"1999"
US 7" single (1982)
Single by Prince
from the album 1999
B-side"How Come U Don't Call Me Anymore?"
ReleasedSeptember 28, 1982[1]
RecordedJuly 1982
StudioKiowa Trail Home Studio, Chanhassen, Minnesota
Genre
Length3:36 (single version)
6:18 (album version)
LabelWarner Bros.
Songwriter(s)Prince
Producer(s)Prince
Prince singles chronology
"Do Me, Baby"
(1982) 		"1999"
(1982) 		"Little Red Corvette"
(1983)
Prince (1999) singles chronology
"The Truth"
(1997) 		"1999"
(1998) 		"The Greatest Romance Ever Sold"
(1999)

"1999" is a song by American musician Prince, the title track from his 1982 album of the same name. Originally peaking at number 44 on the Billboard Hot 100, a mid-1983 re-release later reached number 12 in the US, while a January 1985 rerelease, a double A-side with "Little Red Corvette", later peaked at number 2 in the UK.

Rolling Stone ranked "1999" number 339 on their list of the 500 Greatest Songs of All Time.[5] Following Prince's death, the song re-charted on the Billboard Hot 100 at number 41, later moving up to number 27, making it the fourth separate time the song had entered the Hot 100 and the third different decade in which the song re-charted (as after its two 1980s entries, it made the chart again on January 16, 1999 at number 40). As of April 30, 2016, it has sold 727,363 copies in the United States.[6]

Background

The inspiration for the song came from a TV documentary Prince watched about Nostradamus. In the film, he predicted that a terror would fall upon the world in 1999. The next day at rehearsals, Prince discussed the documentary with his bandmates, where they imagined a huge party would be thrown knowing this terror was about to happen. As Lisa Coleman said, Prince came to the studio the next day, passing out song lyrics to the band, the song already fully written.

Recording

The album version of the song starts with a slowed-down voice stating "Don't worry, I won't hurt you. I only want you to have some fun." Prince shares lead vocals on the track with members of his band the Revolution, namely Dez Dickerson, Lisa Coleman and Jill Jones. Originally conceived to be a three-part harmony, it was later decided to separate out the voices that started each verse. Distinct scratching and explosion noises heard in the track were to cover mistakes during recording of a good take.[7]

Reception

Billboard said that "the Apocalypse never sounded this danceable before."[8]

Some music critics have suggested Phil Collins' 1985 song "Sussudio" sounds very similar to "1999".[9] Collins confirmed this claim,[10] and remembers listening to "1999" frequently while he was on tour with Genesis.[11]

Re-release

In January 1985, "1999" was released as a 12" single in the US with "Little Red Corvette" as the B-side, and "How Come U Don't Call Me Anymore?"/"D.M.S.R." in the UK. The single peaked at number 2 in its second week of release.

The song was re-recorded at the end of 1998 and was released the following year as 1999: The New Master.

"1999" was re-released in the UK and the US in late 1998 to accompany the song's namesake year. It was released on 12" vinyl with the same track listing as the original 12" single: the album version, along with "How Come U Don't Call Me Anymore?" and "D.M.S.R." A CD single was also issued with the same track listing, except the edit of "1999" was substituted for the album version. It was also re-released again towards the end of its namesake year. The original version re-charted within the Top 40 on the US Billboard Hot 100 in December 1998, becoming Prince's last top 40 hit before his death in 2016.

Music video

The video, directed by Bruce Gowers, was shot during the last week of rehearsals for the 1999 Tour. It depicts Prince and his band during a live performance. Just in time to take his part after Lisa Coleman, Jill Jones and Dez Dickerson, Prince appears on the stage from above, gliding down on a fireman's pole, wearing a glittery purple long coat.

Something went wrong with shooting Dez's lead vocal line and the footage was actually re-shot by a local camera crew the afternoon prior to the first show of the 1999 Tour in Chattanooga on November 11, 1982.[citation needed]

VH1 notably played this video continuously from midnight Eastern Time on December 31, 1998 to the next midnight on January 1, 1999.

Track listing

  1. "1999"
  2. "How Come U Don't Call Me Anymore?"
  1. "1999"
  2. "D.M.S.R."
  1. "1999"
  2. "Let's Pretend We're Married"
  1. "1999"
  2. "Uptown"
  3. "Controversy"
  4. "Dirty Mind"
  5. "Sexuality"
  1. "1999"
  2. "How Come U Don't Call Me Anymore?"
  3. "D.M.S.R."

Personnel

Credits from Guitarcloud and Benoît Clerc[12][13][14]

Charts

Year-end charts

1983 year-end chart performance for "1999"
Chart (1983) Position
Australia (Kent Music Report)[47][48] 16
Canada Top Singles (RPM)[49] 71
New Zealand (Recorded Music NZ)[50] 37
US Billboard Hot 100[51] 41
1985 year-end chart performance for "1999"
Chart (1985) Position
UK Singles (OCC)[52] 30
1999 year-end chart performance for "1999"
Chart (1999) Position
Netherlands (Dutch Top 40)[53] 166

Certifications and sales

Certifications and sales for "1999"
Region Certification Certified units/sales
United Kingdom (BPI)[54] Gold 400,000‡
United States — 727,363[6]

‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone.

See also

Notes

  1. ^ Nilsen & Mattheij 2004, p. 37
  2. ^ Cheal, David (December 26, 2016). "The Life of a Song: '1999'". Financial Times. Archived from the original on December 11, 2022.
  3. ^ Petridis, Alexis (November 17, 2022). "The 70 greatest No 2 singles – ranked!". The Guardian. Retrieved February 12, 2023.
  4. ^ Nathan Brackett; Christian David Hoard (2004). The New Rolling Stone Album Guide. Simon and Schuster. p. 655. ISBN 978-0-7432-0169-8.
  5. ^ "Prince, '1999'". Rolling Stone. No. 500 Greatest Songs of All Time. Retrieved September 23, 2021.
  6. ^ a b "Hip Hop Single Sales: Prince, Desiigner & Drake". HipHopDX. April 30, 2016. Retrieved April 30, 2016.
  7. ^ Swensson, Andrea. "Prince: The Story of 1999 bonus feature: Dez Dickerson: 'Put an explosion over it'". www.thecurrent.org.
  8. ^ "Top Single Picks". Billboard. October 9, 1982. p. 63. Retrieved February 7, 2023.
  9. ^ Mark, Caro (May 1, 2007). "Yes, Phil Collins' 'Sussudio' Ripoff of Prince's '1999' is Included". Chicago Tribune. Archived from the original on March 24, 2010. Retrieved March 3, 2010.
  10. ^ Keegan, Hamilton (February 17, 2009). "Phil Collins, No Jacket Required". Second Spin. Archived from the original on July 4, 2010. Retrieved March 3, 2010.
  11. ^ Hogan, Ed. "Sussudio review". Allmusic.
  12. ^ "1999". guitarcloud.org. Retrieved April 10, 2023.
  13. ^ "What keyboards and synths appear on the song 1999". guitarcloud.org. Retrieved April 10, 2023.
  14. ^ Clerc, Benoît (October 2022). Prince: All the Songs. Octopus. ISBN 9781784728816.
  15. ^ "The Hot 100 - The week of December 11, 1982". Billboard Hot 100. January 2, 2013. Retrieved May 31, 2016.
  16. ^ "Prince Chart History (Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs)". Billboard. Retrieved May 31, 2016.
  17. ^ "Dance/Disco Top80 - Survey for week ending 12/4/82". Google Books. December 4, 1982. Retrieved May 31, 2016.
  18. ^ "CASH BOX Top 100 Singles – Week ending December 18, 1982". Archived from the original on September 21, 2012. Retrieved May 13, 2014.. Cash Box magazine.
  19. ^ "Forum – ARIA Charts: Special Occasion Charts – CHART POSITIONS PRE 1989". Australian-charts.com. Hung Medien. Archived from the original on October 20, 2013. Retrieved May 31, 2016.
  20. ^ a b "Prince – 1999" (in Dutch). Ultratop 50. Retrieved May 31, 2016.
  21. ^ Pennanen, Timo (2021). "Prince". Sisältää hitin - 2. laitos Levyt ja esittäjät Suomen musiikkilistoilla 1.1.1960–30.6.2021 (PDF) (in Finnish). Helsinki: Kustannusosakeyhtiö Otava. p. 204. Retrieved July 3, 2022.
  22. ^ "Nederlandse Top 40 – week 3, 1983" (in Dutch). Dutch Top 40. Retrieved May 31, 2016.
  23. ^ a b "Prince – 1999" (in Dutch). Single Top 100. Retrieved May 31, 2016.
  24. ^ a b c "The Irish Charts – Search Results – 1999". Irish Singles Chart. Retrieved May 31, 2016.
  25. ^ "Official Singles Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved May 31, 2016.
  26. ^ "CHART NUMBER 1388 – Saturday, August 20, 1983". Archived from the original on February 13, 2006. Retrieved January 11, 2014.. CHUM.
  27. ^ "Top RPM Singles: Issue 6286." RPM. Library and Archives Canada. Retrieved May 31, 2016.
  28. ^ "Prince – 1999". Top 40 Singles. Retrieved May 31, 2016.
  29. ^ "The Hot 100 - The week of July 12, 1983". Billboard. January 2, 2013. Retrieved May 31, 2016.
  30. ^ "CASH BOX Top 100 Singles – Week ending August 13, 1983". Archived from the original on June 21, 2007. Retrieved July 10, 2014.. Cash Box magazine.
  31. ^ "Official Singles Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved May 31, 2016.
  32. ^ a b "Prince – 1999". ARIA Top 50 Singles. Retrieved May 31, 2016.
  33. ^ "Nederlandse Top 40 – week 4, 1999" (in Dutch). Dutch Top 40. Retrieved June 16, 2016.
  34. ^ a b "Prince – 1999" (in German). GfK Entertainment charts. Retrieved May 31, 2016.
  35. ^ "Official Singles Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved May 31, 2016.
  36. ^ "The Hot 100 - The week of January 16, 1999". Billboard. January 2, 2013. Retrieved May 31, 2016.
  37. ^ "Prince Chart History (Adult Pop Songs)". Billboard. Retrieved May 31, 2016.
  38. ^ "Prince Chart History (Pop Songs)". Billboard. Retrieved May 31, 2016.
  39. ^ "Prince Chart History (Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Airplay)". Billboard. Retrieved May 31, 2016.
  40. ^ "Prince Chart History (Rhythmic)". Billboard. Retrieved May 31, 2016.
  41. ^ "Prince – 1999" (in French). Les classement single. Retrieved May 31, 2016.
  42. ^ "Official Singles Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved May 31, 2016.
  43. ^ "The Hot 100 - The week of May 14, 2016". Billboard. January 2, 2013. Retrieved May 31, 2016.
  44. ^ "Prince Chart History (Digital Song Sales)". Billboard. Retrieved May 31, 2016.
  45. ^ "Prince - Chart history". Billboard. Retrieved May 31, 2016.
  46. ^ "Prince — Chart history". Billboard. Retrieved May 31, 2016.
  47. ^ "Kent Music Report – National Top 100 Singles for 1983". Kent Music Report. Retrieved January 22, 2023 – via Imgur.com.
  48. ^ "Forum – ARIA Charts: Special Occasion Charts – Top 100 End of Year AMR Charts - 1980s". Australian-charts.com. Hung Medien. Archived from the original on August 28, 2014. Retrieved June 16, 2016.
  49. ^ "Top RPM Singles: Issue 6699." RPM. Library and Archives Canada. Retrieved May 31, 2016.
  50. ^ "Official New Zealand Music Chart - End of Year Charts 1983". Recorded Music NZ. Retrieved June 16, 2016.
  51. ^ Billboard Year-End Hot 100 singles of 1983
  52. ^ "Top 100 Singles". Music Week. London, England: Spotlight Publications. January 18, 1986. p. 10.
  53. ^ "Jaarlijsten 1999" (in Dutch). Dutch Top 40. Retrieved May 11, 2022.
  54. ^ "British single certifications – Prince – 1999". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved May 27, 2022.

References

External links

Prince singles
Authority control databases
Categories