The Future (song)
"The Future" is a song from Prince's 1989 Batman soundtrack, and the final single released from the album.[1] The single was not the album version, but a remixed version by William Orbit. "The Future" was released as a single only in Europe. The standard European 7" single was backed with the album version of "Electric Chair", but on the maxi-single, "Electric Chair" was also remixed by Orbit. Orbit's remix of "The Future" is house-inspired, whereas Prince's original is minimalistic. Orbit substituted a muted, pulsating beat in place of the original elements of Prince's song. Orbit also removed Prince's original bassline, synthline, and snippets of sampled dialogue. This would be the last time Orbit would work with Prince for several years. In most countries, neither "The Future" nor its B-side were a hit on the pop or dance floors. The single peaked at #9 in the Dutch charts.
The LP version of "The Future" features the sampled strings of Clare Fischer lifted from the then-unreleased 1986 track "Crystal Ball", and samples the Sounds of Blackness choir. The lyrics speak of a bleak future, recalling the fictional DC Comics location Gotham City, and that it needs "spirituality that will last".
"Electric Chair" was recorded well before the album concept had begun, being cut in June 1988. Despite this, it fits well into the theme of the film and evokes the Joker's madness. The track blends hard rock and funk with a loud, booming drum machine pattern, and aggressive bass and lead guitar wailing throughout. The bridge combines a funky, percussive bass line with a meshed guitar synth phrase.
Track listings
- 7" single
- "The Future" (remix edit) – 3:30
- "Electric Chair" – 4:13
- 12" / CD single
- "The Future" (remix) – 6:25
- "Electric Chair" (remix) – 5:36
Charts
References
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| Soundtracks | |
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| Songs | TV series | |
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| Batman | |
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| Batman Returns | |
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| Batman Forever | |
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| Batman & Robin | |
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| 1970s | |
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| 1980s | |
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| 1990s | |
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| 2000s | |
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| 2010s |
- "Extraloveable"
- "Rock and Roll Love Affair"
- "Screwdriver"
- "Fixurlifeup"
- "Breakfast Can Wait"
- "Pretzelbodylogic"
- "Fallinlove2nite"
- "Breakdown"
- "Clouds"
- "Baltimore"
- "Hardrocklover"
- "This Could B Us"
- "Free Urself"
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| Promotional singles | |
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| Airplay-only songs | |
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| Internet downloads |
- "One Song"
- "Cybersingle"
- "Bataclan"
- "Glass Cutter"
- "Live from Paisley Park"
- "Strange Relationship" (Live in Minneapolis)
- "Guitar" (original "demo" version)
- "Love" (acoustic version)
- "Rock and Roll Love Affair" (Remix 7)
- "Screwdriver" (Remix)
- "Boyfriend" (Demo)
- "That Girl Thang"
- "Live Out Loud"
- "Ain't Gonna Miss U When U're Gone"
- "Extraloveable Reloaded"
- "Menstrual Cycle"
- "Octopus Heart"
- "Groovy Potential"
- "The Sweeter She Is"
- "Something in the Water" (Paisley Park Rehearsal)
- "Da Bourgeoisie"
- "What If"
- "The X's Face"
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| Streams |
- "U're Still the One"
- "Xylophone"
- "In a Large Room with No Light"
- "Purple and Gold"
- "Cause and Effect"
- "Hot Summer"
- "Rich Friends"
- "Same Page Different Book"
- "Stare"
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| EP's | |
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| Other songs | |
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