photos by Styrous®
Batdance is a song by American musician Prince, from the 1989 Batman soundtrack (link below). Helped by the film's
popularity, the song, released 31 years ago on June 9, 1989, reached number one in
the US, becoming Prince's fourth American number-one single.
It utilized the basic motif by Neal Hefti used in the original 1960's Batman series (links below).
Perhaps because the track contains several samples from the movie
Batman (which are covered by their own copyright permissions), and since
the track can be seen as a promotional tie-in more than a song in any
traditional sense, it had not been included on any of Prince's
compilation albums, despite its commercial success.
Batdance was a last-minute replacement for a brooding track titled Dance with the Devil, which Prince felt was too dark. On the soundtrack album Batdance is almost two songs in one—a chaotic, mechanical dance beat that changes
gears into a slinky, funky groove before changing back for the song's
conclusion. On the single version the
guitar solo before the middle section is eliminated, then goes straight to the
mechanical Joker laughter from the end of the movie and an earlier movie
soundbyte of Michael Keaton saying "Stop").
Music critic Chris Molanphy says Batdance is more of a mashup or remix than an actual song. It jumps from tempo to tempo, theme to theme -- and includes a lot of maniacal Joker laughter. And, strangely enough, it went higher on the charts than some of Prince's other best known songs -- like “Purple Rain" or "1999."
Music critic Chris Molanphy says Batdance is more of a mashup or remix than an actual song. It jumps from tempo to tempo, theme to theme -- and includes a lot of maniacal Joker laughter. And, strangely enough, it went higher on the charts than some of Prince's other best known songs -- like “Purple Rain" or "1999."
detail photo by Styrous®
Prince ~ Batdance
The song's music video (link below), directed by Albert Magnoli and choreographed by Barry Lather, featured dancers costumed as multiple Batmen, Jokers and Vicki Vales.
Prince appears as a costumed character in face paint known as "Gemini",
with one side of his face representing the Joker (evil) and the other,
Batman (good). The Batman and Jokers alternate dance sections, while
Prince (as both himself and Gemini) sings. The video ends with Gemini
hitting a detonator, exploding an electric chair (referenced in the
song), and Prince (actually Keaton's voice) saying "Stop" as the
video abruptly ends. The video also features one Vicki Vale wearing a
black dress with the words "All this and brains too", a reference to The Dark Knight Returns by Frank Miller, in which a female news presenter wears a top with the same slogan.
The 7-inch edit of the song is basically the album version without the guitar solo and the up-tempo part near the end.
There is a remix of Batdance that features a guest rap verse by Big Daddy Kane; originally Warner Bros. wouldn't allow its release (links below).
There is a remix of Batdance that features a guest rap verse by Big Daddy Kane; originally Warner Bros. wouldn't allow its release (links below).
The B-side
to Batdance is 200 Balloons, which was recorded for the film
and serves as the musical blueprint for the main portion of "Batdance".
The song was rejected for the film by Tim Burton
and replaced with "Trust". The lyrics of "200 Balloons" reference the
scene which it was created for to a greater degree than the replacement
track, which is only connected to the scene by the Joker asking "Who do
you trust?" after the song ends.
Prince ~ 200 Balloons
7" 45 RPM record sleeve back detail
design by Tom Recchion
detail photo by Styrous®
7" 45 RPM record sleeve back detail
design by Tom Recchion
detail photo by Styrous®
Prince did little more than replace the lyrics of 200 Balloons in its
transition into Batdance. Only musical portions survived the
transition, but full lyrics showed up in The Batmix (turn your head to
the east, I be coming from the west). 200 Balloons also contains
samples of House in Order and Rave Unto the Joy Fantastic; the
latter was another song submitted for inclusion in the movie, but
rejected (it was replaced by Partyman).
Prince ~ 200 Balloons
7" 45 RPM record sleeve back detail
design by Tom Recchion
detail photo by Styrous®
7" 45 RPM record sleeve back detail
design by Tom Recchion
detail photo by Styrous®
In November 2013, an unreleased mix leaked online that featured a rap by Big Daddy Kane.
The remix was done by John Luongo, who confirmed its existence.
