Prince – The 15 best guitar solos!

Edward’s top 15 Prince guitar solos

Prince – Live 1995

When Erwin first suggested a top 15 Prince guitartrax, my first reaction was: nope, no can do, far too difficult. Then, when you start digging in, after a considerable time I might add, it is really fun altogether: raining outside, streaming YouTube videos and concerts to your TV (so, I don’t have to keep poking through my cd collection of Prince boots), listening to numerous live renditions of well-known and lesser known trax… it brought back a lot of fond memories. And that’s what music is supposed to do: building memento.
With my particular top 15, there are no boundaries: live, studio, one-offs, unreleased, hidden gem, anything is possible. However, one restriction though: I thought it would be a nice approach to focus a little more on some of the rather forgotten trax. So, no Purple Rain from Syracuse 1985, no extended Computer Blue, even no 12″ mix Paisley Park or 12″ extended America, all examples of perfect fits for this top 15. But they’ve been highlighted quite enough in previous editions of our top 15. So, no acid coloured rain here to be found. I hope it is still gonna be a nice read for you. And who knows? Maybe you will discover a hidden gem. ENJOY!

1. The Love We Make
   09/13/2009, Salle Garnier, Monaco (concert)
   An absolute favorite for me in the Prince catalog: The Love We Make from the Emancipation set (1996). Every now and then, there is a tune that grabs you by the throat, every time you hear it. The Love We Make is such a song for me. So, the track had to be included in the list, it was only a matter of looking for the best possible version. Although I’ve had this live rendition of Monaco from 2009 in my collection for years, I did notice it again a few months ago through a video on YouTube. This one simply is breathtakingly beautiful: after a 2-minute intro of just the beat, the guitar is already set in place to take you further into this majestic song, highly unusual. It is only after almost 4 minutes in, one can hear Prince vocally for the first time. And after yet another 2 minutes, it really gets on its way with sweeping solos, one after another, lasting for no less than 5 minutes, ending in a distorted finale with feedback à la Hendrix. 11 minutes later you’re on the floor, completely perplexed. It remains a great song, and this is one hell of an amazing performance. Prince’s passion is evident here in every single note, every vocal he utters, every guitar lick. The ripping solos carve their way into your soul.
2. The Ride (Undertaker)
   The Undertaker video (recorded live on 06/14/1993, Paisley Park Studios, Minneapolis)
   The Undertaker is an unreleased album and was recorded live in one take during a rehearsal on June 14, 1993 at Paisley Park Studios. A CD release was planned as a bonus to the Guitar World magazine in November 1994, with a circulation of 700.000 copies (if we are to believe Prince, in a 1995 interview). The official reading, however, I believe is still 1.000 copies. Warner Brothers soon got wind of the project and immediately blocked its release. The first batch of CDs that Prince had already produced himself had to be withdrawn immediately to provide all copies with a plastic layer, making them unplayable; some are playable though, despite the coating. Making this yet another real opportunity for the Prince fanatic to track down this historic disc, after the withdrawn Black Album from December 1987. Some say that specifically this veto of WB decided Prince to only do public appearances with the word “Slave” written on his cheek.
   Alright, what about its contents? The Undertaker is considerably outside the box of the friendly pop/rock genre in which area Prince had normally been moving about until then, barring a few wild outings. It robustly leans towards the blues, although the guitar solos (and there are quite a few) often move outside the boundaries of traditional blues riffs: sometimes flowing, sometimes epic, sometimes ripping, sometimes distorted madness. Perhaps that is why it’s so attractive, it certainly is 36 minutes like you’ve never heard Prince before. Scotty, shake some indeed!
   The Ride: the opener of the CD is incredibly exciting, constructive and invigorating. With great bass accompaniment by Sonny T and the tight drumming by Michael B. Prince’s voice was not optimal that night, perhaps that is why he doesn’t sing as much, with mainly his purple symbol guitar doing all the work. I deliberately chose this 11 minute version, drawn from The Undertaker CD because the guitar work continues to scream delightfully around your ears. The live versions of the concerts and aftershows from that era usually are done after only 5 minutes, as does the officially released live version on Crystal Ball (1998). So let’s not do that then.
3. Rave Un2 The Joy Fantastic
   08/18/1988, Paard van Troje, The Hague (aftershow)
   A track from THE bootleg that sets the bar: a most essential classic in any serious Prince collection. If you don’t have this one, then just go for a bike ride, after an hour we’ll be done cursing. With phenomenal sound quality, especially for a bootleg, this was the talk of the town in the fanatic Prince community in the early 90s. With some confidence I can state: the best thing Prince has ever entrusted to the nighttime hours, this performance in our own Trojan Horse in The Hague. The setlist that evening consists of long improvised jams, stunning blues/jazz covers, effortlessly mixed with completely new renditions of a few of his own classics.
