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Lot #4087
Prince 'Crystal Ball' Analog Cassettes

The unreleased Crystal Ball cassettes

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Estimate: $500+
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Description

The unreleased Crystal Ball cassettes

Rare group of three analog cassette tapes of the unreleased Crystal Ball album which were given to Prince’s band members as reference materials for rehearsals, from the collection of his saxophonist Eric Leeds. The tapes are TDK SA-X audio cassettes, and all are simply labeled “Camille” in type. They are housed in individual cases with Bernie Grundman Mastering inserts, filled out in type with track listings. The first reads: “Side 1: 1. Rebirth Of The Flesh, 2. Play In The Sunshine, 3. Housequake, 4. The Ballad Of Dorothy Parker, Side 2: 1. It, 2. Starfish And Coffee, 3. Slow Love, 4. Hot Thing.” The second reads: “Side Three: 1. Crystal Ball, 2. If I Was Your Girlfriend, 3. Rock Hard In A Funky Place, Side Four: 1. The Ball, 2. Joy In Repetition, 3. Strange Relationship, 4. I Could Never Take The Place Of Your Man.” The third reads: “Side Five: 1. Shockadelica 6:31, 2. Good Love 5:15, 3. Forever In My Life 3:27, 4. Sign O’ the Times 4:50, Side Six: 1. The Cross, 2. Adore (until the end of time), 3. It’s Gonna Be A Beautiful Night.” In overall fine condition. From the collection of musician/saxophonist Eric Leeds and accompanied by a letter of provenance.

Other than the title track, the Crystal Ball tapes offered here are entirely different from Prince’s 1998 Crystal Ball box-set, which contained previously bootlegged material and an acoustic record called The Truth. Featuring 22 tracks from the abandoned Camille and Dream Factory albums, Crystal Ball was compiled on November 30, 1986, with the intention of being released under the mysterious Prince alias 'Camille.' When Warner Bros. requested the record be condensed, seven tracks were removed—the unreleased Camille album—and the remaining were eventually used for Prince’s ninth studio album, Sign o’ the Times. Interestingly, The Ball and Joy in Repetition were not included on either project. An amazingly rare recording of one of Prince’s most elusive releases.

Auction Info

  • Auction Title: Prince Auction
  • Dates: #522 - Ended February 15, 2018