"Letitgo"
Single by Prince
from the album Come
B-side
  • "Solo"
  • "Alexa De Paris"
  • "Pope"
ReleasedAugust 9, 1994
RecordedMarch 16, 1994[1]
StudioPaisley Park, Chanhassen
Length
  • 5:33 (album version)
  • 4:15 (7-inch edit)
LabelWarner Bros.
Songwriter(s)Prince
Producer(s)
  • Prince (original versions)
  • Quincy "QD3" Jones III, Gerald "G Bomb" Baillergeau, J. Swift (remixes)
Prince singles chronology
"The Most Beautiful Girl in the World"
(1994) 		"Letitgo"
(1994) 		"Space"
(1994)

"Letitgo" is a song by American musician Prince from his fifteenth studio album, Come (1994). Despite statements that the album consisted entirely of "old" material, "Letitgo" was actually newly composed for the album. The mid-tempo song relies heavily on a drum machine pattern and bass guitar with synthesizers in the refrain. A keyboard and percussion solo appear toward the end. The song is sung in falsetto in unison with another track layered in his regular, lower register. Kathleen Bradford provides backing vocals, while Eric Leeds provides flute accompaniment.

The track was produced, arranged, composed and performed by Prince, with the additions of Kathleen Bradford on background vocals, Eric Leeds on flute and additional keyboards by Ricky Peterson. The lyrics speak of Prince's disappointment with Warner Bros. Records' decision not to release music as quickly as Prince created it. He chides them that they will be sorry when he leaves the company.

The B-side was the album track "Solo", a downbeat number with Prince's voice only accompanied by harp, which was composed by David Henry Hwang. The title refers not to a musical solo, but actually that Prince's mood is "so low". It ties in with the slightly more upbeat "Letitgo". In addition, a CD single was released in the UK containing an edit of "Letitgo", "Solo", the extended version of "Alexa de Paris" (originally the B-side to "Mountains" in 1986) and "Pope", which was originally on The Hits 2 from 1993. A maxi single on CD and vinyl included several remixes of the track provided by Quincy "QD3" Jones III, Chronic Freeze., J-Sw!ft and Gerald "G Bomb" Baillergeau.

Critical reception

Larry Flick from Billboard wrote, "On what could be one of the final projects issued under the name Prince, punters are given a dark jack/funk ditty, pumped with a thick bassline and a wicked hook that is truly irresistible. Given the heat he is enjoying at radio under his alter-ego, the future of this superior effort looks mighty bright. One of many reasons to dive into the new Come collection."[2] In 2019, Alexis Petridis from The Guardian commented, "By 1994, Prince was more interested in fighting with his record company than the quality of his releases. Come was evidently thrown together to fulfill his contract. But even when he didn't really care, he couldn't turn his talent off completely. "Letitgo" isn't a classic, but nor is it a disaster. Perhaps he made more of an effort because it's about his desire to leave the Warners label."[3]

Chuck Campbell from Knoxville News Sentinel called it a "snoozer single".[4] In his weekly UK chart commentary, James Masterton described it as "a fairly nondescript piece of Prince funk",[5] while Dave Jennings from Melody Maker viewed it as "a monstrously tedious, tired piece of wine-bar funk".[6] Pan-European magazine Music & Media wrote, "After the royalty in exile as Symbol, he now returns in his original identity with a mean swingbeat track of early Janet Jackson proportions. Will he keep the ballet army under control?"[7] Alan Jones from Music Week gave "Letitgo" four out of five, calling it "one of his seductive rolling funk numbers".[8]

Chart performance

"Letitgo" was moderately successful on the charts, peaking at number 31 on the US Billboard Hot 100, number 10 on the R&B/Hip-Hop chart, number 13 on the Rhythmic chart, number 17 on the Mainstream/Pop chart and number 30 on the UK Singles Chart.

Music video

The accompanying music video for "Letitgo" contains clips from the 3 Chains o Gold motion picture. It contains Prince signing a contract with an early version of his love symbol signature.

