Prince and band pose backstage pre-show at the Roxy Theater in Los Angeles (28th November, 1979)

This week, as we fast approach Christmas - a little something special 'For You'....




This show officially launched the 'Prince' tour. The show was attended by a 500-strong capacity crowd, many of whom were intruiged media and record industry people. 14 concerts in 13 cities were lined up, including a homecoming show in Minneapolis on December 16th.

The set mostly drew from 'For You' and 'Prince' but the relatively soft music of Prince's records were approached live with a much rockier, guitar-orientated dynamic live - often with long guitar solos by Dez and Prince.

The physical appearance of Prince and his band set them apart from being just another R&B act: Prince wore an over-sized blouse, skin-tight gold spandex pants, topped off with matching boots. It was Dez and Andre however who stood out as the group's most outrageous dressers: Dez was shirtless under a black leather jacket and wore leopard-skin print jeans with suspenders, while Andre wore a black leotard and boots underneath a pair of see-through plastic pants that left little to the imagination. Matt however performed in more sedate attire: a prisoners uniform replete with stripes.

"We were really prepared for that show", Matt recalls. "Unfortunately, a new guitar tech mis-tuned all the guitars. We hit the first chord of the first song, and the guitars and the bass were a good three or four steps out of tune with the keyboards, which were right on. So, during the first song, Prince, Dez and Andre were struggling to tune their instruments and still play at the same time. Then we stopped, tuned up, and continued the show. It went well from there."

It was after this particular show that Prince met Bob Marley backstage - a meeting arranged by Don Taylor, who was toying with the idea of Prince and Bob recording a track together:

"What the result of this might have been however, I will never know. When we called on Prince, he met us in this skimpy leopard g-string undergarment, which immeadiately aroused Bob's Jamaican macho feelings and so our stay was as brief as Prince's g-string, and Bob's discomfort was shown all over his face."

Prince's band featured Dez Dickerson (Guitar), Andre Cymone (Bass), Matt Fink and Gayle Chapman (Keyboards), Bobby Z., (Drums)

awesome! i've seen this picture before, but not in this size...and just wtf's prince wearing?

thanx, 'nana!

I have NEVER seen this picture before.

I gotta say (at the risk of Dansa's wrath)...

That picture is THE HOTTNESS!!!

Cool! Interesting text, I didn't know that Prince ever met Bob Marley.

ah...Prince all smiles for the camera.

"Don Taylor, who was toying with the idea of Prince and Bob recording a track together"

WHAT WAS DON THINKING?????

These 2 men were like oil and water.....
SO DAYUM DIFFERENT!


But thanx for the pic and text.....very interesting. Never seen the pic before.

Milty said:

totally. the cheesing is just too much.

Handclapsfingasnapz said:

'TIS NOT!

BananaCologne said:

is so! look at 'im, he looked just SO friggin happy!

Handclapsfingasnapz said:

NOT! That's just cuz someone's got their hand on his pert lil' behind.

BananaCologne said:

Handclapsfingasnapz said:

Come on! Just look at Randy Crawford's face - it says it all! She's like the cat who's got the cream!

BananaCologne said:

same with the dude who's standing directly behind p, too...did they both have lil' handfuls of princely joy?

Handclapsfingasnapz said:

Hey, I'm sure there was hella-plenty bOOty goin' round back then!

Great pic!!!

Btw, that magazine mixed up Dez and Andre.

And you're so right, looks like P gets some double penetration from good old Randy and that other guy...

And Matt Fink looked like freshly booked from the "Foreigner lead singer impersonator competition".