According to Luongo, the reason for the remix being unreleased was that
Warner Bros. Records didn't like it because it was "too different" and
refused its release. However, Prince liked the finished result.
A - Batdance (Edit) - 4:06
B - 200 Balloons - 5:05
Companies, etc.
Phonographic Copyright (p) – Warner Bros. Records Inc.
Copyright (c) – WEA International Inc.
Copyright (c) – DC Comics Inc.
Published By – Controversy Music
Mastered At – Masterdisk
Pressed By – Specialty Records Corporation
Credits:
Design – Tom Recchion
Mastered By – HW*
Producer [Produced], Arranged By, Composed By, Performer [Performed By] – Prince
Notes:
Sleeve:
"BATDANCE" from the Warner Bros. soundtrack album BATMAN™ a Warner Bros. film.
Available on LP, Cassette and Compact Disc (1/4/2-25936)
TM & © 1964 DC Comics Inc. ℗ 1989 Warner Bros. Records Inc. for the U.S. and WEA International Inc. for the world outside of the U.S. Made in U.S.A. 9 22824-7
Side A, label:
7-22924-A
Controversy Music ASCAP
From the Motion Picture Soundtrack album BATMAN™ a Warner Bros. film (1-25936)
℗ 1989 Warner Bros. Records Inc. for the U.S.
TM & © 1989 DC Comics Inc.
Side B, label:
7-22924-B
Controversy Music ASCAP
℗ 1989 Warner Bros. Records Inc. for the U.S.
Barcode and Other Identifiers
Barcode (Text): 0 7599-22924-7 4
Barcode: 075992292474
Rights Society: ASCAP
Matrix / Runout (Side A, runout, variant 1): MASTERDISK HW [SRC logo] 7-122924 - A - SRI
Matrix / Runout (Side B, runout, variant 1): SP 7-122924 - B - SRI
Matrix / Runout (Side A, runout, variant 2): MASTERDISK HW [SRC logo] 7-122924 - A - SRI I - I
Matrix / Runout (Side B, runout, variant 2): SP 7-122924 - B - SRI I - I
Matrix / Runout (Side A, runout, variant 3): MASTERDISK HW [SRC logo] 7-22924-A-SR1 1-1
Matrix / Runout (Side B, runout, variant 3): SP 7-22924-B-SR1 1-1
Pressing Plant ID (Specialty Records Corporation): [SRC logo]
Label: Warner Bros. Records – 9 22824-7, Warner Bros. Records – 7-22924
Format: Vinyl, 7", 45 RPM, Single, Specialty Records Pressing
Country: US
Released: 1989
Genre: Electronic, Funk / Soul
Style: Synth-pop, Funk
Viewfinder links:
Batman, Adam West & the Whole Gang
Batman soundtrack
Neal Hefti
Tim Burton
Prince
Net links:
A Pop Life ~ Get the funk up! Prince and Batman: crown time is over?
Casci Ritchie ~ Dressing the Batdance
Consequence of Sound ~ Break Yo TV: Prince Batdance
Fandom ~ Batdance Lyrics
Houston Chronicle ~ The enduring legacy of Prince's Batdance
KEXP ~ Batdancing In The Dark: Revisiting Batman 30 Years Later
LA Times ~ Prince & Big Daddy Kane Batdance remix Warner Bros. won’t let you hear
NPR ~ Whither Prince's Batdance? (Quo Batdancimus?)
Princevault ~ Batdance
Simply Eighties ~ Prince - Batdance (1989)
Songfacts ~ Batdance by Prince
The Twin Geeks ~ Batman ’89 or: How Bad Was Batdance Really?
The Ultimate Prince ~ Batman Roundtable: Our Writers Answer 5 Questions
WNYC Studios Soundcheck ~ That Was a Hit?!?: Prince, Batdance
YouTube links:
Batdance (Official Music Video)
Batdance (The Bat Mix) / Batdance (Vicki Vale Mix) (12 mins., 25 sec.)
Batman (original - 1960's)
Dance with the Devil (Unreleased Batman Soundtrack)
Partyman (Museum Scene) (12 mins., 25 sec.)
Prince ft. Big Daddy Kane - Batdance (DSRemix) (7 mins.)
Styrous® ~ Tuesday, June 9, 2020
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