I hope you've found Prince week entertaining. There won't be any more Prince-related stuff for a while, but I'll probably compile another disc or two of unreleased tracks some time in the near future. There is so much more unreleased Prince stuff than I could ever post here, and I can't imagine one person doing it on their own. You would need a really free online community to do that, and Prince won't let that happen, at least not if it's in an obvious location. Let's think about that Prince fans. :)
Prince - More Unheard
Disc One:
01 All Day, All Night
A leftover from the Purple Rain era, this was later given to Jill Jones. Her version retains the basic tracks from this version and even credits The Revolution as the backing band in the liner notes.
02 She's Just A Baby
A beautiful number from the seventies, this doesn't really fit with anything else Prince has done, but it would have been great regardless if it had been released.
03 Wouldn't You Love To Love Me
Another seventies leftover, this song was clearly a favorite of Prince's as he recorded it several times over the years. An acoustic demo, recorded prior to his signing with Warner Brothers, circulates as does a version with his 1987 band which was later given to Taja Sevelle. Taja's version fades a little earlier than Prince's but used the same backing tracks. As for this version, it sounds like it may have been recorded during the Dirty Mind era, although it's far to sweet to ever make that album.
04 No Call U
Recorded during the 1999 era, this sounds like Delirious and Horny Toad's lost cousin. Catchy, if not kinda short.
05 Neon Telephone
This was recorded for Dream Factory and easily could have been a double A-Side with Wonderful Ass. It was later given to Paisley Park signings, The Three O' Clock. Their version, while significantly different, still used portions of Prince's original version with Wendy & Lisa being given a background vocal credit on their album.
06 Purple Music
Another 1999 era leftover, there are two versions of this track circulating. They aren't very different from each other, one featuring a brief drum machine intro. This is the version without that intro, chosen because it's a clearer recording. As for the song, it's a very minimal funk workout with a prominent bass line. It's too simple, and too long, to have been considered for 1999, but it's funky enough that it would have made a nice B-Side to a 12".
07 The Voice Inside
This was recorded between Lovesexy and the Batman album for an unfinished album a lot of people refer to as The Dawn. Whether that album would have carried that name or not, there was some excellent material recorded for it with much of it being reused on the Batman and Graffiti Bridge albums. Not to be confused with The Voice, a song Prince wrote and gave to Mavis Staples, of which Prince recorded a reference vocal which is circulating.
08 Big Tall Wall
A Dream Factory outtake about Prince's odd relationship with women. Musically, this is super simple with only a beat backing Prince's elaborately multi-tracked vocals. In the song, Prince talks about wanting to build a wall around his lover so she can't get out. He also notes to his woman that he has another girlfriend, but that won't stop him and the woman in the song from having fun. If it isn't common knowledge, Prince has problems when it comes to relationships.
09 It's A Wonderful Day
Recorded for Dream Factory, part of the backing track ended up in Under The Cherry Moon. Wendy & Lisa's presence is all over this one. Funky and psychedelic.
10 A Place In Heaven
Too many Dream Factory outtakes!!! This is the same song as featured on that album, but this is the version with Prince's vocals. It also features the segue between it and Movie Star.
11 Chocolate (Reference Vocal)
I mentioned this track in an earlier post. It was recorded during the Purple Rain era for The Time, but shelved for unknown reasons. It was eventually released on The Time's Pandemonium album, and is almost identical to this version. The biggest difference is that this version fades early, but Morris copied Prince's impersonation of him down to most of the improvisations. As great as this song is, it really speaks volumes about Prince's control freak habits with his songs and the artists he works with.
12 Computer Blue (Rough Mix)
I know it looks like I'm repeating a track from the first Prince post, but that's not the case. This is a different mix of the full-length take as featured in the first Prince post, but this version is missing a number of elements from that mix. It also features a significant blast of guitar feedback at the end that's missing from all the other versions circulating. Great stuff!
