When Doves Cry
When Doves Cry is a song by the American musician Prince, released in 1984, which he wrote, composed, arranged and produced. The track was released on May 16, 1984 as the lead single from his album Purple Rain. Prince recorded When Doves Cry with his backing band at the time, The Revolution. In addition, the song can be heard in the Prince film Purple Rain.
The song was Prince's first number one hit in the US. According to Billboard magazine, it was the best-selling single of 1984, reaching platinum status in the U.S. for 2,000,000 copies sold and gold status in the U.K. for 400,000 singles sold.
History
After the film Purple Rain was shot, Prince was asked by the director to write a soundtrack for the film. It was to include a song that dealt with parental difficulties. By the next morning, Prince had realized two ideas, When Doves Cry and Purple Rain.
In the U.S., the song spent five weeks at #1 and was later replaced by the Bruce Springsteen classic Dancing in the Dark. According to The Village Voice polls, the song was Single of the Year, but only reached #2 in the American Top 40.
The B-side of When Doves Cry is the track 17 Days, which Prince originally intended for the girl group Apollonia 6. In the UK, 17 Days was released with the song as a 12-inch single in 1999. In September 2018, an acoustic version of 17 Days was released on the album Piano & A Microphone 1983, recorded by Prince in October 1983 and performed only on the piano. However, this version is seriously different from the version released as a B-side.
After Prince worked on Purple Rain, he composed When Doves Cry. Besides the vocals, he played the instruments and from the texture the song seems very strong. The song does not include an electric bass, which is very unusual for a dance song. Prince said that he originally wanted to include bass, but decided against it. On the Purple Rain tour, however, basses were played. The song starts with a guitar solo, followed by the beat of a drum machine and a loop of guttural sound, and just before the end there is a synthesizer solo.
In 1985, When Doves Cry won at the American Music Awards in the Favorite Soul/R&B Single category. In Spin magazine it ranked 6th. In Rolling Stone magazine's 500 Best Songs of All Time list, the song placed at #52. In 2006, the hit scored #5 in VH1's list of Greatest Songs of the 1980s.
When Doves Cry is also featured on the Prince compilations His Majesty's Pop Life/The Purple Mix Club (1985), The Hits/The B-Sides (1993), The Very Best of Prince (2001), Ultimate (2006) and 4Ever (2016). In addition, the song is present on the album Purple Rain Deluxe (2017).
Music video
The music video, directed by Prince himself, premiered on MTV in June 1984. At the beginning of the video, double doors open, then white doves fly, and then Prince gets out of a bathtub with a naked torso. Furthermore, scenes from the movie Purple Rain can also be seen. The video caused controversy: Media criticized the open sexuality in the video.
