Universal's overseas arm developed the Collected series as a line of compilations that would appeal to both casual and hardcore fans, combining an artist's biggest hits with harder-to-find material. (For instance, a 2017 volume on Huey Lewis and The News offered rare edits and 12" mixes, guest appearances and even a single track from the group's pre-News existence as American Express.) Now distributed through the Music on CD label, Collected is still going strong - as evidenced by a forthcoming volume offering a comprehensive summary of the king of punk funk himself, Rick James.

Rick's Collected volume offers his biggest and most soulful hits for Motown's Gordy imprint, from "You and I," "Bustin' Out," "Give It to Me Baby" and "Super Freak" to "Standing on the Top," "Dance Wit' Me," "Cold Blooded" and "Ebony Eyes." But that's not all: the triple-disc offering shines a light on his earliest recordings with groups like The Mynah Birds and The Great White Cane, an album he produced for his backing group The Stone City Band, off-label duets and productions with Chaka Khan and comedian Eddie Murphy, highlights from his late '80s work on the Reprise label, and even a selection of 12" dance mixes. (By our count, about 10 of the 47 tracks are new to CD, and some of the material didn't even make Motown and UMe's digital box set of Rick James' albums, issued alongside his posthumous memoirs in 2014.)

A native of Buffalo, New York, James Ambrose Johnson Jr. busted out of a complicated home (his single mother raised eight children with every job from dancing to working for a local crime family), briefly serving in the U.S. Naval Reserves before leaving for Canada. While there under the name Ricky James Matthews, he became ingratiated into Toronto's folk-rock scene; according to legend, he was rescued from a bar fight by a young Levon Helm and would sit in with him and Ronnie Hawkins in a set that night. The band he founded, soul/folk hybrid The Mynah Birds, became even more of a fantastic story: in 1966, they were signed to Motown, and Ricky's idols and labelmates Marvin Gaye and Stevie Wonder suggested he shorten his name. (Oh, also: The Mynah Birds' bassist at the time was another Canadian unknown named Neil Young. What?!)

The Mynah Birds dissolved when their manager, incensed by a money dispute, ratted out Rick James' unaccounted-for status to the Navy. After serving a labor sentence, Motown rehired him as a session player and staff songwriter. After being passed over to play bass for Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young and recording an album in Los Angeles with a group called The Great White Cane, James regrouped back home, forming a new combo called The Stone City Band. The third time with Motown proved to be the charm: he was on the Gordy Records roster from 1978 to 1986.

While true, sustaining crossover success proved elusive, Rick's unique blend of what he called "punk-funk" would become wildly influential in the years to follow. It's not hard to imagine the influence James - a prolific writer/producer with a lascivious side who oversaw tracks for Teena Marie, The Mary Jane GIrls and The Temptations on Motown - may have had on Prince's career arc. He was an outspoken advocate for marijuana and one of the loudest voices questioning MTV's early lack of airplay for artists of color. (His most notable appearance on the channel may have been as writer/producer for "Party All the Time," Eddie Murphy's foray into pop music after becoming a bona fide box office hitmaker.) As hip-hop entered the mainstream in the '90s, "Super Freak" formed the backbone of MC Hammer's Grammy-winning smash "U Can't Touch This."

While his latter career was plagued by drug and legal troubles - 1989's Kickin', two tracks of which feature on Collected, never made it out of the gate at his second major label home of Reprise and wouldn't be digitally released until 2014 - his last great contribution to pop culture came from just being himself. In 2004, on the hit cable comedy series Chappelle's Show, co-star Charlie Murphy, older brother to Eddie, recounted a series of over-the-top "True Hollywood Stories" about his misadventures with the singer, re-enacted by Dave Chappelle in an immortal impersonation ("I'm Rick James, bitch") while the real James offered his side-splitting sides of the story. Ultimately, years of hard living caught up with him, and he died of pulmonary and heart failure in 2004, less than a year after appearing on Chappelle's Show. He was 56 years old.

Rick James' Collected is out on June 6 and can be pre-ordered below. (As an Amazon affiliate, we earn from qualifying purchases.)

