ThePanther said:

Since I first heard the tune when I was 11, until about a year or two ago, I quite disliked this song. I considered it one of two or three skippable tracks on Sign o' the Times. But now I think it's great! I'm not sure what changed for me, but I enjoy the tune a lot now.

It was never a real favorite of mine, but I think the lyrics are fun and funny, and it has a nice upbeat groove.

violetcrush said:

ThePanther said:

Since I first heard the tune when I was 11, until about a year or two ago, I quite disliked this song. I considered it one of two or three skippable tracks on Sign o' the Times. But now I think it's great! I'm not sure what changed for me, but I enjoy the tune a lot now.

It was never a real favorite of mine, but I think the lyrics are fun and funny, and it has a nice upbeat groove.

As with almost anything Prince has created, we just didn't fully realise at the time that it IS a great track, with a surreal atmosphere and multi-dimensional lyrics. The omnipresent background synth is out of this world; it starts with a hollow, echoey effect, then suddenly stops and starts again quieter and more distant this time, as Prince's voice comes in and the funk turns into rock. This is as if Prince - whispering: 'here we are folks' - is taking us to a secret place, concert or aftershow (or perhaps 'the dream'), creating intimacy and complicity between him and the listener. Genius.

[Edited 9/13/18 2:43am]

Slammin'.

CherryMoon57 said:

violetcrush said:

It was never a real favorite of mine, but I think the lyrics are fun and funny, and it has a nice upbeat groove.

As with almost anything Prince has created, we just didn't fully realise at the time that it IS a great track, with a surreal atmosphere and multi-dimensional lyrics.

The omnipresent background synth is out of this world; it starts with a hollow, echoey effect, then suddenly stops and starts again quieter and more distant this time, as Prince's voice comes in and the funk turns into rock. This is as if Prince - whispering: 'here we are folks' - is taking us to a secret place, concert or aftershow (or perhaps 'the dream'), creating intimacy and complicity between him and the listener. Genius.

[Edited 9/13/18 2:43am]

That "Madhouse" drone. It makes the full intro (underneath the flute, a third above, a fifth above...) coda of "8".
It's actually full of 9ths. or seconds, whatever.



But wasn't it a Synclavier or Fairlight synth preset?

[Edited 9/13/18 4:46am]

Me wanna 5 minutes of that coda, man.
Like the beast that got ouf the cage in "The Sex Of It",
like the fuzz from the "Paisley Park" instrumental remix version,
I just can't get enough.




Prince and Cat, June 1987,
Palais Omnisports de Paris Bercy,
from the video clip shooting.

bonatoc said:

CherryMoon57 said:

As with almost anything Prince has created, we just didn't fully realise at the time that it IS a great track, with a surreal atmosphere and multi-dimensional lyrics.

The omnipresent background synth is out of this world; it starts with a hollow, echoey effect, then suddenly stops and starts again quieter and more distant this time, as Prince's voice comes in and the funk turns into rock. This is as if Prince - whispering: 'here we are folks' - is taking us to a secret place, concert or aftershow (or perhaps 'the dream'), creating intimacy and complicity between him and the listener. Genius.

[Edited 9/13/18 2:43am]

That "Madhouse" drone. It makes the full intro (underneath the flute, a third above, a fifth above...) coda of "8".
It's actually full of 9ths. or seconds, whatever.



But wasn't it a Synclavier or Fairlight synth preset?

[Edited 9/13/18 4:46am]

Very close, but not quite... The one in U Got The Look is 'grander', I might try and find it on my own casio (CTK-6200) later.

bonatoc said:

Love that line!!!!

CherryMoon57 said:

bonatoc said:

That "Madhouse" drone. It makes the full intro (underneath the flute, a third above, a fifth above...) coda of "8".
It's actually full of 9ths. or seconds, whatever.

Very close, but not quite... The one in U Got The Look is 'grander', I might try and find it on my own casio (CTK-6200) later.

I can assure you it's the same sound, different notes and mix.
It appears on the 16 album as well.

Love this song! I prefer the non-fade version (I don't know if it's official or fan-made). Really like the 'banjo' version. Wish that would leak in better quality.

