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Forums > Prince: Music and More > Just listened to "Sister" for the first time, and I'm freaked out lol
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Thread started 10/18/16 5:12pm

gorgbrowneyes

Just listened to "Sister" for the first time, and I'm freaked out lol

So, it took me until now to start listening to Prince's early 80s hits prior to 1999, and although I love most of his later stuff, it was important for me to listen to his beginnings.

WITH THAT BEING SAID, can someone explain to me how Prince got away with singing "Sister", and still maintained a fan base? I'm being honest, if this was the first song I heard of Prince, I don't know if I would keep listening to him. When you first heard this song, what did you think of Prince?
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Reply #1 posted 10/18/16 5:25pm

petalthecat

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Well, I was only 12 when I first heard it so I'm not sure I fully understood it. I knew at the time he was pushing the boundaries for the shock factor, I think that's what made him so appealing to a rebellious teen like me.
There's always a rainbow 🌈 , at the end of every rain ☔️
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Reply #2 posted 10/18/16 5:27pm

jdcxc

That album and song made me a fan for life.

I still remember it like it was yesterday...my best friend Reggie sneaking the cassette player in the cloak room and introducing me to the Rude Boy. The danger, genre defying, risk taking, musical polymath was pure genius. It was such a departure from the R&B/disco/funk I was listening to at the time.

And for Sister, it is a cool filthy little ditty with obvious double meanings. The essence of great Rock and Roll.
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Reply #3 posted 10/18/16 5:29pm

paisleypark4

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gorgbrowneyes said:

So, it took me until now to start listening to Prince's early 80s hits prior to 1999, and although I love most of his later stuff, it was important for me to listen to his beginnings. WITH THAT BEING SAID, can someone explain to me how Prince got away with singing "Sister", and still maintained a fan base? I'm being honest, if this was the first song I heard of Prince, I don't know if I would keep listening to him. When you first heard this song, what did you think of Prince?

I first heard this song at the tender age of 13 in 1994. At that time only had 1999, Purle Rain, SOTT, Around the World, Diamonds and Pearls and the Hits / Bsides. I wasnt a big fan of the singles off Dirty Mind so one day when I was very young I bought the cassette with my allowance because thats what i would do...spend my allowance on records...about every two months I'd pick up a new Prince one.

When i finally got to Sister I was laughing my ass off. I was suprised at this song and I felt like....am I the only one hearing this song right now!?!?! Had never ever heard it up until then and its still very explicit and campy in detail. He did that shit on purpose lol.

Straight Jacket Funk Affair
Album plays and love for vinyl records.
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Reply #4 posted 10/18/16 5:37pm

gandorb

I thought Dirty Mind was fantastic when it came out. Sister was never really a favorite, but I assumed at the time it was just about him pushing the limits and being shocking. It was only after reading a recent thread here about it that I learned from some orgers I respect that perhaps it was based on some real experiences. You may want to google custom search on this site to find the thread. OR NOT wink .

[Edited 10/18/16 17:50pm]

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Reply #5 posted 10/18/16 5:41pm

luvgirl

gorgbrowneyes said:

So, it took me until now to start listening to Prince's early 80s hits prior to 1999, and although I love most of his later stuff, it was important for me to listen to his beginnings.

WITH THAT BEING SAID, can someone explain to me how Prince got away with singing "Sister", and still maintained a fan base? I'm being honest, if this was the first song I heard of Prince, I don't know if I would keep listening to him. When you first heard this song, what did you think of Prince?


Lol, I know right! This is my least favorite Prince song ever! I always skip this song. It makes me feel icky, but there you have...I Still love him! I think it's because he's proven himself to be more than just an icky song...
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Reply #6 posted 10/18/16 7:46pm

EddieC

gorgbrowneyes said:

WITH THAT BEING SAID, can someone explain to me how Prince got away with singing "Sister", and still maintained a fan base? I'm being honest, if this was the first song I heard of Prince, I don't know if I would keep listening to him. When you first heard this song, what did you think of Prince?

Well, I'm guessing that it pretty much never happened that "Sister" was the first song people heard. Either they were familiar with one of the radio songs, or (if nothing else) they'd heard the rest of the Dirty Mind album before they got to it. In which case, they said--"Okay, that was... um. Different. Okay, let's see if he gets his act back together." Besides, if they were listening to Dirty Mind, they'd just finished "Head," which was already so far past the norm that "Sister" couldn't be completely shocking.

Now, I'm guessing that a lot of fans got to things in a way similar to me. I knew 1999's hits, got pulled into actually buying something by "When Doves Cry," got Purple Rain, saw the film, read some books and started getting the back catalog. So I was well aware of "Sister" before I ever heard it. I already knew it was a bit of loud crude nothingness, just an attention grabber (and, honestly, not that interesting musically or lyrically compared to the rest of the album, which did more than shock). I've just always felt "Okay, so he did that once"... I was glad he stopped that sort of thing (for the most part).

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Reply #7 posted 10/18/16 9:58pm

HatrinaHaterwi
tz

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EddieC said:

gorgbrowneyes said:

WITH THAT BEING SAID, can someone explain to me how Prince got away with singing "Sister", and still maintained a fan base? I'm being honest, if this was the first song I heard of Prince, I don't know if I would keep listening to him. When you first heard this song, what did you think of Prince?

... if they were listening to Dirty Mind, they'd just finished "Head," which was already so far past the norm that "Sister" couldn't be completely shocking...

target nod yeahthat

I knew from the start that I loved you with all my heart.
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Reply #8 posted 10/19/16 4:10am

jhon00

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Sister could simply be a reference to a black woman. Not necessarily a biological relative. But then again the context determines that.

And if he had not added words like incest in the song then my argument would stand, but obviously Prince clearly says incest in the song. Lol

But wait,Eww the thought of him having sex with Tyka Nelson makes me wanna vomit.Lol
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Reply #9 posted 10/19/16 8:55am

paisleypark4

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jhon00 said:

Sister could simply be a reference to a black woman. Not necessarily a biological relative. But then again the context determines that. And if he had not added words like incest in the song then my argument would stand, but obviously Prince clearly says incest in the song. Lol But wait,Eww the thought of him having sex with Tyka Nelson makes me wanna vomit.Lol

hahah right I was about to say..uh...section B.56 sentence A says uh...lol

Straight Jacket Funk Affair
Album plays and love for vinyl records.
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Reply #10 posted 10/19/16 10:24am

BreakfastCanWa
itXXX

jhon00 said:

Sister could simply be a reference to a black woman. Not necessarily a biological relative. But then again the context determines that.

And if he had not added words like incest in the song then my argument would stand, but obviously Prince clearly says incest in the song. Lol

But wait,Eww the thought of him having sex with Tyka Nelson makes me wanna vomit.Lol


LMAO!! 😳😄😂 OMG nooo I literally just giggled at that thought.
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Reply #11 posted 10/19/16 11:03am

ladygirl99

jhon00 said:

Sister could simply be a reference to a black woman. Not necessarily a biological relative. But then again the context determines that. And if he had not added words like incest in the song then my argument would stand, but obviously Prince clearly says incest in the song. Lol But wait,Eww the thought of him having sex with Tyka Nelson makes me wanna vomit.Lol

Rumor has it the song is about his half sister Sharon.

And also Prince lived with Sharon at one point in New York during his early career.

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Reply #12 posted 10/19/16 9:04pm

morningsong

gorgbrowneyes said:

So, it took me until now to start listening to Prince's early 80s hits prior to 1999, and although I love most of his later stuff, it was important for me to listen to his beginnings.

WITH THAT BEING SAID, can someone explain to me how Prince got away with singing "Sister", and still maintained a fan base? I'm being honest, if this was the first song I heard of Prince, I don't know if I would keep listening to him. When you first heard this song, what did you think of Prince?



It was fast and it was short.

And already said it came right after Head and melded right into upbeat Party Up, me personally I wasn't going to stop PU to rewind and make sure I heard what I just heard and hen I did I was in a good mood. It was perfectly placed.
[Edited 10/19/16 21:37pm]
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Reply #13 posted 10/19/16 9:26pm

trax

gorgbrowneyes said:

So, it took me until now to start listening to Prince's early 80s hits prior to 1999, and although I love most of his later stuff, it was important for me to listen to his beginnings. WITH THAT BEING SAID, can someone explain to me how Prince got away with singing "Sister", and still maintained a fan base? I'm being honest, if this was the first song I heard of Prince, I don't know if I would keep listening to him. When you first heard this song, what did you think of Prince?

Yes that song is horrible!!

