Paisley Park Records

Last updated

Paisley Park Records
Paisley Park Records logo.jpg
Founded1985
Founder Prince
Defunct1994
Distributor(s) Warner Bros. Records
Genre
Country of originUnited States
Location Chanhassen, Minnesota

Paisley Park Records was an American record label founded by musician Prince in 1985, which was distributed by and funded in part by Warner Bros. Records. [1] It was started in 1985, following the success of the film and album Purple Rain . The label shares its name with Prince's recording complex Paisley Park Studios and the song "Paisley Park" on his 1985 Around the World in a Day album. [2] [3]

Contents

History

While Prince had great chart success in the 1980s, the success generally did not transfer to other acts. With the exception of Sheila E.'s 1985 album Romance 1600 (the label's debut non-Prince release), Tevin Campbell's single "Round and Round" and the Time's 1990 release Pandemonium , the label had very few commercial successes by artists other than Prince.

In 1994, amid Prince's feud with Warner Bros., Warner ended its distribution deal with Paisley Park, effectively closing the label. [4] Prince fought for the rights to the master recordings of all artists recorded at the label's studios. [5] Prince later started NPG Records, run by Trevor Guy. [3]

The vice-president of Operations for the label until 1991 was Alan Leeds. (Leeds won a Grammy for writing the liner notes for a James Brown album, and at one point served as Prince's tour manager on several tours.) Following Leeds' departure, radio promotion executive Graham Armstrong took over the role until 1991, when Gilbert Davison and Jill Willis, co-managers of Prince and president and executive vice-president of Paisley Park Enterprises, negotiated a joint venture between PPE and Warner Bros. (with the help of Prince attorney Gary Stiffelman). With the joint venture came funding for additional staff to run the label and oversee its artists – including Mavis Staples, George Clinton, Ingrid Chavez and Carmen Electra. Staffers included John Dukakis and Kerry Gordy as co-presidents of the label.

The label's offices were in a building with the address 1999 Avenue of the Stars.

Discography

Prince albums

Paisley Park albums

Note: All titles were distributed by Warner Bros. Records, except for those denoted with §, which were distributed by sister label Reprise Records.

See also

Related Research Articles

NPG Records is a record label that was owned by Prince and run by Trevor Guy. "NPG" is short for New Power Generation. It was founded to release his music after Paisley Park Records was shut down by Warner Bros. Records in 1994.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Paisley Park</span> Home and recording studio of Prince

Paisley Park is a 65,000 square foot estate in Chanhassen, Minnesota, United States, once owned by American musician Prince. It was opened to the public as a museum in October 2016.

<i>Carmen Electra</i> (album) 1993 studio album by Carmen Electra

Carmen Electra is the debut studio album by American actress/singer Carmen Electra, released in 1993.

Mazarati was an American R&B, rock and funk band, formed in the mid-1980s and was active until 1989. The band had seven members and was produced by the former Prince and The Revolution bassist Brownmark. Originally hailing from Minneapolis, they became defunct as a group in 1989. The band's sole hit was a song called "100 MPH", which was written and co-produced by Prince.

Mark Brown, better known by the stage name Brown Mark, also styled Brownmark and BrownMark, is an American musician, bassist and record producer.

Madhouse was an American jazz fusion band from Minneapolis, Minnesota, United States, created by Prince. Two Madhouse albums were officially released, both in 1987.

<i>Around the World in a Day</i> 1985 studio album by Prince and the Revolution

Around the World in a Day is the seventh studio album by American recording artist Prince, and the second release on which his backing band the Revolution is billed. It was released on April 22, 1985, by Paisley Park Records and Warner Bros. Records. Departing somewhat from the commercial sound of his previous release, the massively successful Purple Rain (1984), the album instead saw Prince experimenting with psychedelic styles and more opulent textures. In compliance with Prince's wishes, the record company released the album with minimal publicity, withholding accompanying singles until almost a month after the album's release.

