Menes said:

From the Rolling Stone 1985 interview, Prince Talks, by Neal Karlen

Across the street from McDonald’s, Prince spies a smaller landmark. He points to a vacant corner phone booth and remembers a teenage fight with a strict and unforgiving father. “That’s where I called my dad and begged him to take me back after he kicked me out,” he begins softly. “He said no, so I called my sister and asked her to ask him. So she did, and afterward told me that all I had to do was call him back, tell him I was sorry, and he’s take me back. So I did, and he still said no. I sat crying at that phone booth for two hours. That’s the last time I cried.”

In the years between that phone-booth breakdown and today’s pool game came forgiveness. Says Prince, “Once I made it, got my first record contract, got my name on a piece of paper and a little money in my pocket, I was able to forgive. Once I was eating every day, I became a much nicer person.” But it took many more years for the son to understand what a jazzman father needed to survive. Prince figured it out when he moved into his purple house.

“I can be upstairs at the piano, and Rande [his cook] can come in,” he says. “Her footsteps will be in a different time, and it’s real weird when you hear something that’s a totally different rhythm than what you’re playing. A lot of times that’s mistaken for conceit or not having a heart. But it’s not. And my dad’s the same way, and that’s why it was hard for him to live with anybody. I didn’t realize that until recently. When he was working or thinking, he had a private pulse going constantly inside him. I don’t know, your bloodstream beats differently.”

Pretty much like most people, his relationship with his parents was a mixture of a lot of things. I believe it was in the Oprah interview where he said something along the lines of "we each have our own journey; I respect his" when asked if they were close.

carmela3 said:

Menes said:

I kinda made a boo boo on responding to that post. Sorry. The sauce. Thanks.

All is forgiven.

Menes said:

BillieBalloon said:

I remember P tweeted a pic of him and his father with the caption "Pops always had my back." Whatever went on between them, they seemed to have found a resolution and a relationship.

link? pic?

Misslink88 said:

I remember P tweeted a pic of him and his father with the caption "Pops always had my back." Whatever went on between them, they seemed to have found a resolution and a relationship.

It's on Princestagram and the picture of him and his father was posted on October 22nd, 2015.

MD431Madcat said:

link? pic?

Misslink88 said:

I remember P tweeted a pic of him and his father with the caption "Pops always had my back." Whatever went on between them, they seemed to have found a resolution and a relationship.

Misslink88 said:

I remember P tweeted a pic of him and his father with the caption "Pops always had my back." Whatever went on between them, they seemed to have found a resolution and a relationship.

from what very little I saw of P's dad, I got the impression he was kooky, yes, but much more easygoing than his famous son. I doubt he had any real animosity going on during their non-speaking times.

sonshine said:

Dysfunction. I can only imagine there was a lot of it with all the previous relationships and children of his parents. Blending families is rarely easy. Age. His dad was middle-aged by the time Prince came along. I dont imagine expecting another child was met with a ton of enthusiasm. Then add in the old school mentality towards discipline and showing affection mentioned already. Dad left family. Divorce is hard for kids. I think its especially hard for boys when dad leaves. Little boys (and big boys too) want their fathers approval. They need their fathers in their lives. They spend their entire lives living up to their fathers expectations whether they are real or imagined. Prince's dad sounds like he was also a bit of a player. Perhaps Prince felt that was disrespectful as it relates to his mother. Perhaps his dad made more time for women than for his son. All of the above would have a negative effect on the children.

Aye, there's the rub. If he had lived in a loving, supportive, co-hesive family and enjoyed stability, he'd probably have been a plumber. His father's "hand-off" attitude towards the piano would make it irresistable. The distance between them could only have been bridged (pun intended) through music. The events he experienced, fodder for his lyrics. The deeper the pain, the farther he had to dig within.

PeteSilas said:

Misslink88 said:

I remember P tweeted a pic of him and his father with the caption "Pops always had my back." Whatever went on between them, they seemed to have found a resolution and a relationship.

from what very little I saw of P's dad, I got the impression he was kooky, yes, but much more easygoing than his famous son. I doubt he had any real animosity going on during their non-speaking times.

Wasn't his father being cared for by a nurse because he had Alzheimer's? And who knows when it really set in? I agree he was probably more easygoing, perhaps even moreso once his son's career took off, if he lived vicariously through him. But I get the feeling he was genuinely proud of what P accomplished because of his "I named him Prince because I wanted him to have everything" or whatever it was.

Misslink88 said:

PeteSilas said:

laurarichardson said:

PeteSilas said:

from what very little I saw of P's dad, I got the impression he was kooky, yes, but much more easygoing than his famous son. I doubt he had any real animosity going on during their non-speaking times.

--They had some issues or they would have been on speaking terms. I still think "Current Affair" and Lawsuit had a lot to do with it. No reason why they could not have patched things up before he passed.

That was in the late 90's wasn't it? I believe they did patch things up long before his father passed away. He was, after all, living in P's old house, being cared for by a nurse and probably visited. There's nothing that I've encountered that indicated they were still on the outs when he passed.

Misslink88 said:

Misslink88 said: