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Kind of Purple: Jazz Musicians On Prince

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"Do you know who Prince kinda reminds me of, particularly as a pianist? Duke! Yeah, he's the Duke Ellington of the eighties to my way of thinking."—Miles Davis

The tops of the pop charts isn't where we often expect to find genius. Brilliant performers sometimes, expert attention grabbers maybe more often, but it's not generally where ground is broken.

Prince may not have topped the singles charts in some time, but then the charts aren't what they were three decades ago when three singers, all born in the summer of 1958, owned them. After years of reluctance, Prince now takes advantage of the ways music is distributed in the 21st Century (if, still, sometimes fickley so). And he continues to sell out concerts and be seen as a vital force while his birthyear mates, Madonna and Michael Jackson, well in one case we can only speculate and in the other perhaps we'd rather not.

Prince also earns the respect of other musicians in a way that many million sellers fail to, and not just in the pop and R&B worlds.

On December 11 and 12, bassist Ben Williams put on two nights of Prince's music at Harlem Stage in New York City. Through inventive arrangements and a rotating cast of singers, Williams showed that Prince's music is wide open for interpretation. Although it was a shame that the strongest of the vocalists, Christie Dashiell, only got one shot at the mike, surprise guests Bilal (singing "The Ballad of Dorothy Parker") and a encore improv with flautist Najee brought the audience to its feet by the end.

Trumpeter Taylor Ho Bynum has likewise put on concert-lengths programs of his own arrangements of Prince's music. Trumpeter Steven Bernstein has included covers of "Darling Nikki" and "Sign 'O' the Times" on his records. And James Ilgenfritz, Jamie Saft, Craig Taborn and Matt Mitchell all count themselves as fans. We asked them each to select a song and tell us what it means to them.

Ben Williams: "Darling Nikki"

Tell me why you picked "Darling Nikki."

I've always loved everything about "Darling Nikki." The story, the music, the groove; it's sonically perfect. It has such an edginess and "looseness" about it. The Purple Rain album and the movie visually go hand in hand for me. It's impossible for me to hear any of the songs from that album without thinking about the exact scene in the movie in which it took place and how it fit into the overall story. "Darling Nikki" came at sort of an emotional climax in the film and I always feel that when I hear the song.

"Darling Nikki" is one of the songs he won't perform anymore. Any thoughts on him cleaning up his act, so to speak?

I respect Prince for making that decision, to "clean up his act." He is obviously at a different point in his life and as we all get older, we began to think about things differently. I don't get the feeling that he is ashamed at the content of some of his older material but I believe he looks at it as growth and progression. As artists, our art always serves as a reflection of where we are spiritually in our lives; as we grow and change, so will our art.

How did the "Dearly Beloved" project come about? Do you know if Prince is aware of it?

"Dearly Beloved" is a project that I've had in my mind for a number of years. I've always been a huge Prince fan (thanks in most part to my older brother who is a Prince aficionado) but I really started to dig a little deeper into his repertoire from a purely musical standpoint in recent years. I was familiar with much of his material but I began to realize how deep and revolutionary his music was on a technical level. There was another level, so to speak, of genius that I began to discover in his music; The greatest musician/songwriters have the ability to make even the most complex music accessible and singable. The same sort of genius I've discovered in the music of Monk, Ellington, Wayne Shorter, The Beatles, Stevie Wonder, I began to see in Prince's music. Coming from the "jazz" world, I wanted to present his music from a different perspective. Prince's music is somewhat sacred ground for me but I thought it would be a great opportunity for my jazz fan base to realize his genius from a different angle. I'm not sure if Prince is aware of this project (I have had the opportunity to meet him on several occasions).

When did you first become interested in Prince's music?

Being born in 1984, I grew up during a time when Michael Jackson and Prince were on top of world as pop icons. My family, having a deep appreciation for music, was really into Prince. My household was filled with lots of Prince music (although some of it had to be listened to in secret due to the explicit content). My older brother is THE biggest Prince fan I know personally. He knows and owns almost every single piece of Prince material, bootlegs, side projects, and all (which is a LOT of music by the way). He's turned me on to almost all the Prince music I know. Apparently, when I was three yrs old I would find my way into our basement in early mornings, find the Purple Rain VHS, put it in the VCR and watch it. I guess I've been a fan since before I was even aware!

