Okay, so the letter may or may not be about/in response to a review concerning the Come album. What I think is interesting is the stuff about Camille... in the mid-90s (I assume the letter at least comes from that period) he's referring to Camille as a separate composer, whose songs are "without conscience or inhibition"--and while Camille hasn't been a particularly prolific aspect of 's creative output during that period, if he does show up in the studio it's important to "allow his 'voice.'" This is, to me, interesting... especially since it positions Camille as more an artistic attitude/approach than a studio/vocal effect, and I wonder what tracks might be Camille (since bringing him up at this point does suggest he is still a part of what the man is making, even if not as significant as he once was).

I have always felt the story of prince should be told in decades.
.
The 80s would be his zenith of course.
.

the 90's a bittersweet comedy. (I've read a lot of funny stories from this era)

.

and the 2000- his renaissance. He was a bad ass in the 2000,s

.

but 90's Prince is sad but hilarious.too.

.

macaylasdad said:

why did Prince always talk in "circles"?? Makes no sense.

"There is joy in repetition if one looks 4 joy. There can also be tension & discord. It's all up 2 the beholder. Every note—be it voice or instrument, every sound—be it human or inhuman is produced according 2 the way the producer feels. Many things contribute 2 that feeling. The climate, the time of day, the day itself. Dance music seems 2 find it's way into the studio during the weekend. The moon, the stars, everything plays a part. And there are no accidents. Tears are more believable when u can't hold them back. Here—music is made out of necessity. It's a fact a life. Just like breathing. The voice inside tells u when there is a song 2 be born. All children are born beautiful. How they are perceived by others may be another matter indeed. Much like an unborn child—A song is never conceived whole. That would be like taking dictation. Pleasure comes from not knowing what your baby's character will be like. Pleasure comes from the nurturing process. Whatever we are… whatever we make. On the days when Camille records, children are born without conscience or inhibition. It is important however 2 allow Camille his 'voice.' He hasn't been around lately. Positivity & negativity are always very close. The seeds we sow are the flowers that grow. Things are coming 2 a head. And not just 4 this generation. Believe that after it does there will be peace 4 a long time. Maybe not 4 everyone but 4 most. Hopefully more than not."

*

It makes complete sense if you really read the words and understand them in the context with which they were written. He was trying to explain his creative process - how he eat, sleeps and dreams music, and how the inspiration can come from any place at any time -

*

"Every sound, be it inhuman or human is produced according 2 the way the producer feels. Many things contribute 2 that feeling." Then he goes on to desribe the various things that can play a part in his process - climate, time of day, the moon, the stars, etc.

*

I also love how he explains that his music is made out of necessity - that he can't hold it back - just like breathing. Then he uses the analogy of a child being born to explain his development of a song - that all children are born beautiful regardless of how others may perceive them, and just like when a child is first conceived and develops over time in the womb, his songs are the same - they develop as he goes through the recording process. He would go on to describe his songs as "his children" throughout his life.

*

We know that the Come album was released much later than when all of the songs (with the exception of Let It Go) were first recorded, and several months prior to Prince changing his name. Most of that album seems to express loss of a loved one and his loneliness with the last song expressing his decision to let go of the past and attempt to move forward in a more positive way. So, I think this is where his comments about Camille come into play. It seems he was saying that his Camille persona/process was present during the time he was recording the songs for the Come album, but he had not been around lately. Prince would have written this letter after the release of the album - sometime after August 1994.

[Edited 7/10/19 9:18am]

TrivialPursuit said:

It's weird that Moon refers to "Space" as ".exhibit[ing] so little creativity." He says he wonders if that song (and "Loose!") wasn't created in between/during catnaps in the studio.

I suppose as a Prince fan, it's always a little tough to stay objective. It also feels harsh to state that "Space" is as medicore as he claims. For me, it's a highlight on the record. The letter, allegedly written to Moon, certainly shows just how much Prince felt passionate about Come, and the personal nuances on the album.

At least he didn't set the review on fire.

I agree - this was not a "contractual obligation" at all. The songs were important to Prince when he recorded them. It just appeared to the public to be unimportant to him back then, because by the time it was released he had already moved on to the Gold album. This whole period or phase had been finished for at least a year.

I love Space, Dark, Solo.....the whole album really. I think most of that album was him communicating to someone - expressing his feelings of loss and loneliness. It seems to have been a dark and troublesome period for him - both personally and professionally. I love that it's more "off the beaten path" in terms of style and sound.

*

I do find it fantastic that, however negatively his early-mid 90's releases were reviewed then, the overall opinions have become much more positive over time.

violetcrush said:

I agree - this was not a "contractual obligation" at all. The songs were important to Prince when he recorded them. It just appeared to the public to be unimportant to him back then, because by the time it was released he had already moved on to the Gold album. This whole period or phase had been finished for at least a year.

I'm not sure that's correct, per se. Remember, he wanted Come and The Gold Experience released side by side, to see which album - one by Prince, the other by - would sell better. WB refused to do that. The Gold Experience was released well after the fact (over a year), and he had moved on from that, nearing the end of his contract in 1996 (which was the next year). Come came out Aug 94, TGE is fall 95.

The Ultimate Live Experience highlighted songs from both albums. He almost solely relied on that material, plus "Pink Cashmere", "7", "I Love U In Me", and "Peach" being non-those-album tracks, and a couple of covers, as a setlist.

On The Late Show, Letterman said, "this album may never be released, which makes perfect sense he's promoting here tonight".

Prince fought to have TGE out more than he ever supported Come. Although, he lost interest in it as a whole by that time, too. The videos and such were probably shot early '94 (to be included with the BEAUTIFUL experience tv special which was taped February '94). He still used material from both for live appearances, too. Of course, he was mostly anti-Prince era music for a while.

I think every song is definitely important to Prince when he records them. Each of those two albums certainly has its own mood. If they had been released side by side, it would have really highlighted his Gemini beliefs in having two sides, one dark and moody, one more hopeful and funky. While I love Come, I do think TGE had stronger singles.

TrivialPursuit said:

nelcp777 said:

I wonder if the mass recordings Prince did was just to release it from his head and then just moved on to the next sound. Prince recorded, in my opinion, for that reason. Like voices in his head.

That appears to be the case based on many stories we have heard from his associates, girlfriends, etc, and also via his comments. He had stated, during one interview, that songs come to him while he's doing something as simple as brushig his teeth, and then he has to stop whatever he had planned and go record the song.

*

Susannah stated, during her interview with Toure, that he used the people and places around him to inspire his music - "what am I doing, and what are we doing in this moment that will inspire the music..?"

violetcrush said:

True points. There are many printed articles in that ‘94- early ‘95 period where he’s talking about not being able to release TGE - lots of pieces published while he was performing in the UK. Unfortunately, the journalists were more about mocking him because he had changed his name to the symbol and no one accepted or really understood his issues with WB.

Yeah, it's unfortunate that the name change became such a thing, but my God - what did he expect? That folks would just be like "Oh, fine, okay so how about the softball game last night, amirite??" If he had changed it to a Muslim name, it would have had lesser impact than that of a doodle. Muhammad Ali, and Cat Stevens faced little rebuff with a name change.

The mid-90s was such a rich period of music, like Come, and it did anger me on some levels that he did this name change thing (although I totally understood it and supported it). Because it detracted from his incredible array of work during '93-96. To me, it's as rich of a period as 83-87.

TrivialPursuit said:

violetcrush said:

True points. There are many printed articles in that ‘94- early ‘95 period where he’s talking about not being able to release TGE - lots of pieces published while he was performing in the UK. Unfortunately, the journalists were more about mocking him because he had changed his name to the symbol and no one accepted or really understood his issues with WB.

Yeah, it's unfortunate that the name change became such a thing, but my God - what did he expect? That folks would just be like "Oh, fine, okay so how about the softball game last night, amirite??" If he had changed it to a Muslim name, it would have had lesser impact than that of a doodle. Muhammad Ali, and Cat Stevens faced little rebuff with a name change.

The mid-90s was such a rich period of music, like Come, and it did anger me on some levels that he did this name change thing (although I totally understood it and supported it). Because it detracted from his incredible array of work during '93-96. To me, it's as rich of a period as 83-87.

Good for you for sticking with him during that time. I was one of those, "what the heck is he doing?", and "why is he trying to be a rap/hiphop guy now?" folks in the early 90's. I had moved into alt rock/pop (The Cure, The Smith's, REM, etc) so I guess I would have drifted anyway, but all of that stuff he was doing did not incent me to ride that crazy wave.

