On Episode 82 of the Press Rewind – Prince Lyrics Podcast, I take a break from lyric dissection so I can talk about two instrumental tracks from the Parade era. The beautiful piano and orchestral album track, “Venus de Milo,” and the bombastic guitar rocker, “Alexa de Paris.”
What exactly is there to talk about regarding two instrumental tracks on a lyrics podcast? To be fair, not a whole lot. However, I spent a little time in this short episode discussing the origins of the song titles, the places of (assumed) inspiration, & how these songs fit it to the Under the Cherry Moon/Parade project.
Neither track was regularly performed live during the Parade tour, but Prince did perform “Alexa De Paris” at his tour kick-off show at First Ave in Minneapolis on March 3, 1986. He didn’t play “Venus De Milo” until interpolating it as the opener to “Starfish and Coffee” during the Lovesexy tour in 1988.
The goal of each episode of Press Rewind is to:
- Take a track by track look at the lyrical content of Prince’s discography
- Discuss my own interpretation of each song’s lyrics along with any guest I may have
- If submitted, discuss listener’s interpretations of each song’s lyrics
Thank you for joining me on this journey through Prince’s catalog!
