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The third time around isn't quite a charm for Prince compilations -- in fact, 2006's Ultimate Prince falls far short from the promise of its title. Although Ultimate Prince was touted upon its release as being the first double-disc Prince hits collection (what does that make 1993's Hits 1 and Hits 2, then?), that claim is a little misleading, since this hardly serves up two discs of hit singles: instead, the second disc is devoted to 12" mixes and extended dance mixes issued on CD maxi-singles. There is certainly a market for these mixes -- they have not been compiled on CD, so hardcore fans have been awaiting their reissue, not just for the sake of completism, but because the mixes were often very good -- but tacking them onto another hits disc doesn't serve anybody's needs, since it forces the dedicated to once again purchase the familiar hits, and anybody who just wanted the hits heard on the radio will not be happy with having "Let's Go Crazy," "Little Red Corvette," "Pop Life," "Raspberry Beret," "Kiss," "U Got the Look," "Thieves in the Temple," and "Cream" all here in different mixes. Of course, the first disc of hits is not executed particularly well, either. Most of the 17 songs on the first disc are single edits, but there are a few exceptions to the rule, as "Controversy," "Purple Rain," "Alphabet St," "7," and "Gett Off" are all presented in their original full-length album incarnations -- and even if "Controversy" and "Purple Rain" benefit from the unedited treatment (which is not necessarily the case with "Alphabet St.," which is one time Prince's song got better on a single edit), it's hard to see why those were included uncut when "1999" and "When Doves Cry" fade out rather abruptly. Then there's the problem of omissions, an issue that will always come up when an artist as great and prolific as Prince gets his work condensed to compilation, but there are some big oversights here, among them "I Feel for You," "Dirty Mind," "Let's Pretend We're Married," "Take Me with U," "Mountains," "If I Was Your Girlfriend," "Batdance" (definitely not his best single, but a chart-topper in 1989), and "Sexy MF," plus the B-side "Erotic City," which would have been an ideal inclusion on the 12" mix disc but is regrettably absent. So, Ultimate Prince is a bit of a mess -- granted, it's a listenable mess, since any Prince song from 1979-1992 is at the very least worth hearing and often is nothing less than brilliant (plus, the remastered sound is very good, better than the original CDs in nearly every case). But for listeners who just want the hits, they'll be better served by 1993's Hits discs or 2001's The Very Best of Prince, which may have their share of oversights or flaws, but both are better samplers of his best work than this muddled, intermittently enjoyable, hodgepodge.
© Stephen Thomas Erlewine /TiVo
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Prince, Composer, Lyricist, MainArtist, AssociatedPerformer
(P) 1979 NPG Records, Inc. under exclusive license to Legacy Recordings
Jamie Starr, Engineer - Prince, Composer, Lyricist, Producer, Arranger, All Instruments, MainArtist, AssociatedPerformer, Vocal - Bernie Grundman, Mastering Engineer - Ron Garrett, Assistant Engineer
(P) 1980 NPG Records, Inc. under exclusive license to Legacy Recordings
Prince, Composer, Lyricist, MainArtist, AssociatedPerformer
(P) 1981 NPG Records, Inc. under exclusive license to Legacy Recordings
Prince, Composer, Lyricist, MainArtist, AssociatedPerformer
(P) 1982 NPG Records, Inc. under exclusive license to Legacy Recordings
Prince, Composer, Lyricist, Producer, Arranger, All Instruments, MainArtist, AssociatedPerformer, Vocal - Bernie Grundman, Mastering Engineer - Peggy McCreary, Engineer - Don Batts, Assistant Engineer
(P) 1982 NPG Records, Inc. under exclusive license to Legacy Recordings