CherryMoon57 said:

jdcxc said:

CherryMoon57 said:

Great Thread. The Housequake 12” is a perfect funk/Jazz/JB concoction...one of his best remixes. Doesn’t get enough love on the Org!

I absolutely love the 7 minutes mo'quake. I wonder if there a connection between that track and Mica Paris' My One Temptation... Something about that trumpet is very similar.
(Edit: I just checked and they are two different trumpet players (Atlanta Bliss on Prince's track and Kevin Robinson from Simply Red on Mica's track, so no apparent connection)

[Edited 9/13/18 14:02pm]

Second edit: There is a slight trumpet connection after all, as Mica attended and sang at a Prince aftershow where Atlanta Bliss was playing... on 26 July 1988 am, at Camden Palace. The set list included Housequake. http://www.princevault.co...ly_1988-am

[Edited 9/13/18 15:10pm]

bonatoc said:

CherryMoon57 said:

Very close, but not quite... The one in U Got The Look is 'grander', I might try and find it on my own casio (CTK-6200) later.

I can assure you it's the same sound, different notes and mix.
It appears on the 16 album as well.

Ok I believe you

CherryMoon57 said:

violetcrush said:

It was never a real favorite of mine, but I think the lyrics are fun and funny, and it has a nice upbeat groove.

As with almost anything Prince has created, we just didn't fully realise at the time that it IS a great track, with a surreal atmosphere and multi-dimensional lyrics. The omnipresent background synth is out of this world; it starts with a hollow, echoey effect, then suddenly stops and starts again quieter and more distant this time, as Prince's voice comes in and the funk turns into rock. This is as if Prince - whispering: 'here we are folks' - is taking us to a secret place, concert or aftershow (or perhaps 'the dream'), creating intimacy and complicity between him and the listener. Genius.

[Edited 9/13/18 2:43am]

True. I think back then I was a bit thrown by the sped up voice. Also, now understand more the message of the song - him singing about realizing his girl, who loves to wear peach and black, is a "natural beauty", even when the bright club lights come on at closing time. She doesn't need any extra make-up.

SHEENA EASTON

She was the wee lassie who’d hit the big time with a Bond song. He was the pop genius who wrote her raciest hits. So were they lovers? After four doomed marriages, two adopted children and now a West End star turn, Sheena Easton finally reveals all about .

• Event
• 22 Jan 2017
• BY LOUISE GANNON

[Edited 9/14/18 15:43pm]

EmmaMcG said:

The Song Worst song on the album by far. The Video Passable but nothing special. The Awards I didn't even know it had any so that's news to me. The Look Sheena Easton did NOT have "The Look". Perhaps Prince was just too infatuated with her "Sugar Walls" to notice?

It was played on the radio constantly. Sheena was/is a beautiful woman. And, did you read the post above yours?? Prince was never interested in Sheena sexually. They wrote/recorded music together. That's all.

CherryMoon57 said:

SHEENA EASTON

She was the wee lassie who’d hit the big time with a Bond song. He was the pop genius who wrote her raciest hits. So were they lovers? After four doomed marriages, two adopted children and now a West End star turn, Sheena Easton finally reveals all about .

• Event
• 22 Jan 2017
• BY LOUISE GANNON

The Scots lassie who took the morning train to fame...

In another entertainment universe, before The X Factor was even a twinkle in Simon Cowell’s eyes, the life of a teenage Scottish drama student called Sheena Easton was changed forever by a groundbreaking Esther Rantzen documentary on fame, The Big Time.

Within days of the show airing in 1980, the little girl with the big voice, cute pixie face and ‘bloody awful perm’ was at the top of the charts. She was plastered on the front of every pop magazine, scooped every newcomer award and within months she was – incredibly – No 1 in America, too. It was the start of a staggering run of success that would lead to an Academy Award nomination for a James Bond theme, For Your Eyes Only, 20 million record sales and hit duets with Kenny Rogers and Prince, who was rumoured to be more than just a musical collaborator (more of which later). Easton also became the subject of salacious gossip concerning actor Don Johnson, after she costarred with him in an episode of Miami Vice.

British fans have heard little about Easton in over a decade – she decamped to America in 1981 – with many assuming she’d become a recluse, but now she’s back in London, ready to create a stir all over again, this time not in the pop charts but on the stage, as faded diva Dorothy Brock in a lavish new West End production of 42nd Street.

