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The Holy River is the eighth track on the second disc of Prince’s 19th album Emancipation, the third to be credited to  , and, two months after the album’s release, The Holy River was released as the album’s second commercially-released single, released in the UK and Japan (a free promo cassette was made available in the Summer of 1997 in the US through the Borders bookstore chain).
In 2001, a track titled Instrumental was released as part of the NPG Music Club Edition # 6 as an mp3 download; it was essentially an instrumental re-recording of The Holy River, but not credited as such.
Basic tracking dates are unknown, but lyrics refer to Prince proposing to Mayte, making it likely the track was recorded in late 1995 or 1996, most likely at Paisley Park Studios in Chanhassen, Minnesota.
The instrumental version was most likely recorded in late 1996 for potential inclusion on a proposed 1997 maxi-single of Face Down, an April 1997 configuration of which also included The Holy River (Remix) and The Holy River (Dirtyhousemix) as the seventh and eighth tracks respectively. Release of the proposed maxi-single was canceled when EMI Records' American division folded during 1997.
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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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| Late 1995-1996
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Paisley Park Studios,
Chanhassen, MN, USA
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Tracking
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| Late 1996 (assumed)
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Paisley Park Studios,
Chanhassen, MN, USA
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Remixes and re-recordings
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Recording Personnel
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- Prince (as ) - all vocals and instruments, except where noted
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Versions
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Released Versions
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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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| The Holy River
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6:55
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Emancipation
The Holy River promo
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Studio
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| The Holy River (Radio Edit)
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4:00
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The Holy River single
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Edit
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| Instrumental
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3:05
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NPG Music Club Edition # 6 mp3 download
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Re-recording
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Edited instrumental version of The Holy River (Remix) (not officially given The Holy River title)
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Video Versions
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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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| The Holy River
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4:07
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Promotional release only
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Promo video
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See The Holy River video for more details
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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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| The Holy River
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?:??
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Live performance TV broadcast
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Live
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7 January 1997 (mat.), Rosie O’Donnell Show, NBC-TV Studios, GE Building, New York, NY, USA
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| The Holy River
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?:??
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Delayed performance TV broadcast
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Live
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26 February 1997, Top Of The Pops, BBC Elstree Centre, Borehamwood, England
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| The Holy River
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?:??
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Live performance TV broadcast
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Live
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10 April 1997, 4th Annual VH-1 Honors, Universal Amphitheatre, Universal City, CA, USA
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Unreleased Versions
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| Title
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Version
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Additional Info
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| The Holy River (Dirtyhousemix)
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Studio
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Re-recorded version. Intended for inclusion on the Face Down maxi-single
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| The Holy River (Remix)
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Studio
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Re-recorded version. Intended for inclusion on the Face Down maxi-single
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