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Thread started 08/23/12 7:18am

Kever10

Prince Collection advice

Hi everyone

I am new to the forum, but have been a massive Prince fan for years. One of the main reasons for joining, is that after lurking for a while before I joined, I found the level of Prince knowledge here to be exceptional, so I was confident that someone would be able to answer any questions I have?

As the title of my post suggests, I am after some advice in regards to adding to my Prince music collection. I am a CD collector, not a vinyl collector, which i know is frowned upon in some circles, but that's another discussion for another day.

Anyway... while I do collect other CD's, as well, I am keen on compiling as complete a Prince CD collection as I can. I have most official album releases, and I am working on making that all. I am currently short of Indigo Nights, Lotus Flower, One Night Alone and Crystal ball, plus 3 compilation albums, (Girl 6, The Very Best of Prince, and Ultimate Prince), and some of the harder to find (£££££) NPG releases (I have New Power Soul and Exodus).

I have 2 separate questions for now in regards to furthering my collection...

The 1st is in relation to the download only albums from the former NPG music club, and where I would be able to get a hold of these now in the absence of the site. I must add that I have read the terms and the notes in relation to bootlegs, etc, but must qualify my statement by adding that I myself am no fan of bootlegs, copies, fakes ( I did fall for a fake version of Apollonia 6's album on eay some time ago, which I promptly returned for a full refund)...

I was just wondering if there was still some way of obtaining a legitimate copy of the download only albums. I actually was a paid up member of the NPG website, but, and as weird as this sounds, it was before I had full access PC, I was signed up on works PC, which meant I could not download anything. And so I missed the boat.

sad

If anyone can help in relation to information regarding the download only albums, I would be greatly appreciative,

smile

My 2nd question is in relation to obtaining legitimate versions of the extended versions of Let's go Crazy and Erotic City, on CD. I have the Hits/B Sides set, so I have that version of EC, and I obviously own both the CD and DVD versions of Purple Rain, but would love to own the full extended version of LGC in some form, minus the film dialogue.

Again, information in relation to these, I would be extremely thankful.

smile

Anyway, back to work for me... Think I'll listen to Dirty Mind as I go.

biggrin

Cheers

Kev

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Reply #1 posted 08/23/12 7:42am

electricberet

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The extended version of "Let's Go Crazy" is on the Prince: Ultimate compilation, along with several other extended versions. "Erotic City" is not on that compilation, but it was released on a German mini-CD single that you can easily find on sites such as eBay. You'll need to make sure that your CD player or drive can play those mini-CDs: some external disc drives can and others cannot.

As far as I know, there is no legitimate way to purchase the download-only albums from the NPGMC. I wish Prince would set up a website to allow fans to do that, but that would make too much sense. lol

The Census Bureau estimates that there are 2,518 American Indians and Alaska Natives currently living in the city of Long Beach.
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Reply #2 posted 08/23/12 7:53am

Dewrede

avatar

Kever10 said:

Hi everyone

I am new to the forum, but have been a massive Prince fan for years. One of the main reasons for joining, is that after lurking for a while before I joined, I found the level of Prince knowledge here to be exceptional, so I was confident that someone would be able to answer any questions I have?

As the title of my post suggests, I am after some advice in regards to adding to my Prince music collection. I am a CD collector, not a vinyl collector, which i know is frowned upon in some circles, but that's another discussion for another day.

Anyway... while I do collect other CD's, as well, I am keen on compiling as complete a Prince CD collection as I can. I have most official album releases, and I am working on making that all. I am currently short of Indigo Nights, Lotus Flower, One Night Alone and Crystal ball, plus 3 compilation albums, (Girl 6, The Very Best of Prince, and Ultimate Prince), and some of the harder to find (£££££) NPG releases (I have New Power Soul and Exodus).

I have 2 separate questions for now in regards to furthering my collection...

The 1st is in relation to the download only albums from the former NPG music club, and where I would be able to get a hold of these now in the absence of the site. I must add that I have read the terms and the notes in relation to bootlegs, etc, but must qualify my statement by adding that I myself am no fan of bootlegs , copies, fakes ( I did fall for a fake version of Apollonia 6's album on eay some time ago, which I promptly returned for a full refund)...

