]

Falsetto:

Baby

Power Fantastic

Revelation

Adore

Kiss

Lower Register:

Little Red Corvette

Old Friends For Sale

Reflection

Objects In The Mirror

Hot Thing

Baritone:

When Doves Cry

i always liked the menacing, gritty, almost gothic delivery on "Sexuality"..

purplethunder3121 said:

ForeverPaisley said:

Oooh that's interesting! He sure does the song justice. I think the same of his rendition of I Can't Make U Love Me.

I like that, too, but not as much as Bonnie's original, in this case. I need to make a correction--Prince didn't write the lyrics for Solo but he wrote the music. Info on Solo from Princevault:

Solo is the eighth track on Prince's fifteenth album Come, and, a week before the album's release, was included as the b-side of Letitgo, the album's first single, released worldwide.

Although specific recording dates are not known, basic tracks were recorded in mid to late May 1993 at Paisley Park Studios, Chanhassen, MN, USA (during the same set of sessions that produced Space, Pope, Strays Of The World,What's My Name, Interactive, Zannalee, and an updated recording of Race).

The lyrics had been written by David Henry Hwang, writer of the play M. Butterfly, which Prince had been to see in 1989. Hwang was contacted in 1993 by Prince about the possibility of writing a stage musical, and they met soon after in New York City to discuss the project.

When discussing the project, Prince asked Hwang to write a poem for him "about loss", to use as a spoken word interlude in a song. At some point later, Hwang wrote the lyrics of Solo as a poem and faxed them to Paisley Park Studios. A few days later, Hwang received a cassette containing the full song Solo, with the lyrics sung, rather than as a spoken interlude.

Hwang was notified when the song was released in 1994 on Come and on the Letitgo single, and he received writing co-credit and an RIAA gold album, although he was not paid for his contribution. The musical that the song was originally intended for, believed to have been titled Come, was abandoned, however.

Although released after Prince's name change to , the track (and album) were credited to Prince, as it was recorded prior to the change (although Hwang's recollection of their initial phone calls was that he had already changed his name to , which did not happen until the month after the track was recorded).

[Edited 7/26/16 15:44pm]

That's pretty awesome to learn that about that song, thanks for sharing that info.

He had so many ideas for projects. I wish more have them came through to fruition, including this musical.

77BeverlyPark said:

Falsetto:

Baby

Power Fantastic

Revelation

Adore

Kiss

Lower Register:

Little Red Corvette

Old Friends For Sale

Reflection

Objects In The Mirror

Hot Thing

Baritone:

When Doves Cry

I never thought of When Doves Cry as baritone, but I am going to listen to it again. Sometimes we have to have someone point out something to notice.

I like his lower register in '7' and yes, Little Red Corvette. I am going to check out the others you suggested. Thanks for the recommendations

RJOrion said:

i always liked the menacing, gritty, almost gothic delivery on "Sexuality"..

OooOOoohhh you definitely know how to sell a song! Imma check that one out tonight,