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Reply #14 posted 10/19/16 10:42pm

DarlingKris

I heard the song for the first time a month after her passed and to be honest, I wasn't too shocked. I've always loved his raunchier music and would listen to it with headphones as I was not allowed to listen to that type of stuff when I was a teenager. Now when I heard Head or Jack U Off, my mouth dropped to the floor. Kind of amusing that a song about incest doesn't shock me yet a song about a bride giving a man in heels oral or mastrubation does lol

Forever In My Life, forever in my heart. I love you Prince Rogers Nelson heart
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Reply #15 posted 10/20/16 1:47am

CalhounSq

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Never paid it much attention - as many have said, it was for shock value & pushing the envelope. I rarely listen to it.
heart prince I never met you, but I LOVE you & I will forever!! Thank you for being YOU - my little Princey, the best to EVER do it prince heart
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Reply #16 posted 10/20/16 7:49am

cb70

I want to here more of the original demo that leaked last month.

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Reply #17 posted 10/20/16 8:10am

ufoclub

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That album did crreate a lot of enemies for Prince back then. I remember one guy I met an older dentist who asked me what music I liked, I said "Prince" and he just looked digusted and mentioned "Sister". He jumped off the Prince train when that came out.

[Edited 10/20/16 13:51pm]

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Reply #18 posted 10/20/16 8:26am

kourtneyreign

He sister Tyka said in a podcast, it was a tribute to their sister Sharon. the shock factor of the song was just that

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Reply #19 posted 10/20/16 8:27am

kourtneyreign

jhon00 said:

Sister could simply be a reference to a black woman. Not necessarily a biological relative. But then again the context determines that. And if he had not added words like incest in the song then my argument would stand, but obviously Prince clearly says incest in the song. Lol But wait,Eww the thought of him having sex with Tyka Nelson makes me wanna vomit.Lol

Tyka said the song was not about her but a tribute to Sharon. The shock factor was just that nothing more

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Reply #20 posted 10/20/16 10:30am

sexton

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It's an essential track on the Dirty Mind record (as are all of them in my opinion). I couldn't imagine playing the album and not hearing it.

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Reply #21 posted 10/20/16 2:23pm

214

sexton said:

It's an essential track on the Dirty Mind record (as are all of them in my opinion). I couldn't imagine playing the album and not hearing it.

yeahthat

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Reply #22 posted 10/24/16 1:46pm

Bluu

A great question! I'd say it was the undeniable power and appeal of all of his music. I was 12 when I got the Dirty Mind album and started listening to it, which I did a LOT. Loved the album but was uncomfortable with the lyrics on "Sister"--knew it was WAY too mature for my young ears so I would self-censor. That's the only song of his I would skip over. I do appreciate the song musically and the freedom of expression but it's an ugly (presumably) personal truth he is singing about. There was just SO many other brilliant works--massive hit songs, videos, performances, movies, proteges--that demanded the public's attention that, over the years, "Sister" became something of a footnote.

.

"Sister" will stop anyone in their tracks, but then a year later, "Controversy" did the same--just for different reasons. Then "Little Red Corvette", "1999." "When Doves Cry" made everyone do a double-take. Then "Let's Go Crazy", "Purple Rain"...the rest is history. "Sister" got drowned out in a sea of greatness.

.

The song has earned it's respect among devoted fans and critics, for the boldness of the message, the unbelievable daring and risk-taking Prince took to release it on his 3rd album. One could deem the subject matter absolutely reprehensible, and personally tragic, and still harbor great (if very reluctant) admiration for Prince as an artist for writing and sharing it with the public. And, I would add, for defiantly rejecting the disco/R&B/funk mold in which Black American artists were pidgeon-holed. Along with some of the other cuts on Dirty Mind, "Sister" was in your face, and unapologetic. It was a hell of an artistic statement. Literally and figuratively.

.

The track also illustrates that he possessed an unusual musical prowess for songwriting outside the box, branching out wildly from his R&B roots on his first two albums with a sort of punk-rock vibe that sounded musically quite different from any other song of his up to that point in his career.

.

[Edited 10/24/16 14:54pm]

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Reply #23 posted 10/24/16 5:35pm

luvsexy4all

back in 1985 or so I scared the shit outa some youngens when i played that song...

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Forums > Prince: Music and More > Just listened to "Sister" for the first time, and I'm freaked out lol