Well, if only Neversin and imprimis and Militant (in the Violet Reality review) didn't point out that there are other limitedly circulating versions of the "new tracks," I would be really pretty happy with this. Oh, wait--I still am really pretty happy with this. Though I'd love to hear any of those alternate version that still haven't gone widely available, I'm still really pretty happy with this.

So, there's the basic idea: I'm really pretty happy about this. Especially since Jill dropped a few things too, just so I can feel good not just for official releases, but also new unofficial things too.

I'm thrilled to have a clean copy of Wonderful Ass, Possessed and Father's Song. I'd be stoked if All Day, All Night had been included.

I think 88 we can funk is one of his best songs ever.

emesem said:

Have to spend more time with this but I have to say I'm a bit disappointed. Electric Int and Possessed are much much better live. They should have included those versions here. The 88? Version of We can Funk with the Camile voice is way better than this one. All that said. It's great to finally see some stuff out.

TheThem said:

It's garbage to me. Katrina's Paper Dolls and Love And Sex are jokes and it seems like they picked the most UNFUNKY versions of Possessed and We Can Fuck/Funk to release.

Wow really? I love the version of We Can Fuck, its great! And same with Possessed, it has a different vibe than the 1983 demo or live versions. I love the way the electronic sounds flutter around, it is a totally different sound than most Prince tunes so the variety is cool. The synth horn lines especially, it sounds like Gloria Estefan on roids

Neversin said:

Marco81 said:

A circle of a handful of people is hardly "out there".

And yet it is... Don't assume... Neversin.

Always APPRECIATE inputs from u & Imprimis.......10000 thanx for that ...glad 2 have u on the Org !

Peace

[Edited 6/24/17 3:42am]

After a couple of listens:

The Dance Electric - It's frustrating that they chose a hugely inferior version of the song. The version with the violent guitar and Wendy & Lisa contributions is an absolute beast! It's probably one of the best songs he's ever done. On the other hand, this version sounds unfinished. Because there is little sense of esclation throughout the song, it just stretches on and on without the intensity and urgency that makes the other version so exhilarating. It is still enjoyable, the synths are cool, and Prince's adlibs are funky.

Love and Sex - A hot mess. I'm yet to make up my mind as to whether I like it. It's certainly not the aggressive angry song, I've seen it described as. It's kind of fun, kind of goofy, and it kind of reminds me of the song Eggplant. Prince's vocals are a highlight and I enjoy W&L joining Prince to sing 'sha-la-la la-la boom'. I wouldn't say it's of the same calibre as Prince's released material during this time, but maybe I would take to it a little more if the sound quality was better.

Computer Blue - I'm probably in the minority here, but I've always preferred the album version of Computer Blue to any of the extended versions. In my opinion, the album version is perfect. All the extended versions are great and fun to listen to, but marred with the cheesy lines 'na na na na, wave your hands in the air' and 'everybody work out'. It makes up about 20 seconds of the song, but it always takes me completely out of it. That said, this is still a fucking excellent track. I love the 'Hallway Speech', the wailing guitars, Prince's manic screeching, and the explosive breakdown at the end. Along with Mountains, is this the quintessential Revolution track?

Electric Intercourse - At first, I couldn't seperate this from the live version. The live version might still have a slight edge, but this song is absolutely fantastic. I love the way the songs builds, the bass thumps, the synths, the piano, Prince's vocals... it's all really quite beautiful. 2:00-2:50 is absolutely stunning (not quite 2:30-3:30 of Adore stunning, but stunning). I love how the light synths seem to runaway above the intensity of Prince's vocals, it creates such a lovely melancholy. A unqiue and brilliant song, possibly one of the best of the 80s.

Wonderful Ass - Not much to say here. Great sound and funky as hell.

Velvet Kitty Cat - What is this even doing here? I guess it's 'cute'. But really, like, what the fuck is it even doing here?

Katrina's Paper Dolls - I appreciate that it's not quite up to standard, but I quite enjoy this track. It's off-beat lyrically, and I really like Prince's vocals when he sings 'Katrina makes paper dolls'. Musically, it's a little similar to Wet Dream Cousin, which I've always thought was an eerie little ditty.

We Can Fuck - 5:17 'YOU can fuck me baby / I'll fuck you too / We can fuck one another'. Damn, Prince. This song is a behemoth. Strange, funky, and... surprisingly sad and sincere. The song sounds so direct, so pleading, and full of longing that Prince sounds vulnerable, which I did not expect. I love the female backing of this song (who is it? Jill Jones?). I just wish Prince's voice was a bit higher in the mix.

