✦ 1999 – CD Single: Jan. 1998

A millennium‑timed revival that returned Prince’s party anthem to the charts for a third time

✦ Summary

1999 was reissued on January 11, 1998 as a 5-inch CD single in the UK and Australia on Warner Bros. Records (WPCR‑1999), with promotional editions also circulating in the USA and Germany.

The release paired the iconic title track with four early‑’80s cuts — Uptown, Controversy, Dirty Mind, and Sexuality — effectively turning the single into a compact retrospective of Prince’s pre‑Purple Rain evolution. Renewed US radio airplay in late 1998 propelled the track back onto the Billboard Hot 100, where it re‑entered at No. 40 for one week on January 16, 1999.

This marked the song’s third appearance on the chart and brought its cumulative total to 28 weeks since its original 1982 release.

✦ Highlights

• Released January 11, 1998 in the UK & Australia (WPCR‑1999)

• Promotional issues released in the USA and Germany

• Re‑entered the Billboard Hot 100 at No. 40 on Jan. 16, 1999

• Third lifetime chart appearance for 1999

• Total of 28 Hot 100 weeks since 1982

• Expanded tracklist featuring four early‑era classics

✦ Track Details

CD Single – UK / Australia (WPCR‑1999)

1: 1999 — 6:22

2: Uptown — 5:30

3: Controversy — 7:14

4: Dirty Mind — 4:11

5: Sexuality — 4:20

Australian Catalogue Reference: 7599238222

Promo Editions – USA / Germany

Same tracklist; issued as promotional‑only discs

Label: Warner Bros. Records

Produced, arranged, composed, and performed by Prince

✦ Chart Performance

United States: No. 40 — Billboard Hot 100 (Jan. 16, 1999)

Total Hot 100 weeks across all releases: 28

✦ Discography

1999‑Era & Reissue Singles:

1999 — Original Single: 1982

Little Red Corvette — Single: 1983

Delirious — Single: 1983

1999 — CD Reissue: Jan. 1998

1999 (The New Master) — Single: Feb. 1999

✦ Prince Era Mini‑Timeline

1982 — 1999 album released

1983 — 1999 becomes a breakthrough hit

Jan. 11, 1998 — CD single reissued

Jan. 16, 1999 — 1999 re‑enters Billboard Hot 100

Feb. 1999 — 1999 (The New Master) released

✦ Glam Flashback

The 1998 reissue of 1999 is a perfect example of how Prince’s early‑’80s catalogue continued to resonate across decades. By bundling the title track with four foundational cuts, the single became both a celebration and a reintroduction — a reminder of the raw, revolutionary energy that defined Prince’s ascent. Its surprise return to the Hot 100 in early 1999 added a poetic twist: the anthem written for the future found new life as the millennium approached.

✦ Sources

Prince Vault, Discogs, 45cat, AllMusic, Rate Your Music, Wikipedia, Billboard Chart History

✦ Image & Artwork Copyright Notice

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