America (Prince song)
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| "America" | |||||||||||
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 U.S. 7" single |
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| Single by Prince | |||||||||||
| from the album Around the World in a Day | |||||||||||
| B-side | "Girl" | ||||||||||
| Released | October 2, 1985 | ||||||||||
| Format | 7" single 12" single |
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| Recorded | The Warehouse, St. Louis Park; July 23, 1984 | ||||||||||
| Genre | Pop, rock | ||||||||||
| Length | 7"/album: 3:40 12" single: 21:46 |
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| Label | Paisley Park | ||||||||||
| Writer(s) | Prince and The Revolution | ||||||||||
| Producer | Prince and The Revolution | ||||||||||
| Prince singles chronology | |||||||||||
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"America" is a song by Prince and The Revolution.[1] It was the final U.S. single from their 1985 album, Around the World in a Day. The song is a sardonic attack on the mid-1980s United States, referencing Communism, and worrying about nuclear war, a common theme in Prince's lyrics in the 1980s.
The song begins with the sound of a record starting and stopping, as if being cued by a DJ. This leads into a guitar solo and a rising flute line. The main tune is standard rock and roll and fades out at 3:40. The 12-inch single extended version is notable for being over 21 minutes and including various instrumental solos. The song even fades in this version; in the original extended version the listener can actually hear the audio tape run out, being that Prince and The Revolution had jammed the song out until there was no more room on the tape. The video for this song was shown on MTV during an entire segment dedicated to the single. Prince refused to speak during the interview, and, thus, bandmates spoke for him.
The B-side of the track was "Girl", a light pop number which speaks of Prince's lust for a woman. Featuring a minimal drum loop and sparse synthesizer lines, Prince's lust is in such force that he declares that "all I have to do is think about you and I can have an orgasm" as he invites her to feel how sweaty his hands have gotten from their meeting. The full length version from the 12" features backmasking of Wendy Melvoin reciting the lyrics with the word "boy" replacing "girl".
