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Thursday, April 21, 2016

Remembering Long Ago Days & Raspberry Beret! by DL Larson

Today, we said 'good-bye' to a musical genius, Prince Roger Nelson. I remember him as Prince. "Mom! It's Prince, turn up the radio." And Raspberry Beret would blast through the speakers as we drove down the road. It was 1985 and my daughters loved Prince, or later, the musician, Formerly Known as Prince. It wasn't until 2000 that Prince got his name back. The dispute over his name escapes me now, but it was a BIG deal back in the '90s. Something about copyrights and money!

I always worried my girls would all too easily understand the meaning behind that song. I suppose they did eventually. But the song drew vivid imaginings in my mind, I'm sure it did many young women. A young man and woman in an empty barn ... and a raspberry beret!

Purple Rain, was the other big hit, I remember. It hit the charts in 1984. Saying good-bye and moving on was the theme to that song and I'm pretty sure I knew that one by heart, too. Please don't tell my daughters!
I always pretended not to like him too much.

Prince won seven Grammy Awards and had thirty nominations. Five of his singles topped the charts and fourteen others hit the Top 10. Prince is an Oscar Winner for best original song for Purple Rain.

We had an upsurge of Prince in the early 2000's when my granddaughters discovered Raspberry Beret. I'm sure their mother had a lot to do with that. It felt as if I'd gone back in time when I heard from the back seat, "Grammie, put in the cd with Purple Rain."  And then, "Let's listen to it again!" A new generation with just as much enthusiasm for this musical icon had modern technology to feed their impulses. On any given outing, I heard Purple Rain some dozen times. Okay, maybe not that many, but it was a lot!

When a performer stretches beyond the generations, one knows they are listening to perfection. Prince had so many wonderful songs, always with a story. They were sexy, devout or fun. Sometimes all three in one song. He was a legend. He was a hero in our house. And he will be missed.

Heaven is singing tonight! It's bound to be a fabulous time. I imagine there will be a lot of purple!

'Til next time ~

DL Larsonwww.DLLARSON.com





3 comments:

  1. He was a legend. It's a shame he had to leave so young.

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  2. Thank you. Yes, Prince was a legend. He will be missed greatly, but his music will live on. For that we can be thankful.

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