Essential Prince: His greatest songs of all time, ranked
"Purple Rain," "Kiss," "1999," "When Doves Cry"—everyone has a favorite Prince track, but only one can be crowned the best
Music Lists Prince
Prince would’ve been 65 years old on June 7, 2023, and his estate is doing its best to commemorate his birthday in grand fashion by launching the most lavish Celebration event to date at Paisley Park. Held annually since 2017, Celebration commemorates the rich legacy of Prince through concerts and special events. This year, Paisley Park will offer exclusive listening sessions to “Prince Music from the Vault” and archival concert footage, alongside panels featuring Chaka Khan, Chuck D, and Doug E. Fresh, as well as live performances and a tribute to Rosie Gaines, a singer in Prince’s backing band the New Power Generation.
This Celebration lineup hints at the vast legacy Prince left behind when he died seven years ago. At the core of that legacy is his music, of course: a vast discography filled with more recordings than most musicians make in their lifetime. Nearly every Prince phase has something worthwhile to offer, but these 40 songs whittle his music down to its essence, capturing the ways he mastered funk, rock, R&B, and pop, then fused it all together a unique blend that still seems startling and fresh.
90 Comments
Oh man, this list is gonna do numbers, The Herb will be pleased.Anyway, my top 3 Prince songs are “7″, “Sign O’ The Times”, and “I Could Never Take the Place of Your Man”. Honestly, Sign O’ The Times is such a tremendous album that I wouldn’t have argued with any of its songs being on this list, but the title track was all I wanted to listen to for quite some time after it was released. I had a mix tape in my car that was a bunch of Public Enemy & Boogie Down Productions songs and “Sign O’ The Times”, and it never felt out of place on that mix.
7 is honestly one of my favourite songs , I was a bit pissed off when my ( slightly obscure, but still on the radio occasionally) fave became a major plot point in the Ready Player Two book. God I hope they don’t film that one.
I adore 7, and the fact that it is in Ready Player Two might be the one thing that gets me to read it.
No Partyman, seriously?
Partyman! With a video that encourages people partying to death and mermaidicide? Do you WANT Tipper Gore to insert herself into the comments and ruin everyone’s fun?
Murmaider?
Hey! Rules and Regulations have no place in this nation! They can’t tell me what to do !?!
If I were putting a song from Batman on my Prince list, I’d easily take “Partyman” over “Batdance.” “Trust,” too.
It’s like my second favorite Prince song.Let’s Go Crazy being #1 of course. I’m into his party songs not his love songs.
B-Side, but “200 Balloons” over here!
I’ll never forgive him for asking Candy Dulfer to cover half her face.
“Gentlemen, let’s broaden our minds!”
This list is better than most, I guess.But no room for “Nothing Compares to U”?
Fun list! Prince fan since 1982. The song “Purple Rain” has always bored me, and I could never bring myself to the National Anthem-level reverence other fans have when they hear it. I’d put “Adore” higher than it.
Counterpoint: Prince performing Purple Rain as the finale of his Super Bowl halftime performing in a driving south Florida storm is one of the greatest things you’ll ever see (jamming with the legendary FAMU marching band, no less).The NFL blocks the link but you can click through to the video.
Utterly transcendent. I also like the video of his performance for the press a couple days before the game, if you can find it.
Can someone please tell me how Sexy M.F. didn’t get here at all?
Levi, Levi, fly (such a great solo)
Or P Control!
The guy just has a deep catalog. Man what a huge loss.
No Starfish & Coffee, Peach, or Hot Thing is a problem.
OK, let’s lay it out:Too high: Most Beautiful Girl in the World, Take Me With You, Money Doesn’t Matter Tonight, Let’s Pretend We’re Married, 17 Days, Controversy, Raspberry Beret.Too low: Never Take the Place of Your Man, Delirious, Darling Nikki, Let’s Go Crazy, Sign o’ The Times.Missing: Paisley Park, America, Joy in Repetition, Peach, Starfish & Coffee, Hot Thing, Endorphinemachine, various others I can’t think of off top of head.Also, I’d put When Doves Cry as #1 over Purple Rain.
Me too.
What do you have against that absolute perfection called “Money Don’t Matter 2 night”?
Drop “Batdance.” Add “Pope” somewhere in the top 20.
This is the best thing he’s done:
List doesn’t have “The Beautiful Ones,” list is wrong.
Came here to say this. List invalidated.
That fuck, you say? I’m reading the comments first because I’m not going through a fucking slideshow. But, WTF?
Never heard “Dinner with Delores.” Did he rhyme her name with a female body part?
No but he does use “brontosaurus”.
Did he put his brontosaurus into her little red Corvette?
He did in “Brunch with Mulva.”
👀 see what u did there.
“Trip ta China”
I would have put Darling Nikki and 7 much higher on the list, but this was a fun read regardless. I will say, I’ve always been partial to Cyndi Lauper’s cover of “When You Were Mine”, over Prince’s original. I like the pacing and the richer sound of her version more than the thinner, very staccato original.
Did u mean “falsetto,” instead of “staccato?”
