Everything about Kiss Song totally explained
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"Kiss" is a
1986 song by
Prince and
the Revolution, from the album
Parade.
"Kiss" started as a short
acoustic demo, about a minute in length, with one
verse and the
chorus. Prince gave the song to the
funk band
Mazarati for their
debut album. Mazarati and producer
David Z. drastically reworked the song, giving it its unique raw funk and oddly effective stripped-down
minimalist sound. When Mazarati delivered the song to Prince, he was amazed at their work and decided to take back the song for himself. He replaced their lead vocal, added the
guitar break in the chorus and edited the song to its present form.
Mazarati were credited for their backing vocals, which Prince left intact. He added the song at the last minute to
"Parade". Despite
Warner Bros. not wanting to release it as a single,
"Kiss" became Prince's third number-one U.S. hit following
1984's highly successful "
When Doves Cry" and "
Let's Go Crazy." It was also a big hit across the
Atlantic, reaching #6 on the
UK Singles Chart. The song won Prince another
Grammy Award for Best R&B Vocal Performance by a Duo or Group, and was nominated for Best
R&B Song. The song has become a staple at Prince's concerts and is usually sung partially by the audience.
The
12" single of the song is an extension of the album track. The extended section is based on the funky guitar line and contains much fuller instrumentation than the main track, including bass, keys and horns. New lyrics are present from Prince with
Jill Jones that end with a humorous dialogue between a wife and her husband watching Prince on television. The
B-side of
"Kiss" was the funky "
or $" ("
Love or Money"), sung in a processed, higher-pitched vocal, which Prince would later use for his
Camille material. The song relates to the theme in
Under the Cherry Moon, and a bit of the song was heard in the film, as was a bit of the extended version of
Kiss. The extended
"Kiss" was included on 2006's
Ultimate, but " or $" has oddly never been re-released.
Art of Noise performed a cover of the song two years later, in 1988, featuring legendary belter
Tom Jones on vocals. The song became the band's biggest hit to that point, peaking at #5 on the
UK Singles Chart, higher than the original in that country. The guitar and horns break in the middle of this cover musically references the themes to
Dragnet and
Peter Gunn (two songs the Art of Noise covered with much commercial success) as well as their own breakthrough hit,
"Close (To the Edit)". This cover was later included as part of an episode of the series
Listed on
Much More Music, which was on the Top 20 cover songs.
Trivia
Rolling Stone ranked the song #461 on their list of the 500 Greatest Songs of All Time.
On the week "Kiss" hit #1 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart, "Manic Monday" - a song written by Prince under the alias "Christopher" and performed by The Bangles was at #2.
Prince has stated that he's never been happy with the arrangement on this song and it's arranged differently for each tour.
The song was performed by Alicia Keys, Gwen Stefani, and Missy Elliot at an awards show in 2003.
The music video of this song features Prince dancing sexually with a veiled girl performing exotic dances. The only Revolution member in the video is Wendy Melvoin, sitting on a barstool playing her guitar.
New Musical Express ranked the song #4 in their The 150 Greatest Singles of All Time.
Prince changed the lyrics "You don't have to watch Dynasty/To have an attitude" to "You don't have to watch Sex and the City/To have an attitude" and later to "You don't have to watch Desperate Housewives" as seen on recent performances.
In his performances at the O2 Arena in London, UK, Prince changed the lyrics to 'You don't have to watch Big Brother/To have an attitude."
Julia Roberts performed the song in her star-making film Pretty Woman.
Britney Spears has stated that Kiss is her favourite song of all time.
Comedian Rodney Carrington performed his rendition of "Kiss" on his live CD, "Hangin' With Rodney". He then proceeded to sing a "country version" of "Kiss".
"Kiss" is Norma Jean's (Nicole Kidman) heartsong in the 2006 animated film Happy Feet.
The song was released as the first single off of WWIII lead singer, Mandy Lion's 2008 album.Further Information
Get more info on 'Kiss Song'.
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