Purple Rain (album)

While Prince's previous albums were primarily solo recordings by Prince, Purple Rain contained the credits "produced, arranged, composed and performed by Prince and the Revolution", though he had teased the name two years earlier on 1999, writing "and the Revolution" backwards on the album cover. The album was mostly written and recorded between May 1983 and March 1984, with "Baby I'm a Star" dating to 1981. The last three songs on the album ("I Would Die 4 U", "Baby I'm A Star" and the title track "Purple Rain") were recorded live at the 3{{nbsp}}August 1983 First Avenue show in Minneapolis, although overdubs and edits took place on all three in September 1983; this marked Prince's first album to include live recordings.{{Cite web|url=http://www.princevault.com/index.php?title=Album:_Purple_Rain|title=Album: Purple Rain – Prince Vault|website=www.princevault.com|access-date=April 22, 2020}}

Regarding the meaning of "Purple Rain", both Mikel Toombs of The San Diego Union and Bob Kostanczuk of the Post-Tribune have written that Prince took the title "Purple Rain" from lyrics in the America song "Ventura Highway".{{cite news|author=Toombs, Mikel|title='America' still fares well through thick and thin|date=June 1, 1985|newspaper=The San Diego Union}}{{cite news|author=Kostanczuk, Bob|title=America Still Alive, Crazy After All These Years|date=June 22, 1990|newspaper=Post-Tribune}} Asked to explain the phrase "purple rain" in "Ventura Highway", Gerry Beckley responded: "You got me."{{cite web|url=http://sanjuancapistrano.patch.com/groups/arts-and-entertainment/p/interview-with-america-singer-gerry-beckley|title=Q & A With America Singer Gerry Beckley|date=December 12, 2012|publisher=SanJuanCapistrano.patch.com|access-date=November 9, 2013}} However, Prince explained the meaning of "Purple Rain" as follows: "When there's blood in the sky{{snd}}red and blue = purple{{nbsp}}... purple rain pertains to the end of the world and being with the one you love and letting your faith/god guide you through the purple rain."{{cite web|url=https://www.nme.com/blogs/nme-blogs/20-things-you-didnt-know-about-purple-rain|title=20 Things You Didn't Know About Purple Rain|author=NME.COM|work=NME.COM|date=December 10, 2012 |access-date=May 3, 2016}}

"Purple Rain" was originally written as a country song and intended to be a collaboration with Stevie Nicks.{{cite news|last=Hann|first=Michael|url=https://www.theguardian.com/music/2017/jul/24/how-we-made-princes-purple-rain-interview|title=How we made Prince's Purple Rain|date=July 24, 2017|work=The Guardian}} According to Nicks, she received a 10-minute instrumental version of the song from Prince with a request to write the lyrics, but felt overwhelmed. She said: "I listened to it and I just got scared. I called him back and said, 'I can't do it. I wish I could. It's too much for me.'"{{cite web|url=https://www.nme.com/news/music/stevie-nicks-15-1279343|title=Stevie Nicks: 'I turned down Prince's offer to write 'Purple Rain' lyrics'|date=September 16, 2011|work=NME}} At a rehearsal, Prince then asked his backing band to try the song: "I want to try something before we go home. It's mellow." According to the Revolution member Lisa Coleman, Prince then changed the song after the Revolution's Wendy Melvoin started playing guitar chords to accompany the song: "He was excited to hear it voiced differently. It took it out of that country feeling. Then we all started playing it a bit harder and taking it more seriously. We played it for six hours straight and by the end of that day we had it mostly written and arranged."

"Take Me with U" was written for the Apollonia 6 album Apollonia{{nbsp}}6 (1984), but later enlisted for Purple Rain.{{cite web|url=http://archives.sfweekly.com/shookdown/2016/03/08/earworm-weekly-princes-take-me-with-you|title=Earworm Weekly: Prince's "Take Me With U"|last1=Selke|first1=Lori|website=SF Weekly|access-date=October 24, 2016|archive-date=October 24, 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161024154318/http://archives.sfweekly.com/shookdown/2016/03/08/earworm-weekly-princes-take-me-with-you|url-status=dead}} The inclusion of that song necessitated cuts to the suite-like "Computer Blue", the full version of which did not earn an official release, although a portion of the second section can be heard in the film of the same name, in a sequence where Prince walks in on the men of the Revolution rehearsing. The risqué lyrics of "Darling Nikki" contributed to the use of Parental Advisory stickers and imprints on album covers that were the record label's answer to complaints from Tipper Gore and the Parents Music Resource Center (PMRC).{{cite web|url=http://www.geocities.com/fireace_00/pmrc.html|title=PMRC|date=April 6, 2003|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20030406085225/http://www.geocities.com/fireace_00/pmrc.html|archive-date=April 6, 2003|access-date=October 3, 2011}}{{cite web|url=http://www.joesapt.net/superlink/shrg99-529/p11.html|title=Page 11|publisher=Joesapt.net|access-date=October 3, 2011}}{{cite magazine|last=Cruz|first=Gilbert|url=https://entertainment.time.com/2006/11/02/the-all-time-100-albums/#purple-rain-1984|title=All-TIME 100 Albums – Purple Rain|date=November 2, 2006|magazine=TIME|access-date=November 1, 2011}}

Prince wrote and composed the album's lead single "When Doves Cry" after all the other tracks were complete on Purple Rain. In addition to providing vocals, he played all instruments on the track. With there being no bass line, the song's production is noted for being unconventionally bare in comparison to 1980s pop hits. Prince said there originally was a bass line but, after a conversation with singer Jill Jones, he decided the song was too conventional with it included.{{cite web|url=http://princetext.tripod.com/i_bass99.html|title=Prince In Print|publisher=Princetext.tripod.com|access-date=January 8, 2012}}

Like Prince's previous albums, nearly all tracks on Purple Rain were written by him. Purple Rain was musically denser than Prince's previous albums, emphasizing full band performances, and multiple layers of guitars, keyboards, electronic synthesizer effects, drum machines, and other instruments. As a soundtrack record, much of the music had a grandiose, synthesized, and even{{snd}}by some evaluations{{snd}}a psychedelic sheen to the production and performances. The music on Purple Rain is generally regarded as the most pop-oriented of Prince's career, though a number of elements point towards the more experimental records Prince would release after Purple Rain. Apollonia{{nbsp}}6 member Apollonia recalled that after watching the Purple Rain cinematographic takes, she told Prince, "You know you're going to get an Oscar for this movie{{snd}}not for the acting, but for the music."{{Cite web|url=https://medium.com/cuepoint/when-purple-rain-came-falling-down-2f0babc363b9|title=When Purple Rain Came Falling Down|last=Light|first=Alan|date=April 23, 2016|website=Medium|access-date=April 22, 2020}}

The Revolution member Doctor Fink told PopMatters in 2009 the recording of the album was "a very creative time{{nbsp}}... There was a lot of influence and input from band members towards what [Prince] was doing. He was always open to anybody trying to contribute creatively to the process of writing{{nbsp}}... But Prince was the main lyricist and melody maker for all the songs{{nbsp}}... and never took any lyrical content from people."{{Cite web|url=https://www.loudersound.com/features/a-new-revolution-the-making-of-purple-rain-prince|title=Prince's Purple Rain: The epic story of how it was made|last=June 2019|first=Bill DeMain25|website=Classic Rock Magazine|date=June 25, 2019 |access-date=April 22, 2020}} Melvoin told Mojo in 1997 the band members were "absolute musical equals in the sense that Prince respected us, and allowed us to contribute to the music without any interference{{nbsp}}... I think the secret to our working relationship was that we were very non-possessive about our ideas, as opposed to some other people that have worked with him."

