As I was watching a video of an Act I Tour concert, this topic came to my mind. I'm thinking of Prince's songs that are the most recognizable and most well-known to the general public. I'm an American, so my lists reflect what I think are his most recognizeable, well-known, enduring hit songs in the USA.

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I didn't limit my list to seven intentionally, but when I think of his most recognizeable, well-known, enduring hit songs, there just so happen to be seven songs.

.

As of right now (March 2018):

1. Purple Rain

2. When Doves Cry

3. Kiss

4. 1999

5. Let's Go Crazy

6. Little Red Corvette

7. Raspberry Beret

.

Prior to Prince's death:

1. When Doves Cry

2. Kiss

3. 1999

4. Purple Rain

5. Let's Go Crazy

6. Little Red Corvette

7. Raspberry Beret

.

What does everyone else think?

What about:

Controversy
Cream
Sign O The Times
U Got The Look
TMBGITW

Those would definitely be among his most recognisable enduring hit songs in Europe (and you could probably add Girls and Boys as well). I would've though some if not all of those would be as well known in the USA?

AsylumUtopia said:

67Cadillac said:

As an American, these are the ones I hear at least once a week on the radio: When Doves Cry Purple Rain 1999 Little Red Corvette Kiss Let’s Go Crazy I Wanna Be Your Lover Raspberry Beret Semi-regularly I Would Die 4 U U Got the Look Occasionally Pop Life Cream Diamonds and Pearls Never / maybe once Sign o’ the Times ICNTTPOYM Batdance 7 TMBGITW Eye Hate U (I think people forget this song almost scraped the Top 10)

67Cadillac,

You and I share 7 of the same songs on our list. I Wanna Be Your Lover would have been the next song that I added to my list. I was debating whether or not to include it on my list, and the reason I did not include it is because I don't recall ever hearing it in Seattle, where I was born and raised. However, I hear it on the radio regularly in Philadelphia, where I have lived for the past 7.5 years.

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Philadelphia has two rhythmic adult contemporary stations (100.3 and 105.3) that play a combination of R&B/soul/pop oldies from the 60s to the 00s and contemporary R&B/soul/pop hits. Seattle has never had a station like 100.3 or 105.3 during my lifetime. (From when I took a broadcast communications class in college, my recollection is that stations like 100.3 and 105.3 tend to be most common in markets with large black populations, such as Philadelphia, Baltimore, Washington DC, and NYC.)

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When I was in high school (2000-2004), there was a station in Seattle (97.5 The New Beat) that was somewhat similar to 100.3 and 105.3. However, 97.5 played songs from the 70s, 80s, and 90s, but nothing contemporary. 97.5 only lasted in that format for 3 or 4 years. When 97.5 debuted, there was a billboard that had Michael Jackson, Madonna, and Prince on it. In high school, I mainly listened to 97.5 and KUBE 93.3, which was a Hip-hop/Rap/R&B station. During the summers and on days off from school, I would listen to the Old Skool Lunch on KUBE, and it was common to hear Prince.

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Excluding Prince's birthday and the anniversary of his death, when 100.3 and 105.3 play a wider variety of his songs, the four Prince songs that I hear most often on 100.3 and 105.3 are I Wanna Be Your Lover, Kiss, Diamonds and Pearls, and When Doves Cry. When I listen to the adult contemporary station, 101.1, I recall hearing WDC, IWD4U, Kiss, Purple Rain, Little Red Corvette, and 1999. 100.3 and 105.3 play LRC and 1999 from time to time as well. From my time living here in Philly, my experience is that I Wanna Be Your Lover and D&P tend to be more "niche" songs on the rhythmic stations (105.3, 100.3). I hear Insatiable, Scandalous, and Call My Name once in a while on either 100.3 or 105.3 during late-evening programming.

[Edited 3/4/18 15:31pm]

67Cadillac said:

As an American, these are the ones I hear at least once a week on the radio: When Doves Cry Purple Rain 1999 Little Red Corvette Kiss Let’s Go Crazy I Wanna Be Your Lover Raspberry Beret Semi-regularly I Would Die 4 U U Got the Look Occasionally Pop Life Cream Diamonds and Pearls Never / maybe once Sign o’ the Times ICNTTPOYM Batdance 7 TMBGITW Eye Hate U (I think people forget this song almost scraped the Top 10)

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I agree with almost all of this, although my list might look more like this:

.

Regularly:

Purple Rain

When Doves Cry

Little Red Corvette

Let's Go Crazy

Kiss

1999

Raspberry Beret

I would Die 4 U

.

Semi-Regularly:

I wanna Be Your Lover

U got the Look

Erotic City (could be an anomally. There is an old school hip-hop station in Mpls that plays it sometimes)

.

I think anything else I have never heard on the radio.

As a side note, I also feel like Starfish and Coffee seems to be oddly enduring considering it's never on the radio. And it wasn't a top ten hit or anything was it? For some reason I think I can recall more than once someone at my college somehow knew Starfish and Coffee and maybe no (or few) other Prince songs.