What is it that stands out most to you about his music?

Prince's music stands out because he has carved out his own lane in music. As an individual and as an artist, he has blurred and virtually erased so many lines in pop music/culture. He defied all expectations of what it meant to be a black artist, a pop icon, a rock star, and as a man. Prince was all about breaking the rules, which is so important to the world I live in musically. He challenged his fan base in a way no other artist had done before. His music forces you to think for yourself and can even make you uncomfortable at times. How do you even categorize Prince as an artist? Is he R&B? Is he Soul? Is he Funk? Is he Rock? The answer is all of the above and then some.

Prince is one of the biggest selling artists of the last 30 years. That would suggest a "lowest common denominator" effect to at least some people. Do you think his music is understood for what it is by most people?

I absolutely agree that Prince's superstardom has created a "lowest common denominator" effect with many of his fans, though this is very common when artists reach a level of superstardom, Prince has always interrupted that pattern. He could've easily released a follow-up to Purple Rain to piggyback off of its enormous popular success but he stayed true to himself and released a more experimental, less commercially viable album instead (Around The World in a Day). In the same way Miles Davis had done throughout the course of his career, Prince made his fans follow him on a journey through his ever-changing artistic development. I believe this has created a large population of "lukewarm" fans and a smaller, but super-devout fan base.

Are you familiar with Prince's "jazz" project Madhouse? What did you think of it?

Yes! Madhouse is amazing! Super funky stuff. It's kind of like listening to a Prince record without Prince (singing at least). He's always had great bands and Madhouse was a great display of instrumental prowess.

What sort of project or direction would you like to see Prince take on that he hasn't?

I'd hate to ever say that an artist as prolific as Prince could exhaust their creativity, but I think he definitely had a period of extreme creative genius between 1981-1990. Though he made great music after that period, I believe his most iconic material was created during that time. Is he past his prime? You could definitely argue that but I think he's still making great music.

I would love to see Prince collaborate with some of the young artists on the vanguard of the jazz/hip-hop/soul scene like Robert Glasper, Kendrick Lamar, Thundercat, etc. I'd love to see him with the Roots.

Taylor Ho Bynum : "Crystal Ball"

You picked a song that some people might not know. What is it about "Crystal Ball" that grabs you?

"Crystal Ball" was originally going to be the title track of what later became Sign 'O' the Times. Prince wanted it to be a 3-album set, but Warner Brothers forced him to do a 2-album max. So Crystal Ball became a sought-after bootleg for years. It later was released on a collection of bootlegs and rarities (also called Crystal Ball) that Prince self-released.

I certainly hear the arguments for Purple Rain as Prince's masterwork, but for me, the Sign 'O' the Times/Lovesexy period is my personal favorite—incredible band (Sheila E killing the drums), live horns, long form narrative arrangements, totally unique song structures. (This is where you understand Miles' Ellington analogy to Prince—the songs exist in a pop context but follow their own rules, just like Duke's 30s and 40s material.) "Crystal Ball" is some seriously operatic shit—post-apocalyptic lyrics ("As bombs explode around us and hate advances on the right / The only thing that matters, baby, is the love that we make tonight"), from minimalist drumbeat heartbeats to post-Schoenberg orchestral washes (props to Prince's great orchestrator Clare Fischer, RIP), to insanely funky breakouts, "Crystal Ball" has it all—11 minutes of freak-pop perfection.

I did a project of my arrangements of Prince tunes a couple of years ago (one of these days I will revisit and record it), but the whole thing was basically an excuse to sit in my basement and listen this particular composition over and over and over again.

When did you first become interested in Prince's music?

My older sister first turned me on to Prince when I was in high school (she got to see the Lovesexy tour on consecutive nights, something I remain envious of!). In my teenage years, I was figuring out what I liked, part jazz-nerd, part P-Funk junkie, part wanna-be metal-head rocker. Once I got over my avant-garde pretensions (I liked to think I was too cool for anything top 40), I realized Prince hit all those buttons, that he was a genius.

What is it that stands out most to you about his music?

In his prime (for me, 1980-1988, or Dirty Mind through Lovesexy, with a couple of amazing tracks on the albums on either side of that window) Prince was, as Anthony Braxton would say, a "trans-idiomatic master." He was clearly schooled and fluent in any number of musical styles, but his music resisted categorization, a wholly personal amalgam of his influences, totally weird and totally pop at the same time, a beautifully impossible balancing act.