Revolution members Fink, Coleman, and Melvoin helped write the album's fourth track "Computer Blue". Doctor Fink, who wrote a keyboard bass line for the track, said he "started playing that main bass groove which later became 'Computer Blue'. So the band [the Revolution] started grooving on it, and Prince started coming up with some stuff, then we recorded a rough version and he took it into the studio and just incorporated it all and made it fly that way. Wendy [Melvoin] and Lisa [Coleman] did some of the stuff on it. Prince borrowed the bridge/portal section from the then-unreleased Father's Song,{{Cite magazine|url=https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-news/hear-princes-dreamlike-purple-rain-instrumental-fathers-song-194222/|title=Hear Prince's Dreamlike 'Purple Rain' Instrumental 'Father's Song'|date=2017-06-16|access-date=2021-01-13|magazine=Rolling Stone|last=Kreps|first=Daniel|archive-date=March 8, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210308221523/https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-news/hear-princes-dreamlike-purple-rain-instrumental-fathers-song-194222/|url-status=dead}} by his father jazz musician John L. Nelson, who had given him some music over the years to play around with. So the song was a real mixture of different people and influences."

The full band appears on six tracks: "Let's Go Crazy", "Take Me With U", "Computer Blue", "I Would Die 4 U", "Baby I'm A Star" and "Purple Rain" while the remaining three tracks are essentially solo performances by Prince. Apollonia sings co-lead on "Take Me With{{nbsp}}U". Three of the tracks include a string section arranged by Coleman and Prince which were conducted by Coleman and Melvoin: "Take Me With{{nbsp}}U", "Baby I'm A Star", and "Purple Rain". The string players are violin and viola player Novi Novog and cellists David Coleman and Suzie Katayama.{{cite web|author=Prince and The Revolution|title=Computer Blue|publisher=Prince Vault|date=December 25, 2018|url=https://www.princevault.com/index.php?title=Computer_Blue|access-date=July 1, 2020|archive-date=December 3, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201203160848/https://www.princevault.com/index.php?title=Computer_Blue|url-status=dead}}

Prince configured at least two unique track listings of Purple Rain prior to setting the final running order.{{cite book |title=DanceMusicSexRomance: Prince – The First Decade |first=Per |last=Nilsen |page=263 |publisher=Firefly |year=2003 |isbn=978-0-946719-64-8}} November 7, 1983 and March 23, 1984, configurations are listed below. The early configuration included "Wednesday" (a song by Prince with Jill Jones) and "Father's Song". The latter was replaced by "When Doves Cry". Edits to "Let's Go Crazy" and "Computer Blue" were introduced in order to include "Take Me with{{nbsp}}U" in the final running configuration. The full length version of "Let's Go Crazy", as it can be seen in the movie, would later be released as "Special Dance Mix" on 12" maxi-single.

{{col-begin}}

{{col-2}}

November 7, 1983 configuration

• Side one

1. "Let's Go Crazy" {{small|(Full length version)}} – 7:37
2. "The Beautiful Ones"
3. "Computer Blue" {{small|(Longer edit)}} – 7:23
4. "Darling Nikki"
5. "Wednesday"

• Side two

1. "Purple Rain"
2. "I Would Die 4 U"
3. "Baby I'm a Star"
4. "Father's Song"

{{col-2}}

March 23, 1984 configuration

• Side one

1. "Let's Go Crazy" {{small|(Full length version)}} – 7:37
2. "The Beautiful Ones" – 5:15
3. "Computer Blue" {{small|(Longer edit)}} – 7:23
4. "Darling Nikki" – 4:15

• Side two

1. "When Doves Cry" – 5:52
2. "I Would Die 4 U" – 2:51
3. "Baby I'm a Star" – 4:20
4. "Purple Rain" – 8:45

{{col-end}}

The album cover was photographed at the Warner Bros Studio Backlot in California. The area known as Hennesy St, designed to look like a New York tenement area, was the location of the balcony where the album photo was taken.

The Purple Rain Tour began at the Joe Louis Arena in Detroit in November 1984. In addition to Prince and the Revolution, the Purple Rain Tour featured Apollonia{{nbsp}}6, and Sheila E. and her band. The tour opened with the album's opener, "Let's Go Crazy". Three singles from 1999 (1982) followed: "Delirious", "1999" and "Little Red Corvette". An instrumental interlude of "Yankee Doodle" usually introduced another song from 1999, "Free". The B-side "God" was often played, followed by a usual sequence of "Computer Blue", "Darling Nikki", "The Beautiful Ones" and "When Doves Cry". As encores, the remaining Purple Rain songs closed the concert, "I Would Die 4 U", "Baby I'm a Star" and "Purple Rain".{{Cite book|last=Hahn|first=Alex|title=Possessed: The Rise And Fall Of Prince|publisher=Billboard Books|year=2003|isbn=9780823077489}}

The tour spanned 98 shows, ending in April 1985,{{Cite magazine|url=https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-features/princes-epic-purple-rain-tour-an-oral-history-193932/|title=Prince's Epic 'Purple Rain' Tour: An Oral History|last=Browne|first=David|date=June 22, 2017|magazine=Rolling Stone|access-date=April 22, 2020}} and sold 1.7 million tickets. Prince and the Revolution played the final date of the tour, to an audience of 55,000 in Miami's Orange Bowl. Prince ended the show saying, "I have to go now. I don't know when I'll be back. I want you to know that God loves you. He loves us all." Two weeks after the end of the tour, Around the World in a Day (1985) was released, which officially brought an end to Prince's Purple Rain era. The tour was considered by Rolling Stone as "groundbreaking in many ways" because it introduced Prince's most "elaborate" sets and featured occasional cameos from Bruce Springsteen and Madonna, which confirmed Prince's place as "pop's most commanding star" during the Purple Rain era.

Purple Rain's lead single "When Doves Cry" was Prince's first Billboard Hot 100 number-one single, staying there for five weeks, and was also a worldwide hit. It was ranked number one on the Billboard Year-End Hot 100 singles of 1984. The music video, directed by Prince himself, was premiered on MTV in June 1984. The video sparked controversy among network executives, who thought its sexual nature was too explicit for television.

The second single "Let's Go Crazy" became Prince's second number-one hit on the Billboard Hot 100. Common to much of Prince's writing, the song is thought to be exhortation to follow Christian ethics, with the "De-elevator" of the lyrics being a metaphor for the Devil.{{cite book|author1=Woodworth, G.M.|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=qXDoK4oZfsYC|title="Just Another One of God's Gifts": Prince, African-American Masculinity, and the Sonic Legacy of the Eighties|author2=University of California, Los Angeles|date=2008|publisher=University of California, Los Angeles|isbn=9781109120745|page=268|access-date=June 22, 2015}}

A power ballad and a combination of rock, R&B, gospel, and orchestral music, "Purple Rain" reached number{{nbsp}}2 on the Billboard Hot 100 and stayed there for two weeks.{{cite web|url=https://www.denofgeek.com/uk/go/44642|title=24 of the Biggest and Best Movie Power Ballads}}{{Dead link|date=June 2023 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}

"I Would Die 4 U", the fourth and final Billboard Hot 100 top 10 hit from Purple Rain, reaching number eight on the chart. The album's final single, "Take Me with{{nbsp}}U", was released on January 25, 1985.

