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U Got 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).
Initial tracking took place on 21 December, 1986 at Sunset Sound, Hollywood, CA, USA (five days before Pony Ride). 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.
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Recording Information
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Recording Sessions
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| Date
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Studio
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Additional info
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| 21 December, 1986
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Sunset Sound, Hollywood, CA, USA
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Initial tracking
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Recording Personnel
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Versions
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Released Versions
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Video Versions
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Broadcasts/streaming (only)
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| Title
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Length
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Released
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Version
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Additional info
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| U Got The Look
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2:00
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Love4OneAnother.com Real Audio stream
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Live clip
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28 December, 1998, Flanders Expo, Ghent, Belgium
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| U Got The Look
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3:11
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3rdEye TV Show # 5 performance audio stream
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Rehearsal
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June, 2013, Paisley Park, Chanhassen, MN, USA (assumed)
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| U Got The Look
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TBC
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Live concert online stream
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Live
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10 May, 2015, Baltimore, MN, USA, Royal Farms Arena
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| U Got The Look
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3:26
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Prince3EG Soundcloud stream
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Live
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19 May, 2015 (show 1 or 2), Sony Centre For The Performing Arts, Toronto, ON, Canada
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Sampled, Referred to, Quoted in...
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| Title
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Length
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Released
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Version
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Additional info
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| Nine
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2:06
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16
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Studio
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Opens with synths previously used in U Got The Look
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| Partyman (The Purple Party Mix)
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6:02
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Partyman single
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Remix
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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 and Alphabet St.
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| Partyman (The Purple Party Mix)
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5:58
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The Scandalous Sex Suite EP
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Remix edit
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As above, missing The Joker's opening dialogue
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