Father's Song - Haunting. A devastatingly beautiful peice of music. Very Vangelis inspired. I absolutely adore it. I really hope Prince has experimented further with this sort of sound.


In all:

A mixed-bag. There are some treats here for sure, but I can't say I'm not a little dissappointed by some of the versions of the songs, and the inconsistent sound quality. My highlights, in descending order: Father's Song, Electric Intercourse, We Can Fuck, Wonderful Ass, Possessed. Father's Song and Electric Intercourse (and perhaps to some degree We Can Fuck and Possessed), are similar in production, and make it possible to envisage a strange, experimental synth based album from around this time, with a stronger focus on the piano.

Speaking of which, isn't it strange that so little of the songs featured prominent guitar? Afterall, this is the expanded version of Purple Rain.

[Edited 6/24/17 3:50am]

[Edited 6/24/17 3:53am]

Father's Song

... I've been dreaming of an official full length release of this ever since I saw Purple Rain as a child and The Kid heard his old man playing on the piano in the basement.

Has to be in the top five pieces of music Prince ever wrote.

OperatingThetan said:

WB or Universal, will likely release a more comprehensive set of Purple Rain era outtakes at a later date. They'll want to mine the period for all its worth.

I have to say I have no complaints about the song selection: it had to fit ionto one CD (the whole project didn't involve a 12-CD set of all 83-84 sessions), and they had to make editorial decisions. Those are as good as any other for me.

My reserves are about the possible misdating of some tracks, the possible inclusion of a 1986 version of WA, and the fact that the selection of certain earlier cuts of some songs was most likely unvoluntary.

... the rest of From The Vault is like having a brand new full album release from Prince at the height of his powers. What an absolute treat!

I don't have a big bootleg collection so most of these tracks are a first time listen for me. I take my hat off to Warner Bros. on this.

This whole disc is just incredible, easily the best thing put out in years. Everyone is showing these bizarre wave pictures of sound bands and making niggling complaints about noise and low quality mixes.

.

I decided to get over it and just enjoy this musical offering. We can fuck has shot up in to my Top 5 of all Prince songs. The shrieky bit at 5 minutes is hilarious and then he says its excellent. Its like Do Me Baby, shrieking at the start, pillow talk, delirium and then he is having sex with some nasty piano and Prince praising the heck out of the bird he is shagging - just life imitating art and classic nasty Prince that we all love.

More seasoned song review, 3 full listens

.

Dance Electric - This is great, always a favourite song and the vocals are seamless. A great way to start an album of rarities - 9/10

.

Love and Sex - Still trying to work this out, great frenzied lyrics, still feel less could be more - so an 8/10 for now. Melodic and hook driven and I can see how its a template for the Parade style sound around the funky corner.

.

Computer Blue - This song sounds great at its natural length, the speech is great and the guitar histrionics, Prince's screaming and his frenetic vocals are just hot - 10/10

.

Electric Intercourse - Already form yesterdays review on the shut down thread, this has improved. The organ stabs are great and there is more theatricality to his vocals here - 9/10

.

Our Destiny/Roadhouse Garden - This is great too, I love both of these songs and the vocals are great along with a melody and change between both tracks. Roadhouse garden is evocative - 9/10

.

Possessed - This song gets me possessed, a candidate for the 80s Satanic Panic in rock, this is addictive and one of the finest synth lines and vocal combinations, a stunner 10/10

.

Wonderful Ass - Classic sex pop, the type I love, typical Prince panache and funk, funny and groovy, this is sexy feel good pop - 10/10

.

Velvet Kitty Kat - a good hook but slight here, not bad though, just not Possessed or We can fuck if you can dig the picture - 7/10

.

Katrina's paper dolls - The feel is out of place, but this is pretty good, the dark feel and his vocal change, a treaty to let it out of the vault into the light 8/10

.

We can fuck - Funky, sexy, poppy and balletic, this is top notch, dirty, nasty I don't give a fuck, horny as hell Princely sex funk. This carries on all the supreme sex ballads and sex pop of the Dirty Mind - 1999 era, but with more polish and organs like Purple Rain era stuff - Just godlike stuff - 11/10

.

Fathers song - Prince finishes having sex, hops on the piano and plays the poignant and emotive virtuoso instrumental thus far. Evocative and soul searing, this is perfection, and gives us Prince the musician and Prince the conscience, after the lust fest of the previous track, he glides from style to style with the ease of a 13th century Mongol warrior through Asia. 10/10

.

Overall - Very consistent and high quality selection of songs from one of his finest periods. Some very inspired cherry picking from the vault. Releases like this make you wonder what else sits in that vault.

[Edited 6/24/17 5:52am]

DaveT said:

Father's Song

... I've been dreaming of an official full length release of this ever since I saw Purple Rain as a child and The Kid heard his old man playing on the piano in the basement.

Has to be in the top five pieces of music Prince ever wrote.

I agree, Father's Song.. wow.. what a treat..

DaveT said:

Father's Song

... I've been dreaming of an official full length release of this ever since I saw Purple Rain as a child and The Kid heard his old man playing on the piano in the basement.

Has to be in the top five pieces of music Prince ever wrote.

Didn't Prince's Dad write it?

TheEnglishGent said:

i had high hopes despite the nagging knowing that WB is not what it used to be and WB hates prince ...

damn the setlist looked good .. how could they fuck it up .. oh yeah .. none of these came from prince .. none were finished songs he was proud of ... they exist but these are unfinished takes sent to WB over the years .. in fact .. i am tempted to guess love and sex came from DNP era

I thought for sure we were getting highly upgraded versions of the great songs we already knew .. i mean dayum, why would wb release the unfinished dance electric when the finished one is great and far superior? .. cuz prince had it in his vault and wb didn't have a copy and prince would not give it to them

anything would have been better than velvet kitty or katrina or love and sex .. so many better outtakes ... we can funk 86 also is far superior to the one included here .. as are the NOT included versions of possessed, electric intercourse ... they got wonderful ass right but that was about it ...

our destiny is brutal and should not have been included at all .. roadhouse is good but hardly the kind of song that would attract the casual pr fans ... in fact this set almost feels designed to undermine any chance of a casual fan becoming interested in out takes .. I can't imagine anyone digging this version of electric intercourse, yet play them the live version and people would be hooked immediately and crave more outtakes ..

same with possessed and we can funk .. jesus these are awful .. possessed sounds like it was from batman era or something ... a casual fan will not get into these .. the bootleg non included versions of these songs on the other hand, are some of his best work

I am torn as just having different versions from the boots we all have is nice and all, BUT these just suck and are far inferior to the takes we all have. I think I would have been happier if we just got the boots we already have in pristine than to have these clearly throw away versions that prince probably did not want out there for those reasons

the mastering on the whole package is brutal .. i look forward to an unmastering phase in the music industry .. where they go back an unruin all they have done to these classic albums over the years .. I am disappointed that a better set of takes for these songs was not chosen as we all know they exist ..

..

[Edited 6/24/17 7:04am]

[Edited 6/24/17 7:05am]

So who immediately noticed the connection between We Can Fuck and Crystal Ball? It trips me out.

DaveT said:

TrevorAyer said:

i had high hopes despite the nagging knowing that WB is not what it used to be and WB hates prince ...

damn the setlist looked good .. how could they fuck it up .. oh yeah .. none of these came from prince .. none were finished songs he was proud of ... they exist but these are unfinished takes sent to WB over the years .. in fact .. i am tempted to guess love and sex came from DNP era

I thought for sure we were getting highly upgraded versions of the great songs we already knew .. i mean dayum, why would wb release the unfinished dance electric when the finished one is great and far superior? .. cuz prince had it in his vault and wb didn't have a copy and prince would not give it to them

anything would have been better than velvet kitty or katrina or love and sex .. so many better outtakes ... we can funk 86 also is far superior to the one included here .. as are the NOT included versions of possessed, electric intercourse ... they got wonderful ass right but that was about it ...

our destiny is brutal and should not have been included at all .. roadhouse is good but hardly the kind of song that would attract the casual pr fans ... in fact this set almost feels designed to undermine any chance of a casual fan becoming interested in out takes .. I can't imagine anyone digging this version of electric intercourse, yet play them the live version and people would be hooked immediately and crave more outtakes ..

same with possessed and we can funk .. jesus these are awful .. possessed sounds like it was from batman era or something ... a casual fan will not get into these .. the bootleg non included versions of these songs on the other hand, are some of his best work

I am torn as just having different versions from the boots we all have is nice and all, BUT these just suck and are far inferior to the takes we all have. I think I would have been happier if we just got the boots we already have in pristine than to have these clearly throw away versions that prince probably did not want out there for those reasons

the mastering on the whole package is brutal .. i look forward to an unmastering phase in the music industry .. where they go back an unruin all they have done to these classic albums over the years .. I am disappointed that a better set of takes for these songs was not chosen as we all know they exist ..

..

[Edited 6/24/17 7:04am]

[Edited 6/24/17 7:05am]

ur post is brutal and are cringeworthy...

u mst be a PLANET EARTH fan...

feeluupp said:

ur post is brutal and are cringeworthy...

u mst be a PLANET EARTH fan...

nope .. not really .. i like the song ... not the album ... i just like the other versions of these same songs way way better .. like not even close

Militant said:

The long-awaited Purple Rain Deluxe is out now.