And it’s certainly no shrinking violet who strides into Event’s exclusive interview, looking rather spectacular in full make-up, tight plunging dress and teeteringly high heels. ‘A lot of slap, a bit of botox and a hell of a lot of front,’ she says, plumping up her generous cleavage. ‘It’s all natural, no plastic fantastic. The Orr women [Orr is her maiden name] all have a lot of frontage – and a lot of balls.’ And so begins a rollicking afternoon with an extraordinary woman who has made a career out of a killer voice, a lot of luck and endlessly defying expectations. Nothing is off limits today, as she talks about her astonishing whirlwind life – from her poor upbringing to her sudden fame, four disastrous marriages, her decision to adopt two children and the truth about her rumoured $40 million fortune.

But first, after decades of silence, she wants to set the record straight about her relationship with Prince, the man who she soared up the charts with on the 1987 hit, U Got The Look. ‘We were NOT lovers,’ she insists, ‘not for a moment. He used to love to take the p*** out of my Scottish accent and laugh at my song lyrics. But he loved my voice. We’d sit up through the night talking and recording songs. I’d moan and tell him I wish I could sing like Chaka Khan and he’d tell me my voice was like a bell. We were great mates, but sorry, never lovers. ‘I was, though, devastated when he died and even more devastated when I discovered how he died [an opiate overdose]. There were no drugs ever when I was around him. It wasn’t him at all, and I’ve always been totally anti-drugs. ‘I came up through the Eighties when there were blizzards of cocaine in the music industry. The amount of times back then that I worked with a record producer who’d disappear off to shove cocaine up his nose then come back and insist on re-recording something you’d just spent eight hours on – all because he was off his nut! Drugs waste time, waste lives. It wasn’t the Prince I knew.’ I read out an interview with the late singer’s limo driver, Al Bowman, in which he claims Prince drove Easton wild by going on a date, refusing to speak and insisting they ‘communicated with only their eyes’. ‘Utter rubbish,’ she laughs. ‘I’ve never heard of Al Bowman but believe me we talked all the time. What we did together was sing, which involves opening your mouth and communicating for a kick-off. ‘I once heard that Prince bought me an apartment in Paris. I did go to Paris with Prince to record the video for U Got The Look. But I never got an apartment. I wish I had. I loved Prince but there was never anything more than a proper friendship and an extraordinary working relationship.

He used to yank my chain all the time by giving me songs, making me sing them

before I’d even looked at them properly. Sometimes that would create a bit of magic.

‘U Got The Look happened because he made me sing before I knew where the beat went and my vocals are actually out of time – which he absolutely loved.’ And what about the very first song he wrote for her, Sugar Walls, which was banned because the lyrics were deemed so suggestive? She shrugs: ‘Well 99.9 percent of songs are written about sex. What does anyone think The Pointer Sisters’ Slow Hand is all about? Give me a break – this business is all about sex.’

Read the rest of the article here: https://www.pressreader.c...7118598196

[Edited 9/14/18 15:43pm]

Imagine how many women were rumored to have "hooked up" with Prince, and never actually did?? No question he was with many women, but I have no doubt that just as many were nothing but tabloid creations. He was very smart to stay mum about it though. More mystery = more fan interest

CherryMoon57 said:

It's too bad the image quality of the clip is so bad in the SOTT movie. I assume it was edited on a video editor while the rest of the film was edited on a flatbed.

Although IIWYG is my favourite, i think i listened to U Got The Look the most of the SOTT album.

The weird sounds, the slamming drum, the lyrics, sheena easton, great percussions, love everything about it!

violetcrush said:

^ I think Sheena's voice works well with the chemistry of the song, it add a certain intensity to it, and matches the sudden switch from Funk to Rock. I am not making claims that it is his 'best' song (that's all relative and personal) but it works for me, many others, including Prince who decided to put it on the album. As for the rest, that's just gossip!

purplefam99 said:

CherryMoon57 said:

SHEENA EASTON

She was the wee lassie who’d hit the big time with a Bond song. He was the pop genius who wrote her raciest hits. So were they lovers? After four doomed marriages, two adopted children and now a West End star turn, Sheena Easton finally reveals all about .

