PurpleBilly said:

How are you doing that? I just get a page saying it is for Canadian AOL residents only?

I bought it at SPECS YESTERDAY.. It isn't Cancelled.

Hello,

I noticed on Amazon that the release date for the Ultimate collection had been pushed back two weeks to March 28th, 2006.

If this is true and the CD comes out on the 28th then all of this is to create "BUZZ" for the 3121 release.

I remember a few years ago that Prince said in an interview that his people were controlling the marketing for the new projects (Musicology at the time). So all this drama could have been part of the plan for the 3121 release.

Prince could have two number one albums a week apart, 3121 next week and the Ultimate collection the following week.

Has any artist ever had that happen before?

Chris

jjam said:

They are 192 kbs. Not 100% CD quality, but pretty darn close. They sound fantastic.

NorthernLad said:

for the full price it's utter bollocks.

It's DRM protected but the site says you can burn it to disk. When i try to burn it i get a 'unknown error'

Fucking typical.

and they wonder why P2P FS is so common?

Jesus wept.

PurpleBilly said:

You can burn it if you use Windows Media Player. I burned mine to CD. And now i'm ripping it from the CD to put onto my ipod. $17.99 is a little steep, but its nice to have these remixes in great sound quality.

192kbps is pretty useless. As I said before, no disrespect mate, but it makes no sense buying MP3s of remastered music; the loss in sound quality is too discernible, particularly if listening through headphones.

jjam said:

yeah i would think that Cd copies will show up SOON... hell i may not even open my set!

article posted on npgmc today, but quickly deleted by mods,

Latest album confusion really is 'Ultimate Prince'
BY ROSS RAIHALA
Pioneer Press

While Prince's latest album, '3121,' isn't out until Tuesday, another new Prince title almost crept into stores this week.

The key word here is "almost."

Prince's old label, Warner Bros., had planned to release the compilation "Ultimate Prince," a double-CD set containing some of his biggest hits and most interesting remixes. But after the discs were pressed and shipped to distributors, radio and the press, the label pulled "Ultimate Prince" from the schedule.

The decision happened last week, apparently too late to keep "Ultimate Prince" from appearing in the Sunday ad circulars for the big-box stores.

Why the last-minute fuss? A publicist for the label said it was an "artist rights issue." In other words, Prince took advantage of his purple reign and demanded the nonrelease of the set.

It makes perfect sense that the guy would be wary about "Ultimate Prince" showing up on racks a mere seven days before "3121," his most commercial-sounding effort in ages. Especially in these days of plummeting CD sales, Prince doesn't want potential customers to choose a collection of his old stuff in favor of this year's model.

This also isn't the first time Warner Bros. has timed the release of a compilation to coincide with a new Prince product. His final WB disc, "Chaos and Disorder," took some steam out of "Emancipation" in 1996, and the same thing happened three years later when Warner's "The Vault: Old Friends 4 Sale" hit the shelves a few months before "Rave Un2 the Joy Fantastic."

Still, it was an unexpected move to postpone "Ultimate Prince" so close to its release date. And given that so many copies of the collection were already in the pipeline, it's entirely possible that some showed up for sale in some stores this week despite the label's best efforts. Savvy and/or greedy eBay sellers are already offering promotional copies of the album for as much as $180.

Hardcore fans need not break out the wallet yet, though. While there is not an official new release date for "Ultimate Prince," the label's publicist said it's likely to be issued in three or four months — at which time Prince will most likely be touring.

The main reason it'll be worth the wait is the second disc with all those great remixes, some of which have never been issued on CD. Unlike most remixes from the '80s, which simply extended the length of the track, Prince used the opportunity to jam and throw in all sorts of weird sonic touches. The longer "Pop Life" is even more lush and dreamy than the original, and the extended "Raspberry Beret" takes on a rather explicitly druggy tone, complete with Prince's suspicious-sounding coughing fits buried in the mix.

As for "3121," be sure to see Tuesday's Pioneer Press for my full review.

txladykat said:

Interesting. It'd really suck to pay $180 for the album from Ebay only for it to come out anyway in a couple of months.

What if there were one of two more tracklist changes in that time though? Then they'd find a way to justify it.

I'm getting together mp3s of the tracks and drawing up the artwork freehand on MS Paint as we speak. Ebay here we come!

some how in a week i bet you will be able to get if off ebay for $35 to $40 shipped.

jjam said:

That's your opinion. I don't think $17.99 is that much at all, but to each his own.

it means i am scared to open this

I ordered a copy off half.com a few days ago...the status says shipped, it'll be interesting to see if I actually get what I ordered!!

CandaceS said:

I hope you do get it... but i have to say... we have ordered severalthings from Half.com they billed us and it said SHIPPED. but then a week or more later we got an email saying it was not in stock. I have a felling they are drop shippers.

So they pulled ultimate? but so many got out one has to wonder? maybe Rihno/WB did not care if they got sold... as long as they issued the recal...

Let's not jump the gun and assume Prince is behind the lawsuit. He could be, but it could also be Universal, thinking that "Ultimate" interferes with the promotion for 3121.

croweonbranch said:

Universal would have not legal any reason to get WB to pull the set.

I got a strange feeling that this will never see the light of day again!

seanski said:

Yeah, it's hard to tell right now!! I hope I actually get it, this whole thing has been so strange I'll believe it when it's in my hands!

seanski said:

I'm sure it's going to be released in the next couple of months.

rainbowchild said:

I hope so, but then again were talking about a Prince cd here. Pulling albums seems to be a trade mark of his now.

There still seems to be some confusion with regard to Ultimate - it's clearly been pulled for now, but some places are showing it as 'in stock' while others have put back the release date.

Amazon UK says you can expect it in 4-6 weeks - http://www.amazon.co.uk/e...33-5547013

CDwow have it down for May - http://www8.cd-wow.com/de..._code=1186

101cd just out of stock - http://www.101cd.com/deta...id=1138968

HMV as deleted! - http://www.hmv.co.uk/hmvw...sku=484279

It looks like it WILL appear at some stage.

For anyone who doesn't mind mp3 versions i'm sure it'll be on www.allofmp3.com soon too.

The significance of it is that Prince is being Prince once again and does what he darns pleases!!

Amazon.com say its out now on 28th of March.

GoldiesParade said:

that is their guess and it is not correct. Best info i have MAYBE in Aug.

SlamGlam said:

And then it still might not get released.

Hey guys...First post

I live in the heart of hollywood. Word I hear from people within the industry is that this IS NOT going to come out. Shelved entirely. Not sure if this is true, but I have this from a very reliable source within the industry....not a best buy employee!!!

Regardless, I have it. Bought it on EBAY. Excellent for the collector. Just my two sense I guess....

LAGUY34 said:

Figures!