It’s Gonna Be A Beautiful Night

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It’s Gonna Be A Beautiful Night

from the album Sign O’ The Times
Song details
Performer: Prince
First Released: 30 March 1987 - Sign O’ The Times album
Album(s): Sign O’ The Times

Sign O’ The Times Deluxe Edition and Super Deluxe Edition

Writer(s): Prince (lyrics and music), Dr. Fink (music), Eric Leeds (music)
Producer(s): Prince
Live Appearances
First and last live appearance:
Performed regularly on tour:
Performed occasionally in shows:

It’s Gonna Be A Beautiful Night is the sixth track on the second disc of Prince’s ninth album Sign O’ The Times. The track was placed as the penultimate track on the third disc of the triple-album Crystal Ball, which was eventually pared down and became Sign O’ The Times, where it remained the penultimate track of the album. A live version was also included in the concert movie Sign O’ The Times.

The basis for the track was recorded live on 25 August 1986 at Le Zénith, Paris, France, during a show on the Parade Tour (at the soundcheck earlier in the day, recordings were made Susannah’s Blues, Strange Relationship, a cover version of The Temptations' I Can’t Get Next To You a first run-through of It’s Gonna Be A Beautiful Night). The song has a horn line reminiscent of James Brown’s Hot Pants.

Overdubs and mix were done between 22 and 30 November 1986 at Sunset Sound in Hollywood, California, with Jill Jones recording her lead vocal on the 26th. Sheila E. recorded her ‘Transmississippirap’ on the night of 26/27 November 1986. Sheila E. was not in the studio, but recorded her rap over the phone from a hotel on the bank of Ohio River in Cincinnati, Ohio, where she was on tour with Lionel Richie. The Ohio river coalesces with the Mississippi in Kentucky, but it is the Mississippi river that has to be crossed, when going from Cincinnati to Hollywood, California, where the rap was recorded.

Although recorded with the full Revolution band, the song is credited only to Prince. It was included as the sixth track on the third and final disc of the Crystal Ball album, and was kept for inclusion as the album developed into Sign O’ The Times.


Recording Information
Recording Sessions
Date Studio Additional info
25 August 1986 Dierks Studio Mobile Trucks @ Le Zénith,
Paris, France 		Live soundcheck recording & Show recording
22 & 23 November 1986 Sunset Sound - Studio 3,
Hollywood, CA, USA 		Overdubs, including piano, mix (22nd); overdubs including horns, rough mix (23rd)
26 - 30 November 1986 Sunset Sound - Studio 3,
Hollywood, CA, USA 		Overdubs (including Jill Jones), mix (26th) Sheila E.’s ‘Transmississippirap’) (27th, a.m.), overdubs, mix (27th); overdubs, edit, mix (28th); overdubs, mix (29th); overdubs, mix (30th)
Recording Personnel

Versions
Released Versions
Title Length Released Version Additional info
It’s Gonna Be A Beautiful Night 9:01 Sign O’ The Times Studio Live recording with studio overdubs
It’s Gonna Be A Beautiful Night 8:59 Sign O’ The Times Deluxe Edition and Super Deluxe Edition Studio Remastered in 2020
It’s Gonna Be A Beautiful Night 13:55 Sign O’ The Times Super Deluxe Edition Live 20 June 1987: Stadion de Galgenwaard, Utrecht, The Netherlands
Video Versions
Title Length Released Version Additional info
It’s Gonna Be A Beautiful Night 8:03 Sign O’ The Times VHS/DVD Live See Sign O’ The Times for details
It’s Gonna Be A Beautiful Night 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
It’s Gonna Be A Beautiful Night 3:54 Live radio broadcast Live 07 September 1993 (mat.), Simon Bates Show, BBC Broadcasting House, London, England; part of medley containing 1999 / Baby I’m A Star / America / D.M.S.R. / Pope / It’s Gonna Be A Beautiful Night
Sampled, Referred to, Quoted in...
Title Length Released Version Additional info
Purple Medley 11:03 Purple Medley single Studio medley See Purple Medley for more details
Unreleased Versions
Title Version Additional Info
It’s Gonna Be A Beautiful Night Live recording Original 25 August 1986 recording
 
Additional Information
See also Trivia
  • The ‘Transmississippirap’ is a reading of Edward Lear’s The Table And The Chair poem, first published in 'Nonsense Songs, Stories, Botany and Alphabets' (1871).
  • The recording marks the earliest official release of a song featuring the call-and-response chant, “Oh-ee-oh, oh-oh”, which Prince used with audiences throughout his stage career. The original chant first appeared in the 1939 musical fantasy film, The Wizard of Oz’, as performed by the Wicked Witch of the West’s enslaved castle guards during ‘March of the Winkies’. The musical accompaniment was scored by Herbert Stothart (First published In 1900, the original book by L. Frank Baum on which the film was based, The Wonderful Wizard of Oz makes no reference to the Winkies chanting). Prince also gave thanks to ‘the Wizard of Oz’ in the liner notes of his 1991 album, Diamonds And Pearls.
References
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