Is it true that in addition to the soundtrack Prince also did a film score? I have either imagined this or there was a Q&A with Danny Elfman where it was confirmed.

Ditto an extended version of the video for Kiss?

i always wanted to see the film with the original, old songs burton used until prince wrote new ones.

Danny Elfman on scoring B...d of time"

This proved a major bone of contention when Prince entered the equation. He had been hired to produce the soundtrack for the film as a Warner Bros artist, while Elfman was hired to write the score. The idea was suggested Prince could extend his remit into the latter.

"There was definitely this moment of, 'Danny we want you to collaborate with Prince and co-write the score.' And I go, 'I can't do that'. I love Prince but not for that score. I already knew what the score was and I knew that if I collaborated, he'd be writing tunes and I'd be orchestrating his tunes and I'd be essentially a glorified arranger, rather than a composer. Because he was world famous and I was still nothing."

Elfman insisted he needed to stick to his own vision for the score; a position that saw him temporarily walk away from the project.

FrankieCoco1 said:

A Prince engineer of the time, David Friedlander, discussed this in a Facebook exchange on Duane Tudahl’s sessions page a year or so ago. There was a viewing of a version of the film, at Paisley Park, with Prince’s Batman album music songs to the fore (plus the odd extra song or two, e.g. Dance with the Devil). When the actual film came out and Prince’s contribution were somewhat minimal, there was a bit of disappointment with the film by some of the Paisley staff who heard and saw the version with the Prince ‘score’ - score isn’t the right word, as it was Prince songs. Would be good to see that version though, if one still exists (may be Tim Burton had it wiped).

Thank you. I wasn't far off.

Good for Danny. Standing his ground literally made his career.

With how ill-fitting and converse to the film's tone Prince's soundtrack was to the actual film itself just imagine how jarring a Prince score would have been amidst Burton's stark gothic vision.

SCENE A dark knight, a silent protector tosses THIEF aside, casts a black shadow, zoom in to his dark, pensive, cold, penetrating eyes.

"I'm Batman" he says with a chill.

CUE 1960s Adam West TV show cheeseball theme riff as performed by PRINCE.


The surely incoming slew of posts from Prince fans wishing Prince would have done the score instead of that no talent hack Danny Elfman is why nobody takes us seriously, btw. Someone needed to remind Prince he wasn't composing the soundtrack to a Hanna Barbara cartoon. Shelving "Dance with the Devil" because it was "too dark," talk about completely missing the plot... literally the only song he had almost dark enough for the movie, "no way man, bad vibes, here's "Lemon Crush" instead, I think you'll find this one much more to your liking and taste, Mr. Burton. It fits in literally any scene to your movie. I wrote it from the perspective of Batman, see the liner notes."

[Edited 6/19/23 23:29pm]

Now I kinda want to make a fan edit and dub over some Prince Batman OST over the film to see this in action.

Like that scene where Bruce is all gothy weirdo in his basement Batcave watching partygoer's on his security cameras and sees Vicky Vale. "uh UHUUHh EVERY TIME I SEE YA, LEMON CRUSH".

Then we cut and do the scene where he shows up and interacts with her. Then as the scene ends and he looks back we fade it back in,
"THAT'S HER. Lemon crush."

"Batdance" would go perfect over the scene where he's fighting on top of the tower, obv. Right when Vicky starts trying to trick Joker we jump to the "VaVvVaVVVvvVICKY VALE" transition break.

"I LOVE BATMAaaaaa--"

cut

"Hey. you ever danced with the devil by the pale moonlight."

Mr. Burton, Mr. Prince sent a note asking if we could cut that particular line itself for being "too dark" as well..

FrankieCoco1 said:

A Prince engineer of the time, David Friedlander, discussed this in a Facebook exchange on Duane Tudahl’s sessions page a year or so ago. There was a viewing of a version of the film, at Paisley Park, with Prince’s Batman album music songs to the fore (plus the odd extra song or two, e.g. Dance with the Devil). When the actual film came out and Prince’s contribution were somewhat minimal, there was a bit of disappointment with the film by some of the Paisley staff who heard and saw the version with the Prince ‘score’ - score isn’t the right word, as it was Prince songs. Would be good to see that version though, if one still exists (may be Tim Burton had it wiped).

I think there was also some Eric Leeds/Madhouse outtakes mixed into it. On a old topic here it was told that Prince's Batman theme was a Madhouse track and there was a sample given to some of Prince's jazzed up version of the 60s TV show theme but unknown if this was ever concidered or used for the movie. Samples of it were used in Batdance.
I can't find the old post anymore here.

WhisperingDandelions said:

Good for Danny. Standing his ground literally made his career.

With how ill-fitting and converse to the film's tone Prince's soundtrack was to the actual film itself just imagine how jarring a Prince score would have been amidst Burton's stark gothic vision.