   The embryo version of Rave Un2 The Joy Fantastic, being the closing track of his nightly appearance at Trojan Horse, lasts for a staggering 16 minutes (!). Starting off as a fairly simple straightforward yet funky jam, in which he asks the audience to ‘rave’ along, the track seems to end after about 10 minutes. However, there are still a few encores to arise with hard as hell, killer guitar solos, which Carlos Santana or Jimi Hendrix would be proud of. Truly awesome! Legendary!
4. Just My Imagination
   08/18/1988, Paard van Troje, The Hague (aftershow)
   And yet another track from the Trojan Horse boot: Prince’s epic rendition of Just My Imagination by The Temptations from 1971 in this set is remarkable, with a compelling and screeching guitar solo of no less than 4 minutes. Prince at his physical and artistic peak. His confidence and showmanship have never been more evident than here. Simply stunning.
5. Beautiful Strange
   07/26/2011, Melkweg, Amsterdam (aftershow)
   Come on, we really need to promote some gigs in our own country, this being the third in line already on my list. And yet another delightful track by Prince that deserves a little more attention: Beautiful Strange. Officially released on Rave In2 The Joy Fantastic (2001), here as a live rendition at the Melkweg (Milky Way)/Amsterdam in the night of July 26, 2011. Prince did visit the Netherlands quite a lot that summer, no less than 6 times (!) (see also Colonized Mind @ North Sea Jazz). The guitar feedback in the beginning of the song doesn’t seem to quite work here I believe, but it remains a great version, in which Prince shows a lot of divers guitar work outs. It’s loads of fun with these banging “strangely beautiful” 11 minutes.
6. Temptation
   Studio version (Around The World In A Day album)
   Ehm yes, maybe you weren’t expecting this, but this remains a big favorite of mine: Temptation, the last track from the 1985 album Around The World In A Day. I still remember buying the record the day it came out: luckily I was not expecting a Purple Rain part II. No, I wanted to be surprised, I wanted to be sort of carried along with his journey… and boy, this is just the record to do that! Often cited as Prince’s Sgt. Pepper, it takes you on some trip indeed. Experimental, multi-coloured, psychedelic, hallucinogenic to name a few words to describe that very record. And the closing track Temptation fulfills the role of 8 minutes pure exaggerated insanity. Prince never sounded more bombastic as on this track (in the studio, I mean), with ripping guitars, frenzied drums and vocals flying in all directions. Includes a dialogue with God (used in the Purple Rain tour) in which the latter briefly explains the difference between love and sex. So, all the ingredients for a successful tune (meant ironically). Still, holy & blissful!
7. Peach
   11/24/1995, MTV awards (TV performance)
   The very first MTV Europe Music Awards took place on November 24, 1994 at the Brandenburg Gate, Berlin/Germany, five years after the demise of the Berlin Wall. With a nice intro (track: Let’s Get Funky) as Prince is walking through the halls towards the stage, Tom Jones announces him with only a golden symbol in his hand. In Prince history, we have already arrived in the era he is publicly seen with the word “Slave” written on his cheek. That is most likely the reason he wishes George Michael peace in the opening speech, who, like Prince, is also at loggerheads with his record company. A playful version of Peach follows with various delightful guitar solos, ending with the instrumental coda of Chaos And Disorder. Peach is a song that I simply cannot resist, especially live, a track that certainly knows how to make me live every time. And thus, an absolute must for me in this top 15.
8. Motherless Child
   11/22/1999, Séptimo (TV performance)
   While visiting the television program Séptimo of the Spanish TV channel 2-TVE on November 22, 1999, Prince plays a 40-minute mini concert. Including this version of Motherless Child, a traditional from 1850 that Prince manages to alter into a great emotional opus with phenomenal guitar work outs, driven by some very strong vocals, and all this to the beat of Love Thy Will Be Done. Larry Graham plays a wonderful game of bass during this performance, which should not be left unmentioned.
9. Bambi
   Studio version (Prince album)
   The absolute showstopper of Prince’s second LP from 1979. Just like I’m Yours on the For You album (1978), the only rock song on the record. It seems, he stuck to a certain formula at that time, I guess not to be placed in any specific box by the critics. I specifically chose the 1979 studio version because of the high spontaneity that version entails, and which later live renditions sometimes lack.
   The story of Bambi: Normally Prince always gets the girl, but here lies a challenge of a different kind: Prince tries to get Bambi, a lesbian, doing it with a man. Supported by a strong thick guitar sound and still quite funny when you consider he’s attempting to convince her with such a high falsetto voice. Anyway, LHBT issues were not yet on the political agenda at the time compared to today, shall we say. Wouldn’t you like to try it with a man, Prince? Seems like a fun movie to me.
10. Colonized Mind
    07/10/2011, North Sea Jazz Festival, Ahoy, Rotterdam (concert)
    Picture this, the summer of 2011: regular concert, 2x Melkweg at night and another 3x Prince at the North Sea Jazz Festival, Rotterdam. Of which the last 3 in the middle of the night though, because his concerts were added at the last minute, in addition to the other headliners, already occupying all evenings on NSJ. Three nights in a row was a bit too much for my taste, so I chose the middle one, by accident being the best chosen night in terms of tracklistings: the most guitar trax that particular night. Well done, Eddy. The first night was far less exciting and deafening in terms of sound, I was told afterwards. That’s what I was experiencing on the second night as well: the noise was still very loud. Anyway, as I mentioned in 1998 after a concert in Utrecht (December 23): everything sounds better on the bootleg. Incidentally, the three nights @ NSJ stand out in particular because of the quite obscure material being played, too divergent to be labeled as regular concerts.
