Prince and the Parade and Sign O' The Times Era Studio Sessions: 1985 and 1986 (Prince Studio Sessions) Paperback – 15 Oct. 2022

I can't get over how good this book is. Given the speed at which he was working at that time, there's so much to unpack and document. It does such a masterful job of presenting a narrative which gives significant insight into the person, but it never feels like the opinions are yours, more that is a reportage that gives a lot of context that absolutely illuminates these works in new ways.It must be such a unique position to be proven to the jigsaw pieces of this life and the chance to collect the views of those around him mean that his presence throughout is everywhere, his own absence from the words never shows.Above all it shows what a god given gift people like Susan Rogers is. To have given up her life in pursuit of transcribing his.So many wonderful stories I've learnt and would never have guessed...How It's gonna be a beautiful night was an instrumental made up in rehearsal that dayHow Housequake takes on a deeper meaning knowing it was recorded the day after the band breakupHow Bob George vocal was Susan Rogers playing with the pitch shiftHow the predictive backing vocal on forever in my life was a studio happy accidentHow Slow Love is a cover version (kinda)How Madhouse aren't real!!! 40 years I've had that album hahaAbove all, it's yet another masterful work that paints Prince and his colleagues as incredibly hard working dedicated individuals, creating amazing works of art.He was a genius, that's undeniable and managed to find a workflow that enabled incredibly complex and diverse sophisticated works across all genres to pour out of him at an incredible rate. Whats astonishing is how he was able to present each piece fully formed without divulging what he truly felt, each a carefully crafted emotional sliver that showed you a viewpoint which hit so many marks musically, lyrically, vocally and technically- the like of which has never been matched.That he gave up any other life in that service means that those around him eventually lost out and were never given the kindest exit. Your words paint that honestly, but not cruelly, give understanding and allow those involved to acknowledge the greatness they were part of and offer forgiveness. It's a good balance and one that serves all involved well.It's been an absolute honor, yet again, to read your words. It's clear that this legacy is in the safest and best hands possible and I thank you from the bottom of my heart.In hindsight, its obvious that a studio focused diary was the only way to provide a window into his soul. That it was given to you to write is the most fortunate of blessings.Thank you so much.It's also great that because he was so prolific, we get a glimpse of the Black Album before Sign of the Times was even released. I've been playing The Black album a lot recently, so I'm keen for the next chapter.Once again, I salute you. The music lives on, but your words bring them, and him, alive.

As a musician and an avid fan of princes music (nothing including or after Batman apart from the odd tune)this ticks all the boxes . It explains the build up and reasons for the revolution break up and it journals the creation of the albums “parade “and “sign o the times” perfectly .great insightful commentary from those nearest and dearest to him at this time in his life .

Genius creativity over a short period. In depth, detailed, exhaustive but pleasurable reading. Just makes you appreciate the music, official and otherwise.

What is there to say about Duane Tudahl's book of the recording of Parade and Sign o' the Times ? It is simply superlative. A near day-by-day documentary of Prince's activity, with contributions from the people closest to him at that time. Not just "someone in the room", but direct quotes and memories from members of the Revolution, Susan Rogers, Susannah Melvoin, and members of the Sign o' the Times touring band.I have loved Prince since 1983 and knew a great deal about his work and his journey. But this book opened my eyes to a load of details, including one of the greatest anecdotes describing his casual genius (playing with his back to a piano while holding a conversation - insane !).This is not for the casual music appreciator, nor the person who quite likes Prince and has a couple of his albums. It's for the person who wants to go a bit deeper and begin to know what it must have felt like to see this creative whirlwind at work.The best way to read the book is to have the Super Deluxe reissue of the SotT album to hand, so you can play each track as you're reading about its crafting.

This is indispensable if you're a Prince fan - it's a deep dive into Prince's world from around the time of the Parade album and the 'Under The Cherry Moon' film up to the 'Sign O The Times' album. The detail is really quite incredible, with a mountain of first hand accounts from people who were in the room. I also like the kind of diary / day-by-day approach so you can pretty much find out what Prince was doing and where he was on virtually every day of this period of time which was arguably the best and most productive period of his career. I also really love the amount of technical detail the writer includes about various instruments and techniques Prince used which I was always particularly interested in. All round this is a real Tour de Force of music writing and Mr Tudahl should be really proud of himself!

This second book, in what many hope will continue as a complete series , is so well researched, so thorough, the reader is taken along as if a continual presence in Prince's retinue. We follow him daily through life as Prince weaves daily experience and companions into the music we know. For those blessed to have known Prince on any level the true nature of the man is tangible throughout this masterpeiceof research. For those who yearn to know Prince but only knew him from a distance , the perfume of the man can be sensed throughout the pages giving insights and deeper meaning to treasured lyrics. For anyone in the music media this book is a must have. For media professionals to lack these volumes in their library will leave them woefully exposed as ill informed and amateur. Even those who spent time in Prince's presence can piece together more context and gain a better understanding of their own experience of Prince.Duane Tudahl weaves together so many threads, from studio records and those Prince lived and worked with, that we percieve the tapestry that made Prince uniquly revered among fellow artists and faMs.