• Event
• 22 Jan 2017
• BY LOUISE GANNON

The Scots lassie who took the morning train to fame...

In another entertainment universe, before The X Factor was even a twinkle in Simon Cowell’s eyes, the life of a teenage Scottish drama student called Sheena Easton was changed forever by a groundbreaking Esther Rantzen documentary on fame, The Big Time.

Within days of the show airing in 1980, the little girl with the big voice, cute pixie face and ‘bloody awful perm’ was at the top of the charts. She was plastered on the front of every pop magazine, scooped every newcomer award and within months she was – incredibly – No 1 in America, too. It was the start of a staggering run of success that would lead to an Academy Award nomination for a James Bond theme, For Your Eyes Only, 20 million record sales and hit duets with Kenny Rogers and Prince, who was rumoured to be more than just a musical collaborator (more of which later). Easton also became the subject of salacious gossip concerning actor Don Johnson, after she costarred with him in an episode of Miami Vice.

British fans have heard little about Easton in over a decade – she decamped to America in 1981 – with many assuming she’d become a recluse, but now she’s back in London, ready to create a stir all over again, this time not in the pop charts but on the stage, as faded diva Dorothy Brock in a lavish new West End production of 42nd Street.

And it’s certainly no shrinking violet who strides into Event’s exclusive interview, looking rather spectacular in full make-up, tight plunging dress and teeteringly high heels. ‘A lot of slap, a bit of botox and a hell of a lot of front,’ she says, plumping up her generous cleavage. ‘It’s all natural, no plastic fantastic. The Orr women [Orr is her maiden name] all have a lot of frontage – and a lot of balls.’ And so begins a rollicking afternoon with an extraordinary woman who has made a career out of a killer voice, a lot of luck and endlessly defying expectations. Nothing is off limits today, as she talks about her astonishing whirlwind life – from her poor upbringing to her sudden fame, four disastrous marriages, her decision to adopt two children and the truth about her rumoured $40 million fortune.

But first, after decades of silence, she wants to set the record straight about her relationship with Prince, the man who she soared up the charts with on the 1987 hit, U Got The Look. ‘We were NOT lovers,’ she insists, ‘not for a moment. He used to love to take the p*** out of my Scottish accent and laugh at my song lyrics. But he loved my voice. We’d sit up through the night talking and recording songs. I’d moan and tell him I wish I could sing like Chaka Khan and he’d tell me my voice was like a bell. We were great mates, but sorry, never lovers. ‘I was, though, devastated when he died and even more devastated when I discovered how he died [an opiate overdose]. There were no drugs ever when I was around him. It wasn’t him at all, and I’ve always been totally anti-drugs. ‘I came up through the Eighties when there were blizzards of cocaine in the music industry. The amount of times back then that I worked with a record producer who’d disappear off to shove cocaine up his nose then come back and insist on re-recording something you’d just spent eight hours on – all because he was off his nut! Drugs waste time, waste lives. It wasn’t the Prince I knew.’ I read out an interview with the late singer’s limo driver, Al Bowman, in which he claims Prince drove Easton wild by going on a date, refusing to speak and insisting they ‘communicated with only their eyes’. ‘Utter rubbish,’ she laughs. ‘I’ve never heard of Al Bowman but believe me we talked all the time. What we did together was sing, which involves opening your mouth and communicating for a kick-off. ‘I once heard that Prince bought me an apartment in Paris. I did go to Paris with Prince to record the video for U Got The Look. But I never got an apartment. I wish I had. I loved Prince but there was never anything more than a proper friendship and an extraordinary working relationship.

He used to yank my chain all the time by giving me songs, making me sing them

before I’d even looked at them properly. Sometimes that would create a bit of magic.

‘U Got The Look happened because he made me sing before I knew where the beat went and my vocals are actually out of time – which he absolutely loved.’ And what about the very first song he wrote for her, Sugar Walls, which was banned because the lyrics were deemed so suggestive? She shrugs: ‘Well 99.9 percent of songs are written about sex. What does anyone think The Pointer Sisters’ Slow Hand is all about? Give me a break – this business is all about sex.’