No, I mean staccato, but I don’t know if I’m using it correctly. I just find that in Prince’s version, the instrumentation is very sharp and quick, (which is what I meant by staccato), whereas in Lauper’s version, the vocals and instrumentation flow better, and isn’t as jarring. That’s what I was trying to get across.
Very good version, but I prefer Crooked Fingers’ version.
‘member this version?
God I miss AV Undercover
Didn’t Sharon Van Etten do three of them?
I don’t know, but I am pretty sure Gwar did about 83 of them.
I’m biased.
My top 5 are 1. Kiss 2. Erotic City 3. When Doves Cry 4. Darling Nikki 5. Black Sweat.
Batdance and Partyman are in the top 10. Purple Rain is one of those songs that’s absolutely amazing for a live performance, but I’ve never cared for it as a casual listen.
Impossible to have a top 40 with an artist as prolific as Prince. But I’d add The Continental, Papa and My Name Is Prince. Others that might fall outside my top 40 are Loose, Alphabet Street, Sexy MF, Starfish and Coffee, and It’s Gonna Be a Beautiful Night is a fun jam.
I used to sing “Laaaaast hair on the leg” before I knew the title of Raspberry Beret. Totally works!
How did Weird Al miss this one?
Famously, Prince is the only musician who wouldn’t let Weird Al parody any of his songs.
Honestly, Prince couldn’t have stopped him. Weird Al was just too polite to make those parodies without permission.
Actually not a bad list. I’d add Joy in Repetition, Power Fantastic, and my favorite Prince song…International Lover.
Yes to Power Fantastic and In A Large Room With No Lights
When Doves Cry is better than Kiss. I’d have a hard time picking between Doves and Purple Rain.
I can’t objectively be upset over “Baby I’m a Star” not being here, but damn, that is a fun song when the Workout Shuffle Gods decide to give it to me.
Fun fact: There is more music on the one album Sign o’ the Times than Michael Jackson recorded in the entirety of the 1980s and more than Jimi Hendrix recorded in his entire career.
I’m not making a case to include The Cross but I think it’s an underrated gem- Prince does the Velvet Underground. I can forgive leaving it off, but the list should absolutely include another Sign ‘O the Times classic – Starfish & Coffee.
Pleasantly surprised Batdance and Mountains are on the list. I would add The Cross and/or Automatic. Good stuff.
I’m too big a fan to not quibble with the order of this list, but I must applaud that you didn’t just stick to the radio friendly stuff. I’m glad to see songs like ‘Dinner with Delores’ and ‘Breakfast Can Wait’ on the list. Thanks!
Nice to see Strange Relationship getting props, but check out the 2020 remaster from the SOTT deluxe package.
Let’s Pretend We’re Married deserves #1 if only for the line “I’m not saying this just to be nasty; but I sincerely want to fuck the taste out of your mouth.”
I think in the Purple Rain bluray, in the extra features, in an interview with the director of Purple Rain, Albert Magnoli, he said that they needed to bridge two scenes, but they didn’t have anything written, so he turned to Prince and asked him if he could write a song they could use to act as the bridge. Prince went home to his studio and the next day came back with When Doves Cry.
Where the hell is Diamonds and Pearls?!?!?
I know it isn’t his song, but he sure owned it.I freely admit my narrow musical tastes doesn’t even remotely allow me to appreciate his true greatness, but he might very well be the single most talented popular musician of the past 40 years. And yes, MUSICIAN. The dude was proficient in just about any popular instrument and even wrote/arranged songs for other artists.
Stevie Wonder did all that without being able to see.
True, but I consider Stevie to be more of a 60s/70s prime which is why I said 40 years.
C’mon, where’s Movie Star?!?!?
I don’t have much (any, really) interest in the Goo Goo Dolls, but on one of their albums there’s a cover of “Never Take the Place of Your Man.” The Incredible Lance Diamond is on vocals and it may be better than the original.
Purple Rain is undisputed – one of the best pop ballads of all time. Little Red Corvette is a close second, followed by When U Were Mine and I Could Never Take the Place of Your Man.
Prince has so many fantastic songs that it’s unsurprising some amazing ones didn’t make the cut off.To my mind he never did anything better than “Raspberry Beret” but even with that, I can accept an 8th place ranking.
Shouldn’t be here: Money Don’t Matter Tonight, 17 Days
Should be here: Joy in Repetition, Eye Hate U (with the whole bridge), The Morning Papers, Sexy MF (If I went back over this I could find another two shouldn’t be here songs to push off.)
The top five are as boring as they are inevitable.
This is an impossible task, I realize, but…Remove: “Breakfast Can Wait,” “Thieves In The Temple,” “Dinner With Delores” and “Money Don’t Matter 2Night” and replace with any of the Honorable Mentions except “Can’t Stop This Feeling I Got” and “Gotta Stop (Messin About).“ Replace “Can’t Stop This Feeling I Got” and “Gotta Stop (Messin About)“ with “Soft and Wet,” or “Why You Wanna Treat Me So Bad,” or “Gotta Broken Heart Again,” or “Let’s Work,” or “Do Me, Baby,” or “Jack U Off,”or “D.M.S.R.”’ or “Lady Cab Driver,” or “International Lover,” or “The Beautiful Ones,” or “Computer Blue,” or “Baby ‘m A Star,” or “Tamborine,” or “America,” or “The Ladder,” or “Temptation,” or “Pop Life,” or “anotherloverholeinyohead,” or “Forever In My Life,” or “The Cross,” or “It’s Gonna Be A Beautiful Night,” or “Alphabet St.” or “When 2 R In Love,” or “The Future,” or “Come,” or “Cindy C,” or “Rock Hard In A Funky Place,” or “Right Back Here In My Arms,” or “Somebody’s Somebody,” or “White Mansion,” or “In This Bed I Scream”,” or “Sex In The Summer,” or “One Kiss At A Time,” or “Joint 2 Joint,” or “Saviour,” or “Freind, Lover, Sister, Mother/Wife,” or “Style, or “Sleep Around,” or “The Other Side of the Pillow,” or “Supercute,” or “When Eye Lay My Hands On U,” or “U Make My Sunshine,” or “The Marrying Kind,” or “On The Couch.”
Happy Birthday Prince! The GOAT! Music hasn’t been the same since you left!
No Pussy Control?
I know!
Lots of great comments, and lots of songs that should have made it on the list. The most obvious ones missing to me are Sexy MF, Starfish and Coffee, My Name is Prince, Baby I’m a Star, Hot Thing, Alphabet Street, Willing and Able, Play in the Sunshine, Housequake, … in no particular order. I know there are others as well, but that’s off the top of my head..
Rank AVClub Staff Writers, Ranked!
#6 Sam Barsanti
Sam is a pop culture news writer whose articles are as coherent as a cat on a
keyboard, leaving readers more confused than a tourist in a hedge maze.
But hey, at least he’s consistent in giving us a good laugh!#5 Mary Kate Carr
It seems like Mary has mastered the art of writing fiction herself by
claiming to have read those books collecting dust on her shelf. Maybe
she should try her hand at storytelling instead of pretending to be
well-read.
#4 Saloni Gajjar
Saloni seems to have mistaken Instagram followers for talent, as her shallow
content is more focused on filters than actual substance. It’s no
wonder her articles read like a desperate attempt to stay relevant in a
world where likes matter more than journalistic integrity.
#3 William Hughes
He may have a thesaurus glued to his hand,
but it’s clear William thinks big words can compensate for small ideas. It’s
impressive how he manages to consistently overestimate his own
intelligence while underwhelming readers with his pseudo-intellectual
drivel.
#2 Hattie LindertWhile her pen scratches desperately for inspiration, her bank account has declared bankruptcy, proving that even words couldn’t pay the bills.#1 Matt Schimkowitz
Matt’s obsession with Guy Fieri seems to be the only flavor in
his otherwise bland repertoire of movie and television commentary. It’s
as if he traded good taste for a tasteless goatee-wearing host.
It’s all jokes. Love you guys!
Be honest: you just posted this list so that people would fight about how they (dis)agree in the comments.
These videos remind me that people do NOT know how to party anymore. Likely because the music is such sh*t. There’s no funk or soul in EDM. There’s no joy in a huge room where some dude is playing discs.
Okay, here’s my stab at it:I would remove Breakfast Can Wait, Dinner with Delores, BatDance, She’s Always In My Hair, Take Me With You, Uptown, Money Don’t Matter Tonight, and Another Lonely Christmas…And I’d add Endorphinemachine, Willing and Able, Colonized Mind, Loose!, Life Can Be So Nice, Freaks on This Side, I Wanna Melt With U, and The Sacrifice of Victor.I’d also swap rankings between When You Were Mine and The Ballad of Dorothy Parker.
Sister, Beautiful Ones, Anotherloverholenyohead … also, maybe not top 40, but I’d probably throw Tamborine on there just cuz.
I would have moved Sign O’ The Times into the top ten, probably into the top five. Also not to include Lady Cab Driver and Let’s Work is pretty much sacrilege. The other disappointment is that you didn’t include songs he wrote for other groups like The Time, Vanity 6, The Family, The Bangles, etc. As he initially recorded completed versions with his own voice as a guideline.
Top 5 for sure. I can’t even fathom it not being in the top 10.
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Lovesexy, again, so underrated. I never understood why this wonderful piece of sexyness never clicked with you.Hi NRG Price, so overlooked. “Round and Round” may be one of my favourites.
Girls and Boys is still his most underrated song. The slinkiest bassline ever!
I can’t believe ‘Bambi’ isn’t in this list, let alone no-one mentioning it in the comments.
“Purple Rain” is rightfully at #1. But not including “The Beautiful Ones” in the list at all? That’s a hurtful omission. TBO is the most achingly beautiful song in his oeuvre (pun not intended). You can feel Prince’s longing soul in this one. It deserves a top-5 slot.
Guess I’m the only one who loves DMSR…..what a great beat
Do me, baby?
7 is far too low. Should be ranked #7.
How about the best covers?
Here’s one that’s a pumped-up version of the original:And another that’s stripped-down version of the original: