Prince Rogers Nelson (June 7, 1958 – April 21, 2016) RIP

[Scion7]

- in Minnesota.  Manager/publicist says he had been fighting influenza for a couple of weeks.

57 yr old mega-millionaire brought down by the flu - shoulda got yer shot, mate.

[Marc]

Sad news.

A great musician and artist is gone.

Favourite hits of mine were Controversy, 1999, When Doves Cry. Let's Go Crazy, Raspberry Beret and Sign O' The Times.
Danced my ass off on those songs in the 1980s.

May he rest in peace.

[PerfectWagnerite]

Funny that I grew up in the US (been here for 30+ yrs) and have never heard of him.

[Archaic Torso of Apollo]

Funny that I grew up in the US (been here for 30+ yrs) and have never heard of him.

One possible reason is that at a certain point in his career he changed his name to an unpronounceable symbol. Radio stations had to refer to him as "the artist formerly known as Prince," or TAFKAP for short.

And yes, flu is a killer.

[Sergeant Rock]

Funny that I grew up in the US (been here for 30+ yrs) and have never heard of him.

That's like saying you've never heard of Elvis or the Beatles. If you grew up on Earth in the last 30 years, you'd have heard of him (he was a worldwide pop icon). Obviously you're some alien species, newly arrived on the planet 

Sarge

[Scion7]

Yes, as his album sales alarmingly fell (from double platinum to 20,000 units sold) and concert appearances had to be cancelled all over due to very poor box office once his "star" had begun to dim, he/management came up with that inane 'symbol' idea - which further plunged the revenues into the tank - whether this was a drug-induced idea or just incredibly delusional marketing is anyone's guess.  He had his run on pop radio, then quietly was forgotten.

[Parsifal]

Yes, as his album sales alarmingly fell (from double platinum to 20,000 units sold) and concert appearances had to be cancelled all over due to very poor box office once his "star" had begun to dim, he/management came up with that inane 'symbol' idea - which further plunged the revenues into the tank - whether this was a drug-induced idea or just incredibly delusional marketing is anyone's guess.  He had his run on pop radio, then quietly was forgotten.

If you think mean spirited comments about the dead reflect well on you, you are mistaken.

Prince changed his name to an unpronounceable symbol in a dispute with his record label, which he felt was not giving him artistic control over his work. He hoped to force them to release him from his contract by making it impossible for them to market his music. When he finally was independent again he changed his name back. He did not achieve the same level of sales in his late career, but he published his music as he wanted it, which was evidently more important to him.

I was away a most impressed with his lyrics, Raspberry Beret, for instance. Little touches, like the interjection of the phrase "look here" had a touch of genius.

[Rinaldo]

Yes, as his album sales alarmingly fell (from double platinum to 20,000 units sold) and concert appearances had to be cancelled all over due to very poor box office once his "star" had begun to dim, he/management came up with that inane 'symbol' idea - which further plunged the revenues into the tank - whether this was a drug-induced idea or just incredibly delusional marketing is anyone's guess.  He had his run on pop radio, then quietly was forgotten.

Yeah, totally forgotten.

https://www.youtube.com/v/7NN3gsSf-Ys

Too bad they talk over one of the best solos in Prince's career. Not only one of the greatest pop stars, but also one of the greatest guitarists to ever grace the planet.

[Todd]

Sad, unexpected news.  His 80s stuff was brilliant.  As it is hard to find streamable versions of his music for free online, I will have to wait until this evening to listen to something.  The obvious choice is Sign☮ the Times.

[Scion7]

a critique is not 'mean spirited' -- and the superbowl thing was an engineered media event - ON RADIO, he basically disappeared except for the occassional spin of golden oldies - college kids today were mostly like "who?" on the campus.  And as far as one of the greatest guitarists - please.

[Madiel]

Your critique would be a hell of a lot less mean-spirited if it didn't include blatant inaccuracies. I'm not even a fan, and yet I know for certain that he continued to have sell-out concerts.

Frankly, you've managed to make this into one of the most appalling threads about the news of a musician's death that I've seen in years. If all you wanted to do is say nasty things, you shouldn't have even opened the thread. Keep it to yourself next time and don't be such a colossal jerk. Imagine us opening a thread with this tone if we hear of your demise.

