Prince - Beautiful Ones

Simply 80's is proud to present one of the greatest artists, musicians, songwriters and performers of all time! There is no denying the genius of the incomparable Prince. "Beautiful Ones" is a personal favorite of Simply 80's as it encompasses the raw emotion delivered brilliantly by this amazing performer!

"The Beautiful Ones" is the third track on Prince and the Revolution's soundtrack album Purple Rain. It was one of three songs produced, arranged, composed, and performed by Prince, the other two being "When Doves Cry" and "Darling Nikki". The song was recorded at Sunset Sound in Los Angeles by Peggy Mac and David Leonard[2] on September 20, 1983. The song replaced "Electric Intercourse" on the Purple Rain album.

The version on the Purple Rain album is slightly cut; a longer version of the song exists.

"The Beautiful Ones" was originally said to be written for Susannah Melvoin (Revolution band member Wendy's twin sister) to woo her away from her then-boyfriend. The timeline fits, as Susannah was seeing someone else when she met Prince in May 1983. The notion that the song was written for her was also confirmed by engineer Susan Rogers. Melvoin has admitted that she isn't completely sure about the genesis of the song: "I can't say that the song was exactly our story, but he wrote it during that time," Melvoin says in Let's Go Crazy: Prince and the Making of Purple Rain. "He wasn't always specifically writing about what he was going through, because he also had to be consistent with the Purple Rain storyline, but he was drawing from things that had happened in his life."

Only much later, during a 2015 interview with Ebony magazine, did Prince finally identify who the beautiful one really was: Denise Matthews aka Vanity, his one-time protégé and girlfriend. The pair had met in 1980, with Prince bestowing the stage name Vanity, as he felt looking at her was like looking at the female version of himself. She would go on to inspire some of his biggest early hits. He also created a band around her, Vanity 6, for which he wrote songs and produced.

Prince Rogers Nelson (June 7, 1958 – April 21, 2016), known simply as Prince, or Logo. Hollow circle above downward arrow crossed with a curlicued horn-shaped symbol and then a short bar, was an American singer-songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, record producer, actor, and director. Widely regarded as one of the greatest musicians of his generation, he often played most or all instruments on his recordings. He was known for his flamboyant and androgynous persona, eclectic work, and wide vocal range, which included a far-reaching falsetto and high-pitched screams.

Prince's music incorporated a wide variety of styles, including funk, R&B, Latin, rock, new wave, classical, soul, synth-pop, psychedelia, pop, jazz, and hip hop. He pioneered the Minneapolis sound, a funk rock subgenre that emerged in the late 1970s. He had a prolific output, releasing 39 albums during his life, with a vast array of unreleased projects left in a vault at his home after his death. It is believed that the vault contains dozens of fully produced albums and over 50 music videos that have never been released, along with various other media. He released hundreds of songs both under his own name and multiple pseudonyms during his life, as well as writing songs that were made famous by other musicians, such as "Nothing Compares 2 U" and "Manic Monday". Estimates of the complete number of songs written by Prince range anywhere from 500 to well over 1,000.

Born and raised in Minneapolis, Minnesota, Prince signed a recording contract with Warner Bros. Records at the age of 19. Prince went on to achieve critical success with the innovative albums Dirty Mind (1980), Controversy (1981), and 1999 (1982). His sixth album, Purple Rain (1984), was recorded with his backup band the Revolution, and was the soundtrack to his film acting debut of the same name. Purple Rain spent six consecutive months atop the Billboard 200. Prince won the Academy Award for Best Original Song Score.

In April 2016, at the age of 57, Prince died of an accidental fentanyl overdose at his Paisley Park home and recording studio in Chanhassen, Minnesota. Prince sold over 150 million records worldwide, ranking him among the best-selling music artists of all time. His awards included the Grammy President's Merit Award, the American Music Awards for Achievement and of Merit, the Billboard Icon Award, an Academy Award, and a Golden Globe Award. He was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2004, the UK Music Hall of Fame in 2006, and the Rhythm and Blues Music Hall of Fame in 2016.

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