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Sam · 31-10-2007, 07:02 AM

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TYPICAL...you wait all year for one LEONA LEWIS album to arrive – then two come at once.

SIMON COWELL is putting the finishing touches to X Factor winner Leona’s debut CD, Spirit, which hits shops on November 12.

But just days later little-known management company UEG Music plan to put out another collection of Leona tracks, called The Best Kept Secret, from before she was a star.

Listen to three of the tracks from Leona's secret album by clicking on the links below:

Leona’s boss, X Factor supremo Cowell, is furious with the rival disc and his lawyers look certain to try to block it.

A spokesman for Leona told me last night: “UEG approached Leona and her representatives earlier this year — but they do not have the rights to release these demos.”

UEG are putting out the record in a bid to claw back tens of thousands of pounds they claim they spent developing Leona from when she was an unknown 16-year-old in Hackney, East London.

They recorded tracks with her between 2003 and 2006, many of which are on their forthcoming compilation.

They say they were unceremoniously DUMPED after Leona entered the third X Factor contest in 2006.

A UEG source told me: “The situation has left a very bitter taste in a lot of people’s mouths.

“A huge amount of time and energy was put into working with Leona, not to mention £70,000 in production and studio costs that still remain unpaid.

“From our point of view we’ve been pushed into a corner.

“We’ve offered the album to Sony and to Leona’s father to buy but both have refused.

“We’ve got 12 tracks and will release them so we can cover the costs accrued in development.”

Leona’s second single, Bleeding Love, stormed straight into the charts at No1 last Sunday with the highest first-week sales of any track this year.

It followed the huge success of her debut single, A Moment Like This, which was last year’s Christmas No1. The new track is again trouncing all rivals this week.

It has sold almost twice as many copies as TAKE THAT’s Rule The World.

WESTLIFE’s latest single, Home, is trailing in third spot this week, having shifted just a quarter of Leona’s tally.

Her debut album features the cream of the world’s songwriting talents and Cowell got US music mogul CLIVE DAVIS to help pick tracks for the CD.

Cowell is now raging over the surprise sprung on him by UEG.

Last night a source in Leona’s camp said of the compilation: “These are unfinished tracks and UEG are clearly attempting to exploit Leona’s success.

“Our team is looking into this. We are concerned that her fans could be ripped off by a bootleg product.”

I’ve got my hands on The Best Kept Secret — and it’s classy R&B, with Leona’s extraordinary vocal talent clearly in evidence.

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