Having just seen the "Face Down" video this easily goes into my #1 slot; it's got it all; the jam; the subversiveness; the Artist at his absolute fucking wackiest; he's the grieving widow!!!

Previous to seeing this I'd probably say "Batdance" because I LOVE the last part where he's debating life/death and the electric chair.

Honorable mentions go to the Chaos and Disorder videos for their "not-fucking-caringness."

Honorable mention to "Kiss" for being his best mainstream/hit video.

Y'allz favorites?

Kiss.

4Ever the Raspberry Beret video #1

a few upcoming star struck celebs in the mix, the elevated Prince and the Revolution still in the midst of purple raining. David Coleman Novi Novog Suzi Katayama

We were taken to paisley park in a wonderfully colorful way

Girls & Boys video #2

this is what the UTCM movie should have looked like.

Mischevious Chic Beautiful purple people

people who were ready for the camera

the dance the awesome music

Kiss #3

I don't even know what more to say about it but Kiss the video

Mountains #4

Little Red Corvette #5
Prince shows that he can totally pull anyone in to watch him

Steamy 80s Saturday night

Ready for the big screen
Look at Prince -watch Susan Moonsie(Drive Me Wild video)

When Doves Cry #6

Glam Slam #7

U Got the Look #8

Automatic #9

UNDERGROUND... he went there with Lisa & JJ s&m a peak into his Dirty Mind

Little Red Corvette/1999

Kiss, long version of Thieves in the Temple, and Black Sweat

Also, loved the "special effects" -- split screen/mirror images -- in "When Doves Cry." And the little purple boots!!

When Doves Cry, i love the video is amazing, i really like a lot his outfit in that video. The opening scene and the way he gets out of the bath and the dancing and the scene when Dr Fink is playin and all of a sudden a dove breaks in, is an epic video all the way through.

214 said:

When Doves Cry, i love the video is amazing, i really like a lot his outfit in that video. The opening scene and the way he gets out of the bath and the dancing and the scene when Dr Fink is playin and all of a sudden a dove breaks in, is an epic video all the way through.

Cinematically (set design, cinematography), I would say Somewhere Here on Earth, Te Amo Corozon, Diamonds and Pearls, The One (for the cute silent film opening) Cinnamon girl and Black Sweat.

Performance wise--Partyman, Kiss, Thieves in the Temple, Automatic (crappy video but damn Prince..LOL), Raspberry Beret,

Humor wise--FaceDown (hilarious, Step and Fetchit/minstrel show fiddle playing he was doing had me in stitches--boy, was he sticking it to his record company), black Sweat (Prince's facial expressions are funny as fvck when the dancing lady screams and gets up on him.)

Oh come. Prince's presense is a site to behold and his tub scene in a purple room is great, but the song is much better quality wise than the video. I think you folks are being nostalgic and picking his most iconic moment. LOL> To each his own..

purplethunder3121 said:

214 said:

When Doves Cry, i love the video is amazing, i really like a lot his outfit in that video. The opening scene and the way he gets out of the bath and the dancing and the scene when Dr Fink is playin and all of a sudden a dove breaks in, is an epic video all the way through.

pattypal17 said:

Kiss, long version of Thieves in the Temple, and Black Sweat

Yeessss. Long version, and only long version, of Thieves.

purplerabbithole said:

Oh come. Prince's presense is a site to behold and his tub scene in a purple room is great, but the song is much better quality wise than the video. I think you folks are being nostalgic and picking his most iconic moment. LOL> To each his own..

purplethunder3121 said:

No,i'm not 'cause i wasn't alive at that time.

purplerabbithole said:

Oh come. Prince's presense is a site to behold and his tub scene in a purple room is great, but the song is much better quality wise than the video. I think you folks are being nostalgic and picking his most iconic moment. LOL> To each his own..

purplethunder3121 said:

It is iconic for a reason. And nostalgia is not the reason why.

He has a lot of videos. I like to comparmentalize them by periods.

He has a lot of 'unreleased' videos like the one with him and the Twinz playing guitar in the orange colors. I Cinammon Girl, are my favorites from the 2000s. The videos for LotusFlower just didn't make the cut.

The One, Facedown, Money Don't Matter Tonight from the 90s

First one that always comes to mind for me is Raspberry Beret.

It was my inrto to Prince as a kid, 7-8 years old in 1988. We either didn't have or weren't allowed to watch MTV, but we had VH1, and I remember they used to play Raspberry a few times a day. I would wait and wait and wait for it to come on. Loved it. That song and video just absolutely captivated my young mind. I think it was the strings combined with that killer cloud suit that pulled me in.

[Edited 9/14/17 19:02pm]

Well, I loved When Doves Cry as a video when I was approximately 9-11 years old. I particularly remember loving the clothes, Prince and the Revolution's cool chemistry, and the film clips. As an adullt, I like the purple room with the tub and stain-glassed doors (blending religion with sex) but to me, it was still not a brilliantly made video. For one thing, the dance sequence is ruined by odd psychadelic effects that mirror and blend both sides of his body thus distracting me from his dance moves and performance (I am not sure what that effect is called), the visual imagery is too direct/obvious...doves flying out of doors, and its a bit busy and almost has too much going on in it.) That being said, I still love wathcing the video for the reasons I stated at the beginning of the post. I picked my favorite videos as most resembling well-made short films. I think Prince was probably easier to film in later videos and the quality and budget of those later videos reflect that. Unfortunately, not many people saw these videos.

Facedown is a bit too busy and cheap looking but it is saved by its humor.

Nostalgia and iconic Prince are not bad reasons to love the WDC video but 80's videos, as fun as they were, mostly feel dated to me now (but in a totally pleasant and charming way.) Videos did not become brilliantly made little movies until the 90's...videos like R.E.M's "Everybody Hurts" which resembles the opening scene in Fellini's 8 1/2 and many of Radiohead's early videos like Karma Police, Fake Plastic Trees, and No Surprises and even the raw and brilliant Smells like team spirit by Nirvana really raised videos into an artform. During Prince's 80's days, they were more like cheaply made showcases for the performers' charisma. Yes, the budgets rose as the 80's proceeded. Janet Jackson's Rhythm Nation video holds up well for it simplicity and MJ's Thriller is cool for its ambition and staged dance sequences. But in the nineties, videos started to became focused, bigger budgeted and more artistic/thematic.

OldFriends4Sale said:

purplerabbithole said:

Oh come. Prince's presense is a site to behold and his tub scene in a purple room is great, but the song is much better quality wise than the video. I think you folks are being nostalgic and picking his most iconic moment. LOL> To each his own..

It is iconic for a reason. And nostalgia is not the reason why.

He has a lot of videos. I like to comparmentalize them by periods.

He has a lot of 'unreleased' videos like the one with him and the Twinz playing guitar in the orange colors. I Cinammon Girl, are my favorites from the 2000s. The videos for LotusFlower just didn't make the cut.

The One, Facedown, Money Don't Matter Tonight from the 90s

[Edited 9/14/17 19:31pm]

[Edited 9/14/17 19:32pm]

Dolphin

There are so many awesome videos.

But I'll have to go with I Wish U Heaven - beautiful!

The song isn't necessarily one of my favourites - but the LONG version of 'Thieves' is amazing, purely because it shows just what a sexy, funky dancer P could be!

Full version of 'Batdance' and 'Face Down' are similarly great! Love seeing P in dance mode!

I like Mountains and I Wish U Heaven