Oh my God!! I just came from the concert and what an awesome show. I took my little brother(11 yrs) to the show with me and we had killer seats!! I did the VIP deal and we had front row on the left side of the symbol. We got to see Prince and the band come in to the stage and leave the stage when they were done. It was soo close, we could practically touch him at some points during the show. He started off with Let's go crazy as he came out from under the stage. That went into delirious and back to Let's go crazy. Everyone was in African themed outfits and Prince had on a black long cover over his hair the whole show.

My brother and I danced the whole time and we really enjoyed ourselves. He then went into 1999 and also played take me with u, nothing compares 2 u, and the cream/don't stop till you get enough/cool medley. He took time to name most of the band during the first part of the show. He told us about maceo, mr. hayes, shelby, and the keyboard player(can't remember her name). I noticed a lot of people talking about that on here which bothered me as well, so I am glad he gave props to at least some of the band members.

At one point during the show, there were many droplets of purple paper pieces all over the sides of the stage and there were two encores where he played purple rain then controversy mixed with i like funky music.

I have only one gripe as there were no covers and no songs sung by band members, the show was a little short at 1 hour and a half. Other than that, it was great. I have seen him 5 times now(one in 97, 2002, twice in 2004 and now 2011) and he has been fantastic every time!

Here is the set list approximatley--

Let's go crazy

Delirious

Let's go crazy

1999

Take me with u

Cream/Dont' stop till you get enough/cool

Nothing compares 2 u

Sampler set: When doves cry, forever in my life, hot thing!!!(awesome on this), kiss, and a little bit of darlin nikki

Purple rain

Controversy/I like funky music

I know there was more, I just can't recall at this moment.

I was very pleased that almost all of the songs except the sampler set were played to completion and there was great sound the whole time. I have always had good seats at all of the concerts I have been to, but I think these were the closest I have ever been to the man. I hope everyone out there gets to experience this at some point in their live because it was incredible!!

I think he would have played a longer show if it was better attended.

I was supposed to be in section 18 (I think) and right when I walked in the door, they upgraded me to section 7A. There were a lot of open seats around me and almost everyone around me had been upgraded, too.

I had a fun time at the show, but it's the first time I've seen him and left unsatisfied. After Controversy people just kept waiting for him to come back... but he didn't.

Prince did look like he had a fun time playing for us, though, and I love watching him dance and shake his booty!

jackmitz said:

Short, mellow show. Woefully unattended, but the band played well. Hot Thing was two verses plus a little jam....what a treat. Everything else was pretty standard. The LRC solo was off the chain. Off to the afterparty.

LRC solo was very cool -(I think he was trying to impress certain member of guns and roses, along with members of alice in chains, and soungarden.) The one thing that stood out was the concert was short. And after the last song 90% of the audienece waited for at least 10 mins or more for him to come out. Prince didn't. I would give Maceo a 10 on Jamming with Prince-It was great. If you like Maceo this was his night.

Hey all,

Sorry this is a double post. I posted this on the topic that announced the show back in November. It was stickied, so I thought it was the main post. I can't delete that one in favor of this one.

I thought I'd give my review of the concert. It doesn't look like anyone has yet. P was a little late. The concert was supposed to start at 8:00, but it was more like somwhere between 8:25 and 8:30. I was in Section 8, Row 10. I was just a few rows in front of Mr Hayes' booth. I copied down the setlist as I heard it. Some parts might be a bit off:

[Edited 11/15/12 18:50pm]

[Edited 11/15/12 18:51pm]

kewlschool said:

LRC solo was very cool -(I think he was trying to impress certain member of guns and roses, along with members of alice in chains, and soungarden.) The one thing that stood out was the concert was short. And after the last song 90% of the audienece waited for at least 10 mins or more for him to come out. Prince didn't. I would give Maceo a 10 on Jamming with Prince-It was great. If you like Maceo this was his night.

Who was there from GNR?

