Well, at least the focus is now on all the excellent music in the boxset. The live CD would not be a better performance if any marbles (or purple scarf) were included.
Sometimes I go for the CD box sets but with 1999 I'm glad I went with the 10-LP one because it's epic looking and worthy of the album
I don't mind the smaller size if it's got a smaller price, but given this one's not inexpensive, I would've preferred a bigger set so it could house a bigger book!
No vinyl playback capability here, so that wasn't an option. Besides, I didn't know it was a dinky box until it arrived!
No soundtracks, so not Purple Rain (not sure if that's "recent"), which raises the question how that Deluxe will be handled, because while Warner will keep the rights to the album itself the bonus material will be Sony's I guess. There is already a complication like this with the upcoming Sign Deluxe where Warner can't use "Crystal Ball" and "Dream Factory" because they are on Crystal Ball.
True. But it does feel like they cheapened-out at the last minute. Compare it to David Bowie's "Conversation Piece" (which unfortunately I received at the same time). A really stunning book to accompany a load of dodgy demos the record company had already released at an extortionate price. If those barrel scraping deserved deluxe packaging, them so did Prince x100.
I’d rather have the bountiful audio content at a reasonable price (which both the deluxe cd packages of Purple Rain and 1999 had) than pay £100’s for additional packaging (Pink Floyd Later Years!) ..the Bowie Conversation Piece cd set was beautifully done , but they fleeced the fans by releasing in separate chunks before hand ... I think the Prince team on CD are doing well..unfortunately the vinyl Re-Releases are very expensive in the UK..so waiting for some price drops as I don’t think these later albums will appeal to the average Jo so should reduce ..I think the Prince 1999 cd Set was originally advertised as a 12 x 12 box which then reduced in size once more details came out ..I can’t complain as got it at a really good price on preorder and than amazon refunded some more as they dropped the price the day after release despite not even despatched the preorders ..
I know right ? I can't understand that. I go many times to England and Prince's newly pressed Lps are around £36 for a simple album, whereas in France the very same Lp is priced £23. I just don't get why it's only happening on Prince albums. For other artists, prices in France and in England are more or less the same. (maybe a tiny bit more expensive in England, but only by one or two pounds at most).
I'm still considering Conversation Piece - basically weighing up, from a price perspective, a beautifully done set vs audio that I suspect I won't play much (I have some of the demos on a bootleg cd that I don't play). But 1999 was an instant purchase - great price and I was familiar enough with Prince's vault tracks to be fairly sure that I would like most of them, and I wasn't disappointed.
Has it been confirmed that Warner can't use the CB'98 songs? My guess/hope is that The Estate is making the deluxe versions and releases the set through Warner if it is a WB album, and through Sony if it is not. Warner pays fees for the publicing rights to Sony is needed and visa versa. Why else would Warner plan to release a deluxe SOTT set? Kinda strange to omit both title tracks...
Nothing has been confirmed regarding an upcoming SotT deluxe release, not even that there will be a release. All we have for now are rumours. And the word that is going round is that Warner can't use the 1998 Crystal Ball songs. As for why Warner would still plan to release a deluxe SotT set, despite not being allowed to use all songs from that era? Since they lose the rights to the album next year I'm sure they want to make some money before that.
and there are 3 versions of Crystal Ball (the song), 2 of which unreleased, are all three off-limits or only the version released in 1998?
Does anyone know any UK retailers that have any? Fairly sure my local HMV has it on the shelf, but they're shut for now.
No, nothing is confirmed, not even that Sign is actually next, I'm just going by rumours and speculation (which also includes that a Parade Deluxe is ready to go, but put on hold), but so far rumours about what Warner will release have been pretty much on the money. I guess if you go on the org you may find out more about sources, I can't stand the caustic atmosphere of that place, so I'm not sure where it originates. ♥ or $ - pick which one is most likely... That's a good point, Sony will probably only have the rights to the exact versions that are on the Crystal Ball album. There are of course also a bunch of other tracks on that album that is relevant to the era and that are off bounds (in those versions) for Warner.
Wasn't pretty much everything on that set remixed specially? I'm no expert on the bootlegs but I know there's definitely a couple of alternate (longer) versions of Crucial. I seem to remember an alternate Movie Star, but that was one of those cases where you really had to work hard to spot the differences. What's left? Good Love, which was on a soundtrack in 1988 so I'd imagine the rights for that one are even more complicated. And Make Your Mama Happy, which... yeah, I could probably live without that one. Anything I've missed?
They didn't have to sell it at that price at all as there is nothing in UK law that says they have to. This is just one of those urban myths that never dies. However, many shops will honour the marked price as a gesture of goodwill.
Another songs are Last Heart (CB'98), Power Fantastic (The Hits) and Visions (Wendy & Lisa - Eroica). Maybe Camille's Rockhard In A Funky Place, depending on the rights for The Black Album. Superfunkycalifragisexy, Bob George, Le Grind and 2 Nigs United 4 West Compton might also be added to the big 1986 SOTT box set, but they are also on The Black Album. Every 80s song on CB'98 should be the final version, before shelving it. The bootleg versions we know are work in progress. The OST for Bright Lights, Big City has been released by WB, so Good Love should not be complicated to add (but will be when Sony gets the rights for SOTT). If it is impossible to create a complete SOTT deluxe set, then it's the same for Parade deluxe. There are a couple of Parade outtakes on CB'98 (An Honest Man, Sexual Suicide). And let's not forget Splash (NPGMC). Parade stays with Warner, so that problem (if it exists) won't be solved by the transfer to Sony.
The versions on bootlegs were most likely the rough mixes that Prince made to cassette. There was a pattern to how Prince worked in the 80s, as we have learned thanks to Tudahl’s book. So he had to mix them for the CB release since no high quality mix existed up to that point.
The price offered by the shop is generally regarded as an "Invitation To Treat" not a binding offer that can be accepted by everyone, hence the words "whilst stocks last" often shown. However, the specific terminology was brought about in the UK by the Mods vs Rockers fights in Brighton in the sixties. After being searched by police at the station, there was a case of a visitor intending to buy a knife which was intended to then be used : the shopowner refused, in much the same way a barowner may refuse to serve an obvious drunk. Mods and rockers - Wikipedia Generally stores will overlook obvious mistakes on their part, but it is at their discretion. Especially if they accidentally price up an iPad at £5.99 instead of £599.
So on 12/31/2019 with Christmas gift cards in hand and a price just under $50, I dropped an order on Amazon for the super deluxe CD box of 1999. I don't think it was on backorder at that moment but soon there after, the shipping date kept getting pushed out to the point where it became doubtful that the order would ever be fulfilled. Copies became available from overseas, would have cost another $10-20 but I held firm. If this is meant to be, it'll be. The secondary market kept going crazy. Seeing some recent fulfillment out of other purveyors, I had a bit of renewed hope. Then out of the blue, I got a shipping notice yesterday from Amazon! It arrived today. There still isn't any sign of being able to order from Amazon at a decent price but at least some older orders are in fact being fulfilled.
I ended up getting Conversation Piece as a completionist even though I mostly buy vinyl and don't particularly care for Bowie's 1969 work outside of "Space Oddity" and 3 or 4 other tracks off the album, but it is beautiful and I intend to add every other set like this when they come. But I waited about 3 months to get it. On the other hand, with 1999, I ran to the nearest record shop right after work on the day of release because I had to have it asap, and will be the case if/when we get those rumored deluxe Parade and Sign O' The Times releases
