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The Purple One's songwriting genius extended far beyond his own discography! Join us as we count down the surprising hits penned by the musical mastermind himself but made famous by other artists. From pop anthems to R&B classics, Prince's fingerprints are all over the music industry in ways many fans never realized!
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00:00It's been 7 hours and 13 days.
00:07Welcome to Ms. Mojo, and today we're counting down our picks for the hit songs you never knew Prince had a hand in crafting.
00:20Number 20, Jungle Love, The Time.
00:30It's wild to think that the only reason that funk rockers The Time exist is because of a clause in Prince's Warner Brothers contract.
00:39Assembled with the intention of developing and mentoring up-and-coming talent, The Time quickly became Prince's best known and most successful protégés.
00:46As such, The Purple One was deeply involved with the band's creative process, and his distinctive fingerprints are all over this groovy 1984 jam.
01:00Prince didn't only produce and co-write Jungle Love, but he also played synthesizer and percussion, as well as singing backing vocals.
01:09The first song by The Time to make an impression on the Billboard Hot 100, Jungle Love is more proof that Prince could do it all.
01:24Number 19, Five Women, Joe Cocker.
01:27In his two short 57 years on this earthly plane, the man-born Prince, Rogers Nelson, wrote literally thousands of songs.
01:40Many of them were recorded by him first before being passed off to others, and for others, the inverse was true.
01:46This is one of the latter cases.
01:48Actress whom I love something.
01:50Can't even remember her first name.
01:54Prince's 1999 album, The Vault, Old Friends For Sale, was faithful to its name in the sense that it contained songs that had been written as long as 15 years prior to its release.
02:04Some eight years before The Vault, iconic British bluesman Joe Cocker recorded a version of its dusky, sultry, deep-cut Five Women for his 1991 album, Night Calls.
02:13Tough fallin' love all over, I guess with you I'll never win.
02:22Number 18, Jerk Out, The Time.
02:24I got a billboard on a Friday night, I couldn't find a damn thing to do.
02:28So I pulled out a suit, about the same color as my BMW.
02:32Like we mentioned earlier, Prince has an extensive back catalog that runs real deep.
02:37Case in point, Jerk Out, which became The Time's biggest hit on the Billboard Hot 100, was originally recorded by Prince himself in 1981.
02:45Intended for The Time's 1982 album, What Time Is It?, the song changed hands several times over the course of the decade before ultimately being reworked and re-recorded by The Time for their 1990 album, Pandemonium.
03:03If you heard this song on the radio, you couldn't be blamed for thinking that it was by Prince himself, given its irresistible groove, playful rapping, and red-hot guitar theatrics.
03:13Number 17, You're My Love, Kenny Rogers.
03:31Written by Prince under the hilarious, inexplicable pseudonym Joey Coco, You're My Love demonstrates his musical versatility, a far cry from the electric funk-pop fusion of the time.
03:41This mushy-gushy devotional finds Prince showing off his little-scene-sensitive side.
03:53Although Prince doesn't actually play any instruments on the Rogers recording, the song does feature a notable non-Prince guest appearance.
03:59That would be Elle DeBarge, lead singer of the family outfit DeBarge, who contributes backing vocals.
04:05A 2021 interview with DeBarge revealed that Rogers, a self-proclaimed huge Prince fan, had asked him for a song and was gifted with You're My Love as a result.
04:21You're my love and I love when you're around.
04:28Number 16, Love, Thy Will Be Done, Martika.
04:31Yet another Billboard Hot 100 Top 10 victory for Prince.
04:40This 1991 yearning soft rock ballad finds him shifting into an atypically subdued gear.
04:46Love, Thy Will Be Done is further proof that Prince could straddle disparate genres with relative ease.
04:51One of four songs that Prince wrote and produced for the Martika's Kitchen album, his contributions led to Martika significantly switching up her sound.
05:03Love, Thy Will Be Done is a soul-bearing, slow-burning crescendo with gospel influences that shows off Prince's gift for open-hearted expressions of love and affection.
05:12This was worlds away from his raunchier, more popular solo work. Didn't we say he could do it all?
05:26Number 15, Nasty Girl, Vanity 6.
05:33Short-lived girl group Vanity 6 first came into existence as part of a Prince experiment that resembled the formation of the time.
05:40Comprising Canadian model-slash-actress Denise Vanity Matthews, Brenda Bennett and Susan Moonsey,
05:45Vanity 6 fulfilled the musicians' vision of creating a hyper-sexualized band of women who sang about topics familiar to Prince fans, but from a female perspective.
05:58Maybe Prince, who plays every instrument on the song, should have been careful as to what he wished for.
06:03Although Nasty Girl has developed a cult following over the years, it was initially shunned by American radio stations for its lyrics that, well, let's just say, didn't leave much to the imagination.
