The Most Beautiful Girl in the World (Prince song)



"The Most Beautiful Girl in the World" is the lead single from Prince's 1994 EP The Beautiful Experience and 1995 album The Gold Experience. It was his first release since changing his stage name to an unpronounceable symbol. With the consent of Prince's usual record distributor Warner Bros. Records, "The Most Beautiful Girl in the World" was released by NPG Records and Edel Music, and independently distributed by Bellmark Records, under the control and guidance of Music of Life, as a one-off single, topping five different charts.

The single was released in February 1994 in the United Kingdom, and remains Prince's only number one single in the UK Singles Chart, and was shortly followed by an EP of remixes titled The Beautiful Experience that also charted on #18 in the chart in the United Kingdom. The version that was released on The Gold Experience is a different mix of the song.

Development
The original track is a slow-grooving ballad that serenades a beautiful woman. The song was played during the Miss USA pageant in 1994, but not in full. It was widely advertised in news and trade magazines that a new song from Prince would be premiered at the pageant. The ads had Prince sitting in a chair with a hat pulled down over his face, and Garcia standing next to his chair. The song was officially released on February 24, 1994. It later appeared on The Gold Experience.

The version on The Gold Experience is remixed. The drums are more crisp in the mix, and there are slight instrumental changes. There are also added sound effects and instrumental breaks in the second version. The bridge is slightly more robust as well. The song is still based in light guitar, keyboards and live drums. Although most of the song is sung in falsetto with Prince reaching some extremely high notes, the bridge has him using his regular voice as well as a lower baritone range in parts.

The song was a worldwide hit and established Prince's ability to succeed commercially under his new name, peaking at No. 3 on the Billboard Hot 100. It was certified gold by the RIAA and sold 700,000 copies domestically.

It became his first and only United Kingdom No. 1 single under any name as a performer. He did have two other United Kingdom number ones as a songwriter: the 1984 hit single "I Feel for You" covered by Chaka Khan and Sinéad O'Connor's 1990 cover of "Nothing Compares 2 U". The song was his last top 5 hit on the Billboard Hot 100 during his lifetime. Prince danced to his own song "The Most Beautiful Girl In The World" after the World Music Awards at an after show event with Kylie Minogue in 1994.

Track listings

 * Single
 * 1) "The Most Beautiful Girl in the World" (single edit) – 4:06
 * 2) "Beautiful" (single edit) – 3:54


 * United Kingdom 12"
 * 1) "The Most Beautiful Girl in the World" – 4:07
 * 2) "Beautiful" – 3:57
 * 3) "Beautiful" (extended club mix by Simon Harris) – 6:25

Mayte version
Mayte Garcia later recorded her own version called "The Most Beautiful Boy in the World" when she and Prince were married. The song appears on her album Child of the Sun. It has the same instrumental backing track with extra reverb, and her vocals, with a few slight ad-lib changes. It was released by NPG Records.

Cover versions

 * In 1998, rapper Raheem the Dream sampled the song to make his own track, "The Most Beautiful Girl in the World"
 * In 2003, pianist Alex Bugnon covered the song on his album Southern Living
 * In 2013, artist Bruno Mars covered the song during The Moonshine Jungle Tour