"Let's Go Crazy" | |||||||||||||||||||
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US 7" single
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Single by Prince and The Revolution | |||||||||||||||||||
from the album Purple Rain | |||||||||||||||||||
B-side | "Erotic City" "Take Me with U" (UK) |
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Released | July 18, 1984 | ||||||||||||||||||
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Recorded | The Warehouse, St. Louis Park, Summer 1983 | ||||||||||||||||||
Genre | Hard rock, new wave, funk rock | ||||||||||||||||||
Length | 4:39 | ||||||||||||||||||
Label | Warner Bros. | ||||||||||||||||||
Writer(s) | Prince | ||||||||||||||||||
Producer(s) | Prince and the Revolution | ||||||||||||||||||
Prince singles chronology | |||||||||||||||||||
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"Let's Go Crazy" is a 1984 song by Prince and The Revolution, from the album Purple Rain. It was the opening track on both the album and the film Purple Rain. "Let's Go Crazy" was one of Prince's most popular songs, and was a staple for concert performances, often segueing into other hits. When released as a single, the song became Prince's second number-one hit on the Billboard Hot 100, and also topped the two component charts, the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs and Hot Dance Club Play charts, as well as becoming a UK Top 10 hit. The B-side was the lyrically controversial "Erotic City". In the UK, the song was released as a double A-side with "Take Me with U".
Common to much of Prince's writing, the song is thought to be exhortation to follow Christian ethics, with the "De-elevator" of the lyrics being a metaphor for the Devil.
The extended "Special Dance Mix" of the song was performed in a slightly edited version in the film Purple Rain. It contains a longer instrumental section in the middle, including a solo on an apparently out-of-tune piano and some muddled lyrics, repeating the track's introduction.
Following Prince's death, the song re-charted on the Billboard Hot 100 singles chart at number 39 and rose to number 25 by the week of May 14, 2016. As of April 30, 2016, it has sold 964,403 copies in the United States.
The song was also notable for opening with a funeral-like organ solo with Prince giving the "eulogy" for "this thing called life." The introduction's words are overlapped with each other on the single version. The song climaxes with a distinctive drum machine pattern and then features a heavy guitar outro leads, electronic drums, bass and whirring synthesizers and a climatic drum outro. The song's percussion was programmed with a Linn LM-1 drum machine, an instrument frequently used in many of Prince's songs. The song is also known for its two guitar solos both performed by Prince.