Alphabet St.

In his review of the song, Paul Clements from Melody Maker felt that "as a lighthearted bubblegum pastiche, it fairly shimmers. There's some judiciously spare scratch guitar, the usual assortment of percolating percussion, and a magnificent tumbling drum lick." He also noted its "almost shocking austerity", and concluded, "Hopefully, a ticklish harbinger of a long, deliciously hot summer." Sean O'Hagan from NME wrote, "'Alphabet St' is, naturally, a record of rare brilliance. It unleashes its outre funk ideology over one of those patented Prince guitar riffs, a clipped, chunky groove that slips into the cerebral space once occupied by the subliminal 'Kiss' coda. From then on, the boy has it easy. 'Alphabet St' is meatier and a lot less meandering than much of the Madhouse future funk of 'Black', stating its case with a hip-shaking sass that is one of the maverick ruler's stock signatures."

The single received critical acclaim from Cashbox magazine. The reviewer praised Prince's "endless capacity to expand the reaches of sound," describing the track as a "herky-jerky little ditty that belies the sophistication within." Highlighting his innate "sixth sense" for crafting essential pop elements, the publication noted that the song's unusual melody would strongly resonate with radio audiences. Consequently, the magazine projected a highly probable chart success and widespread airplay across multiple radio formats.

Directed by Patrick R. Epstein and produced on very short notice on March 20, 1988 by filmmaker Michael R. Barnard, the music video for "Alphabet St." shows Prince walking and driving a late 60's Ford Thunderbird through an environment made out of letters. The video contains hidden messages. The first one appears after the end of the first verse ("She'll want me from my head to my feet"), where there is a split second image with the hidden message "Don't buy The Black Album, I'm sorry." The second image says B "heaven is so beautiful"; the third image is D "4 the light dance"; the fourth image is G "funk guitar"; the fifth image is H (heroin) "is 4 punks"; the sixth image, when Prince is in the Thunderbird, says "if U don't mind". The final one is when Prince dances on the Thunderbird, "GOD I LOVE U ♡" being shown for a split second.

• 7-inch single

A. "Alphabet St." (edit), 2:25

B. "Alphabet St." (cont.), 3:14

• 12-inch and CD single

1. "Alphabet St." (album version), 5:38
2. "Alphabet St. ("This is not music, this is a trip")", 7:48

• CD promo

1. "Alphabet St." (edit), 2:25
2. "Alphabet St." (LP version), 5:38
3. "Alphabet St." (extended version), 5:40
4. "Alphabet St. ("This is not music, this is a trip")" [Listed as "Alphabet St."], 7:48

Credits sourced from Benoît Clerc and Guitarcloud

• Prince, lead and backing vocals, electric guitar, Roland D-50, synthesizers, bass guitar, Linn LM-1, Dynacord ADD-One, cuíca, handclaps
• Sheila E., drums, handclaps
• Eric Leeds, saxophone
• Atlanta Bliss, trumpet
• Cat Glover, rap, backing vocals
• Boni Boyer, backing vocals
• Ingrid Chavez, spoken voice