Tiff24 said:

LOVEVERY1 said:

All GA dance floor admissions come with Forum Club access (Pre show only). GA Floor wristbands required and will be issued at the the Floor entrance on the night of each event.

How much are the GA dance floor tickets?

$50 but went down to $25 day of show through Ticketmaster.

Very fair review GDB.

The ladies' song was "Angel" by Sarah McLachlan.

Stratus was a highlight for me. The night had some jazzy moments. I was into that.

As much as I'm not into the sample set, this was one was pretty good. Guitar rocked too.

jobiwan24 said:

Very fair review GDB.

The ladies' song was "Angel" by Sarah McLachlan.

Stratus was a highlight for me. The night had some jazzy moments. I was into that.

As much as I'm not into the sample set, this was one was pretty good. Guitar rocked too.

Thanks for "Angel," I have heard that and should have known it. Very well done. I dug the jazz guitar & piano segments too...being a player it was nice to hear P go there and he & Renato shared some moments.

He sang most of "Doves" tonight and I'm just at the point where I wish he'd just play it with the band and stop playing around with it. Also several people have called for him to play "Alphabet Street," and he gave us the first line in the sampler...frustrating. There is so much unmined material from which he could pull a set but again, I wonder if he's afraid to go there..? Another reason why I appreciated Friday 4/22 so much because he pulled from 20Ten that night and even though it was his shortest set thus far of this run it was one of the most satisfying and engaging for me.

Whitney on stage!? And Chaka too? I seriously need to see this!

Whitney was in the VIP 1 section last Friday night, desperately trying to get Prince's attention. It was weird and embarrassing. I was relieved he didn't pull her up that night, it would be a bad situation as she was looking pretty worn. It's a damn shame what happened to her.

Maybe I missed this, but how was the capacity last night?

Hope all enjoyed the "I'm every woman" treat, both of them. lol

Looks like the same ol same ol. Prince must really like those songs. Damn I'm tired of hearing them.

1ststatestereo said:

Whitney was in the VIP 1 section last Friday night, desperately trying to get Prince's attention. It was weird and embarrassing. I was relieved he didn't pull her up that night, it would be a bad situation as she was looking pretty worn. It's a damn shame what happened to her.

Maybe I missed this, but how was the capacity last night?

r u jealous...? love4oneanother...

[Edited 5/6/11 7:45am]

Does Whitney have any voice left at all? Was she seeking crack in the Inglewood streets afterwards?

[Edited 5/6/11 8:02am]

GDB said:

Good morning people, here is the setlist from tonight:

First, Chaka Khan opened and hit the stage around 8:35pm introduced offstage by Prince. He obviously has much respect and reverence for her. Her set:

Through The Fire

Stay

You've Got The Love

Tell Me Something Good

I Feel For You

Ain't Nobody

She had most of the audience inside the arena and dancing in the aisles...very strong opening set and by far the best response of all the opening acts thus far.

Prince hits around 9:25pm to an extended solo performance by Renato Neto before the band falls in.

The Love We Make

Shhhh

Cool

Let's Work

U Got The Look

The ? Of U/The One

Musicology/Prince & The Band

Brief breakdown from Ohio Players' Fire

Stratus w/ band intros and solos

Angel (girls' solo)

Nothing Compares 2 U (P & Shelby)

Sometimes It Snows In April (accompanied by piano; no guitar)

Take Me With U

Raspberry Beret

Guitar

Controversy

Let's Go Crazy

Delirious

Little Red Corvette

Purple Rain

Samples:

When Doves Cry

Nasty Girl

Sign O' The Times

The Most Beautiful Girl In The World

Alphabet Street

A Love Bizarre

Darling Nikki

Single Ladies

I Would Die 4 U

If I Was Your Girlfriend

Kiss

By far this was the...I don't want to use the word "worst," but let's call it the least good show of the six of eight I've attended so far. It began hot. First two songs were great featuring blazing guitar work and I thought we were going to get another cool Thursday night show...more for the hardcore fans with an unusual setlist, kind of an intimate, small-club vibe. Instead he flipped it and after Shhh, abandoned the rock-god mode and went into party mode. Weird transition. The band played well, the quality of the musicianship and performance was high and maybe I've been spoiled by having seen so many shows. But it felt flat and disengaged to me, as if P was going through the motions rather than truly enjoying himself. The audience was energetic though and they didn't appear to notice the vibe I'm describing.

The term that kept running through my head was "self-conscious." Prince wasn't flowing tonight in his own element. He appeared to be distracted...there was an obvious attempt made to play more to the rear of the stage/Purple Pit crowd tonight than in past shows. Not that he never made it back there to include them but it felt as though an edict went out to MAKE SURE TO WORK THE ENTIRE STAGE AND MAKE EVERYONE FEEL INCLUDED. Rather than pay more attention to the rear, those seats shouldn't have been made available in the first place because it isn't fair to sell someone a view of John Blackwell's back & ass. He repeated many of the comments and phrases we've heard before, even moreso tonight to the point where it felt canned and repetitive. That's the word I would use to describe tonight's show: repetitive. And bored. Prince appeared bored to me tonight...uninspired. He rushed through Little Red Corvette; nothing at all like the way he worked it from the inside out on opening night (which is unfair to compare any of these shows to as it's been pretty much established that that was a once in a lifetime performance). He rushed through Purple Rain as if he was mad at somebody and had somewhere else to be. No guitar until the solo, no extended opening to let it breathe...he just ran through it as though it was a dress rehearsal and he was saving the real performance for later.

I was disappointed that Chaka did not rejoin him onstage to do Sweet Thing. I imagined P sitting center stage with an acoustic guitar playing Raspberry Beret, Sometimes It Snows...and then going into Sweet Thing with Chaka ascending the steps...just the two of them and an acoustic guitar...but no dice. THAT would have made the entire night worth it...

Let me reiterate that the audience appeared to enjoy itself and that the band's performance was of high quality as always. My view may be skewed because this was my sixth of the eight shows played thus far. But...my view certainly wasn't tainted last weekend. Each night offered something different, something unique, something that made it worthwhile. For example, Saturday night was just a blazingly HOT set...there wasn't necessarily anything new or unique played but P was locked in from the start, the band was locked in...I just shook my head along with my neighbor as we marvelled at how incredible of a performance it was. Friday night was a party from the time the lights went down...on your feet, jumping, sweaty, can't wait 'til the next one. This one was just flat. Maybe it was bound to happen. I don't know how difficult it must be to sustain the level Prince established through the first three weeks of shows.

Maybe a break is in order...or a change of venue..? I would love to see him retire some songs, introduce some new ones, retire the sample set and stop worrying about pleasing the fanbase because that's what it feels like to me. Feels like he's conflicted. On the one hand he's a bona fide rock star...wants to do his own thing, drop some expected songs, play some shit no one's heard in years from albums very few know of, transform some of his hits into something so different they're almost unrecognizable. On the other hand, the fans expect to hear the hits and want to dance and sing along...you risk losing them when you play something challenging or unfamiliar...and if they aren't satisfied they won't tell their friends or come back. They don't want art, they want to partay.

I think he's straddling that line...wants to go in one direction but afraid of the backlash if he leans too far...I can sense the tension. Because if I'm bored with 1999 and Let's Work after these three weeks how bored must HE be with them..?

[Edited 5/6/11 2:12am]

Very valid points towards the end there......

I agree with you and truly believe that he shouldn't hold himself so tightly wound up.. If that's what you think is happening: He's conflicted.

Well,

At $25.00 a pop for a ticket...

Plus

The goal of "saving" an arena...

And thinking of a "possible" residency...

Why not give him more space for his imagination or "genius" to expand and "explore?"

In other words, He's in one of the most creative and forward thinking cities in the world. Although I personally think the town hasn't lived up to it's potential in the last 6 -10 years with the tangent of "reality"-based JUNK... but maybe as a really "talented" person he can bring some authencity back to that place.

Frankly, he's currently showing the future "I wanna be's" and the old "used-to-be's" what .... Welll...what COULD... be if we actually practiced our art at the best of our abilities...

As a fan, Him following his art where ever it took him, MADE him a legend...

So, why stop now.... at this late date????

Love these reviews and I can dig the setlists--would love to have heard Musicology live!

Dr. Funkenberry's tweets are akin to life-support, thank U!

Prince just keeps bringing da funk!

Thanks for the setlist GDB , but I have to disagree with your review of the show...

Yeah, it was probably the mellowest of the shows so far.... But in a good way.

I've grown to cherish the Thursday night shows because the whole vibe of them is less skewed to the Pop fan & usually his most unique show of the week...

Opening with "The Love we make" into "Shhhh", with blazing guitar solos on each... Then it's on.

The crowd was very engaged in the show last night.... Almost felt to me like the crowd was not so interested in the Hits & responded better to the long, jazzy, soulful jams.... At least I did.

Anyways, another Epic show...

FYI, Whitney was trashed & shouldn't even be allowed to hold Chaka's Mic.