You can listen on Spotify here. You can purchase it on Amazon, in your local record store, or via the official website at www.officialprincemusic.com


This thread is for discussing the second disc, which contains previously unreleased material from the vault.

Tracklist:

1. The Dance Electric
2. Love And Sex
3. Computer Blue (“Hallway Speech” version)
4. Electric Intercourse (Studio Version)
5. Our Destiny / Roadhouse Garden
6. Possessed
7. Wonderful Ass
8. Velvet Kitty Cat
9. Katrina’s Paper Dolls
10. We Can Fuck
11. Father’s Song

Disc Two whets the appetite of those who dream of spending hours exploring Paisley Park’s treasure trove of rarities and vault recordings. “The Dance Electric,” a career-defining single for André Cymone, is a Minneapolis funk inferno with spiritual callbacks to “1999” and “Let’s Go Crazy” throughout. With its flamboyant synth chords and whiplash groove established, “Love and Sex” would’ve been a coveted B-side classic if treated as such. Speaking of classics, “Computer Blue (Hallway Speech)” is an undisputed highlight with its escalating guitar bends, avalanche-sized drum work, and (of course) infamous “Hallway Speech” with Prince and his lady assigning emotions—love, lust, hate—to each room. “Our Destiny / Roadhouse Garden,” “Possessed,” and “Wonderful A**” is as good a trio you’ll find on any Prince record and a testament to the Revolution’s unrivaled chemistry. “Velvet Kitty Cat” and “Katrina’s Paper Dolls” may be the least exciting additions, but the hauntingly beautiful “Electric Intercourse (Studio)” and “Father’s Song” keep the album from being weighed down. Capping off Disc Two is the notoriously raunchy “We Can F***,” mixing Wendy & Lisa’s fluffy harmonies with the hip-swiveling funk of Rick James. For many, ‘83 “We Can F***” is far superior to the antiseptic Graffiti Bridge duet with George Clinton; however, there are others (myself included) who’ll argue that the ‘86 rehearsal version is a smoking slab of heavy funk with tightly strummed guitars that could make Nile Rodgers blush.

AlgeriaTouchshreek said:

oh bloody fuck off Spotify, me not leaving the house to spend £19.99 on a physical artifact

Yeah because you're just so entitled to listen for basically free, right? People like you killed the music business. You devalued recorded music. Spend the 20 you cheap bastard.

Adorecream said:

This whole disc is just incredible, easily the best thing put out in years. Everyone is showing these bizarre wave pictures of sound bands and making niggling complaints about noise and low quality mixes.

.

I decided to get over it and just enjoy this musical offering. We can fuck has shot up in to my Top 5 of all Prince songs. The shrieky bit at 5 minutes is hilarious and then he says its excellent. Its like Do Me Baby, shrieking at the start, pillow talk, delirium and then he is having sex with some nasty piano and Prince praising the heck out of the bird he is shagging - just life imitating art and classic nasty Prince that we all love.

This.

feeluupp said:

Just gave the "Vault" disc a few spins, and I'm blown away with happiness with all this new (to me) music. Some thoughts...

.

One of the best surprises is "We Can Fuck". The re-tooled version from "Graffiti Bridge", "We Can Funk", was always so damn boring to me. And I could never figure out just what George Clinton was adding to the song. "We Can Fuck" is the original, Prince-in-his-prime recording that I've been looking for.

.

"Velvet Kitty Kat" hit me the same way "Horny Toad" did when I first heard it: a fun little piece of funk-pop that isn't meant to be taken seriously.

.

"Father's Song" is just beautiful. Love how raw the recording environment sounds.

.

"Our Destiny/Roadhouse Garden" is probably my favorite of all the new tracks. It's the Holy Trinity - Prince, Wendy, and Lisa - playing their mid-80s brand of impeccable pop. I would love to hear hours and hours of this type of vintage Prince music.

.

All in all, the entire reissue has been a treat. I know there are many Orgers out there who are less than thrilled, and I'm sorry you feel that way. Maybe a future remaster/reissue will make you happy...

Ugot2shakesumthin said:

DaveT said:

Father's Song

... I've been dreaming of an official full length release of this ever since I saw Purple Rain as a child and The Kid heard his old man playing on the piano in the basement.

Has to be in the top five pieces of music Prince ever wrote.

Yep.

Nah. For me, it is more potential then fully realized. Could have been much more musically. Which doesn't mean I don't like it, it's just nowhere near even top 30 for me.