The Obscurity of Prince

The Labyrinth of Obscurity — Deconstructing “Least Listened To” in Prince’s Kingdom

 

The question, “What is Prince’s least listened to song?” appears simple, a straightforward request for a data point from a legendary career. Yet, for an artist as boundlessly prolific, defiantly experimental, and systematically industry-disrupting as Prince Rogers Nelson, the concept of “least listened to” is not a singular destination but a labyrinthine journey. The answer is not a title to be found at the bottom of a chart; it is a complex narrative woven from decades of artistic rebellion, commercial gambles, and pioneering forays into digital distribution. This report posits that finding Prince’s most obscure track is not a treasure hunt for one song but an archaeological dig into the very fabric of his career—an exploration of an artist who actively manipulated the levers of access, audience, and commercialism. The true answer is not a song title; it is a story about Prince’s revolutionary relationship with the music industry and his devoted global fanbase.

To navigate this labyrinth, this investigation will define and explore four distinct metrics of “unheard,” each representing a valid lens through which to measure musical obscurity in the context of Prince’s unique catalog:

  1. Commercial Invisibility: This metric focuses on songs from officially released albums that registered verifiably low sales figures and achieved zero chart presence. These are the ghosts of the traditional music industry model, records that were manufactured, shipped, and stocked, but ultimately ignored by the record-buying public.
  2. The Streaming Void: In the modern era, listenership is quantified by streams. This metric examines songs with the lowest play counts on platforms like Spotify. However, this data is profoundly complicated by Prince’s own tumultuous history with these services, requiring careful contextualization to yield meaningful conclusions.
  3. The Covermount Paradox: This metric analyzes a uniquely Prince-an phenomenon—songs distributed to millions of people as free covermounts with European newspapers. This strategy created a paradox of mass physical distribution coupled with potential mass indifference, resulting in a unique form of cultural invisibility.
  4. The Digital Sanctum: Representing the deepest and most intentional form of obscurity, this metric investigates songs released exclusively to a small, dedicated, and paying fanbase through Prince’s groundbreaking NPG Music Club in the early 2000s. These tracks were firewalled from the general public by design.

It is essential to first draw a clear line between what is merely “underrated” and what is genuinely “obscure.” Numerous discussions and articles highlight tracks that are considered “overlooked” or “underrated” by fans and critics.1 Songs like the searing gospel of “Anna Stesia” from the platinum-selling

Lovesexy, the intricate narrative of “The Ballad of Dorothy Parker,” or the complex emotional landscape of “Strange Relationship,” both from the monumental double album Sign O’ the Times, are frequently mentioned.1 While these are indeed deep cuts that showcase Prince’s genius beyond his radio hits, they are far from unheard. They exist on iconic, multi-million-selling albums that are cornerstones of popular music history. They are beloved by a substantial audience of dedicated fans and critically lauded. This report will respectfully set these well-known deep cuts aside to focus on a more rigorous, data-supported definition of obscurity—the songs that, for various reasons, truly fell through the cracks of public consciousness.

 

Part I: The Commercial Abyss — Songs from the Least Successful and Most Unconventional Releases

 

The most traditional way to measure a song’s reach is through the commercial performance of its parent album. In Prince’s vast discography, which includes dozens of top-10 albums and sales exceeding 150 million records worldwide 5, a few releases stand out for their stark lack of commercial impact. These albums, and the songs they contain, represent the first category of candidates for the “least listened to” title. This analysis extends beyond simple sales figures to include Prince’s disruptive distribution models, which often guaranteed commercial invisibility by design.

 

Section 1.1: Case Study — The Sound of Silence: The N.E.W.S. Album (2003)

 

In 2003, at a time when the music industry was grappling with the digital revolution, Prince released what is arguably his most commercially inaccessible and, consequently, his lowest-selling studio album: N.E.W.S..7 The album stands as the documented commercial nadir of his career, with reported sales of a mere 30,000 copies worldwide.7 This stark figure, a microscopic fraction of the sales of albums like

Purple Rain (over 21 million worldwide) or even more modest hits like Musicology (over 2 million worldwide) 7, immediately establishes the four tracks on

N.E.W.S. as primary contenders for the least-heard songs in his commercially released catalog.

The album’s obscurity is not merely a matter of poor sales; it is deeply rooted in its artistic content. N.E.W.S. consists of four instrumental jazz-funk compositions, each precisely 14 minutes long, titled “North,” “East,” “West,” and “South”.8 These sprawling, atmospheric pieces are a world away from the tightly structured, hook-laden pop, funk, and rock that made Prince a global superstar. The music is challenging, meditative, and built for deep listening, not for radio airplay or casual consumption. It can be seen as a modern incarnation of his earlier instrumental side project, Madhouse, but released under his own name, a decision that ensured it would be judged against his pop legacy.8

The combination of its niche genre and its poor commercial performance creates a powerful formula for low listenership. Any of the four tracks from N.E.W.S. could plausibly be the least-heard song from any of Prince’s physically released, commercially available studio albums. The album’s journey presents a fascinating contradiction: despite its commercial failure, it garnered a Grammy nomination for Best Pop Instrumental Album.8 This acknowledgment from the Recording Academy highlights a critical divergence—the album was recognized for its musical merit by industry peers, yet it remained almost completely invisible to the public.

This commercial outcome was not an unforeseen failure but a predictable, and likely intentional, result of its creation. A global icon does not release a 60-minute album of instrumental jazz expecting it to compete with the likes of “Little Red Corvette.” The release of N.E.W.S. was an artistic statement, a creative indulgence from an artist who had earned the freedom to follow his muse wherever it led, regardless of commercial potential. By this stage in his career, Prince was often unconcerned with, and at times actively hostile toward, the demands of the mainstream music market. The profound obscurity of “North,” “East,” “West,” and “South” is therefore not accidental; it is a direct and deliberate consequence of the album’s conception, making them perfect examples of songs that are unheard because they were never truly meant for a mass audience.

 

Section 1.2: Case Study — The Paradox of Ubiquity: The Covermount Releases

 

While N.E.W.S. represents obscurity through commercial failure, Prince pioneered another, more paradoxical path to low listenership: mass distribution. In the late 2000s, he executed a revolutionary strategy, giving away entire new albums as free “covermounts” with European newspapers. This approach was used for Planet Earth in 2007, distributed with the UK’s The Mail on Sunday 10, and for

20Ten in 2010, given away with the Daily Mirror in the UK, Courrier International in France, and other publications across Europe.14

On the surface, this method seems the opposite of obscure. The numbers were staggering: over 2.5 million copies of 20Ten were distributed in the UK alone through the Daily Mirror deal.14 The promotion led to significant circulation spikes for the newspapers involved; the

Daily Mirror‘s sales increased by 334,000 copies on the day of the giveaway, while The Mail on Sunday‘s circulation for the Planet Earth release rose by 600,000.13 However, this ubiquity was a Trojan horse. By bypassing traditional retail channels, Prince ensured the albums were ineligible for official music charts, effectively erasing them from the primary record of popular music culture.15 Furthermore, this strategy fragmented the global audience.