{{Music ratings

| title = Retrospective professional ratings

| MC = 100/100
{{small|(2015 edition)}}{{cite web|url=https://www.metacritic.com/music/purple-rain-deluxe-expanded-edition/prince-and-the-revolution|title=Purple Rain [Deluxe Expanded Edition] by Prince and the Revolution Reviews and Tracks|website=Metacritic|access-date=September 12, 2021}}

| rev1 = AllMusic

| rev1score = {{Rating|5|5}}{{cite web|last=Erlewine|first=Stephen Thomas|author-link=Stephen Thomas Erlewine|url=https://www.allmusic.com/album/purple-rain-mw0000382324|title=Purple Rain – Prince and the Revolution / Prince|website=AllMusic|access-date=September 15, 2011}}

| rev2 = Blender

| rev2score = {{Rating|4|5}}{{cite magazine|last=Harris|first=Keith|url=http://www.blender.com/reviews/review_2283.html|title=Prince: Purple Rain|magazine=Blender|location=New York|volume=1|issue=1|date=June–July 2001|access-date=April 8, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20040820041613/http://www.blender.com/reviews/review_2283.html|archive-date=August 20, 2004|url-status=dead}}

| rev3 = Chicago Sun-Times

| rev3score = {{Rating|4|4}}{{cite news|last=Keller|first=Martin|url=https://chicagosuntimes.newsbank.com/doc/news/0EB4212C1E7936BA|title=A Prince Discography|newspaper=Chicago Sun-Times|date=April 4, 1993|access-date=April 8, 2017|url-access=subscription}}

| rev4 = Christgau's Record Guide

| rev4score = A−{{cite book|last=Christgau|first=Robert|author-link=Robert Christgau|chapter=Prince and the Revolution: Purple Rain|chapter-url=https://robertchristgau.com/get_album.php?id=2803|access-date=February 24, 2011|title=Christgau's Record Guide: The '80s|title-link=Christgau's Record Guide: The '80s|publisher=Pantheon Books|location=New York|year=1990|isbn=0-679-73015-X|page=324}}

| rev5 = Entertainment Weekly

| rev5score = B{{cite magazine|last1=Browne|first1=David|author1-link=David Browne (journalist)|last2=Sandow|first2=Greg|author2-link=Greg Sandow|url=https://ew.com/article/1990/09/21/decade-prince-albums/|title=A decade of Prince albums|magazine=Entertainment Weekly|location=New York|issue=32|date=September 21, 1990|access-date=January 1, 2010}}

| rev6 = The Guardian

| rev6score = {{Rating|5|5}}{{cite news|last=Price|first=Simon|author-link=Simon Price|url=https://www.theguardian.com/music/2016/apr/22/prince-every-album-rated-and-ranked|title=Prince: every album rated – and ranked|newspaper=The Guardian|location=London|date=April 22, 2016|access-date=April 25, 2016}}

| rev7 = Mojo

| rev7score = {{Rating|5|5}}{{cite magazine|last=Eccleston|first=Danny|title=Pop Life|magazine=Mojo|location=London|issue=272|date=July 2016|pages=58–65}}

| rev8 = Pitchfork

| rev8score = 10/10{{cite web|last=Wallace|first=Carvell|author-link=Carvell Wallace|url=https://pitchfork.com/reviews/albums/21841-purple-rain/|title=Prince / The Revolution: Purple Rain|website=Pitchfork|date=April 29, 2016|access-date=May 1, 2016}}

| rev9 = The Rolling Stone Album Guide

| rev9score = {{Rating|5|5}}{{cite book|last=Matos|first=Michaelangelo|editor1-last=Brackett|editor1-first=Nathan|editor1-link=Nathan Brackett|editor2-last=Hoard|editor2-first=Christian|editor2-link=Christian Hoard|chapter=Prince|title=The New Rolling Stone Album Guide|title-link=The Rolling Stone Album Guide|publisher=Simon & Schuster|location=New York|edition=4th|year=2004|isbn=0-7432-0169-8|pages=[https://archive.org/details/newrollingstonea00brac/page/654 654–657]}}

| rev10 = Spin Alternative Record Guide

| rev10score = 9/10{{cite book|last=Weisbard|first=Eric|author-link=Eric Weisbard|editor1-last=Weisbard|editor1-first=Eric|editor2-last=Marks|editor2-first=Craig|chapter=Prince|title=Spin Alternative Record Guide|title-link=Spin Alternative Record Guide|publisher=Vintage Books|location=New York|year=1995|isbn=0-679-75574-8|pages=311–313}}

}}

Purple Rain was well received by contemporary critics. Kurt Loder, writing for Rolling Stone in 1984, compared Prince to Jimi Hendrix and praised him for merging "black and white styles": "The spirit of Jimi Hendrix must surely smile down on Prince Rogers Nelson. Like Hendrix, Prince seems to have tapped into some extraterrestrial musical dimension where black and white styles are merely different aspects of the same funky thing. Prince's rock & roll is as authentic and compelling as his soul and his extremism is endearing in a era of play-it-safe record production and formulaic hit mongering."{{cite magazine|last=Loder|first=Kurt|author-link=Kurt Loder|url=https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-album-reviews/purple-rain-soundtrack-99312/|title=Purple Rain (Soundtrack)|magazine=Rolling Stone|location=New York|issn=0035-791X|issue=426–427|date=July 19 – August 2, 1984|access-date=January 2, 2020}}

At the end of 1984, Purple Rain was voted the second best album of the year in the Pazz & Jop, an annual poll of American critics nationwide, published by The Village Voice. However, the newspaper's chief critic and poll creator Robert Christgau was less impressed by the album, saying that while it is "quirky, dangerous, [and] unabashedly pop", it is also plagued by "despair" and, "for Prince ... ingratiatingly unsolipsistic",{{cite news|last=Christgau|first=Robert|author-link=Robert Christgau|url=https://robertchristgau.com/xg/pnj/pj84.php|title=The Rise of the Corporate Single|newspaper=The Village Voice|location=New York|date=February 19, 1985|access-date=April 10, 2022|via=robertchristgau.com}} although he would later call it "seriously gorgeous".{{cite web|last=Christgau|first=Robert|author-link=Robert Christgau|url=https://www.vice.com/en/article/1999-to-infinity-robert-christgau-remembers-prince/|title='1999' to Infinity: Robert Christgau Remembers Prince|website=Vice|date=April 25, 2016|access-date=September 25, 2022}}

Prince and the Revolution won a 1984 Grammy Award for Purple Rain, for Best Rock Vocal Performance by a Duo or Group,{{cite web |title=Winners: Best Rock Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal |url=https://www.grammy.com/grammys/awards/winners-nominees/212 |website=Grammy.com |access-date=November 21, 2018}} the four composers (Nelson, Coleman, Prince, and Melvoin) won Best Score Soundtrack for Visual Media,{{cite web |title=Winners: Best Score Soundtrack for Visual Media |url=https://www.grammy.com/grammys/awards/winners-nominees/124 |website=Grammy.com |access-date=November 21, 2018}} and the album was nominated for Album of the Year. Prince won a third Grammy that year for Best R&B Song for Chaka Khan's cover of "I Feel for You". Purple Rain also won an Oscar for Best Original Song Score in 1985. Purple Rain posthumously won Top Soundtrack at the American Music Awards in 2016.{{cite news |url=https://abcnews.go.com/Entertainment/american-music-awards-2016-prince-wins-posthumous-award/story?id=43680579 |title=American Music Awards 2016: Prince Wins Posthumous Award, Selena Gomez Returns and More |first=Joi-Marie |last=McKenzie |date=November 20, 2016 |access-date=August 13, 2020}}

Retrospective appraisals have also been positive. Music critics noted the innovative and experimental aspects of the soundtrack's music, most famously on the spare, bass-less "When Doves Cry".{{cite magazine|url=https://www.rollingstone.com/music/lists/25-greatest-prince-songs-20160421/when-doves-cry-1984-20160421|title=25 Essential Prince Songs|date=April 21, 2016|magazine=Rolling Stone|access-date=October 24, 2016}} Other aspects of the music, especially its synthesis of electronic elements with organic instrumentation and full-band performances (some, as noted above, recorded live) along with its landmark consolidation of rock and R&B, were identified by critics as distinguishing, even experimental factors.