SCENE A dark knight, a silent protector tosses THIEF aside, casts a black shadow, zoom in to his dark, pensive, cold, penetrating eyes.

"I'm Batman" he says with a chill.

CUE 1960s Adam West TV show cheeseball theme riff as performed by PRINCE.


The surely incoming slew of posts from Prince fans wishing Prince would have done the score instead of that no talent hack Danny Elfman is why nobody takes us seriously, btw. Someone needed to remind Prince he wasn't composing the soundtrack to a Hanna Barbara cartoon. Shelving "Dance with the Devil" because it was "too dark," talk about completely missing the plot... literally the only song he had almost dark enough for the movie, "no way man, bad vibes, here's "Lemon Crush" instead, I think you'll find this one much more to your liking and taste, Mr. Burton. It fits in literally any scene to your movie. I wrote it from the perspective of Batman, see the liner notes."

[Edited 6/19/23 23:29pm]

The reason not to use Dance with The Devil was Burton not Prince.
There's a workprint of the movie with the track in it but Burton edited it out.

FrankieCoco1 said:

It was ‘19(Jailbait)’ that was used and became Prince’s ‘Batman Theme’ - it was eventually given to Miles Davis who played it live with his band several times and is on a posthumous release of his. A bit of the unreleased track ‘We Got the Power’ was supposedly mixed in at the end in the film edit. Dance With The Devil was put in the cathedral scene near the end. It was only a score in the sense of using songs of Prince’s as background music, not a score like Danny Elfman’s. However, I’ve not seen it, and don’t know if the Prince version exists still. Let’s hope so for when Batman SDE is released in about 20 years or never.

yes 19 it was, thanks!
The workprint with Dance WIth The Devil in it is circulating among some.

FrankieCoco1 said:

A Prince engineer of the time, David Friedlander, discussed this in a Facebook exchange on Duane Tudahl’s sessions page a year or so ago. There was a viewing of a version of the film, at Paisley Park, with Prince’s Batman album music songs to the fore (plus the odd extra song or two, e.g. Dance with the Devil). When the actual film came out and Prince’s contribution were somewhat minimal, there was a bit of disappointment with the film by some of the Paisley staff who heard and saw the version with the Prince ‘score’ - score isn’t the right word, as it was Prince songs. Would be good to see that version though, if one still exists (may be Tim Burton had it wiped).

yeah,if this version of the movie still exists,I would love to see it.

WhisperingDandelions said:

Okay, any takers for my second question regarding the video for Kiss?

FrankieCoco1 said:

A Prince engineer of the time, David Friedlander, discussed this in a Facebook exchange on Duane Tudahl’s sessions page a year or so ago. There was a viewing of a version of the film, at Paisley Park, with Prince’s Batman album music songs to the fore (plus the odd extra song or two, e.g. Dance with the Devil). When the actual film came out and Prince’s contribution were somewhat minimal, there was a bit of disappointment with the film by some of the Paisley staff who heard and saw the version with the Prince ‘score’ - score isn’t the right word, as it was Prince songs. Would be good to see that version though, if one still exists (may be Tim Burton had it wiped).

What do you mean Prince's contributions were somewhat minimal? Most of the album is in the film some have their own scenes where the music is prominent, others where it's more background based but almost the whole album is in it.

Unless youre talking an actual "score" then this is interesting....

rap said:

newpwrsoul said:

funkbabyandthebabysitters said:

Too dark?! How did prince end up getting into nine inch nails in the 90s?!

Every day was opposite day to Prince, c'mon now.

Same way the guy who personally shifted the entirety R&B and pop music construction into an emphasis on drum machines and synths became the poster boy for Anti Tech "only REAL music by REAL musicians," like a week later.

Batman was fresh off the bad vibes yellow smiley offering him two hits of ecstacy era that birthed Lovesexy. it never stood a chance.

WhisperingDandelions said:

londonmale said:

I don't know how to post photos, but there are 3 BATMAN related on the Offical Paisley Park Facebook page. Two in particular are interesting.

Jeff Katz must have a ton that have never been seen.

rap said:

No it's not. I've seen those. One is of him on rollerskates with the Batman top, the other of him on the set of the Partyman video standing beside Albert Magnoli??

Am3121 said:

rap said:

I don't know how to post photos, but there are 3 BATMAN related on the Offical Paisley Park Facebook page. Two in particular are interesting.

Jeff Katz must have a ton that have never been seen.

Is one of them prince visiting the set of Batman?

If you know how to post, please do.

noice, visual confirmation that he did in fact visit the set.

Even more so though how in the world is Prince up close and personal with Tim Burton's sleek goth dream land and like the caption bubble for Prince for that photo could literally be, "Guitar riff on the Adam West theme, stat."