I was just wondering if there was still some way of obtaining a legitimate copy of the download only albums. I actually was a paid up member of the NPG website, but, and as weird as this sounds, it was before I had full access PC, I was signed up on works PC, which meant I could not download anything. And so I missed the boat.

sad

If anyone can help in relation to information regarding the download only albums, I would be greatly appreciative,

smile

My 2nd question is in relation to obtaining legitimate versions of the extended versions of Let's go Crazy and Erotic City, on CD. I have the Hits/B Sides set, so I have that version of EC, and I obviously own both the CD and DVD versions of Purple Rain, but would love to own the full extended version of LGC in some form, minus the film dialogue.

Again, information in relation to these, I would be extremely thankful.

smile

Anyway, back to work for me... Think I'll listen to Dirty Mind as I go.

biggrin

Cheers

Kev

Frankly spoken , I can't fathom that at all ;

Many of his unreleased songs and live recordings are fantastic

Infact , they are what keeps me interested and are the reason that i'm such a huge fan

If it was for his latest output only i would've lost interest

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Reply #3 posted 08/23/12 7:56am

electricberet

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I have no problem listening to bootlegs of unauthorized recordings. However, I don't want to spend one cent on a counterfeit version of something that was officially released, even if the original costs hundreds of dollars. If that is what the OP means then I agree with him.

The Census Bureau estimates that there are 2,518 American Indians and Alaska Natives currently living in the city of Long Beach.
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Reply #4 posted 08/23/12 7:58am

NouveauDance

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electricberet said:

The extended version of "Let's Go Crazy" is on the Prince: Ultimate compilation, along with several other extended versions. "Erotic City" is not on that compilation, but it was released on a German mini-CD single that you can easily find on sites such as eBay. You'll need to make sure that your CD player or drive can play those mini-CDs: some external disc drives can and others cannot.

As far as I know, there is no legitimate way to purchase the download-only albums from the NPGMC. I wish Prince would set up a website to allow fans to do that, but that would make too much sense. lol

These were released on regular 5" CDs too. smile

[Edited 8/23/12 8:00am]

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Reply #5 posted 08/23/12 8:12am

Dewrede

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electricberet said:

I have no problem listening to bootlegs of unauthorized recordings. However, I don't want to spend one cent on a counterfeit version of something that was officially released, even if the original costs hundreds of dollars. If that is what the OP means then I agree with him.

yeah i thought he might've meant that too

[Edited 8/23/12 8:15am]

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Reply #6 posted 08/23/12 8:16am

Kever10

electricberet said:

I have no problem listening to bootlegs of unauthorized recordings. However, I don't want to spend one cent on a counterfeit version of something that was officially released, even if the original costs hundreds of dollars. If that is what the OP means then I agree with him.



Yes, this is what i meant to say, which is why i mentioned the copies, fakes things as well. I actually have a few bootleg CDs in my collection, live concerts (Club Black, a soundcheck CD, and ive bought Smashing Pumpkins bootlegs in the past, like the Machina 2 album that was never released on CD)... But as you rightly said, if it did have an official release, i tend to stay clear of copies.

And thanks for the replies guys. Really helpful.

smile
[Edited 8/23/12 8:19am]
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Reply #7 posted 08/23/12 12:29pm

jfrost

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Unfortunately in order to have the NPG downloadable albums then you are have to download, as some might say, a bootleg.

I rather think of it as a friend lending me their MP3 (MP3 is the only format these were released in), but in saying that if an official release of The Slaughterhouse, The Chocolate Invasion, C-NOTE and/or Xpectation came along in the morning then I'd be buying those...and very happy to do so.

But at the moment you are reliant on a virtual friend to share with you.

Good luck with the actual albums, but don't forget the CD singles as some very cool B-sides are ther to be found as well as some extended singles, like Gett Off, Cream and Letitgo to mention but three.

Then the once off CD singles like SST/Brand New Orleans and U Make My Sun Shine.

But one peice of advice...don't get hung up on what you need but rather enjoy what you have.

The right to free discussion is protected!!
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Reply #8 posted 08/30/12 5:14am

Kever10

Update:

Managed to get a copy of Ultimate Prince, so I've finally got the extended Let's go Crazy. Thanks electricberet.

