Here also a diehard fan.

Been to Paris, London, Montreux, Werchter and many more.

And was never disappointed

Now for the first time tix trough the black market

So Prince, get your act together for tonight

[Edited 7/9/11 0:07am]

[Edited 7/9/11 0:18am]

i absloutely agree with the aboven post....the most dissapointing Prince show i have been to. hopefully tomorrow better!!

During the whole show Prince was trying to get the sound better, but it didn't really help. Indeed the strangest Prince show I've witnessed so far. One huge, shaky soundcheck...

It started to get kinda good when Janelle Monae joined for Love Bizarre. Just a funky party, nothing more, nothing less.

Let's hope for adventure for the remaining shows!

I agree. "One huge, shaky soundcheck...".

When I heard about his gigs at North Sea Jazz, I thought it would B a very special jazz-set, like he did in Montreux 2009 and the Trubadur gig i LA 2011. A place were he dident needed to play his hits and could B more relaxed and improvise... The show started ok with "Foxy Lady", but then back to playing safe and familiar, and as already said ...a bit shaky. What about a real masterlesson in true musicology and no "Le freak" or "Purple Rain"...

Lets hope tonights show to be better.

Yep, gott aagree on this too....unfortunately. We had great seets, where totally in them mood for a funky party. Show started off pretty good and surprisingly with Janelle, but then it went out like a flame on a candle. Stage mostly in the dark, sound crap, and covers all over the place. It was the worst case scenario, and too bad it came out so predictable (yep there's Le freak/play that funky music, there's Larry...).

My guy stated it well; he paid for Prince not Maceo, not Larry, not even Shelby...and after ten years we know what Prince roots are and were his respect is...

I had the idea Prince wanted to create a 'darker' more raw afterparty kind of show, but the setting wasn't right, on a stage like that you don't all dress in black and turn of the lights all the time.

To few hits played and to many 'what about the band' intermezzo's....

Well can't win m all, let's hope tonight will be better!! I know he can, I was there in Antwerp last year!

Or are we just having an overdose of P shows and getting to critical?

^ sorry for misspelling some above, little sleep and serious ear trouble...

wow...pretty harsh comments here, it must have been really bad. Sorry 2 hear y'all r so disappointed

Prince doesn't seem to be able to do it right whatever he does.

I agree the soundchecking while starting Controversy became pretty annoying.

And at Purple Rain. Mr. Hayes keyboard was so loud the sound topped Prince his guitarsound.

About the set. I thought this is what I expected. Not 10 hits from the eighties.

Prince was jamming, so don't agree on a dull setlist, this is not a regular Prince-show.

If you've seen EveryDayPeople many times, Prince can't help that.

The pleasure on stage while Larry and Maceo where there was funny to witness in the front, the really laughed there ass off. Prince fooling with Larry his pedals.......

This was a raw set, indeed jamming, and searching while playing on stage. After many hit shows I found it interesting to witness. Can imagine this may not come across to the people on seats or further in the arena.

Looking forward to tonight and tomorrow. We can expect anything, that is exciting on it's own.

I would be disappointed if we get a hit show like he will give us the 26th of july in Ahoy in a Prince show. For North Sea, hope he will keep up jamming......

I would really appreciate a non-hits show 2night!

Yes, indeed! The expectations were very high, to high maybe. Many die-hard-fans hoped for a legendary "trio" of gigs here at the Jazz Festival. Free form jazz, experimental p-funk-fussion-jazz kinda thing. Well...

But first you gotta get the sound right, then drop all the hits...and maybe even skip a setlist

Cthulhu said:

I would really appreciate a non-hits show 2night!

Indeed , sound way too loud ,

but hey I liked the jamming . without the expected greatest hits routine.

turn up the funk:-D

I don't think it was that bad! Musically, there was some great playing and singing, and we did get a fairly long show.

But I agree that the sound was very, very loud - and also quite "reverby", so that everything tended to blur. Maybe some of it has to do with the hall itself, I don't know.

