Around the World in a Day

The story behind

When Prince was preparing to release Purple Rain, he was already thinking about the next step, a different sonic direction. In June 1984, as a birthday gift for David Coleman, brother of keyboardist Lisa Coleman, he gave him a couple of days of studio time at Sunset Sound Recorders. There, David and his friend Jonathan Melvoin recorded an initial demo of what would become Around the World in a Day. David Coleman recounted that the inspiration for the lyrics came from a teenage friend, a young woman from Beirut, Lebanon, named Christine Maalouf. Upon hearing this demo, Prince was enthusiastic and decided to incorporate it into his next work. He rewrote the lyrics, added verses, and recorded the piece in August 1984 with David, Jonathan, and some members of The Revolution. The result was a psychedelic message about the expansion of love throughout the world. Originally, the song had a more funk feel, but guitar and bass parts were removed to achieve a more minimalist approach. It was this song, according to Susan Rogers, one of the recording engineers, that set the direction and vision for the album. The final recording of Around the World in a Day took place on August 16, 1984, at the Flying Cloud Drive Warehouse, a recording studio in Eden Prairie, Minnesota. Prince, along with The Revolution, composed the piece, with lyrical contributions from John L. Nelson and David Coleman. David Coleman also added cello, finger cymbals, and two Middle Eastern instruments: the darbuka and the oud. The final mix was handled by Prince and Susan Rogers. The album, released on April 22, 1985, aimed to explore psychedelic styles and more elaborate textures, distancing itself from the commercial sound of Purple Rain. Prince, wanting the project to develop without external pressure, asked the record company to release the album with minimal promotion, delaying the singles by almost a month. Despite not reaching the same commercial or artistic heights as its predecessor, the album reached number 1 in the United States and sold over 2 million copies. Around the World in a Day, as the title track, became a fan favorite for its soul sound with Indian influences. Prince opened all the concerts of his Parade tour in 1986 with this song.