*

Of course, now I love a lot of his output from that time - not all of it for sure - but several tracks from each album back then.

violetcrush said:

nelcp777 said:

I wonder if the mass recordings Prince did was just to release it from his head and then just moved on to the next sound. Prince recorded, in my opinion, for that reason. Like voices in his head.

That appears to be the case based on many stories we have heard from his associates, girlfriends, etc, and also via his comments. He had stated, during one interview, that songs come to him while he's doing something as simple as brushig his teeth, and then he has to stop whatever he had planned and go record the song.

*

Susannah stated, during her interview with Toure, that he used the people and places around him to inspire his music - "what am I doing, and what are we doing in this moment that will inspire the music..?"

It was almost like a curse in some aspects. Prince's review of his performances were probably more for his improvement than the fans enjoyment. I do not mean that in a bad way. I just get the vibe that when Prince recorded the track, it was placed in the vault and forgotten. Later, he pulled stuff perhaps cos the sounds in his head reverted back.

I wonder if Prince even knew what all was in the vault. How did he function say if he was at an award show and a track came to him? Crazy.

violetcrush said:

TrivialPursuit said:

Yeah, it's unfortunate that the name change became such a thing, but my God - what did he expect? That folks would just be like "Oh, fine, okay so how about the softball game last night, amirite??" If he had changed it to a Muslim name, it would have had lesser impact than that of a doodle. Muhammad Ali, and Cat Stevens faced little rebuff with a name change.

The mid-90s was such a rich period of music, like Come, and it did anger me on some levels that he did this name change thing (although I totally understood it and supported it). Because it detracted from his incredible array of work during '93-96. To me, it's as rich of a period as 83-87.

Good for you for sticking with him during that time. I was one of those, "what the heck is he doing?", and "why is he trying to be a rap/hiphop guy now?" folks in the early 90's. I had moved into alt rock/pop (The Cure, The Smith's, REM, etc) so I guess I would have drifted anyway, but all of that stuff he was doing did not incent me to ride that crazy wave.

*

Of course, now I love a lot of his output from that time - not all of it for sure - but several tracks from each album back then.

I agree with Trivial's assessment. It was an equal period in creation and output. Prince could have handled the name change a lot better. I always liked his concept of releasing Come and TGE as competition. The albums complimented each other. I do not lilke the official releases though. I wish both were more "raw" and less polished like the various unreleased formats.

The battle for ownership was completely lost in the name change. I agree with his logic on his ownership pursuit. The legal complexities for an artist is overwhelming.

nelcp777 said:

violetcrush said:

That appears to be the case based on many stories we have heard from his associates, girlfriends, etc, and also via his comments. He had stated, during one interview, that songs come to him while he's doing something as simple as brushig his teeth, and then he has to stop whatever he had planned and go record the song.

*

Susannah stated, during her interview with Toure, that he used the people and places around him to inspire his music - "what am I doing, and what are we doing in this moment that will inspire the music..?"

It was almost like a curse in some aspects. Prince's review of his performances were probably more for his improvement than the fans enjoyment. I do not mean that in a bad way. I just get the vibe that when Prince recorded the track, it was placed in the vault and forgotten. Later, he pulled stuff perhaps cos the sounds in his head reverted back.

I wonder if Prince even knew what all was in the vault. How did he function say if he was at an award show and a track came to him? Crazy.

I think he knew most of what was in his Vault - only because, Hans Martin Buff, the engineer who produced the Crystal Ball record, stated that Prince gave him the list of songs that he wanted for that record. Hans took the list and then found the tapes in the Vault.

*

I would imagine it would have been hard for him to remember every single tape placed in the Vault, but I think he remembered those that were important and significant to him.

TrivialPursuit said:

violetcrush said:

I agree - this was not a "contractual obligation" at all. The songs were important to Prince when he recorded them. It just appeared to the public to be unimportant to him back then, because by the time it was released he had already moved on to the Gold album. This whole period or phase had been finished for at least a year.

I'm not sure that's correct, per se. Remember, he wanted Come and The Gold Experience released side by side, to see which album - one by Prince, the other by - would sell better. WB refused to do that. The Gold Experience was released well after the fact (over a year), and he had moved on from that, nearing the end of his contract in 1996 (which was the next year). Come came out Aug 94, TGE is fall 95.

The Ultimate Live Experience highlighted songs from both albums. He almost solely relied on that material, plus "Pink Cashmere", "7", "I Love U In Me", and "Peach" being non-those-album tracks, and a couple of covers, as a setlist.

On The Late Show, Letterman said, "this album may never be released, which makes perfect sense he's promoting here tonight".

Prince fought to have TGE out more than he ever supported Come. Although, he lost interest in it as a whole by that time, too. The videos and such were probably shot early '94 (to be included with the BEAUTIFUL experience tv special which was taped February '94). He still used material from both for live appearances, too. Of course, he was mostly anti-Prince era music for a while.

I think every song is definitely important to Prince when he records them. Each of those two albums certainly has its own mood. If they had been released side by side, it would have really highlighted his Gemini beliefs in having two sides, one dark and moody, one more hopeful and funky. While I love Come, I do think TGE had stronger singles.

I think Violet Crush may be correct. As I mentioned in an earlier post, I'm positive I read an interview with Prince where he talked about these two upcoming albums with staggered releases, and he made it clear to the interviewer that he thought Come was old news and was more excited to talk about TGE.

I'm still trying to find that interview.

Ugot2shakesumthin said:

I have always felt the story of prince should be told in decades.
.
The 80s would be his zenith of course.
.

the 90's a bittersweet comedy. (I've read a lot of funny stories from this era)

.

and the 2000- his renaissance. He was a bad ass in the 2000,s

.

but 90's Prince is sad but hilarious.too.

.

Agreed.

lurker316 said:

TrivialPursuit said:

I'm not sure that's correct, per se. Remember, he wanted Come and The Gold Experience released side by side, to see which album - one by Prince, the other by - would sell better. WB refused to do that. The Gold Experience was released well after the fact (over a year), and he had moved on from that, nearing the end of his contract in 1996 (which was the next year). Come came out Aug 94, TGE is fall 95.

The Ultimate Live Experience highlighted songs from both albums. He almost solely relied on that material, plus "Pink Cashmere", "7", "I Love U In Me", and "Peach" being non-those-album tracks, and a couple of covers, as a setlist.

On The Late Show, Letterman said, "this album may never be released, which makes perfect sense he's promoting here tonight".

Prince fought to have TGE out more than he ever supported Come. Although, he lost interest in it as a whole by that time, too. The videos and such were probably shot early '94 (to be included with the BEAUTIFUL experience tv special which was taped February '94). He still used material from both for live appearances, too. Of course, he was mostly anti-Prince era music for a while.

I think every song is definitely important to Prince when he records them. Each of those two albums certainly has its own mood. If they had been released side by side, it would have really highlighted his Gemini beliefs in having two sides, one dark and moody, one more hopeful and funky. While I love Come, I do think TGE had stronger singles.

I think Violet Crush may be correct. As I mentioned in an earlier post, I'm positive I read an interview with Prince where he talked about these two upcoming albums with staggered releases, and he made it clear to the interviewer that he thought Come was old news and was more excited to talk about TGE.

I'm still trying to find that interview.

Even though he was saying that in the press, as Trivial correctly states; he was playing Come tracks live mixed with Gold, Exodus, Undertaker and unreleased stuff like Days Of Wild, Funky Design, Acknowledge Me, etc

.

They were all mostly the same batch. Agree with Trivial again on 93-96. A real gold era. The name change fiasco did detract from it but got to say he had balls of steel

lurker316 said:

TrivialPursuit said:

I'm not sure that's correct, per se. Remember, he wanted Come and The Gold Experience released side by side, to see which album - one by Prince, the other by - would sell better. WB refused to do that. The Gold Experience was released well after the fact (over a year), and he had moved on from that, nearing the end of his contract in 1996 (which was the next year). Come came out Aug 94, TGE is fall 95.

The Ultimate Live Experience highlighted songs from both albums. He almost solely relied on that material, plus "Pink Cashmere", "7", "I Love U In Me", and "Peach" being non-those-album tracks, and a couple of covers, as a setlist.

On The Late Show, Letterman said, "this album may never be released, which makes perfect sense he's promoting here tonight".

Prince fought to have TGE out more than he ever supported Come. Although, he lost interest in it as a whole by that time, too. The videos and such were probably shot early '94 (to be included with the BEAUTIFUL experience tv special which was taped February '94). He still used material from both for live appearances, too. Of course, he was mostly anti-Prince era music for a while.

I think every song is definitely important to Prince when he records them. Each of those two albums certainly has its own mood. If they had been released side by side, it would have really highlighted his Gemini beliefs in having two sides, one dark and moody, one more hopeful and funky. While I love Come, I do think TGE had stronger singles.

I think Violet Crush may be correct. As I mentioned in an earlier post, I'm positive I read an interview with Prince where he talked about these two upcoming albums with staggered releases, and he made it clear to the interviewer that he thought Come was old news and was more excited to talk about TGE.

I'm still trying to find that interview.

Here is the time frame for recordings on Come and TGE from Princevault.com:

*

Come:

*

"Recording process

Most tracks on the album were recorded in the first half of 1993, although Race dates back to late 1991 (originally recorded during the album sessions, but re-worked in 1993), and the last track recorded for the album, Letitgo, was recorded in March 1994, nine months after Prince changed his name.

An initial configuration was made in March 1993 (although no album title was known for this configuration), and several other configurations are known to have been made throughout 1993 and early 1994 (see below).

In late 1993, the album's tracks were to have been merged into the planned 3-disc set The Dawn, but the album was later separated out again. Of note is that the 11 March 1994 configuration of the album, as submitted to Warner Bros., did not contain the title track. Warner Bros. responded by asking for Come and The Most Beautiful Girl In The World to be included, as well as two or three other strong tracks.

Prince delivered the final version of the album on 19 May 1994 (on the same day as delivering a configuration of The Gold Experience), having removedInteractive and Endorphinmachine (which he reasoned were recorded by , not Prince, and were included on The Gold Experience instead), but with the newly-recorded track Letitgo."

*

TGE:

*

"Recording process

While the bulk of the album was recorded in a condensed time period, between September 1993, and March 1994, some tracks date back to earlier recording sessions. Shhh had originally been recorded in mid-to-late June 1992 for use by Tevin Campbell, but the version included on The Gold Experience was a re-recording from early 1994.

Endorphinmachine and Dolphin were recorded in early January 1993. The Most Beautiful Girl In The World was recorded in late September 1993, soon after returned to Minneapolis from the Act II tour, and became the starting point when he began working on the album that would eventually becomeThe Gold Experience in October 1993. Now and Shy were recorded in early October 1993. 319, Billy Jack Bitch and Gold were recorded in late October 1993."

*

I guess it's hard to know for sure with these two, but it does seem that the tracks for Come were done in early 1993, and those for TGE were recorded in the Fall of 1993 - so about a 9 month window, which was huge for Prince.

*

I wasn't thinking about The Dawn though, which was the 3 disc compilation, and would have combined many of the tracks on both albums plus some extras. I'm guessing WB wasn't approving the 3 disc release, so then Prince set up the two albums. By the time all of this was recorded Prince had changed his name and gone into battle with WB, so Come was released during the time that Prince had intended for The Dawn to be released. TGE was complete by the time Come was released, and Prince wanted to release both at the same time, but WB would not allow it, which is why it sat for another year before finally being released Sept 1995.

*

WHAT A MESS!!! Reading all of this and looking at the history makes you feel for Prince and better understand his frustration with not being able to realize his full vision for all of this music. It was "Crystal Ball" all over again 7 yrs later. I do get the WB argument about "oversaturation" and the price point for a 3 disc set being too high, but clearly Prince had no control over these choices.

*

Nevertheless, it's understandable why he had moved on from these two albums by 1995 - even though he was performing the songs live. All of it was almost two years old by that point, and he was already looking forward to Emancipation.

I found this article/interview by Guitar World, which was published November 1994 - 3 months after Come was released.

*

Here is a chunk of the article which discusses The Undertaker and TGE. Earlier in the piece Michael Bland discusses the Come album and states that it came about during jam sessions with him, Sonny T and Prince over the holiday when Prince was bored (and probably lonely too based on the songs) and wanted to play/record songs.

*

Guitar World - November 11, 1994 - Alan Di Perna:

*

"Cut to 1994. After losing money for some time, the former Prince’s Paisley Park Records label (distributed by Warners) finally folds. Meanwhile the Artist Who Formerly Owned the Label, has at last three albums’ worth of material in the can. Warners says it will release only one. So what happens? The Artist announces that he is no longer Prince, that he has changed his name to . Thanks to a special dispensation from Warners, he is allowed to release his first work under his new identity—the hit single “The Most Beautiful Girl In The World"—on his newly created NPG label. The record is distributed not by Warners, but by a r&b entrepreneur All Beller’s Bellmark Records.

What will happen with The Undertaker? If Warners won’t release it, will they permit the Artist They Continue To Market As Prince to put it out on NPG/Bellmark? In other words, was “The Most Beautiful Girl In The World” deal a one-off courtesy or was it a precedent-setting policy move on Warners part? Apparently, lawyers and managers are ducking that out right now. Ask about the whole affair and you’ll get a characteristically enlightening answer.

GW: Will The Undertaker come out on your own NPG label?

: I don’t know. Levi runs the label.

Ask the same question to Levi Seacer and you don’t get much further: “As to when it’s gonna come out, I don’t know. The thing is that he’s always working on something. But I think this needs to be heard. “

If the controversy were only about some bonus jam-out disc, it wouldn’t be worth all the ink that’s already been spilled over it. But also in the can is a brand-new, full-fledged and the New Power Generation studio album called The Gold Experience, which was a much more deliberate effort than Come, says Michael Bland, who drummed on both discs. “I think wanted to write some strong songs that are classics”.

Hearing and the New Power Generation perform songs from The Gold Experience in concert, one is inclined to believe he succeeded. Songs like “Acknowledge Me” and “Days Of Wild” are stupefyingly funky—among the best stuff has recorded under any name. And yet, according to Bland, The Gold Experience will probably never see the light of day. is presently attempting to release it by himself. But his contract prohibits him from doing so. “There’s no release date,” says Bland. “We don’t know where it’s gonna go—except for into the hands of the fans. There’s a possibility that we might just give the record away. It’s about time that we actually gave something back to our fans who have supported us for so many years”. "
*

Link to full article: https://sites.google.com/...ember-1994

[Edited 7/12/19 9:49am]

good stuff, violetcrush. Love having new perspectives on the music/timelines/choices made

Thanks

[Edited 7/12/19 11:29am]

Here is some of Prince's interview with Alan Light and Vibe mag - Alan had met with Prince at various points from April 1993 to May 1994 and then published the whole thing August of 1994:

*

This bit is from May 1994 before Prince did his Stars-n-Bars show for Prince Albert in Monaco:

*

"There are three DO NOT DISTURB signs on the door. A desk and a white upright Yamaha piano face the floor-to-ceiling windows with a breathtaking view of the Mediterranean Sea. A bowl of Tootsie Pops and assorted sweets sits on a coffee table. Tostitos, Sun Chips, and newspapers lie scattered in the corners. 7Up fills the bar, and various colored cloths are draped over all the furniture in the room.

’s room in the Hôtel de Paris is fancy, if not exactly elegant. It is here that he wants me to check out two albums that may or may not see the light of day: the next Prince album, Come, scheduled for an August release, and the first collection, titled The Gold Album, both pressed on CDs with hand-drawn cover art. This time I’m the one fighting a cold, and he expresses concern, keeping the tea flowing, pouring for us both when it arrives.

First comes the Prince album, which includes “Endorphinmachine” and “Come” and a fleshed-out version of “Dark,” complete with a slinky horn arrangement that completes the sketch I heard a year before. skips back and forth between tracks. It all sounds strong – first-rate, even – but he seems impatient with it, like it’s old news.

The Gold Album is another matter. He lets the songs run, playing air guitar or noodling along at the piano. The songs are stripped-down, taut, funky as hell, full of sex and bite. “Days of Wild” is a dense, “Atomic Dog"-style jam with multiple, interlocking bass lines. “Now” (which he debuted on Soul Train this same week) is a bouncing party romp; “319” is rocking, roaring, and dirty; and “RIPOPGODAZIPPA” is just dirty. This album is more experimental, more surprising structurally and sonically. Hearing the two albums back-to-back, it’s clear that the Prince album may be more commercial than ’s, but it’s also more conventional – as conventional as he gets, anyway."
*

https://sites.google.com/site/prninterviews/home/vibe-august-1994

violetcrush said:

macaylasdad said:

why did Prince always talk in "circles"?? Makes no sense.

"There is joy in repetition if one looks 4 joy. There can also be tension & discord. It's all up 2 the beholder. Every note—be it voice or instrument, every sound—be it human or inhuman is produced according 2 the way the producer feels. Many things contribute 2 that feeling. The climate, the time of day, the day itself. Dance music seems 2 find it's way into the studio during the weekend. The moon, the stars, everything plays a part. And there are no accidents. Tears are more believable when u can't hold them back. Here—music is made out of necessity. It's a fact a life. Just like breathing. The voice inside tells u when there is a song 2 be born. All children are born beautiful. How they are perceived by others may be another matter indeed. Much like an unborn child—A song is never conceived whole. That would be like taking dictation. Pleasure comes from not knowing what your baby's character will be like. Pleasure comes from the nurturing process. Whatever we are… whatever we make. On the days when Camille records, children are born without conscience or inhibition. It is important however 2 allow Camille his 'voice.' He hasn't been around lately. Positivity & negativity are always very close. The seeds we sow are the flowers that grow. Things are coming 2 a head. And not just 4 this generation. Believe that after it does there will be peace 4 a long time. Maybe not 4 everyone but 4 most. Hopefully more than not."

*

It makes complete sense if you really read the words and understand them in the context with which they were written. He was trying to explain his creative process - how he eat, sleeps and dreams music, and how the inspiration can come from any place at any time -

*

"Every sound, be it inhuman or human is produced according 2 the way the producer feels. Many things contribute 2 that feeling." Then he goes on to desribe the various things that can play a part in his process - climate, time of day, the moon, the stars, etc.

*

I also love how he explains that his music is made out of necessity - that he can't hold it back - just like breathing. Then he uses the analogy of a child being born to explain his development of a song - that all children are born beautiful regardless of how others may perceive them, and just like when a child is first conceived and develops over time in the womb, his songs are the same - they develop as he goes through the recording process. He would go on to describe his songs as "his children" throughout his life.

*

We know that the Come album was released much later than when all of the songs (with the exception of Let It Go) were first recorded, and several months prior to Prince changing his name. Most of that album seems to express loss of a loved one and his loneliness with the last song expressing his decision to let go of the past and attempt to move forward in a more positive way. So, I think this is where his comments about Camille come into play. It seems he was saying that his Camille persona/process was present during the time he was recording the songs for the Come album, but he had not been around lately. Prince would have written this letter after the release of the album - sometime after August 1994.

[Edited 7/10/19 9:18am]

Great post!

lurker316 said:

I remember a magazine interview with Prince back in the early '90s where he mentioned that the next two albums he was releasing to fulfill his WB contract were Come and The Gold Experience. The interview said that Prince himself didn't seem overly excited about Come and thought that The Gold Experience was more original.

I remember that coloring my own percention when I bought the albums. If Prince thought TGE was better than Come, of course I was going to think so as well.

Of course Prince's mood at the time of the interview may have been due to the fact that, for him, Comes was already old news while TGE was fresh.

Anyway, I'm going to try to find that interview so I can cite it...

Back then,the big rumor was that Prince would give Warners his leftover throwaways from the vault (to fulfill his contractual obligations) and release his strong,inspired music (using the Symbol name) on his own,independently.Thus,the Come album is sometimes considered to be contractual filler.I don't know what the real situation was but that was such a crazy,wild era,lol.

SoulAlive said:

u can tell by his handwriting that he is of sound mind

macaylasdad said:

PennyPurple said:

bigtimefan said:

I wonder why Therese Stoulil had it, not that I know who she is, but I would assume she was told to mail it. And instead kept it all these years??? I can't imagine what it must have been like for Prince to take the time to correspond, give direction and most likely doesn't know it didn't get done/mailed. Thieves in the Temple.

That's what I was thinking too, just didn't want to be the one to say it.

Because she would take his handwritten letter, get it typed (or type it) on Paisley letterhead, and then the typed version would be mailed.

revox said:

PennyPurple said:

That's what I was thinking too, just didn't want to be the one to say it.

Because she would take his handwritten letter, get it typed (or type it) on Paisley letterhead, and then the typed version would be mailed.

But she didn't. Tom Moon said he never received the letter.