Not got extended Erotic City yet, but I am on it... I found a copy of the 5" single mentioned by NouveauDance on Amazon which is cheaper than most of the ebay ones, so probably go for that.

I also managed to get a (authentic, hopefully) copy of the Vanity 6 CD from a seller on Amazon.com, which was pretty cool.

Still working on the others though. There used to be a really good independent CD shop in Liverpool in the Palace on Slater street that had the occasional rare/Bootleg CDs, but that closed years ago and there's nothing similar to my knowledge, apart from the occasional CD fair.

Anyway, 1 further question following on from my others...

I am doing a "My ultimate introduction to Prince" playlist in an attempt to convert my brother, and 1 other "extended" version I would like to put on it is the full length "Computer Blue".

Any ideas where I can find this?

Cheers in advance.

P.S. jfrost, totally agree with that sentiment... I do appreciate the stuff I've already got, even more so lately while I have been going back through everything trying to make this playlist for my bro...

It's hard trying to find that balance narrowing down the entire back catalogue to roughly 50 tracks... I was going through the entire track list on my iPod and saving favourites to an"on the go" playlist and when I went back through for the 2nd edit, I had saved over 100 tracks to it, whole albums in some cases, and trying to narrow them down was HARD...

I kind of felt guilty missing some out.

LOL

It's a work in progress anyway. When it's done, I might post the completed list here, see what y'all think.

[Edited 8/30/12 5:45am]

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Reply #9 posted 08/30/12 6:01am

databank

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The full-lenght version (whatever it is since there are actually several long versions, the longest not including some musical elements that were then added on a later, still very long but nonetheless shorter version) has never been released, so you can't find it anywhere but on bootlegs.

The internet-only albums aren't legally available anywhere, so there is no other option than downloading them from internet sites or peer-2-peer networks. Illegal download of official material isn't the same as getting bootlegs, though. There are some hard copies made by bootleggers from back then, but why pay illegally for what you can get for free illegally?

What you need is to grab a digital and free copy of Work It 2.0, which is the ultimate Prince outtakes collection, and a few collections released later which include new material or similar material with better sound quality: 30 Years Of Unreleased Funk, Box Of Chocolate, Parade Demos, Exodus V1 & V2, Perfect Unreleased Prince and 10,000 Wallpaper and u'll kinda have just everything save a very few circulating songs.

Also, you can rely on www.princevault.com and my chronological discography (linked below) for the data you need regarding Prince's discography (both sites are work in progress).

And, last but not least, it is VERY easy to find pretty much everything online, just using Google.

[Edited 8/30/12 6:03am]

A COMPREHENSIVE PRINCE DISCOGRAPHY (work in progress ^^): https://sites.google.com/...scography/
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Reply #10 posted 08/30/12 6:19am

Kever10

Just had a quick look at your site... wow... that is comprehensive...

Well, I know what I'm doing in work this afternoon.

LOL

Cheers

biggrin

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Reply #11 posted 08/30/12 6:33am

NouveauDance

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Since a lot of the NPGMC/download albums stuff is not available in ANY format physical or digital to purchase, I think it's fine for people who weren't around at the time to download them.

If they were out on CD or up on iTunes, they'd be there to get legally, but they're not so P. misses a few extra bucks there for zero effort on his part.

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Reply #12 posted 08/30/12 7:14am

electricberet

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Kever10 said:

Update:

Managed to get a copy of Ultimate Prince, so I've finally got the extended Let's go Crazy. Thanks electricberet.

Not got extended Erotic City yet, but I am on it... I found a copy of the 5" single mentioned by NouveauDance on Amazon which is cheaper than most of the ebay ones, so probably go for that.

I also managed to get a (authentic, hopefully) copy of the Vanity 6 CD from a seller on Amazon.com, which was pretty cool.

Still working on the others though. There used to be a really good independent CD shop in Liverpool in the Palace on Slater street that had the occasional rare/Bootleg CDs, but that closed years ago and there's nothing similar to my knowledge, apart from the occasional CD fair.

Anyway, 1 further question following on from my others...

I am doing a "My ultimate introduction to Prince" playlist in an attempt to convert my brother, and 1 other "extended" version I would like to put on it is the full length "Computer Blue".

Any ideas where I can find this?

Cheers in advance.

