The band went nameless for almost three years while supporting Prince live and appearing in his music videos. Chapman and Cymone left in the early 1980's and were replaced by Lisa Coleman on keyboards and Brownmark on bass. The first album on which The Revolution performed was the 1982 Prince release, 1999, which has the band's moniker written in reverse on the back cover.
When the 1999 Tour ended in 1983, Dez Dickerson left the band for religious reasons and was replaced by Lisa's childhood friend and soon-to-be lover Wendy Melvoin on guitar. The first album officially released as Prince & The Revolution was Purple Rain in 1984, which sold over 16 million copies in the United States alone.
The band's sound incorporated heavy metal, pop, funk, R&B and hard rock elements. Wendy Melvoin & Lisa Coleman formed a particular creative bond with Prince and greatly influenced the band's output during the rest of their tenure. The band achieved two number-one Billboard 200 albums (Purple Rain & Around The World In A Day), six top ten singles on the Billboard Hot 100 chart, and won three Grammy Awards.
In 1985, members of the soon-to-be-defunct group The Family (which, in turn, included former members of another group, The Time) joined The Revolution, along with people from Sheila E.'s band. This included the addition of three dancers/vocalists/comic foils (known as The Bodyguards).
The last lineup of Prince & the Revolution was informally known as the Counter-Revolution and consisted of:
- Jerome Benton (The Bodyguards)
- Atlanta Bliss (trumpet)
- Greg Brooks (The Bodyguards)
- Lisa Coleman (keyboards, piano and vocals)
- Doctor Fink (keyboards and vocals)
- Eric Leeds (saxophone)
- Brown Mark (bass guitar and vocals)
- Susannah Melvoin (backing vocals)
- Wendy Melvoin (guitar and vocals)
- Prince (lead vocals, guitar, and piano)
- Wally Safford (The Bodyguards)
- Miko Weaver (guitar)
- Bobby Z. (drums)
The Revolution was officially disbanded by Prince in 1986 after the Hit N Run tour, which supported Parade, the soundtrack for the movie Under the Cherry Moon. Melvoin and Coleman went on to a successful career as Wendy & Lisa.
Condition of the Heart
Prince & The Revolution Lyrics
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Whom he sent a letter to
Hoping she would answer back
Now wasn't that a fool
Hardy notion on the part of a
Sometimes lonely musician
Acting out a whim is only good
For a condition of the heart
There was a dame from London
Who insisted that he love her
Then left him for a real prince
From Arabia, now isn't that
A shame that sometimes money
Buys you everything and nothing
Love, it only seems to buy a
Terminal condition of the heart
Thinking about you driving me crazy
My friends all say it's just a phase, but oh, oh
Every day is a yellow day
I'm blinded by the daisies in your yard
There was a woman from the ghetto
Who made funny faces just like
Clara Bow, how was I to know
That she would wear the same
Cologne as you and giggle the same
Giggle that you do?
Whenever I would act a fool, the fool
With a condition of the heart
Thinking about you driving me crazy
My friends all say it's just a phase, but oh, oh
Every single day is a yellow day
I'm blinded by the daisies in your yard
There was a girl (There was a girl in Paris)
Whom he sent a letter to (Whom he sent a letter to)
(Hoping she would answer back)
She never answered back and now (wasn't that a foolhardy)
He's got a condition of the heart (notion)
The lyrics to "Condition of the Heart" by Prince & The Revolution talk about the different experiences of love the singer has gone through. The first verse talks about a girl in Paris to whom the singer sends a letter, hoping for a response. The second verse is about a woman from London who tells him she loves him, and then leaves him for a real prince from Arabia. The third verse is about a woman from the ghetto who reminds him of another woman he loves. The chorus repeats the idea that thinking about this person is driving him crazy, and that love is like a condition of the heart.
This song speaks to the universal theme of love and heartbreak. Through his lyrics, Prince speaks to the longing and the pain that often comes with love. He shows how love can make one feel vulnerable, foolish and helpless. In a way, the song seems to acknowledge that love is often not a logical thing, and can make people act out of character. Despite all of this, the singer cannot let go of the thought of this person and is "blinded by the daisies" in their yard.
Line by Line Meaning
There was a girl (There was a girl in Paris)
He once knew a girl in Paris
Whom he sent a letter to (Whom he sent a letter to)
He sent her a letter
Hoping she would answer back
He hoped she would reply
Now wasn't that a fool
Hardy notion on the part of a
Sometimes lonely musician
Acting out a whim is only good
For a condition of the heart
Sending a letter to a girl in Paris was foolish, but he did it because he was lonely and acting impulsively is only helpful when it comes to matters of the heart
There was a dame from London
Who insisted that he love her
There was a woman from London who demanded his love
Then left him for a real prince
From Arabia, now isn't that
She then left him for a literal prince from Arabia which is ironic
A shame that sometimes money
Buys you everything and nothing
Love, it only seems to buy a
Terminal condition of the heart
It's a shame that sometimes money buys everything and nothing at the same time, and love often results in a sense of terminal heartbreak
Thinking about you driving me crazy
He is consumed with thoughts of her that are driving him mad
My friends all say it's just a phase, but oh oh
His friends think it's just a phase, but he knows it's not true
Every day is a yellow day
I'm blinded by the daisies in your yard
He sees everything through rose-colored glasses because of his infatuation with her
There was a woman from the ghetto
Who made funny faces just like
Clara Bow, how was I to know
That she would wear the same
Cologne as you and giggle the same
Giggle that you do?
He met a woman from the ghetto who reminded him of her, only to find out that she wore the same cologne and had the same giggle as the girl he loves
Whenever I would act a fool, the fool
With a condition of the heart
He acts foolishly when it comes to love because his heart takes over
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group
Written by: Prince Rogers Nelson
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind