I'll believe when I see it

there are way too many things that could go wrong...it's Prince we're talking bout

the remasters themselves could be disappointing (like lack of memorabilia-pics-juicy booklet)

if this happens, I'll get 1999, Purple Rain, Parade and SOTT no matter what; the current cds sound AWFUL

HonestMan13 said:

luvsexy4all said:

uhh..yes he can....

Prince can read your mind?

among others...shhh

It depends on what kind of sound from analog... was it the LP yeah that is the real sound. The benefits these dreamers are expecting is 2 or more CDs with out-takes, etc. It would be so funny if Prince decided to censor and re-released all his WB shit

hajiboy said:

Apologies, for being a newbie...what is the benefit of a remaster?

I love that "Dirty Mind" was a raw analague recording.

Just asking

Who cares about a juicy booklet... Music comes first

JoeTyler said:

I'll believe when I see it

there are way too many things that could go wrong...it's Prince we're talking bout

the remasters themselves could be disappointing (like lack of memorabilia-pics-juicy booklet)

if this happens, I'll get 1999, Purple Rain, Parade and SOTT no matter what; the current cds sound AWFUL

[Edited 4/28/14 18:06pm]

This is my first post on here. I have only popped on this site to see whats is going on with Prince. Lord knows that information from him is spotty. But this site has enough hound dogs on it to sniff out the real deal at times. When I was 14 when 1999 came out and I liked it. Then Purple Rain came out and I loved it. But when ATWIAD came out that sealed the deal. That record knocked me out. I remember sitting on my bed listening to the record. Sun was out, white puffy clouds in the sky, a cool breeze blowing through the window, and the opening notes of ATWIAD. Thinking about that still sends chills up my spine. But it was NYE 86/87 I found out Prince broke up the Revolution. MTV had a music year in review. It was like I was gutted. Since then, every time I get excited about something coming out from Prince it falls flat a little bit more and more as the years pass. I will never forget how disappointed I was when the version of We Can Funk came out. Or the version of Old Friends 4 Sale that was published. The Rainbow Children hit an all time low for me. I vowed to stop buying his music after that. That album was a big zero for me. His music now I like one maybe two things from an album. As opposed to 1 or 2 things I didn't like (maybe) back in the day. So this announcement makes me hopeful. But Prince I think has forgotten he is the performer and not the audience. So I have little faith that we will get the unreleased material published that we have all been hot to hear for years. It kills me when he put out the things he has when I know better stuff is hanging out in the vault. Prince has always said that Purple Rain was not autobiographical. Ok... I'll buy that... But he does have to admit that life has imitated art. (Hey Kid... where Lisa & Wendy at?) I am keeping my hopes down and just hope the remasters come out in a reasonable time. My head still spins thinking that its been 30 years....

I really, really hope that more than a deluxe Purple Rain comes out of this.

Moonbeam said:

I really, really hope that more than a deluxe Purple Rain comes out of this.

This is all the fans should expect.

SupaFunkyOrgangrinderSexy said:

Moonbeam said:

I really, really hope that more than a deluxe Purple Rain comes out of this.

This is all the fans should expect.

It's Prince. I have zero expectations. I also have zero desire to purchase music I already have so if it is a simple remastering, I won't be purchasing it.

Stymie said:

SupaFunkyOrgangrinderSexy said:

This is all the fans should expect.

It's Prince. I have zero expectations. I also have zero desire to purchase music I already have so if it is a simple remastering, I won't be purchasing it.

Oh I will buy remasters. The early albums need it. I'm going to wait to hear reports though. If they are edited in unspeakable ways I won't buy them

why isnt he going on tavis smiley or something and talk about this....

KCOOLMUZIQ said:

I've been ignoring you. Don't start none, won't be none.

KeithyT said:

I do get a little jaded at some of the same comments/concerns about how certain more explicit songs would not be included due to Prince's religious beliefs, or his decision to not use curse words anymore etc.

I know this is not without basis, and Prince stated all these intentions in 98/99/2000 or whenever BUT and I've said this before, the amount of classic unlreleased Prince songs that have curse words in are fairly small. Explicit songs, or what could be interpreted as sexually explicit even in an implied way is larger sure, but even Prince's modern output has the same suggestive lyrics on occasion to a greater or lesser degree.

