If you’re a major Prince fan, then you probably know all about this. But, on the other hand, if you haven’t followed his amazing but way too short musical career, you still might be interested in this bit of info. In 1987, his Royal Purpleness did a concert called “Sign o’ the Times’. The rare film footage of the concert was produced by Steven Fargnoli, Robert Cavallo, and Joseph Ruffalo. It was actually released in theaters in late 1987, however, it really wasn’t what you would call a box-office hit. In fact, it only brought in around $3 million in box office revenues, according to Box Office Mojo. It was a big hit with fans though, garnering a great deal of praise and generating buzz in Prince fandom.
Showtime Acquires Prince Concert Film ‘Sign o’ the Times
So, if you were not among the lucky few who actually attended the concert or saw the film, then you’re in luck. The rights to the rare concert film were recently acquired by Showtime and will be premiering on Sept. 16 at 9 p.m. EST according to Rolling Stone and Variety. The Showtime broadcast of this rarely-viewed film will actually be the very first time in ten years or more that it has been seen. It was directed by Prince himself and promises to be a must-see moment on TV. BTW, there never was a DVD of the film either, at least not here in the U.S. There was a home video release of the film in 1988 that was certified platinum in 1990. It was then reissued on VHS in 1991 but has been out-of-print since then and not available in the U.S. Other countries, however, including Canada have had availability to the film on DVD recently.
Hit Breakout Singles from the Album
The plan for “Sign o’ the Times” was that it would serve as an accompaniment to his 1987 double album bearing the same name. There were several breakout singles from that album, including “U Got the Look”, which was a duet with Sheena Easton, “I Could Never Take the Place of Your Man,” “If I Was Your Girlfriend” and, of course, the title song, as well as that unforgettable Prince classic, “Little Red Corvette.”
An 84-Minute Concert Documentary
The “Sign o’ the Times” concert film was an 84-minute concert documentary and was shot mainly at Paisley Park Studios which was owned by Prince prior to his death. Other footage was shot on location during a Prince tour and included concerts in the Netherlands and Belgium. At the time the film was produced, Prince’s band was made up of musicians from the Revolution and New Power Generation. The Revolution played on Purple Rain. The amazing Sheila E. accompanied him on the drums and that included a long solo piece as well. Ibn addition, Sheena Easton performed the hit single, “U Got the Look” with Prince. They were quite the creative musical team when they performed together.
So, make sure to mark it on your calendar for Sept. 19th, so that you can tune in or record it and watch it over and over. Prince was a force to be reckoned with and will be sorely missed on the music scene. Thanks Showtime for knowing how much we needed the chance to see the great Prince once again!
Photo by Ilpo Musto/REX/Shutterstock
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