This full-scale biography of Prince created quite a stir on the org and among Prince fans when it was released in hardcover, and it's just been released in paperback. I've also made changes to my website, www.princepossessed.com, including comments about what Prince's 2004 comeback means for Possessed. The book is now in stores and also available on amazon.com and bn.com.

Alex,

i wonder if you've read some of the less than positive reviews of your book? A lot of reviews question your sources. The opening situation you describe in the book is particularly questioned.

Alex,

I clicked on the link to your website and it appears to be down.

Is the address correct?

Thanks,

Justin.

I just read the update on Alex Hahn's site...at least the dude isn't biased.

If Prince's 'return' 'comeback' 'resurface' (whatever you wanna call it) was predicted by the author. I believe it would have totally changed the dynamics of the text extensively, even down to the very title of the book. To call it "The Rise and Fall..." surely implies a decline in his career (which has been debated here). Because of Prince's 'commercial' return, it kinda ruins the credibility of the text down to the title of it.

I guess what I'm saying is; Prince is getting the last laugh, all while doing such incredible things in the media nowadays that kinda says "Fuck you!" to all the critics, haters, supposed victims, and bitter ex-associates.

just my couple of cents

TheBluePrince said:

True, except Prince is probably saying "duck you"

I think it's a shame that with so much that can be explored in Prince's life and career lately - the whole comeback zeitgeist, the goings-on at NPGMC, Prince's move to Canada, the alleged smoothing-over of his feud with WB - Hahn chooses instead to complain about how P is getting more conservative and likes to write "boring songs about monogamy" (which he was doin' over a decade ago, if ya think about it - check out the b-side of 'Scandalous').

If I had his resources and potential audience and gave two shits about writing an interesting Prince biography, I'd hope I'd get over my own petty opinions and get to the meat.

But that's just me.

I guess since his profile is higher. U will take the oppurtunity to try and make some more money of the "fallin" superstar. Well i'm not buying your book. Even your lil appendum on the current "rise" of prince is self-serving. So Prince should sing "head" even though he no longer has the same moral views he once had? How stupid is that? If u had any respect for Prince as a man u would not want him to do things that go against his moral views whether u agree with those views or not. I guess for u his entertaining u is more important than his staying true to his beliefs. Pretty selfish of u. If u can't see TRC or N.E.W.S as Prince pushing his musical envelope regardless of whether u like the music or not u really are not really listening objectively. There is absolutely nothing in his prior catalog that prepares one for the totality of what TRC or NEWS presents. That sir is growth. Its just a shame u can't get oustide of your own musical prejudices to hear it. Hopefully in the future a more objective biographer will approach Prince and his work without resorting to narrow adjectives like "rise" and "fall".

Anxiety said:

yup. "The Fall"? That shit was crazy when it came out, and now it is laughable.

He needs to tack on the word "Fan" at the end of the title cuz that's what his book is about.

Like tricky said... I guess you gonna do your very best to ride Prince's re-rise as much as you can.

I wrote a review of Possessed for the Metro Times in Detroit. Like Hahn, I was also very disillusioned with Prince's career...but even more disillusioned with the fact that a hack like Hahn has found such extensive work as a journalist. He misspells names, gets facts wrong...and REALLY stumbles when he tries to play music critic.

Alex, baby, I hate to be a prick...but Possessed really made you look bad.


WOW. I just did my first "flaming" ever. And Ive been an Orger since 96!

AlexHahn said:

surprisingly
no
lyrical
response
to
the
book
in
Musicology

I don't want to blast the guy completely - I mean, kudos to him for getting a book published and all - but it's frustrating to see someone who seems very clearly to be a fan, yet can't get over his own "issues" with Prince's direction enough to focus on researching what could be some very interesting, rarely-explored topics. He wants more dirty words and experimentation - great, so do a lot of us - but in the meantime, there's a lot going on and it's not for nothin'.

Well, I've read some excerpts now and it seems interesting...

I don't have any problem with the book's title if it encompasses the period from Purple Rain to early 2000s. It was a rise and fall. Wasn't it?

BinaryJustin said:

I agree. There would be no talk of a "comeback" had there not been a fall out of the mainstream. It's marketing. Big deal. I read the book, and I thought there was a lot of interesting information. I also understand there are 671 viewpoints to every story, and take that into account when reading any biography.

I wrote a book that stirs up opinions, and that's fine...I'm used to getting slammed on prince.org, but just to add a little balance, let's recall that the Chicago Sun-Times praised it as the best Prince biography yet....The Village Voice said "An up-to-the-minute biography superior to Dave Hill's 1989 Prince: A Pop Life for its eyewitness accounts."

And as far as how fans have greeted it, here's a post on amazon.com:

"As a hardcore Prince fanatic I was ready to see a halfbaked hatchet job with this book (as other titles have been), but it is EXCELLENT. It is thorough, fact driven, and a pageturner, and NOT a National Enquirer bull**** gossip book."

And another one: "This is a great book for music/entertainment junkies and manages to be truthful, a bit gossipy but never sinks to the level of tabloid trash. A Good Read for the diehard fan or the casual admirer."

And another: "If you're a devoted, got-everything, member-of-npg-online Prince fanatic, skip this book. It paints Prince as a fallible human being, and you don't want to hear that."

And this, from a Prince insider:

"This book hits things right on the nail. From someone who has personally been around the Prince Camp (1994-2001) as a fan and supporter with the hope that Prince would pull out of his self destructive pattern, this is the book to get."

AlexHahn said:

Ah...but theres STILL no excuse for misspelling Cyndi Lauper's name, saying "Hits 2" doesn't include "Kiss" and calling "He's So Dull" "SHE'S so Dull."

AlexHahn said:

Have you posted this information on NPGMC yet? I'd be interested to see what the response from that site and its members would be....

Anxiety said:

some of the posts on this thread make it seem like this is NPGMC.

madartista said:

Nah, this thread would have been deleted by now.

NuPwrSoul said:

amen.

Anxiety said:

I had to chuckle when I noticed that this point -- "If I had his resources and potential audience and gave two shits about writing an interesting Prince biography, I'd hope I'd get over my own petty opinions and get to the meat" -- was made by the MODERATOR! I'm swimming upstream when even the moderators are accusing me of having "petty opinions."
[This message was edited Thu Apr 29 10:40:40 2004 by AlexHahn]

Anxiety said:

yeah, that part is true.

AlexHahn said:

I'm not "accusing" - I'm just stating an opinion. As a moderator, I welcome you or anyone who has something to share, and I am pleased to feature your book on the org's homepage for people who are interested in getting a copy. As a member of this site and a fellow writer, I have absolutely no qualms with stating my opinions about what you've written, just as I'd hope others would take on the same balance of support and criticism with my writing.

mr. hahn, i just got done goin through all the reviews of your book over on amazon.com...seems like there's some rather negative stuff bein said on it as well.

post deleted
[This message was edited Thu Apr 29 10:56:48 2004 by laylow03]

Exactly. A biography CAN'T have a bias or a score to settle...otherwise it doesn't count as a bio. You CAN criticize and still be objective---Chris Andersen's bio's always do this.

Calm down! Its only a book!

We can be civil, can't we?

AlexHahn said:

I agree with that, i think there's an interesting look into his life as a human being.
I really believe there is a very tragic, sad and lonely side to his person and the
complications and turmoil of relationships did influence his career in a negative
way. I can't help but finding there's a whole lotta truth in there.

I find Prince a sublime artist but i don't think i want to know him as a friend.