P.S. jfrost, totally agree with that sentiment... I do appreciate the stuff I've already got, even more so lately while I have been going back through everything trying to make this playlist for my bro...

It's hard trying to find that balance narrowing down the entire back catalogue to roughly 50 tracks... I was going through the entire track list on my iPod and saving favourites to an"on the go" playlist and when I went back through for the 2nd edit, I had saved over 100 tracks to it, whole albums in some cases, and trying to narrow them down was HARD...

I kind of felt guilty missing some out.

LOL

It's a work in progress anyway. When it's done, I might post the completed list here, see what y'all think.

[Edited 8/30/12 5:45am]

Most of the copies of Vanity 6 for sale on Amazon are counterfeits, some of them quite authentic-looking. I was fooled myself at one point. There is a sticky in the Marketplace forum that will help you determine whether it is a fake (in which case it may be up-sampled from mp3s and inferior to files you can find on the internet for free). The Apollonia 6 album is very rare and only issued in Japan; if you can find a copy, be prepared to pay several hundred dollars for it. Mine cost me $1000.

The Census Bureau estimates that there are 2,518 American Indians and Alaska Natives currently living in the city of Long Beach.
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Reply #13 posted 08/30/12 8:55am

djThunderfunk

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Look for the book that contains Indigo Nights at your local large book retailer in the discount section. People have reported seeing it discounted as low as $4.99. The book sucks but I just consider it an elaborate CD cover and focus on the disc... wink

Also, you can probably find the LotusFlow3r 3CD set at Target for about $5 too.

[Edited 8/30/12 8:56am]

Liberty > Authority
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Reply #14 posted 09/03/12 10:07am

Kever10

djThunderfunk said:

Look for the book that contains Indigo Nights at your local large book retailer in the discount section. People have reported seeing it discounted as low as $4.99. The book sucks but I just consider it an elaborate CD cover and focus on the disc... wink

Also, you can probably find the LotusFlow3r 3CD set at Target for about $5 too.

[Edited 8/30/12 8:56am]

I actually live in the UK, so we don't have Target over here, which is a shame, because I've seen elsewhere that they seem to get a few exclusve or limited edition releases of things, not just Prince CD's but I recall seeing a limited edition set of The Office series 7 (I think) with a bonus disc on, which was released in Target. CD/DVD shops over here range from cheap places like That's Entertainment (great bargains) to HMV (ridiculously expensive for what you can get). I tend to do most of shopping oline.

And speaking of online, I am probably gonna pick up both the Indigo nights and Lotus Flower CD on Amazon very soon, as I have noticed recently they seem to have dropped in price a fair bit, and I have a voucher that needs to be used soon.

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Reply #15 posted 09/03/12 10:48am

djThunderfunk

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Kever10 said:

djThunderfunk said:

Look for the book that contains Indigo Nights at your local large book retailer in the discount section. People have reported seeing it discounted as low as $4.99. The book sucks but I just consider it an elaborate CD cover and focus on the disc... wink

Also, you can probably find the LotusFlow3r 3CD set at Target for about $5 too.

[Edited 8/30/12 8:56am]

I actually live in the UK, so we don't have Target over here, which is a shame, because I've seen elsewhere that they seem to get a few exclusve or limited edition releases of things, not just Prince CD's but I recall seeing a limited edition set of The Office series 7 (I think) with a bonus disc on, which was released in Target. CD/DVD shops over here range from cheap places like That's Entertainment (great bargains) to HMV (ridiculously expensive for what you can get). I tend to do most of shopping oline.

And speaking of online, I am probably gonna pick up both the Indigo nights and Lotus Flower CD on Amazon very soon, as I have noticed recently they seem to have dropped in price a fair bit, and I have a voucher that needs to be used soon.

Here's an idea. Try to find a cheap copy of 20Ten in the UK, then trade it with somebody who can pick up a cheap copy of LotusFlower in the US! Everybody wins... wink

Liberty > Authority
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Reply #16 posted 09/03/12 10:51am

electricberet

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djThunderfunk said:

Kever10 said:

I actually live in the UK, so we don't have Target over here, which is a shame, because I've seen elsewhere that they seem to get a few exclusve or limited edition releases of things, not just Prince CD's but I recall seeing a limited edition set of The Office series 7 (I think) with a bonus disc on, which was released in Target. CD/DVD shops over here range from cheap places like That's Entertainment (great bargains) to HMV (ridiculously expensive for what you can get). I tend to do most of shopping oline.

