My brother, Electric Man, phoned me in the "Upper Room" studios and just said that the Time opened up for Prince in New Jersey tonight. He said it was awesome. Hope many of you came to witness.

JoeKelley said:

daaaaayum... i KNEW i should've done the sunday show!

JumpUpOnThe1 said:

Me too. Maybe we can start a support group for disappointment in not being there. My buddy said Monte Moir and Tori Ruffin were asking where I was and how come I wasn't there. Actually, the Time finds out at the last moment that the gigs are on. Kinda like having the fireman boots at the bedside ready to slide down the pole.

this is just wrong. i guess i shoulda went to jersey too.

Yeah but The Time is taking away from Prince's set I've been hearing!? (It's shortened). I'd rather just hear Prince...

Damn...ain't that a trip. NJ gets The Time and Detroit doesn't.. They even mention Detroit in 'The Walk' :
"I want all of Detroit city...to stand up clap your hands"

But, if having them perform takes away from P's set, then that's ok...I want to see all 2 1/2 hours of nothing but Prince..

ELECTRIC MAN has returned, triumphant from 3 straight nites of Musicology gigs.
As my brother in funk, Joe Kelley stated, THE TIME OPENED 4 PRINCE 2NITE. They were awesome, really working the crowd with old school funk and off the hook dance moves. The crowd showed the fellas much love. Morris and the boys brought out all the hits...COOL, GIGOLOS GET LONELY TOO, THE STICK, JERK OUT, THE BIRD, FISHNET, JUNGLE LOVE, WILD AND LOOSE, GET IT UP. It was definitely a party!!!
I should have known something was up when I walked in2 the arena and Prince jams were not being played over the speakers, and the screens were dark. Then a security guard said The Time was in the house. When the clock started ticking and the gong was going off, I knew it was gonna be a special nite.
I was in the front row by the keyboards and Monte Moir noticed me and acknowledged me from the stage. It was cool 2 talk 2 him and Tori Ruffin in between songs.
Oh, and The Time's 45 minute set didn't affect Prince's set at all...Prince played for 2 1/2 hours, and included THE BEAUTIFUL ONES, NOTHING COMPARES 2 U and PURPLE RAIN in his encores.

divo02 said:

When The Time and Sheila E played with Prince on 7/14 Prince's set was shortened by maybe three songs. On 7/13 with no supporting acts his show was almost three hours long.

Prince
Musicology Tour
with Special Guest
Morris Day and The Time
Sunday, July 18, 2004 - 7:30 p.m.
Continental Arena
East Rutherford, New Jersey


7:29 p.m.
Intro

White Two-Piece Suit, Black Shirt, Black & White Italian Tie, White Shoes

Wild & Loose
Fishnet
Oak Tree
Jerk Out
Get it Up
Cool
777-9311
Gigolos Get Lonely Too
The Bird
-----
Jungle Love
8:15 p.m.


Commentary: Morris Day is still a pimp. Their performance tonight was a surprise despite their appearance at last Wednesday's Madison Square Garden show, and since they their own previously scheduled (though later postponed) gig Saturday night in New York.

The show was the typical show we've grown accustomed to seeing in recent years, with Jerome Benton's antics and Morris' primping.

Morris inadvertantly shouted out the audience as "New York" when he first arrived, later correcting himself after he heard Jerome refer to them as "Jersey."

On "Gigolos Get Lonely Too," Morris donned a gray faux fur coat--draped over the shoulders. On "The Bird" they invited several ladies from the audience onto the stage. Morris said goodbye and left the stage after the song was done, and the ladies and Jerome remained. "Morris, come out and play" the ladies said into Jerome's mic at his urging. Morris finally returns for an encore. "Jerome, ask Jersey what they want to hear." The answer Jerome received was a resounding "Jungle Love" from the audience. And the rest is history.

When it was all done, Morris exited out the side stage exit, and Jerome and Jellybean headed out straight through the audience.



9:01 p.m.
Intro: Rock-n-Roll Hall of Fame Video

Red Suit Coat with Asymmetrical Tail, White Pants, White Open-Chested Shirt, White Boots with Sequinned Heel

Musicology
Let's Go Crazy
I Would Die 4 U
When Doves Cry
--Kiss
Intro: 1999
Baby I'm a Star
Interlude: Renato Neto

White Shirt with Red Polka Dots, White Pants, White Boots with Sequinned Heel
Shhh
D.M.S.R.
--Crazy In Love
Pass the Peas
D.M.S.R. (Reprise)
Intro: A Love Bizarre/The Glamorous Life
I Feel 4 U
Controversy
--A Love Bizarre
Interlude: Greg Boyer and Maceo Parker
--Housequake

Interlude: Renato Neto
Georgia On My Mind: Maceo Parker and Renato Neto
Sometimes It Snows In April: Renato Neto

Red Shirt with White Polka Dots, Red Fringed Pants, Red Boots with Red Blinking Lights in Heel
Intro: Sometimes It Snows In April
Little Red Corvette
Cream
Alphabet St.
Real Players
I Love U in Me
Intro: I Could Never Take the Place of Your Man
Prince and the Band
I Could Never Take the Place of Your Man
Intro: Jailhouse Rock
Sweet Thing
Adore
7

Sign O' the Times
Dear Mr. Man
Whole Lotta Love
Interlude: John Blackwell
Whole Lotta Love (Reprise)
Let's Work
Interlude/Bass Solo
U Got the Look
Life 'O' The Party
Knock On Wood
Kiss
Take Me With U
--Theme from The Flintstones
--Hollywood Swingin'
--Theme from Sanford & Son
--777-9311/Onedayi'mgonnabesomebody
-----

Maize Shirt, White Embroidered Mid-drift Jacket with Doman Sleeves, White Pants, White Boots with Sequinned Heel
The Beautiful Ones
Nothing Compares 2 U
Purple Rain
11:37 p.m.

-- Denotes songs performed very briefly as a part of the previously listed song.

Commentary: He is the King. And he shall reign forever and ever.

Once again, he has delivered a flawlessly impressive show. How he does it night after night we can only imagine. He is incredible beyond words.

When we arrived at the arena, a large image of Prince's glymph symbol was shining against the outside wall of the arena. A beautiful welcoming image, no doubt.

Seeing the tour again at a different angle allowed me to see things I had not seen before. This was the second of two nights in New Jersey after a show in Hartford, Connecticut in between the two. After a hot and sunny first half of the weekend, the forecast for Sunday was rain. Beautiful rain. Having rain to return to the area on the day of my second show was just moving.

I was sitting in section 122, the first level off from the floor. These are really the 'best' seats in the house in any arena because you're able to see the entire stage and never miss anything like some floor seat views. By the time I got to my seat, here comes Morris Day and The Time. I'm like, "oh, ****!"

Before Prince's show, they played a long string of Prince and The Time hits to get people in the mood, as they have done all along the tour. We were in heaven as we sang "It's Gonna Be a Beautiful Night" and counted down the moments until Prince arrived.

And at 9:01 p.m., the two hour and 36-minute show began.

Prince and the band entered through the audience while the video intro played. Moments later, he rose from center stage in a cloud of smoke, and then strolled to each side of the stage to greet and check out the audience. The audience was loving it.

He flew through so many songs, and he snuck in snippets of songs within others. Even a die-hard fan could miss some of the riffs he played if you're not listening intently. So, if I missed any, don't be mad.

The first half of the show was fast-paced, uptempo, and high energy. The acoustic set, which started with brief chords from "Sometimes It Snow in April," allowed a much needed break from the jumping, dancing, and shouting that we were doing. And just when you thought he was almost done, he ran through another high-energy set, and then an encore to end all encores. "Beautiful Ones," "Nothing Compares 2 U," "Purple Rain." Wow.

There is STILL no better Prince song than "Purple Rain." Period.

The stage was shaped almost like a cross, with four mini-runway platforms which jutted out to each side of the arena. A dull purple carpet covered the stage. The band members dwelled in lower areas between these platforms if they weren't performing on the main staged.

Tonight, I noticed that there are two decorative fans behind drummer John Blackwell's area which are shaped like ghetto-fabulous car rims. Also, what appears to be the set list is propped up in the center corner near keyboardist Renato Neto.

He once again used a gold microphone and gold mic stand and a black version of his classic gun-shaped microphone.

He once again used many familiar-looking guitars, including his leopard printed one and a beautiful purple acoustic guitar for the acoustic set. He used a hot candy apple red and white bass for his brief bass solo. He also brought out his shiny, purple glymph symbol-shaped guitar in the final set.

After the first 4-5 songs, many folks (not the floor folks) started sitting down because they couldn't go any longer. And many folks in the audience, especially in the upper sections, were sitting down through most of the show. But not me.

Celebrities reportedly present at this show include Reverend Al Sharpton.


Highlights: Toward the end of "Musicology," Prince stopped the music and a waitress character came on stage to take his 'order' for food. He whispered his order in her ear, and she left. He cued the music to start again. Classic.

"Jersey? I am here. Where are you?" he said during "Musicology."

For "Let's Go Crazy," white confetti strips and metallic purple streamers rained from the ceiling to get the party started. Definitely a classic, beautiful sight.

During "When Doves Cry," saxophonist Candy Dulfter handed him a large white fedora, and he put it on. Whenever he does this on tour, for some reason you get this nervous feeling tht he might be about to do some sort of Michael Jackson bit. You know better than to think he'd do something like that, so you're cool, but the fedora always makes the thought cross your mind. Am I the only one who's felt that way? At any rate, the crowd loved it.

During "Shhh," the band sat down on plush velvet chairs which were scattered about the band areas. "Jersey, what's my name?" Prince asked. "It's a respect thang."

During his brief "Crazy in Love" bit, he said he couldn't shake it like Beyonce because he didn't have enough ***. "I wanted to hit that joint, but I ain't got no booty. Can somebody lend me some booty?" Then keyboardist Chance Howard came over and gave more booty than Prince could have ever asked for. You had to be there.

During "Pass the Peas," the waitress brought his order, which included a bowl of soup, something else, and a bottle of water, I believe. A woman from the audience was invited on stage to share in the meal at a colorfully decorated table near bassist Rhonda Smith's area. "Excuse me, honey, you haven't touched your soup!" Prince said to the woman later in the song. At some point during "I Feel For U," the meal was over, and the woman, food and table were gone.

"Controversy" was amazing. But unlike the New York opening night show, the crowd didn't achieve the dancing in UNISON with Prince that they did in New York. He had us leaning forward, bringing it back up, leaning forward, bringing it back up. But only some of the folks could get it together. Oh, well. Later in the song, Prince started singing the first verse of Sheila E.'s "A Love Bizarre." "Y'all ain't ready for me," he said aborting the song after a few lines.

Later in "Controversy" Horn players Greg Boyer and Maceo Parker entered the stage wearing academic caps and gowns while playing a little interlude. "School's in, y'all!" Prince shouted. Moments later, Prince said "Can't nobody mess with my band," then the music stopped, Prince feigned emotion and plopped down onto one of the chairs on stage. A band member came over and tried to drape a purple velvet blanket over him while he visibly and emotionally dealt with how great his band is, but Prince play-fought with the guy. Classic. Then he picked up a magazine, the recent Rolling Stone with him on the cover, and turns to his cover story. The crowd went wild. Soon after, he threw the magazine into the audience.

During the acoustic set, "Prince and the Band", a commentary on the music industry and his own struggles and evolution from a business standpoint, didn't receive the overwhelming cheers it did in New York.

After an awesome performance of "I Love U in Me," Prince started playing the opening chords of "I Could Never Take the Place of Your Man." But he stopped abruptly after a few bars saying "Nah-nah. I don't wanna do that right now." He did perform the song later in the acoustic set.

Prince began singing the opening lines of Elvis Pressley's "Jailhouse Rock," but then cut them short saying "You got to be a Prince before you're a King!"

During "Whole Lotta Love," Prince ripped an amazing guitar solo. Then he started playing with the foot pedals of the guitar controls on the floor, making the baby blue guitar make loud, distorted sounds without really touching it. Then he placed the guitar on the floor, and did the same as if he were a magician making the guitar make noise without touching it. Then, he got on the floor, did one of his classic predator crawls towards the guitar, as if he were moving in for the kill. And then he killed the guitar with the slightest touch, the guitar sounded off in loud, distorted agony and faded out. The guitar was dead. His guitar technician Takumi Suetsugu entered and handed Prince a white cloth which he draped over the guitar signaling its demise. Takumi then carried it off stage. Amazing.

Security folks hand-picked about 15-20 women to come on stage and dance during the high-energy set that included "U Got the Look" and "Life 'O' the Party." The latter song featured a cool dancehall breakdown.

Chance Howard led a rousing rendition of "Knock On Wood," which replaced the normally performed "Soul Man."

After "Take Me With U," he said goodbye and left the stage. All was dark except for an image of his glymph symbol rotating on the video screens. People screamed, chanted, and stomped their feet for what seemed like six or seven minutes. When he finally came back for his 'encores,' he rose again from center stage into a cylindrical chandelier of beads hanging from the stage ceiling. Long white streamers also descended from the stage ceiling. He performed "The Beautiful Ones," and even got on the floor and gyrated profusely amidst a cloud of smoke as he has done in past performances.

The final song. "Purple Rain." Over 10 minutes long. Classic, amazing, breath-taking. With is shiny, purple glymph symbol-shaped guitar in hand. He performed like it was his last performance in life. We sang, we screamed, we cried. Everyone was on their feet. A few, like me, with lighters in the air like we did back in the day. And even though it was raining outside, and many of us had umbrellas, not one opened their umbrellas like they did in New York last week. Come on, Jersey! But Prince really let us have it as we joined him in singing the soprano ad libs near the end of the song. Definitely an emotional moment. And then, he was done. He bid farewell to each side of the audience. He and the band quietly left the stage. As the ending chords of the song continued on tape, the house lights came on. The smoke cleared and people began leaving to the sounds of the final chords of the song which ended an electrifying show in an oh so peaceful way.

When the music was done, I saw that Chance Howard had come into the audience to greet fans and sign autographs.

We slowly, quietly left the arena... drained but full of just what we wanted and even more of what we needed. Upon exiting, the rain had stopped, and the storm was passing over. We had been cleansed from the rain. We were, indeed, born again.

THANK YOU!

What a great review!

damn.....i knew i shoulda went on the 18th instead of the 16th