After Purple Rain it seemed Prince wantted to put guitar aside,making records that were less guitar oriented and realising singles with no guitar.

as a result audince forgot that Prince is a guitar player .

Why he did shy away from guitar? was it because he was accused that he sold out to white rock audiance???

it was strtange because a few insiders said that Prince always wanted to be known as a great guitar player

thebanishedone said:

I think the OP has a point. In the immediately aftermath of Purple Rain it does seem like he shied away from it a bit. It's a bit hard to judge the ATWIAD era because he didn't tour, but with respect to the album Temptation was the only guitar-driven song. Paisley Park had a decent guitar, but it was low in the mix.
.
During the Parade era guitar was de-emphasized both on the album and in his live performances. In concert he was more interested in dancing than playing guitar. Isn't that why he expanded The Revolution during the Parade tour and added Miko Weaver, to take the lead while Wendy played rythym?

.

But then during the SOTT era he went back to the guitar in a big way. I remember watching him play on the MTV Music Awards in 1987 and debuting his new post-Revoution band. The performance started off with a blistering guitar and never let up. I was suprised by the contrast to the Parade era which was still fresh in my memory.

.

My point being, I think he did shy away from it a bit in the immediately aftermath of Purple Rain, but only for a very brief time. And as the other poster pointed out, I think it was more him trying to change in his image from Purple Rain in general, rather than his having a specific issue with the guitar.

lurker316 said:

I think the OP has a point. In the immediately aftermath of Purple Rain it does seem like he shied away from it a bit. It's a bit hard to judge the ATWIAD era because he didn't tour, but with respect to the album Temptation was the only guitar-driven song. Paisley Park had a decent guitar, but it was low in the mix.
.
During the Parade era guitar was de-emphasized both on the album and in his live performances. In concert he was more interested in dancing than playing guitar. Isn't that why he expanded The Revolution during the Parade tour and added Miko Weaver, to take the lead while Wendy played rythym?

.

But then during the SOTT era he went back to the guitar in a big way. I remember watching him play on the MTV Music Awards in 1987 and debuting his new post-Revoution band. The performance started off with a blistering guitar and never let up. I was suprised by the contrast to the Parade era which was still fresh in my memory.

.

My point being, I think he did shy away from it a bit in the immediately aftermath of Purple Rain, but only for a very brief time. And as the other poster pointed out, I think it was more him trying to change in his image from Purple Rain in general, rather than his having a specific issue with the guitar.

thebanishedone said:

After Purple Rain it seemed Prince wantted to put guitar aside,making records that were less guitar oriented and realising singles with no guitar.

as a result audince forgot that Prince is a guitar player .

Why he did shy away from guitar? was it because he was accused that he sold out to white rock audiance???

it was strtange because a few insiders said that Prince always wanted to be known as a great guitar player

.

Nonsense.
Prince had records that weren't guitar-oriented before PR too, and he continued to feature his guitar playing on later records too and especially live.
Ever heard 'Temptation', for example? The next album after 'Purple Rain'...
.
And you say he "shied away" from playing guitar? LOL. Seriously? That man was anything but shy about his musicianship, on and off stage.

That's what Prince almost always did - follow up an album with something completely different. He could play so many differnet instruments and play so many kinds of music he didn't want to limit himself to one area.

thebanishedone said:

lurker316 said:

I think the OP has a point. In the immediately aftermath of Purple Rain it does seem like he shied away from it a bit. It's a bit hard to judge the ATWIAD era because he didn't tour, but with respect to the album Temptation was the only guitar-driven song. Paisley Park had a decent guitar, but it was low in the mix.
.
During the Parade era guitar was de-emphasized both on the album and in his live performances. In concert he was more interested in dancing than playing guitar. Isn't that why he expanded The Revolution during the Parade tour and added Miko Weaver, to take the lead while Wendy played rythym?

.

But then during the SOTT era he went back to the guitar in a big way. I remember watching him play on the MTV Music Awards in 1987 and debuting his new post-Revoution band. The performance started off with a blistering guitar and never let up. I was suprised by the contrast to the Parade era which was still fresh in my memory.

.

My point being, I think he did shy away from it a bit in the immediately aftermath of Purple Rain, but only for a very brief time. And as the other poster pointed out, I think it was more him trying to change in his image from Purple Rain in general, rather than his having a specific issue with the guitar.

i think its more than for awhile. Prince didnt release guitar oriented single until 1991 and even after focus wasnt on guitar. in the 90s a lot of people didnt even know that Prince is a guitar player. he recovered after 2004 rnr hall performance of the Beatles song

Nonsense. Have you ever watched the Sign O The Times movie?