06:21Number 14, Love Song, Madonna.
06:24Are you wasting my time?
06:28Are you just being kind?
06:31Wait, what?
06:32Two of the biggest hitmakers of 80s pop music collaborated for a duet and somehow were not always talking about this?
06:39A deep cut off of Madonna's hugely influential, critically acclaimed 1989 Like a Prayer album, Love Song predictably subverts its seemingly simplistic title.
06:47Madonna openly declares that Love Song is anything but that, a plea to a wishy-washy lover to either commit or let her go.
07:00The track came about after Prince and Madonna met at the 1985 American Music Awards and came up with several concepts for songs that were abandoned and never materialized.
07:09Eventually, Love Song was formulated by the two superstars over the phone and through tapes sent across the US.
07:24Number 13, Waiting Room, No Doubt.
07:26Now perhaps best known for being Gwen Stefani's vehicle to solo fame, it should be noted that No Doubt had an enviable selection of 90s hits.
07:40Having typically been grounded in reggae, ska, and dancehall sounds for their first four albums,
07:452001's Rocksteady found the band engaging in a wide range of new collaborators.
07:49These included the Neptunes, aka Pharrell Williams and Chad Hugo, the Cars' Rick Okasik, and of course, Prince.
08:04Originally written for the band's previous album, 2000's Return of Saturn,
08:08Waiting Room combines the two acts' sensibilities in a satisfying, highly danceable fashion.
08:13Number 12, Stand Back, Stevie Nicks.
08:30This pulsing, prototypically 80s electro-pop jam doesn't officially bear the mark of the purple one.
08:35A top five hit for Nicks on the Billboard Hot 100, the 1983 song finds its roots in Prince's Little Red Corvette.
08:43Nicks, listening to the song in her car, was inspired by its synth-rich sound,
08:54and decided to call Prince to let him know of her source of inspiration.
09:05Maybe he was touched, maybe he was just feeling creative, but either way, Prince ended up, quote,
09:10programming it for them and pretty much playing most of the song there in about 20 or 30 minutes.
09:14Now that's what we call creative generosity.
09:17Number 11, Round and Round, Tevin Campbell.
09:33Released in 1990, R&B teen idol Tevin Campbell was just 13 years old at the time of the song's release in September.
09:40Recorded the previous December, Prince wrote and produced this funky bop,
09:43which alludes to the new jack swing sound that was just about to take over the airwaves.
09:55Round and Round implores listeners to not let their dreams be dreams,
09:58making its case over a busy, bouncy instrumental.
10:01Prince himself can be heard doing the song's backing vocals, which kind of leads you to wonder,
10:14how much further could Campbell hope to go if, on his debut single,
10:17he's already collaborated with one of the best to ever do it?
10:20Number 10, When You Were Mine, Cyndi Lauper.
10:39Written and recorded by Prince for his 1980 release, Dirty Mind,
10:42this love song takes on an entirely new meaning when sung by a woman.
11:00So, leave it to Cyndi Lauper to cover When You Were Mine for her provocative 1983 debut,
11:04keeping the original set of lyrics and placing the song between two of her more popular hits.
11:09It's a unique type of love triangle ballad, especially for the pop culture landscape of the early 80s,
11:14and the song ultimately became Cyndi Lauper's seventh and final single off She's So Unusual.
11:19Number 9, Sugar Walls, Sheena Easton.
11:26This time around, Prince opted to use a pen name, adopting the moniker Alexander Nevermind for this top ten hit by Sheena Easton.
11:41As you might have guessed given the author, the walls don't represent those of a traditional home,
11:46but rather something more personal.
11:48And when Sheena Easton notes that blood races to your private spots and offers an invitation within the titular walls,
11:54well, the message becomes that much clearer.
11:57The song becomes even more interesting when you imagine Prince with a pen in hand,
12:06perhaps anticipating a more PC world, but unwilling to tame down his lyrical content.
12:12Heaven on earth inside my sugar wall
12:17Number 8, How Come You Don't Call Me Anymore, Alicia Keys.
12:21I keep your picture beside my bed
12:27Originally released as a b-side on Prince's 1999 single,
12:32this song was picked up by future superstar Alicia Keys for her acclaimed debut album Songs in A Minor.
12:37Serving as the third single, How Come You Don't Call Me Anymore conveyed more of a retro feel for Alicia Keys,
12:51fitting as the original came out when she was less than a year old.
12:54With a rich set of lyrics communicating feelings of isolation and confusion,
12:58the musical aesthetic has both a playful and bluesy tone, making the song ideal for live shows.
13:04Number 7, Yo Mister, Patti LaBelle.
13:15Today, a song with a title like this might not exactly work for an R&B artist well into their 40s,
13:20and that's what makes this collaboration so unique.
13:23With a raw message for unassuming fathers, Yo Mister chronicles the plight of young Cara,
13:36as Patti LaBelle so forcefully brings Prince's words to life.
13:39It's not your typical R&B song of the time, but even so, it still managed to do some damage on the charts.
13:52The street smart lyrics are hard to ignore, especially when paired with the vocals of Patti LaBelle.
13:57Number 6, With This Tear, Celine Dion.
14:06By writing with this tear specifically for Celine Dion, Prince demonstrated not only his lyrical proficiency,
14:20but also his ability to match his content with the right artist.
14:23It's a gentle, romantic production, and through the formal set of lyrics and accessible structure,
14:28With This Tear evolved into a classic musical document of lost love,
14:32made even better through the intonations of young Celine.
14:35From conceptualization to final product, Prince and Miss Dion nailed it.
14:56Number 5, The Glamorous Life, Sheila E.
14:59Years after first meeting Prince at a concert,
15:09Sheila E provided backup vocals for his 1984 album Purple Rain.
15:13Soon after, her debut album was in production,
15:16and the artist penned the ideal pop song to close out the record.
15:19She wears along for a coat of mink, even in the summertime.
15:26With The Glamorous Life, Prince utilized a formulaic narrative of material excess,
15:30yet he added just the right amount of timely descriptions for Sheila E. to build upon.
15:42As a result, Prince and his protege formed a close bond,
15:45as the song paved the way for Grammy nominations and another successful collab,
15:49with 1985's A Love Bazaar.
16:00Number 4, I Feel For You, Chaka Khan.
16:02Alright, so one may not equate Prince with late 70s disco,
16:13but he did in fact release a disco-like song on his 1979 sophomore album.
16:17Incidentally, R&B songstress Chaka Khan released an updated version five years later,
16:30complete with an opening verse by hip-hop icon Melly Mel.
16:33Lyrically, I Feel For You is relatively simple,
16:36but when combined with the superstar charisma of a prince or Chaka Khan,
16:40it takes on a more powerful effect.
16:42The Purple One even took home a Grammy for Best R&B Song,
16:52proving that music is sometimes about the overall experience,
16:56rather than a transcendent set of lyrics.
16:58I Feel For You, I, I, I think I love you.
17:05Number 3, Donald Trump, Black Version, The Time.
17:09Written by Prince for The Time's unreleased Corporate World album,
17:20and ultimately released on their 1990 effort Pandemonium,
17:23Donald Trump, Black Version, helped explore the idea of an Afro-American retelling of Wall Street.
17:28Honey baby, you are the finest.
17:33You are the finest.
17:35Oozing with all the sexuality you'd expect from Prince, such as on tracks like Jerk Out,
17:39the song touches on notions of wealth and power,
17:41and is far more softcore Cinemax sensual than anything involving Donald Trump should be.
17:46Donald Trump, Black Version, baby that's what you need.
17:53It's hard to imagine how the Donald felt about this R&B shoutout,
17:57but either way, his reaction was bound to be huge.
18:00Number 2, Manic Monday, The Bangles.
18:11In what has to be one of the most bizarre scenarios of mid-80s pop culture,
18:15this track was originally composed for Purple Rain stars Apollonia 6, but it just wasn't meant to be.
18:20Since the clock already, I was just in the middle of a dream.
18:28A fan of their first album, Prince instead offered the song to The Bangles,
18:32which may or may not have been an attempt to woo the band's guitarist Susannah Hoffs.
18:36With writing contributed to Christopher, Prince's character from Under the Cherry Moon,
18:46the song proved to be a massive top 10 hit for the band in 10 countries,
18:50and was only prevented from hitting number 1 by Prince himself,
18:53who was topping the Hot 100 with Kiss.
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19:19Number 1, Nothing Compares to You, Sinead O'Connor.
19:23It's been 7 hours and 15 days.
19:30Though the two artists in question didn't meet until after this song's release,
19:34and reportedly didn't get along too well when they did,
19:37that doesn't minimize the potency of this 1990 cover.
19:40Since you've been gone, I can do whatever I want.
19:47Originally recorded by the Prince-formed band The Family,
19:50it was picked up by Sinead O'Connor for her sophomore release.
19:53While many even today may not have known who the song's author was,
19:56the abbreviated title, which Prince was known for, should have tipped listeners off.
20:07Kicking off the 90s, this Prince composition has become one of the most easily identifiable and emotional songs ever recorded.
20:14Were you shocked to learn that these songs were written by the Purple One?
20:22Are there any we missed?
20:23Be sure to let us know in the comments below.
20:25Be sure to let us know in the comments below.
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