As recently as 2000/2001 tracks like Wonderful Ass and Electric Intercourse were being mooted for inclusion on a proposed Crystal Ball II. Darling Nikki is one of the core tracks of the PR album and I'm pretty confident it will not be tampered with. I know Prince toys with this track in his sampler set and falls short of singing the "masturbating" line but for pete's sake it's just a word and I think he knows this. It's part of the song's narrative. He's free to change it live, but I honestly don't think any remaster will have a clumsy edit to mask it.

We'll see, but the same old "clever" comments about how this song or that song will probably be ruined cos this bit or that bit has been removed is soooo tired now.

[Edited 4/25/14 3:22am]

I'm with u on that one: the mere idea that remasters will be altered for the purpose of censoring them is an absurdity. I put 100 bucks on the table with another orger on that, and I know I won't lose my money

databank said:

KeithyT said:

I do get a little jaded at some of the same comments/concerns about how certain more explicit songs would not be included due to Prince's religious beliefs, or his decision to not use curse words anymore etc.

I know this is not without basis, and Prince stated all these intentions in 98/99/2000 or whenever BUT and I've said this before, the amount of classic unlreleased Prince songs that have curse words in are fairly small. Explicit songs, or what could be interpreted as sexually explicit even in an implied way is larger sure, but even Prince's modern output has the same suggestive lyrics on occasion to a greater or lesser degree.

As recently as 2000/2001 tracks like Wonderful Ass and Electric Intercourse were being mooted for inclusion on a proposed Crystal Ball II. Darling Nikki is one of the core tracks of the PR album and I'm pretty confident it will not be tampered with. I know Prince toys with this track in his sampler set and falls short of singing the "masturbating" line but for pete's sake it's just a word and I think he knows this. It's part of the song's narrative. He's free to change it live, but I honestly don't think any remaster will have a clumsy edit to mask it.

We'll see, but the same old "clever" comments about how this song or that song will probably be ruined cos this bit or that bit has been removed is soooo tired now.

[Edited 4/25/14 3:22am]

I'm with u on that one: the mere idea that remasters will be altered for the purpose of censoring them is an absurdity. I put 100 bucks on the table with another orger on that, and I know I won't lose my money

yeah, it's not like he's ever changed or cencored lyrics before. I too wish people would stop acting as if Prince is going to do something he never did before!!!

SupaFunkyOrgangrinderSexy said:

databank said:

I'm with u on that one: the mere idea that remasters will be altered for the purpose of censoring them is an absurdity. I put 100 bucks on the table with another orger on that, and I know I won't lose my money

yeah, it's not like he's ever changed or cencored lyrics before. I too wish people would stop acting as if Prince is going to do something he never did before!!!

U ready to put 100 bucks on the table? Because I did and so far none of those who think the remasters will be censored did it as well.

Anyway this ridiculous debate will soon be over 4ever. Can't wait to get the remasters if only 4 that.

databank said:

SupaFunkyOrgangrinderSexy said:

yeah, it's not like he's ever changed or cencored lyrics before. I too wish people would stop acting as if Prince is going to do something he never did before!!!

U ready to put 100 bucks on the table? Because I did and so far none of those who think the remasters will be censored did it as well.

Anyway this ridiculous debate will soon be over 4ever. Can't wait to get the remasters if only 4 that.

I have mercy on fams. I won't take your money

SupaFunkyOrgangrinderSexy said:

databank said:

U ready to put 100 bucks on the table? Because I did and so far none of those who think the remasters will be censored did it as well.

Anyway this ridiculous debate will soon be over 4ever. Can't wait to get the remasters if only 4 that.

I have mercy on fams. I won't take your money

How convenient isn't it?

databank said:

SupaFunkyOrgangrinderSexy said:

I have mercy on fams. I won't take your money

How convenient isn't it?

Coming from a guy who thinks a remastering project prohibits remixing, I'd advise you to save your pennies.

Embrace said:

Hey org,

This is great news.

For Prince, Warner bros. records, the fans and the (US) music industry.

It was a long time coming, but a change will come, at last.

There is no sense tho' in saying that this could have been done before.

For the "termination rights" that US copyright law provides for, have certainly played a crucial in the negotiations of this groundbreaking deal.

It's not in the interest of Warner bros. records nor Prince to have an extensive, costly and risky legal battle over issues such as this or "work for hire".

