Looking forward to seeing where you go with this! And to finding out what the heck Purple Rain is. On a personal note, England was also where I had a big Prince experience: seeing the Purple Rain movie in London. So I always associate Prince with that city somehow.
I’m glad to see this kind of intersection of pop and academia, which I guess is pretty normal now. Way back when I was a freshman in one of those Great Books courses, the topic of discussion was the Apollonian vs the Dionysian mode, and how the two could be blended. I popped off with “You know who does a great job with that? The Who!” The discussion leader, an art professor with a specialty in Modernist art and architecture, gave me a patronizing look and said, “Oh, The Who. Aren’t they wonderful.” Afterwards, my classmates ribbed me about what a sick burn that was.
Ahhhh to go back in time and see Prince live. That’s a dream. I enjoy the way you talk about the way he creates such ethereal music. First, by being exceptional at playing the guitar. Second, at creating a full piece of art, where the composition’s beginning is almost a separate experience itself. And third, through the visual experience (also of the body). And I guess even when we just listen to Prince, we conjure these performances. Somehow you manage to explain the unexplainable.
This essay demonstrates so well how knowing many disparate things, i.e, being well educated, provides that extra lens that makes going through life more pleasurable and more vivid. Your love and knowledge of Prince enhances the Sagas and vice versa.
Quotidian things, too. My niece turned 11 on Monday, so in my birthday text, I told her that on her eleventy-first birthday, she'd be giving the gifts, not receiving them. When i explained the LOTR reference, she called me "eccentric." A compliment!
Thanks, David. I enjoy letting texts talk to each other, even or especially when it seems that they have nothing in common. And yes, “eccentric” is one of the best compliments!
Prince is brilliant. Always thought he wasn't given enough credit for his beyond talent playing the guitar. I love this idea of the sychonosity of the Sagas and Prince. Both are bold, full of emotions taking the reader or listener for an emotional ride. Both are roar, full of physicality and sensuality. Beautiful
Cannot wait to see how this develops! I have been so fascinated with the classroom discussions we have had so far about connecting medieval literature with popular music. Gonna show this to Joe too because we were just discussing Prince's impact on music yesterday!
Love this entry ... and it brought me back to the effect that Prince had in my own childhood/adolescence. I was 12 when _Purple Rain_ dropped, and it was a tipping point for me. I know that album backwards and forwards, but his guitar riffs -- particularly in "Purple Rain" itself -- always transport me. The album was a journey; and even at 12, when the subject matter was about things I didn't understand at the time (i.e. "Darling Nikki" or even "The Beautiful Ones"), it was as if it was preparing me for the pubescent turbulence ahead. Now at 51, the album still speaks to me, with the added dimension of experience, nostalgia, and an understanding of my own naivete at the time, as well as the payoff of the lessons I've learned since.
Your entry made me think about the role of those ancient epics as an education for what was ahead; with so much stacked and encoded into rhythm, meter, epithetic cues which became embedded in the lived experience of the listener(s).
Prince taught me that the music itself was just as important as the lyrics, and vice versa. At 12 it was a revelation to intrinsically understand that his guitar was carrying the story as much as his lyrics were. The trade-off from orality to literacy is that we lose the power of rhythm, tone, and linguistic efficacy of the spoken. Music can bridge that gap.
"What is purple rain"?
I think the answer is wherever we're transported in that final guitar solo.
I have still not quite recovered from seeing Prince playing that guitar solo on "While my guitar gently keeps" in the George Harrison tribute concert. Oh my.
"I really haven’t needed to listen to it, since I internalized the whole thing through countless listens decades ago." - I can totally relate to that. Prince was a fork in the road for me, the Purple Rain era inspired me to pick up the guitar, and Prince's multi-instrunmentalism gave me permission to learn a host of other instruments too. He led me to Hendrix, Sly Stone, James Brown and George Clinton too.
John, I love the way your mind works, perhaps because I, too, enjoy the continuum of emotion and meaning in the world's most poignant literature, music, and, yes, visual art, though my connections are not nearly as brilliant or profound as yours. Because I am a generation or so older than you, my experience with Prince is woefully limited, so your directives have been quite insightful for me. I sadly missed out on much of the music of the 80s (the decade in which both my kids were born), so I thank you for helping me put Prince in a whole new perspective as one who certainly appreciates the pendulous quality of wyrd, but, no sinner he, at least in his music, refuses to despair in what he cannot change.
Thank you for these videos of great Prince performances. This bit of personal essay introduces this subject perfectly and brings the era right back. :-) Can't wait to see this come together in the Icelandic saga. I love your juxtapositions.
Ah the nostalgia through this piece of writing is wonderful to experience vicariously, I fall into that ever so slightly too young category to have appreciated Prince in ‘the moment!’
Doesn’t this experience speak to the magical way in which we process information and piece things together, always learning. Looking forward to the follow up! (After listening 🎶)
What a great concept, connecting old and new thoughts. It would seem the essential human does not change through the ages. Job still resonates, as Pete Seeger demonstrated.
Looking forward to seeing where you go with this! And to finding out what the heck Purple Rain is. On a personal note, England was also where I had a big Prince experience: seeing the Purple Rain movie in London. So I always associate Prince with that city somehow.
I’m glad to see this kind of intersection of pop and academia, which I guess is pretty normal now. Way back when I was a freshman in one of those Great Books courses, the topic of discussion was the Apollonian vs the Dionysian mode, and how the two could be blended. I popped off with “You know who does a great job with that? The Who!” The discussion leader, an art professor with a specialty in Modernist art and architecture, gave me a patronizing look and said, “Oh, The Who. Aren’t they wonderful.” Afterwards, my classmates ribbed me about what a sick burn that was.
