Prince

Even geniuses (maybe especially geniuses) are taken for granted, not seen as geniuses, or only appreciated in small doses. Which is a grandiose way of saying that, no matter how partisans may complain, there are many listeners out there that don't want to delve into the deliriously rich catalog of Prince and would rather spend time with a single disc of all the hits – especially since the first singles compilation was botched, spread too thin over two discs and sequenced as if it were on shuffle play.

The Super Deluxe Edition contains 75 audio tracks across 7 CDs, of which 47 are previously unreleased, including 33 studio tracks from Prince’s legendary Vault. • The Super Deluxe Edition opens with Prince & The New Power Generation’s multi-platinum album, Diamonds And Pearls, dazzlingly remastered for the very first time by Prince’s original mastering engineer Bernie Grundman. Also included are 15 of the incredible remixes and B-sides from the era, including the never commercially released “Gett Off (Damn Near 10 Min.)” mix, all of which have also been remastered for the very first time. At the heart of the set sit 33x previously unreleased studio recordings from Prince’s legendary Vault, making up three hours of audio. The set also includes an entire previously unreleased audio recording of Prince & The New Power Generation’s preview performance of the Diamonds And Pearls tour at Prince’s Minneapolis club, Glam Slam, on January 11th, 1991.

Listening to this Purple Rain-era live show from Syracuse in 1985, you’re reminded how introverted Prince was. Does he dazzle? Yes. Does he dance? Yes—and shred, and sweat, and offer you his most carnal love. But he also creates a sense of interiority that, if not at odds with how physical the music is, at least feels remarkable when you remember there were 50,000 people there with him. God and Satan (“Let’s Go Crazy”), Mom and Dad (“When Doves Cry”), U and Me (“Let’s Pretend We’re Married”): He sees the lines and he blurs them. The funniest banter comes on “How Come U Don’t Call Me Anymore” when he asks, “Does your man have an ass like mine?” But the one that gets under your skin is on “God” because when he says, “I know you better than you think I do,” he says it like he might.