BartVanHemelen said:

There are enough exemptions to this when it comes to Prince that I'm not sure if any of this applies to his situation. He did acheive the mentioned superstar status to give him leverage. Of course he did fire his lawyers and management before going in to negotiate that last one. But we've seen enough outtake material released from his Warner Bros. period to know that they don't own stuff in the vault.

On the other hand, nothing prior to 1985 has shown up (no, wait, does Cloreen Baconskin count?), so it could be that they do own the outtake material covered under his FIRST contract.

BartVanHemelen said:

Neither did the devils. Ephesians 6:9

Very enlightened posts for any artist on this thread.

theRight1 said:

You're using that story to romanticize Prince's struggle for his own kingdom, comparing his fight to Jehoshaphat's fight.

Even Jesus said to render unto Caesar what is Caesar's, and unto God what is God's. That is not only about paying taxes or tithing, but speaks to the principle of sticking to a business deal and doing what you said you would do. Prince needs to keep reading to realize that in his own post-WB business affairs, as well as stop whining about his past with the WB. The wishy-washy power that is bothering Prince is his own reflection.

theRight1 said:

Don't take one verse out of context. The whole section reads:

" I WANT MY DADDY'S RECORDS"!!!






go to 5:19 -


[Edited 3/9/10 12:14pm]

[Edited 3/9/10 12:17pm]

That's a hoot...You gotta love that show!

In regards to Prince not being able to do 'anything' with the masters tapes, I believe this is incorrect; Bearing in mind this is Prince not some band who recorded an album at a recording studio and never saw the tapes again, Prince records many versions and mixes/edits of most of his songs - WB do not own alternate versions (even if it's only a small difference), they own the exact version that was released. For instance Prince can release Purple Rain with the exact tracklist if he
1. slightly changes the album title "Alternative Purple Rain"?
2. Ensures the songs are different to those WB released (which I for one would be hyped to hear - we all know there are numerous alt. versions of PR songs - Computer Blue comes to mind!

In fact I believe this type of release would garner far more interest from fans, critics and the media than just a remastered WB Purple Rain.

"Imagine the chance to hear a Purple Rain album from an alternate dimension! -
with all the songs slightly different but just as good, if not better!"

"Wow I need to hear that!"
.....

citrus said:

What about the new mastered version of "The Screams Of Passion" or Nast Girl" "Adore" or "Girl And Boys" from Girl 6? HE did something to those tracks...or did Warner touch those to sound updated?

lotusflw3r said:

If he could've, he would've. He can't. He'd have to use completely alternate takes. Since half the album is based on live takes (either in the warehouse or from the 8/3/83 show), I doubt there are any alternatives to them he'd be comfortable with.

BartVanHemelen said:

doesnt make the record company any less fraudulent for claiming rights to things that do not rightfully belong to them

should anyone get royalties for songs they didnt write? no

should anyone claim ownership of rights on works they did not create? no

however you slice it - the modern music business is one of the worst mal-practices in the entertainment industry

paisleypark4 said:

LOL@ New mastered. Nothing was mastered on that CD.

citrus said:

Prince gets royalties for his albums, ALL of them, IF they sell. WB has a legal right to ownership because that's the contract that Prince signed with them. It's quite a common practice for record companies to retain ownership of the records once they're done. This is not new news. It doesn't make it right, it makes it reality.

You think Arista, or Sony doesn't get payment for future copies of Rave or whatever album they manufacture? You're crazy to think otherwise.

Should vs. do.

paisleypark4 said:

i have no idea, but either way, for any company to expect an artist to sign over the rights to their own work simply because they're gonna front some dollars is outright shady from the beginning

they cover their asses from the outset because they're all too corporately weak to be honest business people and take the financial risk

they want to know they can make their money back so they lock in countless ways to do so

they're like the big talking man who wants to make a big investment but doesn't have the balls to put his balls on the table

my concerns arent so much for what Prince thinks he deserves, but for artists who have been mercilessly taken advantage of, had their naivety totally exploited and who won't see the rights to their work for over a quarter of a century?

that right there is complete absurdity

only on Planet Rape would something like that happen

ernestsewell said:

if you sit back and accept whats WRONG as being 'reality' then you have no hope whatsoever of the RIGHT thing ever being done

no offense to you personally but when people use this line of reasoning it's just as much of a cop-out
as the record company who says "we can't give you your soul back because you sold it to us and it's not our fault if we want to keep it"

wtf?

at ANY moment of the day a record company has the ETHICAL CHOICE to change their contractual arrangements and do the right thing by their artist

but they dont cuz they're greedy little corporate lizards

citrus said:

You can't change what you don't acknowledge.

dance4me3121 said:

My cousin's barber's daddy's first wife's ex-husband's nieces' third grade teacher's mama's hairdresser's preacher said he read somewhere that when they revert to his exclusive control, Prince has promised to conduct a lottery to give each master to a founding member of LotusFlow3r to do with as they please.

ernestsewell said:

Prince owe his band associates etc alot of money. I guess that makes it even. Warner took his Masters and Prince took other people money. Now he knows how it feels.

Boogiebear said:

That's a lie.

I can see him getting taken prior to Purple Rain but in 1985 he could have (as he said in the Rolling Stone interview) renegotiated his contract to keep his future masters and get the older ones back sooner.

Or even after the $100Million deal he signed in the 90s! Or after the "Slave" spat.

Prince could have gone back to WB in 98 or maybe even 2004 if he really wanted to!

So I really have no sympathy for him.

CJBabyDaddy said:

Thank you Symone. Fry? Fry? Beuller? Beuller?

ernestsewell said:

Thats truth earnie!!

Boogiebear said:

You're full of shit on it. I've talked to his former band members, personally.

ernestsewell said:

Let it Go! It's not your life.

Boogiebear said:

Let go of your fantasy.

we all have Prince's master recordings.

If we don't he was a pretty shit teacher.

Cx

ernestsewell said:

exactly. that's why they never change.

ernestsewell said:

You got the Fantasy! I don't talk about Prince life you do. Check Point Earnie