Eric Leeds is an American saxophone player, mostly known for his work with Prince. He has recorded mostly music in the pop and funk genres, but is a studied jazz musician.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rob Mounsey</span> Musical artist

Rob Mounsey is an American musician, composer, and arranger.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Unreleased Prince projects</span>

Prince was well known in the entertainment industry for having a vast body of work that remains unreleased. It has been said that his vault contains multiple unreleased albums and over 50 fully produced music videos that have never been released, along with albums and other media. The following is a list, in rough chronological order, of the most prominent of these unreleased works. Many were later released and circulated among collectors as bootlegs.

Matthew "Atlanta Bliss" Blistan is an American jazz trumpeter. He is best known for his work with Prince from 1985–1991. He won the Grammy Award for Best R&B Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocals for the 1986 single "Kiss" by Prince.

<i>Time Waits for No One</i> (Mavis Staples album) 1989 studio album by Mavis Staples

Time Waits for No One is the fourth solo studio album by American soul singer Mavis Staples. The album was her first on Prince's Paisley Park Records label and was released on May 24, 1989. The album includes six Prince-penned songs and two songs written by Homer Banks and Lester Snell. Shortly after this album, she continued her collaboration with Prince. In September 1989, she recorded the song "Melody Cool" which would appear in the 1990 movie Graffiti Bridge, as well as on its soundtrack, and on her 1993 follow-up album The Voice.

Taja Sevelle is an American singer, best known for her 1987 single, "Love Is Contagious" and for the non-profit organization Urban Farming, which she founded in 2005.

<i>Sheila E.</i> (album) 1987 studio album by Sheila E.

Sheila E. is the third solo album by Sheila E., released on Paisley Park Records/Warner Bros. Records in July 1987.

<i>The Voice</i> (Mavis Staples album) 1993 studio album by Mavis Staples

The Voice is the fifth solo studio album by American soul singer Mavis Staples. This album was her second for Prince's Paisley Park Records label and was released on August 24, 1993. The song "Melody Cool" from the 1990 movie Graffiti Bridge appeared on this album as well as the movie soundtrack. The song "Positivity" is a cover of Prince's version from the 1988 album Lovesexy.

"Adore" is a song by Prince. It is the last track on his 1987 double album Sign o' the Times, following the live track "It's Gonna Be a Beautiful Night". A long, ornate slow jam featuring Atlanta Bliss and Eric Leeds on horns, it was described by NME reviewer Paolo Hewitt as "a sugar ballad that harks back to the Stylistics but is indelibly Prince's, a lush yet remarkable piece of music, and a fitting climax". It received significant radio play despite never being released as a single, and became an occasional part of Prince's concert repertoire. A 4:39-long edit of the song appears on the 1993 compilation album The Hits/The B-Sides, and the Girl 6 soundtrack album contains the full-length version. Prince's 2002 box set One Nite Alone... Live! includes a solo performance of "Adore" with piano accompaniment.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Love Is Contagious</span> 1987 single by Taja Sevelle

"Love Is Contagious" is the debut single by American singer Taja Sevelle, released in 1987. The song was taken from her eponymous debut studio album, released by Paisley Park Records. It is Sevelle's only major chart hit, reaching number 7 on the UK Singles Chart in early 1988.

<i>Jill Jones</i> (album) 1987 studio album by Jill Jones

Jill Jones is the self-titled debut solo album from the artist of the same name; Jill Jones. The album was released in 1987 on Paisley Park / Warner Bros. Records. It was produced by Jones and Prince.

References

  1. ↑ "A Look Back at Prince's Quirky, Idiosyncratic Paisley Park Records". Billboard. Retrieved April 12, 2018.
  2. ↑ "Paisley Park". Discogs.
  3. 1 2 Petridis, Alexis (November 12, 2015). "Prince: 'Transcendence. That's what you want. When that happens – Oh, boy'". The Guardian. ISSN   0261-3077 . Retrieved May 1, 2016.
  4. ↑ "Here's Every Battle Prince Waged Against the Internet and the Music Industry | Pitchfork". Pitchfork. April 25, 2016. Retrieved April 12, 2018.
  5. ↑ Here’s Every Battle Prince Waged Against the Internet and the Music Industry
  6. ↑ "Kahoru Kohiruimaki - Time The Motion (CD) at Discogs". Discogs.com. Retrieved October 19, 2011.
  7. ↑ "T.C. Ellis - True Confessions (CD, Album) at Discogs". Discogs.com. Retrieved October 19, 2011.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.