✦ Love Sign — 1994 NPG Promo CD: Jun. 1994

A rare promotional‑only CD from 1994 featuring Nona Gaye and the Love Symbol, showcasing three mixes of the single “Love Sign” from the NPG era.

📝 Summary

This promotional CD for “Love Sign” represents a fascinating slice of Prince’s mid‑’90s output, released through NPG Records during a period of intense creativity and experimentation. The disc credits the track to Nona Gaye and the Love Symbol, reflecting Prince’s evolving identity and his collaborative approach during the era.

The CD includes three versions of the song — the Radio Edit, the 1‑800 New Funk Version, and the Storyboard Video Mix — each tied to the broader 1-800 New Funk project and Prince’s push toward independent distribution. Marked “Strictly Not For Sale! For Promotion Only!”, the disc was intended for industry circulation rather than retail, making it a collectible item today.

Production is credited to Prince and Ricky P, with publishing handled by Controversy Music/NMG Music. The disc also carries rights‑management markings such as GEMA and catalogue identifiers, reinforcing its status as an official but limited‑run promotional release.

"Love Sign" is the third track on the album 1-800 New Funk, a compilation featuring mostly unreleased music primarily written and produced by Prince, but recorded by other Paisley Park Records artists. The track is credited to Nona Gaye and Prince. Six weeks before the album's release, "Love Sign" was issued as a promotional single in the USA and Germany; however, Warner Bros. blocked its retail release. In 1998, Shock G.’s Silky Remix, one of the remixes intended for the single, was included as the fifth track on the first disc of Prince’s 20th album, Crystal Ball.

Although specific recording dates are not documented, it is believed that the basic tracking took place in early 1994 at Paisley Park Studios in Chanhassen, Minnesota, and the Record Plant in Los Angeles, California. Remixes were completed in the spring of 1994.

The song includes repeated vocal samples of "Time is passing, passing is time" from Ninety-9’s track "Stained Glass," which also involved Prince. It is unclear whether this sample was added during the initial recording or at a later stage.

⭐ Key Highlights

Promotional‑only CD for “Love Sign” (1994)

Artists credited: Nona Gaye & the Love Symbol

Three tracks included:

Radio Edit

1‑800 New Funk Version

Storyboard Video Mix

Released by NPG Records and EDE/N2 Records

Marked “Strictly Not For Sale! For Promotion Only!”

Produced by Prince and Ricky P

Publishing: Controversy Music / NMG Music (ASCAP)

Love Sign (Radio Edit) 3:24

Love Sign (The 1-800 New Funk Version) 4:33

Love Sign (The Storyboard Video Mix) 5:36

Sources

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