Prince has been around for so long now that it's hard to appreciate just how big he was for a few years in the 1980s. No, "Purple Rain" didn't sell as many units as "Thriller," but listening today, is there really any doubt that the former was the superior piece of work? And I say that as a "Thriller" fan, one who has never bought into the notion that MJ's masterwork was "Billie Jean," "Beat It" and a bunch of filler.
But for sheer awesomeness, from first note to last, "Purple Rain" can stand alongside just about any album that's ever been released. Even the movie, misogynistic and poorly written though it may have been, was awesome - because all of that was forgotten from the moment that Prince or Morris Day stepped on the stage.
Around that time, I was the DJ for the weddings of a few friends and acquaintances - a thankless job if there ever was one. You just try dealing with an unruly, intoxicated crowd once they discover that you don't have the one song that they were dying to dance to, especially after that 12th beer. At one of the weddings, "Let's Go Crazy" was the bridal couple's first dance song. It may have seemed like a good idea at the time, but alas, that marriage did not take.
But, it wasn't Prince's fault - he did everything he could.
"Let's Go Crazy," Prince, from the summer of 1984. And since Prince is notoriously finicky about his presence on YouTube, we'll forego the video today. Besides, you've all heard this song, right?
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