Prince is one of the biggest selling artists of the last 30 years. That would suggest a "lowest common denominator" effect to at least some people. Do you think his music is understood for what it is by most people?

I'm not sure it matters—that's part of the magic of any pop master, that the complexity is hidden. When I was arranging some of his tunes, I did "Around the World in a Day." On a surface listen, it's just a great, catchy bit of psychedelia over a little 2-bar drum groove. When I dug into it, I realized the piece had a 15-bar bridge, which turns around the clave of the beat in the middle of the song form—a totally crazy thing for a pop song to do, but it happens so naturally I doubt 1 out of 100 listeners even notices.

Are you familiar with Prince's "jazz" project Madhouse? What did you think of it?

I checked it out, but wasn't crazy about it...in general, I like Prince most when he is breaking the rules of genre, as opposed to playing within a genre. These days, my criticism would be each tune sounds like "Prince doing R&B" or "Prince doing smooth jazz" or "Prince doing rock," when my favorite of his material was undefinable. (Though I'll make a slight exception for "Prince doing funk." When he just throws down on some James Brown/Sly Stone/George Clinton pastiche you can't help but dig it, he does it so well.)



Do you think Prince is past his prime?

I would never say that. He is too brilliant and virtuosic a musician. I certainly hope to be thrilled and surprised by his music in the future. I would always be psyched to see him live, and even the stuff of his that doesn't work for me I'll still check out and learn something from. But as I mentioned earlier, I haven't loved anything of his top-to-bottom for a while. I think celebrity is something that can rarely be coupled with sustained creativity. The pressures and stresses of fame seem at odds with experimentation and risk. (Obviously speaking from personal experience here ;-))

What sort of project or direction would you like to see Prince take on that he hasn't?

Other than sitting in with my rebooted Prince project (I'm figuring he'll either do that or sue the shit out of me), what I actually want is to not be able to predict or even guess at what he should do next. In that classic run in the eighties, each album seemed to come out of nowhere, totally different than the album before and totally different than anything else on the radio at the time. My dream for Prince would be to do something I couldn't even imagine.

James Ilgenfritz: "Purple Rain"

What is it about "Purple Rain" that grabs you? Have you ever gotten tired of hearing it?

I don't ever get tired of Prince. I've never had a period of my life where his music wasn't important to me. I'm not fanatical about Prince, but I've never questioned the validity of my initial obsession from childhood, and I've never stopped listening to his music.

"Purple Rain" isn't my favorite Prince song, but it's one that sticks out in my mind for the way Prince's abilities as a performer and his abilities in the studio interact. A couple years ago a video surfaced of a 1983 performance, which was not only the debut of Purple Rain (and a few other songs), but this debut performance also became the principle track for the version on the album, which included some overdubs, and edits for a shorter intro, shorter guitar solo, and one fewer verses. It's pretty profound to lay down such a timeless track in basically one live take. It's not unusual for a song to be recorded that way, but how often do we get to hear the basic track with no overdubs—basically a complete and beautiful performance all by itself?

When did you first become interested in Prince's music?

It was around the time of Purple Rain. I was pretty young, but my older sisters were into Prince. I bought comic books as a kid, and Prince played a role in my transition to music obsession, between the Batman music and his one-off comic book (with amazing art from Denys Cowan, who also did that great GZA/Genius Liquid Swords cover). Diamonds and Pearls was the album that hit around that time, and many of those songs are among my favorite Prince tracks still.

What is it that stands out most to you about his music?

I tend to have a strong affinity for artists with a strong personality who can combine disparate influences to create art that is at once wholly original and undeniably indebted to their influences. Prince really celebrates the artists who influenced him in a beautiful way. It would seem these guys didn't all get along of course, but Prince was lucky enough to have the longevity to reconcile the complexities of building a brand. And I think that comes from honesty.

Chris McIntyre: "Tambourine"

You picked a song that some people might not know, or at least remember. What is it about "Tambourine" that grabs you?

