Celebrating An Iconic Prince Classic!
Of all the terrific Prince songs – from “Kiss” to “1999” and more, odds are people would mention “Purple Rain” as his greatest musical achievement.
But did you know that someone else sang the words “Purple Rain” before he did?
Let’s begin with the song that may have inspired Prince to create “Purple Rain!”
America – “Ventura Highway”
America was a folk-rock act in the early ’70s – they had a big run of Top Ten hits, including the iconic “A Horse with No Name” as well as “Sister Golden Hair” and “Ventura Highway”.
But more importantly, they were the reason that Prince wrote this song:
Yes, their hit song “Ventura Highway” was the inspiration for Prince!
“Ventura Highway” by America in 1972 contains this line:
“Sorry, boy, but I’ve been hit by purple rain”.
Here are the lyrics to they hit song “Ventura Highway”:
“Wishin’ on a falling star
Waitin’ for the early train
Sorry boy, but I’ve been hit by a purple rain
Aw, come on Joe, you can always change your name
Thanks a lot son, just the same
Ventura Highway in the sunshine
Where the days are longer
The nights are stronger
Than moonshine
You’re gonna go, I know….”
Thats right, the song contains the phrase “purple rain”, which later became the title of Prince’s classic 1984 song, album, and film.
The original song is from America’s second album, “Homecoming.”
Writer Mikel Toombs of The San Diego Union and Bob Kostanczuk of the Post-Tribune have written that Prince got the title directly from “Ventura Highway”.
Asked to explain the phrase “purple rain” in “Ventura Highway,” America band member and Songwriter Gerry Beckley responded:
“You got me.”
Well, that answers that – it was just a made up phrase!
Here’s what I found online: the origin of “Purple Rain” involves a nod to the American band America, who used the phrase in their 1972 song “Ventura Highway,” but Prince transformed it into an iconic rock ballad after his band’s guitarist, Wendy Melvoin, shifted it from a country feel to an atmospheric anthem during a rehearsal, inspired by the desire for a powerful, emotional song for his film and album. The phrase itself in America’s song was somewhat ambiguous, but Prince used it to evoke a powerful, apocalyptic yet hopeful vision of blood-red and blue skies, representing love and faith amidst turmoil.
Here is their original version of the song that inspired Prince:
“Purple Rain”
originated as a country song concept Prince developed in 1983, intended for Stevie Nicks, but evolved into its iconic rock ballad form after guitarist Wendy Melvoin added chords during a band rehearsal, transforming it into a powerful anthem for his semi-autobiographical film, with its meaning symbolizing the end of the world and finding love through faith, visualized as “blood in the sky” (red and blue mixing).
Her is Prince’s masterwork:
The story behind Prince’s “Purple Rain” involves an apocalyptic vision of love and faith, a transformation from a country song idea, and its powerful emergence as the title track for his iconic 1984 album and film, symbolizing spiritual cleansing and enduring love amidst chaos. Prince described it as the sky bleeding red and blue (purple) at the world’s end, with faith guiding you through.
But there is more to this story: time for some Journey!
Prince’s Copyright Call!
Journey was one of the greatest 80’s rock band, with classics like “Don’t Stop Believin'” and so many more…but did you know this?
In late 1983, Prince personally contacted Journey keyboardist Jonathan Cain to express concern that the chord progressions in “Purple Rain” were too similar to Journey’s 1983 power ballad, “Faithfully”.
Journey’s Blessing:
During a phone call, Prince told Cain, “I want you to check it out. The chord changes are close to ‘Faithfully’ and I don’t want you to sue me”. He even offered to change the chords if the band was uncomfortable.
After listening, Cain gave Prince his blessing, stating the songs were distinct enough. He later described the move as a show of Prince’s “classy” character.
So there you have it: the Journey of the phrase “Purple Rain” from America to Journey!
Speaking of Journey, they wrote a classic song about being “raised on radio” – see my favorite radio songs here!
As for Prince, I shared this video of his guitar solo from the Rock ‘n’ Roll Hall Of Fame:
This is one of the greatest guitar solos in rock history – see it here!
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Categories: 70's Music, Art, Classic Rock, Music, Pop Culture, Talent/Celebrities, True Hollywood Mystery
johnrieber 
Thank you for all the information decades after many people obviously enjoyed . . . shall play and learn for the very first time in my life 🙂 !
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I had the albums by America, but never made the connection with the later song from Prince. My favourite of his songs was/is always ‘When Doves Cry’, and I also like his original version of ‘Nothing Compares 2U’, which he wrote and was a massive hit for Sinead O’Connor. (Her version is breathtakingly good though, and better than his.)
Best wishes, Pete.
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Yes Pete, both are among his finest indeed…I never try to pick a “best of” because everyone has their own POV, but mentioned it here as probably the most iconic song of his that EVERYONE would know…thanks for the comment! By the way, that America album is a nice slice of early 70’s folk rock!
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Not just Prince’s best but one of the best by anyone, ever.
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Yes a masterpiece from start to finish…sad that it seems to have made critics too impatient about his following work, when he did some experimentation and got slammed a bit for it…thanks for the note!
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