Rocktrospectiva: Prince's "Batman" Soundtrack Album Turns 35

Released on 20 June 1989, "Batman" was the soundtrack album and the eleventh studio album by American artists, Prince, his involvement in the soundtrack was designed to leverage the media company's contract-bound talent as well as fulfill the artist's need for a commercial revival. The bet result into another multi-platinum successful album. The soundtrack spawned five singles "Batdance", "Partyman", "The Arms Of Orion", "Scandalous!", & "The Future". 

The soundtrack album stayed at number one on the Billboard 200, and it was Prince's No. 1 album since "Around The World In A Day", and the single "Batdance" his first No. 1 since the single "Kiss". Recorded in six weeks, from mid-February to late March 1989,the artist used also three tracks he had bfore "Electric Chair", "Scandalous!" and "Vicki Waiting", some rumours saind the tracks "1999" and "Baby I'm A Star" from earlier albums were slated to bu usde in the film, but Prince changed that and focused in material related with the topic, back in 2010 during an interview with Rolling Stone magazina, the soundtrack was initially supposed to be a duet colaboration between he and Michael Jackson, Jacko was Batman and Prince the Joker, then Prince would have played funk songs for the villains, while Michael ballads for the heroes. 

 

Obviously this never came true due Jackson's commiments with Bad World Tour, and signed with Epic label, while the film was under production. The album was performed entirely by Prince with a few exceptions with Sheena Easton performing on "The Arms Of Orion", "Trust" features a sampled horn part by Eric Leeds and Atlanta Bliss, and "The Future", features strings by Clare Fischer, "Batdance" includes a sample of Prince's technician Matthew Larson, and "Partyman", features a vocal from Anna Fantastic, Prince's former girlfriend.  

 

All the dialogue sampled on the album, is taken directly from a workprint of Batman, especially noticeable in the beginning of the first track, "The Future", with dialogue of Michael Keaton speaking as Batman. The lyrics of each song are associated with one of the characters in the film: "The Future" and "Scandalous" are credited to Batman; while "Electric Chair" and "Trust" are credited to the Joker. "Vicki Waiting" is sung from the perspective of Bruce Wayne, while "Lemon Crush" comes from Vicki Vale; the two characters share the duet, "The Arms of Orion". "Partyman" was inspired by Prince's first meeting with Jack Nicholson (out-of-character) on-set, Batdance", whose lyrics consist mostly of samples from the film, is credited to all aforementioned parties, as well as Gemini, Prince's Batman-centric alter ego that resembles Batman villain Two-Face—Prince on the right half of the body and the Joker on the left. Prince himself is credited with singing two lines of the album as himself: "Who do you trust if you can't trust God? Who can you trust—who can ya? Nobody" in "Trust"; and the word "Stop!" that ends "Batdance".

 

The album marked a change in Prince's appearance, he switched out the elaborate costumes, polka dots and lace for much simpler attire, usually donning dark blue/black clothing and "Batman" boots. The artist's hair was fully straightened from his signature wavy curls, as shown in the "Batdance" video and his songs in the soundtrack suggest a goofy, perverse, sensuous, somewhat introverted Batman film that so far we've never gotten from anyone.