I know the idea of them singing together sounds great, but it wasn't really that impressive.

GDB said:

Good morning people, here is the setlist from tonight:

First, Chaka Khan opened and hit the stage around 8:35pm introduced offstage by Prince. He obviously has much respect and reverence for her. Her set:

Through The Fire

Stay

You've Got The Love

Tell Me Something Good

I Feel For You

Ain't Nobody

She had most of the audience inside the arena and dancing in the aisles...very strong opening set and by far the best response of all the opening acts thus far.

Prince hits around 9:25pm to an extended solo performance by Renato Neto before the band falls in.

The Love We Make

Shhhh

Cool

Let's Work

U Got The Look

The ? Of U/The One

Musicology/Prince & The Band

Brief breakdown from Ohio Players' Fire

Stratus w/ band intros and solos

Angel (girls' solo)

Nothing Compares 2 U (P & Shelby)

Sometimes It Snows In April (accompanied by piano; no guitar)

Take Me With U

Raspberry Beret

Guitar

Controversy

Let's Go Crazy

Delirious

Little Red Corvette

Purple Rain

Samples:

When Doves Cry

Nasty Girl

Sign O' The Times

The Most Beautiful Girl In The World

Alphabet Street

A Love Bizarre

Darling Nikki

Single Ladies

I Would Die 4 U

If I Was Your Girlfriend

Kiss

By far this was the...I don't want to use the word "worst," but let's call it the least good show of the six of eight I've attended so far. It began hot. First two songs were great featuring blazing guitar work and I thought we were going to get another cool Thursday night show...more for the hardcore fans with an unusual setlist, kind of an intimate, small-club vibe. Instead he flipped it and after Shhh, abandoned the rock-god mode and went into party mode. Weird transition. The band played well, the quality of the musicianship and performance was high and maybe I've been spoiled by having seen so many shows. But it felt flat and disengaged to me, as if P was going through the motions rather than truly enjoying himself. The audience was energetic though and they didn't appear to notice the vibe I'm describing.

The term that kept running through my head was "self-conscious." Prince wasn't flowing tonight in his own element. He appeared to be distracted...there was an obvious attempt made to play more to the rear of the stage/Purple Pit crowd tonight than in past shows. Not that he never made it back there to include them but it felt as though an edict went out to MAKE SURE TO WORK THE ENTIRE STAGE AND MAKE EVERYONE FEEL INCLUDED. Rather than pay more attention to the rear, those seats shouldn't have been made available in the first place because it isn't fair to sell someone a view of John Blackwell's back & ass. He repeated many of the comments and phrases we've heard before, even moreso tonight to the point where it felt canned and repetitive. That's the word I would use to describe tonight's show: repetitive. And bored. Prince appeared bored to me tonight...uninspired. He rushed through Little Red Corvette; nothing at all like the way he worked it from the inside out on opening night (which is unfair to compare any of these shows to as it's been pretty much established that that was a once in a lifetime performance). He rushed through Purple Rain as if he was mad at somebody and had somewhere else to be. No guitar until the solo, no extended opening to let it breathe...he just ran through it as though it was a dress rehearsal and he was saving the real performance for later.

I was disappointed that Chaka did not rejoin him onstage to do Sweet Thing. I imagined P sitting center stage with an acoustic guitar playing Raspberry Beret, Sometimes It Snows...and then going into Sweet Thing with Chaka ascending the steps...just the two of them and an acoustic guitar...but no dice. THAT would have made the entire night worth it...

Let me reiterate that the audience appeared to enjoy itself and that the band's performance was of high quality as always. My view may be skewed because this was my sixth of the eight shows played thus far. But...my view certainly wasn't tainted last weekend. Each night offered something different, something unique, something that made it worthwhile. For example, Saturday night was just a blazingly HOT set...there wasn't necessarily anything new or unique played but P was locked in from the start, the band was locked in...I just shook my head along with my neighbor as we marvelled at how incredible of a performance it was. Friday night was a party from the time the lights went down...on your feet, jumping, sweaty, can't wait 'til the next one. This one was just flat. Maybe it was bound to happen. I don't know how difficult it must be to sustain the level Prince established through the first three weeks of shows.

Maybe a break is in order...or a change of venue..? I would love to see him retire some songs, introduce some new ones, retire the sample set and stop worrying about pleasing the fanbase because that's what it feels like to me. Feels like he's conflicted. On the one hand he's a bona fide rock star...wants to do his own thing, drop some expected songs, play some shit no one's heard in years from albums very few know of, transform some of his hits into something so different they're almost unrecognizable. On the other hand, the fans expect to hear the hits and want to dance and sing along...you risk losing them when you play something challenging or unfamiliar...and if they aren't satisfied they won't tell their friends or come back. They don't want art, they want to partay.

