egansmind said:

catpark said:

egansmind said:

There is no hate from me to Unique. That would be silly.

My point is most people do not have time to queue for gigs all day.

If I told the wife and kids I was off to London for the night to queue for 14 hours in the rain to see a concert where I wasnt sure I was going to get in and then stay at a London hotel costing £100+ she would look at me stupid.

Thats your problems not Unique's.

You can come down off your box now

Fantastic review, well done to you for getting back for it in time... I'd love to have been there (or at any so far) but my back is done in, so I'm off work / at home / living vicariously through all the positive vibes / reviews...

Have to add (regarding certain other posts on here) being a Prince fan isn't a competition... and as much as I get people's frustrations at the queueing system, you all ultimately have a choice whether you want to (try to) attend one of the shows or not. It's just a case of "do you want it enough?" You're not a bad person / fan if you don't, you just know your boundaries.

Yes, some people don't live near London. I can only hope Prince has plans for more UK touring later in the year to satisfy demand around the UK (he'd be daft not to). But this is a truly once in a lifetime "event" and a unique chance (or series of chances!) to see him up close and personal in the smallest venues he's played in the UK in YEARS (if not ever in some instances).

Same goes for the whining about the prices... I'd gladly pay £70 to see him play any of the London shows so far (if my back wasn't crocked)... I guess some just got spoiled by the initial £10 thing. But as has been said before, this won't be a money making venture for him.

It's just different, exciting, special...

Peace.

themorningpapers said:

Ronnie Scott's review I started yesterday in Geneva (been skiing for the weekend). Plane departed 9am and by 12:30 I was in the queue at Ronnie Scott's # 198. Ever since this Hit n Run tour was announced and Ronnie Scott's being a rumoured venue - this was the one I wanted to see. I saw the second Electric Ballroom show after queuing for 4hrs and the Shepherd Bush Empire for 7hrs. I was with a great group that made the 11hr wait bearable. Thanks to the Prince fan that organised the writing of the numbers, it helped the queue police itself. Really disappointed at the fans who rolled up - got a number - and went back to work for 6 hrs only to then expect to be let back in the queue. I'm all for people taking toilet/coffee and food breaks but that was too much. Stephen Fry rolled up at about 11:15 and bizarrely tried to enter the queue behind us and squeeze his way thru! He was pushed out of queue only to call everyone "idiots". He caused chaos, the queue surged forward with the awaiting paparazzi lapping it up. Why on earth did he not just go in thru the front door like all the other celebs is beyond me? Anyway I managed to get in by the skin of my teeth and the band had already started and were playing Stratus. At first I didn't think Prince was on stage. Then saw that he was sitting at the keyboard to the right of stage. I think the only time people realised he was there was when he first started singing!! I got myself in a great position up against the rail just above the dance floor (which had been cleared of the usual tables and chairs). I thought the sound was great and the sax player (Marcus I think) was awesome. I loved the whole vibe of the show and the reworking of the songs to keep them true to the type of music usually played at Ronnie Scott's. Personal highlight for me had to be 'Something in the Water' - absolutely AMAZING. When the full band kicked in, it gave me goosebumps. In fact I have them again now typing this. Can't remember the set list but the one I've seen in Princevault.com is missing a few songs. Purple Rain was definitely played and I'm sure there was a bit of The Undertaker whilst he played the bass!! Whilst this wasn't the best show I've seen in terms of setlist (for me the Shepherds Bush show takes that crown). The fact that I saw Prince in Ronnie Scott's along with 200 or so fans makes me feel privileged to have been there. It hasn't really sunk in yet. Overall an amazing night. Eagerly awaiting news of the next London gig.

egansmind said:

catpark said:

egansmind said:

catpark said:

egansmind said:

There is no hate from me to Unique. That would be silly.

My point is most people do not have time to queue for gigs all day.

If I told the wife and kids I was off to London for the night to queue for 14 hours in the rain to see a concert where I wasnt sure I was going to get in and then stay at a London hotel costing £100+ she would look at me stupid.

Thats your problems not Unique's.