The fact that the music industry, including Warner bros. records has changed a lot since the 1996 break-up shall also play an important part.

Warner bros. records isn't part anymore of the TimeWarner/AOL multinational conglomerate that it was part of during the 90's and 00's; it's more back to what it was in the 80's.

I hope it will be a major succes and that all involved are satisfied.

I wish them good luck and lots of wisdom in achieving a positive and fruitful working relationship.

It's crucial to ensure top quality remastering, packaging, marketing and distribution.

And it would be wise to give the fans all they want this time, plus a little more.

To make a suggestion:

Release a "deluxe" boxset and one Double CD

The CD contains the remastered original album, plus a disc chunck full of b-sides, outtakes and never before heard material.

The boxset contains the 2 CD's plus a CD full of extended versions and remixes, a DVD of the concert and a DVD of the movie. Five discs in total, accompanied by stunning packaging, full of informative liner notes, comments by Prince and associated artists, never before seen photo's and the beautiful, original artwork.

The entire release should be made available worldwide, record store release and internet release, at the same time, including a major Itunes/Spotify/Youtube/Facebook/Twitter/Amazon etc. marketing campaign.

So that nobody will ever forget how great a year 2014 was!

Maybe you should "embrace" the fact that 15 years ago there was much money to be made in

remasters, deluxe editions, etc...when Prince's masters had much more financial value. Now, fans are much older, some have died, some just don't care, and cds are hardly even selling well. Just look at the piles of Madonna and Van Halen remasters in the 4.99 bins....

Prince and Warners BOTH totally blew it. The big money to be made is mostly gone. If they both have modest goals here, it could be a win win win for all 3 involved: Warners, Prince, and Us fans.

My fear is it will blow up in everbody's faces:

Overly loud distorted remasters

Not releasing enough unreleased studio outtakes

Sales falling way below whatever their unrealistic projections are

Issues with deciding on how to market, leading to battles between Prince and WB all over again

My pipe dream:

Perfectly sounding remastered sound

200 or more unreleased songs in the best possible sound

Live Cds and Dvds

The reality:

At best, a middle ground, but I'm really scared.

RRA said:

SchlomoThaHomo said:

Seems logical. I say give us a friggin box set with all of them, like The Beatles. Why stagger it? It's already been too long. And aside from PR, 1999 and maybe SOTT, are people really clamoring for these? I just don't see there being huge fanfare for say, a Black Album/Lovesexy set, or even a ATWIAD/Parade set. I'm talking mainstream music listeners here.

Paul McCartney has been re-issuing his solo catalogue in the last few years, including MCCARTNEY II. Were people clamoring for that as much as say RAM? Doubtful, but regardless it was nice having critics re-evaluate some of Macca's stuff decades after their original release. That's really what I hope we'll get from these Prince reissues, is giving a chance to these albums of his that aren't as well known to the masses or possibly even musicphiles unlike a PR or SOTT.

IF they stagger it more than 3 years, more of us old fans will be dead or not care. The ones who do will not likely be buying cds much more anyway.

Rebeljuice said:

People are forgetting one of the reasons Prince fell out with WB was because they kept holding him back on how quickly he wanted to release his music. Now if they want to release reissues and remasters of albums, they are not going to suddenly start doing it every 6 months. They will still want the maximum return for each release and will want to do it AT THE MOST once a year. That means for just his 80s albums, it will take 10 years.

.

Dont forget too that Prince will also want to release new albums in that time. I cant see WB wanting to release a remastered album AND a new Prince album together (or even within 6 months of each other) for fear of canibalising sales of each. So when does Prince release new music and when does he release a remaster?

.

WB are probably more interested in the remasters than the new music. They know the new stuff aint going to sell as well as the old stuff. And it is here that I see the next falling out:

.

PRINCE: I have a new double album I want to release.

WB: Cant it wait? We have just finished pressing the Sign o' the Times remaster for release imminently. And we have Lovesexy to rerelease in a years time.

PRINCE: Aw come on man! This is my Magnus Opus Masterpeice!

WB: Sorry dude, your contract states....

PRINCE: Screw the contract! This is a new Prince album!

WB: Ok, how about this. We release the SOTT remaster now and then you can release your new album in 6 months time once the rush dies down a bit.

