PRINCE AND THE REVOLUTION
Produced, Arranged, Composed and Performed by Prince and The Revolution
Released June 23, 2017
"Let the rain come down..."
Indeed!
Dear readers and listeners, the vault has been opened!!! Or at least, a little bit. Do not get me wrong, for I am not complaining in the least because for what we have all now received is a cause for rejoice and an especially and blissfully electrifying way to commemorate the artist forever known as Prince.
For an artist of Prince's legend, stature and unbelievably high artistic quality, it has long disturbed me with how poorly his catalog has been treated over the years. In this age of remastering, Prince's discography, most notably everything he recorded for Warner Brothers from the beginning of his career to perhaps the early 1990's has been in such serious need of an upgrade that the negligence has been nothing less than shameful as far as I am concerned. But now, corrections have been made and gloriously so with brand, spankin' new deluxe, fully remastered edition of the iconic "Purple Rain," a full 33 years after its original release. Believe me, for what we have been given, this was more than worth the wait
First things first, the remastered version of the original album, personally overseen by Prince himself before his passing, sounds absolutely pristine and speaker shaking, just as it did when I placed that vinyl onto my turntable back in the summer of 1984. In fact, and just as with some of the very best remastered albums that I have had the pleasure to hear, most notably The Beatles or Led Zeppelin's full catalog, Prince and the Revolution's "Purple Rain" fully represents what it means to have music that is very much of the time in which it was created but somehow it transcends time and space itself becoming purely and beautifully timeless. The remaster makes the music sound as if it was all recorded just yesterday, if not tomorrow!
The bass drum beats give you that power kick to the chest while the guitars scorch the speakers and the keyboards, vocals and all other musical and sonic dressings superbly surround and envelop, making for an experience that is fully immersive, especially now as our knowledge of these nine iconic songs have merged and congealed with our memories, blending and blurring any sense of nostalgia and this moment in time circa 2017 seamlessly. Prince often said later in his life that time was an illusion. Listening to "Purple Rain" now, all cleaned up and sparkling fresh, I am seriously prone to believe him as the emotions I feel while listening, first when I was 15 and now at 48, are remarkably the same and enhanced.
But what of the extra goodies, bells and whistles, you ask? Well...in addition to the newly remastered album, there is a disc which contains all of the singes released during the "Purple Rain" period and with those singles, there are also the famed B-sides, the extended versions of which have never been released on CD or digital formats before now and their arrivals are most welcome. Yes, that disc certainly carries a hefty level of repetition as we receive the single edits as well as the extended versions--I was thrilled to find the 7 minute movie version of "Let's Go Crazy" included in the package and to that end, the thrilling 10 minute version of "I Would Die 4 U," on which the live sounding track is augmented by Shelia E.'s swift percussion and saxophonist Eddie M.'s jubilant soloing, is a joyful addition, as we can hear the crafting a song which showcases Prince's past, present and future all in one as you can hear how the music evolved from all that came before and signals what was yet to arrive. Time is an illusion!!!!
And then, yes, the B-sides, from "17 Days" to the short and extended versions of "Erotic City" and "Another Lonely Christmas" are included as well. For me, the biggest surprise of all was to find that two selections entitled "God" are collected in this edition as well. First, the ethereal, and even bizarre vocal version and secondly, stunningly, the internationally only released, nearly 8 minute instrumental version subtitled "Love Theme From Purple Rain." This track is the instrumental music utilized as film score for the still heart racing bedroom love scene and it is a veritable showcase for Prince's peerless instrumental skills from his impressive, innovative drumming, to his sweeping keyboard skills and dazzling Carlos Santana influenced guitar work.
But, without question, the jewel in the crown of this reissue, which I have to tell you also includes a DVD of the long out of print "Live at the Carrier Dome, Syracuse, NY March 30, 1985," concert video, are 11 songs from the vault!!!!! Now, quite a number of selections will be of most familiarity to people (like myself) who have heard bootlegs over these past 30 plus years and are thrilled to have official, unblemished versions. For those who have not heard even a note of anything not officially released, get ready! For all of us, it is a spectacularly fascinating ride through what was discarded, slept on, and even after all of these years, still unknown yet everything informs the nine songs which make up the official album, the determination and strict attention to what would make the album and film work at its absolute tip-top peak.
So, here they are...
1. "The Dance Electric"-Originally given to friend and former bandmate Andre Cymone for this third solo release "A.C." (released 1985), we now have the official release of Prince's original version, running over eleven minutes in length and it is as propulsive as a ferociously speedy yet rock steady locomotive as the song echoes the apocalyptic dance, doom and reverence of making love as the bombs fall and getting your house in order when Kingdom comes.
2. "Love And Sex"-Continuing the theme from "The Dance Electric," this uproarious rave up imagines life in the hereafter and questions will there be sex and dance in the afterlife to go along with the everlasting love.
3. "Computer Blue (Hallway Speech version)"-This track is a MONSTER!!! First of all, I am so thrilled that it is included in this set as I remember hearing it as a tape hiss filled bootleg many years ago and it really speaks to Prince's genius as to know precisely what to use and what to discard to make the song work at its very best on the original album as well as within the context of the film.
While essentially the same song as hear don the original album, this version is over 12 minutes long, containing guitar feedback fury, extra lyrics, a point of pause during which Wendy Melvoin and Lisa Coleman offer their taunting lament of Prince's "poor lonely computer" who still refuses to understand the differences between love and lust and even then, Prince offers a hallucinatory spoken word section amidst the roar of The Revolution.
