1999 Single UK: 1983

Escape
Jan 7, 1983
2 min read

A Purple Rain Prelude Funk Hit

Released as a 7-inch vinyl single in the UK on January 7, 1983, on Warner Bros. Records (catalogue: W9896 / W 9896 / 929896-7), Prince’s “1999” — backed with “How Come U Don't Call Me Anymore” — was the title track from his 1982 breakthrough album. Produced by Prince, this Minneapolis funk anthem peaked at No. 25 on the Official Singles Chart for 8 weeks.

Issued in paper labels (Drayton/WEA pressing), silver label repress, and 12-inch variants. A pre-Purple Rain UK chart entry.

Rolling Stone ranked “1999” at number 339 on its list of the 500 Greatest Songs of All Time. Posthumously the track re-entered the Billboard Hot 100 at number 41 and later climbed to 27, marking its fourth appearance on the chart across three different decades. By April 30, 2016, it had sold 727,363 copies in the US.

Said to be inspired by a TV documentary about Nostradamus predicting a global terror in 1999, Prince imagined a massive party to face the fear. According to Lisa Coleman, he showed up at the studio the next day with the song fully written.

Single Overview

Release Details

Label: Warner Bros. Records.

Formats: Vinyl 7" 45 RPM

(paper labels Drayton/WEA, silver label), Vinyl 12", Poster

7" Single (W9896)

Side A 1999

Side B How Come U Don't Call Me Anymore

12" Single (W 9896 (T))

A 1999 6:17

B1 How Come U Don't Call Me Anymore 3:51

B2 D.M.S.R. 8:17

UK Variants:

- 7", 45 RPM, Paper Labels, Drayton Pressing – Warner Bros. W9896 – UK – 1983

- 7", 45 RPM, WEA Pressing, Paper Labels – Warner Bros. W9896 – UK – 1983

- 7", 45 RPM, Silver Label – Warner Bros. W9896 – UK – 1983

- 12", 45 RPM – Warner Bros. W9896T – UK – 1983

- 12", 45 RPM, Poster – Warner Bros. W9896T – UK – 1983

Global Variants (sleeves supplied below)

Production and Context

Produced by Prince. From 1999 (1982).

Official BBC Singles Chart Data

Peak position: 25

8 weeks – January 22, 1983 to March 12, 1983

80 → 48 → 33 → 25 → 26 → 34 → 35 → 54

Do you have 1999 in your vinyl stack? Ready for the party over? Share in the comments!

Sources

Information is drawn from my personal knowledge and supplemented by web sources, including Discogs, 45cat, AllMusic, Rate Your Music, Wikipedia, BBC Official Charts Company, Billboard Chart History and YouTube

Whilst every effort is made to provide accurate information, mistakes do happen. Simply leave a comment and the post will be updated. Thank U.