[Mirror Image]

Yes, as his album sales alarmingly fell (from double platinum to 20,000 units sold) and concert appearances had to be cancelled all over due to very poor box office once his "star" had begun to dim, he/management came up with that inane 'symbol' idea - which further plunged the revenues into the tank - whether this was a drug-induced idea or just incredibly delusional marketing is anyone's guess.  He had his run on pop radio, then quietly was forgotten.

I don't think he'll be forgotten. Purple Rain alone catapulted him to into spotlight and whether or not he fell out of favor with audiences in later years is beside the point. Purple Rain was an influential album and I'm no Prince fan by any means, but he was an incredibly gifted musician and the good music he made will forever be stamped into pop music's cultural subconscious.

[Mirror Image]

Your critique would be a hell of a lot less mean-spirited if it didn't include blatant inaccuracies. I'm not even a fan, and yet I know for certain that he continued to have sell-out concerts.

Frankly, you've managed to make this into one of the most appalling threads about the news of a musician's death that I've seen in years. If all you wanted to do is say nasty things, you shouldn't have even opened the thread. Keep it to yourself next time and don't be such a colossal jerk. Imagine us opening a thread with this tone if we hear of your demise.

+1

Either honor the musician and respect the fact that he died or keep your mouth shut.

[Brian]

Your critique would be a hell of a lot less mean-spirited if it didn't include blatant inaccuracies. I'm not even a fan, and yet I know for certain that he continued to have sell-out concerts.

Frankly, you've managed to make this into one of the most appalling threads about the news of a musician's death that I've seen in years. If all you wanted to do is say nasty things, you shouldn't have even opened the thread. Keep it to yourself next time and don't be such a colossal jerk. Imagine us opening a thread with this tone if we hear of your demise.

Even the very first post was appallingly rude, with its snide joke about flu shots. Some people get the flu even though they did get the flu shot. Anyway I've heard rumors that Prince did not die of the flu at all.

And even if Prince should have gotten a flu shot, it's a snide, cruel thing to say when somebody dies. I doubt that, if Scion7 dies of, say, heart failure, (s)he would want people saying "should have exercised."

[SimonNZ]

I'd rather a tribute thread didn't have "has-been" in the title, especially as his 2014 album got lots of good reviews, even if not 80s-level sales.

I lost track of Prince's music some time around 1995 after the symbol-name stuff and the strange(r) interviews and songs like "Sexy MF", but have been thinking for a while I'd like to catch up on the many albums he released since. It's just a pity that he's been one of the most militant anti-Youtube artists, making it hard to assess which albums to buy - a false economy on his part I continue to feel.

[Brian]

Eric Clapton was asked what it feels like to be the world's best guitarist. He said, "I don't know. Ask Prince."

Speaking of Clapton: Here's Prince's glorious live solo on "While My Guitar Gently Weeps" - backed by an all-star cast of guitarists who know to give him the limelight.

[Rinaldo]

And as far as one of the greatest guitarists - please.

You don't know his music much, do you?

Eric Clapton was asked what it feels like to be the world's best guitarist. He said, "I don't know. Ask Prince."

While that anecdote is actually an urban legend (probably appropriated from a similar Hendrix quote on Rory Gallagher), Prince was a genius on the guitar, in the same ballpark as Jimi.

Another case in point, Why You Wanna Treat Me So Bad. I usually abhor guitar solos but Prince's shredding was just so damn fun!

[Parsifal]

Even the very first post was appallingly rude, with its snide joke about flu shots. Some people get the flu even though they did get the flu shot. Anyway I've heard rumors that Prince did not die of the flu at all.

There are serious diseases which present with symptoms can be mistaken for flu symptoms (congestive heart failure, liver failure, pneumonia, fungal infections (think Britney Murphy). Autopsy results will be interesting.

[Sammy]

a critique is not 'mean spirited' -- and the superbowl thing was an engineered media event - ON RADIO, he basically disappeared except for the occassional spin of golden oldies - college kids today were mostly like "who?" on the campus.  And as far as one of the greatest guitarists - please.

I find it odd that you want to critique a guy who has just died.

[jochanaan]

I confess that I had avoided Prince's music for the most part.  I'm not even sure I could hum Purple Rain.  But I just listened to the link Brian provided, and he blew me away.  I've heard guitarists who could play more notes, but Prince's every note was perfectly placed and his tone was magnificent.  Yes, we will miss him.