laurarichardson said:

imprimis said:

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I am not an advocate for W&L. Jill has shown signs over the years of emotional imbalance, and has demonstrated herself to have some serious issues over not having been more thoroughly artistically and romantically attached to P versus how it ultimately turned out. By 'vigorous interest', I mean such that he began implementing these influences into his own records. Something that doesn't happen before about the Summer of 1984 with The Family material, and especially in the Parade era and beyond.

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Obviously, the financial success of PR allowed him much latitude to pursue less commercially oriented musical pathways, but that is only the beginning of the argument--what is your belief why these sound changes begin happening only after about mid-1984, and especially Spring 1985.

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Bottom Line: I'm not on a mission to weave an identity-effacing narrative by citing specific white members of his band and coterie as the end-all be-all for why he did what he did or who he was. I'm unsettled by your efforts to read some subliminal racial animus into these forum comments.

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[Edited 2/21/17 9:46am]

"I'm unsettled by your efforts to read some subliminal racial animus into these forum comments."

I am unsettled by your inablity to see the racism. Now Jill is imbalanced!!! Keep it up you are proving me right.

He did put these elements into his music until after 1984 because he needed to sell records and after 84 WB let him do whatever based on how much music he was selling.

Once again if you took the time to listen to what the early associates had to to say Prince was more well rounded musically than his early records showed him to be.

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Jill's psychological imbalance is what it is: she has (ruminative) issues about not being his exclusive or primary lover, his general emotional unavailability as time went on, and not having been developed into at least a Sheila E-esque protege act (with a similar level of public recognition and financial success). That implicates nothing other than universal human passions. It's a bitter sense of scorn about what could have been, with undercurrents of rejection and being spurned (whether this is strictly true in any way, or not).

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I cannot change that Prince surrounded himself in both his personal and professional lives with multiple white gentile and white Jewish bandmembers in the early-mid- and mid-1980s, from some of which relationships some of his musical influences-- significant enough to change the output on his own records--came to pass. It's simply how it played out, through his own actions and the randomness of life.

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[Edited 2/21/17 11:46am]

Imprimis, step back from diagnosing real people as "psychologically unabalanced" over the internet. Seriously, you're stepping over a line here.


Anyway, G-Spot, what a song right? I really love the released 1987 version, "faux-cosmopolitan horns" and all

[Edited 2/21/17 11:42am]

Revolution81 said:

I hear some vague similarities in the vocals but probably more coincidence than inspiration.

I'd like to find her G-Spot tho

hahaha... thanks!......

I have mixed feelings about Jill's version of "G-Spot".I prefer Prince's own 1983 version...it's great!

"F is for frustration.....I'm looking for what isn't really there"

please let this song be on the Purple Rain Deluxe Edition

Thanks for your comments everyone! Who would have thought this thread would trigger so many varied and interesting points of view... Glad to see that at least one of you (ufoclub ) feels some similarity in the atmosphere and concept/structure of the song (though - quite obviously - not in the melody itself).

I also found it fascinating to read imprimis posts about the history and the different stages of recording just for this track alone, even though I totally disagree with your comments that Jill Jones's album version is cheesy, as I have always absolutely loved the way it sounds. The whole album (one of my all time favourites) marrying Jill's voice and the music perfectly still sounds fresh after all these years. So whatever has been done to it works just fine for me.

As for Prince's level of input in the alterations made to the original track, I had absolutely no knowledge whatsoever about it, I too think that it does sound a little different to Prince's usual sound but since his body of work is extremely varied and he often experimented with different styles an techniques, anything is possible.

I still stand by my original post though and think there is a structure similarity to the Jeannette song and it is not improbable that Prince or anyone involved in the recording/reworks on the track could have heard this Spanish song at one point or another or perhaps even watched the film through which the soundtrack became more widely known. After all, the film was highly acclaimed, received the Special Jury Prize Award at the Cannes Festival and had (internationally famous) Geraldine Chaplin in one of the leading roles...

[Edited 2/21/17 14:44pm]

I don't think the track, in its entirety, is cheesy. Some of the underlying tracks, however, that were added to it are not at the standard I would expect of Prince, even if rushed for time and fecklessly revisiting an older track for a side project. (which may not necessarily be the case)

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I reached the essentially same point as ufoclub, that the horns (and their interplay) were 'bog standard' pop convention.

