B-side "17 Days"
"1999" (UK 12")
"D.M.S.R." (UK 12") Released May 16, 1984 (1984-05-16) Format 7" single
12" single
CD Single Recorded March 1, 1984 (1984-03-01)
Sunset Sound Genre Experimental pop
neo-psychedelia
synthpop
soul Length 7" edit: 3:47
Album/12" version: 5:52 | ||
"When Doves Cry" is a song by American musician Prince, and the lead single from his 1984 album Purple Rain. It was a worldwide hit, and his first American number one single, topping the charts for five weeks. According to Billboard magazine, it was the top-selling single of the year. It was certified platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America, shipping two million units in the United States. It was the last single released by a solo artist to receive such certification before the certification requirements were lowered in 1989.
Contents
- Background and composition
- Reception
- Music video
- 12 Paisley Park 0 20170 US
- 12 Warner Bros W9286T UK
- CD single 1989
- Awards and nominations
- Ginuwine version
- Notable cover versions
- References
The song ranked number 52 on the Rolling Stone list of the 500 Greatest Songs of All Time and is included in The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame's 500 Songs that Shaped Rock and Roll.
Following Prince's death, the song re-charted on the Billboard Hot 100 chart at number eight, its first appearance in the top 10 since the week ending September 1, 1984. As of April 30, 2016, it has sold 1,385,448 copies in the United States.
Background and composition
According to the Purple Rain DVD, Prince was asked by the director to write a song to match the theme of a particular segment of the film – one which involved intermingled parental difficulties and a love affair. The next morning, Prince had reportedly composed two songs, one of which was "When Doves Cry". According to Per Nilsen, Prince's biographer, the song was inspired by his relationship with Vanity 6 member Susan Moonsie.
Prince wrote and composed "When Doves Cry" after all the other tracks were complete on Purple Rain. In addition to vocals, he played all instruments on the track. The song's texture is remarkably stark. There is no bass line, which is very unusual for an '80s dance song; Prince has said that there originally was a bass line but, after a conversation with singer Jill Jones, he decided that the song was too conventional with it intact. The song features an intro of a guitar solo and a Linn LM-1 drum machine, followed by a looped guttural vocal. After the lyrics, there is another, much longer guitar and a synthesizer solo. The song ends on a classical music-inspired keyboard piece backed by another synthesizer solo.
On versions edited for radio, either the song fades out as the long guitar and synthesizer solo begins, or the solo is eliminated altogether and the song skips to the ending with Prince's harmonizing and classical finish.
During live performances of the song on the Purple Rain Tour, Prince's bass player Brown Mark added bass lines in this song as well as other songs without bass lines.
The song is in the key of A minor.
Reception
The song was number one in the US for five weeks, from July 7, 1984 to August 4, 1984, keeping Bruce Springsteen's "Dancing in the Dark", from reaching the top spot. "When Doves Cry" was voted as the best single of the year in The Village Voice Pazz & Jop critics' poll. Billboard ranked it as the number one single of 1984. In 2016, after Prince's death, "When Doves Cry" re-entered the Billboard Hot 100 at number 20, and later, back in the top 10 at number 8.
The B-side was the cult fan favorite "17 Days", which was originally intended for Apollonia 6's self-titled album. A 12-inch single issued in the UK included the album track, "17 Days", and two tracks from Prince's previous album, 1999, namely the title track and "D.M.S.R." The entire title, "17 Days (the rain will come down, then U will have 2 choose, if U believe, look 2 the dawn and U shall never lose)", is now the longest titled flipside of a Hot 100 number one, with 85 letters and/or numbers.
"When Doves Cry" has gone on to become one of Prince's signature songs. Spin magazine ranked the song 6th greatest single of all time. It was number 38 in Movement's list The Greatest Songs of All Time. Rolling Stone ranked "When Doves Cry" number 52 on their list of The 500 Greatest Songs of All Time (which makes it the second highest ranked song of the 1980s, after "The Message" by Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five). In 2006, VH1's "The 100 Greatest Songs of the '80s" ranked the song number 5 on the list. On October 13, 2008, the song was voted number 2 on Australian VH1's Top 10 Number One Pop Songs countdown. The "80 of the 80s" podcast ranks it as the number 59 song of the decade.
"When Doves Cry" was sampled for use in MC Hammer's 1990 hit song, "Pray", one of the few songs legally sanctioned by Prince.
Music video
The music video (directed by Prince himself) was released on MTV in June 1984. It opens with white doves emerging from double doors to reveal Prince in a bathtub. It also includes scenes from the Purple Rain film interspersed with shots of The Revolution performing and dancing in a white room. The final portion of the video incorporates a mirrored frame of the left half of the picture, creating a doubling effect. The video was nominated for Best Choreography at 1985's MTV Video Music Awards. The video sparked controversy among network executives who thought that its sexual nature was too explicit for television.
12": Paisley Park / 0-20170 (US)
- "When Doves Cry" – 5:52
- "17 Days" – 3:54
12": Warner Bros. / W9286T (UK)
- "When Doves Cry" – 5:52
- "17 Days" – 3:54
- "1999" – 6:22
- "D.M.S.R." – 8:05
CD single 1989
- ""When doves cry""
- ""Purple rain(album version)""
Awards and nominations
Ginuwine version
A cover version by American singer Ginuwine was produced by Timbaland in 1996 for Ginuwine's The Bachelor album, Ginuwine's cover uses actual dove sound effects as texture for its jungle music-inspired instrumental track. The official music video for this version was directed by Michael Lucero.