LuvuInMe said:

As a side note, I also feel like Starfish and Coffee seems to be oddly enduring considering it's never on the radio. And it wasn't a top ten hit or anything was it? For some reason I think I can recall more than once someone at my college somehow knew Starfish and Coffee and maybe no (or few) other Prince songs.

Could be the Muppets Tonight appearance gave it a niche audience of younger fans.

I know in the UK and Ireland the ones everyone knows just from the radio/tv are Kiss, Purple Rain, 1999, When Doves Cry and Raspberry Beret and that'd be it. Maybe Cream or The Most Beautiful Girl but both seem to have fallen out of favour in recent years.

A lot has changed since he died though and the Spotify generation would know Let's Go Crazy, Little Red Corvette and I would Die 4 U as well. Of course listening with Spotify is a very different thing so it's all changing.

[Edited 3/5/18 5:47am]

AsylumUtopia said:

What about:

Controversy
Cream
Sign O The Times
U Got The Look
TMBGITW

Those would definitely be among his most recognisable enduring hit songs in Europe (and you could probably add Girls and Boys as well). I would've though some if not all of those would be as well known in the USA?

This is pretty spot-on for Europe.

To my experience:

TMBGITW
Cream
Kiss

Purple Rain
Raspberry Beret

In the UK, it is:

Kiss
Raspberry Beret
The Most Beautiful Girl In The World
Purple Rain

Occasionally:

Cream
Little Red Corvette
1999

.

[Edited 3/5/18 8:50am]

dandan said:

Gold was on Absolute Radio 90s in the UK this morning (Top 10 UK hit).

Maniac Monday, Purple Rain, and Let's Go Crazy will be played, streamed for a very long time...

206Michelle said:

darlingnikkkki said:

206Michelle said:

As I was watching a video of an Act I Tour concert, this topic came to my mind. I'm thinking of Prince's songs that are the most recognizable and most well-known to the general public. I'm an American, so my lists reflect what I think are his most recognizeable, well-known, enduring hit songs in the USA.

.

I didn't limit my list to seven intentionally, but when I think of his most recognizeable, well-known, enduring hit songs, there just so happen to be seven songs.

.

As of right now (March 2018):

1. Purple Rain

2. When Doves Cry

3. Kiss

4. 1999

5. Let's Go Crazy

6. Little Red Corvette

7. Raspberry Beret

.

Prior to Prince's death:

1. When Doves Cry

2. Kiss

3. 1999

4. Purple Rain

5. Let's Go Crazy

6. Little Red Corvette

7. Raspberry Beret

.

What does everyone else think?

I concur with your list minus Raspberry Beret.

In the UK, Raspberry Beret is one of his most well-known songs and is as likely to get radio play as any of his other hits.

leecaldon said:

LovePaisley said:

I've heard quite a few songs lately on supermarket/mall muzak. Surprising choices sometimes, blessedly beyond Kiss and LRC: Delirious, If I Was Your Girlfriend, ICNTTPOYM. Someone, somewhere, is out there keeping the music streaming. In fact I've wondered what kind of agreement might be in place between the estate and services like Pandora.

I heard 'Strollin'' in Target in Los Angeles. Surprised. Started singing along, ran into a guy huming it. Nice surpirse.

I think his enduring radio hits are;

I Wanna Be Your Lover

1999

Delirious

When Doves Cry

Purple Rain

Let's Go Crazy

Raspberry Beret

Kiss

Sign O Times

I Could Never Take the Place of Your Man

U Got the Look

Adore

Eye Hate you

The Most Beautiful Girl In the World

7

Batdance

Erotic City

My list seems longer, don't know if that's a California thing. Other songs get airplay but random and rare. Those I listed seem to hear when "up next, Prince," teaser is played top of the hour/commercial break.

I've found that people my age (20s) love "I Wanna Be Your Lover" more than any other Prince song. I've heard it at house parties, festivals, clubs... Seems to be pretty enduring. From there on it's pretty standard stuff, e.g. Kiss/Raspberry Beret/Purple Rain/1999 etc.

PurpleCreme said:

I've found that people my age (20s) love "I Wanna Be Your Lover" more than any other Prince song. I've heard it at house parties, festivals, clubs... Seems to be pretty enduring. From there on it's pretty standard stuff, e.g. Kiss/Raspberry Beret/Purple Rain/1999 etc.

That's really interesting that IWBYL is so popular with younger folks like yourself. He was 18 or 19 when he made that song. It's a great party song!

Agreed, PurpleCreme! Though I'm 29 pushing 30.

PurpleCreme said:

I've found that people my age (20s) love "I Wanna Be Your Lover" more than any other Prince song. I've heard it at house parties, festivals, clubs... Seems to be pretty enduring. From there on it's pretty standard stuff, e.g. Kiss/Raspberry Beret/Purple Rain/1999 etc.