Stephen Erlewine of AllMusic wrote that Purple Rain finds Prince "consolidating his funk and R&B roots while moving boldly into pop, rock, and heavy metal", as well as "push[ing] heavily into psychedelia" under the influence of the Revolution. Erlewine identifies the record's nine songs as "uncompromising ... forays into pop" and "stylistic experiments", echoing general sentiment that Purple Rain{{'}}s music represented Prince at his most popular without forsaking his experimental bent. In a retrospective review, Kenneth Partridge, writing for Billboard, described the album's opening track, "Let's Go Crazy", as "arguably the best intro in pop history".{{Cite magazine|url=https://www.billboard.com/articles/review/6128806/prince-purple-rain-at-30-classic-track-by-track-album-review|title=Prince's 'Purple Rain' at 30: Classic Track-by-Track Album Review|magazine=Billboard|access-date=November 27, 2019}}

In the United States, Purple Rain debuted at number 11 on the Billboard 200 the week of July 14, 1984.{{Cite news|url=https://www.billboard.com/charts/billboard-200/1984-07-14|title=Top 200 Albums|date=July 14, 1984|work=Billboard 200. Billboard|access-date=December 6, 2017}}{{Cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1984/07/22/arts/prince-creates-a-winner-with-purple-rain.html|title=Prince Creates A Winner With 'Purple Rain'|last=Palmer|first=Robert|date=July 22, 1984|work=The New York Times|access-date=December 6, 2017|issn=0362-4331|quote=His new album, Purple Rain (Warner Bros.), sold approximately 1.5 million copies its first week in the stores and is presently giving the Jacksons and Springsteen albums a run for their money.}} After four weeks on chart, it reached number one on August 4, 1984.{{Cite news|url=https://www.billboard.com/charts/billboard-200/1984-08-04|title=Top 200 Albums|date=August 4, 1984|work=Billboard 200. Billboard|access-date=December 7, 2017}} The album spent 24 consecutive weeks at number one on the Billboard 200 from August 4, 1984, to January 18, 1985, and more than 32 weeks in the top 10, becoming one of the most successful soundtracks ever. Prince also joined Elvis Presley and the Beatles in being the only artists to have the number-one album, single and film in the US all at the same time.{{Cite book|last=Perone|first=James E.|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=gzl1lBFXKhQC&q=prince+since+the+beatles+no.+1+album+single+film&pg=RA2-PT933|title=The Album: A Guide to Pop Music's Most Provocative, Influential, and Important Creations [4 volumes]: A Guide to Pop Music's Most Provocative, Influential, and Important Creations|date=October 17, 2012|publisher=ABC-CLIO|isbn=978-0-313-37907-9}}

It traded the number-one position on the chart with Bruce Springsteen's Born in the U.S.A. twice, during 1984 and 1985.{{Cite magazine|url=https://www.newyorker.com/culture/culture-desk/princes-purple-downpour-a-review-of-the-expanded-purple-rain|title=Prince's Purple Downpour: A Review of the Expanded "Purple Rain"|last=Greenman|first=Ben|magazine=The New Yorker|date=June 25, 2017|access-date=November 27, 2019|issn=0028-792X}} Purple Rain was present on the Billboard 200 for one hundred twenty two weeks. After the advent of the Nielsen SoundScan era in 1991, the album sold a further three million copies.{{Cite news|url=https://www.forbes.com/sites/markbeech/2016/04/21/measuring-princes-musical-impact-a-look-at-the-sales-numbers/|title=Measuring Prince's Musical Impact: A Look At The Sales Numbers|last=Beech|first=Mark|date=April 21, 2016|work=Forbes|access-date=December 6, 2017}} By 1996, the album had sold 13 million copies in the United States, making it certified 13× Platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA).{{Cite certification|region=United States|artist=Prince|title=Purple Rain|type=album}}

In the United Kingdom, Purple Rain entered the UK Albums Chart at number 21 on July 21, 1984, after thirty five weeks on the chart it reached and peaked at number seven during the week of March 16, 1985 and stayed there for a week, it fell off to number twelve the next week.{{Cite web|url=http://www.officialcharts.com/artist/16552/prince-and-the-revolution/|title=Prince & The Revolution: Full Official Chart History|website=Official Charts Company|access-date=December 6, 2017}} The album remained on the chart for 86 weeks. It was certified 2× Platinum by the BPI on May 1, 1990, denoting shipments of 600,000 units. By 1988, Purple Rain had sold 17 million copies worldwide making it one of the most successful albums of the 1980s.{{Cite news|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/lifestyle/style/1988/10/09/prince-michael-jackson-two-paths-to-the-top-of-pop/4ff69a1b-e67c-4f54-8d98-58be1453867f/|title=PRINCE MICHAEL JACKSON TWO PATHS TO THE TOP OF POP|newspaper=The Washington Post |date=October 9, 1988}} Its sales as of 2008 stood at over 25{{nbsp}}million copies worldwide.{{cite news|url=http://www.hindustantimes.com/StoryPage/StoryPage.aspx?sectionName=NLetter&id=40e182fc-061c-43d5-832e-ff930aa4a508&Headline=Those+chart+busters|title=Those chart busters|last=Taneja|first=Nikhil|date=December 9, 2008|newspaper=Hindustan Times|access-date=April 18, 2009|archive-url=https://archive.today/20090521191026/http://www.hindustantimes.com/StoryPage/StoryPage.aspx?sectionName=NLetter&id=40e182fc-061c-43d5-832e-ff930aa4a508&Headline=Those+chart+busters|archive-date=May 21, 2009|publisher=HT Media|location=Mumbai|oclc=231696742|url-status=dead}} The album is also multi-platinum in Australia, Canada, New Zealand and the United Kingdom.{{Cite web|url=https://www.bpi.co.uk/brit-certified/|title=BRIT Certified|access-date=January 13, 2021}}{{Cite web|url=https://nztop40.co.nz/|title=The Official New Zealand Music Chart|website=THE OFFICIAL NZ MUSIC CHART|access-date=April 6, 2019|archive-date=June 14, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170614055612/http://nztop40.co.nz/|url-status=dead}}