Still, many people don't realize that when Prince comments on the sound while playing, he's commenting on what he hears in his monitors. The mix that goes out to the audience - called FOH, "front of house" - is impossible for him to hear anyway. And they are usually not the same; the levels of the instruments might differ, the EQ, the effects, and so on. To be able to perform their best, Prince prefers to hear the sound mixed a certain way, Shelby another, John Blackwell yet another - and none of these might be the way that it's supposed to sound to the audience.

In other words, the sound on stage could be "good" while the sound in the house is "bad", or vice versa. But when both the musicians and the audience are complaining, albeit for different reasons, and through large portions of a show, there is usually a problem - either technically/acoustically or with the persons running it.

On the other hand, I actually love to see Prince handle such difficulties from the stage. He's the only performer I know who turns sound/light instructions into musical material. He never just tells them to "turn the guitar up" or whatever - instead he's singing/chanting/rapping the message mid-song (and with impeccable musical timing, as always). That's actually a really professional way to handle it, for three reasons:

1. It doesn't disrupt the show, or lets the audience know there's something wrong.

2. It doesn't draw unnecessary attention to the soundmen (which could be embarrassing for them).

3. When executed by Prince, the spontaneous tech instructions might actually add something, musically.

Let's hope he will give us a piano concert and a rock concert, so we can say North Sea fullfiled all high expactations, and we got 3 different shows. Yesterday's show on it's own can't be compared to a regular set like Gent 6th, which was amazing. As a whole we must admit, Prince is an artist who can pull off, hit shows, jamsessions, covershows, able to play jazz, rock, funk, soul, ballads. Which artiest can pull this off.

By the way, saw Janelle Monae's show yesterday, she is HOT !!

Little girl, dancing like James Brown, singing like an angel (and Michael Jackson )

Her show was very entertaining to watch, she got the whole Arena to sit down, and jump up for a great finally, in which she did some crowd surfing. CHECK HER OUT IF YOU CAN.

[Edited 7/9/11 3:54am]

Sander250 said:

Let's hope he will give us a piano concert and a rock concert, so we can say North Sea fullfiled all high expactations, and we got 3 different shows. Yesterday's show on it's own can't be compared to a regular set like Gent 6th, which was amazing. As a whole we must admit, Prince is an artist who can pull off, hit shows, jamsessions, covershows, able to play jazz, rock, funk, soul, ballads. Which artiest can pull this off.

By the way, saw Janelle Monae's show yesterday, she is HOT !!

Little girl, dancing like James Brown, singing like an angel (and Michael Jackson )

Her show was very entertaining to watch, she got the whole Arena to sit down, and jump up for a great finally, in which she did some crowd surfing. CHECK HER OUT IF YOU CAN.

[Edited 7/9/11 3:54am]

Funny thing, lot of people complaing about Prince's performance being different, aftershow style, jam funk ... and you raving the Janelle Monae show, which is always the same like the one you saw yesterday, with the same routine Everybody sit down, crowd surfing).

All the people complaining probably saw too may Prince shows.

Don't get me wrong, I saw 100+ Prince shows myself, but over the years I have learned to enjoy a Prince show like it is the first Prince show you ever see !!!

More people should do that, that way you can even enjoy Purple Rain

I agree with you. Last nite was a night full of jams and nice grooves. Not the same ole same ole.

Listening with my hearing protection the sound was usually well balanced, but can they please slap the people (john) that put that much noise in an arena? Why is it necessary to put the volume up to the point that it hurts most peoples ears?

specially likes the part where Prince picked up the bass!

Maceo is always an addition to the set whatever they play. Larry Graham, well he is LG, i can't stand the guy.

Setlist:

Foxy Lady

Controversy

Sexy dancer/Le freak

which way is up

Play that funky music

Controversy reprise with Maceo

pass the peas

Let's get it on

DMSR

Poplife

Jazzy interlude

Musicology

??? -> didn't know this one

Misty Blue (not sure about title)

Love bizarre

Everday People (LG)

Prince on bass in an Johnny like groove

Purple Rain

If i was our girlfriend

Kiss! (extended)

thought they would come back for more, but the crowd was lame

they left the stage 2 minutes after Kiss

Sander250 said:

Prince doesn't seem to be able to do it right whatever he does.

I agree the soundchecking while starting Controversy became pretty annoying.

And at Purple Rain. Mr. Hayes keyboard was so loud the sound topped Prince his guitarsound.

About the set. I thought this is what I expected. Not 10 hits from the eighties.

Prince was jamming, so don't agree on a dull setlist, this is not a regular Prince-show.

If you've seen EveryDayPeople many times, Prince can't help that.

The pleasure on stage while Larry and Maceo where there was funny to witness in the front, the really laughed there ass off. Prince fooling with Larry his pedals.......

This was a raw set, indeed jamming, and searching while playing on stage. After many hit shows I found it interesting to witness. Can imagine this may not come across to the people on seats or further in the arena.

Looking forward to tonight and tomorrow. We can expect anything, that is exciting on it's own.

I would be disappointed if we get a hit show like he will give us the 26th of july in Ahoy in a Prince show. For North Sea, hope he will keep up jamming......

Great quote: "I saw 100+ Prince shows myself, but over the years I have learned to enjoy a Prince show like it is the first Prince show you ever see!!!"

I thought the show was ok, not great, but ok. First time visiters around me LOVED IT!

it's all round the internet how bad this show was tonight...the sound and the choice of songs...not just the songs - but the amount of covers....

for an artist who very rarely played covers in his career..to someone who now plays almost as many covers as he does originals...gotta wonder - why?

Yeah, it was incredibly loud. I'm glad to read I'm not the only one to think so.

But generally the (bigger) concerts were very loud at the festival.

Only the Metrepole Orchestra with Jonathan Jeremiah was at a pleasant volume.

Actually Paul Simon was a much bigger disgrace. His voice was horrible. Actually it was quite boring too.

I had a great time! And I was so happy he let the hits at home. Sure he did them in the end, but the audiance didn't mind not to get the hits.

The festival is about musicians having fun making music. And Prince his concert was about that.

I had fun earlier the evening with surprises from the more 'unknown' bands. I walked out of Janelle because of the bad sound quality.

I'm looking forward to the concert tonight, first I want to enjoy whatever happens at the festival. I had a great time during one concert with an old man next me. And he told me two very wise things:

1.

If you had to listen to all the music that gets produced in three months, that would take the rest of your life. So, you know that you will be missing out on some great stuff. Just enjoy what your are not missing out of and what you experience in the presence.

2.

Never plan a festival. When you go with high expectations, the changes are that you will be dissapointed. And you will be surprisingly happy with unexpected gigs that you didn't know about. He is so right about that. I had a blast at some concerts yesterday and couldn't get into some that I, in advance, expected to be great.

I love Prince! I had a great time and hope he will leave the "mainstream audiance pleasing big hits" in his suitcase and will have fun at stage again, funking the place out!

Hi,

i was there last night....but indeed the sound was terrible. This does not mean that Prince was a disgrace. If people want to listen to his greatest hits, come back again on july 26 in Ahoy.

Ok, the light on stage wasn't very nice, but Prince wanted it that way. That is artistic space, deal with it when you go to a Prince concert.

What i personally didn't like was the screen on stage, the only thing we saw was this green light, no big screens.

But...i have to say, the noise was terrible...so terrible that i went home after 20 minutes concert. I could not hear a thing Prince said, and when Maceo entered the stage and started playing his alto-saxophone, my ears nearly blead.

This was my 32th Prince concert...first was on june 2 1990 in De Kuip in Rotterdam , but it is the first time i ever walked away at a Prince concert...too bad, had a great night with BB King, Hans Dulfer and Larry Graham.

On the other hand....my next Prince concert can only be better than the one i saw yesterdag

Kind regards and to those who go tonight....have fun !

I cannot understand how anyone could complain about any kind of Prince concert, regardless of the sound, setlist, etc... YOU ARE ALL VERY LUCKY to be there! What I would give to be able to be there!

I've never witnessed such a boring setlist in ages. If I hear one more greatest hits show I'm gonna throw up. How lame can you get? Let's Go Crazy, 1999, Take Me With U, The Beautiful Ones, Cream, Pop Life, Purple Rain, Little Red Corvette, Uptown, Raspberrey Beret, the ooh I'm not gonne sing this section of Darling Nikki, man I sure hope Sunday is gonna be better.

There, I've written your basic complaint thread for tomorrow.

Got to agree on the bad sound, but if he did as rumoured a show in Paradiso on the 7th and he played this you'd still be busy wetting your pants.

A disgrace? No, but I have to admit that I am a little disappointed too. But that had nothing to with Prince's performance but my wishful thinking.

When I read the NSJF line up it was Prince I immediately thought about. Chaka Khan, Janelle Monae, Candy Dulfer, Larry Graham, Esperanza Spalding … the only one missing was Prince. So when his name was added to the program I wished for jam sessions with guest musicians. The only real guest on stage last night was Janelle Monae. We are now used to have Larry or Maceo on stage that we may not appreciate their art anymore.

The only comments a first timer said to me during the show were: Let's go down to dance and that he wasn't singing that much.

We orgers are very well (maybe too well) informed in advance about Prince and his shows. I knew that there was a 4 am curfew. So whatever the audience had done to get the band back on stage it would have never happened. So the ending of the concert wasn't a bang or a full band concoction but the trademark riff of Kiss a the sole light cone focused on Prince being switched off to leave his silhouette in the dark. That in itself was a very arty scene. And an unusual ending. But I am getting ahead of my myself, as I would like to give my review a little later.

The sound on the second tier was awful. The highs were too high and it was very difficult to understand whatever P was saying.

The Ahoy looks much better than before its overhaul. Nbut what I did not understand is the lack of security regualtions in place. You couldn't have the standing without crashbarriers in Germany . And you wouln't be allowed to dance at the end of the stairs which should be free from people for se3curity reasons.

The organisation was very good. I took me less than 5 minutes to leave the car park.

most of what all was said is true about the sound and dark lights but there was one light that blinded me..i was near the stage and the 20 strobe lights were going almost through every song ..it would been ok but they were not so strong ti would have understood if they were used at the climax of the songs .. it can only get better.

roos said:

i would not call it a disgrace, and think the use of that word is a bit strong, and questionable.

i remember Grateful Dead fans back in the day...used to all speak about very special and mediocre shows. so it is w/ Prince. he plays a lot, that is what he does. some days there is a connection, some days there is not.

remember, many of y'all couldn't play a single chord on a guitar or keyboard; don't be quick to crit. part of the Prince experience is accepting him at all levels, as a human being he cannot be expected to consistently perform at peak level. how many of y'all members of the impotent can?

with that being said, i think it is a disgrace that some people look for every opportunity to drop negative drivel. it's as if we are to believe that not 1 person at the concert had a great time the immaturity truly gets me.

& as those who appreciate and know Prince can expect, Prince will return with something amazing...a stunning ax solo, a unique set (as he did w/ this 1), or a moving emotional thang w/ vocs; the sceptics will have to retreat to their corners and wait 4 the next opportunity to throw stones.

pax.

[Edited 7/9/11 18:36pm]

I'll give it another chance tonight

[Edited 7/10/11 0:13am]

roos said:

Or are we just having an overdose of P shows and getting to critical?

I think when u follow prince a long time, you always expect something great. That time is over. No Lovesexy of Sign of the Times concerts anymore. People who follow him less than a die-hard fan always find the concerts great. Our expectations are sometimes to high. I'm not waiting to hear hits every time but the mass loves it.