David Leonard, Engineer - Prince, Composer, Lyricist, Producer, Arranger, Guitar, Piano, All Instruments, MainArtist, AssociatedPerformer, Vocal - Bernie Grundman, Mastering Engineer - SUSAN ROGERS, Engineer - Peggy McCreary, Engineer - David Rivkin, Engineer
(P) 1984 NPG Records, Inc. under exclusive license to Legacy Recordings
David Leonard, Engineer - Lisa Coleman, Keyboards, Vocal - Wendy Melvoin, Guitar, Vocal - Prince, Composer, Lyricist, Producer, Arranger, Guitar, Piano, MainArtist, AssociatedPerformer, Vocal - PRINCE AND THE REVOLUTION, MainArtist, AssociatedPerformer - Bernie Grundman, Mastering Engineer - SUSAN ROGERS, Engineer - Peggy McCreary, Engineer - Brownmark, Bass Guitar, Vocal - David Rivkin, Engineer - Matt Fink, Keyboards, Vocal - Robert B. Rivkin, Drums, Percussion
(P) 1984 NPG Records, Inc. under exclusive license to Legacy Recordings
Prince Nelson, Composer, Lyricist - Prince, MainArtist, AssociatedPerformer - PRINCE AND THE REVOLUTION, MainArtist, AssociatedPerformer
(P) 1984 NPG Records, Inc. under exclusive license to Legacy Recordings
Prince, Composer, Lyricist, Producer, Arranger, Engineer, MainArtist, AssociatedPerformer - Bernie Grundman, Mastering Engineer - SUSAN ROGERS, Engineer - Eric Leeds, Saxophone - Atlanta Bliss, Trumpet - Coke Johnson, Engineer
(P) 1999 NPG Records, Inc. under exclusive license to Legacy Recordings
Prince, Composer, Lyricist, Producer, Arranger, Engineer, MainArtist, AssociatedPerformer - Bernie Grundman, Mastering Engineer - SUSAN ROGERS, Engineer - Eric Leeds, Saxophone - Atlanta Bliss, Trumpet - Coke Johnson, Engineer
(P) 1987 NPG Records, Inc. under exclusive license to Legacy Recordings
Prince, Composer, Lyricist, Producer, Arranger, Engineer, All Instruments, MainArtist, AssociatedPerformer, Vocal - Bernie Grundman, Mastering Engineer - EDDIE MILLER, Mixing Engineer, Recording Engineer - Joe Blaney, Engineer - Sheila E., Drums - Eric Leeds, Saxophone - Atlanta Bliss, Trumpet - Cat Glover, Vocal
(P) 1988 NPG Records, Inc. under exclusive license to Legacy Recordings
Levi Seacer, Jr., Producer, Guitar, Background Vocal - Tommy Barbarella, Producer, Engineer, Keyboards - Rosie Gaines, Producer, Organ, Sampler, Background Vocal - Prince, Producer, Arranger, All Instruments, MainArtist, AssociatedPerformer, Vocal - Prince & The New Power Generation, Composer, Lyricist, AssociatedPerformer - Stephen Marcussen, Mastering Engineer - Michael Bland, Producer, Drums - KIRK JOHNSON, Producer, Percussion, Background Vocal - Michael Koppelman, Mastering Engineer, Mixing Engineer, Recording Engineer - Tim Penn, Producer - The New Power Generation, MainArtist, AssociatedPerformer - Lloyd Thompson, Producer, Bass Guitar, Background Vocal - Tony Mosley, Producer, Background Vocal - Damon Dickson, Producer, Percussion, Background Vocal
(P) 1999 NPG Records, Inc. under exclusive license to Legacy Recordings
Levi Seacer, Jr., Producer, Guitar, Background Vocal - Tommy Barbarella, Producer, Keyboards, Sampler - Rosie Gaines, Producer, Organ, Sampler, Background Vocal - Prince, Producer, Arranger, All Instruments, MainArtist, AssociatedPerformer, Vocal - Prince & The New Power Generation, Composer, Lyricist, AssociatedPerformer - Michael Bland, Producer, Drums - KIRK JOHNSON, Producer, Percussion, Background Vocal - Eric Leeds, Flute - The New Power Generation, MainArtist, AssociatedPerformer - Lloyd Thompson, Producer, Bass Guitar, Background Vocal - Tony Mosley, Producer, Background Vocal - Damon Dickson, Producer, Percussion, Background Vocal
(P) 1991 NPG Records, Inc. under exclusive license to Legacy Recordings
Prince, MainArtist, AssociatedPerformer - Unknown, Producer - Prince & The New Power Generation, Composer, Lyricist, AssociatedPerformer - The New Power Generation, MainArtist, AssociatedPerformer
(P)1991 Warner Bros Records Inc.
