It’s not really a technology question… but still, how many covers of Prince’s “Purple Rain” are there anyway?
Yes, yes, this isn’t “Alex Reviews Tech” quite so much as it is “Alex falls down a particularly niche YouTube rabbit hole and decides to take you with him, but… it’s Sunday, and I felt like it.
Also… it’s kind of a followup to a piece I wrote some years back that I probably should reintroduce looking at all the varied covers of David Bowie’s “Life On Mars”.
However, while I do love me some Thin White Duke, I’m a much bigger fan of his purple badness… so here we are.
Prince released (in my view) better songs than Purple Rain, but its status as both a classic and the one song that just about anyone will think of when you mention Prince means it does have a rather special place in pop music history.
My brain being the rather curious lump of neurone that it is wondered today whether or not it had been covered all that much.
So of course, I had to go looking, and (spoiler) the answer is yes. It’s been covered A LOT.
Just in case you only arrived here on the last alien probe vessel from beyond the stars, here’s the man himself in the original version of the song:
I have that single, because of course I do.
But what about other major talents? This whole thing got kicked off because my YouTube feed pulled in, of all things, a Tom Jones version. Tom Jones had massive success with a very good cover of Prince’s “Kiss” back in the day, so how well did he take to Purple Rain?
Tastes can vary… but I’m going to say that’s not so good, certainly not up there with Kiss in terms of performances, even with Dave Gilmour on guitar.
But we’re only just getting started!
How about… Bruce Springsteen?
I do like that more than Tom Jones, for whatever that’s worth.
Eric Clapton, it turns out, had a go…
Hmm…
Adam Levine’s version came up pretty early in my search:
As they say, taste is subjective… but I can’t say I’m a big fan of Jessie J’s version:
Kelly Clarkson’s version is… OK, I guess?
Samantha Harvey’s version is… overproduced. And why was the video shot in a hotel room?
Just in case anyone thinks I only like male cover versions, this is EXCELLENT:
And of course, I cannot say anything against Dolly Parton, because… who would?
LeAnn Rimes does the most… LeAnn Rimes version of the song possible. I’ll leave it up to you whether that’s a good or bad thing:
Jeff Beck (and friends) have a go:
UB40? No, it’s actually an older song than that (I regret that joke immediately)
Demi Lovato version? Well, OK then:
I started out not liking Jennifer Hudson’s version… but she turned me around by the end of her performance:
Celine Dion? CELINE DION? Well… it exists:
Acoustic Blues Harmonica version? Sure, why not?
(I suspect by this stage of my research my family is sick of hearing Purple Rain endlessly…)
Bluegrass version? Again, why not?
How about the Sitar? Surely not… and yet here we are:
Metal cover? (with a tip o’ the hat to Thomas, because it’s his fault)
This orchestral Strings version is… quite fun, actually:
And it just goes on, and on and on and on. At this point, I feel like I’ve engaged in a Sisyphean task here, so I’d better wrap it up… but how?
Oh, I know. I bet I can’t find a version of Purple Rain performed IN THE RAIN at, say, a major sporting event while a marching band in neon lights twirls batons and a tiny man in heels that it should not be possible to dance in is on a stage along with two Australian twins in, I repeat, the pouring rain.
Because that never happened, right?
Ahem. Just in case you’ve never seen the single GREATEST Super Bowl half-time show in history (this is not up for debate, I am RIGHT), then, well… follow this link (YouTube won’t let me embed it, bah) and enjoy…
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