Rosie Gaines - Closer Than Close

Rosie Gaines' second solo album, the first having nothing to do with Prince in the late-1980s, did not get the attention it deserved. She was originally slated to release an album on Paisley Park Records some time after Diamonds And Pearls, however, Prince got caught up in the Warner Brothers contract dispute and was unable to release the album. The effort came so close to release that some preliminary interviews were done, for which Paisley Park sent the reporters advance tapes. The material on those advances sound nothing like what was released on Closer Than Close. Rosie Gaines, who is best known as the female vocal lead on "Diamonds And Pearls," has often complained that Motown Records made her use material on the album that she was not particularly fond of. She was required to use several ballads when she did not want to be recognized in that style. Still, the results were impressive. The album, which was primarily composed by Rosie and her crew, is one of the most terrific Prince has had the pleasure of writing for. He managed to secure two songs on the release. The first is the upbeat and poppy "I Want U," which was the first single and video from the album. It was at this time Motown Records went through a difficult time and overhauled. Unfortunately, the wonderful album was put aside by the new administration and died. The other Prince track, "My Tender Heart," was featured on ABC In Concert: The Ryde Dyvine. The track is a mid-tempo number during which Prince is heard prominently in the background vocals. The title track, "Closer Than Close" met a rather interesting fate. Motown had scheduled it as a later single and gone as far as making remixes. One of the mixes became a dance club anthem in Europe and the rights to the song were eventually bought by Big Bang Records. In 1997, two years after the albums release, the song went on to number one on their dance charts. A maxi-single was produced with several different remixes and sold quite well.

General Data

Label	Motown Records
Release Date	June 13, 1995
Cat. Number	314530462-2

Tracks Written By

• "I Want U" [ Lyrics | MP3 ]
• "My Tender Heart" [ Lyrics | MP3 ]