A Song For This Day (and year): Let’s Go Crazy
Debuting in another popular art, which launched its musical star into the stratosphere
Another year over and upon us, and like I’ve done before (alright, it’s a habit), highlighting a song that just felt right at this point in time. And if we’re being honest, the year that just finished should have had less drama than the previous, but given our political climate, it is now par for the course. Thus, to christen 2024 went back four decades to another period and tune when we were again in an Olympic year1 — the appropriately titled, Let’s Go Crazy.
Recall for a moment, right before the opening of L.A.’s Olympic Summer Games, a small, low-budget film came out of nowhere and unexpectedly debuted at the number one slot at the box office. That Purple Rain was designed by its star, Prince, to make him a superstar (which it did) and also succeeded in unseating the then reigning movie champion Ghostbusters, was simply extraordinary. The film singlehandedly made the “Purple One” a household name from that point forward.
By year’s end, it was a multiple-award winner and its soundtrack album sold millions and was a critical (making multiple “Top Ten” lists) commercial success. As well, the LP and CD generated multiple high charting singles on the Pop and R&B scales2. As Allmusic writer Stephen Thomas Erlewine noted what made these songs so special…
“Simultaneously more focused and ambitious than any of his previous records, Purple Rain finds Prince consolidating his funk and R&B roots while moving boldly into pop, rock, and heavy metal with nine superbly crafted songs. Even its best-known songs don’t tread conventional territory…: the bass-less “When Doves Cry” is an eerie, spare neo-psychedelic masterpiece; … the anthemic title track is a majestic ballad filled with brilliant guitar flourishes.”
And yet, I’ll start off the new year by selecting his second #1 single, Let’s Go Crazy, which opened the film, due to its “…furious blend of metallic guitars, Stonesy riffs, and a hard funk backbeat…” It doesn’t and shouldn’t take a backseat to any of the others mentioned here as its equally stirring and cleverly telling with the singer-songwriter’s lyrics and frenetic energy4.
Beginning with one of the most famous spoken intros in pop music and movie history, at that. The church organ opening, along with Prince’s smoothly intoned “preaching”, sets the stage for the raucous sermon to come. And at the properly righteous pitch before swinging into a joyously rousing response. Musically and cinematically reminding those witnessing that we should enjoy this life, along with battling against evil. Insert your favorite infernal being as “the de-elevator”, then and now.
Lord knows, there’s a number of them out there trying to “break us down”3 and we should and need to “Go crazy, punch a higher floor” for the new year. And as always, I sincerely hope it is a happy one for this and us all.
Dearly beloved, we have gathered here today To get through this thing called life Electric word life, it means forever and that's a mighty long time But I'm here to tell you, there's something else The afterworld, a world of never ending happiness You can always see the sun, day or night So when you call up that shrink in Beverly Hills You know the one, Dr. Everything'll Be Alright Instead of asking him how much of your time is left? Ask him how much of your mind, baby 'Cause in this life things are much harder than in the afterworld This life you're on your own And if de-elevator tries to bring you down Go crazy, punch a higher floor If you don't like the world you're living in Take a look around you, at least you got friends Come on lady, for friendly word She picked up the phone, dropped it on the floor Ahh, ahh, is all I heard Are we gonna let de-elevator Bring us down, oh, no, let's go Let's go crazy, let's get nuts Look for the purple banana 'Til they put us in the truck, let's go All excited but we don't know why Maybe it's 'cause we're all gonna die And when we do, what's it all for Better live now before the grim reaper Come knocking on your door Are we gonna let de-elevator Bring us down, oh, no, let's go Let's go crazy, let's get nuts Look for the purple banana 'Til they put us in the truck, let's go Come on, baby, let's get nuts Yeah, crazy Let's go crazy Are we gonna let de-elevator bring us down Oh, no, let's go, go crazy I said let's go, go crazy Let's go, let's go, go, let's go Dr. Everything'll Be Alright Make everything go wrong Pills and thrills and daffodils will kill Hang tough, children He's comin' He's comin' Comin' Take me away
1. 1984’s summer games were held in my hometown of Los Angeles; in 2024 they are in Paris, France, where me and mine will also be.↵
2. Its lead single “When Doves Cry” was Prince’s first Billboard Hot 100 #1 and worldwide hit for weeks. The title track “Purple Rain” reached number 2 on the Hot 100 and stayed there for two weeks. “I Would Die 4 U”, the fourth and final Billboard Hot 100 top 10 hit from the album, charted as high as #8 nationally. And final single, “Take Me with U”, was released on January 25, 1985.↵
3. The orange clown currently campaigning for re-election as dictator would be the one I’m fighting against; and if you don’t like it, you’re free to ignore me and this blog (and derogatory comments will be blocked), so there.↵
4. Let’s Go Crazy would spend a couple dozen of weeks atop the charts so it wasn’t wanting in popularity back then.↵
It Rains... You Get Wet 
2 Responses to “A Song For This Day (and year): Let’s Go Crazy”
Happy New Year!!
Paris this year?? Awesome! We’ll finally be getting to South Korea (postponed from 2020) to visit all the baseball parks. Our bit of enjoying life in the midst of the fight.
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Oh, going to South Korea for that sounds awesome! Yes, we’re all looking forward to going to Paris this year. Thank you. 🙂
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