That seems to me to be an excellent evaluation of The Who’s aesthetic!
Ahhhh to go back in time and see Prince live. That’s a dream. I enjoy the way you talk about the way he creates such ethereal music. First, by being exceptional at playing the guitar. Second, at creating a full piece of art, where the composition’s beginning is almost a separate experience itself. And third, through the visual experience (also of the body). And I guess even when we just listen to Prince, we conjure these performances. Somehow you manage to explain the unexplainable.
Can’t wait to see here this goes next...
Thanks, Kate! This one has been fun to write.
John,
This essay demonstrates so well how knowing many disparate things, i.e, being well educated, provides that extra lens that makes going through life more pleasurable and more vivid. Your love and knowledge of Prince enhances the Sagas and vice versa.
Quotidian things, too. My niece turned 11 on Monday, so in my birthday text, I told her that on her eleventy-first birthday, she'd be giving the gifts, not receiving them. When i explained the LOTR reference, she called me "eccentric." A compliment!
Thanks, David. I enjoy letting texts talk to each other, even or especially when it seems that they have nothing in common. And yes, “eccentric” is one of the best compliments!
Prince is brilliant. Always thought he wasn't given enough credit for his beyond talent playing the guitar. I love this idea of the sychonosity of the Sagas and Prince. Both are bold, full of emotions taking the reader or listener for an emotional ride. Both are roar, full of physicality and sensuality. Beautiful
Cannot wait to see how this develops! I have been so fascinated with the classroom discussions we have had so far about connecting medieval literature with popular music. Gonna show this to Joe too because we were just discussing Prince's impact on music yesterday!
So happy you’re enjoying it! I think you’re going to like where this is going: music, poetry, and wildness.
Love this entry ... and it brought me back to the effect that Prince had in my own childhood/adolescence. I was 12 when _Purple Rain_ dropped, and it was a tipping point for me. I know that album backwards and forwards, but his guitar riffs -- particularly in "Purple Rain" itself -- always transport me. The album was a journey; and even at 12, when the subject matter was about things I didn't understand at the time (i.e. "Darling Nikki" or even "The Beautiful Ones"), it was as if it was preparing me for the pubescent turbulence ahead. Now at 51, the album still speaks to me, with the added dimension of experience, nostalgia, and an understanding of my own naivete at the time, as well as the payoff of the lessons I've learned since.
Your entry made me think about the role of those ancient epics as an education for what was ahead; with so much stacked and encoded into rhythm, meter, epithetic cues which became embedded in the lived experience of the listener(s).
Prince taught me that the music itself was just as important as the lyrics, and vice versa. At 12 it was a revelation to intrinsically understand that his guitar was carrying the story as much as his lyrics were. The trade-off from orality to literacy is that we lose the power of rhythm, tone, and linguistic efficacy of the spoken. Music can bridge that gap.
"What is purple rain"?
I think the answer is wherever we're transported in that final guitar solo.
Anyway, thanks for such a great post.
Thanks so much for your thoughtful comments. And yes, I think I agree with your definition of purple rain—or something very close to it.
I have still not quite recovered from seeing Prince playing that guitar solo on "While my guitar gently keeps" in the George Harrison tribute concert. Oh my.
That was an amazing moment. And at the end, he just throws the guitar in the air.
"I really haven’t needed to listen to it, since I internalized the whole thing through countless listens decades ago." - I can totally relate to that. Prince was a fork in the road for me, the Purple Rain era inspired me to pick up the guitar, and Prince's multi-instrunmentalism gave me permission to learn a host of other instruments too. He led me to Hendrix, Sly Stone, James Brown and George Clinton too.
Looking forward to the next instalment.
Enjoyed this.
When you’re a Star, don’t nothing come to hard??!!!
What the heck?? I'm so in.
John, I love the way your mind works, perhaps because I, too, enjoy the continuum of emotion and meaning in the world's most poignant literature, music, and, yes, visual art, though my connections are not nearly as brilliant or profound as yours. Because I am a generation or so older than you, my experience with Prince is woefully limited, so your directives have been quite insightful for me. I sadly missed out on much of the music of the 80s (the decade in which both my kids were born), so I thank you for helping me put Prince in a whole new perspective as one who certainly appreciates the pendulous quality of wyrd, but, no sinner he, at least in his music, refuses to despair in what he cannot change.
Thanks, Pier. Much of the music of the 80s was, frankly, forgettable, but Prince was special.
Thank you for these videos of great Prince performances. This bit of personal essay introduces this subject perfectly and brings the era right back. :-) Can't wait to see this come together in the Icelandic saga. I love your juxtapositions.
Thanks! (And yes, I'm looking forward to seeing it come together too. It makes sense to me; we'll see if I can make it make sense to anyone else.)
Haha! I’m not worried. :-)
Ah the nostalgia through this piece of writing is wonderful to experience vicariously, I fall into that ever so slightly too young category to have appreciated Prince in ‘the moment!’
Doesn’t this experience speak to the magical way in which we process information and piece things together, always learning. Looking forward to the follow up! (After listening 🎶)
Thanks, glad you enjoyed it!
What a great concept, connecting old and new thoughts. It would seem the essential human does not change through the ages. Job still resonates, as Pete Seeger demonstrated.
This brought back so many memories of my youth. What an iconic artist. I am going to play the album in full this evening when I get home.