Piano and a Microphone 1983
| Prince
Piano and a Microphone 1983
Piano and a Microphone 1983 is a posthumously released demo album by Prince, released on CD, vinyl, and digital formats on September 21, 2018. It is the first album released by the Prince estate with material from his archive, the Vault. The album was discovered in Prince's vault at Paisley Park as a single cassette tape. The music was recorded in 1983 in one take at Prince's Kiowa Trail home studio in Chanhassen, Minnesota. -Wikipedia
Critic Reviews
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Pitchfork
Piano & a Microphone is both omen and artifact, a rehearsal for another life.
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Rolling Stone
As insightful as it is, Piano & A Microphone is also imperfect: You can hear him flub the rhythm and adjust the tone of his voice. But that’s also part of what makes it so moving now.
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Consequence of Sound
We get to listen as a visionary works with simple tools — and in the end, Prince’s genius remains as mysterious as ever.
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Spin
In the best moments of Piano & A Microphone, it begins to feel like we can hear a bit of what he was hearing.
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Variety
This album takes you under the piano, so to speak, witnessing genius casually at work.
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The Gaurdian
It’s an intensely intimate experience, appropriately voyeuristic and transgressive for a songwriter who wrote about both things so well.
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LA Times
For those who want an unadulterated glimpse into just how brilliant Prince could be all by his lonesome, “Piano & a Microphone 1983” delivers a mighty convincing exhibition.
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American Songwriter
It’s Prince as few have heard him: inspired, unrestrained, playing for no one but himself and the engineer who pushed the record button.
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Popdust
The performance is so gloriously impulsive and deeply felt, the listener can almost see the electric impulse of creative genius moving from his mind to his fingers.
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Kent Wired
He is an artist who will be dearly missed — and undeniably one who many wish was still around to write more music for the world.
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NY Times
It's limpid piano accompaniment points toward Joni Mitchell and jazz ballads as Prince sings, in an utterly guileless falsetto.
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Black American Web
That you won’t ever have that experience is somewhat alleviated by the fact that through Piano and a Microphone 1983 you can at least get a sense of what that may have felt like.
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Hot Press
Over an irresistible rock rhythm, Prince assumes the growl of an old bluesman and improvises some ingenius lyrics,
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The Current
In 1983 he was on the precipice of his greatest success, but he's still our Prince, singing and playing in his home studio in Chanhassen, into a cassette, for himself. And now, for all of us.
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NPR
Turns out the iconic singer didn't need a fancy studio or even his trusty guitar for that — all he needed was a piano and microphone.
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All Music
These loose ends are the reason to listen to the album. The whole affair plays like the listener is eavesdropping on Prince creating, and there simply can't be a reissue more valuable than that.
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Irish Times
An essential, if occasionally vexing eavesdropping experience.
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Chicago Tribune
He exudes a joy that almost by itself justifies the release of an album never intended for the public.
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USA Today
More than just an essential listen for Prince fans – it's a fascinating look at the artist on the precipice of superstardom, during one of his most storied creative stretches as he works through the material that would appear on his masterwork, "Purple Rain."
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Daily mail
We already knew Prince was a genius, but worth-the-wait posthumous release Piano And A Microphone 1983 deepens our understanding of why.
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Sputnik Music
This shabbily released curio adds nothing to Prince's legacy.
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Vinyl Junkies
Awarding Prince an 8.5 is an exercise in sheer arrogance; it immediately devalues the words that follow that number. Writing about architecture, using numerals.
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Billboard
A real treat is the album’s closer, “Why the Butterflies,” with Prince’s delicate piano and yearning, breathy vocals.
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411 Mania
As pure of a stream of consciousness as they come. Prince plays uninterrupted.
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Hooks and Harmony
A jewel in Prince’s catalog is simply his piano playing. We often think of Prince the guitarist, he of the amazing guitar riffs.
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Albumism
His voice is quite magnificent, turning this way and that, and hitting every emotional note perfectly.
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Uncut
A unique, intimate portrait of an artist in full flood.
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Long Live Vinyl
The recordings are so raw, cassette hiss is audible; whether an 87-second sketch of Purple Rain is indispensable.
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BBC
For me, any excitement is tempered by the realisation I'm hearing these songs because of a terrible tragedy.
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Treblezine
That proposes genius on display, all figured out, ready to show out and show off.
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Flood magazine
It’s not a pantheon-level Prince record, but then again, it is a Prince release like no other. And that might be just as valuable.
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The Musical Hype
Those who appreciate superb musicianship, even at its most raw, will highly appreciate what Prince serves up here.
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Mercury News
He just turned on the charisma, leaned on his equally mighty talent and songbook, and crooned from the piano bench.
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MTSU Sidelines
A strong reminder of how capable Prince was as a musician and as a songwriter.
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Spectrum Culture
It is refreshing to see his legacy grow with an object that clears away some of the shimmering mirage that defines him.
