Of all the Prince protege of the post Purple Rain period, Shelia Escovedo was arguably the most talented. She was certainly my favorite. Her debut album The Glamours Life was a strong proclamation a woman in charge, not just the fragile sex kitten as portrayed in most Prince related material. Already an accomplished drummer and session musician when Prince discovered her, she would ascend the critical and commercial ladder in the first half of her career.
Her first album was as popular on the dance floor as living rooms thanks to The Glamours Life. Her second album, made after she toured with Prince and so-starred in a few films, saw her profile raised to the level of being a star in her own right. The first single from Romance 1600, “Sister Fate” would hint at the horn section to come, but it would be the over 10 minute dance hit “A Love Bizarre” that would put Shelia back on the upper reaches of the chart.
Like many Prince byproducts, she dressed the part. The Edwardian get up from the Purple Rain days had morphed into a strange blend of French Renaissance meets ’80s big shoulder pad style. It was all part of a fuzzy concept, that was more visual than musical. She was literally looking like a female clone of Prince, but offered a more accessible version of his sound.
While prince was off being inspired by other parts of French culture with Under The Cherry Moon, Shelia E offered listeners a continuation of what had started with Purple Rain. Prince connections to Shelia E. at this time were inescapable. Although she toured with one of the hardest working bands in show business, Prince himself played on nearly all the tracks in the studio and presumable rote them too. Shelia of course was co-credited with writing the hit “A Love Bizarre”.
Romance 1600 was a high point in the evolution of Shelia E’s music. Although she was still firmly in the grip of Prince’s influence, she managed to develop her own style. Funky songs like “Toy Box” and the slow “International Lover” styled “Bedtime Stories” were firm reminders of Prince’s influence, but this album would feature jazz funk styled horns before Prince would use them prominently in Parade. The importance of horns to Shelia E’s music went back to her jazz background. Her debut The Glamours Life would feature horns just as prominently as percussion for anyone noticing a trend.
I like to think of Shelia’s E. career at its highest moments which include the first three albums. After that she would officially sever her ties to Prince return to her initial jazz, rock and soul musical influences with a Latin accent. She made new fans, but alienated a lot more including myself in that process. Still she had a great run from about 1984 to ’87 and Romance 1600 was the best of this streak.
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