Prince / Crystal Ball From The Master + Camille Special Edition Set (2CDR+2CDR)

Crystal Ball From the Master (2-CD set)

Disc 1

Rebirth of the Flesh
Play in the Sunshine
Housequake
The Ballad of Dorothy Parker
It
Starfish and Coffee
Slow Love
Hot Thing
Crystal Ball
If I Was Your Girlfriend
Rock Hard in a Funky Place

Disc 2

The Ball
Joy in Repetition
Strange Relationship
I Could Never Take the Place of Your Man
Shockadelica
Good Love
Forever in My Life
Sign o' the Times
The Cross
It's Gonna Be a Beautiful Night
Adore (Until the End of Time)

Many would cite Dream Factory as the masterpiece of Prince's unreleased albums. However, while the true masterpiece Crystal Ball is available in its entirety, the master itself has not been leaked, meaning that the connections between songs and the different versions are unclear, making it impossible to loudly proclaim Crystal Ball to be Prince's greatest unreleased 3LP epic. But now, the master copy of Crystal Ball has finally been released. I reviewed each track, including the Rebirth Of The Flesh medley and the exclusive new version of The Ball, in Purple Town Vol. 61, so please download and read the review at the following site, or request Purple Town Vol. 62 when purchasing.

●Camille Special Edition (2-CDR)

Disc 1
Rebirth of the Flesh
Housequake
Strange Relationship
Feel U Up
Shockadelica
Good Love
If I Was Your Girlfriend
Rockhard In A Funky Place
U Got The Look
Scarlet Pussy

Disc 2
Camile Original Version

Rebirth of the Flesh
Housequake
Strange Relationship
Feel U Up
Shockadelica
Good Love
If I Was Your Girlfriend
Rockhard In A Funky Place

T's Camille

Rebirth of the Flesh
Housequake
Strange Relationship
Feel U Up
Shockadelica
Good Love
If I Was Your Girlfriend
Rockhard In A Funky Place

Camille, an eight-track album released prior to Crystal Ball, features Prince's funky vocals, pitched up, and is considered an album featuring Prince's alter ego. Disc 1 features a remaster of "Pimpsandwich" and two bonus tracks featuring Prince singing Camille's voice. Disc 2, appearing for the first time here, reproduces Camille's original version, suggesting Prince likely prepared an extended version for the 12-inch and included an edited version on the album. The slow-pitched "Crystal Ball" and screaming sections in the second half of "Rebirth Of The Flesh" have been cut to smoothly transition into "Housequake." Also, "Feel U Up," "Shockadelica," and "Good Love" are all edited versions. Instead, "If I Was Your Girlfriend" includes an intro. Finally, there's Camille recorded by T, who likely owned the Dream Factory masters. Rebirth Of The Flesh was deemed the best sounding track, and has since been considered the best version of Camille's work.

●Crystal Ball Test Press EP (1 CDR)

Rebirth Of The Flesh
Play In The Sunshine
The Ball
Joy In Repetition

Until the release of the title track from this master, Pimpsandwich's remaster of Crystal Ball was considered the best. Its composition relied on two key elements: Rebirth Of The Flesh, which flows from Rebirth Of The Flesh to Play In The Sunshine, and the so-called "gun version" of Rebirth Of The Flesh, and The Ball and Joy In Repetition, the only tracks featured on this album. The title of this Crystal Ball Test Press EP releases these two tracks as singles. The version of The Ball from this master and the version included on this EP are different, making this an essential item for comparing them.