Collected (Music on CD MOCCD 14449, 2025) (Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada)

* previously unreleased on CD

Disc 1

1. It's My Time - The Mynah Birds
2. You Make the Magic - The Great White Cane *
3. You and I
4. Mary Jane
5. High on Your Love Suite
6. Bustin' Out (on Funk)
7. Fool on the Street
8. Love Gun
9. Come Into My Life (Part 1)
10. Big Time
11. Summer Love
12. Little Runaway - Stone City Band
13. Give It to Me Baby
14. Super Freak
15. Ghetto Life
16. Standing on the Top (feat. The Temptations)
17. Dance Wit' Me (Pt. 1)
18. Hard to Get
19. She Blew My Mind (69 Times)
20. Slow Dancin' (feat. Chaka Khan)

Disc 2

1. Cold Blooded
2. U Bring the Freak Out
3. Ebony Eyes (feat. Smokey Robinson)
4. 17
5. You Turn Me On
6. Can't Stop
7. Glow
8. Spend the Night with Me
9. Party All the Time - Eddie Murphy feat. Rick James
10. Sweet and Sexy Thing
11. Forever and a Day
12. Loosey's Rap (feat. Roxanne Shanté)
13. Wonderful
14. Day and Night *
15. Black and White *
16. This Magic Moment/Dance with Me (Medley)
17. In the Ghetto - Busta Rhymes feat. Rick James

Disc 3

1. You and I (Extended M+M Mix) *
2. Bustin' Out (12" Extended Mix) *
3. Love Gun (12" Extended Mix)
4. Super Freak (12" Version)
5. Give It to Me Baby (12" Version)
6. She Blew My Mind (69 Times) (12" Extended Mix) *
7. U Bring the Freak Out (12" Extended Mix) *
8. Glow/Glow (Reprise) (12" Version) *
9. Spend the Night with Me (12" Extended Version) *
10. Sweet and Sexy Thing (12" Extended) *

Disc 1, Track 1 intended for V.I.P. cancelled single 25033, 1966. Released on The Complete Motown Singles Vol. 6: 1966 - Hip-o Select/Motown B0007872-02, 2006
Disc 1, Track 2 from The Great White Cane - Lion LN-1005, 1972
Disc 1, Tracks 3-4 from Come Get It! - Gordy G7-981R1, 1978
Disc 1, Tracks 5-7 from Bustin' Out of L Seven - Gordy G7-984R1, 1979
Disc 1, Track 8 from Fire It Up - Gordy G8-990M1, 1979
Disc 1, Track 9 from Gordy single G 7177F, 1979. Original version from Fire It Up
Disc 1, Tracks 10-11 from Garden of Love - Gordy G8-995M1, 1980
Disc 1, Track 12 from In 'n' Out - Gordy G7-991R1, 1980
Disc 1, Tracks 13-15 from Street Songs - Gordy G8-1002M1, 1981
Disc 1, Tracks 16 and 18-19 from Throwin' Down - Gordy 6005GL, 1982
Disc 1, Track 17 from Gordy single 1619GF, 1982. Original version from Throwin' Down
Disc 1, Track 20 from Chaka Khan - Warner Bros. 23729, 1982
Disc 2, Tracks 1-3 from Cold Blooded - Gordy 6043GL, 1983
Disc 2, Tracks 4-5 from Reflections - Gordy 6095GL, 1984
Disc 2, Tracks 6-8 from Glow - Gordy 6135GL, 1985
Disc 2, Track 9 from How Could It Be - Columbia FC 39952, 1985
Disc 2, Tracks 10-11 from The Flag - Gordy 6185GL, 1986
Disc 2, Tracks 12-13 from Wonderful - Reprise 25659, 1988
Disc 2, Tracks 14-15 from Kickin' - Reprise, 1988 (cancelled)/Rhino (digital), 2014
Disc 2, Track 16 from Rock, Rhythm & Blues - Warner Bros. 25817, 1989
Disc 2, Track 17 from The Big Bang - Aftermath/Flipmode/Violator/Interscope B0006748-02, 2006
Disc 3, Track 1 from Motown Record Store Day 12" B0020265-11, 2014. Original version from Come Get It!
Disc 3, Track 2 from Motown 12" promo PR-51, 1979. Original version from Bustin' Out of L Seven
Disc 3, Track 3 from Motown 12" promo PR-60, 1979. Original version from Fire It Up
Disc 3, Track 4 from Motown 12" promo PR-83, 1981. Original version from Street Songs
Disc 3, Track 5 from Motown 12" promo PR-81, 1981. Original version from Street Songs
Disc 3, Track 6 from Motown 12" promo PR-107, 1982. Original version from Throwin' Down
Disc 3, Track 7 from Motown 12" promo PR-133, 1983. Original version from Cold Blooded
Disc 3, Track 8 from Gordy 12" 4539GG, 1985. Original version from Glow
Disc 3, Track 9 from Motown European 12" ZT 40418, 1985. Original version from Glow
Disc 3, Track 10 from Gordy 12" promo 4561GG, 1986. Original version from The Flag