Jill Jones (born July 11, 1962) is an American singer and songwriter, who performed as a backing vocalist for Teena Marie and Prince in the 1980s.
Jones was born in Ohio on July 11, 1962. Her mother, a fashion model, is of African American and Native American heritage, and her father, a jazz drummer, is Italian. Jones was raised mostly by her grandparents, until relocating to Los Angeles when her mother remarried. She began a singing career at age fifteen as a backup vocalist for her cousin Teena Marie, whom her mother managed.
Today, she maintains her own fan pages on Myspace and Facebook.
Highlights from her early career include various collaborative works with Prince in the 1980s–1990s, including a collaborative debut released under her own name.
Jones' solo career since 2001 has witnessed the release of three acoustic and dance albums, with 2009's "Living for the Weekend" being her most recent album.
Jones met Prince in 1980 at age 18, when Teena Marie was the opening act during his Dirty Mind tour. Prince loved her voice, encouraged her to sing, and stayed in touch with Jones. She became a backup vocalist for Prince when he invited her to the Sunset Sound recording studios in 1982, to sing backing vocals for several tracks on the album 1999. She was credited under just her initials J.J. She also was featured in music videos for the songs "1999" and "Little Red Corvette", as well as extended rarely aired music video for "Automatic", and then joined the tour for 1999 to sing backing vocals with the Prince side-project Vanity 6. After the tour, she moved to Minneapolis and became Prince's on-and-off again girlfriend. She had a bit part as a waitress in the film Purple Rain (1984), and had a more-than-cameo appearance in the sequel Graffiti Bridge (1990), where she takes off an undergarment to end a conflicting scene with Prince.
Jill Jones is the self-titled debut solo album from the artist of the same name; Jill Jones. The album was released in 1987 on Paisley Park / Warner Bros. Records. It was produced by Jones and Prince.
Her debut was warmly received in Europe, but failed to chart in the U.S. on the Billboard Top 100 Pop, Black, or Dance charts. None of the three released singles managed to enter any of the Top 100 charts. Warner Bros. Entertainment never pushed the album.
In 1983, Jones moved to Minneapolis to begin work on her solo album. Prince spent three years working with his "protégé". Prince wrote and performed much of the music on the album, while Jones supplied the lyrics. David Z. did a large portion of the audio engineering and music production (without Prince) at Electric Lady Studios in New York.
In addition, Billy Idol guitarist Steven Stevens (a close friend of Jones'), contributed to three tracks for the album. However, only the cover of Prince’s "With You" made the album. His other two contributions "77 Bleeker St." and "Baby Cries (Ay Yah)" were issued as B-sides.
Jill Jones is a poet and writer from Sydney, Australia. She is a senior lecturer at the University of Adelaide.
In 1993 she won the Mary Gilmore Prize for her first book of poetry, The Mask and the Jagged Star (Hazard Press). Her third book, The Book of Possibilities (Hale & Iremonger), was published in 1997. It was shortlisted for the National Book Council 'Banjo' Awards and the Adelaide Festival Awards. Her fourth book, Screens, Jets, Heaven: New and Selected Poems, was published by Salt Publishing in 2002. It won the 2003 Kenneth Slessor Prize for Poetry (NSW Premier's Literary Awards). Her fifth full-length book, Broken/Open was published by Salt Publishing in 2005. It was shortlisted for The Age Poetry Book of the Year 2005 and the Kenneth Slessor Poetry Prize 2006. She served as a judge for the 1995 NSW Premier's Literary Awards and for the inaugural Broadway Poetry Prize in 2001.
I know what people say
They say U don't know how 2 love
But I want U anyway
U're like a drug and I can't get enough
U'd be great in motion pictures
Cuz baby, U really got me blind
U're the only one I wanna see
U're the only one that does it 2 me every time
Baby, U're an ocean that's 2 wide 2 cross
And baby, U're the cross that's 2 deep 2 bear
Baby, U're the star that's 2 far away
Baby, U're a trip and a half, but I don't care
I know what people think
They think I'm a star struck little fool
Baby, U could be flat broke
I'd still be crazy 4 U
And I know that I'm in love
Cuz I'd change my whole life just 2 make U smile
And I still can't have U when I want
But when I do it's only 4 a little while
Baby, U're an ocean that's 2 wide 2 cross
Baby, U're the cross that's 2 deep 2 bear
Baby, U're the star that's 2 far away
Baby, U're a trip and a half, but I don't care
U see, it's in my diet
Something in the water don't compute
Baby, I'm quite happy after U give me love
U can see who's the fool
U're, U're an ocean 2 wide 2 cross
(Baby, U're an ocean that's 2 wide 2 cross)
(Baby, U're the cross that's 2 deep 2 bear)
U are the star that's 2 far away
(Baby, U're the star that's 2 far away)
(Baby, U're a trip, I don't care)
U're a trip and a half, a trip and a half, half
(Baby, U're a trip) {repeat in BG}
Oh yeah
U're a trip, yeah, and a half
I don't, I don't, I don't care, I don't care
Baby, baby, no no
U're a trip and a half, baby
Trip and a half
I'd do anything U want me 2 do, baby
I'd change my life 4 U, U
U are the star who's much 2 far away
I don't care cuz I.. I.. I.. I love U, love U, baby, oh yes
Yeah, yeah, yeah
U're a trip and a half, a half
U're a trip and a half
I.. I know those people say
They say U don't know how 2 love
But I want U anyway, baby, U're like a drug
I can't get enough cuz U
U'd be great in motion pictures, child
Cuz U really got me blind
U'd be the only one I wanna see
Only one that done it every time
I'd do the do with U
U're like an ocean much 2 wide 2 cross
U are the cross that's much 2 deep 2 bear
U are the star much 2 far away
But I don't care, U're a trip and a half