    With Colonized Mind I thought I’d draw attention once again to a lesser-known Prince track. Released in 2009 on the album Lotusflow3r, this being a live version of that 2nd night in Rotterdam in the summer of 2011. You are immediately transported to another emotional place with some distinctive Jimi Hendrix inspired twists on guitar. A wonderful tune, both in this live rendition as well as the studio version on the Lotusflow3r album.
11. Santana medley
    06/09/1994, Glam Slam, Miami (concert)
    Added to Prince’s setlist since 1994, and a given fixture in his live performances throughout the 1990s, he often paid tribute to one of his guitar heroes with this Santana medley, a medley consisting of four tracks: Jungle Strut, Batuka, Soul Sacrifice and Toussaint L’Overture. Prince once said Santana had a far greater impact on his guitar playing than f.e. Jimi Hendrix (of whom you can read some references in this top 15). I am not quite sure I am seeing it…
    At the Miami shows of June 1994, with a highly spontaneous character, Prince only plays new material. The feud with WB is in full swing and Prince cannot be bothered anymore with old material under the Prince moniker. It was a highly creative period nonetheless: loads of new music which also ushered in a new era for the fan. And we enjoyed it to the fullest, no more colored acid rain for a while. So please, try to find this version of the Santana medley on YouTube: Prince is really doing his utmost best to impress with this medley.
12. Creep
    04/26/2008, Coachella Festival, Indio, Empire Polo Field (concert)
    A highly unusual connection: Radiohead and Prince. In 2008 Prince headlines the Coachella festival in California, as he suddenly plays a cover of Radiohead’s track Creep. Although…. according to his bible of abstinence keeping him from swearwords, it became “Liar”; the word “Creep” was never vocalized during this performance. And soon after, everyone was able to admire the ghostly version-that-blows-you-away on various social media. Although… Prince immediately had the video removed “because it could only be fully experienced live”. Thom Yorke, lead singer of Radiohead, called on Prince about a month later to release his performance again “because it’s our song”. As in: who really has the rights here? Death silence on the other side. Although… until seven years later. A superfan put the 8-minute video back online in October 2015, with proven permission from Radiohead. Prince’s official account tweeted a link to the video twice, much to everyone’s surprise. So it was all OK this time around.
    That being said, check out his version of Creep. He’s having a blast with his Little Red Fenderette.
13. Purple House
    Rave Un2 The Year 2000 DVD (recorded live on 12/18/1999, Paisley Park Studios, Minneapolis)
    Taken from the Rave Un2 The Year 2000 dvd. Beautifully drawn-out version of Hendrix’s classic Red House, which Prince usually renders Purple House. Starts out calm and bluesy but after 7 minutes, it turns into an epic and notable finale.
14. Something In The Water (Does Not Compute)
    04/07/1985, Orange Bowl, Miami (rehearsal)
    13 minutes of Prince & The Revolution in rehearsal for the very last concert of the Purple Rain tour. With the wonderfully typical heavy drum parts from that period. Starting out with the slow entry of various instruments, then Eric Leeds honking for minutes on end, followed by Prince taking his (I assume) white Cloud guitar to other heights, for no less than 6 minutes long. This rendition of Something In The Water in no way resembles the sparse version of the 1999 album, as here it has become a solid rock track. By the way, it’s quite funny when you realize that in the afternoon Something In The Water was rehearsed but never played in the concert (btw, never on the Purple Rain tour to my knowledge).
15. I’m Yours
    Studio version (For You album)
    From the 1978 debut For You, this last track of that particular LP is an absolute showstopper: disguised in a Funkadelic jacket, screaming guitar riffs, and his typical falsetto voice. Unfortunately, in some places the vocals do disappear a bit in the mix, especially in the beginning. Still, the song is asswoopingly swinging until the end, tracking in at 5 minutes. And it does stand out, because the rest of the album, on which Prince plays every instrument himself, is pretty clean cut. I expect with the intention of not being labelled as just a new soul artist, or in any other box for that matter. So, listen to an ambitious Prince on this particular track. Not even with fully realized later songwriting talents, after all Prince was only 19 years old, this rock tune already is a clear reference to later tricks which he had up his sleeve. In any case, Prince was quite aware of his surroundings, musically speaking: (guitar)bands such as Van Halen, Aerosmith and Kiss were a big deal in the USA at the time.

A small epilogue: Actually, I had some initial doubts about the song Billy. An unreleased track, improvised during a rehearsal in 1983. Prince teaches the chords of the later released Strange Relationship (1987, Sign O’ The Times) to his band. It is mainly Prince playing some firm guitar for about 45 minutes, with a few improvised lyrics. But at the same time, it is also a bit indefinable in contrast to the 15 songs above. Still, this little footnote for Billy. Maybe it’s a sentimental thing: Billy was on the very first bootleg I bought, back in the late 80’s.