U Got The Look

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U Got The Look

Sott.jpg
from the album Sign O’ The Times
Ugotthelook single.jpg
single art for U Got The Look
Song details
Performer: Prince
First Released: 30 March 1987 - Sign O’ The Times album
Album(s): Sign O’ The Times

The Hits 2
The Hits / The B-Sides
The Very Best Of Prince
Ultimate
4Ever
Sign O’ The Times Super Deluxe Edition

Writer(s): Prince
Producer(s): Prince
Live Appearances
First and last live appearance:
Performed regularly on tour:
Performed occasionally in shows:

U Got The Look (originally titled The Look is the first track on the second disc of Prince’s ninth album Sign O’ The Times, and, three and a half months after the album’s release, U Got The Look was released as the album’s third single. The song also appears in the film Sign O’ The Times in its studio form (all other tracks were included in live versions).

In 1993, it was included as the 13th track on Prince’s second compilation album The Hits 2 (also included as the second disc of The Hits / The B-Sides). Prince’s original liner notes for the collection (which were not ultimately used) note that the song was written in response to Robert Palmer’s Addicted To Love, which shares a similar instrumental backing:

"A friend of PRN used 2 jump up and dance whenever Robert Palmer’sAddicted To Love” came on. As a test this song was recorded to find out of the friend would dance 2 a similar groove or just chill because it wasn’t a hit. Sure enough the friend didn’t like the song until it was in the Top 10."

Basic tracking took place on 21 December 1986 at Sunset Sound in Hollywood, California (five days before Ponyride). The track was recorded at the time the triple-album Crystal Ball was being pared down to become Sign O’ The Times, and while the pseudonym Camille is credited with lead vocals, the song had not been included either on the Camille album or on Crystal Ball.

The song contains the first appearance of Sheena Easton on a Prince release (although he had previously worked with her on tracks for her albums A Private Heaven and No Sound But A Heart). She is credited with co-lead vocals, although the single release only featured the name Prince on the cover (this is later repeated with The Arms Of Orion).

In a 2012 interview, Sheena Easton discussed the recording process of the song:
"U Got The Look was a track he'd basically finished for himself. It was just a Prince track. He said, 'Do you want to just come in and sing some backup vocals on the choruses?' So I went into the studio, and because I didn’t know I was singing against him... I was all over the place - and he said he kind of liked that, so he expanded it into a duet."

In August 1987, Prince’s half-sister Lorna Nelson filed a lawsuit against Prince, stating that U Got The Look used lyrics from her song What’s Cooking In This Book. The case was dismissed by US District Judge David Doty on 4 May 1988, stating that the two songs were not substantially similar. Prince did not appear in court during the case.


Recording Information
Recording Sessions
Date Studio Additional info
21 - 23 December 1986 Sunset Sound,
Hollywood, CA, USA
Tracking, mix (21st); overdubs, mix, instrumental mix (22nd); overdubs mix (23rd)
Recording Personnel

Versions
Released Versions
Title Length Released Version Additional info
U Got The Look 3:48 Sign O’ The Times

U Got The Look single
The Hits 2
The Hits / The B-Sides
The Very Best Of Prince
4Ever

Studio
U Got The Look 3:58 Sign O’ The Times (Super) Deluxe Edition

Sign O’ The Times - The Singles‎

Studio Remastered in 2020
U Got The Look (Long Look) 6:45 U Got The Look single

Ultimate

Extended version
U Got The Look (Long Look) 6:45 Sign O’ The Times Super Deluxe Edition Studio Remastered in 2020
Video Versions
Title Length Released Version Additional info
U Got The Look TBC Sign O’ The Times VHS/DVD Studio See U Got The Look video for details
U Got The Look 2:37 Rave Un2 The Year 2000 VHS/DVD Live 18 December 1999, Paisley Park, Chanhassen, MN, USA
U Got The Look 3:22 Damaris Lewis Twitter
.m4v download
Live clip 26 September 2012, United Center, Chicago (IL), USA
U Got The Look T.B.C. Sign O’ The Times Super Deluxe Edition DVD Live 31 December 1987: Paisley Park Studios, Chanhassen, MN, USA
Broadcasts/streaming (only)
Title Length Released Version Additional info
U Got The Look 2:00 Love4OneAnother.com Real Audio stream Live clip 28 December 1998, Flanders Expo, Ghent, Belgium
U Got The Look 3:11 3rdEye TV Show # 5 performance audio stream Rehearsal June 2013, Paisley Park, Chanhassen, Minnesota (assumed)
U Got The Look TBC Live concert online stream Live 10 May 2015, Baltimore, MN, USA, Royal Farms Arena
U Got The Look 3:26 Prince3EG Soundcloud stream Live 19 May 2015 (show 1 or 2), Sony Centre For The Performing Arts, Toronto, ON, Canada
U Got The Look T.B.C. 89.3 The Current Crazy 2 Cool broadcast Live 1 June 2014, Le Zénith, Paris, France (2nd show); incl. I Can’t Stand Myself (When You Touch Me) (instrumental)
U Got The Look T.B.C. Tidal Crazy 2 Cool video stream Live 1 June 2014, Le Zénith, Paris, France (2nd show); incl. I Can’t Stand Myself (When You Touch Me) (instrumental)
Sampled, Referred to, Quoted in...
Title Length Released Version Additional info
Partyman (The Purple Party Mix) 6:02 Partyman single Remix Remix by Femi Jiya and Prince; Includes sampled clips of Sexy Dancer, I Wanna Be Your Lover, Head, Partyup, Let’s Work, 1999, Raspberry Beret, Erotic City, Kiss, U Got The Look, Housequake, Alphabet St., The Future and a chant from Batdance
Partyman (The Purple Party Mix) 5:58 The Scandalous Sex Suite EP Remix edit As above, missing The Joker’s opening dialogue
Unreleased Versions
Title Version Additional Info
U Got The Look Studio Full version, edited down before release
U Got The Look (Instrumental) Studio Instrumental mix
 
Additional Information

See also Trivia

  • On 12 May 1988, Prince was given an award for R&B/Bands: R&B Composition (for Sign O’ The Times and U Got The Look) during the same ceremony where Prince also received nine other awards: Rock/Individuals: Male; Rock/Recording: Mainstream and Rock/Composition: Mainstream (for Sign O’ The Times); R&B/Individuals: Male Vocalist; R&B/Individuals: Guitarist; R&B/Bands: Performing Band; R&B/Bands: Recording; Production/Movie/Theatrical (for Sign O’ The Times) and Production/Multi Media Scores.
  • The Cocoa Boys, Make Your Mama Happy and Madhouse’s Eight and Nine use the same Sequential Circuits Prophet VS, FILMUSIC (patch 69) pre-set synth heard in the opening of U Got The Look.

References
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