I think he's straddling that line...wants to go in one direction but afraid of the backlash if he leans too far...I can sense the tension. Because if I'm bored with 1999 and Let's Work after these three weeks how bored must HE be with them..?

[Edited 5/6/11 2:12am]

Regarding your last 2 paragraphs....

He should do half and half and if the people don't like tell them to Kiss his arse! (half jams for the fan base and half of whatever he pleases (those obscure Jams).

Many outright Jams has not been played not 1 time since the tour started in NYC, Unbelievable!

[Edited 5/6/11 9:37am]

Imaginative said:

purplepony said:

For sure! Even though I'm broke I am wanting to go SO BAD! I need to conserve my $$$ and my energy! Going Saturday and hoping to hit at least ALL THE REST of the shows, lol! If the parking wasn't so expensive and then gas, etc... I'D BE AT ALL OF THEM! Prince is amazing and just because I'm not going tonight certainly doesn't mean that I DIDN'T WANT TO! Unfortunately the bill collectors don't care how much I'm in love with "His Purple Majesty"!

Peace and funk ya'll

So with you. Even though I've decided to stay home tonight, I'm still compulsively looking at tickets! Have fun everybody! I'll be watching the board closely to see what I'm missing!!

I'm broke too, in fact I can't even pay my rent right now, so I almost didn't go tonight. However, at the last minute someone offered me a spare ticket, and I am so glad I decided to go. As soon as I heard him open with "The Love We Make" it made it all worth while! Yes, I am still going to stress about all my financial problems this month, but at least I'll have that purple high to carry me through! Priceless!

getxxxx said:

The love we make was done at Izod in Dec

it's funny that people (me included) are shocked that he does this song. It's maybe the climax of what was meant to be his ultimate album.

the shocking thing is that he never played it before now

I loved Renato opening the show then "the love we make...shh" opening. He was the show for me along with Prince playing some wicked Guitar throughout the night. All three keyboard players got lots of time last night.

I actually enjoyed Purple Rain for the fact that he did not have his guitar in the beginning and walked around with only mike in hand... different.

The usual songs were played and I thought I would not enjoy them after 5 previous shows...wrong. I couldn't help it and get into them.

Raspberry Beret was butchered by Cedric the E. He started doing Prince from before and Prince snatched the mike out of his hands.

Three ladies were brought up to dance along with a 6 foot 6, 350 lb "bodyguard" and all he did was stand there and take pictures...odd.

Imaginative said:

Does Whitney have any voice left at all? Was she seeking crack in the Inglewood streets afterwards?

[Edited 5/6/11 8:02am]

come along and ride on a cracktastic Voyage

How was the dance floor? I wanna know, no one has mentioned the preshow and dance floor.

Once upon a time, reports of Whitney Houston onstage with Prince and Chaka Khan would have sent chills up one's spine and made you feel like you missed a once-in-a-lifetime event.

Alas, that is not the case today. I won't cast aspersions on Ms Houston's character or sobriety but suffice to say, she should be remanded to the VIP area along with the rest of the fans and not allowed onstage to bother the artists. "Embarassing," "Hot Mess" and "Sad" are some of the words that come to mind after witnessing both her antics and her "performance."

IamFunkay7 said:

How was the dance floor? I wanna know, no one has mentioned the preshow and dance floor.

Not the best show to debut the Dance Floor. This was not a dance party set at all... More long, extended jazzy, bluesy numbers.

IMO, I would not sit or stand in that back side of the stage area....

Irony is, Prince & Shelby unsuccessfully tried to start the Electric Slide again... But he tried to get it started by the floor seats & risers by the point of the stage & not in the GA dance floor.... Odd?

DaveG said:

Thanks for the setlist GDB , but I have to disagree with your review of the show...

Yeah, it was probably the mellowest of the shows so far.... But in a good way.

I've grown to cherish the Thursday night shows because the whole vibe of them is less skewed to the Pop fan & usually his most unique show of the week...

Opening with "The Love we make" into "Shhhh", with blazing guitar solos on each... Then it's on.

The crowd was very engaged in the show last night.... Almost felt to me like the crowd was not so interested in the Hits & responded better to the long, jazzy, soulful jams.... At least I did.

Anyways, another Epic show...

FYI, Whitney was trashed & shouldn't even be allowed to hold Chaka's Mic.

I know the idea of them singing together sounds great, but it wasn't really that impressive.

Hi Dave, I agree with you that it was indeed a "mellow" set...so mellow that for the first time I found myself bored. And yes, the crowd didn't appear to share my sentiments so for them, and for you, I am sincerely happy that you enjoyed it because that's what it is about in the end.

Re Whitney...'nuff said. We are in agreement on that one...

DaveG said:

IamFunkay7 said:

How was the dance floor? I wanna know, no one has mentioned the preshow and dance floor.

Not the best show to debut the Dance Floor. This was not a dance party set at all... More long, extended jazzy, bluesy numbers.

IMO, I would not sit or stand in that back side of the stage area....

Irony is, Prince & Shelby unsuccessfully tried to start the Electric Slide again... But he tried to get it started by the floor seats & risers by the point of the stage & not in the GA dance floor.... Odd?

Totally agree. It didn't come off at all. That is one of the reasons why I used the terms "self-conscious" and "repetitive." When it happened at the other shows it felt far more spontaneous, the crowd was already hyped and ready to explode...so when Shelby got it started hell, everyone even up in the loges and colonnades were slidin' along with them down on the floor. Electric moment.

Last night's felt like just another admonition to throw your hands in the air or let me hear you make some noise...no matter the vibe in the place, just another part of the set. Along with the "...but I still look the same." I was like, WTF? Now he's just reciting lines from a script.

I know I may sound critical but...I want it fresh, not canned. I'm not a hypercritical angry former fan....I've sang P's praises louldly and proudly to everyone within earshot about how historic of a series this has the potential to be and how much I have enjoyed it. After the impressive first three weeks I guess he was due for a down night. I'm willing to give him the benefit of the doubt and ride it out for the remainder of the weekend.

GDB said:

Once upon a time, reports of Whitney Houston onstage with Prince and Chaka Khan would have sent chills up one's spine and made you feel like you missed a once-in-a-lifetime event.

Alas, that is not the case today. I won't cast aspersions on Ms Houston's character or sobriety but suffice to say, she should be remanded to the VIP area along with the rest of the fans and not allowed onstage to bother the artists. "Embarassing," "Hot Mess" and "Sad" are some of the words that come to mind after witnessing both her antics and her "performance."

funkberry said it was "awesomesauce"

Chaka did quite well and I really enjoyed her set.

Whitney's beer gut hanging out and her horrid vocals were really depressing. Prince almost had to have her removed from the stage, as she was butchering the Musicology lyrics and basically just yelling anyway. Cedric the Entertainer then came up and butchered Raspberry Beret. Ahh, isn't it nice to have "friends" come out and support you. Prince must dread LA in some ways.

But, Prince's voice was very solid, except for Christopher Tracey's Parade (the only low point for me). I'm hoping to go a couple more times, as The Forum's only 30 mins from my studio.

Oh and I really loved The Love We Make.

[Edited 5/6/11 11:54am]

Good report GDB -- I agree with many of your points.

It's funny -- I took a 'newbie' friend and he LOVED the show. He couldn't believe it when I said it was far from being one of my favorites. I think that just shows how demanding us hard-core fans have become!

The Whitney and Cedric bits definitely took down the musical integrity of the show, but it added to the FUN so guess it balances out. It was funny when Cedric asked Prince to give him his guitar and Prince just gave that funny look and shook his head. Amy Adams was sitting not too far away from us, so that was cool too. Other highlights were The Love We Make, Guitar, U Will B with Me and If I Was Your Girlfriend on top of the piano.

I didn't like that he refused his guitar on Purple Rain and did seem to rush the whole thing. I really thought he may end the show there, but was glad he didn't. I also really missed Chaka joining Prince or doing I'm Every Woman or Sweet Thing at all. There was also no spotlight "beat/pose" dance.

Curious to hear reports from the GA section as well. Maybe I'm getting old, but it looked like too much work for not enough pay-off to me. Even those right up front were still a long ways from the back of the stage because of a WIDE roped off aisle between them and the stage. Those who got the prime spots were already standing there at 7:45 (at least.) But... if you didn't have to be right up front, it did look like fun as people were groovin' in the back.

I was in the lodge area the first 2 shows I went to, had purple pit for last night. Pretty great, dancing around, decent view, sound was much better back there, couldn't see Prince himself as much but it didn't negatively impact my time, wouldn't hesitate to do it again.

They didn't play that stupid video before the show last night...that was a nice touch. Yeah we get it Prince concerts are amazing and we are all glad to be here.