Levi Seacer, Jr., Guitar - Tommy Barbarella, Keyboards - Brian Gardner, Mastering Engineer - Prince, Composer, Lyricist, Producer, Arranger, All Instruments, MainArtist, AssociatedPerformer, Vocal - Prince & The New Power Generation, AssociatedPerformer - Jimmy Mccracklin, Composer, Lyricist - Lowell Fulson, Composer, Lyricist - Dave Aron, Assistant Engineer - Bob Rosa, Mixing Engineer - Keith Cohen, Producer, Mixing Engineer - STEVE DURKEE, Assistant Engineer - Michael Bland, Drums - Steve Noonan, Mastering Engineer, Recording Engineer - KIRK JOHNSON, Background Vocal - RAY HAHNFELDT, Assistant Engineer - Tom Garneau, Mixing Engineer - Michael Koppelman, Mixing Engineer, Recording Engineer - Peter Arata, Recording Engineer - Dave Friedlander, Recording Engineer - Brian Poer, Assistant Engineer - The New Power Generation, MainArtist, AssociatedPerformer - Lloyd Thompson, Bass Guitar - Airiq Anest, Programmer - Steve Beltran, Mixing Engineer - Tony Mosley, Background Vocal - Damon Dickson, Background Vocal - Larry Mahn, Recording Engineer - D.J. Grave, Scratches
(P) 1992 NPG Records, Inc. under exclusive license to Legacy Recordings
Rosie Gaines, FeaturedArtist, AssociatedPerformer, Vocal - Prince, Composer, Lyricist, Producer, Arranger, MainArtist, AssociatedPerformer, Vocal - LEE HERSCHBERG, Mastering Engineer - Stephen Marcussen, Mastering Engineer - Dave Friedlander, Mastering Engineer - Prince feat. Rosie Gaines, AssociatedPerformer
(P) 1992 NPG Records, Inc. under exclusive license to Legacy Recordings
Levi Seacer, Jr., Guitar - Tommy Barbarella, Keyboards - Brian Gardner, Mastering Engineer - Prince, Composer, Lyricist, Producer, Arranger, All Instruments, MainArtist, AssociatedPerformer, Vocal - Prince & The New Power Generation, AssociatedPerformer - Dave Aron, Assistant Engineer - Bob Rosa, Mixing Engineer - Keith Cohen, Producer, Mixing Engineer - STEVE DURKEE, Assistant Engineer - Michael Bland, Drums - Steve Noonan, Mastering Engineer, Recording Engineer - KIRK JOHNSON, Background Vocal - RAY HAHNFELDT, Assistant Engineer - Tom Garneau, Mixing Engineer - Michael Koppelman, Mixing Engineer, Recording Engineer - Peter Arata, Recording Engineer - Dave Friedlander, Recording Engineer - Brian Poer, Assistant Engineer - The New Power Generation, MainArtist, AssociatedPerformer - Lloyd Thompson, Bass Guitar - Airiq Anest, Programmer - Steve Beltran, Mixing Engineer - Tony Mosley, Composer, Lyricist, Rap - Damon Dickson, Background Vocal - Larry Mahn, Recording Engineer - D.J. Grave, Scratches
(P) 1992 NPG Records, Inc. under exclusive license to Legacy Recordings
David Leonard, Engineer - Lisa Coleman, Keyboards, Vocal - Wendy Melvoin, Guitar, Vocal - Prince, Composer, Lyricist, Producer, Arranger, Guitar, Piano, MainArtist, AssociatedPerformer, Vocal - PRINCE AND THE REVOLUTION, MainArtist, AssociatedPerformer - Bernie Grundman, Mastering Engineer - SUSAN ROGERS, Engineer - Peggy McCreary, Engineer - Brownmark, Bass Guitar, Vocal - David Rivkin, Engineer - Matt Fink, Keyboards, Vocal - Robert B. Rivkin, Drums, Percussion
(P) 1984 NPG Records, Inc. under exclusive license to Legacy Recordings
Dez Dickerson, Guitar, Background Vocal - Lisa Coleman, Background Vocal - Prince, Composer, Lyricist, Producer, Arranger, All Instruments, MainArtist, AssociatedPerformer, Vocal - Bernie Grundman, Mastering Engineer - Peggy McCreary, Engineer - Don Batts, Assistant Engineer
(P) 1982 NPG Records, Inc. under exclusive license to Legacy Recordings
Lisa Coleman, Keyboards, Sitar - Prince, Composer, Lyricist, Producer, Arranger, All Instruments, MainArtist, AssociatedPerformer, Vocal - ROSS PALLONE, Engineer - Mic Guzauski, Engineer - Bob Mockler, Engineer