Purple Rain further established Prince as a figurehead for pop music of the 1980s and is regarded as one of the greatest albums of all time. In 2010, Purple Rain was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame.{{Cite web|url=http://www.startribune.com/purple-rain-named-to-grammy-hall-of-fame/111474559/|title=Prince's "Purple Rain" named to Grammy Hall of Fame|website=Star Tribune|date=December 8, 2010 |access-date=April 6, 2019}} In 2012, the album was added to the Library of Congress's National Recording Registry list of sound recordings that "are culturally, historically, or aesthetically important".{{cite web|url=https://www.loc.gov/rr/record/nrpb/registry/nrpb-2011reg.html|title=The National Recording Registry 2011|date=May 24, 2012|work=National Recording Preservation Board of the Library of Congress|publisher=Library of Congress}} In 2019, the film was selected by the Library of Congress for preservation in the United States National Film Registry for being "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant".{{cite magazine |last=Chow |first=Andrew R. |date=December 11, 2019 |title=See the 25 New Additions to the National Film Registry, From Purple Rain to Clerks |url=https://time.com/5747503/national-film-registry-2019-additions/ |magazine=Time |location=New York, NY |access-date=December 11, 2019 |archive-date=December 11, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191211082207/https://time.com/5747503/national-film-registry-2019-additions/ |url-status=live }} Writing for Pitchfork, Carvell Wallace appraised the album's impact and Prince's musicianship, "With Purple Rain, Prince bursts forth from the ghetto created by mainstream radio and launches himself directly onto the Mt. Rushmore of American music. He plays rock better than rock musicians, composes better than jazz guys, and performs better than everyone, all without ever abandoning his roots as a funk man, a party leader, a true MC{{nbsp}}... for the 24 weeks Purple Rain spent atop the charts in 1984, the black kid from the midwest had managed to become the most accurate expression we had of young America's overabundance of angst, love, horniness, recklessness, idealism, and hope."

Partridge of Billboard emphasized Prince's popularity during the Purple Rain era, writing,{{cite news|first= Kennet |last= Partridge |title= Prince's 'Purple Rain' at 30: Classic Track-by-Track Album Review |magazine= Billboard |date= June 24, 2014 |access-date= November 27, 2019 |url=https://www.billboard.com/articles/review/6128806/prince-purple-rain-at-30-classic-track-by-track-album-review}}

{{blockquote|In 1984, there was only one man in America more popular than President Ronald Reagan. His name was Prince, and he was funky. Had Prince run for president that year, he would have certainly carried his native Minnesota{{snd}}the only state Ronnie lost{{snd}}and he probably would've cleaned up most other places. The reason: Purple Rain, his groundbreaking, genre-blurring, utterly genius sixth album. It was a massive seller wherever there were radios and people with pulses.}}

File:Prince Brussels 1986.jpg

Described as a "masterpiece" by the Grammy Awards, Ana Yglesias wrote, "Even after his heartbreaking passing, Prince will live on forever in our hearts, through his music, and even on the charts. Purple Rain was inducted into Grammy Hall of Fame in 2011, celebrating it as a 'recording of lasting qualitative or historical significance'.{{nbsp}}... It is safe to say there will never be another star quite like Prince."{{Cite web|url=https://www.grammy.com/grammys/news/princes-masterpiece-purple-rain-record|title=Prince's 'Purple Rain' {{!}} For The Record|date=September 6, 2018|website=GRAMMY.com|access-date=November 27, 2019}} For The New Yorker, Ben Greenmane wrote, "Purple Rain may or may not be Prince's best record, but it came at the best time, propelling him from ordinary stardom (his previous album 1999 put three singles into the Billboard top 20) to supernova status. It created his iconic look (ruffled shirt, purple jacket, motorcycle), formally introduced his most famous backing band (the Revolution), and included the lion's share of the songs most likely to appear in a capsule bio ('When Doves Cry', 'Let's Go Crazy', and the title track)." In Rolling Stone's list of The 25 Greatest Soundtracks of All Time, Purple Rain was described as "an epic celebration of everything rock & roll, which means sex and religion and eyeliner and motorcycles and guitars and Lake Minnetonka".{{Cite magazine|url=https://www.rollingstone.com/movies/movie-lists/the-25-greatest-soundtracks-of-all-time-41108/|title=The 25 Greatest Soundtracks of All Time|last=Sheffield|first=Jon Dolan, Will Hermes, Christian Hoard, Rob|date=August 29, 2013|magazine=Rolling Stone|access-date=January 2, 2020}}

Chris Gerard wrote for PopMatters that "Purple Rain is one of the cornerstone albums not just of the 80s, but in all of pop/rock history{{nbsp}}... at the core of [Prince's] legacy Purple Rain will always stand as his signature triumph, a monument to his boundless talent and ambition." Gerard also praised "When Doves Cry" for being the "gateway" to the "Purple Rain universe: an album, a major motion picture, and a tour that dominated the pop culture landscape of 1984".{{Cite web|url=https://www.popmatters.com/prince-classic-finally-expanded-the-deluxe-purple-rain-reissue-2495387220.html?rebelltitem=1#rebelltitem1|title=Prince's Classic Finally Expanded: The Deluxe 'Purple Rain' Reissue|last=Gerard|first=Chris|date=June 30, 2017|website=PopMatters|access-date=January 2, 2020}} Andrew Unterberger of Billboard gave the album high appraisal, regarding it as one of the greatest albums in popular music: "Purple Rain is certainly in contention for the most perfect album in rock or pop history, expertly flowing from track to track while delighting, surprising and astounding at each bend. Personal and universal, familiar and challenging, romantic and narcissistic, religious and orgasmic, accessible to all and profoundly weird, Purple Rain rightly remains the cornerstone of Prince's recorded legacy, almost too obvious in its brilliance to even be worth discussing at length."{{Cite magazine|url=https://www.billboard.com/articles/news/billboard-lists/7526410/diamond-certified-album-riaa-ranked|title=All 92 Diamond-Certified Albums Ranked From Worst to Best: Critic's Take|magazine=Billboard|access-date=December 31, 2019}}

Jon Bon Jovi, lead singer of the rock band Bon Jovi, observed that "There's every emotion [in Purple Rain] from the ballad to the rocker" and "All the influences were evident, from Hendrix to Chic." Lionel Richie praised Prince for making a "very important step" in advancing the concept from creating music videos for songs to making a motion picture for an album.

File:A projection of Prince shows up as Justin Timberlake plays piano at the Super Bowl Half Time Show, Minneapolis MN (39206277715).jpg's Super Bowl LII halftime show on February 4, 2018]]Purple Rain is regarded as one of the greatest albums of all time by numerous publications. Rolling Stone ranked Purple Rain number two on its list of the 100 Best Albums of the 1980s and number eight on its list of the 500 Greatest Albums of All Time.{{cite magazine |date=September 22, 2020 |title=The 500 Greatest Albums of All Time |url=https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-lists/best-albums-of-all-time-1062063/ |access-date=September 23, 2020 |magazine=Rolling Stone}} In their list of The 25 Greatest Soundtracks of All Time, Purple Rain was ranked second, behind the Beatles' Help!. Time included it in its list of the All-Time 100 Albums.{{cite magazine |url=https://entertainment.time.com/2006/11/02/the-all-time-100-albums/slide/purple-rain-1984/ |title=All-TIME 100 Albums |last=Cruz |first=Gilbert |magazine=Time |date=February 22, 2011 |access-date=November 27, 2019 |issn=0040-781X}} The album was ranked 18th on VH1's Greatest Rock and Roll Albums of All Time countdown.{{cite web |url=https://www.sfgate.com/entertainment/article/Doing-a-Number-on-VH1-s-100-Greatest-Rock-n-2964791.php |last=Sullivan |first=James |title=Doing a Number on VH1's 100 Greatest Rock 'n' Roll Albums |website=SFGate |date=January 15, 2001 |access-date=December 9, 2023}} The Times ranked Purple Rain at number 15 on its list of the 100 Best Albums of All Time.{{cite web |url=http://www.rocklistmusic.co.uk/times100.htm |title=Rocklist.net ... The Times All Time Top 100 Albums – 1993 ... |website=www.rocklistmusic.co.uk |access-date=November 27, 2019 |archive-date=March 4, 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090304183205/https://www.rocklistmusic.co.uk/times100.htm |url-status=usurped }}

In 2007, the editors of Vanity Fair labeled it the best soundtrack of all time, and Tempo magazine named it the greatest album of the 1980s.{{cite web |url=https://www.cbc.ca/news/entertainment/prince-s-purple-rain-reigns-over-movie-soundtrack-list-1.675850 |title=Prince's Purple Rain reigns over movie soundtrack list |date=October 24, 2007 |website=CBC News |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100514094538/http://www.cbc.ca/arts/film/story/2007/10/24/best-soundtracks-prince.html |archive-date=May 14, 2010 |url-status=live |access-date=December 9, 2023}} In 2008, Entertainment Weekly ranked Purple Rain at number one on their New Classics list, the top 50 best albums of the previous 25 years.{{cite magazine |url=https://ew.com/article/2008/06/20/records-rocked/ |title=The New Classics: Music |magazine=Entertainment Weekly |date=June 20, 2008 |issue=999–1000 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141029153651/http://www.ew.com/ew/article/0,,20207888,00.html |archive-date=October 29, 2014 |url-status=live |access-date=December 9, 2023}} The album was also included in the 2008 edition of 1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die.{{cite web |url=http://www.rocklistmusic.co.uk/steveparker/1001albums.htm |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060113075534/http://www.rocklistmusic.co.uk/steveparker/1001albums.htm |url-status=usurped |archive-date=January 13, 2006 |title=Rocklist.net ... Steve Parker ... 1001 Albums ... |website=www.rocklistmusic.co.uk |access-date=November 27, 2019}} In 2012, Slant Magazine ranked the album at number two on its list of Best Albums of the 1980s.{{cite web |url=http://www.slantmagazine.com/music/feature/best-albums-of-the-1980s/308/page_10 |title=The 100 Best Albums of the 1980s |date=March 5, 2012 |website=Slant Magazine}} In 2012, Entertainment Weekly also ranked the album at number two on their list of the 100 Greatest Albums Ever.{{cite magazine |url=https://ew.com/gallery/top-100-albums/ |title=Top 100 Albums |magazine=Entertainment Weekly |date=September 27, 2012 |access-date=December 9, 2023}}

In 2018, Pitchfork regarded it as the best album of the 1980s, ranking it at number one on its list of the 200 Best Albums of the 1980s.{{cite web |url=https://pitchfork.com/features/lists-and-guides/the-200-best-albums-of-the-1980s/?page=10 |title=The 200 Best Albums of the 1980s |website=Pitchfork |date=September 10, 2018 |access-date=December 23, 2019}} In 2002, the album had placed at No. 12 on Pitchfork's Top 100 Albums of the decade list.{{Cite web |date=November 21, 2002 |title=The Top 100 Albums of the 1980s |url=https://pitchfork.com/features/lists-and-guides/the-top-100-albums-of-the-1980s/?page=9 |access-date=October 5, 2021 |website=Pitchfork}}) In Billboard's list of All 92 Diamond-Certified Albums Ranked From Worst to Best: Critic's Take, Purple Rain was ranked first.{{cite magazine |url=https://www.billboard.com/music/music-news/diamond-certified-album-riaa-ranked-7526410/ |last=Unterberger |first=Andrew |title=All 92 Diamond-Certified Albums Ranked From Worst to Best: Critic's Take In 2022 |magazine=Billboard |date=September 29, 2016 |access-date=December 9, 2023}} Consequence of Sound, in its ranking of the greatest albums of all time, placed Purple Rain at number one.{{cite web |url=https://consequence.net/2022/09/best-albums-all-time-list/29/ |title=The 100 Greatest Albums of All Time |website=Consequence of Sound |date=September 12, 2022 |access-date=December 9, 2023}} The 2024 Apple Music 100 Best Albums poll ranked Purple Rain as number four.{{Cite web|url=https://100best.music.apple.com/us/album/4|title=Purple Rain by Prince & The Revolution|website=Apple Music|access-date=June 3, 2024}} In its ranking of the 101 Greatest Film Soundtracks of All Time, Rolling Stone ranked Purple Rain as the number one album.{{cite web |url=https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-lists/best-movie-soundtracks-1235083518/purple-rain-1984-3-1235085720/ |title=The 101 Greatest Soundtracks of All Time |website=Rolling Stone |date=September 24, 2024 |access-date=September 25, 2024}}

The album was re-issued on June 23, 2017. It is the first Prince album to be remastered and reissued, and was released in a variety of formats, including a 20-track Deluxe edition with unreleased bonus tracks and a 35-track Deluxe Expanded edition with additional B-sides, rarities and a live DVD of the Purple Rain Tour from 1985. The album debuted at number four on the Billboard 200 at with 52,000 album-equivalent units earned in its first week. It debuted at number three on the Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart, its highest peak in 32 years having previously spent 19 weeks atop the chart in 1984. The album debuted at number one on the Top R&B Albums chart and the Vinyl Albums chart.{{Cite magazine|url=http://www.billboard.com/articles/columns/chart-beat/7857763/prince-purple-rain-reissue-top-five-albums-chart-billboard-200|title=Prince's 'Purple Rain': Top 5 on Billboard 200 Albums Chart After Deluxe Reissue|date=July 6, 2017|magazine=Billboard|access-date=April 22, 2020}}

On June 21, 2024, a Dolby Atmos version of the original album was released to Apple Music and other streaming services. The new mix of the album was created from the original multi-track master tapes by Chris James.{{Cite web|url=https://www.rhino.com/article/princes-purple-rain-celebrated-with-dolby-atmos-mix|title=Prince's PURPLE RAIN Celebrated with Dolby Atmos Mix|date=June 21, 2024|access-date=June 21, 2024}}

On April 25, 2025, this mix would be released on an audiophile Blu-ray, which also included the original 1984 stereo mix in high-definition 24bit / 96kHz audio. {{Cite web|url=https://www.rhino.com/article/prince-purple-rain-dolby-atmos-blu-ray-out-april-25|title=Prince PURPLE RAIN Dolby ATMOS Blu-ray Out April 25|date=March 6, 2025|access-date=April 27, 2025}}

{{Track listing

| all_writing = Prince, except where noted

| headline = Side one{{cite web|author=Prince and the Revolution|url=https://www.princevault.com/index.php?title=Album:_Purple_Rain|title=Purple Rain (Soundtrack Album)|publisher=Prince Vault|date=May 4, 2019}}

| title1 = Let's Go Crazy

| length1 = 4:39

| title2 = Take Me with U

| length2 = 3:54

| title3 = The Beautiful Ones

| length3 = 5:14

| title4 = Computer Blue

| writer4 = Prince, John L. Nelson, Wendy & Lisa, Dr. Fink

| length4 = 3:59

| title5 = Darling Nikki

| length5 = 4:14

}}

{{Track listing

| headline = Side two

| title1 = When Doves Cry

| length1 = 5:52

| title2 = I Would Die 4 U

| length2 = 2:59

| title3 = Baby I'm a Star

| length3 = 4:24

| title4 = Purple Rain

| length4 = 8:40

}}

The 2017 Deluxe edition consists of two discs, the first being a remaster of the original album made in 2015 overseen by Prince himself and a bonus disc of previously unreleased songs called "From the Vault & Previously Unreleased". The Deluxe Expanded edition consists of two more discs, a disc with all the single edits, maxi-single edits and B-sides from the Purple Rain era and a DVD with a concert from the Purple Rain Tour filmed in Syracuse, New York on March 30, 1985, previously released on home video in 1985.{{cite magazine|url=https://www.billboard.com/articles/columns/rock/7776693/prince-purple-rain-expanded-edition-june-23|title=Prince's 'Purple Rain' Expanded Edition Coming June 23 with Unreleased Tracks|magazine=Billboard|last=Kaufman|first=Gil|date=April 28, 2017|access-date=April 3, 2018}}

