Pre-Soundcheck: Only a total of 52 tickets were sold to NPG members for the Vancouver show last night and I would say of those at least 50% were fom Seattle. The Orpheum did not pass out line tickets but we started a list at 9:00am and all members were pleased with the order as which we were seated(52 tickets we were guaranteed the first two rows)
Soundcheck: The soundcheck started off with Prince working hard with Eric Leeds on sax and flute to bring him up to speed with the new material although they had a closed rehersal Monday night at Richards on Richards when prince stated something like your'e awfully quiet in here tonight which started the real questions from the audience. A gentleman from Canada who is a musicaian asked Prince about his musical process and Prince told the group that this was a deep question and he would answer it a bit later. Prince returned to sit on the edge of the stage and asked members on the left hand side of the stage if they would like to move closer to be involved in the discussion. We talked for around 1 hour with questions regarding the process of him making music(which his response was mostly about how god assists him) I asked if he likes to preform in small venues oppposed to bigger arenas and if he thinks his music will ever again appeal to the masses.(He then told me I was talking like a tour manager and what did I like) He really seems to be doing what he believes us as NPGMC members really want. We told him that since we were such a small group would it be possible to find a club small enough so we may continue some of the discussion and he turned to his main security man and asked him to make a few calls. At the end Prince stated he needed to get ready and he would see us in a minute. We were asked to leave the auditorium for about an hour due to some lighting issues that needed to be resolved and it was unsafe to be that close to the stage while doing so.Tnaks to all the memebers that were cordial about assuming the same seats as we had waited all day for. (Take note other cities)
The Show: The show was basically the same as the Show in Seattle with the same attire for the Man(Gray Suit with black shirt then Burgandy and White velour sweat suit) the smae set-list however it seemed to me Prince realized without a real horns section (no disrespect to Eric Leeds) that he and the other members would have to carry the show a little bit more. So during the entire concert I felt there was a little more intro to each song and outro.
Afterparty: Typical afterparty with a lounge underneath the Westin Grand and a closed off section for the band. Nikka Costa was the first to arrive as she was backstage at the Orpheum after her opening act for Brittney. Takumi showed up with the Video taping of the concert and started it up on the bigscreen several non NPGMC members had asked "When was he in Vancouver?" how about a few hours ago. At one point my sister who had asked a few questions at the soundcheck waved to Prince and he came over to the edge of the roped of section and spoke to her one on one asking if he had answered her questions or did she need additional clarification they must have spoke for around 10 minutes before he sat back down BSing with Eric Leeds & John Blackwell. After my sister had returned I said I was going to attempt just to shake his hand prior to leaving and as I put my hand out to shake his hand he asked me to enter the restricted area where he had asked me if I enjoyed the music tonight and what I thought about the show in general. I then asked him about future plans and he stated that he didn't worry about the past or the future today is today. We also talked about my prior question at the soundcheck regarding larger venues music to the masses and I was suprised that he remmebered the specific questions both my sister and I had asked almost 3hours ago. I thanked him for being personable and allowing us the time to chat and how it affected my sister and he said something like he has always been like this however the media would rather portray him as something other than that. I am not sure what happened after the 2o'clock hour as we left for home.

Man, I'll tell you what happened after 2am. Several of us sat down and talked philosophy/religion with Prince for a good hour, maybe more. It was such a great conversation. Wonderful way to end the night.

Doves,
tackaMel!ssa

Thanx 4 the posting. I am anxiously awaiting my ONA next week with Prince. 1 question though, U lined up for the soundcheck at 9:00 am? Is this common 4 the shows, is this what I should expect to do next week?

Sounds like the rude, obnoxious Prince that so many people believe exists. Where does he get off trying to be nice and personable by answering questions and treating people so nicely like that?

After seeing him twice on this tour I can say that he seems like an incredibly nice, sincere person that loves what he does and tries to give the fans as much as he can. No other artist out there does what Prince does. I wish more people could realize this.

eric leeds? for real?

For real Rio he tried to enter the front door and we didin't even recognize him. We were standing right next to him. He looks kinda old.
[This message was edited Wed May 29 14:54:11 PDT 2002 by purplrain]

Thank you for a great account of the night.

wow...sounds like a great start for ONA Canada. Thanks 4 the comments

Maceo will be back on the tour for the following four stops:

EDMONTON
CALGARY
REGENA
SASKATOON

After that he is playing Irving Plaza, New York on Friday, June 6.

tackam said:

It's easy to read a comment like that. But... wait. Take it in... breathe. You had a in depth chat with someone who is undoubtedly a legend. Holy cow, that's amazing. It's just hit me how stunning that really is.

Jestyr said:

I had previously checked Maceo's web page 4 tour info, and this wasn't listed. But, I just checked and it's official!! This should be 2 cool...though Vancouver did get Nikka.

This should be 2 cool...though Vancouver did get Nikka

Now we didn't have Nikka play or anything she was just hanging out after her show with Brittney.

Oops...my bad.

Thanks for the review.

Thanks!

I'm looking forward to the Winnipeg show.

Eric Leeds? Cool.
Thanks for the review.

Nice review Purplrain. Too bad we couldn't come with you. I guess the wife and I will have to live with the memory of the Portland aftershow. . . ahhh, that's not so bad!

How about next years' Celebration?

This show was amazing, much better than the Seattle show.
During the soundcheck my friend Marlo asked him about how he processes his music and he took care of some business with the band then came right over and sat right in front of us. he was about 3 feet away, It was like a dream. I asked him about an after show for his first date on his Canadian tour, and he immediately set one up for us, it was great!
A tip for any NPG Music Fan members going to the show, sit on the right hand side of the stage!! He spent most of the concert right in front of me. At one point in the concert he was in front of me and reached over and slapped my hand, the first thought in my head was "I touched Prince!". He topped that by asking me to come up on stage while he played Girls & Boys That night was amazing, I'm still reliving every moment in my mind.

Pakio
[Edited 2/3/10 14:42pm]

Thanks for the review.

how come the approval rate is slipping