It just has a really particular sound that I've been attracted to since the first time I heard it. It has an instant presence, jumping in with a crisp snare lick into the crunchy bass synth and drums groove right after the long fade of the "Raspberry Beret." I think it has one Prince's most interesting vocal arrangements, especially moments like the between phrase background lines and all these terraced chords that harmonize the soloistic drum set material. Like other of his "all-Prince" tracks from the mid-to-late 80's ("The Ballad of Dorothy Parker" in particular), he was audibly expanding his conception of pop form and harmony, using weird rhythmic cycles within the groove format. Also, I have very deep personal associations to the time when Around the World in a Day was released and this song always evokes a welcome Proustian moment in me.

When did you first become interested in Prince's music?

Hearing it on the loud-ass sound system at Cheap Skate, the indoor roller arena ("rink" in Minnesota) near where I grew up outside of Minneapolis. 1999 was just out, and the DJ would always spin the extended versions of "DMSR," "Delirious," etc. All of us painfully white kids would go "whoooooooo...," jump up, roll out, and shake our booties.

What is it that stands out most to you about his music?

The specificity of the moment to moment sonics (i.e. precisely modulated guitar and vocal sounds, ostensibly instinctual synth patch and drum machine choices) and the various subtle ways he makes time.

Prince is one of the biggest selling artists of the last 30 years. That would suggest a "lowest common denominator" effect to at least some people. Do you think his music is understood for what it is by most people?

I think it really varies from record to record and song to song. The entirety of Purple Rain has a preternatural ability to communicate with "most people," but much of his output is crazy eclectic which actually limits the number of people who can fully tap into the music. "What it is..." Not even sure there is anywhere close to an "it" with his work.

Do you think Prince is past his prime?

Definitely not as an overall musician but as an envelope pushing creative provocateur, yes. That kind of work is for the young anyway.

What sort of project or direction would you like to see Prince take on that he hasn't?

Revisit some the more psychedelic stuff with expanded instrumental forces for a touring live experience in medium size halls that a room sound (thinking hybrid orchestra with live musique concrete elements, other deliciousness).

Jamie Saft: "C-O-O-L" (by the Time)

You picked a song written and produced by Prince (under the name Jamie Starr) but performed by someone else. Tell me why you picked "C-O-O-L." and what it is that draws you more to the Time than to Prince.

I've always enjoyed the Time just a bit more than Prince. The Time to me were about groove and a particular flow that really resonated for me. It's as if Prince could let go of some of the outer layers of his image and just dig deeper into the grooves and production of the tracks. The Time to me also has a real sense of humor about itself, whether Prince is involved or not. There was a sense of having fun in the music of the Time, whereas Prince had a darker edge to his albums.

When did you first become interested in Prince's music?

I bought 1999 on vinyl when it was released in 1982 at the Trumbull Mall in Trumbull, CT—I've been a fan ever since.

What is it that stands out most to you about his music?

Prince is both a master songwriter and a brilliant musician. Both these elements really shine through even his weakest albums. There's always something interesting in a Prince production.

Are you familiar with Prince's "jazz" project Madhouse? What did you think of it?

I've heard a bit of Madhouse and while it's of little interest to me musically, I'm happy he has an outlet to explore in that area. Prince's music seems to always include elements of jazz and specifically jazz piano stylings, so a project exploring that idea more deeply seems reasonable to me.

Any thoughts on Prince cleaning up his act, so to speak?

While I appreciate and miss the Prince of the "Computer Blue" era, I certainly appreciate growing and changing as an artist. I would certainly not want to have to perform any of the explicit Prince tunes that he wrote back in the day.

Do you think Prince is past his prime?

No I do not. And while it's ten years old now, I think Musicology had many elements of a modern masterpiece.

What sort of project or direction would you like to see Prince take on that he hasn't?

I'm all for a Prince and the Revolution reunion with Wendy, Lisa, etc.

Craig Taborn: "The Ballad of Dorothy Parker"

You picked a song that some people might not know, or at least remember. What is it about "Ballad of Dorothy Parker" that grabs you?

"The Ballad of Dorothy Parker" is a great combination of electro funk kind of quirky stiff groove, smooth dark harmony, and an almost off the cuff free associative kind of song writing. It has a great vibe. It is also a good example of Prince doing things completely on his own (as is most of the Sign 'O' the Times album). It is just so funky and yet sophisticated but one gets the feeling that he composed the thing in a very extemporaneous way. I imagine a night in the studio alone and he is compelled to track this idea. Plus any tune with a Joni Mitchell shout out and quotation is always a cool thing from my point of view.

