Prince / Black Album
Artist Prince
Album Title: Black Album
Album Cover:
Primary Genre Funk / Soul
Format CD
Released 12/08/1987
Reissue Date 11/22/1994
Label Warner Bros. Records
Catalog No 2-45793
Bar Code No none
Packaging Jewelcase
Tracks
1. Le Grind (6:44)
2. Cindy C. (6:15)
3. Dead On It (4:37)
4. When 2 R In Love (3:59)
5. Bob George (5:36)
6. Superfunkycalifragisexy (5:55)
7. 2 Nigs United 4 West Compton (7:01)
8. Rockhard In A Funky Place (4:31)
Date Acquired 11/15/2012
Personal Rating
Acquired from Dark Fire Comics (Amazon)
Purchase Price 11.97

Web Links

All Music Guide Entry:
Discogs Entry:

Notes

Limited official CD release of album that Prince had withdrawn back in December 1987.  Release has no artwork or title, though tracklist appears on disc and cat # appears on disc and spine.  There are no credits on release; those here are taken from other sources.
This album was only released for two months.
©1994 ℗1994, (track 4) 1988 Warner Bros. Records Inc.
Standard jewel case. Some copies have a barcode sticker (includes the catalog number) on the back tray jewel case.
Title sticker on shrink wrap:
PRINCE
The legendary Black Album
Limited Edition
2-45793
Front insert is plain black.
[Copies distributed for promotional purposes have a "FOR PROMOTIONAL USE ONLY" gold stamp]
Back tray insert is plain black, except the spines which show the catalog number and the company credit to Warner Bros. Records Inc.
Disc:
Tracklist
[Warner Bros. records logo] ® 2-45793
© 1994 ℗ 1994, *1988 Warner Bros. Records Inc. Made in U.S.A.
[the asterisk refer to the song 'When 2 R In Love' (track 4) which was previously released on Lovesexy]
No performer credits or track durations appear on the release.
Barcode (Sticker, text): 0 9362-45793-2 8
Barcode (Scanned): 093624579328
Rights Society: ASCAP
Matrix / Runout (Mastered): [ARC logo] Allied Record Company B525 1 45793-2 70
Matrix / Runout (Variant 1, Stamped): ARC ЖM1 S3
Matrix / Runout (Variant 2, Stamped): ARC ЖM1 S4
Mastering SID Code: none
Mould SID Code: none

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Analyzed Folder: Prince - The Black Album_dr.txt
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
DR         Peak       RMS        Filename                      
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
DR12    -2.98 dB   -17.38 dB  01 - Le Grind.flac            
DR15    -1.18 dB   -19.03 dB  02 - Cindy C..flac            
DR15    -0.54 dB   -17.47 dB  03 - Dead on It.flac          
DR13    -3.27 dB   -20.35 dB  04 - When 2 R in Love.flac    
DR14    -3.32 dB   -20.02 dB  05 - Bob George.flac          
DR15    -2.89 dB   -19.72 dB  06 - Superfunkycalifragisexy.flac
DR13    -2.11 dB   -18.22 dB  07 - 2 Nigs United 4 West Compton.flac
DR15    -2.76 dB   -19.86 dB  08 - Rockhard in a Funky Place.flac
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Number of Files: 8
Official DR Value: DR14
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Reviews
All Music Guide Review:

Review by Stephen Thomas Erlewine
Originally scheduled for release in November of 1987 -- following the double-album Sign o' the Times by a matter of months -- Prince pulled The Black Album weeks before its release, guaranteeing it near-mythic status. Urban legends spread like wildfire: Prince believed it was too bleak to release; Warner Bros. balked at its explicit lyrics; no CDs were ever pressed, and all the LPs were destroyed. That final rumor was certainly untrue, since bootlegs immediately appeared, and when it finally received official release in the fall of 1994, nearly every die-hard fan already had the record. That limited-edition release of The Black Album turned out to be a bit anti-climatic, since the album itself isn't a lost masterwork -- it's fun, but not much more. If anything, it's a little labored, as Prince works hard to win back the black audience he willfully abandoned after Purple Rain. So, he serves up "When 2 R in Love," an urban ballad every bit as nondescript as the genre, and offers "Dead on It," trying to one-up rappers with a mocking attack that winds up as one of the lamest things he ever waxed. The rest of the eight-song album is brilliant, pure funk, ranging from the unrelenting "Le Grind," a deliriously lustful plea to supermodel Cindy Crawford; the hyper-tense James Brown workout "2 Nigs United 4 West Compton"; to "Bob George," a perverse tale of a macho lunkhead (Prince, electronically affecting a deep, idiotic drawl) who discovers his lady just slept with Prince -- or "that skinny motherf*cker with a high voice," as Bob calls him. All this may not add up to a lost classic, but it is a terrific little record that still delights, even after its mystique has faded.
Cover 1
Cover 2
Cover 3