Tremendous work from the legendary Prince Lasha – a rare UK-only date from 1966 – and one that has the reedman working away from more familiar contemporaries like Sonny Simmons and Eric Dolphy! The approach on this session is very unique – as Lasha includes harp with the instrumentation, played by David Snell in a style that's right up there with Dorothy Ashby's best jazz work. Pianist Stan Tracey is also on board – playing beautiful notes that have a sharp modern edge, while still falling on the inside of the spectrum – and Lasha himself is especially great – blowing plastic alto sax and wooden flute, both of which have a slightly offbeat sound – but one that's surprisingly warm, which makes the album one of his most sensitive and soulful sessions ever! The tunes are a mix of standards and originals – and there's a wonderful sense of balance here – sounds that are sometimes more inside than other records from Lasha, but which have a really Dolphy-like sense of expression – right at home amidst a wider history of jazz, yet also reaching for new ideas at the same time. Pure genius throughout, and a record that was never made available to audiences in the US. Titles include "Nuttin Out Jones", "Impressions Of Eric Dolphy", "Out Of Nowhere", "Just Friends", "Body & Soul", and "Everything Happens To Me". CD

A classic set of grooves from the Minneapolis scene – work that comes from the early days of Prince, when he was an up and coming talent on the scene – and which also continues a bit into early 80s years as well, even after he'd been signed to Warner Brothers! The exact nature of these cuts is always a bit obscured – they definitely feature some contributions from Prince and Andre Cymone, and sound very Prince-like too – but are usually presented under the aegis of Pepe Willie, who founded the group 94 East. The tracks are mostly instrumental, although there are a bit of female vocals – and titles include "If You Feel Like Dancin", "Lovin Cup", "Games", "Just Another Sucker", "Dance To The Music Of The World", "You Can Be My Teacher", "Better Than You Think", "If You See Me", "I'll Always Love You", and "One Man Jam". CD

A classic set of grooves from the Minneapolis scene – work that comes from the early days of Prince, when he was an up and coming talent on the scene – and which also continues a bit into early 80s years as well, even after he'd been signed to Warner Brothers! The exact nature of these cuts is always a bit obscured – they definitely feature some contributions from Prince and Andre Cymone, and sound very Prince-like too – but are usually presented under the aegis of Pepe Willie, who founded the group 94 East. The tracks are mostly instrumental, although there are a bit of female vocals – and titles include "If You Feel Like Dancin", "Lovin Cup", "Games", "Just Another Sucker", "Dance To The Music Of The World", and "One Man Jam". LP, Vinyl record album

A classic set of grooves from the Minneapolis scene – work that comes from the early days of Prince, when he was an up and coming talent on the scene – and which also continues a bit into early 80s years as well, even after he'd been signed to Warner Brothers! The exact nature of these cuts is always a bit obscured – they definitely feature some contributions from Prince and Andre Cymone, and sound very Prince-like too – but are usually presented under the aegis of Pepe Willie, who founded the group 94 East. The tracks are mostly instrumental, although there are a bit of female vocals – and titles include "If You Feel Like Dancin", "Lovin Cup", "Games", "Just Another Sucker", "Dance To The Music Of The World", and "One Man Jam". LP, Vinyl record album

The record that forever put Prince on the map – a legendary set that took him from being an under-appreciated soul singer to a lasting pop music legend! Prince had been around for a few years before 1999 – but the double-length set was the first to really win over the masses to his genius – and still stands as one of the most perfect blends of soul, funk, and pop that we can ever think of – especially since the man himself pretty much put the whole thing together on his own! The set begins with the classic singles "Little Red Corvette" and "1999" – then soars into lots more gems that include "Let's Pretend We're Married", "Lady Cab Driver", "All The Critics Love U In New York", "International Lover", "DMSR", and "Delirious". CD

Prince got tagged to do the music for the big breakout Batman film from Tim Burton – and the performances here are definitely not the stuff of The Dark Night – and in fact, maybe nothing like you'd expect from Batman at all – even though the music does make a nod or two towards the cowled crusader with some samples! It's clear that Prince just had a fun time putting the whole thing together – and like many other star soundtracks from the 90s, the feel of the music is very much its own thing – which is probably why the record was such a hit, and maybe has had a lot more endurance than the film! Titles include "The Future", "Electric Chair", "Vicki Waiting", "Partyman", "Scandalous", and "Batdance". CD

Recorded in 1987, but never officially released until 1994, when Prince was trying to get out of his Warners contract. Prince's attempt to return to his more funky side after flirting with more straight pop songs was a Holy Grail amongst collectors for a time, and though we don't like it as much as his first couple of albums, there are more than a few good moments on here, and it certainly stands up better than most of what came after. 8 songs: "Le Grind", "Cindy C", "Dead On It", "When 2 R In Love", "Bob George", "Superfunkycalifragisexy", "2 Nigs United 4 West Compton" and "Rockhard In A Funky Place". CD