The rhythm track has a stiff and quirky machine funk to it. Those fills alone are priceless. I believe Prince was working with a Linn LM-1 machine here which is one of the earliest sampled drum machines, 8-bit samples and a limited beat resolution, but he is working with this stiffness in the rhythm and finding the funk within. He used this drum machine a lot back then ("When Doves Cry" is another track that starts with it) but he is really working it hard here. The other instrument parts are played by Prince, I assume, on synths of the day and it is his more organic and off-the-cuff playing set against the drum machine that gives the track its appeal for me. I also like that he sticks with pretty synthetic sonics here in terms of production which marry well with the drum machine i.e., everything is tight and dry and a little cold and machine like but end up sounding warm and playful in his hands. Even the close voicings he plays on the chords keep everything right in the middle register with that dark synthetic electric piano sound that has a modulation that is detuning it slightly. This whole sound is set against the story and the vocal lines which are just the opposite, very soulful and stylish. That vibe was the progenitor of an entire genre of electro funk tracks that engaged with an almost lo-fi machine groove without losing the soul. Detroit and {{jny: London music are the best examples of this into the '90s and '00s.

I find it fascinating that Dorothy Parker died on Prince's 9th birthday. I wonder if he knew her then, or indeed if the song is supposed to be a reference to the poet. Any thoughts about the Prince / Dorothy Parker connection?

Well because of this song I have often wondered about Prince's interest in or affection for Dorothy Parker's work. Certainly lines about the titular Dorothy's quicker wit suggest that the literary figure was at least a reference point. I remember reading somewhere that this song was recounting a dream he had had and the narrative is certainly dream like and stream of consciousness.

When did you first become interested in Prince's music?

I am from Minneapolis myself so I had an early introduction to Prince's music. He was a ubiquitous figure in the Twin Cities music scene and having had his biggest successes when I was in middle school and high school he was a hero for us all. He was a big source of inspiration for everyone in town as a local talent becoming a global phenomenon but still repping the Twin Cities. And he was and is still living and making his music there.

Prince is one of the biggest selling artists of the last 30 years. That would suggest a "lowest common denominator" effect to at least some people. Do you think his music is understood for what it is by most people?

I think everyone knows that Prince's music expresses genius whatever that is. And like true geniuses it does not rest on one approach or style. Stevie Wonder and Duke Ellington come to mind as other extremely popular artists who exemplify this. There really is not a differentiation between the populist aspects of their music's appeal and the at times more esoteric or evolved means of its realization. You can listen to it in a more fundamental way and enjoy but the further in you go the deeper it gets. So I think it is certainly understood by everyone who listens, but Prince is able to communicate effectively, hence his popularity. There are many things in there that a lot of people may not notice at first or subsequent listens if they are not paying close attention. It is just deep music for the most part.

Are you familiar with Prince's "jazz" project Madhouse? What did you think of it?

Yes I am familiar with Madhouse. It was a fun project as I recall, still very much a Prince kind of sound but with more blowing room. That had a lot to do with tenor saxophonist Eric Leeds who is originally from Pittsburgh. I met Eric a few times in Minneapolis just when I was moving to New York. Prince had such great musicians in his bands and projects like that gave them an outlet and a chance for expression still within his overall aesthetic. I know some of the NPG musicians from the '90s bands and they are some of the best instrumentalists in the Twin Cities, Michael Bland on drums and Tommy Barbarella on keyboards and piano to name a couple.

Who's your favorite Prince keyboardist (and why)?

Matt Fink was nice and Tommy Barbarella is a great player. I have a strong interest in Lisa Coleman as I am a huge Wendy and Lisa fan. Morris Hayes is soulful and musical and of course Renato Neto is very pianistic and technically complete. But my favorite Prince keyboardist is definitely Prince himself. He has a great sound and feel on a variety of keyboards and also does much of his own programming and sound design. Joe Zawinul, Stevie Wonder, Prince all did their own synth programming as opposed to using factory presets. This skill separates the novice from the true professional in electronic music. An anecdote from Teena Marie was that when she and Prince were both the opening acts on Rick James' Fire It Up tour Rick was so enamored of Prince's personally programmed synth sounds that after the tour he ended up taking Prince's synthesizers (without Prince's permission or knowledge) and using the sounds on the Street Songs recording session before sending them back to Prince with a thank you note.

