To what extent do you think 'the lost segues' would have contributed to the cohesive structure of the album? For those of you who have never heard it, here's the script...

Narrator: 'Minneapolis...dusk...1997. A baby boy plays in the grass, 5 years old. Digging in the dirt he finds 3 gold chains. They're far more interesting than his purple ball. His mothers' voice calls out, 'Michael, come inside it's time for bed', but the babys' attention is focused down the street. 1'000s of people have gathered....

Kirstie Alley as 'Vanessa Bartholemhew-news reporter': [i]Hi this is Vanessa Bartholemhew live just outside Minneapolis at Prince's Paisley Park Studios. Prince and his band the NPG have embarked on yet what seems to be another strange, strange, bizzaro career move!

Narrator: Turn it off

Female voice: Uh-uh baby, this is gonna be good!

Bartholemhew: In the wake of the current section we're dealing with in this country of on the low concert grosses of even the biggest of superstar acts, Prince and the NPG have begun a series of concerts in which they perform an opera of entirely new music.

What appears to be to some extent 'segue 1' perhaps here the album could have been edited by adding the above script and fading into My name is Prince.

A discussion then ensues as to how the baby found the gold chains in the garden. The mother seems concerned...

Narrator: The young mother pulls the chains to her busom and begins to remember. Back...back...5 years ago.

The lost also contains script that can be found on both the video for 7 and the 3 chains o' gold video collection. Both of which could of been possibly included before The Max and 7 begin.

Cut to the final segue which begins with a small narrative piece by Mayte and a discussion between Prince and Mayte who sound as though they are aboard a plane...

Mayte: Look now into the mirror. If you are the beginning, I am the end and all things inbetween are reflected therein.

Prince: Happy?

Mayte: Yeah sure...Look! A little girl in the mirror. She's smiling.

Narrator..somewhat creepily: ..and Vanessa B is happy aswell...Not!...She poses the question once more, 'Why don't you tell me truth?

The final segue appears to mark the intro to The Sacrifice of Victor.

Judging by the narrative of the 'lost segues', to my mind it still remains unclear as to whether they are a vital missing ingredient as to gaining a clearer understanding of what the album was/is all about. It would be interesting to know whether Prince thought they would spoil the flow of the album, render the music as somewhat insignificant to the story etc...

Any thoughts?

in my opinion they were best removed. They were in serious danger of making Prince look like he'd gone up his own arse.

(insert witty comments about Prince's career after that album here)

freakyfeet said:

I certainly agree. It would have been interesting if he actually thought that himself.

I don't know what was worse, the segues or the obnoxious computer sound effects on Gold.

My vote would be to take them all off and make room for another song or two.

The plus point of the segues is that they seperate the tracks a bit, as some of the sequencing
doesn't flow very well without them. But personally I think the album's better off without them.
Mainly because the man that does the narration sounds really flat and bored, and doesn't have
the right kinda tone for voice-over work (Prince should've got a proper voice-over artist or actor
to do it).