The long-shelved 1986 Prince album Camille is finally set for release courtesy of Jack White‘s Third Man Records. The White Stripes frontman and his label co-founder Ben Blackwell confirmed their acquisition of the rights from the Prince estate to Mojo.
The planned follow-up to 1986’s Parade heard Prince adopt a more androgynous alter-ego known as Camille. On the album’s eight tracks, he utilized sped-up vocals to replicate a female singing voice. Prince ultimately made the decision to scrap the album following a test pressing and went on to release the hugely successful double LP Sign O’ The Times in 1987.
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All eight songs slated for release on Camille ultimately appeared on later releases. “Housequake”, “Strange Relationship”, and “If I Was Your Girlfriend” are found on Sign O’ the Times. “Feel U Up” and “Shockadelica” were included as the B-sides to “Partyman” from the Batman soundtrack and “If I Was Your Girlfriend,” respectively.
“Good Love” appeared on the soundtrack to the 1988 film Bright Lights, Big City starring Michael J. Fox. “Rockhard in a Funky Place” can be heard on 1994’s The Black Album, and “Rebirth of the Flesh” was released in 2020 as part of an expanded reissue of Sign O’ the Times, distributed by Third Man.
According to Ultimate Prince, prior to Third Man’s acquisition of the rights to Camille, White paid $49,375 at auction for one of 25 signed test pressings of the album. In 2017, White was reportedly outbid by Questlove for a copy of the album.
Third Man Records has not announced an official release date for Camille. See below for the full tracklist.