(P) 1981 NPG Records, Inc. under exclusive license to Legacy Recordings
David Coleman, Cello - Lisa Coleman, Conductor, Producer - Wendy Melvoin, Conductor, Producer - Prince, Composer, Lyricist, Producer, Guitar, Mixing Engineer, MainArtist, AssociatedPerformer, Vocal - Bernie Grundman, Mastering Engineer - Mark Brown, Producer - Peggy McCreary, Recording Engineer - Sheila E., Drums - Matt Fink, Producer - Suzi Katayama, Cello - Annette Atkinson, Double Bass - Tim Barr, Double Bass - Denyse Buffman, Viola - Robert B. Rivkin, Producer - Matt Blistan, Producer - Laury Woods, Viola - Marcy Dicterow Vaj, Violin - Side Page, Violin
(P) 1985 NPG Records, Inc. under exclusive license to Legacy Recordings
Wendy Melvoin, Producer, Arranger, AssociatedPerformer - Prince, Composer, Lyricist, Producer, Arranger, MainArtist, AssociatedPerformer - PRINCE AND THE REVOLUTION, MainArtist, AssociatedPerformer - Brownmark, Producer, Arranger, AssociatedPerformer - Matt Fink, Producer, Arranger, AssociatedPerformer - Bob Rivkin, Producer, Arranger, AssociatedPerformer
(P) 1985 NPG Records, Inc. under exclusive license to Legacy Recordings
David Leonard, Recording Engineer - David Coleman, Cello - Lisa Coleman, Producer - Wendy Melvoin, Producer - Prince, Composer, Lyricist, Producer, Guitar, Mixing Engineer, MainArtist, AssociatedPerformer, Vocal - PRINCE AND THE REVOLUTION, MainArtist, AssociatedPerformer - Bernie Grundman, Mastering Engineer - SUSAN ROGERS, Recording Engineer - Mark Brown, Producer - Peggy McCreary, Recording Engineer - Novi Novog, Violin - Matt Fink, Producer - Suzi Katayama, Cello - Robert B. Rivkin, Producer - Matt Blistan, Producer
(P) 1985 NPG Records, Inc. under exclusive license to Legacy Recordings
Karen Jones, Violin - Prince, Composer, Lyricist, Producer, MainArtist, AssociatedPerformer, Vocal - PRINCE AND THE REVOLUTION, MainArtist, AssociatedPerformer - Assa Drori, Violin - Edward Green, Violin - Pam Gates, Violin - Mari Botnick, Violin - Francine Walsh, Violin - Reggie Hill, Violin - Aaron Paul "Ace" Keith, Background Vocal - Craig "Screamer" Powell, Background Vocal - Jerome "Romeo" Cox, Background Vocal - Marr Starr, Background Vocal - Tony Christian, Background Vocal
(P) 1986 NPG Records, Inc. under exclusive license to Legacy Recordings
Prince, Composer, Lyricist, Producer, Arranger, Engineer, MainArtist, AssociatedPerformer - Bernie Grundman, Mastering Engineer - SUSAN ROGERS, Engineer - Camille, Vocal - Sheena Easton, Vocal - Sheila E., Drums, Percussion - Eric Leeds, Saxophone - Atlanta Bliss, Trumpet - Coke Johnson, Engineer
(P) 1987 NPG Records, Inc. under exclusive license to Legacy Recordings
Prince, Composer, Lyricist, Producer, Arranger, Engineer, MainArtist, AssociatedPerformer - Bernie Grundman, Mastering Engineer - SUSAN ROGERS, Engineer - Eric Leeds, Saxophone - Atlanta Bliss, Trumpet - Coke Johnson, Engineer
(P) 1987 NPG Records, Inc. under exclusive license to Legacy Recordings
Prince, Composer, Lyricist, Producer, Arranger, Mixing Engineer, All Instruments, MainArtist, AssociatedPerformer, Vocal - Howie Weinberg, Mastering Engineer - Tom Garneau, Recording Engineer - Michael Koppelman, Mastering Engineer, Recording Engineer - Mitch Mitchell, Drums
(P) 1990 NPG Records, Inc. under exclusive license to Legacy Recordings
