Prince returns with ‘Ultimate’ double-disc collection and DVD

By Patrick Luce Aug 10, 2006, 13:11 GMT

During his groundbreaking 18-year paisley reign at Warner Bros., Prince built a superfunkycalifragisexy legacy of genre-bending hits that made him royalty on the rock, soul, pop and R&B charts.

On August 22nd, Warner Bros. Records salutes the Twin Cities’ funknastiest son with a pair of releases: ‘Ultimate’ - a two-disc compilation featuring his biggest hits and hard-to-find remixes. Warner Bros also plans to release the ‘Diamonds and Pearls’ - a DVD collection of videos, performances and more.

The double-CD set can be purchased for a suggested list price of $24.98, while the DVD is available for $14.99.

Featuring more than two-and-a-half hours of prime Prince, ‘Ultimate’ includes songs recorded between 1978 and 1993. The two-disc set contains the Grammy-winning singles “Kiss” and “Purple Rain,” plus #1 pop hits “When Doves Cry” and “Let’s Go Crazy” as well as rare remixes of “Cream,” “Little Red Corvette” and “Pop Life.”

Drawing from music Prince originally recorded with his backing bands The Revolution and The New Power Generation, ‘Ultimate’ tracks the artist’s evolution from his early albums (‘Prince,’ ‘Dirty Mind’ and ‘Controversy’) and pop successes (‘1999,’ ‘Purple Rain’ and ‘Sign ‘O’ The Times’) to more eclectic albums (‘Lovesexy,’ ‘Diamonds And Pearls’ and the “symbol” album).

A marathon of funky joints, sensual ballads and dynamic pop, ‘Ultimate’ features Prince’s first #1 R&B hit, “I Wanna Be Your Lover” from his self-titled 1979 sophomore album, as well as his Top 5 Pop hits: “Sign ‘O’ The Times,” “Raspberry Beret” and “U Got The Look,” and his Top 5 R&B hits: “Controversy,” “1999” and “Alphabet St.”

A treasure chest of royal rarities, ‘Ultimate’ also collects hard-to-find tracks including the single version of “7” from the symbol album; the 12-inch version of “Raspberry Beret” from Around The World In A Day and the classic B-side “She’s Always In My Hair” rounded out with remixes of “Hot Thing” from Sign ‘O’ The Times and “Thieves In The Temple” from the Graffiti Bridge soundtrack.

‘Diamonds and Pearls’ contains more than an hour of music including the DVD debut of concert performances, interviews and classic videos. The collection spotlights songs from ‘Diamonds and Pearls,’ Prince’s thirteenth studio album and his first with the New Power Generation. Videos for the smash singles “Gett Off,” “Cream” and the title track are bolstered by clips of fan favorites such as “Money Don’t Matter 2 Night” and “Insatiable,” as well as three more album tracks.

The DVD also features concert footage of Prince and the NPG working up a sweaty funk on the ‘Diamonds and Pearls’ tracks – “Thunder,” “Jughead” and “Live 4 Love.” The collection also captures Prince and his formidable band putting their unmistakable spin on Aretha Franklin’s classic soul hit, “Dr. Feelgood.” Interviews with Prince and the band round out ‘Diamonds and Pearls.’

‘Ultimate’ is now available for pre-order at Amazon. Visit the music database for more information and a complete track listing. ‘Diamonds and Pearls’ is now available for pre-order at Amazon. Visit the DVD database for more information.