{{Track listing

| headline = Disc 1: 2015 remaster

| title1 = Let's Go Crazy

| note1 = Prince and the Revolution

| length1 = 4:39

| title2 = Take Me with U

| note2 = Prince and the Revolution

| length2 = 3:54

| title3 = The Beautiful Ones

| note3 = Prince

| length3 = 5:13

| title4 = Computer Blue

| note4 = Prince and the Revolution

| length4 = 3:59

| title5 = Darling Nikki

| note5 = Prince

| length5 = 4:14

| title6 = When Doves Cry

| note6 = Prince

| length6 = 5:54

| title7 = I Would Die 4 U

| note7 = Prince and the Revolution

| length7 = 2:49

| title8 = Baby I'm a Star

| note8 = Prince and the Revolution

| length8 = 4:24

| title9 = Purple Rain

| note9 = Prince and the Revolution

| length9 = 8:41

}}

{{Track listing

| headline = Disc 2: From the Vault & Previously Unreleased

| title1 = The Dance Electric

| length1 = 11:29

| title2 = Love and Sex

| length2 = 5:00

| title3 = Computer Blue

| note3 = "Hallway Speech" Version

| length3 = 12:18

| title4 = Electric Intercourse

| note4 = Studio Version

| length4 = 4:57

| title5 = Our Destiny/Roadhouse Garden

| length5 = 6:25

| title6 = Possessed

| note6 = 1984 Version

| length6 = 7:56

| title7 = Wonderful Ass

| length7 = 6:24

| title8 = Velvet Kitty Cat

| length8 = 2:42

| title9 = Katrina's Paper Dolls

| length9 = 3:30

| title10 = We Can Fuck

| length10 = 10:17

| title11 = Father's Song

| length11 = 5:30

}}

{{Track listing

| headline = Disc 3: Single Edits & B-Sides

| title1 = When Doves Cry

| note1 = 7" Single Edit

| length1 = 3:48

| title2 = 17 Days

| note2 = B-Side Edit

| length2 = 3:55

| title3 = Let's Go Crazy

| note3 = 7" Single Edit

| length3 = 3:50

| title4 = Let's Go Crazy

| note4 = Special Dance Mix

| length4 = 7:35

| title5 = Erotic City

| note5 = 7" B-side Edit

| length5 = 3:55

| title6 = Erotic City ("Make Love Not War Erotic City Come Alive")

| note6 =

| length6 = 7:24

| title7 = Purple Rain

| note7 = 7" Single Edit

| length7 = 4:05

| title8 = God

| note8 = 7" B-Side Edit

| length8 = 4:03

| title9 = God (Love Theme from Purple Rain)

| note9 = Instrumental

| length9 = 7:54

| title10 = Another Lonely Christmas

| note10 = 7" B-Side Edit

| length10 = 4:54

| title11 = Another Lonely Christmas

| note11 = Extended Version

| length11 = 6:47

| title12 = I Would Die 4 U

| note12 = 7" Single Edit

| length12 = 2:58

| title13 = I Would Die 4 U

| note13 = Extended Version

| length13 = 10:15

| title14 = Baby I'm a Star

| note14 = 7" B-Side Edit

| length14 = 2:55

| title15 = Take Me with U

| note15 = 7" Single Edit

| length15 = 3:44

}}

{{Track listing

| headline = Disc 4: DVD – Live at the Carrier Dome, Syracuse, NY, March 30, 1985

| title1 = Let's Go Crazy

| length1 = 5:30

| title2 = Delirious

| length2 = 2:45

| title3 = 1999

| length3 = 4:15

| title4 = Little Red Corvette

| length4 = 5:10

| title5 = Take Me with U

| length5 = 4:15

| title6 = Do Me, Baby

| length6 = 4:40

| title7 = Irresistible Bitch

| length7 = 2:00

| title8 = Possessed

| length8 = 4:24

| title9 = How Come U Don't Call Me Anymore?

| length9 = 5:05

| title10 = Let's Pretend We're Married

| length10 = 4:15

| title11 = International Lover

| length11 = 1:00

| title12 = God

| length12 = 8:30

| title13 = Computer Blue

| length13 = 4:30

| title14 = Darling Nikki

| length14 = 4:00

| title15 = The Beautiful Ones

| length15 = 7:30

| title16 = When Doves Cry

| length16 = 8:15

| title17 = I Would Die 4 U

| length17 = 3:50

| title18 = Baby I'm a Star

| length18 = 10:00

| title19 = Purple Rain

| length19 = 18:24

}}

Information taken from Duane Tudahl,{{cite book |last=Tudahl |first=Duane |date=2018 |title=Prince and the Purple Rain Era Studio Sessions: 1983 and 1984 |publisher=Rowman & Littlefield |isbn=9781538116432 |edition=Expanded}} Benoît Clerc,{{cite book |last=Clerc |first=Benoît |date=October 2022 |title=Prince: All the Songs |publisher=Octopus Publishing |isbn=9781784728816}} Robyn Flans,{{cite web |title="Let's Go Crazy" |url=https://www.mixonline.com/recording/lets-go-crazy-prince |last=Flans |first=Robyn |access-date=May 14, 2023 |website=Mix |date=August 14, 2019}} Michael Aubrecht,{{cite interview |url=https://maubrecht.wordpress.com/2017/07/31/exclusive-interview-bobby-z/ |last=Aubrecht |first=Michael |title=Exclusive Interview: Bobby Z. |website=Off Beat with Michael Aubrecht |date=July 31, 2017 |access-date=May 14, 2023}} and the album's liner notes.{{cite AV media notes |title=Purple Rain |type=Album liner notes |publisher=Warner Bros. Records |date=1984 |id=25110-1}}

• Prince – lead and backing vocals, electric and acoustic guitars, synthesizers, piano, Yamaha CP-80 electric grand piano, bass guitar, Linn LM-1, LinnDrum, Simmons SDS-V, drums, tambourine, string arrangement
• Bobby Z. – Linn LM-1, Simmons SDS-V, drums and percussion (1, 4, 7–9)
• Brown Mark – bass guitar (1, 4, 7–9), backing vocals (1, 4, 9)
• Wendy Melvoin – electric rhythm guitar (1, 4, 7–9), backing vocals (1, 4, 7–9), string conductor (2, 8, 9)
• Lisa Coleman – synthesizers (1, 4, 7–9), co-lead (2) and backing vocals (1, 2, 4, 7–9), string arrangement (2, 8, 9), string conductor (2, 8, 9)
• Matt Fink – synthesizers (1, 4, 7, 8), Yamaha CP-70 electric grand piano (9), backing vocals (1, 4, 9), Linn LM-1 (7)
• Apollonia – co-lead and backing vocals (2)
• David Coleman – cello (2, 8, 9), finger cymbals (2)
• Novi Novog – violin (2, 9), viola (9), electric violin (8)
• Suzie Katayama – cello (8, 9)
• Jill Jones – co-lead (2) and backing vocals (2, 8)

