Computer Blue

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Computer Blue

from the album Purple Rain Song details Performer: Prince and the Revolution First Released: 25 June 1984 - Purple Rain album Album(s): Purple Rain Purple Rain Deluxe Prince And The Revolution: Live Writer(s): John L. Nelson, Lisa Coleman, Wendy Melvoin and Prince Producer(s): Prince (credited to Prince and the Revolution) Live Appearances First and last live appearance: 3 August 1983: First Avenue, Minneapolis, Minnesota 28 May 2006: Club 3121 Empire Ballroom, Las Vegas, NV, USA (during acoustic guitar set) ; 20 March 2014 (show 2): The Fillmore, San Francisco, CA, USA (interpolation in Something In The Water (Does Not Compute)) Performed regularly on tour: Purple Rain Tour Hit N Run Tour A Celebration Performed occasionally in shows: 1983, 1984, 1998, 2006

Computer Blue is the fourth track on Prince's sixth album Purple Rain, the first album to be credited to Prince and the Revolution. The song also features in the movie Purple Rain. Before a studio recording was made, Prince and the Revolution recorded the song live on 3 August 1983 at First Avenue in Minneapolis, Minnesota (during the same concert where I Would Die 4 U, Baby I'm A Star and Purple Rain were also recorded). On 8 August 1983 (five days after its live-recording at First Avenue, Minneapolis, Minnesota, a day after Let's Go Crazy) a studio version was recorded at The Warehouse in St. Louis Park, Minnesota, with The Revolution (a day after Let's Go Crazy). The track was then further worked on on 15 August 1983 at Sunset Sound in Hollywood, California, with only Wendy Melvoin and Lisa Coleman participating. The song, ultimately clocking in at over 14 minutes would be edited down for the album. It remained largely similar at the beginning and end of the song - differences are noticeable in the middle of the track. A longer version of the track was included as the third track on the 7 November 1983 and 23 March 1984 configurations of the album, but this was edited down for the final 14 April 1984 configuration to make room for the inclusion of Take Me With U. A slightly edited down version from the longest as the song got, omitting only guitar feedback at the beginning and end was released as Computer Blue ('Hallway Speech' Version) as the third track on the From The Vault & Previously Unreleased disc of the Purple Rain Deluxe album in 2017. The song contains a segment of the track Father's Song during one of the instrumental breaks. It is likely that John L. Nelson's credit on the track comes from this inclusion. The composition Father's Song however was not yet recorded as a separate song when Computer Blue was conceived. Recording Information Recording Sessions Date Studio Additional info 3 August 1983 First Avenue Minneapolis, MN USA Live recording 8 August 1983 The Warehouse, St. Louis Park, MN, USA Basic tracking 15 August 1983-19 August 1983; 20 August 1983; 29 August 1983-31 August 1983 Sunset Sound - Studio 3, Hollywood, CA, USA Overdubs 21 March 1984-22 March 1984 Sunset Sound - Studio 3, Hollywood, CA, USA Edit/Crossfade 14 April 1984-22 March 1984 Sunset Sound - Studio 3, Hollywood, CA, USA Edit Recording Personnel Prince - all vocals and instruments, except where noted Lisa Coleman - keyboards and vocals Wendy Melvoin - guitars and vocals Bobby Z. - drums and percussion Brown Mark - bass guitar and vocals Matt Fink - keyboards and vocals Susan Rogers - engineer (Warehouse) Peggy McCreary - engineer (Sunset) David Leonard - engineer (Sunset) Versions Released Versions Title Length Released Version Additional info Computer Blue 3:59 Purple Rain Strange Tales From The Rain promo Studio Computer Blue 3:59 Purple Rain Deluxe Remastered 2015 Computer Blue ('Hallway Speech' Version) 12:19 Purple Rain Deluxe (From The Vault & Previously Unreleased) 'Hallway Speech' title was attributed for this release Computer Blue 4:15 Prince And The Revolution: Live Live 30 March 1985, Carrier Dome, Syracuse, NY, USA Video Versions Title Length Released Version Additional info Computer Blue 4:30 Prince And The Revolution: Live VHS/laserdisc Purple Rain Deluxe – Live at the Carrier Dome (DVD) Live 30 March 1985, Carrier Dome, Syracuse, NY, USA Unreleased Versions Title Version Additional Info Computer Blue Live recording 3 August 1983, First Avenue, Minneapolis, Minnesota Computer Blue Studio Full band recording at The Warehouse in St. Louis Park, Minnesota Computer Blue Studio Overdubbed with Wendy Melvoin and Lisa Coleman at Sunset Sound in Hollywood, California

Additional Information See also Trivia Purple Rain album Purple Rain Deluxe References The Vault: The Definitive Guide to the Musical World of Prince (2004) Prince and the Purple Rain Era Studio Sessions 1983 and 1984 (Expanded Edition, paperback), Duane Tudahl (2018)

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