Prince

Released: January 13, 1997

Songwriter: Prince

Producer: Prince

[Intro]
Let's go down to the holy river
If we drown then we'll be delivered

[Verse 1]
You can still see the picture upon the wall
One eye staring at nothing at all
The other one trying to focus through all your tears
You can try and try but there's nothing to hide
You can't run from yourself and what's inside
You got to find the answers to the questions that You most fear

[Hook 1]
So over and over you ask your soul
Why'd you come down to a world so cold?
And the voice inside says tonight the truth will be told

[Verse 2]
You surrounded yourself with all the wrong faces
Spending your time in all the wrong places
Putting your faith in things that only make you cry
People say they love you when they want to help
But how can they when you can't help yourself?
The more they say they love you, the more you just want to die
So here we go again, the self-analysis
Have another glass of Port and forget this
The band's playing at the club tonight and they're bound to groove

[Hook 2]
There you are, you think you're high
You can't ask yourself because you'd only lie
If you had a dollar for every time you tried

[Verse 3]
You can't call nobody because they'll tell you straight up
Come and make love when you really hate them
Relationships based on the physical are over and done
They're over and done (They're over and done)
You'd rather have fun
With only one, with only one
Only one... one (one)

[Verse 4]
And then it hit you like a fist on a wall
Who gave you life when there was none at all?
Who gave the sun permission to rise up everyday? (Ooh, oh yes)
Let me tell it (Go on)
If you ask God to love you longer
Every breath you take will make you stronger
Keeping you happy (happy) and proud to call His name (Go on and say it)
Jesus (Jesus)

[Hook 1]
So over and over you ask your soul
Why'd you come down to a world so cold?
And the voice inside says tonight the truth will be told
And this time I was listening, hear me

[Chorus]
Let's go down to the holy river
If we drown then we'll be delivered (Yes we will)
If we don't then we'll never see the light (No)
If you die before you try
You'll have to come back and face the light (Oh yes)
When you believe it, you got a good reason to cry (Oh my, my)

[Verse 5]
So I went on down to the holy river
I called my girl and told her I had something to give her
I asked her to marry me and she said yes, I cried
Oh, that night I drowned in her tears and mine
And instead of a glass of sorrow and wine
Looking back you all, I don't miss nothing except the time
And when I see that picture upon the wall
The one eye staring at nothing at all
My eyes trying to focus but these are much different tears

[Modified Chorus]
Oh, yes they are
Let's go down to the holy river
Let's go down to the holy river
Let's go down to the holy river
Let's go down to the holy river
Let's go down to the holy river
Let's go down to the holy river

An American singer-songwriter, musician, multi-instrumentalist, and actor that produced 22 RIAA-platinum albums during his 40-year career, Prince may be known for one of many different things – his turn as “The Kid” in the iconic film/album/8 ½ minute ballad “Purple Rain”, being the writer behind the acclaimed anthem “Kiss,” rivaling Michael Jackson at the pinnacle of his career, being the inspiration behind censorship laws, or being the artist addressed as an unpronounceable symbol throughout the 1990s—but while many know of Prince, most don’t fully understand the impact his legacy left on this world.

Going by many aliases throughout his life, Prince Rogers Nelson was born in Minneapolis, Minnesota on June 7, 1958 with his father’s (John L. Nelson) stage name as his own given one. Growing up, Prince suffered from serious epileptic seizures at a very young age, but he had wrote his first composition of many by age seven, and outside of his love for basketball, he wanted music to be his purpose in life. His tumultuous childhood, witnessing alcoholism and abuse, caused him to find refuge in neighbor André Cymone’s home in his teens, where the two competed in local band competitions, leading to Prince’s introduction to Morris Day alongside music with his cousin’s band 94 East, leading him to be courted by record labels and ultimately signed to Warner Bros. Records with complete creative control; at 19, his debut album, For You (1978) was released – Prince played all 19 instruments on the record.

Influenced by the likes of Miles Davis, Rick James, and James Brown, Prince desired to form a music dynasty and after the success of his next albums – the platinum-selling Prince (1979), the sexually-charged Dirty Mind (1980), and politically-motivated Controversy (1981) – he negotiated for the ability to form his own label and manage artists of his own. Prince’s trademark sexual/religious rhetoric within pop-and-dance, funk-rock sound gained him a following, but his opening slates for Rick James and The Rolling Stones were both negatively received and facing bankruptcy, the young artist began to reach for mainstream popularity. Cashing on the drug-influenced doomsday mania of the times, 1982’s 1999 easily achieved that mainstream appeal, landing him on MTV, music charts, and radio stations across the world.

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