Levi Seacer, Jr., Producer, Guitar, Background Vocal - Tommy Barbarella, Producer, Keyboards, Sampler - Rosie Gaines, Producer, Organ, Sampler, Background Vocal - Prince, Producer, Arranger, All Instruments, MainArtist, AssociatedPerformer, Vocal - Prince & The New Power Generation, Composer, Lyricist, AssociatedPerformer - Stephen Marcussen, Mastering Engineer - Keith Cohen, Mixing Engineer - Michael Bland, Producer, Drums - KIRK JOHNSON, Producer, Percussion, Background Vocal - Michael Koppelman, Mastering Engineer, Recording Engineer - Tim Penn, Engineer - The New Power Generation, MainArtist, AssociatedPerformer - Lloyd Thompson, Producer, Bass Guitar, Background Vocal - Tony Mosley, Producer, Background Vocal - Damon Dickson, Producer, Percussion, Background Vocal
(P) 1991 NPG Records, Inc. under exclusive license to Legacy Recordings
Album review
The third time around isn't quite a charm for Prince compilations -- in fact, 2006's Ultimate Prince falls far short from the promise of its title. Although Ultimate Prince was touted upon its release as being the first double-disc Prince hits collection (what does that make 1993's Hits 1 and Hits 2, then?), that claim is a little misleading, since this hardly serves up two discs of hit singles: instead, the second disc is devoted to 12" mixes and extended dance mixes issued on CD maxi-singles. There is certainly a market for these mixes -- they have not been compiled on CD, so hardcore fans have been awaiting their reissue, not just for the sake of completism, but because the mixes were often very good -- but tacking them onto another hits disc doesn't serve anybody's needs, since it forces the dedicated to once again purchase the familiar hits, and anybody who just wanted the hits heard on the radio will not be happy with having "Let's Go Crazy," "Little Red Corvette," "Pop Life," "Raspberry Beret," "Kiss," "U Got the Look," "Thieves in the Temple," and "Cream" all here in different mixes. Of course, the first disc of hits is not executed particularly well, either. Most of the 17 songs on the first disc are single edits, but there are a few exceptions to the rule, as "Controversy," "Purple Rain," "Alphabet St," "7," and "Gett Off" are all presented in their original full-length album incarnations -- and even if "Controversy" and "Purple Rain" benefit from the unedited treatment (which is not necessarily the case with "Alphabet St.," which is one time Prince's song got better on a single edit), it's hard to see why those were included uncut when "1999" and "When Doves Cry" fade out rather abruptly. Then there's the problem of omissions, an issue that will always come up when an artist as great and prolific as Prince gets his work condensed to compilation, but there are some big oversights here, among them "I Feel for You," "Dirty Mind," "Let's Pretend We're Married," "Take Me with U," "Mountains," "If I Was Your Girlfriend," "Batdance" (definitely not his best single, but a chart-topper in 1989), and "Sexy MF," plus the B-side "Erotic City," which would have been an ideal inclusion on the 12" mix disc but is regrettably absent. So, Ultimate Prince is a bit of a mess -- granted, it's a listenable mess, since any Prince song from 1979-1992 is at the very least worth hearing and often is nothing less than brilliant (plus, the remastered sound is very good, better than the original CDs in nearly every case). But for listeners who just want the hits, they'll be better served by 1993's Hits discs or 2001's The Very Best of Prince, which may have their share of oversights or flaws, but both are better samplers of his best work than this muddled, intermittently enjoyable, hodgepodge.
© Stephen Thomas Erlewine /TiVo
About the album
- 1 disc(s) - 28 track(s)
- Total length: 02:36:16
- Main artists: Prince
- Composer: Various Composers
- Label: Legacy Recordings
- Genre: Soul/Funk/R&B Funk
This compilation (P) 2006 NPG Records, Inc. under exclusive license to Legacy Recordings
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