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Humo
A private spike of which Prince would never have wanted it to appear, due to our standards, but not to his.
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The Arts Desk
This intimate snapshot is evidence that Prince's genius, beneath all the showbiz, all the costumes.
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Musik Express
A performance show, but not performed with sacred seriousness, but with great enthusiasm.
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Classic Pop Magazine
Still the feeling lingers, though: was this really how a quality-control fanatic such as Prince intended to be heard?
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The Melomaniacs
A hauntingly beautiful capsule of music.
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Reddit
Either way, that tells you everything you need to know about this release. I would urge fans not to buy it, to send a signal to the estate that they should exercise some discretion.
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The Pillar
Besides the occasional sniffling or tape buzz, this is a stunning collection of songs. His words aren’t always perfectly understandable, but he’s not incoherent either.
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Financial times
Prince fooling around with jittery chords and comical vocals, a throwaway moment. Whatever treasures are in the vault remain unmined.
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The Sentry
Reveals the tender side of the pop icon’s songwriting and performance abilities.
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OOR
While it really should be nothing more than a bonus disc with a larger release.
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NBC News
Offers longtime fans an aural time capsule, capturing Prince just a year before he rocketed to international fame and commercial riches.
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Hot New Hip Hop
Able to give fans a glimpse of his evolution and show how his career ultimately came full circle with just him and his piano.
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Bernard Zuel
It’s hard to see though how the label and the family – who ultimately are at fault - really justify putting this out as a testimony to Prince or a reward for Prince fans.
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Beat Media
This was him at his candid best, just exercising the muscles of what made him great--timeless talent.
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LWOS Life
Keep this album on the back burner; it definitely has a place for Prince fans. Especially if you are a fan of vinyl records.
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Weedstream
It’s a fascinating listen.
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Bol
The private rehearsals cast a rare glimpse of Prince's creative process while he worked on songs.
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Music AV Club
Hearing Prince’s voice in registers you’d previously assumed were merely post-production trickery.
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Yahoo
He’s just playing. But he’s Prince.
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The Conversation
The tracks do give some insight into Prince’s work process and offer fans an intimate seat next to the piano as Prince plays through his ideas.
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Sydney Morning Herald
The last musical genius of his enigmatic, obscenely talented kind, sing to you while playing a piano for a couple of hours, brilliantly reinventing selections.
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Twin Cities
The sound of a carefree 25-year-old strolling through some tunes both new and old, with the world as his oyster.
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MSN
For those who want an unadulterated glimpse into just how brilliant Prince could be all by his lonesome, "Piano & a Microphone 1983" delivers a mighty convincing exhibition.
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Acrn
What this album does is solidify him as the true piano player and artist that he is.
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The WSU Guardian
To be inside the mind of a gifted artist, even if it is just a toe in the door, is taking a glimpse into another world entirely.
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NZ Herald
It's just a genius jamming out by himself one night and recording it for posterity.
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Anhedonic Headphones
The sparse, skeletal nature of this material gives it a certain ghostly characteristic—but maybe that’s because you want to imagine Prince speaking to us from beyond the 3D printed urn.
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Wrong Mog
What stays with you is the sense of talent, hardening to genius.
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Datebook
The music is by turns delicate and lush, capable of captivating in a way that only Prince knew how.
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Rockol
But we believe that this album, short and intense, can fascinate even non-fans.
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Music Factory
It’s a triumph.
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The Vinyl Factory
This raw, intimate recording, which took place at the start of Prince’s career right before he achieved international stardom.
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Ultimate Classic Rock
A glimpse of his evolution and show how his career ultimately came full circle with just him and his piano.
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WESM 913
Turns out the iconic singer didn't need a fancy studio or even his trusty guitar for that — all he needed was a piano and microphone.
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Slant Magazine
it’s a testament to his talent that even at play he was nothing short of transcendent.
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Move Magazine
Provides an intimate look into the mind of artist Prince, brilliantly showcasing the scope of his talent
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The Breeze
Provide a stunningly beautiful view into the man, the myth and the legend — Prince.
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NME
Album features the icon’s solo rehearsals, recorded at his home in 1983. The examination of self and family relationships… and butterflies. I can almost hear his heart beating”.
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Goldies Parade
Prince live on, as look forward to the many more such ‘lost tapes’ to come.
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The Key
It’s worth hearing, but you’d best be prepared to stare down some of the deeper questions of life and death.
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Bass Player
The private rehearsal provides a rare, intimate glimpse into Prince's creative process as he worked through songs
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Spill Magazine
A masterpiece that is among the best records of the year, and beyond.
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Sound Opinions
A glimpse into Prince's artistic process, recorded on the cusp of his breakthrough album.
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Star2
For those who want an unadulterated glimpse into just how brilliant Prince could be all by his lonesome.
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Review Journal
You can hear him strapping the rocket engine on that would propel him to superstardom.
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Readings AU
The private rehearsal provides a rare, intimate glimpse into Prince’s creative process.
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