It's been heard around Minneapolis the last couple of days that Prince has worked his magic on a certain local who has for the last several years been touring with The Time. Sometime this week, Prince decided to finally make Chance Howard part of the NPG Camp. As rumor has it, Chance is the reason that Prince has been frequenting a local Jazz club Wednesday nights. Many thought it was because Kirk Johnson was there, but let the truth be known, he was scouting. Last month he even opened up Paisley Park for a night so Conversation Piece, who features Mr. Howard and Mr. Johnson along with Todd Burrell, George Scott and Walter Chancellor, could play.

If none of you have had the opportunity to catch Chance play and sing...ya'll are missin out! Brotha can blow!

So now when Morris Day asks, "What time is it???" The only answer I can give as a reply is...TIME TO GET A NEW BASS PLAYER!

Lots of luck to you Chance!

Why do I get the sinking feeling that Prince`s next tour will be nothing but a Jazz show??? Xenophobia and bad-N.E.W.S live???

XxMuse2DaPharaoh77xX said:

Is he the fella with the time on the Rave video. That guy is a wicked bass player

what happened to Rhonda? i was just beginning to put her in that class of long time Prince associates like Dr Fink and Sheila E and Mr Hayes.

funkbible said:

Maybe not...


A friend in Minneapolis said that Prince has rehearsed MANY ballads recently...'Crucial' and 'Slow Love' were mentioned...

-SWANG'sjustthemessenger

Chance is a KEYBOARD player...Freeze is the bass player. They may be PART-TIME...but from 1996 to 1998 they were maybe the best funk band on the planet, when Prince was sleepwalking through the MEDLEY of the year tour staring Kirky J and the BACKING TAPES band. Of course, Prince has his stuff together now, and the Time is playing the same damn show over and over...oh well..but in 1996-1998, The Time would SMOKE the NPG any night...

Is Renato still in or does he have 2 keyboardists now?

"Chance is a KEYBOARD player...Freeze is the bass player. They may be PART-TIME...but from 1996 to 1998 they were maybe the best funk band on the planet, when Prince was sleepwalking through the MEDLEY of the year tour staring Kirky J and the BACKING TAPES band. Of course, Prince has his stuff together now, and the Time is playing the same damn show over and over...oh well..but in 1996-1998, The Time would SMOKE the NPG any night..."

Not then and not now. Sorry.

A second keyboard player? Sounds like it may be a return to funk, would be a bit of a overkill for jazz. I saw the Time during the period Chance played with them a couple of times and they were a tight band. I wish Prince would steal away Freeze then I know we'd have some funk to look forward to.(Sorry Rhonda)

"It's been heard around Minneapolis"

Now there's a reliable source. Remember after the first Celebration, there was talk of Brownmark becoming the official new member of the NPG?

This news story maybe true, but really Renato can hold it down on his own. Maybe put Fink in (can u imagine Renato & Fink on the same tour? - Smokin'!)

I think if Prince is looking for members, maybe he should look for an added guitarist, just to free himself up a bit

funkbible said:

***

It is unlikely to be purely a jazz oriented show as Milenia are confirmed to appear and they can only be used to contribute vocals. If the rumours are true and Prince is rehearsing slow jams, the inclusion of Milenia as backing vocalists would certainly make sense.

There have also been reports regarding Prince releasing a new album with Universal. Again, how much any of this is true is anyone's guess.

Signs look very good for a tour though. I doubt it would be confirmed on Milenia's official website if it were untrue.

funkbible said:

That would be great news - thats means fans like you won't be there!

dnaplaya said:

THe only guitarist I want to see onstage at a Prince gig is Prince

Freeze... the new Bass Playa? that would b Sweeettt! then again all the Musicians that have worked with P have b soothing 2 the ear...

http://www.purplemusic.my..._time.html

"CHANCE"

KEYBOARDS

born at (n/a) • (n/a)
birth-name: Stanley Howard


Stanley Howard is associated with the 2001 soundtrack [Jay & Silent Bob Strikes Back].

so it seems CHANCE would b a new KeyBoardist...

Signs look very good for a tour though. I doubt it would be confirmed on Milenia's official website if it were untrue.[/quote]

Since when do we give credence to Milenia's 'official' website? Prince don't know what he's doin until he wakes up that morning..

dnaplaya said:

- NEVER!!! Prince plays much better guitar when he is the only guitar player. No more choreographies and gimmicks!

Chance is Wonderful. If it's true I am So happy for Him. He can sing and play keyboards really great. He will be great for Prince's band. Nice guy that Chance.

Chance is beyond talented. St. Paul Peterson told me people can go to school by watching Chance play synth bass.
[This message was edited Mon Aug 18 16:14:44 PDT 2003 by JoeKelley]
[This message was edited Sun Aug 24 17:36:29 PDT 2003 by JoeKelley]

dnaplaya said:

ahem...ah, that "news" came from me...and I stated that Brownmark had been asked and was considering it...and that info came directly from Morris Hayes...

-SWANGjustwantedtocleartheair

So he will probably drop Rhonda?
To bad, cuz I like the mix of man/female, black/white.
Well...

Now I know Chance aint no veghead.lol

stillwaiting said:

In what universe? Cuz in this one he's a boring pretentious jazz/funk-doodles muzak provider who charges fans far too much for subpar product. (An 80 minute DVD? I got one FOR FREE when I bought the latest Neal Young and Metallica records. And they didn't look like they were filmed by filmschool-dropouts, nor did they sound like a bootleg originating from an old cassette tape.)

I emailed Jellybean and asked him if the rumor about Chance was true and he said that it was and he has left the Time to join Prince's band.

Yes, yes, my badd, Chance is going to be an added Keyboard player. Renato is still in the band and Rhonda is still in the band. When I said bass, I meant synth bass. Anyhow, they have been working hard day and night getting ready for their tour, which will be happening pretty quick here. They have been rehearsing many old and new faves, so it won't be the tired jazz set that most of you are worried about. It should be pretty funky. Afterall, they have Chance in the band, now!

I will try to keep you as updated as I possibly can. Til then, if you're in the area, check out Chance on Wednesdays at the spot. You never know who might show up. Plus you'll never know what you're gonna hear. Last night, Chance showed off a bit by leading the band into a cool Prince medley. Much fun, much fun.

Til next time lovelies...

XxMuse2DaPharaoh77xX said:

Hey there - for those of us in Minneapolis on Wednesdays -- where is "the spot?" -- Nan