PRINCE: Hmmm..... ok, that might work. I aint happy about it, but it does give me time to change direction 3 or 4 times and make it an even bigger masterpeice.

WB: But you will have to tour now with an SOTT heavy set to promote the remaster too. No new stuff at all! You MUST promote the remasters by playing the hits on tour endlessly.

PRINCE: Whatever.

WB: Oh, and please can you make your new double album a single disc instead? We feel that it would make a better album if it was shorter and we already have a tripple SOTT album out there.

PRINCE: Fuck this shit! What am I? A fucking slave?

WB: Err... yes.

.

And history repeats itself...

.

Anyway, there really is only mention of the PR remaster. I think we are all jumping the gun to suggest all of his WB albums will get a rerelease. Doing that would take as long as his entire WB career lasted. And that doesnt include any new stuff being released.

If they listen to you, they will wait too long. Warners and Prince should BOTH be astute enough to figure out that the music business has been in major decline for over a decade now. Both should be smart enough to know you don't have 5-10 years to stagger releases like you did if this had started in 1996 or so. When The Beatles finally did it, they did it all at once.

Prince's lower selling albums have no chance to pull in any revenue at all really. Making individual releases for the 3-4 best sellers is fine, but box sets grouping together eras is probably the only way to do it. Waiting until 2025 for a Deluxe 30 Year Gold Experience would be about as dumb as Prince inviting Tony M back in the band.

TheEnglishGent said:

blackbob said:

Surely it makes sense to release each album from purple rain on the 30th anniversary of the original release...that's what I would like to see..and have the earlier 5 albums come out between them..artwiad released April 2015...parade..march 2016....sign..march 2017...lovesexy..may 2018...black album..December 2018...batman..June..2019.

One a year, you have to be kidding? Interest in Prince fades with each passing year, so the window of financial opportunity keeps getting smaller. Not to mention if we are getting one a year a good chunk of us will be dead before we get to the end of them. Not a great idea at all.

Sorry black bob, but I'd have to go Bart Van Halen on ya! It's already about 15 years too late to start the remaster release process. The money train has long since sailed away, and Prince and WB are hopefully well aware that the hourglass of sales is seriously slipping away.

You'd have to be absolutely INSANE to think they would want to make sure cd sales and music profits in general get MUCH worse before releasing a HUGE MULTI MILLION SELLING album like the Black Album.

Ok, enough sarcasm, I'm sorry...but Black maybe sold what? 200,000 in 1994 when people still bought cds, and the music industry was still fairly strong....

waiting until 2018 for a Black Album re-release would be begging it to sell less than nothing other than to 20,000 diehard orgers....and yes KOOLMOEDEE MUSICO, some of us will be dead or not have money to spend by then.

stillwaiting said:

RRA said:

Paul McCartney has been re-issuing his solo catalogue in the last few years, including MCCARTNEY II. Were people clamoring for that as much as say RAM? Doubtful, but regardless it was nice having critics re-evaluate some of Macca's stuff decades after their original release. That's really what I hope we'll get from these Prince reissues, is giving a chance to these albums of his that aren't as well known to the masses or possibly even musicphiles unlike a PR or SOTT.

IF they stagger it more than 3 years, more of us old fans will be dead or not care. The ones who do will not likely be buying cds much more anyway.

I sure do hope that the Prince fan base doesn't die off in 3 years. We are in our early 40s & 50s!

SupaFunkyOrgangrinderSexy said:

stillwaiting said:

IF they stagger it more than 3 years, more of us old fans will be dead or not care. The ones who do will not likely be buying cds much more anyway.

I sure do hope that the Prince fan base doesn't die off in 3 years. We are in our early 40s & 50s!

More of us will be dead. I didn't say most or all. Unless D&P is remastered first, and Tony M's universally influential "Mr. Money Minder" speech inspires somebody to go mad and destroy the planet. But yes, in reality, a few Prince fans who might be willing to spend money on his product have died since 1996, the year when this should have started.

Stymie said:

KCOOLMUZIQ said:

I've been ignoring you. Don't start none, won't be none.

It's a school night so I think she has to go to bed soon anyway.

I'm with you...I will wait and see what develops. I'm sure something interesting will come of this one way or the other.

treehouse said:

databank said:

How convenient isn't it?

