Prince, who has died aged 57, was to the pop music of the 1980s what David Bowie had been to that of the previous decade, its sole authentic genius.
Certainly, there were singers who sold more records or gained more awards, although his sales would top 100 million and he won seven Grammys as well as an Oscar. There were contemporaries of his who dominated their genres of music to a greater extent, among them Bruce Springsteen, Michael Jackson and Madonna. Yet none had as much influence or creativity as he, none broke as many rules as he, nor did so with such effortlessness and such showmanship.