micv said:

I went to the concert and the afterjam. This was my 11th concert on the Welcome 2... tours so there weren't many surprises. Highlight for me were hearing 'Gold', a wee snippet of Shockadelica and him doing Alphabet Street on guitar instead of during the sample set. Left the arena around 11:10 and walked to Bar None, arriving at 11:30. Everyone outside was trying to figure out how they could get in and I seemed to be the only one with a ticket so they let me right in. I planted myself in front of the stage next to the reserved section. The wait was long but they did have to transport the bands instruments and set them all up. Then some dude in a bowtie who has no future in music came up and sang 3 songs. I think he knew the bar owners cuz he was seated in the reserved section. There was a vip section off to the side for the NPG. Prince and andy didn't show up until later and they followed the band up on stage. In a bit of good fortune, princes bodyguard guided him up to the stage right next to me so I got to stand next to him when he entered and exited the stage. The stage was about a foot high so we got good eye contact with all the band. Prince alternated bass and guitar all night. Here's the setlist as I remember it--pretty sure I'm forgetting some songs and these are probably not in right order: - 777.9311 ... PRINCE ON BASS - PASS THE PEAS ... PRINCE ON BASS - which way is up liv sang a song I recognized but don't know the name of... - We want the funk -Thank you falettinme b mice elf - Let's get it on... andy on vox - People get ready... shelby on vox - Get wild extended jam - made up song about vancouver... all ladies on vox - It ain't ova till its ova jam/chant I'm sure that's not everything. Basically prince started on bass, moved to guitar and then went back to bass. He alternated playing facing john blackwell and being right up at the front of the stage and facing the audience. Those were my favorite times cuz he was 6 inches from me and its amazing to watch him play so up close. His bodyguard stood on stage and deleted any photos off proples phones who tried to take photos so don't expect to see any pictures posted. Prince was wearing that same suit and top hat that he wore at one of the europe shows... I can't remember which. His hair was tied up in a long black scarf with the velvet top hat cocked to the side on his head. He looked gorgeous if I may voice my humble opinion! The show did end at 4.40 am as another poster stated. Prince threw down idas bass towards the end but then picked it up again and played a few more minutes. When he threw his pick down it was done. The band was escorted off stage and prince curteously let all the girls go ahead of him. He and maceo were last to leave and they disappeared into the morning A great experience that I will treasure! I wish I was going to victoria but I'm flying back to california. I hope there is another afterjam in my future... and that andy allo isn't involved lol. Ps: Ladies DO NOT wear heels to the afterjam. I wore flats and my feet were killing me after standing for over 7 hours. The women around me in heels were dropping like flies and left early. Not worth it to look sexy if you miss a moment of prince! [Edited 12/17/11 15:31pm] [Edited 12/17/11 15:50pm]

Wow!

I know exactly what you mean and felt after that night.

And thank you so much for sharing it with us. You really got a treasure!

Dreamer20ten said:

Praxis said:

thank you for sharing this...it is much appreciated. let's hope that Prince is blessed with the energy he has for a long time 2 come. i have not seen him live in years & know that whenever i do, whether in the near or far future, he will still blow mind.

as 4 the Gold > Purple Rain sequence...it makes total sense to me why and how he could do that. they're both anthem type tunes & after them, he can let lose.

4 now...I am happy w/ the jamming vibe. that is what it is about, having fun on stage so that others feel the vibe and enjoy it as well.

perhaps as fans, we should accept that this is where Prince is now, and it is working for him. most importantly, he is happy, he is successful, he has overcome recording co's and media outlets who would rather not promote him, because it would mean that all independent artists can also prosper and follow his lead.

the thousands who see him are not as critical as long-time fans are, and really, it's about him funkin' it out with them, the masses...the new breed

keep enjoying yourself Prince and the NPG...y'all are true stars

Very well said, I completely agree with you! Whether some of us like what Prince is doing or not, it does work ... the success of his concerts wherever he has been playing since summer 2010 is proof enough! He continues to draw big crowds, they are enthusiastic at the concerts, and he is having a great time as well. Nothing wrong with that at all.

Hey buddy,

My wife and I were at both Toronto shows, both afterparties/shows and also the London show. While we were in the club during the first night Toronto, Prince and Andy walked right by us. Ofcourse I said something to Prince and he looked right back and said what's up. It was obvious that Prince and Andy had something going on. They are certainly a couple.

However, my wife and I couldn't help but see just how awkward Prince looked on several occasions. Essentially we saw an old man hanging out with a young girl. It was absolutely odd to see.

jayARDAHB said:

Hey buddy,

My wife and I were at both Toronto shows, both afterparties/shows and also the London show. While we were in the club during the first night Toronto, Prince and Andy walked right by us. Ofcourse I said something to Prince and he looked right back and said what's up. It was obvious that Prince and Andy had something going on. They are certainly a couple.

However, my wife and I couldn't help but see just how awkward Prince looked on several occasions. Essentially we saw an old man hanging out with a young girl. It was absolutely odd to see.

were they holding hands?