Interesting rock presence! I know Slash was at one of his gigs a few years back and the rumour was he was ready to go up on stage but Prince never called him. I wondered at the time if Prince was playing with him after Slash said he dressed like a 'fag' back in the 80s/90s!

319 said:

I think he would have played a longer show if it was better attended.

I was supposed to be in section 18 (I think) and right when I walked in the door, they upgraded me to section 7A. There were a lot of open seats around me and almost everyone around me had been upgraded, too.

I had a fun time at the show, but it's the first time I've seen him and left unsatisfied. After Controversy people just kept waiting for him to come back... but he didn't.

Prince did look like he had a fun time playing for us, though, and I love watching him dance and shake his booty!

I hope that is NOT the reason why he just ,go through the motions' or do

less at shows with lower attendance.

I know I did not attend the recent performances, but I have been

reading the same type of reviews or behavior for many years.

It's been a long time since I've heard any artist sell out at every show,

These are 'hard times' we are living in' people are in 'survivor mode'

and many would love to see him perform.

He shouldn't take it personal.

Be appreciative to those who have the funds

to attend these shows and be appreciative to those 'die hards'

who are living paycheck to paycheck that ' sacrificed their sanity to

attend his concerts. We know he has his good days and bad days.

I know he's human and go through

the same emotions and problems as the rest of us, but when you

read the same behavior over the years because it

didn't meet his expectations doesn't show humility.

If there's 50 or 15,000 in attendance it should

never determine the reason for any

artist to down grade their performances.

Sometimes the crowds energy can put a damper on many performers .

IF THE CROWD IS LIKE KIM KARDASHIAN when she was on the stage with him

then don't be surprised If Prince is ready to get the steppin'..

purplecrack said:

We thought the Tacoma Dome show was horrible! Not only did he play for only about 1 1/2 hrs, it was like they were just going through the motions. The energy was very strange and at one point we were trying to figure out if he was lip-syncing because it didn't seem like he was into it. What a waste of $400!!

I attended the Victoria BC concert which was awesome. I wanted to go to Tacoma but am getting older and my body was still hurting from Victoria as was my pocketbook. Glad I choose the right one as it sounds like Tacoma was a bummer. I do hope the Purple Yoda comes this way again.

Someone mentioned have a Prince night at a Seattle Club I would Love to hang and listen to Prince music with like minded people count me in.

jackmitz said:

Ooooookay....here's my two cents: The main show was...uninspired. Prince tried and tried to hype up the crowd, to no avail. There were two large upstairs sections curtained off, which is never a good sign. The sampler set was rad, and Prince treated us to 2 versus (plus a jam) of Hot Thing. The LRC solo was inspired, and Maceo played extremely well throughout. The aftershow was a different animal....the club was woefully oversold (I could NOT believe that they were still sellling tix at the door, as the place was packed well beyond occupancy), and it was really difficult to maneuver. We set up camp at the side of the stage, and sometime before 2am, the NPG stormed the stage. They started a jam out of 'Wanna Be Your Lover' which was the record Rashida was spinning as the NPG took the stage. That turned into a funky ass jam which included 'Imma Be' and 'It Takes Two' interpolations. Next up was the theme from 'Which Way is Up?', and halfway through Prince took the stage and delivered a searing guitar solo. A ferocious take on 'Stratus' was next, followed by a LONG Pass the Peas, which had the entire room levatating. P left the stage for a while (which prompted more than a few people to head for the exit), and Shelby led the band through an AMAZING version of Gnarls Barkley's 'Crazy'. A pair of Chaka tunes followed (You've Got the Love and Sweet Thing), which brough P back to the stage. In the middle of 'Sweet Thing', P shed his guitar and took Ida's bass. Finally, the band layed down a mighty version of 'Musicology', which included a long take on 'Mama Feelgood'. All in all, the aftershow was just over 2 hours, and a FANTASTIC experience, despite the crowd. If I had to compare, I would say the the main show in Victoria was far superior, but the Seattle aftershow was a hair better than the one on Saturday.

And by versus I meant verses.....sorry people, LONG night

purplecrack said:

I've attended over 20 Prince concerts from different eras (including 4 W2A shows), and the Tacoma Dome show was the absolute worst show I've ever witnessed. When I tell you these words, you need to understand that I'm a massive fan and have been for over 25 years- This show was so bad it was embarassing. Maceo's playing and Prince laying face down on the piano very briefly were the only 2 immensely enjoyable components of the entire evening. The majority of the concert sounded like a local church band revival of the hits- I mean a really sloppy, muddy, RUSHED performance. I'm sorry, there is no excuse for this performance- What Prince advertised this tour as, and what transpired in Tacoma last night couldn't be 2 more different birds.

I still love Prince, but I won't be so quick to throwdown 500.00-1000.00 to see 2 sorry excuses for a show. Yeah, I said it, the aftershow was awful too. And what was all that "Girls and Boys" footage being shown before the show started ? What a bag of hot air. Curiously, I did notice a newer shirt design that had the W2A logo on the sleeve and printed on it was "copyright 2011 NPG Productions". Funny thing is the shirt was a reprint of the "Take Me With U" single artwork from that other band, you know, the elephant in the room Prince tries not to talk about too much, the Revolution. Of course that was the #1 selling shirt from what my friends and I witnessed at multiple merch stands.

I sincerely hope there is a bigger reason this show was awful and not just Prince thinking it would be great to turn the setlist into a local church revival. San Jose W2A shows were on the other hand, 2 of the best shows I've ever seen him play. Maybe he's over the tour, maybe he's over Tacoma Dome not selling out. I'd love feedback and thoughts on this if you feel inclined.

If it was the Revolution with him and/or Sheila E. opening, it would have sold out. I probably already said enough to cause a few tizzy fits, but come on, can you hear me now on some of this ?

NPG = Not Properly Grounded

I wonder if we were at the same aftershow....cause the one I saw was a funktacular. Yes, the venue was lousy, and FAR TOO oversold, but the band was cookin'! Shelby's take on 'Crazy' was worth the price of admission alone. P's solos were as good as I've heard him, and he looked thrilled. I guess there's just no fooling anybody.

And how is The Revolution the 'elephant in the room'? They were a band and they broke up. It's been 25 years now....might be time to get over it.

As for the poor attendance at the dome...there was NO promotion for the show. The first time I saw mention of it was a full page ad in the Stranger this last Thursday. Not a great way to sell tickets.

jackmitz said:

jackmitz said:

I wonder if we were at the same aftershow....cause the one I saw was a funktacular. Yes, the venue was lousy, and FAR TOO oversold, but the band was cookin'! Shelby's take on 'Crazy' was worth the price of admission alone. P's solos were as good as I've heard him, and he looked thrilled. I guess there's just no fooling anybody.

And how is The Revolution the 'elephant in the room'? They were a band and they broke up. It's been 25 years now....might be time to get over it.

I went to both and have no complaints. Prince is a treasure. I am grateful that he is still here and able to perform. Some people may have an axe to grind, but every show is going to be different. The Dome may have been a bit short, but they tore the roof off! okay there's no roof but you what I mean They did tear the roof of that club though. HHe came out guitar a blazin' during "Which Way Is Up"!!!

I don't want to see Prince looking back to the future. He has only gotten better with time. The Revolution sound was very mechanical. He may revisit at some point,but I can't see him going back to that vibe for any extended time period.

319 said:

I think he would have played a longer show if it was better attended.

I was supposed to be in section 18 (I think) and right when I walked in the door, they upgraded me to section 7A. There were a lot of open seats around me and almost everyone around me had been upgraded, too.

I had a fun time at the show, but it's the first time I've seen him and left unsatisfied. After Controversy people just kept waiting for him to come back... but he didn't.

Prince did look like he had a fun time playing for us, though, and I love watching him dance and shake his booty!

Wish you were at the aftershow!

[Edited 12/20/11 12:29pm]

softandwet said:

kewlschool said:

LRC solo was very cool -(I think he was trying to impress certain member of guns and roses, along with members of alice in chains, and soungarden.) The one thing that stood out was the concert was short. And after the last song 90% of the audienece waited for at least 10 mins or more for him to come out. Prince didn't. I would give Maceo a 10 on Jamming with Prince-It was great. If you like Maceo this was his night.

Who was there from GNR?

Interesting rock presence! I know Slash was at one of his gigs a few years back and the rumour was he was ready to go up on stage but Prince never called him. I wondered at the time if Prince was playing with him after Slash said he dressed like a 'fag' back in the 80s/90s!

Duff McKagen

(duh! edit)

[Edited 12/20/11 12:53pm]

kewlschool said:

softandwet said:

Who was there from GNR?

Interesting rock presence! I know Slash was at one of his gigs a few years back and the rumour was he was ready to go up on stage but Prince never called him. I wondered at the time if Prince was playing with him after Slash said he dressed like a 'fag' back in the 80s/90s!

Izzy Stradlin (Lives in Seattle)

It was Duff McKagan, not Izzy. Duff is a Seattle resident who writes a blog for the Seattle Weekly...he also joined Guns and Roses at their show this week at Key Arena.

peri1025 said:

Was the entirr band there? I notice that Prince played guitar...does that mean andy wasnt involved? Just out of curiosity did you see anything interesting going on? jackmitz said:

I wonder if we were at the same aftershow....cause the one I saw was a funktacular. Yes, the venue was lousy, and FAR TOO oversold, but the band was cookin'! Shelby's take on 'Crazy' was worth the price of admission alone. P's solos were as good as I've heard him, and he looked thrilled. I guess there's just no fooling anybody.

And how is The Revolution the 'elephant in the room'? They were a band and they broke up. It's been 25 years now....might be time to get over it.

As for the poor attendance at the dome...there was NO promotion for the show. The first time I saw mention of it was a full page ad in the Stranger this last Thursday. Not a great way to sell tickets.

The entire band was there....Andy looked gorgeous. She kinda stayed in the background during the aftershow.

purplecrack said:

I've attended over 20 Prince concerts from different eras (including 4 W2A shows), and the Tacoma Dome show was the absolute worst show I've ever witnessed. When I tell you these words, you need to understand that I'm a massive fan and have been for over 25 years- This show was so bad it was embarassing. Maceo's playing and Prince laying face down on the piano very briefly were the only 2 immensely enjoyable components of the entire evening. The majority of the concert sounded like a local church band revival of the hits- I mean a really sloppy, muddy, RUSHED performance. I'm sorry, there is no excuse for this performance- What Prince advertised this tour as, and what transpired in Tacoma last night couldn't be 2 more different birds.

I still love Prince, but I won't be so quick to throwdown 500.00-1000.00 to see 2 sorry excuses for a show. Yeah, I said it, the aftershow was awful too. And what was all that "Girls and Boys" footage being shown before the show started ? What a bag of hot air. Curiously, I did notice a newer shirt design that had the W2A logo on the sleeve and printed on it was "copyright 2011 NPG Productions". Funny thing is the shirt was a reprint of the "Take Me With U" single artwork from that other band, you know, the elephant in the room Prince tries not to talk about too much, the Revolution. Of course that was the #1 selling shirt from what my friends and I witnessed at multiple merch stands.

I sincerely hope there is a bigger reason this show was awful and not just Prince thinking it would be great to turn the setlist into a local church revival. San Jose W2A shows were on the other hand, 2 of the best shows I've ever seen him play. Maybe he's over the tour, maybe he's over Tacoma Dome not selling out. I'd love feedback and thoughts on this if you feel inclined.

If it was the Revolution with him and/or Sheila E. opening, it would have sold out. I probably already said enough to cause a few tizzy fits, but come on, can you hear me now on some of this ?

NPG = Not Properly Grounded

This show at Tacoma has to be my least favorite Prince show I have been to-Not to say it was bad-just not great.

As for promotion-they had a few commercials on TV. Kiss FM and Jack FM giving free tickets away.

And articles in the weekender to promote the shows. I had spare tickets to the Tacoma Show that I sold. I had plenty of people who wanted to go but couldn't afford to. There are a lot of 30 year olds with kids that can't afford to go around the holidays.

jackmitz said:

kewlschool said:

Izzy Stradlin (Lives in Seattle)

It was Duff McKagan, not Izzy. Duff is a Seattle resident who writes a blog for the Seattle Weekly...he also joined Guns and Roses at their show this week at Key Arena.

Duh!? yes you are right I don't know what I'm thinking-If its any consilation I just got up and went to the org!?

[Edited 12/20/11 12:52pm]

kewlschool said:

purplecrack said:

I've attended over 20 Prince concerts from different eras (including 4 W2A shows), and the Tacoma Dome show was the absolute worst show I've ever witnessed. When I tell you these words, you need to understand that I'm a massive fan and have been for over 25 years- This show was so bad it was embarassing. Maceo's playing and Prince laying face down on the piano very briefly were the only 2 immensely enjoyable components of the entire evening. The majority of the concert sounded like a local church band revival of the hits- I mean a really sloppy, muddy, RUSHED performance. I'm sorry, there is no excuse for this performance- What Prince advertised this tour as, and what transpired in Tacoma last night couldn't be 2 more different birds.

I still love Prince, but I won't be so quick to throwdown 500.00-1000.00 to see 2 sorry excuses for a show. Yeah, I said it, the aftershow was awful too. And what was all that "Girls and Boys" footage being shown before the show started ? What a bag of hot air. Curiously, I did notice a newer shirt design that had the W2A logo on the sleeve and printed on it was "copyright 2011 NPG Productions". Funny thing is the shirt was a reprint of the "Take Me With U" single artwork from that other band, you know, the elephant in the room Prince tries not to talk about too much, the Revolution. Of course that was the #1 selling shirt from what my friends and I witnessed at multiple merch stands.

I sincerely hope there is a bigger reason this show was awful and not just Prince thinking it would be great to turn the setlist into a local church revival. San Jose W2A shows were on the other hand, 2 of the best shows I've ever seen him play. Maybe he's over the tour, maybe he's over Tacoma Dome not selling out. I'd love feedback and thoughts on this if you feel inclined.

If it was the Revolution with him and/or Sheila E. opening, it would have sold out. I probably already said enough to cause a few tizzy fits, but come on, can you hear me now on some of this ?

NPG = Not Properly Grounded

This show at Tacoma has to be my least favorite Prince show I have been to-Not to say it was bad-just not great.

As for promotion-they had a few commercials on TV. Kiss FM and Jack FM giving free tickets away.

And articles in the weekender to promote the shows. I had spare tickets to the Tacoma Show that I sold. I had plenty of people who wanted to go but couldn't afford to. There are a lot of 30 year olds with kids that can't afford to go around the holidays.

I don't disagree that the Tacoma show was *meh* Super short and low energy. But to say that the Aftershow was without merit is just absurd. It was a SICK show.

You sound like you know a few people. Is Riz still around? He was DJ'ing in Seattle in the 80s and 90s.

jackmitz said:

kewlschool said:

Izzy Stradlin (Lives in Seattle)

It was Duff McKagan, not Izzy. Duff is a Seattle resident who writes a blog for the Seattle Weekly...he also joined Guns and Roses at their show this week at Key Arena.

I guess I don't have much more to add, except that I did enjoy it, though it was too short. He looked happy from where I was sitting. I was SO bummed about the no camera policy. There were several times when he was just a few feet away, I could see his face clear as day, and I ached to take a picture! I was sitting very close to the tip of the symbol (on the right side), and he spent a lot of time right in front of me. I did manage to sneak a couple of cellphone shots, but they are all blurry, and not good at all. Oh well. I was happy to hear Forever in My Life, and the extended jam on LRC was HOT! I thought that Purple Rain was special, with the gold and purple confetti falling, and people putting up their lighters/phones. I felt like I was in the movie, for a moment there. I'm also glad that he did not end the show without playing Controversy, as it's one of my favorites. I liked his solo dance after Kiss, and his outfits were funky and flattered his toned figure. (Lots of sequins, fitted pants, sleeveless vests, billowy unbuttned shirts, and a really long scarf tied around his hair.) It was not the best Prince show I've ever been to, but I certainly wouldn't say that it was bad. It kind of felt like a TV special, if that makes sense. He played the big hits, nothing unpredicable.

The afterjam, however, was a complete 180! If only it weren't so late!!! (Yes, I am whining, haha!) We got there around midnight, and tried to find a good spot to stand. There wasn't really a good spot, except for the very front row, but we'd missed the boat on that one. I tried standing about 7 or 8 rows back from the stage, but it was super hot and pushy, and it was apparent that I wouldn't be able to see anything. After 2 hours of that, and no Prince yet, I was getting miserable. We made our way to the side, and it was a much better choice. More room, and I did manage to catch several glimpses of Prince! The stage was super low, so it was very hard to see him over the people in front of me. I did not get a full view of his outfit, but it looked like he did have a dark suit on that time, with a deep fuschia shirt underneath. He donned shades, and his hair was uncovered. I swooned a little when I realized that I was close enough to see the waves in his hair. His guitar playing was electrifying, and you could tell by his smiling face that he was in his element. He didn't sing much at first, just chiming in with "Pass the Peas!" and "Seatown, get down!" I was enchanted by Sweet Thing, and completely blown away by Musicalogy! Prince sang lead on that one, and it brought back memories of that great tour in 2004. It also helped that a lot of people had left by then, so there was room to dance. Maceo and all of the singers were fantastic. I don't recall Andy doing any solo songs, but she sang a little bit, I think. Sorry, it was very hard to see. It was worth every penny, despite the fact that I felt like collapsing afterward. How does Prince have so much energy in the middle of the night? He must be nocturnal.

I can't really say whether or not the main show was worth $200 per ticket, because I enjoyed the overall experience. I was with someone I adored, and finally got to show him why I love Prince so much. I just wanted more bang for my buck. However, I think it was the afterjam that truly saved the evening! Had it not been for that, I'm pretty sure I would have gone home disappointed.

[Edited 12/20/11 14:08pm]

jackmitz said:

Short, mellow show. Woefully unattended, but the band played well. Hot Thing was two verses plus a little jam....what a treat. Everything else was pretty standard. The LRC solo was off the chain. Off to the afterparty.

I told you a month ago that the show wouldn't sell out, and that Springsteen half-filled the joint, in comparison to that was it more or less? I tried to get last minute tickets but I couldn't get my money together, even though they were dirt cheap. I sulked for the next few hours like a big baby, should have bought the tix earlier.

kewlschool said:

jackmitz said:

Short, mellow show. Woefully unattended, but the band played well. Hot Thing was two verses plus a little jam....what a treat. Everything else was pretty standard. The LRC solo was off the chain. Off to the afterparty.

LRC solo was very cool -(I think he was trying to impress certain member of guns and roses, along with members of alice in chains, and soungarden.) The one thing that stood out was the concert was short. And after the last song 90% of the audienece waited for at least 10 mins or more for him to come out. Prince didn't. I would give Maceo a 10 on Jamming with Prince-It was great. If you like Maceo this was his night.

guns and roses maybe but alice and soundgarden? Prince probably wouldn't give their music the time of day.