13 Extra Loveable
This one is kinda controversial. Listen to the end and you'll understand why, which also makes it clear to some degree why it remains unreleased. Otherwise, this is a funky number that may have been recorded during the Purple Rain era but also may have been done around the 1999 era. Despite calling out his band members names, this is probably all Prince at work here.
Disc Two:
01 Pop Life (Kirky J. Remix)
02 Alphabet St. (Kirky J. Remix)
03 Head (Kirky J. Remix)
04 When Doves Cry (Kirky J. Remix)
All four of these remixes were made around 1995. Some of these tracks were used in Kirky J.'s B-Sides Remix, which, oddly enough, doesn't feature many B-Sides. A remix of Housequake was also created but isn't circulating.
05 Superfunkycalifragisexy (Long Version)
This is the unedited, and slightly unpolished original version of Superfunkycalifragisexy which would later appear on The Black Album.
06 Instrumental (Sound 80)
An untitled instrumental recorded at the Sound 80 studios in the seventies. There are a large number of instrumentals from that era circulating, although most of them are rather uninteresting. This is one of the exceptions, being rather fun and funky.
07 Good Man
Recorded around the Batman era, this is another Camille vocal. It was eventually given to Margie Cox for the MC Flash album, but that also remains unreleased.
08 Trouble
Another great instrumental. If it had vocals this might have been a really kick-ass number.
09 If I Had A Harem
From the era between Lovesexy and Batman, this is a rather strange song. This was played live sometimes as a bluesy number, but this version is more of a shuffle. Sorry, I can't describe this one well at all, you're better off just listening for yourself.
10 Witness 4 The Prosecution (Version)
I mentioned this version in the Dream Factory post. It's faster than the Dream Factory versions and features steel drums. Weird to hear Prince re-work a song so elaborately. Apart from the lyrics, it's practically a new song. Easiest reason though may be the complete removal of Wendy & Lisa's presence.
11 Can I Play With U?
THE INFAMOUS MILES DAVIS TRACK!!!!! This is the only known studio collaboration between Prince and Miles. Stories circulate that Prince mailed a tape of this song with the simple message, Can I Play With U?, but this is unconfirmed. What we do know is that Prince did not collaborate directly with Miles, having recorded most of this track on his own. It was slated for Miles' aborted Rubberband album, which morphed into Tutu. It was also slated for the Last Word box, an unreleased compilation of Miles' recordings for Warner Brothers. It would have featured all of his studio albums and a number of unreleased recordings, including both Can I Play With U? and Miles' recording of 17 (Penetration), but Prince would not allow them to be released. The box then changed from six CDs to four before eventually being canceled entirely. Wish it would have been released, but at least we can hear it.
12 Housequake (Razormaid Remix)
No, Prince did not make this remix, but he did hire the Razormaid production team to create it, making it a certifiably official remix. Prince wasn't satisfied with it and did not release it, but Razormaid did give it an unofficial release on some of their remix compilations. This has sometimes been listed as an alternate version created by Prince, but now you know it isn't, and knowing is half the battle! Or half the hassle. All depends on who you ask.
13 Possessed (Vocal Version)
Recorded during the 1999 era, Prince offered this to James Brown. James turned it down, so Prince started performing it live. He also made the instrumental version which is in my first Prince post and was played in the background of Purple Rain.
14 The Dance Electric
Recorded during the Around The World In A Day era, Prince gave this to Andre Cymone whose version uses the identical backing track, albeit a bit shorter. This is the full version of the track which features some intense guitar towards the end. Also, this is another sign of Prince's paranoia about the end of the world after 1999. For more odd, end of the world references, see Horny Pony. A song about a sex dance, which Prince later said, isn't about sex, which has a line about watching the clock for the end of the world. If you didn't know it already, PRINCE IS WEIRD!!!
PS - I received some messages that a track in the second zip from this post was corrupted. Well, I've just re-uploaded that zip file but, if you don't want to re-download the whole thing, click here to download the Version of Witness 4 The Prosecution that was corrupted. Sorry for any difficulties.
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