“Darling Nikki” by Prince

Tucked onto Purple Rain, Prince's sixth studio album and the soundtrack to the film of the same name, "Darling Nikki" shows the 1984 record at its rawest. Prince wrote, arranged and produced it, sang it and played everything on it: electric guitar, bass, synthesizer, drums and drum machine. Where the rest of the album gleams, this one was engineered on purpose to sound rough and live.

The song tells of Nikki, a woman of insatiable appetite who seduces the singer; in the film it's aimed at Apollonia Kotero's character after she throws in with the rival played by Morris Day. It was never a single, but in 1985 Tipper Gore pointed to its sexual lyrics, and the furor helped bring about the Parental Advisory sticker. At the close, the music gives way to rain and wind while a backward vocal plays.

Written with AI assistance from RockLists chart data, MusicBrainz and Wikipedia.