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Do Yourself a Favor One of my absolute fave Prince songs. Loved it for years and then to finally hear a crystal clear version on the 1999 deluxe.
THEN when this song came up on shuffle recently, a friend of mine told me its a Jesse Johnson song. I was like huh?? So I had to dust my old JJ cassette and sure enough its on there. I totally forgot about his version of this song. I haven't heard it in years. I think it was slower than Prince's version? I don't have a cassette player so can't listen now.
But my question did Prince or JJ write this? Or a collab like Jungle Love? Of course I could use the Google machine but also wanted to bring this great track some love... |
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the song has a long history,as explained by PrinceVault.....
Do Yourself A Favor - Prince Vault
It was first recorded by 94 East,titled "If You See Me".
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easily my fave from the "new" tracks on 1999 SD.
Prince really made it his own. | |
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I didn't know it was a cover, love the Prince version it's great it doesn't feel like a 9 minutes song. | |
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SoulAlive said: the song has a long history,as explained by PrinceVault.....
Do Yourself A Favor - Prince Vault
It was first recorded by 94 East,titled "If You See Me".
Additional info not on Pvault, from a Pepe Willie interview: the reason why Jesse got half the royalties and credit (including on 1999 SDE) is because he told Pepe he'd only record the song if he gets half the royalties. It was a better deal for Pepe than no release at all so he said yes. The arrangement is, of course, based on the then unreleased Prince version. A COMPREHENSIVE PRINCE DISCOGRAPHY (work in progress ^^): https://sites.google.com/...scography/ |
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the 94East version is the best version...Pepe Willie's voice and delivery is perfect for that song..and the original tempo and groove is more soulful... | |
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Having heard Prince's cover for so many years I'd have to agree the 94East version is superior. The soul on this is undeniable and while I dig P's approach, the original has a groove that is much more danceable and memorable for me.  | |
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There is also a pretty cool 12'' extended version by Jesse, strangely released on a single from his next album in 88 (can't remember which single right now). A COMPREHENSIVE PRINCE DISCOGRAPHY (work in progress ^^): https://sites.google.com/...scography/ |
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TheKid94 said:
Having heard Prince's cover for so many years I'd have to agree the 94East version is superior. The soul on this is undeniable and while I dig P's approach, the original has a groove that is much more danceable and memorable for me. Prince's rhythm guitar playing on the original is too funky...sounds like Al McKay from Earth Wind & Fire....the 2 remakes are clearly missing that essential ingredient | |
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MattyJam said:
no...the original is not on any Prince albums...its only on 94East albums or EPs | |
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MattyJam said:
It's Prince's version he reworked and recorded from memory. | |
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I think Prince version improves the original. Dont get me wrong, the 94 East version is good and has a nice 70s groove but Prince's rework is peak early 80s minnapolis sound. That keyboard riff takes me back home. [Edited 7/23/20 12:45pm] | |
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Thanks everyone for so much new information about this fab tune!
As I forgot about Jesse's version I also forgot about the 94 East version. Jesse's version is pretty good. I have 94 East on vinyl...had to dig a little to find it. That early version is def funky.
However,
Prince's version on 1999 SE will always be THE version for me as that is the one I fell in love with. |
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i always thought Prince should have had Owen and WB pay Pepe' for "Just Another Sucker" and released that as P's debut single (since they slept on "My Love Is Forever")...Prince (lyrics, guitar, drums & keyboards) and Andre (bass) doing most of work on the song anyway...the girls singing even sound like Prince. everytime i hear that song, i think its the greatest shit i ever heard... 94East had at least 6 or 7 joints that i still play to this day...i wonder why P cut him off so cold, when Pepe' was The Big Homie that helped him get his tiny feet wet [Edited 7/23/20 14:32pm] | |
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I think this song should have been recorded by The Time for their Ice Cream Castles album.To me,that album needs one more strong track and this would have fit perfectly. | |
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emesem said: I think Prince version improves the original. Dont get me wrong, the 94 East version is good and has a nice 70s groove but Prince's rework is peak early 80s minnapolis sound. That keyboard riff takes me back home. [Edited 7/23/20 12:45pm] Peak 80s MPLS sound with no Linn drum, scream, or falsetto? Hmm. The song is good, but I wouldn't call it peak anything. | |
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