i used to be a prince.org and ppml "regular" (hi Ben! hi Val!) but when he started with the Jehovah's witness crap i lost some interest. then i moved across country and had other stuff going on and just didn't have/find the time for prince.org. but i've still followed his releases and i still have a few buds who keep me up to date on the gigs and press. anyway, i haven't been to see him in concert since i think 1997 when i saw him twice, my first show at the Roxy in Boston (which was incredible!) and the second time not too much later at the Fleet Center in Boston (i was so far he was a teeny ant).

anyway, Mike surprised me with tickets to the Staples Center concert in LA tonight, and i wanted to share what i remember

Morris Day and the Time opened the show. the guy who rode us up in the elevator told us "do you know who's opening?" to which i replied "no, who?" and he said "Morris Day!"... (pause)... "and the Time of course". me: yea!

yes i said elevator. and yes we had to take an elevator to get to our seats. they were way the hell up there! i still can't believe how high. the place is HUGE. we were like 4th row from the bottom of the highest section. there were only 8 or so rows behind us. we were so high that i was almost queasy when we first got up there! lol yep the heights thing LOL

and they didn't turn on the big screen until Prince came on so i could not see Morris very well. last time i saw Morris (the only time) was in NYC at a small club and i was so close i could count Morris' freckles! honestly i could have reached out just a bit and touched the guys feet!

Prince came on around 9:15 and played 'til i think almost 11:30? he started with Musicology and Let's Go Crazy and the rest i don't recall the order but i'll not some songs i remember... i know i'm missing alot (and the order is random).
Controversy
Housequake
DMSR
Nothing Compares To You
You Got The Look
Baby I'm a Star
Let's Work
7
Kiss
Alphabet Street
I Feel For You
Life 'O the Party
Call My Name
Adore
Sign Of The Times
he ended with Purple Rain.

he sang a bit of Outkast "The Way You Move".
he played a super long version of Led Zep's "Whole Lotta Love" -
and he absolutely KILLED the guitar!

and some where in the middle he did an acoustic set that included Little Red Corvette, Raspberry Beret, Sweet Thing, Cream, and a bunch of others i can't even remember. it was great.

Prince played a few different guitars (blue strat, purple symbol, and a bass). he had a blast with the crowd and really seemed to be enjoying himself.

the drummer was amazing.
Candy was awesome on sax.
Maceo and the other horns were great too.
the new(?) white boy was tearing up the keys.

WOW!!! what a great show, even from the next zip code!!!
Jan

I think the old boy has a special place in his heart for L.A.
(Sheila E. and The Time as opening acts. The aftershows)

Of the 3 Staples shows i've seen in the last 2 weeks, this one was the best.
Although the 5/26 show remains special because it was all Prince all night.
To keep this upbeat, i'll leave out the part about how Staples tried to screw me out of my floor seats for another day.

The Time were all the way live. Morris, Jerome and the mirror had the act working:
Wild and Loose
777-9311
Gigolos Get Lonely Too
Cool
Oak Tree
Fish Net
The Bird
Jungle Love
(not necessarily in that order and to the best of my memory)
Outside of Jerome's wireless mic cutting in and out, the set was flawless.

L.A.? - Yes!
Is anybody hot? - No!
You know why? - Why?
Cuz we're cool. - Cool!

Since The Time already had the place rockin', Prince upped the ante and came out on fire.
I'm just gonna touch on what were the boiling points for me or at least what my memory will allow at this hour.
The guy was extremely animated and playful with the audience but he was on a serious throw-down mission.

At his age, his falsetto voice is unbelievable. He hit some stratospheric notes tonight.

In his bass duet with Rhonda during Let's Work, he let on that he does listen to other great musicians by breaking into the main theme of bass virtuoso Stanley Clarke's Lopsy Lu.

I can't say enough about John Blackwell's drumming. His perfect combination of finess, power and showmanship is simply deadly. I dare anyone to play the 777-9311 drum groove better (sorry Jellybean).

The infusion of elements of James Brown's Hot Pants into Life of the Party takes that tune out of the recorded version's doldrums.

He played a WHOLE LOTTA of guitar. Especially on Whole Lotta Love where the "this guitar is dead" schtick was totally apropos after his extended solos.

Many have said that the horns are getting too much play. I totally disagree. IMO, their parts add so much to the stage arrangements. That's one of the things i've always appreciated about Prince. He understands that there is a difference in arranging a song for a recording and an arrangement for live performance. It makes it feel like you getting new material rather than a song you've already heard a million times. I personally feel cheated when I see a live performer play a note for note rendition of their recordings.

