burning The Ground Exclusive 1987
Celebrating BLACK HISTORY MONTH
“The Pleasure Principle” is a song recorded by American singer Janet Jackson for her third studio album, Control (1986). A&M Records released it as the sixth single from Control on May 12, 1987. Written and produced by Monte Moir, with co-production by Jackson and Steve Wiese, the song is an “independent woman” anthem about taking control of a personal relationship by refusing to settle for loveless materialism. Musically, “The Pleasure Principle” is an R&B song built around a dance beat. The photograph for the single cover was shot by David LaChapelle. The song has been included in two of Jackson’s greatest hits albums, Design of a Decade: 1986–1996 (1995) and Number Ones (2009).
In the United States, “The Pleasure Principle” debuted at number 78 on the Billboard Hot 100 on the issue dated May 23, 1987. It later reached its peak position of number 14 on August 1, 1987. It became the first single released by Jackson to miss the top-ten until “Son of a Gun (I Betcha Think This Song Is About You)” peaked at number 28 in 2001. “The Pleasure Principle” nevertheless became her fifth chart-topper on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart and her third on the Dance Club Songs chart. It was ranked number 34 on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs Year-End chart of 1987.
Elsewhere, “The Pleasure Principle” reached the top 40 in most markets, but failed to match the international success of the previous singles from Control.
SIDE A:
The Pleasure Principle (Long Vocal) 7:25
The Pleasure Principle (A Cappella) 4:23
SIDE B:
The Pleasure Principle (12″ Dub) 6:59
The Pleasure Principle (7″ Vocal) 4:21
VINYL GRADE:
Vinyl: Near Mint
Sleeve: Near Mint
U.S. CHART HISTORY:
| Year | Single | Chart | Position |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1987 | The Pleasure Principle | U.S. Billboard Hot 100 | #14 |
| 1987 | The Pleasure Principle | U.S. Billboard Dance Music/Club Play | #1 |
| 1987 | The Pleasure Principle | U.S. Billboard Hot Dance Music/ Maxi-singles sales | #8 |
| 1987 | The Pleasure Principle | U.S. Billboard Hot R&B/Hip-Hop | #1 |
RELEASE INFORMATION:
Label: A&M Records – SP-12230
Format: Vinyl, 12″, 45 RPM, Single
Country: US
Released: 1987
Genre: Electronic, Funk / Soul, Pop
Style: Dance-pop, Funk
CREDITS:
- Co-producer – Steve Wiese
- Co-producer, Arranged By [Vocals] – Janet Jackson
- Edited By – Tuta Aquino
- Edited By, Producer [Additional], Remix – Shep Pettibone
- Engineer [Mix] – Bob Rosa
- Executive-Producer – John McClain
- Mastered By – Ted Jensen
- Photography By – David LaChapelle
- Producer, Written-By, Arranged By [Rhythm], Arranged By [Vocals] – Monte Moir
NOTES:
Additional production by Shep Pettibone for Mastermix Productions.
Original version appears on the A&M album “Control”
Buy the 12″ at DISCOGS
VINYL TRANSFER & AUDIO RESTORATION:
-DjPaulT
burningtheground.net
THE GEAR:
Turntable:Technics SL-1200MK7
Cartridge/Stylus: Ortofon 2M Black PnP MkII
Turntable Isolation Platform: ISO-Tone™ Turntable Isolation Platform
Platter: Pro Spin Acrylic Mat
Stabilizer: Pro-Ject Record Puck
Phono Pre-amp: Pro-Jec Tube Box DS2
DAC: Alpha Design Labs GT40a USB DAC
Record Cleaning: VPI HW 16.5 Record Cleaning Machine
Artwork Scans: Epson Workforce WF-7610 Professional Printer/Scanner
SOFTWARE:
Recording/Editing: Adobe Audition 3.0 (Recording)
Down Sampling/Dither: iZotope RX Advanced 2
Artwork Editor: Adobe Photoshop CS5
Click Removal: Manual
FLAC/MP3 Conversion: dBpoweramp
M3U Playlist: Playlist Creator
RESTORATION NOTES:
All vinyl rips are recorded @ 32bit/float
FLAC (Level Eight)
Artwork scanned at 600dpi
**24bit FLAC Only Available For Seven Days!
Password: burningtheground
You can help show your support for this blog by making a donation using PayPal. Thank you for your help.
Very cool to see another JJ single, this is one of my favourites from her 80’s era too. Shep did some cool arrangements for these remixes.
I was surprised it didn’t feature on the boxset in 2021.
Thanks Paul 🙂
Wow!! Thank you Paul for this. As already noted, the 7” Mix has never been released on CD so getting it here in this quality, along with the Acapella, is fantastic 🙂
Not my fave JJ single, but an ace opener for side 2 of Control, even in its original album mix. I’ve always thought that “You Can Be Mine” should have been released as a single in its place. Easily another Top 10er. I think A&M thought that a killer video of Janet dancing & an ace Pettibone mix would guarantee Control another Top 10, but “You Can Be Mine” would have sounded better on the radio. Plus, a video as good as TPP & a Pettibone mix as complimentary the one he gave this could could have been provided for… Read more »
Thanks for the great post, Paul! I echo others in that this 12″ just rocked and cannot tell you how many times I played it! Any chance we can get Alright which has the acappella version? Thanks so much for your effort and have a great day!!
You’re welcome, Fred. My copy of “Alright” does not have the A Capella so I will have to source one 🙂
An all time classic. One of the best remixes EVER. One of Shep’s best remixes EVER. Right up there with his remix of Bizarre Love Triangle!!! The dub is also epic !!! Absolutely criminal this was not included in the recent Shep Pettibone box set! No Janet remixes of his were included which was sad but probably they were unable to license one!
You are correct they probably could not get the rights. Classic Shep for sure 🙂
Yeah I’m continuing to notice many Shep mixes I have that didn’t make the box. Perhaps they should do a sequel! LOL
One of the best 80s singles I remember. Thanks a lot for this vinyl remastering, as some of these tracks ( I believe the A Capella and the 7 Inch Vocal) have not appeared on cd elsewhere. And those who have, well the quality here is probably just as high as on remix cds from the time.
You’re welcome, Martijn 🙂
… many thanks!
You’re welcome, CAPankow 🙂
Easily in my Top 10, maybe Top 5, of Shep’s best mixes of all time. Thanks for sharing!
You’re welcome, David 🙂
Thanks a ton for this and all your posts this month Paul!
You’re most welcome, Grant 🙂
This gave me chills (of pleasure) seeing this in my in-box!! Oh Paul, thank you deeply for this rip. I was so disappointed when I got the Shep Pettibone dance mixes box set and there was no Janet nor Madonna on the collection. You really come to the rescue with all the wondrous 12-inch versions you post.
Deep bow of gratitude to you Paul!!
Jeff
Thank you, Jeff 🙂
AMAZING!! This will keep me going for the next few days, thank you so much for posting and doing such a great job diving into the history of the song/artist. LOVE LOVE LOVE
You’re very welcome, GAC 🙂