So I have finally finished reading the unauthorised book, "Possessed" by Alex Hahn.(been really busy)

Did any of you read it and what did you think ? He(the author) obviously has his predjudices against Prince. He represented Uptown maganize, free of charge, when Prince sued them. Thats the source of the hostility.

I was able to dicifer the authors obvious personal problems with Prince and the statements made by former and current employees and bandmates.

Some things I found interesting>>

Prince's obvious drive for perfection and hardwork came from his father.

I was shocked to read that he is/was a a huge womanizer.

I thought for sure that there would be 1 or 2 stories about him being gay or having experimented with homosexuality, but I found quite the opposite, that he seems to dispise it and he wants Wendy and Lisa to denounce their sexuality before they get back together again.

I loved the early stories of his friendships with Morris Day, Andre Cymone, Brenda from Vanity 6 etc..

Prince has a terrible history of giving artist credit for their contributions, per Rosie Gaines.

It is very interesting to see how much time Prince spends out here in Los Angeles

The author didnt do much to hide his obvious hostilities against Prince. Those hostilities did indeed blur many facts like the number of albums sold and fans reactions to certain CD's released.

Overall I found it at least interesting,

What did you those that have read it, or parts of it think ?

P.S. Please spare the fan loyalty speeches and the psydo-phylisophical reason why you didnt read or buy the book, .we have heard them all. Just interested in comments from those that read it. Thanks.

bananacologne said:

be nice now, 'nana-dahling...this cat is a newbie.

but yeah, the book has been talked pretty much to death here in the past few months so it's pretty stale news by now. that, and it tends to rile some folks up as well.

bananacologne said:

Well i'm sorry to be behind your times, I will try to better to be more up on the requirement of being, "on top of things" Oh Yes, and I'm sorry that I cannot be as unsuprised about certain issues as you,,, my initial statement adressed my tardyness by stating :I Have Been busy...Nevertheless...It was my impression, after reading the book, that its was clear that he had more negative things to report about Prince than positive. He talks about how bad and unsuccessful the Come album was, selling only 130,000 copies when we all Know it is Certified Gold...He never address the charities Prince has donated to as well as the many impromptu donations and appearence he has made over the years..plus..common sense..the number of years he has been a bone fide celebrity..he has to have done many more postive things than mention. For instance, the fact that Prince made a playroom for Levi Seacer's 7yr old son when he won custody..stories like that also speak to the kind of person Prince was...but he then spends a page talking about Levi's abrupt departure from Paisley Park...there are numerous instances like that in the book.

and I'm sorry, u have not mentioned one source that "Purported" any of these issues to be true...so how about enligtening us with your sources...

And I'm not a newbie..but it's all good
[This message was edited Thu Oct 23 13:26:25 PDT 2003 by brobyn]

brobyn said:

what?

brobyn said:

yes that was my problem with the book. it didn't show prince's philanthropic side. it touched on a lot if not all of the negative aspects of prince's career.
there wasn't even no mention of Marva Collins, i think.

Handclapsfingasnapz said:

I'm not a newbie, I'm just trying to do the impossible and have an intelligent converstion, free from hostilty, arrognace and childish statements...I dont spend my life 24/7 on this site so if this issue has been beat to death...just dont respond..danggg is that so hard? But thanks for trying to look out

Milty said:

Thank you for your coolness, exactly, he obviously had problems with him. Were there things in there that suprised you ? The whole turmoil abouthis baby ? I know the baby died and the disease, but I did nt know abour Mytae's family tripping..
[This message was edited Thu Oct 23 13:35:04 PDT 2003 by brobyn]

Milty said:

I got a really negative vibe from Alex Hahn's writing. I read it fairly recently and there were so many moments as I got further into it, that I found myself chuckling and saying "Damn!" at some of the things he said. Some or maybe even most of it could be true, but it was just in his tone as he recalled Prince's "downward spiral" that made me laugh. I do believe many of the stories in the book though and can see why Prince gets a reputation for being a total dick at times and a complete control freak.

minneapolisgenius said:

