Maps of Music

Lovesexy (1988)

Where the lyrics of Lovesexy take you, and where it was really made.

Lovesexy was critically acclaimed yet reached only number 11 on the Billboard 200, while it went to number one in the UK.

Key places

Where Lovesexy was recorded in seven weeks (1988)

Recording site Paisley Park Studios — Lovesexy was recorded here from mid-December 1987 to late January 1988, in just seven weeks. It was Prince's new studio at the time, and the album was made after the Black Album was cancelled. Google Maps · Apple Maps

How to get there: See the map for directions.

Album story

Overview

• Lovesexy: tenth studio album by American artist Prince
• Released May 10, 1988 by Paisley Park and Warner Bros. Records
• Lyrical themes: positivity, self-improvement, spirituality, God
• Prince referred to it as a gospel album
• Theme: the struggle between good and evil

Background

• Made after the cancellation of the infamous Black Album
• Accompanied by the Lovesexy Tour
• September 9 Dortmund show released on video cassette and LaserDisc
• Tour also televised on several European channels

Recording

• Recorded in seven weeks, from mid-December 1987 to late January 1988
• Made at Prince's new Paisley Park Studios
• Mostly a solo effort from Prince, with a few exceptions
• Sheila E. plays drums on several tracks
• Eric Leeds and Atlanta Bliss provide horns on most tracks

Cover

• Based on a photo by Jean Baptiste Mondino
• Depicts Prince in the nude, which caused controversy on release
• Some record stores refused to stock it or wrapped it in black

Sources: en.wikipedia.org

Tracklist

Sources: musicbrainz.org

Artist

Formation

• Prince Rogers Nelson, born June 7, 1958 in Minneapolis, Minnesota; died April 21, 2016 at Paisley Park in Chanhassen, Minnesota.
• Signed with Warner Bros. Records in 1977 at age 18; first album For You released April 7, 1978.
• Career spanned funk, rock, R&B and pop, with estimated sales over 100 million records.

Career

• Breakthrough with Dirty Mind (1980), Controversy (1981) and 1999 (1982).
• Purple Rain (1984) made him the first singer to hold the number-one film, album and single in the US at the same time.
• Sign o' the Times (1987) is widely considered his greatest work.
• Changed his name to an unpronounceable symbol in 1993, becoming known as the Artist Formerly Known as Prince; reverted to Prince in 2000.
• Won seven Grammy Awards and an Academy Award for Best Original Song Score.
• Inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2004.

Sources: en.wikipedia.org

Reception

At release

• Despite critical acclaim, reached number 11 on the Billboard 200
• First Prince album since 1981's Controversy to miss the top 10
• Number one in the Netherlands, New Zealand, Sweden, Switzerland, and the UK
• Alphabet St. became a worldwide top-10 hit in spring 1988
• In the UK it debuted at number 1, Prince's first UK number-one album

Records

• Spent 21 weeks on the US Billboard 200
• Prince's least successful US album since 1980
• Certified Gold by the RIAA in December 1988
• Glam Slam and I Wish U Heaven failed to reach the Billboard Hot 100
• Lovesexy Tour concluded in February 1989 with strong sales across Europe and Japan

Sources: en.wikipedia.org

Trivia

• "Eye No" reworks a song called "The Ball" from the unreleased Crystal Ball
• The opening of "Eye No" samples Roger Limb's "Passing Clouds" from the 1971 BBC Radiophonic Workshop album Out of this World
• The final song, "Positivity", was later given to Mavis Staples for her 1991 album The Voice
• Early CD copies present the whole album as a single track, while some later editions have nine tracks
• The Lovesexy Tour concluded in February 1989 after a massive run across Europe and Japan

Sources: en.wikipedia.org

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