And speaking of online, I am probably gonna pick up both the Indigo nights and Lotus Flower CD on Amazon very soon, as I have noticed recently they seem to have dropped in price a fair bit, and I have a voucher that needs to be used soon.

Here's an idea. Try to find a cheap copy of 20Ten in the UK, then trade it with somebody who can pick up a cheap copy of LotusFlower in the US! Everybody wins... wink

That's actually a great idea. I bought my copy of LotusFlow3r at Target for $5. I have heard prices reported as low as 99 cents. I haven't been back to Target recently but if they still have any copies in stock (which I imagine they do) I'd be happy to trade with a British fan for a copy of 20Ten, which is the one official album I haven't bought.

The Census Bureau estimates that there are 2,518 American Indians and Alaska Natives currently living in the city of Long Beach.
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Reply #17 posted 09/03/12 11:07am

jfrost

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electricberet said:

djThunderfunk said:

Here's an idea. Try to find a cheap copy of 20Ten in the UK, then trade it with somebody who can pick up a cheap copy of LotusFlower in the US! Everybody wins... wink

That's actually a great idea. I bought my copy of LotusFlow3r at Target for $5. I have heard prices reported as low as 99 cents. I haven't been back to Target recently but if they still have any copies in stock (which I imagine they do) I'd be happy to trade with a British fan for a copy of 20Ten, which is the one official album I haven't bought.

With a possibility that Kever may not have a second copy of 20Ten, I'll volunteer my second copy (Actually the only one I have left bar my own copy as I posted nearly a dozen to America at the time of release!!)

So if Kever hasn't got a back-up copy then let him Pm Eletricberet who will in turn Pm me his address and I'll post on a copy!!!

The right to free discussion is protected!!
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Reply #18 posted 09/03/12 11:14am

kev1972

Kever I can't believe you used to visit that shop too! It was opposite the back of burtons is! I bought many bootlegs there and in probe off Matthew st! If you still can't find what you're looking for pm me and I'll help
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Reply #19 posted 09/03/12 1:33pm

Kever10

jfrost said:



electricberet said:




djThunderfunk said:




Here's an idea. Try to find a cheap copy of 20Ten in the UK, then trade it with somebody who can pick up a cheap copy of LotusFlower in the US! Everybody wins... wink





That's actually a great idea. I bought my copy of LotusFlow3r at Target for $5. I have heard prices reported as low as 99 cents. I haven't been back to Target recently but if they still have any copies in stock (which I imagine they do) I'd be happy to trade with a British fan for a copy of 20Ten, which is the one official album I haven't bought.




With a possibility that Kever may not have a second copy of 20Ten, I'll volunteer my second copy (Actually the only one I have left bar my own copy as I posted nearly a dozen to America at the time of release!!)



So if Kever hasn't got a back-up copy then let him Pm Eletricberet who will in turn Pm me his address and I'll post on a copy!!!





Actually, my "spare" copy of 20ten is actually still sealed in the bag it came in and tucked inside the Daily Mirror it came with, complete with headline about Raul Moat.

LOL

If id have known about this at the time, id have bought more copies...

:-/

[img] http://m.flickr.com/light...7924500976 [/img]
[Edited 9/3/12 13:53pm]
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Reply #20 posted 09/03/12 2:05pm

Kever10

kev1972 said:

Kever I can't believe you used to visit that shop too! It was opposite the back of burtons is! I bought many bootlegs there and in probe off Matthew st! If you still can't find what you're looking for pm me and I'll help


Yeah, there where a few places, the old Quiggins by Bluecoat chambers, and another place inbetween there called Vinyl frontier, and the shop on the ground floor in the palace on slater street. Also Probe, which also on sater street after Matthew street, and which i found out last week has now gone as well. I always remember the black and white cardboard cutout of Frank Zapa in the window.

I still remember goin in to all of those shops and spending fortunes on CDs, pre internet of course. Those where the days.

LOL

Thanks for the offer too man, very kind.

biggrin
[Edited 9/3/12 14:07pm]
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