Two Years Ago Today, We Lost Prince
“Dearly beloved…we are gathered here today to get through this thing called LIFE.”
On this date in 2016, Prince Rogers Nelson – or just Prince – passed away. It was a shocking death the stunned not only the music industry, but the entire world. You’d be hard pressed to find a bigger celebrity than The Artist Formerly Known As, and to be completely honest, you’d also be hard pressed to find anyone more talented than he was at his craft. From singing, to songwriting, to playing guitar, bass, drums, and anything else you could possibly make noise out of, Prince was the best at it…and he was so good at so many different things that his mastery of certain instruments was (and still is) discounted. Like, think about all of the “Greatest Guitar Player of All Time” discussions and listicles you’ve read in your life. Jimi Hendrix, Eric Clapton, Jimmy Page, Carlos Santana, Keith Richards, Chuck Berry, B.B. King, Jeff Beck, and even Duane Allman are the usual suspects. Prince makes a pretty serious case against literally all of those names, yet barely gets the recognition he deserves because “guitarist” is maybe fourth or fifth on the list of things he does.
When His Royal Badness passed, I didn’t know nearly as much of his tunes as I should have. I knew the hits, obviously, and a pretty decent amount of his soundtrack to ‘Batman’ (1989), but never took that deep dive into Prince’s vast library. Since that fateful day two years ago though, I’ve done my best playing catch-up, and it’s one of the best decisions I ever could’ve made. His musical talent was seemingly endless, and mind blowing even now in 2018. The variety across Prince’s 39 studio albums, 3 live albums, and 13 EPs is enough for his discography to carry you through every peak and valley that life throws your way without ever having to hear another artist ever again, and convinces me there’s not a single person on Earth who isn’t a Prince fan. Maybe you just haven’t heard the Prince songs that you life yet, but I promise you, they’re out there. You might just need to dig a little deeper.
Today, I’m writing this blog and sharing some of my personal favorite Prince songs, interviews, performances, tributes, and stories below with the hope that you’ll take a little bit of time out of your Saturday to celebrate the life of this legend, who will undoubtably live on forever through his work. If you’ve got your own favorite clips to share, please send ‘em over via Twitter (@RobbieBarstool). I’d love to see them.
Rest easy, Prince.