SOTT...

This evening's encore had The Beautiful Ones back in it's normal position (instead of the tentatively performed Call My Name of 6/3) followed by Nothing Compares to U and Purple Rain. The Beautiful Ones was a performance to behold. Sung exquisitely. This tune got the full show treatment complete with all the screaming and writhing on the fog covered stage floor. Too much.

Let's put it this way...I got my money's worth.

I'd really like to thank the Staples attendant who hipped me to the fact that The Time were opening when I arrived. Don't know if this is true but one of them said Prince would be back at Staples in September.

If he's bringing as much fire to the aftershow has he brought to Staples tonight, HOB mangement had better call a contractor immediately because in a few hours, that place will be burned to the ground.


tA

Tribal Disorder

http://www.soundclick.com...rmusic.htm

DAMN, I'm so jealous!!! Thanks for reporting y'all!

theAudience said:

I agree - don't know why people keep complaining about the horns. I haven't heard a bad arrangement yet!

June 20th seems like a million days away..pun intended....
I can't wait..

Yeah, I was at the Staples show last night (June 5th), and I didn't think it would turn out so, but it surpassed the incredible (official) tour opener (March 29th) BY FAR!!!!

First off, The Time killed in their opening set. They went on at two minutes before showtime and played for 50 or 60 minutes. The only problems were Jerome's mike going in and out a few times, and the sound mix on Morris' vocals taking a few seconds to kick in a few times after an extended intrumental solo. But their tight performance made those glitches an afterthought.

Then it was Prince's turn. I went to the March 29th show, and was so blown away by seeing the Master at the top of his game that I got tickets for last night's show. (Funny -- for the 3/29 show I actually got in line at a Tower Records/Ticketmaster, and I got great seats on the lower-level side: Section 112, Row 4. For last night's show I went through the fan club pre-sale, and I again got great seats on the lower-level side: Section 118, Row 4 -- almost directly opposite from where I sat before.)

If Prince last night had only given 75% of what he gave on 3/29, I'd have been happy. After all, that was the official tour opener, it was being simulcast to theaters around the country, all the VIPs were out, and I figured Prince would want to make a statement with a hot show. So I really didn't expect last night's show to approach the opener. But folks, last night the man gave 125% of what he did on 3/29. The voice was batting 1.000, the moves were perfect, the scream was out of the 80's (Damn, Prince, ever hear of aging?!!), the guitar was fierce... And he played the songs like he hasn't been doing them night after night for the last nine weeks. He also changed the set list some, and even played some of the same songs differently.

Best of all, he had a lot of fun with the audience. Those bits during the acoustic set when he would play the first few notes of an old-school classic, then stop, toss the guitar aside, get off the chair, and say the audience wasn't ready/worthy to/of hear(ing) the jam -- HILARIOUS!! He had the audience eating out of his hand, begging him for the music! He also had a lot of L.A.-only and last-night-in-L.A. banter with the crowd. A lot of acts talk to their audiences like they're reading from scripts. But Prince was totally loose and having fun. And the crowd felt that and ate it up.

I was exhausted after the show. I'm exhausted now. Prince. The Time. Totally got my money's worth.

It was a GREAT SHOW!!!! His purple coat was breath taking. A whole lotta love (slammin, he killed the guitar), shh, adore, and sweet thing (acoustic) was worth the ticket price alone. He was playful and energetic. Congrats to the lucky person who caught the "purple blanket".
The kid was in rare form last night!!!!!

CalhounSq said:

co-sign

nesseone said:

I forgot to come over and say hello. Next time.
My son and I were in Sec 4 right by the tunnel the artists came out of to go on stage.

tA

Tribal Disorder

http://www.soundclick.com...rmusic.htm

I'm a musician and from a musician's standpoint, Prince taught us all a thing or two about a thing or two He rocked the house. Prince said that he was gonna take the house down with him and he did just that. Did you all see the little kid in the suit dancing on stage? That lucky kid rocked. Morris Day and Jerome were in great form too. This was my 3rd time seeing Hispurplebadness in concert and he never dissapoints. Later.
Peace
Jimi

The little boy in the suit killed me! LOVED him!

I am still in my purple afterglow. After all of the negative things I've read about the NPG Music Club ticket deal, I set myself up not to expect too much. Just to be prepaired for anything. (previous shows, tickets purchased at TM) I was in the first row!!! Right at the band entrance to the stage! I just can't tell you how incredable that was. It was everything and more that jimijam and theyounglion said it was. But what made my whole night was during 'A Whole Lotta Love' there was a drum solo - John was killin' 'em - and l looked to my left and who is standing there in his red poka dots??? !! He standing there saying how funky John is. I think I broke my husband's arm at that moment. All I can say is at 46 (tomorrow) that man kicked much ass!

