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We Can Work It Out (originally titled I Hope We Work It Out) is an unreleased track recorded in June 1977 at Sound 80, Minneapolis, Minnesota, specifically for the reception Warner Bros. hosted on 25 June 1977 at La Serre on Ventura Boulevard in Los Angeles, in celebration of signing with the label. Allegedly Prince so dreaded the mingling with the record execs there, that David Rivkin suggested he record a song for the occasion. The track’s lyrics are really directed at Warner Bros., by way of introducing himself to the record company. Lyrics include lines such as "Makin’ music naturally, me and W.B. Music for the young and old, music bound to be gold". The song ends with an explosion, which is interesting given that Prince would later view himself as a slave and desperately tried to remove himself from his contract with Warner Bros..
Drummer Bobby Z. notes that he and Prince rehearsed the track a few times before recording it (seemingly in a single take).
In early 2017, following Prince’s death, the Minnesota Historical Society acquired Prince’s original handwritten lyrics for the track for their permanent collection in St. Paul. The handwritten lyrics showed the song’s original title, I Hope We Work It Out, but otherwise the track appears to be the same as recorded, so it’s unlikely another version was recorded with the original title.
The track remains unreleased.
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