Do you think Prince is past his prime?

I think Prince is probably in a second prime of a sort. He is still as productive as ever and one of the more successful artists in the world if you take into account his entire career and not just media celebrity. I think conflating creative or even career prime with media hype is problematic because a lot of the most popular touring groups don't have that much to do with a certain kind of social visibility. The litmus test is more about how active and productive an artist is able to remain. In that regard Prince has never really let up. And he is one of the most successful live acts around right now. He is always selling out his shows which are not small venues.

What sort of project or direction would you like to see Prince take on that he hasn't?

I really can not think of any idea for him that I would have that would be truly compelling. Call it a failure of imagination on my part. Prince has always surprised me with his output and I find it difficult to devise some kind of context or project that would suit him. I would rather just hear what he decides to do next. A personal wish is that there would be some kind of reunion or collaboration with Wendy and Lisa because I think that their tenure with the Revolution was a very special time. They were like the Gil Evans to his Miles Davis and there is a certain kind of magic in those records and performances that I miss although there is certainly an abundance of other magics in all of their work post Revolution.

Matt Mitchell: "Forever in My Life"

You picked a song that some people might not know, or at least remember. What is it about "Forever in My Life" that grabs you?

The economy of production... it feels very "full" but there's a lot of air in it. Perfect vocal performance, so soulful and beautiful. It has a spontaneous feeling to it even though it is undeniably "produced." Surprising and brief "outro" with the acoustic guitar figure. Overall, perfect balance of "artful" and "catchy."

When did you first become interested in Prince's music?

Relatively late—I was in grad school in '96-'97. My younger brother got a hold of The Hits/The B Sides and simultaneous to that Ralph Alessi at Eastman played us Parade. Then I dove in. I obviously had heard the hits before but it had never "clicked" until then.

Prince is one of the biggest selling artists of the last 30 years. That would suggest a "lowest common denominator" effect to at least some people. Do you think his music is understood for what it is by most people?

Well "what it is" is in the Ear of the Behearer (thanks Dewey Redman), so I'm not sure that matters. I'm sure he has a huge number of fans who are into the deep cuts, and others who compare variations in feel between multiple versions of tunes, still others who just love to belt out "Kiss." Popular music has myriad artists whose content might extend beyond the consciousness of portions of their fan bases, but everyone needs different things from their music. What matters with artists like Prince is that the depth is there.

Do you think Prince is past his prime?

I don't really subscribe to such a notion with regard to artists. I'm not as familiar with his current work, but he's done so much that's great to me that it doesn't matter.

What sort of project or direction would you like to see Prince take on that he hasn't?

If anything I'd love to see him return to the unfettered psychedelia of the mid 80s. The time seems ripe for that to me.

Steven Bernstein: "Darling Nikki"

Tell me why you picked "Darling Nikki" and how you decided to record your own version of it.

I've actually recorded this twice, with MTO and Sexmob. This song just rocked my world when I heard it. Having come up with jazz music as my foundation, there are certain triadic-based songs that seem "simple" but were not part of my language. "Nikki" is one of them. The movement from A to F in the intro and verse and A to C in the chorus gives the song its very inviting harmonic palette.

"Darling Nikki" is one of the songs he won't perform anymore. Any thoughts on him cleaning up his act, so to speak?

Not my business... I'm a music guy.

When did you first become interested in Prince's music?

I bought Dirty Mind in the spring of 1981 (or what is winter of 1980?) at a record store on Broadway between 113 & 112. It was a revelation.

What is it that stands out most to you about his music?



The music.

Prince is one of the biggest selling artists of the last 30 years. That would suggest a "lowest common denominator" effect to at least some people. Do you think his music is understood for what it is by most people?

I have no idea how most people hear music.

What did you think of Madhouse, Prince's "jazz" project?

Love Madhouse, was just revisiting it a couple of months ago, really good for the ears. I heard that it was Prince playing most of the instruments on this as well. Either way, great music

What sort of project or direction would you like to see Prince take on that he hasn't?

Having me write his horn parts.

Photo credit: Karppinen

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