I was wondering what the thoughts were on the 'contract filler' albums from 1993-96?

I mean firstly the significance of releasing albums by both Prince and O+> during this time-period:

the Prince albums: Come, Black album, Girl 6 and The Vault, would on the face of it appear to be contract filler. Two compilations, one dated already bootlegged and all with no obvious promotion from Prince via promo videos etc.

Now the O+> albums:

TGE had 4 videos made, 3 aired on commercial TV being TMBGITW, Dolphin and Gold and the fourth I hate U – which was delayed to the point where it made no sense to air it - probably to spite WB. This doesn’t include the TOTP video of Endorphinmachine which may have been made with a single in mind. Now I state all this to demonstrate that this project was very close to Prince’s heart at one point and we know the ownership of the masters probably lies with Prince.

Similarly C&D again released under O+> was heavily promoted via the lead single Dinner with Delores for which a video was made and there were several TV appearance tie-ins. In addition we know that the Same December video was updated [with additional graphics in 1996 and copyrighted to WB] so we can assume it was intended as a single release. In additon, videos for Zannalee and I like it there were also shot – although to assume this was for a possible single releases is less certain. On top of this we know that having given WB C&D, Prince then decided to re-record / [record new] material in April 1996 [Miami sessions] with a view to updating / improving the record before release. Not the actions of a man going through the motions to get out of a contract as quickly as possible. [Still a great shame that Da Bang, Calhoun Sq and a travesty that the original Zannalee and Empty Room where omitted]

Now along with the name the album was released under i.e. O+> this leads me to believe that Prince did not [at the time] consider C&D a contract filler album per sae and had every intention of trying to make it a success and regain recently lost ground. Until that is, he changed his mind or something else on the horizon took his interest – i.e. most likely Emancipation.

Anybody have any thoughts?????
[Edited 9/12/05 7:23am]
[Edited 12/25/13 15:03pm]

I think the significance of denoting a Prince or release comes down largely to timing.

Come is Prince, since it was viewed as a kind of "post-humous" release, with the dates of Prince's birth and "death" on the sleeve, and the photography, of Prince outside a Church yard, it's a farewell to Prince (plus Prince wanted to release Come and Gold simultaneously, even though the material is intertwined, they shared tracks etc) - So, that's why Come is labelled as a Prince record.

TBA - It's a Prince album because of when the tracks were recorded, no mystery there.

Girl 6, similarly is largely old Prince music, except for the title track, which is acredited to the NPG.

By this time, had put Prince to bed so to speak, with Come, so Gold is , and so is C&D.

Now as for why The Vault is a Prince release, I'm not entirely sure. Since Prince delivered the album to WB along with C&D, I'm assuming he intentionally labelled it as Prince.

Now since the intention was to release The Vault at a later date, after Prince cut ties with WB, I'm taking a stab that Prince labelled it a 'Prince' album (and not ) - since his future new, independent releases would be as , so WB's release of The Vault would be differentiated as a contractual Prince release, and not a new release. That's my guess.

Just to veer off the main topic for a second, I still see C&D (and The Vault, and Come) come under fire from many fans for being 'contractual filler' - which they were. BUT much like the Black album before it, they are largely compilation albums, not projects recorded as a whole, specifically for that project.

The distinction is that the material itself shouldn't really come under fire for being filler so much, because it wasn't recorded with that intention, only the tracks were put together with such intention.

This parallels with the Black album, since it's labelled as a negative album, but it's not so much the material itself that is negative, but the intention behind the project's compilation.

BorisFishpaw recently outlined a great point in a thread about Come, in that, yes the album is intentionally a contractual release, but the material was not recorded for this purpose, and thus the material, the songs, themselves are not really to be viewed as filler, or lesser throwaway songs, just Prince's intention behind their compilation. He may have given Warners just enough top-drawer material on a vinyl-length album (Come, C&D & The Vault are all vinyl length) - but, the material wasn't made with this in mind.

I'm talking myself in circles, but I think I put across what I wanted to say

NouveauDance said:

More likely because the material was recorded before the name change. It was "Prince's work".

Novabreaker said:

Yeah, I guess that's true - 5 Women, OF4S, the I'll Do Anything stuff, I'm trying to think of a track that would be - Just Sarah?

Novabreaker said:

But in the same argument..some of the tracks on Come were recorded after the name-change and even credited to O+> in the beautiful experience film and vice-versa with the undertaker tracks. Just to confuse things.

Alot of Prince albums contain re-worked older tracks - the difference with C&D is that he specifically went out of his way to re-record and record new material in April 1996 - like I said above not the actions of a man going through the motions.

KAB said:

where did you read/hear that these songs were intended for the album?
I think I read somewhere that "Empty Room" was intended to be on it,
as might be expected from the video-story along with Zanalee as well.

but Da Bang and Calhoun Sq?

I always put those on my OWN cdr version of Chaos & Disorder since
they just fit on there really well. But were they actually designed
to be on there at some point???

IstenSzek said:

I suppose Calhoun Square might have been on the unknown original configuration. Da Bang was recorded about the time when was tracking the released C&D, but I doubt he considered it for inclusion.

scififilmnerd said:

I just always thought they would fit on this guitar-based album. As to whether they were intended for the album by Prince - well only Prince really knows.

KAB said:

I agree with you. They do fit very well on this album. I replaced
the few tracks I hate (I Rock, Right the Wrong, new Zanalee) with
these other tracks and the album improves hugely from it.

If "Dig U Better Dead" is too light for your taste you could also
replace it for "Hide the Bone" to make the over all impact darker

NouveauDance said:

Depends what a 'compilation album' actually means. I mean isn't the 'reveered' SOTT a compilation of previously recorded tracks intended for other projects?
Aren't most albums merely recently recorded tracks grouped together?

Which projects were I like It there, Right the wrong, I rock..., Into the light, I will, Dig u better dead and had u recorded for in any case? If not for C&D?

IstenSzek said:

My own version is as follows:


Chaos ans disorder
I like it there
Dinner with Delores
Same December
Right the wrong
18 & over
Zannalee [original]
Empty Room
Da Bang
Calhoun Sq
Into the light
I will
Dig u better dead
had u


I only include Dig u better dead so as not to stray too far from the original version. I actually don't mind Right the wrong and I believe the 18 & over trilogy works ok and it's something Prince obviously intended to go together.

For some reason I've always considered Hide the bone to be more a TGE outtake.

KAB said:

What's the diference of that original version of Zannalee?

MikeMatronik said:

As with say endorphinmachine - Prince just couldn't leave a perfect song alone.

The original is just voice, guitar, bass and drums no silly added sound effects
and a different guitar sound / different begining - it's just a good old fashioned bluesy song.

KAB said:

Thanks 4 the info...

But there's another version of endorphinmachine...

MikeMatronik said:

The first version, from the early version of Come.

KAB said:

There are lyrical differences as well.

NouveauDance said:

Which - like the early version of Zannalee - is far superior to the released version.

scififilmnerd said:

There are, you're correct, as you are about endorphinmachine.

KAB said:

Nobody care to counter my points above regarding the varying degrees of promotion of the O+> albums compared to the Prince ones i.e. recording videos etc.

scififilmnerd said:

You sir, are most correct

Prince, Prince, Prince - WHY can't you leave things alone, always messing around! I can imagine him fiddling with things as a kid and his mum slapping his hands telling him to leave alone!

KAB said:

Sure.

Much of Chaos and Disorder were recorded in 1993 and the videos for Zannalee, Empty Room and I Like It There were shot in 1994 along with the video for the Come remix 18 & Over.

But the Chaos and Disorder album wasn't really released. Prince just made a compilation using the same title and some of the same tracks in 1996. At least, that's how I choose to regard it.

But it does say "compilation" in the cover.

Prince's promotion of C&D was most likely a contractual obligation. He really didn't do all that much promotion, and what he did - like his appearance on the David Letterman Show - seemed very... "I am forced to do this. I do not like it. It is something I have to do, and I am doing only what I have to do, so as soon as I'm done playing this song, I'm outta here!"

So I think C&D can very much be considered "contract filler". After all, it was delivered to WB along with The Vault in a mutually agreed to way of concluding WBs contract with Prince.

KAB said:

Sure.

Except for Gold, those videos were all done prior to WB agreeing to release The Gold Experience. By the time it DID come out, Prince had most likely lost all interest in the album and the promotion he did (one video = Gold) in connection with the release was comparable to what he did for C&D. I think The Gold Experience can be considered as much of a "contract filler album" as Come because both albums came out over a year after having been recorded and both had undergone changes that made the albums inferior to what they had initially been - i.e. Prince didn't want to supply WB with hits to make money off.
[Edited 9/8/05 10:59am]

on a side note, there was also an early sequence that featured tracks from
both Chaos And Disorder and The Gold Experience....

1. Chaos And Disorder
2. Listen 2 The Rhythm
3. Now
4. Right The Wrong
5. Acknowledge Me
6. Ripopgodazippa
7. The Most Beautiful Girl
8. 319
9. Shy
10. Billy Jack Bitch
11. Eye Hate U
12. Gold

.
[Edited 9/8/05 12:19pm]

BorisFishpaw said:

Yes. My guess is that it was made somewhere between the March 1994 configuration of Gold and the September/October 1994 configuration of The Gold Experience.

Neversin has said that this particular configuration was (also?) one of the volumes in the Prince: The Vault Vol.I-III set that Prince offered to WB after flyers had been handed out at the NPG shop in Minneapollis in August 1994, stating the release date of The Gold Experience to be never.

So this particular track list was probably for The Gold Experience. When he decided never to release The Gold Experience in August, he may have included it in The Vault, then changed his mind and did a new configuration of The Gold Experience in September/October.

I NEVER tire of reading about this period of prince's music. i love it!

smokeverbs said:

Me 2

It's great!

I'm gonna listen 2morrow 2 the Come configuration of March 1994...

Wished i had those original version

smokeverbs said:

me too!!!

the best thing ever would be if Prince did Anthology series
and next to the 86/87 one, this period would be my absolute
favorit. imagine all these different takes in good quality!
imagine some more obscure tracks (there are a handfull cuts
from this era that aren't even circulating) and some live n
remixed cuts.



plus extensive liner notes on the projects and the seperate
songs.

Where can you hear Empty Room?

andyman91 said:

The only released version is the one of C-NOTE which is a live one.

There r 2 my knowledge 2 unreleased studio versions...that r on some boots(That i never got my paws on.. )

one from 85-86 I think and other from the era

the other orgers have more info on it...

Please someone correct what i said please!
[Edited 9/8/05 13:57pm]

IstenSzek said:

I need a boxset...NOW!