The last album before becoming the Artist Formerly Known As Prince. Much better than you might expect from an album that appeared, at least at the time, to have been pulled mostly from his huge archive of tapes, with a sound that seems to date it from the surrounding New Power Generation years. Includes "Pheromone", "Papa", "Race", "Come", "Space", "Loose!", "Dark", "Solo", "Letitgo" and "Orgasm". CD

A key moment of transition for Prince – a set that's got him toning down the longer-haired look of previous records, and going for the new wave sense of style that would help him cross into many audiences in years to come! Controversy still has Prince singing to the already-converted, but the record's full of moments of stardom to come – blending the open sexuality of his previous records with an even sharper sense of hook and tunefulness! There's a slight touch of politics here, hinted at by the cover – but the driving force is the desire of the man himself, as he performs and produces himself on titles that include "Controversy", "Jack U Off", "Do Me Baby", "Let's Work", "Annie Christian", "Ronnie Talk To Russia", and "Sexuality". LP, Vinyl record album

A big new chapter for Prince in the 90s – his first set with the New Power Generation, and a record that definitely has him amping up his game for the decade! There's maybe a bit more sampling here, and a groove that certainly has one ear open for the younger sound of R&B at the time – while still coming across with all that care, class, and top-shelf vibe that made Prince's work of the previous generation such an important funky influence on the younger crowd who were growing up with equal parts soul and hip hop to influence their sound. Tracks include "Daddy Pop", "Diamonds", "Cream", "Insatiable", "Live 4 Love", "Push", "Money Don't Matter 2 Night", "Jughead", "Gett Off", "Walk Don't Walk", "Strollin", and "Willing & Able". 4LP deluxe edition features lots of bonus material – the tracks "Horny Pony", "Gangster Glam", "Call The Law", and "Violet The Organ Grinder" - plus remixes that include "Gett Off (damn near 10 minutes)", "Gett Off (houstyle)", Do Your Dance (KC's rmx)", "Insatiable (edit)", "Cream (NPG mix #1)", "Thunder (DJ fade)", "Willing & Able (video version)", "Money Don't Matter 2 Night (edit)", "Things Have Gotta Change (Tony M rap)", and "Diamonds & Pearls (edit)". LP, Vinyl record album

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Prince certainly hit and run with this record – as the set was so secret, we couldn't even announce it until it was released! But the lack of advance fame certainly doesn't hold it back – as the whole thing is one of Prince's strongest efforts in years – a record that echoes lots of his 80s famous funk right at the start, then breaks out into a mode that's a lot more brash and almost brutal at times – as if the purple one's expressing anger and emotion we never would have heard in his music from years back! Everything is very much right on the money – vocals, instruments, and all the rhythms woven together with that magic that Prince first created decades ago – but with a fresher 21st Century spirit that still blows away most of the younger generation he's inspired. Titles include "Hardrocklover", "Fallinlove2nite", "Mr Nelson", "June", "Million $ Show", "Ain't About 2 Stop", and "This Could B Us". CD

The fourth Prince soundtrack in less than a decade – and a record that follows nicely after Purple Rain, Batman, and Parade, but with a slightly different spirit too – thanks to an ever-expanding Paisley Park family that included George Clinton, Morris Day, and Mavis Staples! The older funk acts are fine, and add to the spice – but it's clear that the main attraction here is Prince, although The Time are pretty darn welcome too! The set features vocal performances from Tevin Campbell, George Clinton, Mavis Staples, TC Ellis, and Robin Power – and titles include "New Power Generation", "Can't Stop This Feeling I Got", "Love Machine", "Tick Tick Bang", "Shake", "Thieves In The Temple", "Still Would Stand All Time", "Graffiti Bridge", and "The Latest Fashion". CD

Prince in a grand groove – really hitting a new level of funk with a razor-sharp edge – and even blowing away some of his work on previous records! The record's a soundtrack for a film – Under The Cherry Moon – and although that movie never had the success of Purple Rain, we actually think it left behind an even stronger musical legacy – one that has Prince finding even more of a funky voice than before, with so many wonderfully freaky twists and turns! The music never got the showcase it might have deserved, because of the failure of the film – but it's one of our favorite Prince albums ever, and includes the massively funky "Kiss", the closest Prince ever got to James Brown, The whole album's got some great sweeping, pop psyche orchestral arrangements by Clare Fischer – and titles include "Christopher Tracey's Parade", "I Wonder U", "Under The Cherry Moon", "Girls & Boys", and "Anotherloverholenyohead". LP, Vinyl record album

One of the greatest crossover albums of the 80s – and the record that catapulted Prince very firmly into the mainstream! There's a tightness here that surpasses even that of Prince's early classics for Warner Brothers – an unabashed love of a pop hook that makes for some incredibly catchy tunes that are still delivered with a nice funky undercurrent. The whole Prince family is at the top of their game at this point – and titles include "Darling Nikki", "Let's Go Crazy", "I Would Die 4 U", "When Doves Cry", "Baby I'm A Star", and "Purple Rain". This version features the new 2015 remaster of the album, done by Prince! LP, Vinyl record album

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