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I believe overall it is above average to good, and that Jill's vocal performance is sultry, better than Prince's in the context of the original. I can see it being a minor hit in BE/DE/FR/NL//IT/PT/SP/etc, but having absolutely no chance in the American market, even with better promotion. (not that its commercial prospects should necessarily weigh on its merits)

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At the same time, the original song is cold, barren, electric funk, and these dressings up (whether conducted by P or David Z or others) can't disguse/overcome that the song was too dated by 1987 and this hand-me-down didn't closely match the sound to rest of Jill's album, which is mostly why I imagine the additional parts were added.

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[Edited 2/21/17 14:59pm]

^Thank you for the clarifications!

laurarichardson said:

imprimis said:

.

I am not an advocate for W&L. Jill has shown signs over the years of emotional imbalance, and has demonstrated herself to have some serious issues over not having been more thoroughly artistically and romantically attached to P versus how it ultimately turned out. By 'vigorous interest', I mean such that he began implementing these influences into his own records. Something that doesn't happen before about the Summer of 1984 with The Family material, and especially in the Parade era and beyond.

.

Obviously, the financial success of PR allowed him much latitude to pursue less commercially oriented musical pathways, but that is only the beginning of the argument--what is your belief why these sound changes begin happening only after about mid-1984, and especially Spring 1985.

.

Bottom Line: I'm not on a mission to weave an identity-effacing narrative by citing specific white members of his band and coterie as the end-all be-all for why he did what he did or who he was. I'm unsettled by your efforts to read some subliminal racial animus into these forum comments.

.

[Edited 2/21/17 9:46am]

"I'm unsettled by your efforts to read some subliminal racial animus into these forum comments."

I am unsettled by your inablity to see the racism. Now Jill is imbalanced!!! Keep it up you are proving me right.

He did put these elements into his music until after 1984 because he needed to sell records and after 84 WB let him do whatever based on how much music he was selling.

Once again if you took the time to listen to what the early associates had to to say Prince was more well rounded musically than his early records showed him to be.

I think it's often erroneously assumed that P was less musically aware than he actually might have been, especially in his earlier days simply because he was quiet about many things, but from interveiws with his teachers it's pretty obvious that he not only was playing music from what was in his own head but he was a voracious consumer of many types of music and influences.

Yes, W&L were formally trained and brought many influences to P, but he also had an early interest in musical forms and "schools" that were from listening to the radio that was available to him growing up...But let's not forget that he also had parents who were musical as well. I can only assume that they brought their own musical tastes and influences to him in the casual form of playing records from their eras and their parents eras as well.

Heck, I listen to Sinatra and the Dorseys and Ellington and Basie and Jolson and such because my parents listened to that music from their eras around the house.

So, while P's musical education, from the outside, may seem unsophisticated until W & L or the Leeds brothers, they easily influenced each other as well.

Just sayin

LBrent said:

laurarichardson said:

"I'm unsettled by your efforts to read some subliminal racial animus into these forum comments."

I am unsettled by your inablity to see the racism. Now Jill is imbalanced!!! Keep it up you are proving me right.

He did put these elements into his music until after 1984 because he needed to sell records and after 84 WB let him do whatever based on how much music he was selling.

Once again if you took the time to listen to what the early associates had to to say Prince was more well rounded musically than his early records showed him to be.

I think it's often erroneously assumed that P was less musically aware than he actually might have been, especially in his earlier days simply because he was quiet about many things, but from interveiws with his teachers it's pretty obvious that he not only was playing music from what was in his own head but he was a voracious consumer of many types of music and influences.

Yes, W&L were formally trained and brought many influences to P, but he also had an early interest in musical forms and "schools" that were from listening to the radio that was available to him growing up...But let's not forget that he also had parents who were musical as well. I can only assume that they brought their own musical tastes and influences to him in the casual form of playing records from their eras and their parents eras as well.

Heck, I listen to Sinatra and the Dorseys and Ellington and Basie and Jolson and such because my parents listened to that music from their eras around the house.

So, while P's musical education, from the outside, may seem unsophisticated until W & L or the Leeds brothers, they easily influenced each other as well.

Just sayin

Thank you. It is a bit much too assume that a young man who had parents that were musician/singers of jazz would not have been of influence on him at all. Also many people from the Northside talk about how much musical talent was in that neighborhood going back to Prince's Dad's generation. To many people on this board discount Prince's family and neighborhood as a influence on him.