Track listings

  1. "Letitgo" (Caviar radio edit) – 4:59
  2. "Letitgo" (Cavi' street edit) – 5:02
  3. "Letitgo" (Instrumental) – 5:02
  4. "Letitgo" (On the Cool-Out Tip radio edit) – 4:34
  5. "Letitgo" (Sherm Stick edit) – 5:42
  6. "Letitgo" ((-) Sherm Stick edit) – 5:42
  7. "Letitgo" (original radio edit) – 4:15
  8. "Letitgo" (original album version) – 5:33
  1. "Letitgo" (edit) – 4:15
  2. "Solo" – 3:48
  1. "Letitgo" (edit) – 4:15
  2. "Solo" – 3:48
  3. "Alexa de Paris" (extended version) – 4:54
  4. "Pope" – 3:28

Charts

Release history

Release history and formats for "Letitgo"
Region Date Format(s) Label(s) Ref.
United States August 9, 1994
  • 7-inch vinyl
  • 12inch vinyl
  • CD
  • cassette
 Warner Bros. [citation needed]
United Kingdom August 30, 1994 [29]

References

  1. ^ "Letitgo". Prince Vault.
  2. ^ Flick, Larry (August 20, 1994). "Single Reviews" (PDF). Billboard. p. 79. Retrieved March 20, 2021.
  3. ^ Petridis, Alexis (September 12, 2019). "Prince's 50 greatest singles – ranked!". The Guardian. Retrieved November 16, 2020.
  4. ^ Campbell, Chuck (August 26, 1994). "Prince Digs Into Vaults, Comes Out With Little". Knoxville News Sentinel.
  5. ^ Masterton, James (September 4, 1994). "Week Ending September 10th 1994". Chart Watch UK. Retrieved September 8, 2021.
  6. ^ Jennings, Dave (September 3, 1994). "Singles". Melody Maker. p. 44. Retrieved October 12, 2023.
  7. ^ "New Releases: Singles" (PDF). Music & Media. August 20, 1994. p. 7. Retrieved March 14, 2021.
  8. ^ Jones, Alan (September 3, 1994). "Market Preview: Mainstream - Singles" (PDF). Music Week. p. 18. Retrieved April 19, 2021.
  9. ^ "Prince – Letitgo". ARIA Top 50 Singles. Retrieved May 2, 2016.
  10. ^ "Prince – Letitgo" (in German). Ö3 Austria Top 40. Retrieved May 2, 2016.
  11. ^ "Prince – Letitgo" (in Dutch). Ultratop 50. Retrieved May 2, 2016.
  12. ^ "Adult Contemporary Europe Top 25" (PDF). Music & Media. September 17, 1994. p. 22. Retrieved May 28, 2023.
  13. ^ "European Dance Radio Top 25" (PDF). Music & Media. October 8, 1994. p. 21. Retrieved May 27, 2023.
  14. ^ Week 33, 1994.
  15. ^ "Prince – Letitgo" (in French). Les classement single. Retrieved May 2, 2016.
  16. ^ "Prince – Letitgo" (in German). GfK Entertainment charts. Retrieved May 2, 2016.
  17. ^ "Nederlandse Top 40 – week 36, 1994" (in Dutch). Dutch Top 40. Retrieved May 2, 2016.
  18. ^ "Prince – Letitgo" (in Dutch). Single Top 100. Retrieved May 2, 2016.
  19. ^ "Prince – Letitgo". Top 40 Singles. Retrieved May 2, 2016.
  20. ^ "Prince – Letitgo". VG-lista. Retrieved May 2, 2016.
  21. ^ "Official Scottish Singles Sales Chart Top 100 04 September 1994 - 10 September 1994". Official Charts Company. Retrieved October 13, 2021.
  22. ^ "Prince – Letitgo". Swiss Singles Chart. Retrieved May 2, 2016.
  23. ^ "Prince: Artist Chart History". Official Charts Company. Retrieved March 4, 2023.
  24. ^ "Prince Chart History (Hot 100)". Billboard. Retrieved November 7, 2020.
  25. ^ "Prince Chart History (Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs)". Billboard. Retrieved November 7, 2020.
  26. ^ "Prince Chart History (Pop Songs)". Billboard. Retrieved November 7, 2020.
  27. ^ "Prince Chart History (Rhythmic)". Billboard. Retrieved November 7, 2020.
  28. ^ "Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs – Year-End 1994". Billboard. Retrieved November 7, 2020.
  29. ^ "Single Releases". Music Week. August 27, 1994. p. 27.
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