1986 Version > 2009 live versions > 2009 studio

LoveGalore said:

I mean, that horrid flute really destroys the 2009 version.

The montreaux version, it looked like (if I can recall) Renato was playing the flute part with his keys.

LoveGalore said:

I mean, that horrid flute really destroys the 2009 version.

Tell me about it.
The vocal delivery completes the wreckage.

The whole is destined to be played in hotel elevators only, real quietly.
Thank God it's Covid 19, so very few will have to endure this subpar jazzy turd.

I loathe Neto with all my guts. Why Prince fell for his bland,
phony-virtuoso verbose blabber is beyond me.

Decent session player when he follows the score to the letter,
but everytime he goes into one of his atrocious solos
one of my hair turns white.

bonatoc said:

LoveGalore said:

I mean, that horrid flute really destroys the 2009 version.

Tell me about it.
The vocal delivery completes the wreckage.

The whole is destined to be played in hotel elevators only, real quietly.
Thank God it's Covid 19, so very few will have to endure this subpar jazzy turd.

I loathe Neto with all my guts. Why Prince fell for his bland,
phony-virtuoso verbose blabber is beyond me.

Decent session player when he follows the score to the letter,
but everytime he goes into one of his atrocious solos
one of my hair turns white.

It's funny you'd say that because Renato has the most idiosyncratic sound among Prince's keyboard players (alongside maybe Lisa, who also had a very distinct sound). So in that sense he's far from your average session musician, i.e. technically good but generic and capable of blending in anywhere. This may explain why he's so polarizing by compatison to the others: some, like you, hate his sound, others like me love it.

Well, as usual, I take a simple thing and push it way too far.

I don't hate Renato, but...you're right, he's got a distinctive style.
Maybe one that rubs me the wrong way.
His playing sounds pasted over Prince's music.

It doesn't melt in it, but maybe that is considered to be a progress from the keyboard players who came before him, who played like Prince would have played (he was dictating the parts a lot, although I think Matt and Lisa influenced him in return. Let's not forget "Head"’s solo was so impressive to Prince he gave Matt credits on the wrecka sleeve).

Renato, it's like he tries to steal the show sometimes.
He's way too verbose for my taste (I know, look who's talking).

From the early nineties concerts I've heard, I think Tommy Barbarella is really good.
And if "Sexy M.F."’s organ solo wasn't overdubbed by Prince (the song is said to be one live take, right?), more kudos to him.

bonatoc said:

LoveGalore said:

I mean, that horrid flute really destroys the 2009 version.

Tell me about it.
The vocal delivery completes the wreckage.

The whole is destined to be played in hotel elevators only, real quietly.
Thank God it's Covid 19, so very few will have to endure this subpar jazzy turd.

I loathe Neto with all my guts. Why Prince fell for his bland,
phony-virtuoso verbose blabber is beyond me.

Decent session player when he follows the score to the letter,
but everytime he goes into one of his atrocious solos
one of my hair turns white.

I have to say I completely agree with you here. Renato's playing and his synth patches were often jarring to me.

bonatoc said:

Well, as usual, I take a simple thing and push it way too far.

I don't hate Renato, but...you're right, he's got a distinctive style.
Maybe one that rubs me the wrong way.
His playing sounds pasted over Prince's music.

It doesn't melt in it, but maybe that is considered to be a progress from the keyboard players who came before him, who played like Prince would have played (he was dictating the parts a lot, although I think Matt and Lisa influenced him in return. Let's not forget "Head"’s solo was so impressive to Prince he gave Matt credits on the wrecka sleeve).

Renato, it's like he tries to steal the show sometimes.
He's way too verbose for my taste (I know, look who's talking).

From the early nineties concerts I've heard, I think Tommy Barbarella is really good.
And if "Sexy M.F."’s organ solo wasn't overdubbed by Prince (the song is said to be one live take, right?), more kudos to him.

To be fair they were all good. Those people who claim such or such Prince bandmember "couldn't play" are as musically uneducated as this fan who once claimed Prince needed to take drum lessons. Prince never had a bandmember who wasn't a respected professional. You had to be way above average to be able to keep up with Prince (it's not me saying this, it's Michael Bland, whose technical skills and musical knowledge on such matters are beyond doubt).

.

Now whether one agrees with any given musician's style is something else entirely. I once attended a Marcus Miller concert that I found incredibly boring and lacking substance, yet it'd never have crossed my mind to accuse Miller of being a subpar bass player. Now when it comes to renato I enjoyed his contributions very much because I like his style, but alsoe because I usually liked anyone or anything that would take Prince to places he'd never been before. Prince could repeat himself endlessly and never bore me, don't get me wrong, but I liked it a lot when he tried new things, when he'd get out of his comfort zone. Typically, the 1997-2001 band, regardless of how talented they were, had a very generic sound (as generic as a Prince band can be, at least), perfectly suit for playing Prince's 80's greatest hits + old skool soul/funk covers, which was the core of P's setlist for those 5 years. When P came-up with something different with the 2002 band, I was just all too glad, same way I'd been all too glad a decade earlier when he'd gone nuts with the "10,000" config of the NPG in 1994.