You can come down off your box now

Box? I need my bed, im shattered from these gigs. To be honest i was gonna say nobody cares that u didnt see Prince! but i delete it i didnt wanna be mean!

unique said:

TheEnglishGent said:

So you went from 94 in queue to front row, that's some first class pushing!

i didn't push past anyone. through most of the day people were lining up fairly orderly, and had numbers and stamps on hands so they could leave the line to get food/drink and go to the bathroom, which is necessary whilst waiting for such a long time. however further down the line when people heard capacity was about 200, i understand people around the 180 plus number were getting antsy about getting in if someone jumped the line, and later towards doors opening there was a lot of pushing to the point that us in the front section of the line were squashed up. plus as many people were leaving the line and taking a while to return because they went to have a drink or food instead of a quick pop back and forth, as time went on the line moved forwards a bit at a time taking up the space left by the people who just left the line, so as so many people did that, but doors opening i was in a pool of maybe 70 people. some people left the line, there was a family who went home with their daughter as the pushing was bad and other people stepped out of that section. then when doors did open, the security let one person in at a time, and some of us stood still instead of moving forwards to avoid a rush at the doors, and stop more pushing. some people were shouting and perhaps a bit drunk and rowdy. through one thing or another i think security let in the more orderly people first. when i got in there seemed quite a few people inside but as the place was tiny and a good view all round, most people were at the bar and seated areas, perhaps as they were lining up for so long and legs and feet were tired. i was thinking of doing the same myself, but i saw a small gap at the front of the stage and went for it, to find that was where security were going to stand. however the woman next to him decided to stand at the bar so she could get drinks, and i took her place at the front of the line without pushing or cheating or doing anything other than lining for hours in the cold and rain, exhausted and sore legs and feet and pushed and squashed, hardly eating or drinking anything, no alcohol, being polite and friendly, and purposely trying to let people in the venue before me whom i knew were in front of me in line. but because of the pushing from all around i was ultimately pushed to the front and got in. it was just fate or luck or whatever. the thing is, sometimes that happens in reverse and i go from being top spot to number 2 spot. i did my best on sunday to help keep the line orderly and it was the most chilled well behaved line i've ever seen at a gig, everyone happy and people thanking me for helping to do so. i tried to do so again today, but without barries, a tiny venue, and demand far higher than capacity, and a long wait with people drinking alcohol and getting tetchy, especially when vips and club members got in and doors didn't open on time, it wasn't a simple process

however from what i understand, about 200 people got in to the first show, so i didn't take the place of anyone who didn't get in to that show, and as i said before, many people were more than happy to sit down or stand away from the front as it was so small the view would be great from anywhere, and as a result, even if you weren't front row, depending on what side of the stage prince and you were on, you could have been closer to him at least at times. i really don't think anyone at that show was dissapointed. people were gobsmacked and didn't know what to say when they came out. i was shocked. i came outside and there was a line of paparazzi and security and fans and craziness outside and needed to be shown by security how to get out. i don't think anyone will know what it was really like without being there

as for those who think i didn't attend the shows, well there are others there who saw me go in, others who saw me inside, others who saw me come out, and there are even officially posted photos where i can be seen. it was a source of amusement by some people at the shows laughing at those who said i wasn't there at shows when they were there and saw me or stood next to me. i don't care if anyone believes me or not. i was there. i lived it. i lived the dream

Unique...Why are u dignifying the shade coming from some of these miserable assholes....

This is a place where people bitch and moan about waiting in line for 40 hours as if Prince put a gun up to their head....

Do you homie....Glad u got the chance to see P in such a cool venue...

But yeah...Fuck 'em....

murph said:

unique said:

i didn't push past anyone.

Unique...Why are u dignifying the shade coming from some of these miserable assholes....

This is a place where people bitch and moan about waiting in line for 40 hours as if Prince put a gun up to their head....

Do you homie....Glad u got the chance to see P in such a cool venue...

But yeah...Fuck 'em....

Miserable? I even put a laughing face in there!

After 3 lets smile together . . . .

1

2

3

THEDAYSOFWILD said:

catpark said:

Box? I need my bed, im shattered from these gigs. To be honest i was gonna say nobody cares that u didnt see Prince! but i delete it i didnt wanna be mean!

..trouble maker... relax or I'll post that pic of you up in here...
....ok only jokin...just tryin to lighten the mood...u r right though Unique was there we decided not to and he was rewarded good luck to him..

LOL, you can see me in the Daily Mail pic above the caption -

"Quite a crowd: Fans gathered for as long as ten-hours to get into the club, located in Soho's Frith Street."

I'm standing under the "Ronnie's Bar" sign, with a big smile on my face, to the left of the woman under the canopy.

[Edited 2/18/14 18:03pm]

Is everyone done moaning yet? Lol

It's like reading the comments on a youtube video - the more the post, the more the 'hatin'...

'dre

blackbob said:

The love AND "hate" for Unique on this thread is lame in equal measures.

SometimesIwonder said:

blackbob said:

unique is the first singer...bloody awful

That was Brilliant!!! Ha ha Well done, so chuffed!!

Love the girl at 1:06-1:13! Yeah, I'll just read and repeat it four times almost without checking the words each time!!

blackbob said:

unique is the first singer...bloody awful

'Can't you do something that's like a little less predictable' - was a few people behind that guy in queue for the 1st show at Koko.

egansmind said:

catpark said:

egansmind said: Listen u, Unique is an ex of mine and still a close mate and has been staying with my for a few days. Trust me he has a life an important one too, like we all do. The real question is why are u so concerned about what some else is or isnt doing? Why are u trying to dig into someones personal life on here? Worry about your own life. Cha!

There is no hate from me to Unique. That would be silly.

My point is most people do not have time to queue for gigs all day.

If I told the wife and kids I was off to London for the night to queue for 14 hours in the rain to see a concert where I wasnt sure I was going to get in and then stay at a London hotel costing £100+ she would look at me stupid.

On Sunday I asked my wife if she could put the kids to bed tonight as I was going to go queue for 7 hours and hopefully see Prince play 3 gigs Koko that may be £70 each. The gave me a stupid look and said have Fun!

On another note I was standing next to the guy in the hat on the vid that said 'Can't you do somthing that's a little les predictable' around midnight on Sunday and he said he'd been to every gig so far, and there he is again lol

thisisreece said:

blackbob said:

unique is the first singer...bloody awful

'Can't you do something that's like a little less predictable' - was a few people behind that guy in queue for the 1st show at Koko.

I wonder is the editor any relation to Jeff Katz, the one saying PR 4 x times is hilarious.

honer said:

Got into the first show and I was blown away. The venue was perfect in terms of ambience and size and I couldn't believe it when I took my place at the front and could literally touch P's mic stand and keyboard, it really was that intimate. The show then kicked off with just the girls, which was great as I really enjoyed seeing Donna up close and personal (for her guitar skills as well a her looks, honest!), she took centre stage a few times and was excellent, if a little nervous, possibly due to the jazzy feel of the set, I was thinking maybe she's a little out of her comfort zone playing that style, but she was still amazing.

P then came in after a few instrumentals and looked amazing, I really can't believe he's 55. He then took up a place on the keys and carried on for a while whithout singing. What really strikes me with P, is the passion on his face when listening to other members of the band, especially the guy on the sax. i'm sure Prince's longevity is down to the fact he just absolutely loves music, lives for it in fact.

A great version of 'I could never take the place of your man' followed and that is one of my all time favourite songs, so that was a special moment. He followed with two great covers, then probably my least favourite song, 'take me with you'. The hits, piano medley came next, I really enjoyed all of that, especially 'do me baby' and 'the beautiful ones'. I really like 'The whole of the moon' too, it made me go out and buy a couple of waterboys albums today and I love them so far.

The only negatives I can think of were the last 2 hours of queuing, everyone at the front of the queue were getting crushed at this point and a very pissed Irish man doing my head in most of the day and then moaning to everyone on the way out, with his very loud voice, because P didn't pick up a guitar!

Overall it was the most amazing gig I've been to, maybe not for the set list, but for the intimacy and style of music, that fit the venue perfectly.

Every time I watch him, I feel inspired to pick up an instrument and learn it. He is a living legend and unlike most living legends, he still has all his skills in tact!

bigd74 said:

After hearing various celebrity reviews of the gig Noel Gallagher gave his in one word, 'shit' he said, what a twat

actually i was chatting to him after the gig and he told me he was a prince fan and that it was the "best gig ever" and far from being a twat he was a sound bloke.

also, just like some of the crap posted on this site, the papers have printed a load of utter shite about the gigs which simply isn't true

and as for the moron who thinks i get the setlists from princevault and pretends i'm there, well you wouldn't believe how ironic that was. being front row at gigs often lets you see the setlists before a note is played, including ronnie scotts and koko. perhaps instead of posting a load of crap online you should try going to the gigs and see what they are like for themselves, and there's a good chance you will meet me in person instead of reading umpteen other peoples reports confirming i was there, and seeing me at the shows in official and unnoficial pictures. perhaps a video clip of me on tv news waiting to get in the gig isn't enough? if the show is released officially in any shape or form, you'll even get to hear me on it as i was so close to the mics. or maybe they will post a video online so you can see me at the gig with your own eyes. would that be enough? if not, then i don't care as i'm the one having fun at the shows and it sounds like some of those who aren't are jealous, but they all have the same chance as me to attend, just turn up and go. that's all i do. turn up, get in, enjoy. and this is one of the best tours i've ever experienced and ronnie scotts was probably the best gig in my life, and that's got some strong competition from other cool shows like accoustic night at paisley or cafe de paris

unique said:

bigd74 said:

After hearing various celebrity reviews of the gig Noel Gallagher gave his in one word, 'shit' he said, what a twat

actually i was chatting to him after the gig and he told me he was a prince fan and that it was the "best gig ever" and far from being a twat he was a sound bloke.

also, just like some of the crap posted on this site, the papers have printed a load of utter shite about the gigs which simply isn't true

and as for the moron who thinks i get the setlists from princevault and pretends i'm there, well you wouldn't believe how ironic that was. being front row at gigs often lets you see the setlists before a note is played, including ronnie scotts and koko. perhaps instead of posting a load of crap online you should try going to the gigs and see what they are like for themselves, and there's a good chance you will meet me in person instead of reading umpteen other peoples reports confirming i was there, and seeing me at the shows in official and unnoficial pictures. perhaps a video clip of me on tv news waiting to get in the gig isn't enough? if the show is released officially in any shape or form, you'll even get to hear me on it as i was so close to the mics. or maybe they will post a video online so you can see me at the gig with your own eyes. would that be enough? if not, then i don't care as i'm the one having fun at the shows and it sounds like some of those who aren't are jealous, but they all have the same chance as me to attend, just turn up and go. that's all i do. turn up, get in, enjoy. and this is one of the best tours i've ever experienced and ronnie scotts was probably the best gig in my life, and that's got some strong competition from other cool shows like accoustic night at paisley or cafe de paris

so you've resulted to insults, yawn.

As it happens i do go to gigs and have been since 1986 but unlike yourself i dont tell everyone trying to make myself look like i've been to more than anyone else, as i know there are lots of people on here that would go to every gig if they had the time money etc.

So are you still saying you went to both shows last friday?

I dont really care what you look like, but if we met i would be happy for you to convince me over a pint or 2 about the gigs you went to.

Till then i will leave it at that as i dont feel calling you names is the thing to do, as i dont believe you are a Moron.

powersoul99 said:

unique said:

actually i was chatting to him after the gig and he told me he was a prince fan and that it was the "best gig ever" and far from being a twat he was a sound bloke.

also, just like some of the crap posted on this site, the papers have printed a load of utter shite about the gigs which simply isn't true

and as for the moron who thinks i get the setlists from princevault and pretends i'm there, well you wouldn't believe how ironic that was. being front row at gigs often lets you see the setlists before a note is played, including ronnie scotts and koko. perhaps instead of posting a load of crap online you should try going to the gigs and see what they are like for themselves, and there's a good chance you will meet me in person instead of reading umpteen other peoples reports confirming i was there, and seeing me at the shows in official and unnoficial pictures. perhaps a video clip of me on tv news waiting to get in the gig isn't enough? if the show is released officially in any shape or form, you'll even get to hear me on it as i was so close to the mics. or maybe they will post a video online so you can see me at the gig with your own eyes. would that be enough? if not, then i don't care as i'm the one having fun at the shows and it sounds like some of those who aren't are jealous, but they all have the same chance as me to attend, just turn up and go. that's all i do. turn up, get in, enjoy. and this is one of the best tours i've ever experienced and ronnie scotts was probably the best gig in my life, and that's got some strong competition from other cool shows like accoustic night at paisley or cafe de paris

so you've resulted to insults, yawn.

As it happens i do go to gigs and have been since 1986 but unlike yourself i dont tell everyone trying to make myself look like i've been to more than anyone else, as i know there are lots of people on here that would go to every gig if they had the time money etc.

So are you still saying you went to both shows last friday?

I dont really care what you look like, but if we met i would be happy for you to convince me over a pint or 2 about the gigs you went to.

Till then i will leave it at that as i dont feel calling you names is the thing to do, as i dont believe you are a Moron.

i don't need to convince you or anyone else. i don't give a fuck what you or anyone else thinks. i was there. you were not. you were wrong. end of story

elephant said:

I think the Noël Gallagher comment was probably said with a heavy dose of sarcasm.

yeah, he totally loved it

unique said:

unique said:

powersoul99 said:

so you've resulted to insults, yawn.

As it happens i do go to gigs and have been since 1986 but unlike yourself i dont tell everyone trying to make myself look like i've been to more than anyone else, as i know there are lots of people on here that would go to every gig if they had the time money etc.

So are you still saying you went to both shows last friday?

I dont really care what you look like, but if we met i would be happy for you to convince me over a pint or 2 about the gigs you went to.

Till then i will leave it at that as i dont feel calling you names is the thing to do, as i dont believe you are a Moron.

i don't need to convince you or anyone else. i don't give a fuck what you or anyone else thinks. i was there. you were not. you were wrong. end of story

But you do care, or you wouldnt reply.

And you still havent said how you got into both shows on friday.

Was you really there?