Read the rest of the article here: https://www.pressreader.c...7118598196

[Edited 9/14/18 15:43pm]

She looks just like Vanity in this photo

Really?? I don't see Vanity at all in this picture.....

EmmaMcG said:

violetcrush said:

It was played on the radio constantly. Sheena was/is a beautiful woman. And, did you read the post above yours?? Prince was never interested in Sheena sexually. They wrote/recorded music together. That's all.

It could be played on a loop all year, it would still be the worst song on the album. I'm not saying Sheena wasn't a good looking woman. Yes, I read it. But I don't believe it. Of course she's going to say they never slept together. It wouldn't look good for her if it was known that he was only interested in her for reasons other than her singing ability. A lot of the women who have denied that they had sexual relationships with him are the same. They tend to be the less talented ones who feel like they've got something to prove. I don't believe them. And quite frankly, I'd be disappointed with Prince if he didn't have sex with them.

This is just you, like many of the fans then and now, feeding into the tabloid fiction. This is why tabloid mags and stories sell - many people just accept the rumors/gossip as fact. Sheena would have no reason not to be honest about a fling with Prince, especially at this point. If anything, it would benefit her in terms of publicity and media attention.

*

It's also a degrading mindset toward women - that they would have sex with him just because he's "Prince". It is actually possible that not all women were sexually attracted to him, and/or slept with him just because of his celebrity status. And on the flipside, I have no doubt that Prince was not always sexually attracted to every woman he worked with.

*

Prince was exremely smart with marketing music. He knew that Sheena, who, prior to recording his "dirty" songs, had a squeaky clean and cute public image, would attract serious attention by doing a 180 turn with her music style and songs - and he was 100% right. She was all over the media after she recorded Sugar Walls, and the record was slapped with a Parental Advisory sticker, which made her even more marketable to the teen fan base. Prince was a genius with this stuff back then.

violetcrush said:

EmmaMcG said:

violetcrush said:

This is just you, like many of the fans then and now, feeding into the tabloid fiction. This is why tabloid mags and stories sell - many people just accept the rumors/gossip as fact. Sheena would have no reason not to be honest about a fling with Prince, especially at this point. If anything, it would benefit her in terms of publicity and media attention.

*

It's also a degrading mindset toward women - that they would have sex with him just because he's "Prince". It is actually possible that not all women were sexually attracted to him, and/or slept with him just because of his celebrity status. And on the flipside, I have no doubt that Prince was not always sexually attracted to every woman he worked with.

*

Prince was exremely smart with marketing music. He knew that Sheena, who, prior to recording his "dirty" songs, had a squeaky clean and cute public image, would attract serious attention by doing a 180 turn with her music style and songs - and he was 100% right. She was all over the media after she recorded Sugar Walls, and the record was slapped with a Parental Advisory sticker, which made her even more marketable to the teen fan base. Prince was a genius with this stuff back then.

Where there's smoke there's fire. Besides, I prefer to think about Prince as a sex-crazed maniac. So I just automatically assume that he's slept with 90% of the women he's worked with. Especially the ones who had little to no talent. It's not degrading towards ALL women. Just the ones with no talent who fucked their way into the music business. And no, before anyone accuses me of aiming that towards Sheena Easton, I'm not. But to automatically buy into her denial of any affair is naive. It's not like Prince isn't known for this kind of thing. Prince was a genius when it comes to crafting great songs and albums. But I wouldn't say he was a genius when it comes to marketing. His music was arguably better than anything else in the charts but he had very few number ones.

Not a genius with marketing his music?? Were you around during the 80's???? Not referring to post 80's here. From 1980-1987-88, his marketing chops and musical choices moved him to the top of the mountain. The steady climb is clear if you review the charts back then. He also made The Time and Vanity 6 a success while they were together. In addition. he made top hits for Sheena, Chaka Khan, The Bangles, and I'm sure others that I'm not listing here.

*

HE WAS HUGE. Musically unstoppable during that time....

Exactly...and it's also possible that Prince and some of these women really were "just friends".Sheena says that they simply liked working together.No reason to believe that she's lying.I never believed for one second that Prince had sex with every woman that he ever worked with,lol.

violetcrush said:

It is actually possible that not all women were sexually attracted to him,