20Ten, for instance, was never commercially released in the United States, one of the world’s largest music markets, leaving American fans to seek out expensive imports or illegal downloads.16

This created a unique dynamic where physical possession of an album did not equate to active listenership. For many of the millions who purchased the newspaper, the free CD was a secondary incentive, a curiosity that may have been played once, if at all, before being discarded with the paper itself. Consequently, any non-single track from these albums becomes a strong candidate for being “least listened to” on a mass-produced record. Songs from Planet Earth like the eco-conscious title track or the spiritually-tinged “Lion of Judah” 13, and tracks from

20Ten such as the synth-heavy “Beginning Endlessly” 1 or the funk workout “Sticky Like Glue” 19, exist in a strange limbo. They are simultaneously some of Prince’s most widely distributed and most culturally invisible songs.

Prince’s own words reveal the motivation behind this seemingly counterintuitive strategy. He told the Daily Mirror, “It’s the best way to go. No charts, no internet piracy and no stress”.14 This was not merely a novel distribution method; it was a calculated act of defiance against the music industry. By circumventing the entire apparatus of retail, marketing, and chart certification, he was making a powerful statement about artistic control and the value of his work. He was weaponizing distribution to reclaim his independence. The result was a new category of obscurity: songs that were physically present in millions of homes but culturally absent from the mainstream conversation, a stark contrast to a track from a poor-selling but traditionally released album like his 1978 debut,

For You.21 The unheard nature of these covermount tracks is a direct consequence of Prince’s radical vision for an alternative music economy.

 

Part II: The Digital Echo — Analyzing Modern Streaming Data

 

In the 21st century, the primary metric of listenership has shifted from physical sales to digital streams. An analysis of data from platforms like Spotify would seem to offer a direct, quantitative answer to the question of Prince’s least-heard song. However, the data is fraught with complications rooted in Prince’s complex and often adversarial relationship with the very concept of music streaming, making a simple reading of the numbers deeply misleading without critical context.

 

Section 2.1: The Spotify Anomaly

 

Prince was famously skeptical of the streaming model, viewing it as a system that devalued music and unfairly compensated artists. His most dramatic move came in the summer of 2015, when he ordered his publishers to pull his entire catalog from all streaming services except for the artist-centric platform Tidal.23 His music only returned to major platforms like Spotify and Apple Music more broadly in February 2017, nearly a year after his death.

This historical context is crucial and creates a significant data skew. While his 1980s contemporaries like Michael Jackson and Madonna had their catalogs available for the better part of a decade, benefiting from years of passive discovery, playlist inclusion, and algorithmic recommendations that steadily built up billions of plays, Prince’s catalog was largely absent during this formative period of streaming growth. Consequently, his current Spotify numbers are not a reflection of his all-time popularity or listenership. Instead, they represent a much shorter window of post-2016 active listening by fans who specifically seek out his music. This fundamental difference makes a direct comparison of his streaming figures to those of his peers an apples-to-oranges fallacy and complicates the interpretation of what “low streams” truly means for his work.26

This issue is further compounded by platform-specific technical quirks. The 1988 album Lovesexy, for example, was conceived and released on CD as a single, continuous track to enforce a sequential listening experience. On some streaming services, the album is still indexed this way, as one long 45-minute file.27 This makes it impossible for the platform to log individual plays for the album’s constituent songs, including the hit single “Alphabet St.” and fan-favorite tracks like “Anna Stesia” and “Dance On.” As a result, the official stream counts for these songs are artificially depressed or non-existent on certain platforms, making them appear far less popular than they actually are and further muddying the data pool.26 Any analysis of Prince’s least-streamed songs must therefore proceed with extreme caution, treating the numbers not as absolute truth but as clues within a larger, more complex puzzle.

 

Section 2.2: The Bottom of the Stream

 

Despite the inherent flaws in the data, examining the lowest tiers of Prince’s Spotify streams provides a fascinating, if imperfect, snapshot of what the modern digital audience overlooks. These are the tracks that are not being actively sought out, nor are they being served up by the platform’s discovery algorithms. The list of least-streamed songs is populated by a specific cross-section of his catalog: deep cuts from his 21st-century albums, tracks from his unconventional digital-only compilations, and songs hampered by the technical issues previously discussed.

The following table presents a selection of Prince’s officially released songs that exhibit exceptionally low streaming numbers relative to the rest of his catalog. This list is representative, constructed from available data and fan community discussions, and illustrates the types of songs that fall into the modern streaming void.26

 

Song Title Album Year Notes on Obscurity
“West” N.E.W.S. 2003 From his documented worst-selling commercial album; a 14-minute instrumental.
“South” N.E.W.S. 2003 From his documented worst-selling commercial album; a 14-minute instrumental.
“North” N.E.W.S. 2003 From his documented worst-selling commercial album; a 14-minute instrumental.
“East” N.E.W.S. 2003 From his documented worst-selling commercial album; a 14-minute instrumental.
“Dance On” Lovesexy 1988 From an album often indexed as a single track, artificially depressing streams.26
“Eye No” Lovesexy 1988 From an album often indexed as a single track, artificially depressing streams.26
“Beginning Endlessly” 20Ten 2010 From a covermount album never commercially released in the US.1
“Lion of Judah” Planet Earth 2007 Deep cut from a covermount album given away for free in the UK.13
“Vavoom” The Chocolate Invasion 2004 From a digital-only compilation of NPG Music Club tracks.29
“Silicon” The Slaughterhouse 2004 From a digital-only compilation of NPG Music Club tracks.29
“S&M Groove” The Slaughterhouse 2004 From a digital-only compilation of NPG Music Club tracks.29
“Y Should Eye Do That…” The Slaughterhouse 2004 From a digital-only compilation of NPG Music Club tracks.29
“Hypnoparadise” The Slaughterhouse 2004 From a digital-only compilation of NPG Music Club tracks.27
“The Daisy Chain” The Slaughterhouse 2004 Originally a limited CD single in 2001 before this digital compilation.1
“Underneath the Cream” The Chocolate Invasion 2004 Originally a limited CD single in 2001 before this digital compilation.1
“My Medallion” NPG Music Club 2001 An NPGMC track that was nearly on The Chocolate Invasion but was swapped out.30
“Van Gogh” NPG Music Club 2001 An NPGMC track from 2001 never compiled on a subsequent album.29
“Props N’ Pounds” The Slaughterhouse 2004 From a digital-only compilation of NPG Music Club tracks.29
“Gamillah” The Chocolate Invasion 2004 From a digital-only compilation of NPG Music Club tracks.29
“Judas Smile” The Chocolate Invasion 2004 From a digital-only compilation of NPG Music Club tracks.29

An analysis of this data reveals clear patterns. The entire N.E.W.S. album languishes at the bottom, its commercial failure translating directly into digital neglect. The technical issues surrounding Lovesexy are evident, with tracks like “Dance On” appearing far less popular than their historical status would suggest. Most tellingly, a significant portion of the least-streamed material comes from the albums released in the 21st century, particularly the digital compilations sourced from the NPG Music Club, such as The Chocolate Invasion and The Slaughterhouse. Tracks like “Vavoom” and “Silicon” were born in relative obscurity and have remained there in the streaming age. This demonstrates that the digital footprint of these songs largely mirrors their original, limited reach, confirming that the deepest levels of obscurity are found in Prince’s most unconventional and fan-facing projects.

 

Part III: The Inner Sanctum — The NPG Music Club Exclusives (2001-2005)

 

To locate the songs that are truly the “least listened to,” one must venture beyond the realms of commercial releases and mainstream streaming platforms. The most fertile ground for this investigation lies in the archives of the NPG Music Club, Prince’s pioneering online subscription service that operated from 2001 to 2006. This platform was a revolutionary, pre-Bandcamp, pre-Patreon experiment in a direct-to-fan economy. For a subscription fee, members gained access to a steady stream of new music, live recordings, and videos, effectively creating a parallel, “secret” catalog intended only for the ears of his most dedicated followers. The songs from this era are obscure by design, firewalled from the general public by a paywall and a distribution model that was years ahead of its time.

 

Section 3.1: The Digital Compilations: The Chocolate Invasion & The Slaughterhouse

 

In March 2004, Prince released two full-length digital albums through the NPG Music Club’s new “Musicology” download store: The Chocolate Invasion and The Slaughterhouse.30 These were not traditional studio albums recorded as cohesive projects. Instead, they were compilations, collections of tracks that had been previously made available as individual MP3 downloads to club members between 2001 and 2003.30 Because they were released exclusively as digital downloads through his own service, they were not submitted for commercial charting and remain largely unknown to the wider public.32

This unique origin and distribution model makes their entire tracklists prime candidates for the least-listened-to songs in his official album canon. The Chocolate Invasion features tracks like the slinky “Vavoom,” the raw “Underneath the Cream,” and the politically charged “Judas Smile” (a retitled version of the NPGMC track “Judas Kiss”).29

The Slaughterhouse contains experimental funk and electronic pieces such as “Silicon,” the abrasive “S&M Groove,” and the quirky “Hypnoparadise”.27 While some of these tracks had an even earlier, hyper-limited release as CD singles sold only at concerts during the 2001 Hit N Run Tour (e.g., “Supercute,” “The Daisy Chain,” “Gamillah”), their inclusion on these digital-only albums represents their widest official distribution.30

The profound obscurity of these two albums is a direct and fascinating consequence of Prince’s artistic and business innovation. By creating a members-only digital sanctum, he bifurcated his own catalog. On one side were the mainstream releases through major labels, intended for a global audience. On the other was this parallel universe of music, created for and distributed directly to his inner circle of supporters. The low listenership of a song like “S&M Groove” or “Vavoom” is not a mark of failure but a testament to the success of this revolutionary model. They are “least listened to” by the general public precisely because they were intended for a small, specific, and highly engaged audience who were willing to follow Prince into the new frontier of digital music.

 

Section 3.2: Lost in the Wires — The True Digital Phantoms

 

While the tracks on The Chocolate Invasion and The Slaughterhouse are undeniably obscure, the absolute deepest level of unheard material can be found by digging even further into the NPG Music Club’s release logs. A number of songs were made available to members during the club’s active years that were never subsequently compiled onto those 2004 albums or any other official release. These tracks are the true digital phantoms of Prince’s catalog. They existed, often for a limited time, as downloadable MP3 or WMA files, and then vanished from official availability, their listenership confined to the few thousand fans who happened to be paying subscribers at that exact moment.

These ephemeral releases represent the zenith of Prince’s direct-to-fan experimentation and, consequently, the nadir of public awareness. Detailed logs from fan archives and Prince scholarship sites reveal a trove of such material.29 For instance, in September 2001, premium members received a download of “Contest Song (Instrumental),” a track that has never resurfaced officially.33 The “NPG Ahdio Show 6” from July 2001 included a premium bonus track simply titled “Instrumental,” another one-off release lost to time.29 Other examples of these hyper-obscure tracks include the moody “Van Gogh,” released in July 2001, and the frenetic “Y Should Eye Do That When Eye Can Do This?,” released in June 2001 and later compiled on

The Slaughterhouse, but which existed for years as a standalone digital ghost.29

The following table identifies a selection of these hyper-obscure tracks, highlighting their fleeting existence and lack of subsequent official release. These songs are not just deep cuts; they are digital artifacts from a specific, revolutionary period in Prince’s career, making them the strongest possible candidates for his least-listened-to work.

 

Track Title Original Release Context Release Date Subsequent Availability
“Contest Song (Instrumental)” NPGMC Premium Bonus Track Sep. 2001 None; never officially re-released.33
“Instrumental” NPGMC Premium Bonus Track (Ahdio Show 6) Jul. 2001 None; never officially re-released.29
“Van Gogh” NPGMC Download (Ahdio Show 6) Jul. 2001 None; never officially re-released.29
“Splash” NPGMC Download (Ahdio Show 1) Feb. 2001 Unreleased Revolution-era track; never officially re-released outside NPGMC.33
“Habibi” NPGMC Download (Ahdio Show 3) Apr. 2001 Cover of Jimi Hendrix’s “Machine Gun”; never officially re-released.33
“Madrid 2 Chicago” NPGMC Download (Ahdio Show 12) Jan. 2002 Rave Un2 the Joy Fantastic outtake; never officially re-released.29
“Funky Design” NPGMC Download (Ahdio Show 1) Feb. 2001 None; never officially re-released.33
“Mad” NPGMC Download (Ahdio Show 1) Feb. 2001 None; never officially re-released.33
“Glass Cutter (Demo)” NPGMC Download Oct. 2004 None; never officially re-released.33
“Silver Tongue (Demo)” NPGMC Download Jul. 2004 None; never officially re-released.33

The existence of these digital phantoms provides the definitive evidence for this report’s ultimate conclusion. They represent a level of obscurity that transcends low sales or low streams. Their listenership was not just small; it was finite, limited to a self-selecting group of subscribers over two decades ago. For all intents and purposes, songs like “Contest Song (Instrumental)” are ghosts in Prince’s digital machine, making them the most accurate and compelling answer to the question of his least-listened-to song.

 

Conclusion: A Shortlist for Obscurity

 

The search for Prince’s “least listened to song” does not yield a single, simple answer. Instead, it reveals the multifaceted nature of obscurity in the career of an artist who consistently redefined the relationship between creator, industry, and audience. The investigation across the four distinct metrics—commercial invisibility, the streaming void, the covermount paradox, and the digital sanctum—results not in one winner, but in a definitive shortlist of candidates, a “Mount Rushmore of Obscurity,” with each representing the pinnacle of unheard within its category.

  • The Commercially Unheard: “West” (from N.E.W.S., 2003)
    For a song released through traditional commercial channels on a physical studio album, “West”—or any of its three 14-minute instrumental siblings—is the clearest candidate. Born from the album with Prince’s lowest documented sales figures of just 30,000 units, its inherent inaccessibility and lack of promotion condemned it to commercial oblivion from the start.7 It represents the sound of a superstar choosing pure artistic expression over any semblance of market appeal.
  • The Mass-Distributed Ghost: “Beginning Endlessly” (from 20Ten, 2010)
    This track perfectly embodies the paradox of being everywhere and nowhere simultaneously. As part of an album given away for free to over 2.5 million European newspaper readers but never commercially sold in the United States, “Beginning Endlessly” had one of the largest physical distributions of any Prince song in the 21st century.1 Yet, its unconventional release rendered it chart-ineligible and culturally invisible, a ghost in millions of households.
  • The Fan-Club Secret: “S&M Groove” (from The Slaughterhouse, 2004)
    Representing the dozens of tracks firewalled from the public within the NPG Music Club, “S&M Groove” is a quintessential fan-club secret. Its listenership was intentionally limited to the small, paying subscriber base of Prince’s pioneering online service in the early 2000s.29 It is a song that is unknown not by accident, but by the very design of the revolutionary direct-to-fan model Prince was building.
  • The True Digital Phantom: “Contest Song (Instrumental)” (NPG Music Club, 2001)
    This is the ultimate candidate and the most precise answer to the query. Released exclusively as a bonus download for premium NPG Music Club members in September 2001, this track was never compiled, re-released, or made available again through any official channel.33 Its existence was fleeting, its audience was minimal and finite, and its access was zero post-2001. It is a true digital ghost, a piece of music heard by a few thousand devotees and then effectively erased from the official record.

Ultimately, the quest to identify Prince’s least listened-to song reveals more than any single title ever could. It maps the contours of a uniquely defiant artistic journey. The obscurity of these tracks is not a sign of failure but a testament to Prince’s radical independence, his relentless innovation, and his unwavering commitment to making music on his own terms, for an audience he chose, through channels he built. The sound of silence in Prince’s catalog is, in its own way, as loud and revolutionary as his greatest hits.

Works cited

  1. Underrated Prince: The Most Overlooked Song From Each Album – Ultimate Classic Rock, accessed July 23, 2025, https://ultimateclassicrock.com/underrated-prince/
  2. Top 30 Underrated Prince Songs! – Insights from a Southern Girl, accessed July 23, 2025, https://southerngirlentertainmentblog.com/2022/06/29/top-30-underrated-prince-songs/
  3. Prince’s Sign O’ The Times Underrated Songs That You’ll Adore – Foxy 107.1-104.3, accessed July 23, 2025, https://foxync.com/playlist/prince-sign-o-the-times-underrated-songs-that-youll-adore/
  4. What is an obscure Prince song that almost nobody mentions but you love and listen to it all the time? – Reddit, accessed July 23, 2025, https://www.reddit.com/r/PRINCE/comments/16edyjs/what_is_an_obscure_prince_song_that_almost_nobody/
  5. Prince singles discography – Wikipedia, accessed July 23, 2025, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prince_singles_discography
  6. Prince album chart history – Goldies Parade, accessed July 23, 2025, https://goldiesparade.co.uk/discography/chart-history/
  7. Top 10 Best-Selling Prince Albums – CBS News, accessed July 23, 2025, https://www.cbsnews.com/minnesota/news/top-10-best-selling-prince-albums/
  8. N·E·W·S (Prince album) – Wikipedia, accessed July 23, 2025, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/N%C2%B7E%C2%B7W%C2%B7S_(Prince_album)
  9. Prince Top Selling Albums: Purple Rain Leads with 21M+ Sales – Accio, accessed July 23, 2025, https://www.accio.com/business/prince-top-selling-albums
  10. Prince Albums From Worst To Best – Stereogum, accessed July 23, 2025, https://www.stereogum.com/1685960/prince-albums-from-worst-to-best/photo/
  11. Prince’s ‘Planet Earth’ Preaches Green Living – Diffuser.fm, accessed July 23, 2025, https://diffuser.fm/prince-planet-earth/
  12. Planet Earth (Prince album) – Wikipedia, accessed July 23, 2025, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Planet_Earth_(Prince_album)
  13. Planet Earth Prince album, Columbia Records – Goldies Parade, accessed July 23, 2025, https://goldiesparade.co.uk/discography/albums/planet-earth/
  14. 20Ten – Wikipedia, accessed July 23, 2025, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/20Ten
  15. Album: 20Ten – Prince Vault, accessed July 23, 2025, https://princevault.com/index.php/Album:_20Ten
  16. 20TEN Prince album, NPG Records – Goldies Parade, accessed July 23, 2025, https://goldiesparade.co.uk/discography/albums/20ten/
  17. 20Ten – Prince Studio Albums, accessed July 23, 2025, https://discography.prince.com/albums/20ten
  18. Album: Planet Earth – Prince Vault, accessed July 23, 2025, https://princevault.com/index.php/Album:_Planet_Earth
  19. Favorite Less Popular Songs? : r/PRINCE – Reddit, accessed July 23, 2025, https://www.reddit.com/r/PRINCE/comments/1f1r1ve/favorite_less_popular_songs/
  20. When Prince Gave Away ’20Ten’ and Went to ‘Studio Rehab’, accessed July 23, 2025, https://ultimateprince.com/prince-20ten/
  21. Prince albums discography – Wikipedia, accessed July 23, 2025, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prince_albums_discography
  22. Prince albums and songs sales – ChartMasters, accessed July 23, 2025, https://chartmasters.org/cspc-prince-popularity-analysis/
  23. Why Prince Hated Spotify, YouTube, SoundCloud, Apple Music, Deezer, and Rdio, accessed July 23, 2025, https://www.digitalmusicnews.com/2016/04/21/why-prince-hated-spotify/
  24. Prince’s music sales surging online – CBS News, accessed July 23, 2025, https://www.cbsnews.com/news/princes-music-sales-surging-online/
  25. Prince Sells More Than 1,100,000 Songs the Day After His Death | The Root, accessed July 23, 2025, https://www.theroot.com/prince-sells-more-than-1100000-songs-the-day-after-his-death
  26. Thoughts on the 10 least streamed Prince songs on Spotify – Reddit, accessed July 23, 2025, https://www.reddit.com/r/PRINCE/comments/19fbszo/thoughts_on_the_10_least_streamed_prince_songs_on/
  27. Here’s a playlist of all the WEIRDEST, CRAZIEST songs by Prince …, accessed July 23, 2025, https://www.reddit.com/r/PRINCE/comments/je0y56/heres_a_playlist_of_all_the_weirdest_craziest/
  28. Prince – Spotify Top Songs – Kworb.net, accessed July 23, 2025, https://kworb.net/spotify/artist/5a2EaR3hamoenG9rDuVn8j_songs.html
  29. NPG MUSIC CLUB Songs List – Free, accessed July 23, 2025, http://tonio.lagoule.free.fr/prince_npgmusicclub.htm
  30. The Chocolate Invasion – Wikipedia, accessed July 23, 2025, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Chocolate_Invasion
  31. The Slaughterhouse – Wikipedia, accessed July 23, 2025, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Slaughterhouse
  32. Album: The Slaughterhouse – Prince Vault, accessed July 23, 2025, https://princevault.com/index.php/Album:_The_Slaughterhouse
  33. List of music released from NPG Music Club – Wikipedia, accessed July 23, 2025, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_music_released_from_NPG_Music_Club
  34. NPG Music Club Year One Releases – Prince Vault, accessed July 23, 2025, https://princevault.com/index.php/NPG_Music_Club_Year_One_Releases
  35. Prince & The New Power Generation – The Slaughterhouse | TheAudioDB.com, accessed July 23, 2025, https://www.theaudiodb.com/album/2145615-Prince–The-New-Power-Generation-The-Slaughterhouse
  36. Album: The Chocolate Invasion – Prince Vault, accessed July 23, 2025, https://princevault.com/index.php/Album:_The_Chocolate_Invasion
  37. NPG Music Club | Prince downloads – Goldies Parade, accessed July 23, 2025, https://goldiesparade.co.uk/discography/websites/npg-music-club/

NPG Music Club (Website) – Prince Vault, accessed July 23, 2025, https://princevault.com/index.php/NPG_Music_Club_(Website)

By |2025-08-20T06:43:44-04:00July 23rd, 2025|Music, Prince|0 Comments

The Mirrored Man and the Broken Heart

A Comparative Analysis of Tears for Fears’ “Badman’s Song” and Prince’s “Have a Heart”

 

Introduction: Two Titans, Two Testaments

 

The year 1989 stands as a fascinating intersection in the careers of two of popular music’s most ambitious figures: Roland Orzabal of Tears for Fears and Prince. Both artists, having defined much of the 1980s with their genre-defying sound and intensely personal songwriting, arrived at this moment via starkly divergent paths. Tears for Fears unveiled The Seeds of Love, a magnum opus four years in the making, born of artistic struggle and painstaking perfectionism.1 In the same year, Prince, a fellow Warner Bros. stablemate, delivered the soundtrack for the blockbuster film

Batman—a commercially driven project executed with astonishing speed.3 This juxtaposition of artistic priorities, one of obsessive craft and the other of prolific synergy, provides a critical context for understanding their work.

While “Badman’s Song” was a centerpiece of this 1989 artistic statement from Tears for Fears, Prince’s “Have a Heart” would emerge over a decade later in 2002. Yet, a comparison of these two tracks reveals a profound study in contrast, offering two distinct models for transmuting personal pain into art. “Badman’s Song” is a grand, public exorcism of internal conflict, a sprawling piece of psychodrama realized through a maximalist, collaborative production. “Have a Heart,” conversely, is a sharp, private rebuke of an external party, delivered with the cutting intimacy of a minimalist, solitary performance. The production ethos of each song is not merely a stylistic choice but a direct reflection of its lyrical narrative; the scale of the sound mirrors the nature of the emotional conflict being expressed.

 

Part I: Anatomy of a Maximalist Confession — Tears for Fears’ “Badman’s Song”

 

A. The Genesis of Guilt: Lyrical Deconstruction

 

The lyrical core of “Badman’s Song” is deeply autobiographical. The song was born during Tears for Fears’ 1985 world tour for Songs from the Big Chair, when Roland Orzabal inadvertently overheard members of his touring crew speaking ill of him in a hotel room.1 This incident positions Orzabal himself as the titular “badman,” a fact made explicit in the lyric, “Well here’s to the boys back in 628,” a direct reference to the event.7

This origin point fuels the song’s dominant themes of paranoia and judgment. Lines like “an ear to the wall was a twist of fate” and “There’ll be certain men waiting just to scratch my face” convey a sense of persecution and suspicion.7 This feeling of being watched and maligned culminates in the weary observation that he has become “Food for the saints that are quick to judge me”.7

However, the song quickly pivots from external accusation to internal confrontation. The central metaphor is the looking-glass: “In my head there is a mirror / When I’ve been bad, I’ve been wrong”.7 This imagery, along with the reference to “Guilt in the frame of the looking-glass,” depicts a powerful shift from focusing on the critics to a raw examination of his own flaws and culpability.7 The song becomes a portrait of a fractured psyche, of “the jigsaw pieces of a broken man / Try and fit themselves together again”.7 This narrative arc closely mirrors the process of psychotherapy, a foundational concept for the band, whose very name is derived from Arthur Janov’s primal scream therapy.11 The lyrical journey from paranoia to self-confrontation (“Look at yourself, see how you lie”) and finally to a plea for grace (“Hope for a bad man”) follows a classic therapeutic progression of acknowledging pain, accepting responsibility, and seeking resolution.7

 

B. Building the Cathedral of Sound: Musical & Structural Analysis

 

Musically, “Badman’s Song” is as complex and layered as its lyrical themes. It is a sophisticated fusion of genres, blending the intricate harmonies and instrumental prowess of jazz-fusion with the grand scale of progressive pop, all infused with the emotional fire of soul and gospel.1 The song’s jazz credentials are on immediate display with Nicky Holland’s opening piano motif, which has been noted for its strong resemblance to the iconic introduction of Weather Report’s “Birdland”.2

At a sprawling 8 minutes and 32 seconds, the track abandons conventional pop structure in favor of something more akin to a multi-part suite.2 Its architecture is ambitious, moving through distinct sections including an introduction, multiple verses and choruses, a lengthy instrumental break featuring searing guitar solos, and a climactic vocal jam that functions as an extended outro.14 This dynamic journey, marked by shifts in tempo and intensity, gives the song its epic, cinematic quality.

This “organic warmth” was achieved through the deliberate use of world-class session musicians, a stark departure from the band’s earlier, more synthesized work.15 The lineup reads like a who’s who of late-80s virtuosos: Manu Katché delivers a nuanced and powerful drum performance, Pino Palladino provides a fluid and melodic bassline, Robbie McIntosh contributes searing slide and lead guitar, and Simon Clark adds rich layers of Hammond organ.16 Katché’s drumming, in particular, is frequently lauded for its combination of technical complexity and soulful feel, forming the song’s restless, dynamic backbone.13

Pivotal to the song’s identity is the American vocalist and pianist Oleta Adams, who Orzabal and Smith considered the album’s muse.2 After discovering her performing in a Kansas City hotel bar, they felt she was the key to achieving the authentic, soulful sound they craved.15 On “Badman’s Song,” her gospel-infused piano and commanding vocals provide the track’s emotional core, leading the band to thank her in the album’s liner notes for “authenticating our soul”.16 Her powerful call-and-response with Orzabal in the song’s final minutes transforms a personal confession into a communal exorcism.

 

C. The Million-Pound Palette: Production as Process

 

The creation of “Badman’s Song” is inseparable from the notoriously difficult and expensive production of The Seeds of Love. The entire project was a conscious rebellion against the “programmed pop era of the early ’80s”.1 Orzabal, in particular, had grown frustrated with the creative limitations of machines, feeling their music had become “too sterile” and a “straight jacket”.1 The goal was to create something “more colourful, something that sounded big and warm,” which could only be achieved with live musicians.1

This pursuit of sonic perfection led to a torturous, multi-year process that cost over £1 million.1 Sessions with producers Clive Langer, Alan Winstanley, and even previous collaborator Chris Hughes were scrapped due to creative conflicts.1 “Badman’s Song” itself was a prime example of this obsessive approach, having been recorded in numerous different styles—including versions reminiscent of Barry White, Little Feat, and Steely Dan—before the band settled on the final jazz-gospel arrangement.1 The final track was meticulously assembled, a process so detailed that the drum part alone required 15 days of editing, piecing together the best moments from various live takes by Manu Katché.16

This deconstructive and reconstructive production process serves as a stunningly direct metaphor for the song’s lyrical content. The arduous journey of the music—scrapped, reworked, and painstakingly reassembled from disparate parts—perfectly mirrors the psychological journey of the lyrics. The “broken man” attempting to “fit the jigsaw pieces” of his psyche back together is not just a poetic image; it is a literal description of how the song was made.7 The fractured creative process, with its false starts and laborious editing, becomes an audible manifestation of the internal struggle the song depicts.

 

D. The Voice of the “Badman”: Roland Orzabal’s Vocal Performance

 

Roland Orzabal’s vocal performance on “Badman’s Song” is a tour de force of emotional and technical range. Known for a powerful, “belting” chest voice well-suited for “acrobatics and drama,” he utilizes every facet of his instrument here.21 The performance is intensely theatrical, shifting from the conspiratorial near-whisper of the verses to the anguished, soaring cries of the choruses. He fully embodies the tormented persona of the “badman,” conveying a potent mix of paranoia, guilt, and raw defiance. His explosive delivery of lines like “I’m in trouble every step of the WAY!!!” showcases his ability to unleash a gritty, high-intensity howl that pierces through the dense musical arrangement.9

The performance reaches its zenith in the dialogue with Oleta Adams. As the song builds to its climax, it transforms from a solo confession into a dynamic, gospel-fueled exchange. Orzabal’s raw, almost desperate pleas are met and elevated by Adams’s soulful, authoritative responses. This vocal interplay creates a powerful dramatic tension, a call-and-response that suggests a struggle between sin and absolution, ultimately lifting the song’s intensely personal conflict into a universal, cathartic release.15

 

Part II: Anatomy of a Minimalist Rebuke — Prince’s “Have a Heart”

 

A. The Genesis of Disdain: Lyrical Deconstruction

 

The narrative of “Have a Heart” is one of sharp, cynical rebuttal. The song opens with the narrator recounting a piece of secondhand news: “I heard the news from a friend of mine and yours / She said the smell of missing me / Was coming from your pores!”.25 The subject of the song is an ex-lover who is reportedly devastated by the breakup.

Where a traditional ballad might express remorse or sadness, Prince’s narrator pivots to a cold, dismissive counter-attack. The song’s entire emotional and thematic weight rests on a single, cutting rhetorical question: “But you don’t have to have a heart first before you get it broken?”.25 This line is the track’s devastating payload. It reframes the entire situation, shifting the focus from his actions to a damning judgment of his ex-lover’s character, implying she was heartless to begin with. The tone is not one of pain, but of world-weary defiance. He trivializes the supposed “heartbreak” as a common affliction (“Everybody’s had one, see”) and situates the entire affair within the impersonal context of a universal “hustle”.25

In this way, “Have a Heart” functions as a striking anti-ballad. Prince was a master of the form, capable of expressing profound love and longing in songs like “Adore” and “Sometimes It Snows in April”.26 Here, he subverts the genre’s conventions. He uses the intimate format typically associated with vulnerability and confession not to reveal his own feelings, but to deliver a sharp, invulnerable, and emotionally shielded verdict.

 

B. The Intimacy of the Ivory Keys: Musical & Structural Analysis

 

The musical setting for this lyrical rebuke is as stark as the message itself. “Have a Heart” is a track from the 2002 album One Nite Alone…, which was subtitled Solo Piano and Voice by Prince.28 As the album credits confirm, the track was performed entirely by Prince, featuring only his voice and piano.29 This minimalist arrangement is central to the song’s impact.

Structurally, the song is as direct and concise as its lyrics. At a brief 2 minutes and 3 seconds, it wastes no time in delivering its point.29 Its simple verse-chorus form serves as a vehicle for the lyrical payload, free of instrumental solos or extended bridges. The piano performance is not a showcase of virtuosity but a masterclass in atmospheric support.31 The use of staccato chords and generous empty space creates a percussive, almost skeletal feel. The tempo is likely fluid, following the cadence of the vocal performance to lend the song a spontaneous, conversational quality. This sparse harmonic and rhythmic language creates a mood of stark, unflinching intimacy.

 

C. The Paisley Park Confessional: Production as Atmosphere

 

“Have a Heart” must be understood within the context of its parent album, One Nite Alone…. Recorded in the spring of 2001 at his Paisley Park complex, the album was released directly to fans via the NPG Music Club, a platform that afforded Prince complete artistic freedom from the major label system.29 The album is defined by its intimate, stripped-down aesthetic, which critics have described as alternately beautiful, “eerie,” and “sinister”.31 This minimalist “piano and voice” format was a deliberate artistic choice, a precursor to the

Piano & A Microphone tour that would mark his final years.34 It was an exploration of raw intimacy, an attempt to expose his “inner soul” to his audience.35

This context makes the emotional content of “Have a Heart” all the more potent. Prince effectively weaponizes the intimacy of the format. The solo piano setting creates an expectation of vulnerability and honest confession in the listener. When this expectation is met not with a tender admission of pain but with a cold, calculated insult, the effect is doubly shocking. The lyrical knife is sharpened by the quietness of the room. The minimalist production is not just an aesthetic; it is a rhetorical device that amplifies the cruelty of the central lyrical conceit, making the dismissal feel more personal and unforgiving than it ever could in a full-band arrangement.

 

D. The Voice of the Chameleon: Prince’s Vocal Performance

 

Prince’s vocal abilities were legendary; he was a “freakishly technical powerhouse” with a staggering range that encompassed resonant low notes, his signature soaring falsetto, and raw, visceral screams.36 On “Have a Heart,” however, he eschews these acrobatic extremes. The performance is characterized by its coolness and control, likely employing a restrained, mid-range, and conversational tone that perfectly matches the song’s matter-of-fact, judgmental lyrics.

The emotional delivery is key. The voice conveys not anguish or regret, but a kind of weary, cynical authority. The delivery of the central question—”Don’t you have to have a heart first…?”—is not a genuine inquiry but a final, unanswerable indictment. The vocal performance crafts a persona of emotional armor, of a world-weary arbiter who is beyond being hurt by such accusations. It is a performance of complete invulnerability, standing in stark contrast to the raw, open-wound confessions found in so many of his other iconic ballads.

 

Part III: A Tale of Two Hearts — Direct Comparative Analysis

 

A. Lyrical Dichotomy: Internal vs. External Conflict

 

The most fundamental difference between the two songs lies in the direction of their emotional conflict. “Badman’s Song” is a journey inward. The central drama unfolds between the narrator and his own reflection, a battle with the “Guilt in the frame of the looking-glass”.7 The “badman” is ultimately the self, and the song is an arduous attempt at self-reconciliation. It is a profound expression of vulnerability, a raw admission of being “bad” and “wrong.”

“Have a Heart,” by contrast, is a projection outward. The conflict is initiated by an external source—a rumor from a friend—and is resolved by casting judgment upon another person.25 The narrator engages in no self-doubt or introspection; the fault is placed entirely on the ex-lover’s perceived lack of a heart. Prince’s song is therefore a performance of invulnerability, a refusal to even entertain the notion of his own culpability in causing pain.

 

B. Sonic Philosophies: The Orchestra vs. The Soloist

 

This lyrical dichotomy is perfectly mirrored in the songs’ sonic philosophies. “Badman’s Song” is a monument to 1980s production maximalism. It is dense, complex, and layered with a multitude of live instruments, all meticulously edited from countless takes into a polished, epic whole.1 Its creation was a massive collaborative effort, involving the core duo, co-writer Nicky Holland, producer Dave Bascombe, and an ensemble of world-class musicians and vocalists.16

“Have a Heart” embodies a minimalist ethos. It is sparse, raw, and features only the essential elements of piano and voice.29 Its creation was a purely autonomous act, with Prince credited for every sound on the track, recorded in the solitary confines of his private studio.29 One song represents the power of the collective orchestra; the other, the stark power of the soloist.

 

C. Structural and Harmonic Counterpoints

 

The opposing natures of the two songs are starkly evident when their core musical attributes are placed side-by-side. The following table distills these contrasts into a clear, factual comparison.

 

Feature Tears for Fears – “Badman’s Song” Prince – “Have a Heart” Snippet Citations
Album The Seeds of Love One Nite Alone… 1
Release Year 1989 2002 1
Length 8:32 2:03 2
Tempo ~142 BPM, with variations Variable / Rubato 18
Key G Major / E minor C-sharp minor (implied) 41
Core Genre Progressive Pop / Jazz-Fusion / Gospel Acoustic / Smooth Jazz / Quiet Storm 1
Lyrical Theme Paranoia, guilt, self-reflection, judgment Cynicism, defiance, dismissal of heartbreak 10
Vocal Persona The tormented confessor The world-weary, cynical arbiter 10
Core Instrumentation Full band: Piano, Hammond, drums, bass, guitars, percussion, layered vocals Solo: Piano and voice 16
Production Ethos Maximalist, layered, collaborative, heavily edited Minimalist, intimate, raw, solitary 16

 

Part IV: The Artist in the Mirror — Context, Legacy, and Conclusion

 

A. Revisiting 1989: The Perfectionist and The Prolific

 

To fully appreciate the philosophical divide between these works, one must return to the context of 1989. For Tears for Fears, the year marked the culmination of a creative ordeal. The four-year, million-pound production of The Seeds of Love was an exercise in artistic obsession that strained the band to its breaking point, with Orzabal becoming “very single-minded” and the tensions ultimately leading to Curt Smith’s temporary departure from the group.1 It was an album forged in the crucible of uncompromising perfectionism.

For Prince, 1989 was a display of prolific, commercially astute genius. He delivered the entire Batman soundtrack in a mere six weeks, a project born of corporate synergy between him and the film studio, Warner Bros..3 He rapidly created a full concept album, with songs written from the perspectives of the film’s characters, and in doing so, reasserted his commercial dominance with a number one album.3 This contrast highlights two distinct models of artistic integrity at the close of the decade: one based on painstaking, exhaustive craft, and another based on the swift, confident application of a singular vision to any creative challenge.

 

B. The Heart of the Matter: Control as the Core Theme

 

Ultimately, both songs are deeply concerned with the concept of artistic control. The story of “Badman’s Song” and The Seeds of Love is one of an artist wrestling for control over a massive, collaborative, and expensive process in order to realize a specific, “organic” sonic vision against the grain of 80s pop production.1 Orzabal’s perfectionism was a fight to command every element of his grand design.

The story of “Have a Heart” and One Nite Alone… is that of an artist who has already won that war. Released via his own NPG Music Club after his famous, protracted battle with Warner Bros., the album and its solitary recording process are the very embodiment of artistic and professional autonomy.29 “Badman’s Song,” therefore, represents the struggle for creative control

within the established industry system, while “Have a Heart” represents the absolute exercise of that control outside of it.

 

C. Conclusion: Echoes in the Canon

 

In their composition, production, and lyrical intent, “Badman’s Song” and “Have a Heart” stand as polar opposites. One is a maximalist public confession, the other a minimalist private rebuke. One chronicles an internal war of the self, the other projects an external judgment of another. One is the product of a sprawling collaborative struggle, the other of a focused solitary command.

Yet, in their profound differences, each song serves as a quintessential self-portrait of its creator. “Badman’s Song” is the perfect embodiment of Roland Orzabal: the psychologically complex, therapeutically-minded composer, willing to deconstruct his own psyche on a grand, operatic stage. “Have a Heart” captures a crucial facet of Prince: the coolly detached, invulnerable, and utterly self-assured master, capable of delivering a devastating emotional verdict with the sparest of tools. Though they appear to be worlds apart, the two songs are united by their raw, unflinching honesty and their function as uniquely revealing windows into the hearts and minds of two of modern music’s most complex and enduring artists.

Works cited

  1. The Seeds of Love – Wikipedia, accessed July 23, 2025, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Seeds_of_Love
  2. The Seeds of Love – Tears for Fears | Album – AllMusic, accessed July 23, 2025, https://www.allmusic.com/album/the-seeds-of-love-mw0000205746
  3. Prince’s ‘Batman’ Soundtrack: A Guide to Every Song – Ultimate Prince, accessed July 23, 2025, https://ultimateprince.com/prince-batman-soundtrack-guide/
  4. Batman (album) – Wikipedia, accessed July 23, 2025, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Batman_(album)
  5. THESE GUYS ARE EXCEPTIONAL!! | TEARS FOR FEARS – Badman’s Song (Live Reaction), accessed July 23, 2025, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HC55iVob87c
  6. That’s Their Pet Sounds: Tears for Fears “Seeds of Love”(1989) – picking up rocks, accessed July 23, 2025, https://pickinguprocks.com/2019/05/29/thats-their-pet-sounds-tears-for-fears-seeds-of-love1989/
  7. Badman’s Song – Tears For Fears – LETRAS.MUS.BR, accessed July 23, 2025, https://www.letras.mus.br/tears-for-fears/39689/
  8. Tears For Fears FAQ: 6. Behind The Music (Song Meanings) – memories fade dot com, accessed July 23, 2025, http://memoriesfade.com/band/6meanings.html
  9. ????? ???? Badman’s Song – Tears For Fears – ??????, accessed July 23, 2025, https://shironet.mako.co.il/artist?type=lyrics&lang=3&prfid=30360&wrkid=55162
  10. From Mad World to Quiet Ones: A Tribute to the Lyrics of Roland Orzabal | by Paul Halpern, accessed July 23, 2025, https://phalpern.medium.com/from-mad-world-to-quiet-ones-a-tribute-to-the-lyrics-of-roland-orzabal-4e2fcb85dfcf
  11. Tears For Fears remember The Seeds Of Love – Classic Pop Magazine, accessed July 23, 2025, https://www.classicpopmag.com/features/tears-for-fears-remember-the-seeds-of-love/
  12. I’m obsessed with Badman’s Song : r/tearsforfears – Reddit, accessed July 23, 2025, https://www.reddit.com/r/tearsforfears/comments/1ijh9ej/im_obsessed_with_badmans_song/
  13. Tears for Fears – Badman’s Song : r/progrockmusic – Reddit, accessed July 23, 2025, https://www.reddit.com/r/progrockmusic/comments/pi4xg1/tears_for_fears_badmans_song/
  14. Bad Man’s Song Tab by Tears For Fears | Songsterr Tabs with Rhythm, accessed July 23, 2025, https://www.songsterr.com/a/wsa/tears-for-fears-bad-mans-song-tab-s719242
  15. Tears for Fears: Before and After Love | kulture kiosk – WordPress.com, accessed July 23, 2025, https://kelvinhayesofficial.wordpress.com/2022/03/30/tears-for-fears-before-and-after-love-2/
  16. Sowing The Seeds Of Love – Album Liner Notes, accessed July 23, 2025, http://albumlinernotes.com/Sowing_The_Seeds_Of_Love.html
  17. 1989 Tears For Fears – The Seeds Of Love – Sessiondays, accessed July 23, 2025, https://www.sessiondays.com/2020/08/1989-tears-for-fears-the-seeds-of-love/
  18. Tears For Fears :: Badman’s Song Drum Sheet Music – Drumscore.com, accessed July 23, 2025, https://www.drumscore.com/sheet-music/browse-by-artist/score/9124-tears-for-fears-badmans-song-drum-sheet-music-tab
  19. ‘The Seeds Of Love’: Tears For Fears Beat The Odds And Bloom Again – uDiscoverMusic, accessed July 23, 2025, https://www.udiscovermusic.com/stories/tears-for-fears-the-seeds-of-love-album/
  20. SDE Exclusive: Tears For Fears on the making of Sowing The Seeds of Love, accessed July 23, 2025, https://superdeluxeedition.com/interview/sde-exclusive-tears-for-fears-on-the-making-of-sowing-the-seeds-of-love/
  21. Just heard many people can’t tell Roland and Curt’s voices apart! Can you, or do you sometimes struggle? : r/tearsforfears – Reddit, accessed July 23, 2025, https://www.reddit.com/r/tearsforfears/comments/wnbmby/just_heard_many_people_cant_tell_roland_and_curts/
  22. How I wrote ‘Mad World’ by Tears For Fears’ Roland Orzabal – Songwriting Magazine, accessed July 23, 2025, https://www.songwritingmagazine.co.uk/interviews/mad-world-tears-for-fears
  23. Who is the actual lead singer of this band? : r/tearsforfears – Reddit, accessed July 23, 2025, https://www.reddit.com/r/tearsforfears/comments/148g2nx/who_is_the_actual_lead_singer_of_this_band/
  24. FIRST TIME HEARING Tears For Fears- “Bad Man’s Song” (Reaction) – YouTube, accessed July 23, 2025, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P84mx0mEzWA
  25. Have a Heart – Prince: Song Lyrics, Music Videos & Concerts – Shazam, accessed July 23, 2025, https://www.shazam.com/song/1421414791/have-a-heart
  26. Full article: “The Right Amount of Odd”: Vocal Compulsion, Structure, and Groove in Two Love Songs from Around the World in a Day, accessed July 23, 2025, https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/03007766.2020.1757814
  27. Prince – Adore you (Lyrics) – YouTube, accessed July 23, 2025, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ATeB3_BeZO4
  28. Have a Heart – YouTube, accessed July 23, 2025, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vHd9802NqDg
  29. Have A Heart – Prince Vault, accessed July 23, 2025, https://princevault.com/index.php/Have_A_Heart
  30. Album: One Nite Alone… – Prince Vault, accessed July 23, 2025, https://princevault.com/index.php/Album:_One_Nite_Alone…
  31. Prince – One Nite Alone… (album review ) – Sputnikmusic, accessed July 23, 2025, https://www.sputnikmusic.com/review/76629/Prince-One-Nite-Alone…/
  32. Prince Album Appreciation Thread Week# 25: One Nite Alone… – Reddit, accessed July 23, 2025, https://www.reddit.com/r/PRINCE/comments/8kx5fs/prince_album_appreciation_thread_week_25_one_nite/
  33. hifiplus.com, accessed July 23, 2025, https://hifiplus.com/articles/prince-one-nite-alone/#:~:text=One%20Nite%20Alone%20shows%20that,late%20works%20warrant%20further%20investigation.
  34. One Nite Alone… Solo piano and voice by Prince – A Pop Life, accessed July 23, 2025, https://en.apoplife.nl/one-nite-alone-solo-piano-and-voice-by-prince/
  35. PRINCE – Piano and Microphone – Wix.com, accessed July 23, 2025, https://cbooth2011.wixsite.com/aword-fromthe-booth/single-post/2016-1-23-prince-piano-and-microphone
  36. Prince | The Range Planet – ProBoards, accessed July 23, 2025, https://therangeplanet.proboards.com/thread/121/prince
  37. therangeplanet.proboards.com, accessed July 23, 2025, https://therangeplanet.proboards.com/thread/121/prince#:~:text=All%20the%20way%20from%20heavy,onto%20every%20track%2C%20Despite%20not
  38. Prince’s Vocal Range : r/PRINCE – Reddit, accessed July 23, 2025, https://www.reddit.com/r/PRINCE/comments/ddokar/princes_vocal_range/
  39. Prince: One Nite Alone – Hi-Fi+, accessed July 23, 2025, https://hifiplus.com/articles/prince-one-nite-alone/
  40. Scheherazade (Rimsky-Korsakov) – Wikipedia, accessed July 23, 2025, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scheherazade_(Rimsky-Korsakov)
  41. Badman’s Song [Piano Transcribed] – Tears for Fears Tears for Fears – Badman’s Song [Piano Transcribed] Sheet Music for Piano (Piano-Voice-Guitar) | MuseScore.com, accessed July 23, 2025, https://musescore.com/user/40128618/scores/8782293
  42. Prince: Up All Nite With Prince: The One Nite Alone Collection – Spectrum Culture, accessed July 23, 2025, https://spectrumculture.com/2020/06/15/prince-up-all-nite-with-prince-the-one-nite-alone-collection-review/
  43. One Nite Alone… – Wikipedia, accessed July 23, 2025, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/One_Nite_Alone…
  44. Batman Prince soundtrack album, Warner Brothers, accessed July 23, 2025, https://goldiesparade.co.uk/discography/albums/batman/
By |2025-08-20T06:39:13-04:00July 23rd, 2025|Music|0 Comments

Blog Calendar

July 2025
M T W T F S S
 123456
78910111213
14151617181920
21222324252627
28293031  

Archives

Go to Top