Apologies for the slight delay in my post-Saturday comments; I’ve been off work since the show, as I thought it best to take Monday off to get over all the Prince shenanigans. And what shenanigans they were!

The O2:- A superb venue, and despite our tickets in the upper tier the view was great. It was nice to see the place full come show time (there were a few spare seats here and there but barely noticeable). Shame there weren’t more people in Prince themed gear. I did see a group of girls in raspberry berets, kudos to them. The missus and I were decked out in trademark purple, including my tasty purple jacket which a few fans said looked pretty cool though not geek-level fandom thankfully. Great atmosphere inside chatting with the other fans; us Prince fans are a very friendly bunch.

The show itself:- Though I haven’t heard any of Nikki Costa’s stuff before (apart from Push & Pull) she was excellent as the supporting act. She came out at 8:10 for a half hour warm up. Shame her mic was a bit dodgy and we couldn’t quite hear what she was singing but the songs sounded great. I’m definitely going to track some of her stuff down. As for Prince…well, what can one say! Been a fan since I was ten years old back in 1991 when a mate lent me Diamonds & Pearls and have been obsessed ever since. Saturday night had been a long time coming but it more than lived up to expectations. Prince was in a fine cheeky mood and looked to be loving every minute of it, which is so good to see when you consider that most other performers get up on stage for a pay-cheque and not for the fans. It was as close to a Greatest Hits show as Prince will ever play I imagine. I was almost teary when he finally hit Purple Rain and when the arena all sang along with Prince to Little Red Corvette!! The main highlights have no doubt been written about on here already (U Got The Look, Lets Go Crazy, Purple Rain, etc). Aside from those obvious highpoints, I thought Shhh was incredible, though it has always been one of my favourites, Guitar sounded great live, and Black Sweat, a track I never cared for much, funked hard! It was the closest song to what I imagine Prince was like circa 1982 when he was funking it up down and dirty. Le Freak over the top of Sexy Dancer was pant-wettingly good. The Wonderful World sax solo was also superb, a very moving rendition. I think everyone where we were in the arena was blown away by the musicianship on display throughout the night. I’d have swapped the cover of Crazy for another classic Prince cut though.

Aftershow:- Concert finished about 11:10pm. Our Hotel (the Holiday Inn Express) was about 15-20 minute walk from the arena so after the concert we went back to the hotel to freshen up and to save queuing. Got back to the Indigo about 12:30 and walked straight in. Being a keen clubber I’ve been disappointed with the club music scene here in the UK in the last three years so what a treat it was to have the DJ spin some classic Prince. Never heard I Would Die 4U in a nightclub before and don’t think I ever will again but it was awesome! Bar service was fairly quick and those queuing were quite courteous about whose turn it was to be served next. Again, us Prince fans, so polite you can’t fault ‘em. Was a bit of a wait for on-stage action but Nikki Costa came on about 1:30 to a big roar. The band played a good set and the man himself came out to an even bigger roar to provide a guitar solo over one of her tracks. This was his only appearance though which was a bit disappointing. Worth going to the aftershow just to be in a decent club that actually played Prince tracks though. You go into any nightclub in the UK and ask for Prince and the DJ will laugh in your face! DMSR went down a treat and hearing the crowd sing along when the DJ dropped the volume was hilarious!

Wow, how great it is to have an orger who can see into the future! Which aftreshows are going to be the best? When is he going to play Sign O the times?

DaveT said:

Well if that's what you wanna hear then you need to get yourself along to Manchester on 15th September!!!! Prince music non-stop...these parties are great and exactly what is needed to keep the Princely mood we're all in right now!

DJ Le Freak is as big a Prince fan as they come, and believe me, anything by Prince or related bands that you request on the night WILL be played!

Well worth the £10 price to get in and we're mostly a friendly bunch, so get your ass over to Manchester on 15th September!!! Details on the sticky in the Fan Gatherings forum - contact Savage for tickets.