Top 20 Songs You Didn't Know Were Written by Prince

The Time
It’s wild to think that the only reason that funk-rockers the Time exist is because of a clause in Prince’s Warner Bros. contract. Assembled with the intention of developing and mentoring up-and-coming talent, the Time quickly became Prince’s best-known and most successful proteges. As such, the Purple One was deeply involved with the band’s creative process, and his distinctive fingerprints are all over this groovy 1984 jam. Prince didn’t only produce and co-write “Jungle Love,” but he also played synthesizer and percussion, as well as singing backing vocals. The 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.

Joe Cocker
In his too-short 57 years on this earthly plane, the man born Prince Rogers Nelson wrote literally thousands of songs. Many of them were recorded by him first before being passed off to others, and for others, the inverse was true. This is one of the latter cases: Prince’s 1999 album “The Vault: Old Friends 4 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. Some 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.”

The Time
Like we mentioned earlier, Prince has an extensive back catalogue that runs real deep. Case in point: “Jerk Out,” which became the Time’s biggest hit on the Billboard Hot 100, was originally recorded by Prince himself in 1981. Intended 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 rerecorded by the Time for their 1990 album “Pandemonium.” If 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.

Kenny Rogers
Written 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, this mushy-gushy devotional finds Prince showing off his little-seen sensitive side. Although Prince doesn’t actually play any instruments on the Rogers recording, the song does feature a notable, non-Prince guest appearance. That would be El DeBarge, lead singer of the family outfit DeBarge, who contributes backing vocals. A 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.

Martika[a]
Yet another Billboard Hot 100 Top 10 victory for Prince, this 1991 yearning soft-rock ballad finds him shifting into an atypically subdued gear. “Love… Thy Will Be Done” is further proof that Prince could straddle disparate genres with relative ease. One of four songs that Prince wrote and produced for the “Martika’s Kitchen” album, his contributions led to Martika significantly switching up her sound. “Love… Thy Will Be Done” is a soul-baring, slow-burning crescendo with gospel influences that shows off Prince’s gift for open-hearted expressions of love and affection. This was worlds away from his raunchier, more popular solo work. Didn’t we say he could do it all?

Vanity 6
Short-lived girl group Vanity 6 first came into existence as part of a Prince experiment that resembled the formation of the Time. Comprising Canadian model/actress Denise “Vanity” Matthews, Brenda Bennett, and Susan Moonsie[b], Vanity 6 fulfilled the musician’s vision of creating a hypersexualized band of women who sang about topics familiar to Prince fans, but from a female perspective. Maybe Prince, who plays every instrument on the song, should’ve been careful as to what he wished for: although “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 say didn’t leave much to the imagination.

Madonna
Wait, what?! Two of the biggest hitmakers of ‘80s pop music collaborated for a duet and somehow we’re not always talking about this?! A deep cut off of Madonna’s hugely influential, critically acclaimed 1989 “Like a Prayer” album, “Love Song” predictably subverts its seemingly simplistic title. Madonna openly declares that “Love Song” is anything but that, a plea to a wishy-washy lover to either commit or let her go. The 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. Eventually, “Love Song” was formulated by the two superstars over the phone and through tapes sent across the U.S.

No Doubt
Now 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. Having typically been grounded in reggae, ska, and dancehall sounds for their first four albums, 2001’s “Rock Steady” found the band engaging with a wide range of new collaborators. These included the Neptunes (AKA Pharrell Williams and Chad Hugo), the Cars’ Ric Ocasek[c], and of course, Prince. Originally written for the band’s previous album, 2000’s “Return of Saturn,” “Waiting Room” combines the two acts’ sensibilities in a satisfying, highly danceable fashion.

Stevie Nicks
This pulsing, prototypically ‘80s electropop jam doesn’t officially bear the mark of the Purple One. A Top 5 hit for Nicks on the Billboard Hot 100, the 1983 song finds its roots in Prince’s “Little Red Corvette.” Nicks, listening to the song in her car, was inspired by its synth-rich sound, and decided to call Prince to let him know of her source of inspiration. Maybe he was touched, maybe he was just feeling creative, but either way, Prince ended up “[programming] it for them and pretty much [playing] most of the song there in about twenty or thirty minutes.” Now that’s what we call creative generosity.

Tevin Campbell
Released in 1990, R&B teen idol Tevin Campbell was just 13 years old at the time of this song’s release in September. Recorded the previous December, Prince wrote and produced this funky bop, which alludes to the “new jack swing” sound that was just about to take over the airwaves. “Round and Round” implores listeners to not let their dreams be dreams, making its case over a busy, bouncy instrumental. Prince himself can be heard doing the song’s backing vocals, which kind of leads you to wonder… how much farther could Campbell hope to go if, on his debut single, he’s already collaborated with one of the best to ever do it?

Cyndi Lauper
Written and recorded by Prince for his 1980 release Dirty Mind, this love song takes on an entirely new meaning when sung by a woman. So leave it to Cyndi Lauper to cover “When You Were Mine” for her provocative 1983 debut, keeping the original set of lyrics and placing the song between two of her more popular hits. It’s a unique type of love triangle ballad, especially for the pop culture landscape of the early '80s, and the song ultimately became Cyndi Lauper’s seventh and final single off “She's So Unusual”.

Sheena Easton
This time around Prince opted to use a pen name, adopting the moniker “Alexander Nevermind” for this top 10 hit by Sheena Easton. As you might’ve guessed given the author, the walls don’t represent those of a traditional home, but rather something more personal. And when Sheena Easton notes that “blood races to your private spots” and offers an invitation within the titular walls, well, the message becomes that much clearer. The song becomes even more interesting when you imagine Prince with a pen in hand, perhaps anticipating a more PC world but unwilling to tame down his lyrical content.

Alicia Keys
Originally released as a b-side on Prince's 1999 single, this song was picked up by future superstar Alicia Keys for her acclaimed debut album, Songs in A Minor. Serving as the third single, “How Come You Don’t Call Me Anymore” conveyed more of a retro feel for Alicia Keys, fitting as the original came out when she was less than a year old. With a rich set of lyrics communicating feelings of isolation and confusion, the musical aesthetic has both a playful and bluesy tone, making the song ideal for live shows.

Patti LaBelle
Today, a song with a title like this might not exactly work for an R&B artist well into their 40s, and that’s what makes this collaboration so unique. With a raw message for unassuming fathers, “Yo Mister” chronicles the plight of young Cara[d], as Patti Labelle so forcefully brings Prince’s words to life. It’s not your typical R&B song of the time, but even so, it still managed to do some damage on the charts. The street-smart lyrics are hard to ignore, especially when paired with the vocals of Patti Labelle.

Celine Dion
By writing “With This Tear” specifically for Celine Dion, Prince demonstrated not only his
lyrical proficiency but his ability to match his content with the right artist. It’s a gentle, romantic production, and through the formal set of lyrics and accessible structure, “With This Tear” evolved into a classic musical document of lost love, made even better through the intonations of young Celine. From conceptualization to final product, Prince and Ms. Dion nailed it.

Sheila E.
Years after first meeting Prince at a concert, Sheila E. provided backup vocals for his 1984 album “Purple Rain”. Soon after, her debut album was in production, and “THE artist” penned the ideal pop song to close out the record. With “The Glamorous Life”, Prince utilized a formulaic narrative of material excess, yet he added just the right amount of timely descriptions for Sheila E. to build upon. As a result, Prince and his protégé formed a close bond as the song paved the way for Grammy nominations and another successful collab with 1985’s “A Love Bizarre”.

Chaka Khan
All right, so one may not equate Prince with late '70s disco, but he did, in fact, release a disco-like song on his 1979 sophomore album. Incidentally, R&B songstress Chaka Khan released an updated version five years later, complete with an opening verse by hip-hop icon Melle Mel[e]. Lyrically, “I Feel for You” is relatively simple, but when combined with the superstar charisma of a Prince or Chaka Khan, it takes on a more powerful effect. The purple one even took home a Grammy for Best R&B Song, proving that music is sometimes about the overall experience rather than a transcendent set of lyrics.

The Time
Written by Prince for The Time's unreleased Corporate World album and ultimately released on their 1990 effort Pandemonium, “Donald Trump (Black Version)” helped explore the idea of an Afro-American retelling of Wall Street. Oozing with all the sexuality you'd expect from Prince such as on tracks like “Jerk Out”, the song also touches on notions of wealth and power and is far more soft-core Cinemax sensual than anything involving Donald Trump should be. It's hard to imagine how the Donald felt about this R&B shout out, but either way his reaction was bound to be YUGE.

The Bangles
In what has to be one of the most bizarre scenarios of mid-80s pop culture, this track was originally composed for “Purple Rain” stars Apollonia 6, but it just wasn’t meant to be. A fan of their first album, Prince instead offered the song to the Bangles which may or may not have been an attempt to woo the band's guitarist Susanna Hoffs. With writing attributed to Christopher, Prince's character from “Under the Cherry Moon”, the song provided to be a massive top 10 hit for the band in ten countries, and was only prevented from hitting #1 by Prince himself who was topping the Hot 100 with “Kiss”.

Sinead O’Connor
Though the two artists in question didn’t meet until after this song’s release and reportedly didn’t get along too well when they did, that doesn’t minimize the potency of this 1990 cover. Originally recorded by the Prince-formed band The Family, it was picked up by Sinead O’Connor for her sophomore release. While many even today may not have known who the song's author was, the abbreviated title, which Prince was known for, should have tipped listeners off. Kicking off the '90s, this Prince composition has become one of the most easily identifiable and emotional songs ever recorded.