Miitch said:

2045RadicalMattZ said:

Always thought this one was self explanatory It's about an old (ugly) white broad (*cause she's Florence maybe... and she's "florescent" under the dirty lights) shacking and smacking with some young buck (*who's implied to be black) a giggolo. They're bonded in shitty matrimony....a culmination (*where POMP AND CIRCUMSTANCE are generally played) Though it's not a wedding theme, each is giving the other something they don't have on their own One has no money One has no flow (*rhythm, sex what have you) And the line is "who's screwing who if they're both getting something out of it? " Is she pimping him? Is he pimping her? Who's fucking over who if they're both getting what they "want" It's done in a jokey thing and the spoon is the contrast between an old ass mama feeding a young baby. (Think Airplane noises when feeding) Song about some nasty people with some nasty business but in it Prince is kinda indicating it's justified. Who's gonna judge if they're both getting a piece of the action? Isn't it clear as day? *the thing that intrigued me was the intro playing IF EYE WAS YOUR GIRLFRIEND. ....at the time i think he was mocking his old output along the same lines of the relationship covered in the song. He'd been delving away from cheap exploits in his songs and i thought the selective samples he played were telling

I know exactly what the SONG'S about. I just wanted to know what the "Coma" part of the TITLE is about. But thank you for confirming what I knew.

ah... thank y'all for the link about the supposed inspiration... Might have been! that Doris Duke thing is WAAAY before my time.... but for a guy to drop Dorothy Parker and potentially Doris Duke.. as well as album symbology, dude was eclectic

COMA... well... that always seemed to me to denote "her state" (dullness/nothing/no bedroom rhythm) to his "Pimp state" (rhythm/action in the bunk)... that was just my two cents...

Abrupt song sequencing and some strange mastering levels (as PAR for Prince in this era) but it was a damn great album. Good times. My first tour seeing the guy (couldn't get anyone to drive me to the HIT N RUN show at the Kodak)

Not too difficult:

Illusion - meaning fake, false, a front (by both players)

Coma - meaning both players in this (male gigolo and older, rich female) are numb to the situation (not willing to see it for what it is). Or in a coma about it.

Pimp - both sides pimping each other

Circumstance - both being fortunate to find each other at the right time to "play"

Miitch said:

WhisperingDandelions said:

I love the funk, but I find when the only positive descriptor/defense of a Prince track of questionable quality is "It's funky/fonky!" it usually leaves a tad more to desire... for me anyway.

[Edited 10/15/19 16:14pm]

I have plenty o reasons why this song is one of my personal faves, but I know that that defense seems to be a favourite on the org. I can give you some positive descriptors if you've got time...

Always got time for positive musical descriptors. This is one of the few Prince tracks I don't think I've ever made completely through the song.... musically, give me what you got.

[Edited 10/16/19 16:37pm]

RodeoSchro said:

No thread on ICPC is complete without mentioning that time The Chronic - he’s not too fine, he’s three fine - begged for the funk chords. This after telling us he was the best musician on the .Org, lol.

WhisperingDandelions said:

Well, here goes..


Since I had never listened to the album (meaning I've never heard any of the tracks, ever), I had no idea what to expect. When the song started, my first thought was "wtf is he doing?". The opening lines of the chorus are sung, unaccompanied, in an almost tuneless, yet mesmerisingly soulful style that caught my attention immediately. I knew I was going to enjoy it when I heard the catchy beat of the chorus' final line.

The smooth manner that he delivers the first verse with is a little different from the chorus, but the lyrics, and their meaning, are clear enough; this is Prince narrating a juicy bit of gossip, and, although his attitude suggests he's a little judgemental towards the whole affair, he can't help enjoying telling the story. You can hear him smirking with the lines, "As long as she was playin' the host,/ he figured he would make the most/ o' them hips and lips, he hooked her up/ wrapped her coast to coast".

The verses switch smoothly from melody to spoken lyrics and back, with Prince occasionally harmonising and overlapping with himself. The lyrics themselves are classically Prince; cleverly rhyming in an offbeat pattern, and intelligently balanced with smart wordplays that are almost expected of any Prince song, and very much appreciated. While the song isn't his best known, it's still an undeniable work of art.

Bass-wise, the song is simple, with its driving, easy-to-follow rhythm that's impossible not not to groove to, but, in terms of arrangement, it's cleverly structured. None of the verses are the same length, and, although the melody remains very much the same, the rhyming pattern is irregular, resulting in a song that's, at first glance, disorganized, but with another look, is well ordered. The verses, 1 to 3, are in descending order, longest to shortest, separated by a sturdily unchanging chorus.

The story that the song lays down is, by itself, a little comical, evoking images of Prince having a wild fling with some rich little old lady, but in context of the story of Doris Duke, gives some kind of a lightbulb moment; the story makes sense, and seems to point in a less haphazard direction.

The final chorus is accompanied by a short-but-rich few lines of ad-lib; Prince's inimitable vocals have the same raw, vintage record player feel as the opening chorus.
After the finishing line, "This is the story of illusion, coma, pimp and circumstance", comes a funky few bars of guitar solo, a much more down-to-earth arrangement of strumming and plucking than Prince's usual dramatically ethereal, wailing guitar work. It's by no means, less interesting, however, and brings a neat, if somewhat abrupt, ending to what I think is one of Prince's best and most underrated songs.

And that's what I mean when I say "it's funky".
[Edited 10/17/19 9:20am]

42Kristen said:

Its just his own version of The Glamorus Life.

She spent a $1000 at the salon just to get her hair done

He was good at compliments better in the bunk...

----

She threw him bread and said make me scream

In the dark what could he say?

2045RadicalMattZ said:

Always thought this one was self explanatory It's about an old (ugly) white broad (*cause she's Florence maybe... and she's "florescent" under the dirty lights) shacking and smacking with some young buck (*who's implied to be black) a giggolo. They're bonded in shitty matrimony....a culmination (*where POMP AND CIRCUMSTANCE are generally played) Though it's not a wedding theme, each is giving the other something they don't have on their own One has no money One has no flow (*rhythm, sex what have you) And the line is "who's screwing who if they're both getting something out of it? " Is she pimping him? Is he pimping her? Who's fucking over who if they're both getting what they "want" It's done in a jokey thing and the spoon is the contrast between an old ass mama feeding a young baby. (Think Airplane noises when feeding) Song about some nasty people with some nasty business but in it Prince is kinda indicating it's justified. Who's gonna judge if they're both getting a piece of the action? Isn't it clear as day? *the thing that intrigued me was the intro playing IF EYE WAS YOUR GIRLFRIEND. ....at the time i think he was mocking his old output along the same lines of the relationship covered in the song. He'd been delving away from cheap exploits in his songs and i thought the selective samples he played were telling

but isnt it veiled as a slam against WB?

jfenster said:

That's a point...