FWIW my feelings about the song doesnt men I dont wholehertedly appreciate it being released and getting to hear it. Cheers to all who are responsible.

I think it's an interesting little song and I'm thrilled that we finally get to hear it,but I don't think it's the great,big "lost masterpiece" that Susan Rogers was saying it is.

Well, I've been playing around with the pitch and speed, and a simple 5% speed reduction sounds a lot more natural to me.

In its native leaked form it doesn't sound right.

SquirrelMeat said:

Well, I've been playing around with the pitch and speed, and a simple 5% speed reduction sounds a lot more natural to me.

In its native leaked form it doesn't sound right.

yeah, that pitch is too fast

JellyJam said:

fen said:

Yes, this version still retains some of the sadness, honesty and sly self-ridicule that Susan spoke of (the tiger impression preceding “I’m on the prowl tonight”). Musically, it’s as though the structure is constantly of the verge of collapse, only to be rescued by those sweeping, emotional musical swells. It’s quite remarkable. I imagine that the original lyrics were simply more brutal and unflinching – Prince acknowledging how ridiculous he appeared to himself at that moment.

Superb description.

Love this track, it's really growing on me.

Some very interesting leaks going on right now...

Thank you. After hearing the snippet I expected to be disappointed, but I’ve been pleasantly surprised (I should have learnt my lesson by now!). It certainly suffers from its reputation to a degree, but listening to it objectively I think that it sits well with tracks like Crystal Ball and In All My Dreams – musically, it has a similar ambition. It definitely sounds of that period. Personally, I like the use of the horns in this version. To me, it’s almost a precursor to what he tried to do later with Strays Of The World, only much more successful and authentic, and less pretentious. It’s also a good example of his elegant use of guitar to accentuate the emotional force of a song. Yeah, it's definitely an interesting time to be an admirer of his music... bittersweet though. x

SquirrelMeat said:

Well, I've been playing around with the pitch and speed, and a simple 5% speed reduction sounds a lot more natural to me.

In its native leaked form it doesn't sound right.

It is definitely not at the right pitch. I have to tune my guitar up to play along with this. Perhaps he meant to release it as a semi camille version perhaps not.

coldasice said:

SquirrelMeat said:

Well, I've been playing around with the pitch and speed, and a simple 5% speed reduction sounds a lot more natural to me.

In its native leaked form it doesn't sound right.

What program can you use to do that?

I think it's a song you need to spend a bit of time with and really listen to. I disagree with the previous post that it would have ranked as a lesser track on SOTT. There are already several standout moments in Wally that would have had me picking up the needle and dropping it back to listen again:

- The staccato delivery and climax at two mins. The piano starts it off, the horns slide into place, the drums follow, and his vocal build up and release have me holding my breath.

- The heartwrenching way he sings "She-was-the-only-one-in-the-whole-world-who-I-could-talk-to," mirroring the previous staccato build up. It's then followed by a second of sublime silence that might well rank up there with any of the very best moments on any track on SOTT.

- The point at 3:25 when Eric can't blow any harder and Prince has to express his emotions through a blistering guitar.

I don't think Wally is something that will grab many people at first, but with time and attention it will likely bury itself into your soul. What a song.

[Edited 7/16/17 21:04pm]

airth said:

I think it's a song you need to spend a bit of time with and really listen to. I disagree with the previous post that it would have ranked as a lesser track on SOTT. There are already several standout moments in Wally that would have had me picking up the needle and dropping it back to listen again:

- The staccato delivery and climax at two mins. The piano starts it off, the horns slide into place, the drums follow, and his vocal build up and release have me holding my breath.

- The heartwrenching way he sings "She-was-the-only-one-in-the-whole-world-that-I-could-talk-to," mirroring the previous staccato build up. It's then followed by a second of sublime silence that might well rank up there with any of the very best moments on any track on SOTT.

- The point at 3:25 when Eric can't blow any harder and Prince has to express his emotions through a blistering guitar.

I don't think Wally is something that will grab many people at first, but with time and attention it will likely bury itself into your soul. What a song.

I agree. When I first listened, I was thinking, "wtf"? And then I realized that this was my initial reaction to my favorite Prince songs; IIWYG, Crystal Ball, etc. I realized after the 2nd listen that there's a lot going on in this song, the most obvious being the emotion he puts into certain lyrics. This definiely isn't a song for everyone, but I think I can see why Susan Rogers spoke so highly about it.

purplethunder3121 said:

SquirrelMeat said:

Well, I've been playing around with the pitch and speed, and a simple 5% speed reduction sounds a lot more natural to me.

In its native leaked form it doesn't sound right.

What program can you use to do that?

I did it in Audacity. I also think it sounds more natural 5% slower.

Back in the day, though, I'm pretty sure my turntable and tape deck used to play all my Prince stuff at the wrong speeds.

airth said:

purplethunder3121 said:

What program can you use to do that?

I did it in Audacity. I also think it sounds more natural 5% slower.

Back in the day, though, I'm pretty sure my turntable and tape deck used to play all my Prince stuff at the wrong speeds.

Yeah, those were the days!

The mythos of the track has just been built up to be this 'ultimate emotional track' of course it could never live up that hype. Let it sink and marinate for a while and enjoy it on it's own terms.

This song is great. Classic Leeds-era Prince. When he was on top.

He does a great Disney Princess voice on the 'maybe I do just not like I did before' line

blizzybiz said:

airth said:

I think it's a song you need to spend a bit of time with and really listen to. I disagree with the previous post that it would have ranked as a lesser track on SOTT. There are already several standout moments in Wally that would have had me picking up the needle and dropping it back to listen again:

- The staccato delivery and climax at two mins. The piano starts it off, the horns slide into place, the drums follow, and his vocal build up and release have me holding my breath.

- The heartwrenching way he sings "She-was-the-only-one-in-the-whole-world-that-I-could-talk-to," mirroring the previous staccato build up. It's then followed by a second of sublime silence that might well rank up there with any of the very best moments on any track on SOTT.

- The point at 3:25 when Eric can't blow any harder and Prince has to express his emotions through a blistering guitar.

I don't think Wally is something that will grab many people at first, but with time and attention it will likely bury itself into your soul. What a song.

I agree. When I first listened, I was thinking, "wtf"? And then I realized that this was my initial reaction to my favorite Prince songs; IIWYG, Crystal Ball, etc. I realized after the 2nd listen that there's a lot going on in this song, the most obvious being the emotion he puts into certain lyrics. This definiely isn't a song for everyone, but I think I can see why Susan Rogers spoke so highly about it.

I certainly have to agree with both comments. It's really hard to get into but when hooked, you are hooked. It took me a few listens but I can really appreciate this now!

airth said:

purplethunder3121 said:

What program can you use to do that?

I did it in Audacity. I also think it sounds more natural 5% slower.

Back in the day, though, I'm pretty sure my turntable and tape deck used to play all my Prince stuff at the wrong speeds.

Wow, this is very interesting indeed!

YES, I have to totally agree with this! The -5% reduction really does make this sound much more natural!

I wonder if there is a definitive way to know what the sound speed should be - generally across any track.

OperatingThetan said:

Thewooh said:

OperatingThetan said:

It's a beautifully complex track with many shifts and subtleties. Would fit perfectly with Adonis & Bathsheba.

Agreed. It's a bit odd that Susan Rogers hated A&B and loved Wally.

She didn't like when Prince started adding elements to the arrangement--in other words, she didn't like the stuff that makes this version resemble A&B. And lyrically, A&B is completely different than the confessional directness of Wally.

purplethunder3121 said:

It might be blasphemy on this site, but I don't really care for the song. There are elements that I like, but it seems like a very rough sketch of an idea.

Maybe it will grow on me . . . maybe it was overhyped for so, so long as THE "lost masterpiece".

Or, maybe the one that was erased was really that much better than this one. I dunno.

Still nice to have a weekend full of new music in this quality. Most of it sounds better than Disc 02 of the new Purple Rain.

SquirrelMeat said:

purplethunder3121 said:

What program can you use to do that?

audacity. IF you don't know it, it's free, fairly easy to learn and extremely versatile

I have used it for years. The only hassle is to export as an MP3 you need some extension...

ufoclub said:

RaspBerryGirlFriend said:

ufoclub said:

This isn't the legendary original version of "Wally" is it? It's the re-recorded version where he changed it for the worse according to Susan Rogers, right? Or am I mixing up the story?

No you're correct, it's just that the distinction seems to have been elided somewhat in this thread.

yeah after it was pointed out a few times (i thought it was like super common knowledge) i gave up

OnlyNDaUsa said:

RaspBerryGirlFriend said:

ufoclub said: No you're correct, it's just that the distinction seems to have been elided somewhat in this thread.

yeah after it was pointed out a few times (i thought it was like super common knowledge) i gave up

I think that it probably retains enough to allow us to imagine what the original might have been like. I do like this version though.

I dont like it! there i said it! It's OK i guess but certainly not top drawer. Would have loved to have heard the original with the supposedly very personal lyrics but this....meh!

fen said:

OnlyNDaUsa said:

yeah after it was pointed out a few times (i thought it was like super common knowledge) i gave up

I think that it probably retains enough to allow us to imagine what the original might have been like. I do like this version though.

just like I and others have said... just think about the 2 versions of "old friends 4 sale" the original is way way better than the meh that was released... and I have to say it is fair to assume the cassette copy is worlds better too....