The Prince Estate/Allen BeaulieuToday, Thursday, would have been Prince‘s 60th birthday, and his estate is marking the occasion by giving his fans a gift.
Piano & a Microphone 1983, due out September 21, is the late music legend 35 years ago accompanied only by a piano, just after the release of 1999 and a year prior to the release of Purple Rain, which launched him to super-stardom.
There are nine tracks in all, recorded at Prince’s Chanhassen, Minnesota studios that later came to be known as Paisley Park. Songs include pre-release versions of “17 Days,” which was the B-side of “When Doves Cry” a year later; “Strange Relationship,” from 1987’s Sign o’ the Times; and a performance of what would become Prince’s signature hit, “Purple Rain.”
Piano & a Microphone 1983 also includes Prince’s bluesy take on the Civil War-era spiritual “Mary Don’t You Weep,” which will be featured during the end credits of Spike Lee’s film BlacKkKlansman, due out August 10.
You can pre-order Piano & a Microphone 1983 now in all the usual formats, including a deluxe CD/vinyl combo that includes a booklet featuring liner notes written by Prince’s engineer at the time the album was recorded, as well as candid photos and some never-before-seen images. Pre-order now and you’ll also score an instant download of “Mary Don’t You Weep.”
Here’s the Piano & a Microphone 1983 track list:
1) “17 Days”
2) “Purple Rain”
3) “A Case of You”
4) “Mary Don’t You Weep”
5) “Strange Relationship”
6) “International Lover”
7) “Wednesday”
8) “Cold Coffee & Cocaine”
9) “Why the Butterflies”
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