Coming from a guy who thinks a remastering project prohibits remixing, I'd advise you to save your pennies.

No offense dude but u r so confused...

.

Back to the other day's topic: no one ever seriously considered the option that P couldn't rerecord WB songs, even unreleased, a composition is an intellectual property that's got nothing to do with a recording. Labels own recordings because they pay for studio time and have exclusivity on an artist's RECORDINGS, not COMPOSITIONS. They have no claim on compositions. Simple proof: when P would WRITE a song for others WB had no say in the matter, now when Prince would PLAY on a song he would compose for another either he'd have to go uncredited or there would need to be a "Prince appears courtesy of WB" notice on the album. It's UNHEARD OF that an artist's COMPOSITION would belong to a label. Never, ever did such a thing happen in modern times (may have back in the 30's or 40's when artists had no rights at all, I don't know, but certainly not in the 80's). Therefore even if (and I say IF) WB owned the rights to any song RECORDED during their time, there was NO WAY they could have a claim on P's rerecordings of In A Large Room With No Light or Extraloveable.

.

As for remixing and remastering do some research online before once again speaking of things u don't know of. It's not unheard of but it's VERY uncommon that a remaster is also remixed. Mixing is usually considered a step that's part of the artist's creative process (even though it's often an engineer's work, artists have a say on the final result and are usually involved at some level), while mastering isn't. Usually remasters aren't remixed and when they are it's usually a subject of controversy among fans because it's considered an alteration of the original work. In our particular case neither Prince of WB have mentioned remixing as far as I know, so there's no reason to suppose any remixing will be included here, nor to wish it would since we all agree on the fact that we don't want P to temper with his original recordings, lyrically or otherwise. We can of course come up with every crazy theory that crosses our minds but there's no point in doing so. WB have anounced remasters, not remixes, so there's no reason to even suppose those rereleases will include any remixing considering it's a very uncommon practice. Period.

.

So one more time, PLEASE stop confusing personal theories based on nothing but your own intuitions and FACTS. You're not doing anyone any good doing what u do. Honest. There's no point. And to whoever may be in doubt regarding the legitimacy of any of your claims, I'll remember them that u're the one who said Alan Leeds doesn't have a clue what he's talking about and that Per Nilsen and Uptown Mag's research is "garbage". I think that says it all.

.

And as for my 100 bucks, if u're so sure I'll have to send them to Trevor (who BTW didn't agree to send me 100 bucks if he loses, it's a one way bet and it says it all), how about YOU put 100 bucks on the table and u send ME 100 bucks if the songs r censored/altered? Take the bet?

.

Peace.

databank said:

As for remixing and remastering do some research online before once again speaking of things u don't know of. It's not unheard of but it's VERY uncommon that a remaster is also remixed.

.

.

You wouldn't know. Utilizing them ultitracks isn't called "remixing" first of all. I've actually been involved in these types of projects first hand, and worked on behalf of artists in a few capacities on projects with Bob Irwin and Erick Labsen. They're not uncommon at all. Next time ask.

.

I didn't bother reading the rest of your blather, in all honesty.

[Edited 5/2/14 1:51am]

treehouse said:

databank said:

As for remixing and remastering do some research online before once again speaking of things u don't know of. It's not unheard of but it's VERY uncommon that a remaster is also remixed.

.

.

You wouldn't know. Utilizing them ultitracks isn't called "remixing" first of all.

I guess u mean multitracks. Ur manipulations r ODIOUS. YOU were the one who used the word "remixing" in the first place. I then told u "remastering isn't remixing" and u answered "remastering involves remixing" and then I explain why it doesn't and then you go on and say "utilizing multitracks (which BTW doesn't mean anything, could u b more blurry?) isn't called remixing" i.e. "I never used the word "remixing" in the first place". It's just as if saying "I'm a creationist" and when people tell you why they think u're wrong going "what're u getting mad about, I never ever talked about creationism in the first place, u're nuts". This is manipulating people and it's also trolling.

.

I've actually been involved in these types of projects first hand, and worked on behalf of artists in a few capacities on projects with Bob Irwin and Erick Labsen.

I think u're lying but I can't prove it.

.

I didn't bother reading the rest of your blather, in all honesty.

Oh YES you did

[Edited 5/2/14 2:10am]