Yeah me to, and again, thanks for being so cool. The entire tone of the book, you could tell, he had problems with Prince. The downward spiral that you point out. For some of us, like me, it has been anything but a downward spiral, I would describe it more as him evolving, making some youthful mistakes, as we all have and growing from them. unfortunatly for him(Prince) he was in such a powerful position for so long, those mistakes have cost him dearly, to the point where he is now known as a dick to some regard. I agree, I think I was able to seperate truth from hostile statements, but I too believe a lot of it to be true because he was good at documenting his sources. He never dwelled on the number of musicians and artist that Prince has helped upstart over the years,,,that was something significant that he only touched on,,Thanks..
[This message was edited Thu Oct 23 14:40:04 PDT 2003 by brobyn]

Don't anyone feel bad about just reading the book. I myself just finished the book a few hours ago. Like someone said, if you're tried of reading the thread, when you see anything that even looks like a book thread don't click on to it. You're going to have many people reading this not at the same time as everyone else. Some folks will pass it on to friends. Some will find it one day in the bargin bin on sale at their local bookstore. And once again someone who wants to discuss something will start a new thread. As long as there aren't 50 current threads on the same topic they should have that right to bring it up. If you grow weary of it, again, don't click on to it.

csharp57 said:

Thanks you Bro .Some people obviously have issues...What was your opinion of the book ?

bananacologne said:

[snippage! flame removed--Dansa]

Milty said:

that's what I was thinking...lol

DavidEye said:

Well , what I mean. i was suprised to see that he had soo many woman and cheated on them ya know , right in front of them...One in Minneapolis, One in L.A. etc...Rock star lifestyle I guess...I guess I just thought i would see one or 2 reports of him being gay..or having a gay experience... Stupid me i guess
[This message was edited Fri Oct 24 5:41:01 PDT 2003 by brobyn]

brobyn said:

r u gay ? , u seem 2 b quite concerned ! about p's bedroom antics.

in my opinion , he's simply a mad shagger ! and thats a great pastime !

danielboon said:

I am concerened about his bedroom antics, no, I am not gay amd I doesnt matter to me if someone is or is not.thanks or asking and what is a "madshagger"...
Where I grew up, Prince's sexuality was a big question and the book shed some suprising light on that issue and it wasnt what I expected...Soo no need to make it personal and involve my lifestyle in the question, but thanks for your atempt to respond to the question, I think

I read this book a couple months ago and thought it was way too negative. It did nothing to change my view of Prince or his music.

I thought it was nothing more than a can rag...aka something u read while on the can. DMSR was MUCH better since it focused more on the music imo.

Throwing a few facts together doesn't make it the truth. Hahn painted a picture, not a portrait of Prince but a characiture-- and a poor one at that. The fact that the book hasn't changed anybody's perspective on the man speaks of its value or lack thereof.

Most of us knew he could be a prick but we also know that there's a good side to him. The man Hahn gave us wouldn't be capable of making Lovesexy, Adore, etc.

What book were you reading??

There was no hostility toward Prince in that book.

Jeez the things people dream up.

whodknee said:

Yeah - what he said!

I spent some time composing a reply regarding this thread and my original post - but then scrapped it, cuz at the end of the day this whole thing just aint important in the scheme of things.

Its relative how any post is read on the org from one person 2 another. The fact this is the 1st truly negative response Ive ever had on here speaks enough. THAT arrogant enough 4 ya Vivid? I have 2 say though it was interesting 2 see the way this thread went once the ball was rolling... lots of barbs and jibes aimed my way. So I think if nothing else, u more than should feel vindicated now.

Anyway, sorry if u were offended Brobyn - no offense was meant.

It wasn't a personal attack. But if it had been, is that really all it takes 2 offend u? Surely not.

Unlike some gimps on here...

Vivid: whatever...

Such nastiness.

Number23 said:

It's just rock n roll Bob :Headbang:

PS: Always wanted an excuse 2 use that fucking avatar!


[This message was edited Fri Oct 24 12:14:02 PDT 2003 by bananacologne]

bananacologne said:

Hate breeds hate and the only love there is the love we make.

Number23 said:

Deep Dont u start!

bananacologne said:

You hate me.

Number23 said:

..But I love U...

bananacologne said:

Love is a transitory emotion, forever fleeting but always blazes intensely.
Written warning, banana. You may lose me forever next time.

Number23 said:

Soweee

PS: that's Banana - capital B. Thanx

bananacologne said:

I love you.