| Sheila E is the third album by Sheila E., and her last until 2013’s Icon to feature Prince input.
Five of the ten tracks were co-written by Prince (although credited only to Sheila E.), and feature his input musically. The album was released worldwide in February 1987.
Sessions and compiling
The tracks containing Prince input were recorded between December 1985 and September 1986. Love On A Blue Train was recorded in November 1985, Sunset Sound in Hollywood, California, with Boy’s Club following in March 1986, and Pride And The Passion following in May. One Day (I’m Gonna Make You Mine) and Koo Koo were recorded in September 1986, at Prince’s Galpin Blvd Home Studio, Chanhassen, Minnesota.
Prince also offered the song Love And Sex for the album, but it was not included on the final release.
Promotion
The album produced three singles: Love On A Blue Train, Hold Me and Koo Koo.
Love On A Blue Train was released in Japan only in 1986, initially to tie-in to an EP release, The Glamorous Club EP. The first worldwide single release was Hold Me (which preceded the album). This song was previously available as the B-side of the Japanese release of the Holly Rock single in 1986 under a different title (Touch Me, which was also used when the song was released as the A-side in some countries). Hold Me, which was backed with the non-album track The World Is High with no input by Prince reached number 3 on the Billboard Black Chart, number 22 in the Billboard Hot dance/Disco - Club Play chart, and number 68 on the Billboard Hot 100 Chart. The third and last single, Koo Koo (backed with the non-album track Paradise Gardens with no input by Prince) reached number 35 in the US Billboard Black Chart, but failed to enter the Billboard Pop Chart.
Sheila E. did not tour to promote the album, instead playing drums on Prince’s Sign O’ The Times Tour, which began shortly after the album’s release, and, other than a video for Koo Koo, she did not promote the album much.
Perhaps as a result, the album reached only number 56 on the US Billboard Top Pop Album Chart, and number 24 on the Billboard Top Black Albums Chart.
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1987: 8 ◄