• Prince – producer and arranger, clothing (credited for "rags"), art direction
• David Leonard – engineer (The Warehouse, St. Louis Park, Minnesota; Sunset Sound, Hollywood, California; First Avenue, Minneapolis and Record Plant Remote – Mobile Truck (from New York City in Minneapolis)
• Susan Rogers – engineer (The Warehouse, St. Louis Park, Minnesota)
• Peggy McCreary – engineer (Sunset Sound, Hollywood, California)
• David Rivkin – engineer (First Avenue, Minneapolis, Minnesota in Record Plant Remote – Mobile Truck (from New York City)
• Bernie Grundman – mastering
• Laura LiPuma – design
• Ed Thrasher and Associates – front cover photograph
• Ron Slenzak – front cover photograph
• Larry Williams – additional photography
• Doug Henders – painting
• Earl Jones – hair
• Jayson Jeffreys – makeup
• Louis & Vaughn – clothing (credited for "rags")
• Marie France – clothing (credited for "rags")

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{{Certification Table Top|caption=Certifications for Purple Rain}}

{{certification Table Entry|title=Purple Rain|artist=Prince|type=album|relyear=1991|certyear=1996|region=Australia|award=Platinum|number=3}}

{{Certification Table Entry|region=Austria|type=album|artist=Prince & NewPower|title=Purple Rain|award=Gold|relyear=1991|certref={{cite magazine|url=http://www.americanradiohistory.com/Archive-Music-and-Media/80s/1987/M&M-1987-12-26.pdf|title=Gold & Platinum Awards 1987|magazine=Music & Media|page=44|date=December 26, 1987|access-date=July 7, 2019}}}}

{{Certification Table Entry|region=Canada|type=album|title=Purple Rain|artist=Prince|award=Platinum|number=6|relyear=1984|certyear=1984|access-date=August 29, 2012}}

{{Certification Table Entry|region=Denmark|type=album|title=Purple Rain|artist=Prince|award=Gold|id=10948|relyear=1984|certyear=2022|access-date=January 18, 2022}}

{{Certification Table Entry|region=France|type=album|title= Purple Rain (B.O.F.)|artist=Prince & the Revolution|award=Platinum|relyear=1984|certyear=1993|source=infodisc|access-date=May 4, 2022}}

{{Certification Table Entry|region=Germany|type=album|title=Purple Rain|artist=Prince|award=Gold|number=3|relyear=1984|certyear=1993|access-date=August 29, 2012}}

{{Certification Table Entry|type=album|title=Purple Rain|artist=Prince|relyear=1984|region=Italy|nocert=yes|salesamount=60,000|salesref={{cite news|title=Stadi affollati e giradischi vuoti?|newspaper=La Stampa|page=7|date=August 1, 1987|url=http://www.archiviolastampa.it/component/option,com_lastampa/task,search/mod,libera/action,viewer/Itemid,3/page,7/articleid,0979_04_1987_0567_0007_13471927/|language=it|access-date=December 14, 2020}}}}

{{Certification Table Entry|region=Japan |nocert=yes|salesamount=197,000|salesref=}}

{{Certification Table Entry|region=Netherlands|type=album|title=Purple Rain|artist=Prince|award=Platinum|relyear=1984|certyear=2006|access-date=September 8, 2018}}

{{Certification Table Entry|region=New Zealand|title=Purple Rain|artist=Prince|type=album|award=Platinum|id=2016-05-20|source=newchart|access-date=2024-11-20|number=5}}

{{Certification Table Entry|region=Spain|relyear=1984|certyear=1999|title=Purple Rain (BSO De La Pelicula)|artist=Prince|type=album|award=Gold|certref={{cite book |last=Salaverri|first=Fernando|title=Sólo éxitos: año a año, 1959–2002|edition=1st|date=September 2005|publisher=Fundación Autor-SGAE|location=Spain|isbn=8480486392|page=949}}}}

{{Certification Table Entry|region=Switzerland|type=album|title=Purple Rain|artist=Prince|award=Platinum|relyear=1984|certyear=1989|access-date=August 29, 2012}}

{{Certification Table Entry|region=United Kingdom|type=album|title=Purple Rain – OST|artist=Prince|award=Platinum|number=2|relyear=1984|certyear=1990|id=5280-1115-2|refname="BPI"|access-date=August 29, 2012}}

{{Certification Table Entry|region=United States|type=album|title=Purple Rain|artist=Prince|award=Platinum|number=13|relyear=1984|certyear=1996|access-date=August 29, 2012}}

{{Certification Table Summary}}

{{Certification Table Entry|region=Worldwide|nocert=true|salesamount=700,000|note=sales in 2016|salesref={{cite web|title=Anuario Sgae De Las Artes Escénicas, Musicales Y Audiovisuales 2017 – Música Grabada|url=http://www.anuariossgae.com/anuario2017/anuariopdfs/04_MGRABADA.pdf|language=ES|page=29|access-date=February 28, 2021}}}}

{{Certification Table Entry|region=Worldwide|nocert=true|salesamount=25,000,000|salesref={{cite news|url=https://www.axs.com/prince-s-purple-rain-reissue-re-enters-top-200-albums-in-the-top-5-120524|title=Prince's Purple Rain reissue re-enters top 200 albums in the top 5|work=AXS|date=July 3, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180915154858/https://www.axs.com/prince-s-purple-rain-reissue-re-enters-top-200-albums-in-the-top-5-120524|access-date=February 13, 2021|archive-date=September 15, 2018}}}}

{{Certification Table Bottom|streaming=true}}

• List of 1980s albums considered the best
• List of Billboard 200 number-one albums of 1984
• List of Billboard 200 number-one albums of 1985
• List of best-selling albums
• List of best-selling albums in the United States
• List of fastest-selling albums

{{cite book | author = Nathan Brackett, Christian Hoard | title = The New Rolling Stone Album Guide: Completely Revised and Updated 4th Edition | publisher = Simon and Schuster | year = 2004 | isbn = 0-7432-0169-8 |url=https://archive.org/details/newrollingstonea00brac }}

{{Reflist}}

• {{Discogs master|type=album|16245|name=Purple Rain}}

{{Purple Rain (album)}}

{{Prince albums}}

{{Navboxes

|title = Awards for Purple Rain

|list1 =

{{American Music Award for Top Soundtrack}}

{{Grammy Award for Best Rock Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal}}

{{Grammy Award for Best Score Soundtrack for Visual Media}}

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{{Authority control}}

Category:1984 soundtrack albums

Category:1984 albums

Category:Prince (musician) soundtracks

Category:Prince (musician) albums

Category:Albums produced by Prince (musician)

Category:Warner Records albums

Category:Warner Records soundtracks

Category:Drama film soundtracks

Category:Musical film soundtracks

Category:Dance-rock soundtracks

Category:Grammy Hall of Fame Award recipients

Category:United States National Recording Registry recordings

Category:Albums recorded at Sunset Sound Recorders

Category:Single-artist film soundtracks

Category:United States National Recording Registry albums

Category:Scores that won the Best Original Score Academy Award

Category:Grammy Award for Best Score Soundtrack for Visual Media

Category:Grammy Award for Best Rock Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal