Born and raised in Minneapolis, Prince signed a record deal with Warner Bros. Records at the age of 19, soon releasing the albums For You (1978) and Prince (1979). He went on to achieve critical success with the influential albums Dirty Mind (1980), Controversy (1981), and 1999 (1982). His sixth album, Purple Rain (1984), was recorded with his new backing band the Revolution, and was also the soundtrack to the film of the same name in which he starred. Purple Rain garnered continued success for Prince and was a major commercial achievement, spending six consecutive months atop the Billboard 200 chart. The soundtrack also won Prince the Academy Award for Best Original Song Score. After disbanding the Revolution, Prince released the album Sign o' the Times (1987), widely hailed by critics as the greatest work of his career. In the midst of a contractual dispute with Warner Bros. in 1993, he changed his stage name to the unpronounceable symbol logo. Hollow circle above downward arrow crossed with a curlicued horn-shaped symbol and then a short bar (known to fans as the "Love Symbol") and was often referred to as The Artist Formerly Known as Prince (or TAFKAP) or simply The Artist.
After signing with Arista Records in 1998, Prince reverted to his original name in 2000. Over the next decade, six of his albums entered the U.S. top 10 charts. In April 2016, at the age of 57, Prince died after accidentally overdosing on fentanyl at his Paisley Park home and recording studio in Chanhassen, Minnesota. He was a prolific musician who released 39 albums during his life, with a vast array of unreleased material left in a custom-built bank vault underneath his home after his death, including fully completed albums and over 50 finished music videos. He also released songs under multiple pseudonyms during his life, as well as writing songs that were made popular after being covered by other musicians, most notably "Nothing Compares 2 U" by Sinéad O'Connor and "Manic Monday" by the Bangles. Estimates of the complete number of songs written by Prince range anywhere from 500 to well over 1,000. Released posthumously, his demo albums Piano and a Microphone 1983 (2018) and Originals (2019) both received critical acclaim.
Prince sold over 100 million records worldwide, ranking him among the best-selling music artists of all time. His awards included the Grammy President's Merit Award, the American Music Awards for Achievement and of Merit, the Billboard Icon Award, an Academy Award, and a Golden Globe Award. He was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2004, the UK Music Hall of Fame in 2006, and the Rhythm and Blues Music Hall of Fame in 2016, and was inducted twice into the Black Music & Entertainment Walk of Fame in 2022.
Full Wikipedia article: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prince_(musician)
Studio albums
For You (1978)
Prince (1979)
Dirty Mind (1980)
Controversy (1981)
1999 (1982)
Purple Rain (1984)
Around the World in a Day (1985)
Parade (1986)
Sign o' the Times (1987)
Lovesexy (1988)
Batman (1989)
Graffiti Bridge (1990)
Diamonds and Pearls (1991)
Love Symbol (1992)
Come (1994)
The Black Album (1994)
The Gold Experience (1995)
Chaos and Disorder (1996)
Emancipation (1996)
Crystal Ball (1998)
The Truth (1998)
The Vault: Old Friends 4 Sale (1999)
Rave Un2 the Joy Fantastic (1999)
The Rainbow Children (2001)
One Nite Alone... (2002)
Xpectation (2003)
N·E·W·S (2003)
The Chocolate Invasion (2004)
The Slaughterhouse (2004)
Musicology (2004)
3121 (2006)
Planet Earth (2007)
Lotusflow3r (2009)
MPLSound (2009)
20Ten (2010)
Plectrumelectrum (2014)
Art Official Age (2014)
HITnRUN Phase One (2015)
HITnRUN Phase Two (2015)
Posthumous releases:
Piano and a Microphone 1983 (2018)
Originals (2019)
Welcome 2 America (2021)
Prince also released two albums credited to Madhouse, three albums credited to the New Power Generation, and one credited to the N.P.G. Orchestra:
Madhouse:
8 (1987)
16 (1987)
The New Power Generation:
Goldnigga (1993)
Exodus (1995)
Newpower Soul (1998)
The N.P.G. Orchestra:
Kamasutra (1997)
For Serbian singer Princ, please use Princ.
Christopher Tracey's Parade
Prince Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
The show will proceed, unless it should rain strawberry lemonade
Hopefully, that will not occur the man above has been paid
Give what you can, all you can stand, and all of your life will be made
Uh, uh, uh
Uh, uh, uh
Uh, uh, uh
Everyone should come and dig Christopher Tracy's piano
The chord strikes, the devil no like, so he runs to his evil car
Everyone come behold Christopher Tracy's Parade
Goodness will guide us if love is inside us?
Christopher Tracy's Parade (Christopher Tracy's Parade)
Christopher Tracy's Parade (Christopher Tracy's Parade)
Christopher Tracy's Parade
The lyrics of Prince & The Revolution's "Christopher Tracy's Parade" express a call for everyone to join and celebrate the parade that Christopher Tracy leads. The parade is a metaphor for a joyful and extravagant life, where people can give all they have and receive the best in return. The song also implies that the good things in life are not free and require a sacrifice from the people. The lyrics suggest that by giving what they can, people can experience an abundance of life, where goodness and love guide them to everlasting happiness.
The song starts with the invitation to everyone to come and witness Christopher Tracy's Parade. The lyrics also mention that the show should proceed unless it rains strawberry lemonade, which can be interpreted as a statement of how unlikely it is that anything can stop the celebration. The lyrics state that the man above has been paid, which could mean that the universe or fate has aligned to ensure the parade happens as planned. The invitation to give what they can and all they can stand suggests that the parade is not for the faint-hearted as it requires people to put in significant effort and resources.
The chorus mentions Christopher Tracy's piano, which is played so well that the devil dislikes it and runs to his evil car. This could imply that Christopher Tracy's music is so powerful that even the devil cannot resist it. The chorus also asks whether goodness will guide people if love is inside them. This line implies that love is the driving force behind goodness and that love and goodness are interconnected. The idea that love and goodness can guide people is reinforced in the second half of the chorus that repeats the invitation for everyone to join Christopher Tracy's Parade.
Line by Line Meaning
Everyone come behold Christopher Tracy's Parade
Come one, come all, and witness the magnificent Christopher Tracy's Parade
The show will proceed, unless it should rain strawberry lemonade
The show will go on without any hindrances, unless an unexpected event occurs
Hopefully, that will not occur the man above has been paid
We hope that such an unforeseen event doesn't happen, but if it does, we have made the required arrangements
Give what you can, all you can stand, and all of your life will be made
Contribute to the parade as much as you can, and it will have a positive impact on your life
Uh, uh, uh
Unintelligible sounds
Everyone should come and dig Christopher Tracy's piano
Everyone must come and enjoy the musical delights provided by Christopher Tracy's piano
The chord strikes, the devil no like, so he runs to his evil car
The sound of the music is so captivating that even the devil doesn't like it and has to flee in his car of evil
Goodness will guide us if love is inside us?
If we have love in our hearts, then goodness will prevail and guide us
Christopher Tracy's Parade (Christopher Tracy's Parade)
Reiteration of the name of the parade for emphasis
Christopher Tracy's Parade (Christopher Tracy's Parade)
Reiteration of the name of the parade for emphasis
Christopher Tracy's Parade
The name of the parade
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group
Written by: John L. Nelson, Prince Rogers Nelson
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind