Prince Estate Releasing Unheard 'Piano & A Microphone 1983' Album
Prince
Record captured at singer's home studio is due out Sept. 21.
A previously unheard home studio cassette recording of Prince performing at his piano in 1983 will be released as Piano & A Microphone
on Sept. 21. The nine-track, 35-minute project from the Prince Estate
in coordination with Warner Bros. Records is planned for what would have
been the rock icon's 60th birthday and it is available now to pre-order
on CD, LP, deluxe CD+ LP, digital release and pre-save for streaming.
“This
raw, intimate recording, which took place at the start of Prince’s
career right before he achieved international stardom, is similar in
format to the Piano & A Microphone Tour that he ended his
career with in 2016,” Prince Estate entertainment adviser Troy Carter
said in a statement about the project recorded at Prince's Kiowa Trail
home studio in Chanhassen, Minnesota. “The Estate is excited to be able
to give fans a glimpse of his evolution and show how his career
ultimately came full circle with just him and his piano.”
This rare, intimate glimpse finds Prince working through songs
including "17 Days" and "Purple Rain" (which would both be released the
following year), a cover of Joni Mitchell's "A Case of You," "Strange
Relationship" (issued in 1987 on the Sign O' The Times album)
and "International Lover," as well as a rare recording of the pre-Civil
War spiritual "Mary Don't You Weep," which will be heard on the end
credits of Spike Lee's upcoming film BlacKkKlansman, due out in August.
The album cover features a rare image of Prince backstage during the 1999 tour, taken by Allen Beaulieu, who worked closely with Prince from 1979-1984, shooting the covers of Dirty Mind and Controversy and the promo shots for 1999.
The Deluxe version will include a 12" booklet with new liner notes from
Prince's engineer, Don Batts, as well as never-before-seen candid
photos of the singer. Fans who pre-order the digital download will get
an instant grat download of "Mary Don't You Weep."
Track listing for Piano & A Microphone:
"17 Days"
"Purple Rain"
"A Case Of You"
"Mary Don’t You Weep"
"Strange Relationship"
"International Lover"
"Wednesday"
"Cold Coffee & Cocaine"
"Why The Butterflies"
Prince
fans will celebrate what would have been the singer's birthday today
(June 7) with a three-day festival in Henderson, Minnesota (where Purple Rain was filmed), which will include a bus tour of Purple Rain filming locations, a screening of the movie and live music. In addition to Microphone, the Prince Estate has teamed with Tidal to release a batch of previously unreleased music from the vaults for a new album due out next year.
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