Dig, if you will, a picture:
It was the dawn of the summer of 1984, and the world was engulfed in Thriller mania. No one in pop music could touch the post Motown 25, newly nosed, jheri-curled Michael Jackson. No one.
Or so we thought.
In late June of that year, The Artist Then, Now and Forever Known As Prince released the soundtrack to Purple Rain, a semi-autobiographical, semi-forgettable feature film that solidified the notion that his highness’ acting would never earn him an Oscar. However, the film’s live musical performances were electric, and the movie’s soundtrack was incendiary.
From the lead single, a funkfest called “When Doves Cry,” to the album’s closing title track, Prince put the King of Pop on notice, and some say shut him down. The soundtrack shot straight to the top of the Billboard album chart.
To mark the one year anniversary of Prince’s untimely death, Warner Bros has released a remastered, expanded edition of the Purple Rain soundtrack. While I’m not usually a fan of cash grabs like this, this one left me dancing out of Starbucks after I wrote this.
Fans of Prince’s will understand that impulse, as we all know you can’t get through a few seconds of the album’s opener, “Let’s Go Crazy,” without moving. But the real joy of this release is the second disc, which brims with previously-unreleased treasures from the vaults we’ve all heard about.
Lord, this second disc.
The first track alone, “The Dance Electric,” is aptly named and worth every dime of the purchase. It’s followed by a typically Prince-esque song called “Love and Sex” — to paraphrase Julie Andrews, they’re two of my and Prince’s favorite things.
The disc includes an elongated, superb version of one of the original album’s scorchers, “Computer Blue,” and a gorgeous new ballad, “Electronic Intercourse.” If you love the original album’s “The Beautiful Ones,” you’ll love this “new” song.
The second disc also features two gloriously x-rated songs. One of them, “We Can F**k,” is close to supplanting “Erotic City” as my all-time favorite Prince song…but it’s been edged out by another new one, the wonderful “Wonderful Ass.” I just added that latter song to the iTunes playlist of songs dedicated to my husband.
Just in case you couldn’t tell, this isn’t an album for the little ones. But then, Prince was never an artist for the little ones. I had to hide my copy of his Dirty Mind album from my mother — and I was in high school when it came out! And even today, I’d blush listening to it — or Purple Rain’s new second disc — in front of her. Thank God Mom is 2,000 or so miles away from this Starbucks!
Relive the summer of ‘84 and pick up this expanded, remastered Purple Rain. If you’re too young to remember it, sit down and listen, kids. Or, to borrow a few words from Prince himself…
Dig, if you will, a picture…