"Take Me with U"
Japan 7" single
Single by Prince and the Revolution
from the album Purple Rain
A-side"Let's Go Crazy" (UK)
B-side"Baby I'm a Star"
ReleasedJanuary 25, 1985
RecordedJanuary 27, 1984
StudioSunset Sound, Los Angeles
Genre
Length3:52 (album/12" version)
3:39 (7" edit)
LabelWarner Bros.
Songwriter(s)Prince
Producer(s)Prince
Prince singles chronology
"I Would Die 4 U"
(1984) 		"Take Me with U"
(1985) 		"Raspberry Beret"
(1985)
Purple Rain singles chronology
"The Bird"
(1984) 		"Take Me With U"
(1985) 		"Modernaire"
(2008)

"Take Me with U" is a song by Prince and the Revolution, and the final US single released from their album, Purple Rain (1984).

Background

The song is sung as a duet with Apollonia Kotero, and was originally intended to be performed by Vanity but shortly before filming began on the movie Purple Rain, Vanity famously chose to quit participation in the film altogether when she was offered what appeared to be a lucrative contract with Motown Records exec Berry Gordy and began filming The Last Dragon (An early demo of the song exists with her vocals and has circulated on bootleg recordings by collectors.) and ceased her romantic relationship with Prince. The song was then intended for the Apollonia 6 album to coincide with the film, but was pulled for the Purple Rain soundtrack. As a result of this addition, Prince made cuts to the suite-like original "Computer Blue", which circulates among collectors in an extended version (a portion of this second section of "Computer Blue" can be heard in the film Purple Rain as Prince walks in on the men of The Revolution rehearsing). The original version of the song was about a minute longer.

Reception

Cash Box said that the song has "some beautiful melodies and some well-placed string sections which are proof of Prince’s varied talents."[3]

Chart performance

The single was released with an edit of album track "Baby I'm a Star" as its B-side. In the US, it reached number 40 on the Hot Black Singles chart and reached number 25 on the top 40 chart.[4] In the UK, the song was issued as a double A-side single, coupled with "Let's Go Crazy", reaching number 7 in March 1985.[5]

Track listing

7": Paisley Park / 7-29079 (US)

  1. "Take Me with U" (edit) – 3:42
  2. "Baby I'm a Star" (edit) – 2:55

Personnel

Credits sourced from Duane Tudahl, Benoît Clerc, Guitarcloud, Michael Aubrecht, and the album's liner notes[6][7][8][9][10]

Charts

Chart performance for "Take Me with U"
Chart (1985) Peak
position
UK Singles (OCC)[11] 7
US Billboard Hot 100[12] 25
US Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs (Billboard)[13] 40

References

  1. ^ Partridge, Kenneth (June 24, 2014). "Prince's 'Purple Rain' at 30: Classic Track-by-Track Album Review". Billboard. Retrieved October 30, 2015.
  2. ^ Breihan, Tom (November 15, 2022). "Prince - "When Doves Cry". The Number Ones: Twenty Chart-Topping Hits That Reveal the History of Pop Music. New York: Hachette Book Group. p. 165.
  3. ^ "Reviews" (PDF). Cash Box. February 9, 1985. p. 7. Retrieved 2022-07-26.
  4. ^ Whitburn, Joel (2004). Top R&B/Hip-Hop Singles: 1942–2004. Record Research. p. 471.
  5. ^ "officialcharts.com". Official Charts. Retrieved April 8, 2021.
  6. ^ Tudahl, Duane (2018). Prince and the Purple Rain Era Studio Sessions: 1983 and 1984 (Expanded ed.). Rowman & Littlefield. ISBN 9781538116432.
  7. ^ Clerc, Benoît (October 2022). Prince: All the Songs. Octopus. ISBN 9781784728816.
  8. ^ "Linn LinnDrum". guitarcloud.org. Retrieved 2023-04-12.
  9. ^ "Exclusive Interview: Bobby Z." (Interview). 2017. Retrieved 2 May 2023.
  10. ^ Prince and the Revolution (1984). Purple Rain Soundtrack (Album Notes). Warner Bros. Records.
  11. ^ "Official Singles Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved August 4, 2023.
  12. ^ "Prince Chart History (Hot 100)". Billboard. Retrieved August 4, 2023.
  13. ^ "Prince Chart History (Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs)". Billboard. Retrieved August 4, 2023.
Categories