"Kiss" started as a short
acoustic demo, about a minute in length, consisting of a single
12-bar blues verse. Prince gave the song to the
funk band
Mazarati for their debut album. Mazarati and producer
David Z drastically reworked the song, giving it its stripped-down
minimalist sound. When Mazarati delivered the song to Prince, he was amazed at their work and decided to take back the song for himself. He replaced their lead vocal, added the
guitar break in the chorus and edited the song to its present form. Mazarati were credited for their backing vocals, which Prince left intact. Prince added the song at the last minute to
Parade.
Despite
Warner Bros. not wanting to release it as a single, "Kiss" became Prince's third number-one U.S. hit following 1984's highly successful "
When Doves Cry" and "
Let's Go Crazy". It was also a big hit across the Atlantic, reaching #6 on the
UK Singles Chart. The song won Prince another
Grammy Award for Best R&B Vocal Performance by a Duo or Group, and was nominated for Best
Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Song.
[3] The song has become a staple at Prince's concerts and is usually sung partially by the audience.
The
12" single of the song is an extension of the album track. The extended section is based on the funky guitar line and contains much fuller instrumentation than the main track, including bass guitar, organ and horns. New lyrics are present from Prince, along with
Jill Jones, that end with a humorous dialogue between a wife and her husband watching Prince on television. The
B-side of "Kiss" was "♥ or $" ("Love or Money"), sung in a processed, higher-pitched vocal, which Prince would later use for his
Camille material. The song relates to the theme in
Under the Cherry Moon, and a bit of the song was heard in the film, as was a bit of the extended version of "Kiss". The extended "Kiss" was included on 2006's
Ultimate; "♥ or $" was recently re-released as a digital B-side on
iTunes.
