When Doves Cry

"When Doves Cry"
Song
B-side	"17 Days" "1999" (UK 12") "D.M.S.R." (UK 12")

"When Doves Cry" is a song by the American musician Prince, and the lead single from his 1984 album Purple Rain. It was a worldwide hit, and his first American number one single, topping charts for five weeks. According to Billboard magazine, it was the top-selling single of the year.

Song

History

According to the Purple Rain DVD, Prince was asked by the director to write a song to match the theme of a particular segment of the film – one which involved intermingled parental difficulties and a love affair. The next morning, Prince had reportedly composed two songs, one of which was "When Doves Cry".

Impact

The song was #1 in the U.S. for five weeks, from July 7, 1984 to August 4, 1984. It kept the other big hit of that summer, Bruce Springsteen's "Dancing in the Dark", from reaching the top spot. "When Doves Cry" was voted as the best single of the year in The Village Voice Pazz & Jop critics' poll. Billboard ranked it as the #1 single of 1984; however, on American Top 40 it was ranked as the number two song of the year as AT40 did not use Billboard's rankings that year.

The B-side was the cult fan favorite "17 Days", which was originally intended for Apollonia 6's self-titled album. A 12-inch single issued in the UK included the album track, "17 Days", and two tracks from Prince's previous album, 1999, namely the title track and "D.M.S.R."

Song structure

Prince wrote and composed "When Doves Cry" after all the other tracks on Purple Rain were complete. In addition to vocals, he played all instruments on the track. The song's texture is remarkably stark. There is no bass line, which is very unusual for a dance song; Prince has said that there originally was a bass line, but decided that the song was too conventional with it intact. During live performances of the song on the Purple Rain Tour, Brown Mark, Prince's then-bass player, added bass lines in this song and other songs without a bass line. The song features an intro of a guitar solo and drum machine, followed by a looped guttural vocal. After the lyrics, there is another, much longer guitar and a synthesizer solo. The song ends on a classical music-inspired keyboard piece backed by another synthesizer solo.

Acclaim

"When Doves Cry" has gone on to become one of Prince's signature songs. Spin magazine ranked the song 6th greatest single of all time. It was number #38 in Movement's list The Greatest Songs of All Time. Rolling Stone ranked "When Doves Cry" #52 on their list of The 500 Greatest Songs of All Time (which makes it the second highest ranked song of the 1980s, after "The Message" by Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five). In 2006, VH1's "The 100 Greatest Songs of the '80s" ranked the song #5 on the list. On October 13, 2008, the song was voted #2 on Australian VH1's Top 10 Number One Pop Songs countdown.

Music video

The music video (directed by Prince himself) was released on MTV in June 1984. It opens with white doves emerging from double doors to reveal Prince in a bathtub. It also includes scenes from the Purple Rain film interspersed with shots of the Revolution performing and dancing in a white room. The final portion of the video incorporates a mirrored frame of the left half of the picture, creating a doubling effect. The video was nominated for Best Choreography at 1985's MTV Video Music Awards. The video sparked controversy among network executives who thought that its sexual nature was too explicit for television.

Track listing

12": Paisley Park / 0-20170 (U.S.)

1. "When Doves Cry" – 5:52
2. "17 Days (the rain will come down, then U will have 2 choose. If U believe, look 2 the dawn and U shall never lose.)" – 3:54

12": Warner Bros. / W9286T (UK)

1. "When Doves Cry" – 5:52
2. "17 Days (the rain will come down, then U will have 2 choose. If U believe, look 2 the dawn and U shall never lose.)" – 3:54

1. "1999" – 6:22
2. "D.M.S.R." – 8:05

• 2x12" pack

Awards and nominations

• American Music Awards - 1985 - Favorite Black Single (won)
• Pazz & Jop critics' poll: best single of the year, 1984 (won)

Ginuwine cover version

"When Doves Cry"
Song

A hit cover version by R&B singer Ginuwine was produced by Timbaland in 1996 for Ginuwine's The Bachelor album, Ginuwine's cover uses actual dove sound effects as texture for its jungle music-inspired instrumental track.

Charts

Chart (1997)	Peak position
Dutch Singles Chart	13
New Zealand RIANZ Singles Chart	7
Swiss Singles Chart	24
Swedish Singles Chart	42
UK Singles Chart	10
U.S. Billboard Rhythmic Top 40	16

Other cover versions

• Irish music artist Damien Rice recorded an acoustic cover version of the song.
• A cappella group The Flying Pickets included a cover on their 1994 album The Original Flying Pickets: Volume 1.
• As a child, American actor/singer Quindon Tarver covered the song for the 1996 film Romeo + Juliet. It was included on the 1997 soundtrack album William Shakespeare's Romeo + Juliet: Music from the Motion Picture, Volume 2, and became a hit in Australia. This version is often mistakenly thought to be sung by the late R&B singer Aaliyah.
• Patti Smith covered "When Doves Cry" on her compilation album, Land (1975–2002).
• Serbian rock band Night Shift covered the song in 2002 on their debut album Undercovers.
• First season Australian Idol winner Guy Sebastian performed the song on the show and recorded a cover for his 2003 debut album Just As I Am.
• Canadian group The Be Good Tanyas performed "When Doves Cry" on their 2006 album Hello Love.
• Anglo-Swedish band Razorlight recorded a cover as the B-side to their 2007 single "I Can't Stop This Feeling I've Got".
• Canadian singer Kristy Thirsk included a cover of the song on her 2008 EP Under Cover EP. An audio sample of her version can be heard on her official MySpace page.
• A cover by The Twilight Singers was included on the 2009 tribute compilation Purplish Rain. A free download of the song was offered by Spin magazine.
• Canadian group The Pursuit of Happiness performed "When Doves Cry" on their 2005 greatest hits compilation When We Ruled: The Best of The Pursuit of Happiness.
• Jam band Gov't Mule uses the chorus occasionally as a tease during live versions of their song "Beautifully Broken."

Sampling

• In 1990, MC Hammer sampled "When Doves Cry" as the basis for his song "Pray" from the Please Hammer Don't Hurt 'Em album.
• In 1998, rapper Bizzy Bone would use an interpolation and pay homage to Prince's hit with "Thugz Cry" from his album Heaven'z Movie.
• Darren Hayes used the beat for the his song "Darkness" on his 2007 The Time Machine Tour.
• Pigeon John and General Electriks used it in a song called "Crush".

Appearances/references in other media

• In the episode of the Simpsons, "Lemon of Troy", Milhouse Van Houten, upon meeting the Shelbyvillian Milhouse, says "I guess this is what it feels like when doves cry".
• The Quindon Tarver version of the song (backed by a choir) was featured in the wedding scene of the 1996 Baz Luhrmann film Romeo + Juliet.
• Patti Smith's cover of the song was used in the 2003 film Lost in Translation.
• The popular Canadian teen drama Degrassi: The Next Generation, which is known for naming each episode after an 80s hit song, named a two part episode after this song. The episode dealt with the issue of child abuse.
• Snoop Dogg recreated the ending of the original "When Doves Cry" video at the midpoint of his "Sensual Seduction" video.
• The Dream Warriors single, "Wash Your Face in My Sink", from their 1991 album And Now the Legacy Begins, features the lyric "You constantly lie 'when doves cry'... out."
• The AFL Footy Show's Garry Lyon, parodied the song for the 2010 Grand Final show.