John L. Nelson
Background information
Birth name	John Lewis Nelson
Born	(1916-06-29)June 29, 1916 Webster Parish, Louisiana, U.S.
Died	August 25, 2001(2001-08-25) (aged 85) Chanhassen, Minnesota, U.S.
Years active	1948–1966

John Lewis Nelson (June 29, 1916 – August 25, 2001),^[1] also known by hisstage namePrince Rogers, was an Americanjazz musician and songwriter. He was the father of musiciansPrince andTyka Nelson and a credited co-writer on some of his son's songs.

Nelson was born inWebster Parish, Louisiana, one of five children born to Carrie (née Jenkins) and Clarence Nelson. He traveled toMinneapolis to become a musician in 1948. Playing the piano, Nelson used "Prince Rogers" as a stage name and started a band called "The Prince Rogers Trio" with local musicians.

In 1956, he met Mattie Della Shaw (November 11, 1933 – February 15, 2002) at a show on the north side of Minneapolis. Shaw was a jazz musician who became the musical group's singer. She had one son, Alfred Frank Alonzo Jackson (July 6, 1953 – August 29, 2019).^[2] Nelson married Shaw on August 31, 1957,^[3] and the couple had two more children, Prince^[4] (1958–2016, a musician who was named after his father's stage name) and Tyka Nelson (1960–2024, a singer). The couple formally separated in 1965 and were divorced on September 24, 1968.^[3]

John Nelson's grandfather, Rev. Edward "Ed." Nelson was born to a White slaveowner, John Nelson and hisCherokee concubine.^{[citation needed]} Rev. Ed became a travelling preacher for theColored Methodist Episcopal Church and married Emma, a Black woman.

Nelson died on August 25, 2001, aged 85, in his home inChanhassen, Minnesota. That year Prince dedicatedJoni Mitchell’s song "A Case of U", on hisOne Nite Alone... album, to his father.

John L. Nelson wrote (or co-wrote) some music that was released by Prince in the 1980s.^[4]

ASCAP credits, or co-credits, him with the following:

• "Father’s Song" and "Purple Rain Cues", from the filmPurple Rain, 1984
• "Computer Blue" from thePurple Rain album and film, 1984
• "Around the World in a Day" (composed with David Coleman and Prince) and "The Ladder" (composed with Prince), from the albumAround the World in a Day, 1985^[5]
• "Christopher Tracy’s Parade" (composed with Prince) and "Under the Cherry Moon" (composed with Prince) from the albumParade, 1986^[5]
• "Under the Cherry Moon Cues" from the filmUnder the Cherry Moon, 1986
• "Scandalous!" from theBatman album andfilm, 1989

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