I admit: I am a Prince scholar. I study everything I can get my hands on about the ART of Prince. As a lover of music and someone that has met Prince, I have purchased most of his authorized releases to include his protege acts, and reviewed countless literature sources and heard the sound checks and many of the unreleased vault tracks. Yet the main reason I like Prince is not his music though it's great. It's his dedication to his craft and work ethic. As someone who works very hard himself, I find Prince to be the ultimate roadmap of someone that did it and not just giving a bunch of speeches on how to be your best self - he was almost always his best self when it came to his art.That is why Tudahl's second book on Prince is so captivating. It provides the motivation behind the art AND how the art was made (in most cases of the latter). As Tudahl points out in his promo tour, the stories of Prince outside the studio are provided to provide the inspiration for his work inside the studio. There is the collection of Wendy and Lisa's stories; the thoughts of Brown Mark and Matt, and his most dedicated friend and number two historian (in my book when it comes to The Revolution), Bobby Z.This book is even more robust than Tudahl's first book for it really tries to lend full voice to all those involved. This is both a strength and a slight drawback. The strength is that everyone involved deserves a right for their story to be told yet the drawback is that in some cases, there are more questions than answers. The only minor suggestion would be for Tudahl to come to a conclusion based on the interviews, listening to the tracks (assuming access), and review of artifacts. Thus the strength is that it's a very robust and rich account - especially the drivers of the art. The drawback is that it makes "nice" and doesn't provide firm concluding thoughts given the provided information. It's definitely more art than science and perhaps that's the way it should be. By contrast the PR Sessions (Duane's first book) was more declarative in tone and confident in its conclusions. In this book, you "feel" the compromise.Now holding that view, I must admit that this book is very good. It's extremely well-written, thoughtful, and yet not over fanboying (and as a Prince friend myself, that's hard to do). Prince is not painted as this angel always doing the right thing. It paints a very human picture of Prince based on an impressive amount of interviews.Duane is going to complete the backend of the 80s here in the next year or two and one can only hope he gets to the Dirty Mind to 1999 sessions as well. No one captures the stories better though there is still room for clarity in collaboration (or not). This book should be enjoyed while listening to Prince during this period. No artist's day-to-day is documented better thanks largely to Prince, Susan Rogers, and countless dedicated staff members. Add Tudahl to the list of those directly responsible for keeping Prince's legacy alive and one can argue, expanding his legacy.Buy this book and if you want to come up with conclusions, review it along with The Vault and other sources that account for the recording of his vast and seemingly endless vault of recorded music.

Since his passing, there have been a flood of books written about Prince. For long time fans, in some cases, this has meant a treasure chest of information that was kept secret for the entirety of Prince's life and career. This is the 2nd book by Duane Tudahl- an absolute MASTER- documenting another 2 year period of Prince life and career, 1985/1986. I am one who go believes this period to be one of many creative peaks in Prince's career. I am not one stuck in the 80s believing his peak to be the 80s but must admit, these years documented in the new book were special. Some of us refer to these years as the "Flood". Prince released approximately 10 albums in 1987...much of that written in this period. Amazingly, the Sign O The Times Super Deluxe set from last year (originally 1987) saw 3 more albums worth of music from his vault! It is a dizzying level of top rate material and Duane overs all of this in amazing detail. As Prince never explained his music, for 35 years I have wondered why the poor grammar in the song "I Wonder U" (I, how u say, I Wonder U....). Duane explains that it was a girl in Brazil) who came up to Prince using broken English expressing her feelings for him. Prince took this brief encounter and made a song of it... amazing.The book does what Prince would not, it explains who he was. It shows how dedicated he was to his art. It sadly reminds you that, he was a comet and we were lucky to be witnessing his shooting across the sky in our lifetimes. If art is still important, this is must read. A testament to an unparalleled work ethic, God given superhero like talent and total devotion to his art.

Libro arrivato con copertina Rovinata. Lo stesso pochi giorni fa.

Cadeau pour mon Amour, il est captivé, il adore, c'est les périodes qu'il préfère !

Amazing book! It's very detailed and meticulously researched, yet it's never boring. I couldn't put it down. I've laughed, I cried and I've learned so much.I'm Prince fan for 30 years (and I'm particularly fond of this era), so I've thought I will not learn many new facts, but Duane Tudahl never cease to amaze me.