Sheet Music: Purple Rain

Purple Rain

Sheet music details
Type	Album Sheet Music	[[file:|200px|border]]		[[file:|200px|border]]
For	Piano, Guitar, Vocals
Publisher	Warner Bros Publishing Inc (Rights Administrator) & Warner Bros (Distributor)
Pages	68
Dimensions	23 x 30.6 cm
Catalog Number	VF1179
Other Reference	ISBN-13: 978-1-4234-3022-3
Price	$10.95 (original)
Description
A softcover songbook compilation of sheet music for the 9 songs featured on Prince’s sixth full-length studio album, Purple Rain, together with two additional instrumental pieces, God and Father's Song, all of which featured in the film, Purple Rain. Musical notation For each song (with lyrics), chord diagrams for six-string guitar are published above the musical staff, which comprises a top stave for the vocal melody and the main lyric running beneath. Spoken words are published in italics. Under these are the complementary treble and bass staves for piano, all in standard musical notation. Sheet music for Instrumentals comprise the chord diagrams above the treble and bass staves. In common with many songbooks for popular artists, the music and lyrics are not provided as accurate transcriptions of the original album recording. In particular, musical passages of some songs and some of Prince's lead vocal and spoken words are often not included. As with the lyrics printed on the original album inner sleeve, later in the CD booklet, and replicated here on pages 6-7, the lyrics for Computer Blue include some of those from a longer recorded version of the song that appeared on earlier unreleased configuration of the album. These lyrics are attributed 'The Righteous 1' and were also included in part of Computer Blue ('Hallway Speech Version') subsequently released in 2017 on Purple Rain Deluxe Expanded Edition. These additional spoken word lyrics are published on page 34 at the end of the music score. The arrangement for each song is presented in the same key as the original recording. Design and other content Both the songbook front and back covers seek to replicate the look of the album cover designed by Laura LiPuma. However, whilst the same iconic front cover photograph (credited to Ed Thrasher and Associates/Slenzak) of Prince, as The Kid astride his motorbike, takes centre stage, the photography of various flowers (credited to Larry Williams) used for the front cover left and right-hand margins on the original LP front cover is replaced by similar floral photography background images cut from sections of the original album back cover. The book's white spine displays, in purple lettering, the book title towards the top next to 'Prince and the Revolution', and 'Printed in the USA' with the catalog code at the bottom. Reflecting the LP back cover, the book's rear uses a central section of the floral photography as background and most of the same text. At the top, the song titles are listed in the same album running order using the same typography chosen by Prince, but appropriately drops reference to LP sides 1 and 2. Beneath the listing is added "Plus 2 Instrumentals from the film" above "Father's Song . God". The entirety of the Prince-penned message, or 'dialogue' ("Dig if u will the picture...." etc.) is also replicated, as is the 'film block' providing lead actors, writers and director credits for the Purple Rain movie. Above the album credit, 'PRODUCED, ARRANGED COMPOSED AND PERFORMED BY PRINCE AND THE REVOLUTION', are details for Warner Bros. Publications Inc. (left) and Warner Bros (middle). The songbook price and product code feature in the bottom right corner. The inside cover and title page (page 1), pages 2, 3, 6 and 7, and the inside back cover repeat the same floral photography as background. The title page has a general copyright notice for the book's photography, art and music content (footer, slightly off-center). Pages 2 and 3 have text boxes (purple frames and text, against a cream background). The text, written to promote both Prince and the Purple Rain movie, details Prince's recording career up to 1984 (overlooking his first album) and provides a plot summary of the film. Pages 4 and 5 are taken up by the group photograph of the Revolution with Prince (whose image has been enlarged), on the set used for the video of When Doves Cry. Part of the set design includes a face painting, which image was also used (with one half black) as one side of the Purple Rain LP inner sleeve, as a backdrop during the Purple Rain tour and later, without color, in the album CD booklet). The painting is credited to Doug Henders (page 9). Band credits are given in the bottom left corner of page 4. The photography is credited (page 9) to Larry Williams and Ron Slenzak. Pages 6 and 7 repeat the use of purple and cream text boxes to present the lyrics for each album song, The same layout used on the LP inner sleeve is adopted where, at Prince's request, greater prominence was given to the lyrics for the song, Purple Rain. A small additional text box at the foot of page 7 provides song writing credits and a further copyright notice. Page 8 is taken up with the portrait photograph of Prince featured on the front of the original sleeve for the single When Doves Cry, with a copyright credit (footer, center) of 1984 (c) Water Productions, Inc. and Warner Bros. Inc.. As with the album cover, the photo is credited (on page 9) to Ed Thrasher and Associates/Slenzak. Page 9 is the book's Contents page. It repeats the front cover promotional shot of Prince, but in black and white. The album songs are listed again as they appear on the original album and in the book, and the page numbers feature to the right of each title. Beneath the final album song, Purple Rain, is added: "Plus 2 instrumentals from the film". However, unlike the listing on the back cover, the order of the additional songs is reversed, with God followed by Father's Song, reflecting the running order of the sheet music in the book. The sheet music starts on page 10, with each song's title in the individual typeface chosen for use on album and single artwork. (This appears to be the only occasion that the typeface was used for Father's Song). Beneath each title it states 'Words and Music by PRINCE' except for 'The Beautiful Ones' (co-credited to Wendy Melvoin, Lisa Coleman and John L. Nelson) and 'Father's Song' (here solely credited to John L. Nelson). Each title page also has a copyright notice: 'Copyright (C) CONTROVERSY MUSIC 1984 All Rights Reserved' in the page footer (center). The inside back cover features two promotional stills of Prince, accompanied by a further copyright credit and the words: 'Taken from the film Purple Rain'.

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