Oh and "emathipation"? man, i love you

In answer to the questions people asked me

- standing next to Prince he did not seem small to me. We are the same height... I'm about an inch taller so he seemed just right he did have a top hat on so that might have made a slight difference.

- yes andy is quite thin. She was wearing an oversized trenchcoat though so she looked like she was swimming in her clothes. I didn't really think she looked underweight though

- I guess I already assumed prince and andy were a couple so I wasn't surprised when they arrived together. They weren't holding hands or anything though as it was quite packed. He was following behind her to be last on and off stage. Actually they seemed more playful at the arena show. He didn't really pay much attention to her at the afterjam.

- to the woman who gave shelby her necklace, I know exactly who you are! I was on the other side of the stage. Shelby looked very touched by your gift!

- oh and I forgot to add to my setlist that they performed rihannas 'rude boy'
[Edited 12/18/11 15:38pm]

babyjubilation said:

jayARDAHB said:

Hey buddy,

My wife and I were at both Toronto shows, both afterparties/shows and also the London show. While we were in the club during the first night Toronto, Prince and Andy walked right by us. Ofcourse I said something to Prince and he looked right back and said what's up. It was obvious that Prince and Andy had something going on. They are certainly a couple.

However, my wife and I couldn't help but see just how awkward Prince looked on several occasions. Essentially we saw an old man hanging out with a young girl. It was absolutely odd to see.

were they holding hands?

Oh and "emathipation"? man, i love you

Not holding hands but he certainly treated her like they were together... as they left the first night, we saw Prince behaving like a gentleman when he helped her put her jacket on to leave.

Regardless, the fact that she's a horrible guitar player playing in a Prince band beside professional musicians like Ida, Cassie, Morris Hayes, John Blackwell and a man who has been part of music history for over 50 years now - Maceo Parker, tells me that he's dating her.

I'm sorry but Andy Allo is just another female in a long line of females who really doesn't have any more artistic credibility than a once in a lifetime talent like say, ummm, Britney Spears. For a guy who proudly pounds his chest about real music by real musicians, what's his response to us itching our heads when we hear Andy Allo play guitar? If you haven't noticed yet, Prince has her playing through a wah wah pedal very frequently to mask the fact that she blows. Wendy plays Purple Rain - Andy bar chords everything.

Real Music by Real Musicians and a cute twenty something year old.

jayARDAHB said:

I'm sorry but Andy Allo is just another female in a long line of females who really doesn't have any more artistic credibility than a once in a lifetime talent like say, ummm, Britney Spears. For a guy who proudly pounds his chest about real music by real musicians, what's his response to us itching our heads when we hear Andy Allo play guitar? If you haven't noticed yet, Prince has her playing through a wah wah pedal very frequently to mask the fact that she blows. Wendy plays Purple Rain - Andy bar chords everything.

Real Music by Real Musicians and a cute twenty something year old.

I hate to agree with you, but I agree with you. This weekend was my first time seeing Andy perform live and I've wanted to withhold judgment until then. Other than her gorgeous face, I see nothing special about this woman. The way she distracts Prince during the arena shows with her giggling and running about really irritates me.

At the afterjam, it was particularly evident how lackluster her skills are. Obviously it's been discussed ad nauseum how she can't play guitar so I won't add more to the discussion. But at Bar None she sang "Let's Get It On" and it sounded like a lullabye or something. Her voice is sweet and soft and she can't really hold a note for very long so it amounted to the most passionless and quiet rendition of the song I've ever heard. She's so out of place among the other backup singers, to say nothing of the musicians in the band.

And when it comes to learning how to move on stage, it seems like she's looking to Shelby, Elisa and Liv to lead her. It's just infuriating to see Prince and the NPG spend their time and energy on stage coaching her. She takes away from the performance instead of bringing anything to it.

[Edited 12/18/11 18:17pm]

[Edited 12/18/11 18:19pm]

jayARDAHB said:

babyjubilation said:

were they holding hands?

Oh and "emathipation"? man, i love you

Not holding hands but he certainly treated her like they were together... as they left the first night, we saw Prince behaving like a gentleman when he helped her put her jacket on to leave.

Regardless, the fact that she's a horrible guitar player playing in a Prince band beside professional musicians like Ida, Cassie, Morris Hayes, John Blackwell and a man who has been part of music history for over 50 years now - Maceo Parker, tells me that he's dating her.

I'm sorry but Andy Allo is just another female in a long line of females who really doesn't have any more artistic credibility than a once in a lifetime talent like say, ummm, Britney Spears. For a guy who proudly pounds his chest about real music by real musicians, what's his response to us itching our heads when we hear Andy Allo play guitar? If you haven't noticed yet, Prince has her playing through a wah wah pedal very frequently to mask the fact that she blows. Wendy plays Purple Rain - Andy bar chords everything.

Real Music by Real Musicians and a cute twenty something year old.

Her first album barely sold 1,000 so he's trying to help and make her the next big thing. I think that's all that's going on. He likes to 'save' artists and make them into superstars. We'll see how it goes. I need serious proof before I believe Prince is "with" Andy. Helping her put on a jacket is just what you said "behaving like a gentleman". Prince is a nice man.

This is a two-for.

@micv - Thanks for answering my question about Prince and Andy. Interesting that he's not so tiny that that is all you think about when you see him. I was kind of hoping you would say, 'a complete dwarf' so I'd have an excuse to not be so enthralled ('well, if he's THAT small')...ha ha. But no, he's still cool.

@ babyjubi - I am with you; I think he's mentoring Andy. I didn't believe the Bria rumours and I haven't seen or heard anything that would convince me this is a real relationship either. We shall see.

babyjubilation said:

jayARDAHB said:

Not holding hands but he certainly treated her like they were together... as they left the first night, we saw Prince behaving like a gentleman when he helped her put her jacket on to leave.

Regardless, the fact that she's a horrible guitar player playing in a Prince band beside professional musicians like Ida, Cassie, Morris Hayes, John Blackwell and a man who has been part of music history for over 50 years now - Maceo Parker, tells me that he's dating her.

I'm sorry but Andy Allo is just another female in a long line of females who really doesn't have any more artistic credibility than a once in a lifetime talent like say, ummm, Britney Spears. For a guy who proudly pounds his chest about real music by real musicians, what's his response to us itching our heads when we hear Andy Allo play guitar? If you haven't noticed yet, Prince has her playing through a wah wah pedal very frequently to mask the fact that she blows. Wendy plays Purple Rain - Andy bar chords everything.

Real Music by Real Musicians and a cute twenty something year old.

Her first album barely sold 1,000 so he's trying to help and make her the next big thing. I think that's all that's going on. He likes to 'save' artists and make them into superstars. We'll see how it goes. I need serious proof before I believe Prince is "with" Andy. Helping her put on a jacket is just what you said "behaving like a gentleman". Prince is a nice man.

So...

Before I saw Prince on Friday night in Vancouver, I had read all the previous concert reviews on the Org and saw all the hate-on for Andy Allo. Before I even went to the concert, I was expecting the worst from her in what I was hoping was going to be an amazing show. When I entered the stadium and the show started, I was waiting - AND WAITING - for Andy to come front and center to wreck the vibe (based on what people have previously posted in regards to other Canadian shows) and GUESS WHAT - IT NEVER HAPPENED !!! She never took anything away from the experience at all and honestly, the only time we ever really saw anything from her was when she sang on 'Take Me With U' and when she did her painting during 'Raspberry Beret'. At our show, she seemed to be extending a lot of warmth to the stage with the other girls when she was front and center (all of like 3 times she was out) and I liked how she painted during 'Raspberry Beret'... it fit well with the lyrics.

What I'm saying is if Prince likes her, is dating her and only has her in the band because of that reason alone, so what ? He still put on an incredible 2 1/2 hour show and brought out the funk like Vancouver hasn't seen in years. I honestly couldn't hear any issues with her guitar playing and I am a musician but who knows... maybe she was down a little more in the mix. Honestly I couldn't care... I came to see Prince and his band and overall they put on one of the best shows I have seen in a long time. Maybe she is bringing so much happiness to Prince in his life, that is what is shining through him onstage every night. And personally, when people are in relationships, you SHOULD be encouraging your significant other in what they do whether they are in the same field of work or not. Prince has got an advantage as he has had enormous success and if he wants to help his girlfriend out, who cares ? If my significant other was guitarist and I could help them in any way that I could, I would too... as a boyfriend, girlfriend, husband or wife, that is what people should be doing in their relationship. He's had other girlfriends and / or wives working with him - Vanity, Apollonia, Susannah Melvoin, Carmen Electra, Mayte, etc, etc - and although some of them couldn't sing, some of their stuff was still awesome because Prince got involved and did some amazing work with them. He brought out what he deemed their best qualities and collaboratively entertained the hell out of us with songs like 'Nasty Girls', 'Happy Birthday Mr Christian, 'Go Go Dancer' and so on. Maybe we might get a gem like one of those from Andy (I excluded Sheila E from that list of ex's because although we all know that he dated her, she IS super talented vocally and as a drummer and IMHO has never put out anything that wasn't great !!!).

I say leave the brother alone and just enjoy the phenomenal show Prince - anytime that you want to come back to Vancouver and bring Andy Allo with you, we would love to see you - BOTH OF YOU !!

[Edited 12/19/11 0:09am]

I'm with you IWonderU...

She doesn't take much away from the band - she doesn't add very much either. Her being in the band is not a big deal.

However, as a fan of the music, I have to say that hearing Purple Rain with that amateur wah wah pedal to the fore makes me want to hunt out my bootlegs from 1993, 1988, 1987, 1984... it's distracting but it's his band, not mine.