Soul By David J

There will be many Prince tributes done, but if you’ve been a fan of my radio shows and mixes over the last few years, you’ll know that I take more of an underground/eclectic route than most other DJ’s. In that vein, I’m going to concentrate my salute to Prince on an aspect of his music that I don’t hear the national media talk about often. That is the fact that Prince wasn’t just a great musician, songwriter, producer and the like, but that he actually created a sound. Most of you have heard about the Minneapolis Sound, but most people I talk to can’t put a finger on exactly what it is. It’s actually pretty simple if you follow the progression of his music, specifically, through the decade of the 80’s where he introduced and perfected it. If you go farther back to his early recordings with Pepe Willie, you definitely hear elements of the Sound in them. So, what is the Minneapolis Sound? Well, generally, it’s the combination of funk and new wave (with a little bit of rock). But, specifically, it’s the way Prince played the instruments. A great example of this is in the first song I put in this compilation, “Sexy Dancer”. This is really the first song on a commercial release where the Sound really stands out. If you go to the 2:33 mark in the song, it’ll take you to the keyboard break. Those staccato keyboard riffs are the fundamental element. Prince started using this technique more in his Dirty Mind album and it took off from there (check out Appolonia 6’s “Sex Shooter” below for a classic example of this, or “Lady Cab Driver” from Prince’s 1999 album). As you go through the mix, you’ll hear at least a little of this feature in all of the songs. As he progressed, Prince added electronic drums with a percussive “knock” starting with his 1999 album (most famously copied by Ready For The World’s song “Oh Sheila”), and he also started adding strings to some of his music (listen to the Purple Rain album). Prince also got sax players Eddie M. and Eric Leeds in later recordings to play those previously mentioned staccato riffs. Lastly, Prince began to slow down the tempo, phasing out the new wave elements and putting more funk on the tracks. He did this by bringing the snare and bass to the forefront, sometimes using the Larry Graham style of bass plucking (listen to “Pop Life” or “If I Was Your Girlfriend” for examples of this). The main reason I put this compilation in order from early 80’s to late 80’s was so you could hear how Prince refined the Sound. One important thing to note is that Prince was very protective of this Sound. The reason he kicked Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis out of The Time was because they were using the Sound when producing other acts. Keep in mind that although Prince wrote songs for many people, he only used the Sound for artists he produced or who had a direct link to the Minneapolis family tree. That’s why you don’t hear the Sound on songs he gave to Sinead O’Connor, Chaka Khan or Stevie Nicks. But it’s why other acts who were from Minneapolis or part of Paisley Park Records got to use it. As an added bonus, I put some of those family tree acts on the compilation (also in order of release), showing how ultra-prolific Prince was. The quality of songs he was giving away is amazing, but he was creating so many, that he could afford to do so. I didn’t include acts that weren’t produced or given songs by Prince, even though they were part of the family tree (e.g. Ta Mara & The Seen, The Jets, Alexander O’Neal, etc.). Now that you have a full explanation of the Minneapolis Sound, sit back and listen to some of the finest examples of the musical legacy Prince left behind. Playlist: Sexy Dancer - Prince The Stick - The Time Head - Prince Nasty Girl - Vanity 6 Let’s Work - Prince Oliver’s House - Sheila E. Delirious - Prince & The Revolution Sex Shooter - Appolonia 6 The Beautiful Ones - Prince & The Revolution The Dance Electric - Andre Cymone Pop Life - Prince & The Revolution The Screams Of Passion - The Family Mountains - Prince & The Revolution 100 MPH - Mazarati Starfish & Coffee - Prince 6 - Madhouse Glam Slam - Prince G Spot - Jill Jones The Future - Prince Wouldn’t You Love To Love Me - Taja Sevelle