This version of "Computer Blue" certainly feels like the broader sequel to tracks like "Automatic" and "Something In The Water (Does Not Compute)" from "1999" (released October 27, 1982) and even foreshadows and spiritual crisis inherent in "Temptation" from "Around The World In A Day" (released April 22, 1985). Again, referencing the past while simultaneously pointing to the future while making a raucous, electrifying now like this track.
4. "Electric Intercourse"-The prolific nature of Prince as a writer/producer/performer is now the stuff of legend yet regarding "Purple Rain" and especially this track, Revolution bassist BrownMark has expressed in recent interviews that the original album and film forced Prince to slow down more than he was used to, as the process of filmmaking allowed him to probe deeper, revisit tracks, introduce and discard all the while fashioning the masterpiece we all know and love.
In the case of "Electric Intercourse," which was written for the film, we have a lonely, lusty bedroom synthetic ballad much like what we heard throughout "1999." Prince later was able to re-think and return to the drawing board and good that he did because he ultimately fashioned a ballad for the ages with its replacement, "The Beautiful Ones," a song that plunges to greater romantic, emotional depths. As it is, this track is a stunner
5. "Our Destiny/Roadhouse Garden"- Revolution keyboardist Lisa Coleman has also expressed in interviews that there are potentially four or five complete albums made with The Revolution housed inside Prince's vault. I am assuming this was one of those potential tracks as Prince, at one point during the 1990's, in a rare period of publicly looking backwards, kicked around the idea of finishing a Revolution album entitled "Roadhouse Garden."
As it stands, this 6 minute plus, two part suite (the first string laden half is sung by Lisa) signals the more complex Revolution music to come as the opening string section was later used and an interlude/introduction to "The Ladder" from "Around The World In A Day," an album Wendy Melvoin explained had been fully completed before the "Purple Rain" tour began!
6. "Possessed"-I've heard a couple of bootlegged versions of this song over the years, a notable one being a tad slower, funkier, so to speak. This faster paced, nearly 8 minute, fresh out of the vault release has been heard by all of us before and it is indeed within the "Purple Rain" film in the background of a scene where Morris Day is attempting to woo Apollonia Kotero with fabricated tales of having personal Italian cooks, and being the proud owner of a "brass water-baaaay-ed."
7. "Wonderful Ass"-One of my favorite bootleg songs EVER!!!! Now, I have no idea if this was ever conceived to work within the film or the album but it is notable for the arrival of Wendy Melvoin as I believe this was one of her first studio appearances with Prince, if not the first. The hip swaying bass line and rhythm guitars, the infectious choruses, the brilliance of those drums and the overall dance floor wooziness and then, check it:
"Educate
Tolerate
Negotiate
Communicate
Litigate
Graduate
Appreciate
Separate
Interrogate
Violate
Fluctuate
Perpetrate
Masturbate
Stimulate, Stimulate, Stimulate..."
Take that, INXS!!! The Revolution will be heard!!!
8. "Velvet Kitty Cat"-I have never heard of this one whatsoever and this bare bones track, with primitive drum machine and some bluesy guitar, sounds like a page from Prince alter ego The Kid's musical diary. As does...
9. "Katrina's Paper Dolls"-Another track I have never heard of and I just learned that it may have been named after Denise Matthews a.k.a. Vanity (R.I.P.) as "Katrina" was her middle name. Again, this slice of bedroom pop seems to signal the dreamy, character sketches to come like "Starfish And Coffee" or "The Ballad Of Dorothy Parker."
10. "We Can Fuck"-Eventually released as a collaborative effort with George Clinton and renamed "We Can Funk" on "Graffiti Bridge" (released August 21, 1990), this 10 minute plus version again showcases the past, then present and the future as it growls and flows into a post-coital sequence that echoes "Do Me, Baby" and also presents Prince as relentless Lothario yet with a tremendous sensitivity and vulnerability that makes the song move from masturbatory fantasy towards sexual reality.
What is interesting tome is that the vocal and drums tracks from this version are precisely the same as heard upon the final version. Additionally, I have heard a full Revolution version through bootlegs, complete with horns and just rides that growling groove tremendously. I am curious as to how this song necessarily fits within the odyssey of The Kid especially since he revived it for "Graffiti Bridge," the quasi-sequel to "Purple Rain."
11. "Father's Song"-Ah!!!! The music of Prince's Father, Mr. John L. Nelson as heard within the film and as an interlude in "Computer Blue." This haunting, deceptively peaceful yet decidedly turbulent instrumental is a splendid look at Prince's astounding skills as a pianist and keyboardist as he weaves acoustic/synthetic soundscapes that made me wonder if by any chance had he been listening to Vangelis at all. Really! This track sounds like lost music from "Blade Runner" (1982)!
And there you have it!
Two years after the reissue was first announced and planned for the 30th anniversary of "Purple Rain," and now sadly, fourteen months after the passing of its creator (which does make me feel that the suits at WB were just waiting for this period--dark mercenary thoughts but even so...), we now have this splendidly realized document that makes us all see one of Prince's masterpieces anew and even in a more complete way.
Here's hoping that this release will serve as a template for future reissues of a catalog desperate in need of a reverential upgrade.
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