If only Kiss had a hooky guitar part to it, it mighta been a contenda!

IIRC, during the "Parade" tour the only time he touched a guitar was to play "Purple Rain".

RodeoSchro said:

IIRC, during the "Parade" tour the only time he touched a guitar was to play "Purple Rain".

He very occasionally played guitar (improvisational licks) as he chanced upon it on the stage at the end of the 'Electric Man' performances after 'Head'.

Prince never shied away from the guitar.

If he wrote a track without Guitar...........it wasn't with intent 2 ignore the instrument.

It is was the song required in his arrangement.

PliablyPurple said:

If only Kiss had a hooky guitar part to it, it mighta been a contenda!

langebleu said:

RodeoSchro said:

IIRC, during the "Parade" tour the only time he touched a guitar was to play "Purple Rain".

He very occasionally played guitar (improvisational licks) as he chanced upon it on the stage at the end of the 'Electric Man' performances after 'Head'.

Kares said:

thebanishedone said:

After Purple Rain it seemed Prince wantted to put guitar aside,making records that were less guitar oriented and realising singles with no guitar.

as a result audince forgot that Prince is a guitar player .

Why he did shy away from guitar? was it because he was accused that he sold out to white rock audiance???

it was strtange because a few insiders said that Prince always wanted to be known as a great guitar player

.

Nonsense.
Prince had records that weren't guitar-oriented before PR too, and he continued to feature his guitar playing on later records too and especially live.
Ever heard 'Temptation', for example? The next album after 'Purple Rain'...
.
And you say he "shied away" from playing guitar? LOL. Seriously? That man was anything but shy about his musicianship, on and off stage.

Of course Prince had non guitar oriented stuff b4 Purple Rain but did you know

that audience and critics was schocked when they have seen Prince on Prince Rick James

support tour because most of the stuff live was guitar heavy in almost

heavy metal kind of way.

if you listened or seen videos of Dirty Mind Controversy tours

you could notice that 90 %of the time Prince had guitar in his arms.

On 1999 tour he reduced his role to a rhythm guitar player ,giving instead lead duties to Dez and he focused on dancing and singing.

he revived guitar hero image with Purple Rain tour but after that from

1986 up to early 2000 Prince played guitar far less than he did in

the early Dirty Mind COntrovesy days and after retiring his dance theatrictics he return to guitar .

But after Purple Rain majority of his singles were non guitar based and live guitar was more an afterthought ,it wasnt his main focus until latter on in his career.

I always wished he'd put his guitar out front more, TBH, and was continually let down at how much he buried it in his mix. Prime example: look at the SNL performance of "Fury" compared to what wound up on the album.

I honestly don't think it was a deliberate move on Prince's part. I think he had SO MUCH music running through his head, cut tracks so fast and was so adept at so many different styles and instruments that he just recorded whatever was bouncing in that head that day and moved on.

But it's weird and telling that so many non followers were shocked and stunned by the R&RHoF and Super Bowl performances. If you take his popular hits, the only one with the axe out there was "Let's Go Crazy" and even that wasn't front and center, relegating itself to a riff and a solo at the end. There's some great guitar work on the 1999 album that one has to really seek to find, like the blistering, raw stuff in Lady Cab Driver, for instance.

Your average person, not on this board, has never heard The Undertaker tracks, The Ride or even Joy in Repetition. Or, for that matter, The Truth. He was an absolute God on the axe IMO but hid it behind the Paisley bushes for some reason. Other players knew it but no one who owns "The Hits and the B-SIdes" really did. I've laid "Motherless Child", "Joy in Repetition" (from ONA "It Aint Over"), "Bambi" and "The Ride" from The Undertaker and the last 3rd of "Last December" and other parts of the Rainbow Children on non believers they've actually said to me "that's not Prince", "I didn't know he could do that" or otherwise doubted it was him actually playing.

For the people bringing up "Parade" that's a great point and I never thought about it. I like the album but not as much as some do, who often consider it his best, and the only guitar focused thing on the whole release is the intro to "Anotherloverholeinyohead".

Even SoTT doesn't put that axe out front like it should be and, again, when he DID feature it (like in the early 90's - Gold), the studio releases we got were always watered down and just...not as impressive. Again, "Fury" is the best example I can think of.

Good thread topic.

herb4 said:

For the people bringing up "Parade" that's a great point and I never thought about it. I like the album but not as much as some do, who often consider it his best, and the only guitar focused thing on the whole release is the intro to "Anotherloverholeinyohead".

Even SoTT doesn't put that axe out front like it should be and, again, when he DID feature it (like in the early 90's - Gold), the studio releases we got were always watered down and just...not as impressive. Again, "Fury" is the best example I can think of.

Good thread topic.

herb intro to Another lover is synth no guitar

you have guitar on Girls And Boys

on a good day on live Parade concerts you had Prince playing guitar on The Dance Electric,America,ending of Head and Purple Rain

herb4 said:

I always wished he'd put his guitar out front more, TBH, and was continually let down at how much he buried it in his mix. Prime example: look at the SNL performance of "Fury" compared to what wound up on the album.

I honestly don't think it was a deliberate move on Prince's part. I think he had SO MUCH music running through his head, cut tracks so fast and was so adept at so many different styles and instruments that he just recorded whatever was bouncing in that head that day and moved on.

But it's weird and telling that so many non followers were shocked and stunned by the R&RHoF and Super Bowl performances. If you take his popular hits, the only one with the axe out there was "Let's Go Crazy" and even that wasn't front and center, relegating itself to a riff and a solo at the end. There's some great guitar work on the 1999 album that one has to really seek to find, like the blistering, raw stuff in Lady Cab Driver, for instance.

Your average person, not on this board, has never heard The Undertaker tracks, The Ride or even Joy in Repetition. Or, for that matter, The Truth. He was an absolute God on the axe IMO but hid it behind the Paisley bushes for some reason. Other players knew it but no one who owns "The Hits and the B-SIdes" really did. I've laid "Motherless Child", "Joy in Repetition" (from ONA "It Aint Over"), "Bambi" and "The Ride" from The Undertaker and the last 3rd of "Last December" and other parts of the Rainbow Children on non believers they've actually said to me "that's not Prince", "I didn't know he could do that" or otherwise doubted it was him actually playing.

Exactly!

I hold jam sessions at my house from time to time and have some pros show up. Guys that played with people like Willie Nelson, Billy Gibbons, etc. Real rock and rollers.

One night during the intermission dinner, I had some music on, and up came "Fury". All the dudes stopped eating and said, "Who is THAT?!?!" LOL, they had no idea but boy were they blown away!

According to Wendy, the intro to "Anotherloverhole" was played on a Roland G707 electric synth/guitar. She said the thing was a bitch to play live because of the "string/pitch" issues......I think the smartest thing P did after "P.R/A.T.W.I.A.D" was get into the soul/funk sound for "Parade".....By the time that came out, all of the other R&B bands seemed still stuck in 1984 (looks and soundwise)...Plus we all know that midway through the "P.R." tour P was bored and was ready to move foward....Was it also a plan to get back his black audience that said he sold out?...Maybe.

SPYZFAN1 said:

According to Wendy, the intro to "Anotherloverhole" was played on a Roland G707 electric synth/guitar. She said the thing was a bitch to play live because of the "string/pitch" issues......I think the smartest thing P did after "P.R/A.T.W.I.A.D" was get into the soul/funk sound for "Parade".....By the time that came out, all of the other R&B bands seemed still stuck in 1984 (looks and soundwise)...Plus we all know that midway through the "P.R." tour P was bored and was ready to move foward....Was it also a plan to get back his black audience that said he sold out?...Maybe.

thank u for the info.

very well said.

Don't think he chased "Guitar hero image", don't think chasing was his style. Too much music to make. Prince played it just right - tasty.

Personally, nothing sends me out of a club faster than the "blistering" sound of someone attacking his axe for too long, loud, noodling guitar solos that are supposed to make us all awestruck with technique and "feeling". My ex was in a very good guitar player's band. He pointed out to me there were mostly guys in the audience after the hundredth scathing guitar solo - no chicks, very little dancing. And he was right - all basement warriors playing air guitar if they moved at all.

Luckily I live somewhere where many other instruments are allowed to take center stage, but I always notice it when I leave the swamp.

Prince even did a whole tour without guitar(s) in 2016!

Do not look at songs like poured in concrete; he liked to vary with how they were performed.

SPYZFAN1 said:

According to Wendy, the intro to "Anotherloverhole" was played on a Roland G707 electric synth/guitar. She said the thing was a bitch to play live because of the "string/pitch" issues......I think the smartest thing P did after "P.R/A.T.W.I.A.D" was get into the soul/funk sound for "Parade".....By the time that came out, all of the other R&B bands seemed still stuck in 1984 (looks and soundwise)...Plus we all know that midway through the "P.R." tour P was bored and was ready to move foward....Was it also a plan to get back his black audience that said he sold out?...Maybe.

Great points.

I think he was searching for something new with Parade. Not only a radical departure from his last two albums, but a "new funk" (to quote from "New Position"). And maybe it was a plan to gain back black audiences that (at least anecdotally) had begun to trail off around Purple Rain.

He said he always wanted be known as a guitarist in the Guitar Magazine interview from the early 90s.

I don't think he wanted to move away from being a guitar hero

I think he played a little less during the Parade era, because the expanded band set, but if the Family broke up we probably would have seen him with his guitars more.

I also think during the Parade era he initially wanted to be exposed more as a pianist like Christopher Tracey. As the Kid in PR was more guitar focused.

If Under the Cherry Moon was a different movie and much more successful we definately would have had a different time line 1986-1988

thebanishedone said:

lurker316 said:

I think the OP has a point. In the immediately aftermath of Purple Rain it does seem like he shied away from it a bit. It's a bit hard to judge the ATWIAD era because he didn't tour, but with respect to the album Temptation was the only guitar-driven song. Paisley Park had a decent guitar, but it was low in the mix.
.
During the Parade era guitar was de-emphasized both on the album and in his live performances. In concert he was more interested in dancing than playing guitar. Isn't that why he expanded The Revolution during the Parade tour and added Miko Weaver, to take the lead while Wendy played rythym?

.

But then during the SOTT era he went back to the guitar in a big way. I remember watching him play on the MTV Music Awards in 1987 and debuting his new post-Revoution band. The performance started off with a blistering guitar and never let up. I was suprised by the contrast to the Parade era which was still fresh in my memory.

.

My point being, I think he did shy away from it a bit in the immediately aftermath of Purple Rain, but only for a very brief time. And as the other poster pointed out, I think it was more him trying to change in his image from Purple Rain in general, rather than his having a specific issue with the guitar.

i think its more than for awhile. Prince didnt release guitar oriented single until 1991 and even after focus wasnt on guitar. in the 90s a lot of people didnt even know that Prince is a guitar player. he recovered after 2004 rnr hall performance of the Beatles song

"I could Never Take the place of your man" from 1987. Not guitar oriented?

Yeah, it must have been a ukulele in Let's Go Crazy.

poppys said:

Don't think he chased "Guitar hero image", don't think chasing was his style. Too much music to make. Prince played it just right - tasty.

Personally, nothing sends me out of a club faster than the "blistering" sound of someone attacking his axe for too long, loud, noodling guitar solos that are supposed to make us all awestruck with technique and "feeling". My ex was in a very good guitar player's band. He pointed out to me there were mostly guys in the audience after the hundredth scathing guitar solo - no chicks, very little dancing. And he was right - all basement warriors playing air guitar if they moved at all.

Luckily I live somewhere where many other instruments are allowed to take center stage, but I always notice it when I leave the swamp.

I dunno. That's mostly true but i've seen Buckethead do that for 90 minutes about 5 or 6 times and am blown away every time.

I didn't know that about Anotherloverholeinyourhead so thanks to the posters who threw that info out there.

lurker316 said:

Yeah, it must have been a ukulele in Let's Go Crazy.

Yeah, I was gonna say. Let's Go Crazy is a very "guitar oriented" song. So are "I Could Never Take the PLace of Your Man" and "U Got the Look" (to a degree) but, by and large, it's true. Prince didn't tend to feature the axe too much in his singles. Or even his albums for that matter save a couple of them. I think to him it was just one instrument out of many that make a song and being a "guitar god" wasn't really his focus.

People in the know knew though, or at least eventually learned. You can always...ALWAYS...find a Prince song or three to play for a doubter depending on their taste. I have a co-worker who digs electronica and have caught him by surprise a few times. Dude could do it all.

I remember learning he was releasing a song called "Guitar" and I was excited. Then I heard it and was like "oh...so...an 'I Will Follow' intro riff followed by very little guitar". Lame.