Record Rack

** Prince, “The Vault . . . Old Friends 4 Sale,” Warner Bros. The message in the title is clear enough for this collection of 10 previously unreleased tracks, recorded between 1985 and 1994 when the Artist was still just Prince, and made available now to fulfill part of an agreement ending the singular pop craftsman’s long, and ultimately strained, relationship with Warner Bros. Records.

Not unexpectedly, the album offers no heart-stoppers--no “When Doves Cry” or “Kiss” or “Diamonds and Pearls.” But these casual, sometimes glib castoffs include a soulful ballad, some lighthearted funk-pop and a couple of playfully lascivious numbers that mostly remind us of how formidable a creative force Prince was at the height of his powers. Never very satisfying, “The Vault” hovers between intriguing and disappointing. Complete with lavish horn arrangements and filigreed strings, such bluesy numbers as “There Is Lonely” and the Al Green-esque “5 Women” are crafted with a big-band sensibility. The mournful title track even recalls the old-time sophistication of a bluesy Frank Sinatra or Billie Holiday jazz crooner, with wiggier lyrics.

Yet the percussive funk of “The Rest of My Life” is so fluffy it practically floats away, and the dark, brief, spoken-word bit “My Little Pill,” while odd in a pixie-dusted, Brian Wilson way, hardly qualifies as a song at all.

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Albums are rated on a scale of one star (poor), two stars (fair), three stars (good) and four stars (excellent). The albums are already released unless otherwise noted.