Prince / Purple Rain Era Studio Sessions 1983 and 1984, Duane Tudahl

A brilliant book (over 600 pages) of by far, the best stuff I’ve read on him in terms of knowing everything about that time period in his life and his day-to-day activities which were incredible (his work ethic - phenomenal). This was for Prince, without a doubt, his most famous two years of his life within the standpoint of making music that was consumer successful. In the 2 years methodically detailed in this book by day (what he recorded, the bands he formed and wrote for and designed, the equipment he used, the released and unreleased material he performed and created… it’s all here… fascinating) Prince went from a darling of the critics to one of the biggest rock stars on the planet. He had achieved almost everything he’d wanted, but the price he was being asked to pay was higher than he imagined. He was a man who seemed to enjoy being able to say anything and try anything because he was under the radar, but once his ability to blend into a crowd was destroyed by the harsh spotlight of Purple Rain shined on him, he would never again enjoy the freedom of being the underdog. From that point on, at the end of the book, everything he did and everything he said would be dissected and studied, and with that, his career path was always in danger of being hijacked. Hats off to Tudahl for his over 300 hours of interviews, fact-checking, verification of studio times, public records, etc. A masterpiece on the artist. If you’re a fan of Prince… especially those 2 years around Purple Rain, let me know, and I’ll send you the e-book.