And what a treat it was to walk outside and see all of Staples Center purple with on the wall in white. I wish all of you who have yet to see him the experience I had last night.

I saw him March29th also, but last night was special.

theAudience said:

.....Note to self, must look into that.

CalhounSq said:

CS,

Thanks for co-signing the horn thing. They added a lot to the show.

A couple of points I forgot in my original post-show message.

Each of the "dancing girls" actually knew the lyrics (2 of them even sang in tune ) when it was their turn to sing. This wasn't the case on 5/26 and 6/3. He also finally allowed a MALE dancer onstage (a cute suit-wearin' 7-10 year old kid).

My son and I were sitting right by the tunnel the artists initially used to get on stage.
During The Time's set, Prince and Manuella were standing approx. 10 yards away (near the FOH mixing console) checking out the music. He must have felt the crowd's eyes burning through him because he eventually moved his observation point to the tunnel entrance. After seeing him that close, at ground level, he truly is a "diminutive one".

To those about to rock in the Lone Star state...all I can say is order your neck, back and hip braces now because even if you're ...willing 2 do The Work, you will pay the following day.

tA

Tribal Disorder

http://www.soundclick.com...rmusic.htm
[This message was edited Sun Jun 6 12:47:11 2004 by theAudience]

theAudience said:

I think you and I must've been in the same area. How old is your son and did he enjoy it?

Kissmequick said:

We were in Sec 4 Row 18. (last row of that section, right by the tunnel) I was wearing a red print shirt and he was wearing a blue one. He's 15 (6'3" and size 15 shoes!) and one of those "computer musicians".

I wanted him to see some "real music by real musicians". He really enjoyed the show and had a great time.

Where were you?

tA

Tribal Disorder

http://www.soundclick.com...rmusic.htm

theAudience said:

We were section 2 row 1 to the right of the tunnel entrance. I'm glad that your son had the experience. 6'3" at 15 you should have left him at the Laker office! Can he hoop?

Kissmequick said:

He can, but we're trying to get him into the mindset that it's better to OWN the team than be OWNED by the team.

He is a big Laker fan. I'm not, having been born and raised in NYC.
I made him watch an HBO special on Celtic great Bill Russell. Now THAT was a team that knew how to ball.
( somehow I got way off topic here)

Let's keep each other informed on the possibility of another show in Sept.
Deal?

tA

Tribal Disorder

http://www.soundclick.com...rmusic.htm

theAudience said:

Good mindset indeed!

Deal on September!

Kissmequick said:

I just looked at the seating chart.
You were right by the stage!
We were 2 sections to your left (your left when facing the stage) at the rear of the floor section.

My wife and I had similar seats to yours, but the opposite side of the stage, on the 5/26 (Sec 8 Row 4).
Another great show.

tA

Tribal Disorder

http://www.soundclick.com...rmusic.htm

CalhounSq said:

i guess people who don't know enough about playing music can't fully appreciate the skill his horn players have. i for one have been blown away by their talent, as well as that of the other band members.

the horns on Saturday night were absolutely AMAZING!

theyounglion said:

MAN I SOOO AGREE WITH YOU! You said exactly what was on my mind. I was at 3/29/04 also and I THOUGHT it was awesome until June 5. He blew me away.

Then I went to the HOB aftershow. He gave a huge amount of energy there. He sang but it was more instrumental and dancing. He danced his ass off. Can you believe it? How does he do it? Like you I was exhasted. My ears are still ringing this Monday Morning. I was kind of disappointed at the aftershow, NOT Prince, but it took us an hour to get to HOB from Staples because of the traffice on Sunset so we were at the back of the house (still a pretty decent view) but I was closer at Staples (on March 29, Row 9 and June 5, Row 11).

Well, I was hoping to hear someone who had the same experience as me (the 3/29 show and 6/05 show at Staples).

My highlight was Led Zepplin, Whole Lotta Love. Prince rocked with the high falsetto and excellent guitar.

I agree, he really appreciated L.A. and gave all he had.

Thanks Prince!!!

Antoinette said:

Wow, Antoinette, you did the total Prince experience Saturday night! As I was walking out of Staples Center I was wishing that I had gotten tickets to the aftershow. It would've been great to see him jam with the band and guests. Maybe if the rumours of him coming back in September are true, I'll get the chance to do the whole package.

Yeah, Prince doing Led Zeppelin. Awesome! It just reminded me of what a performer who's roots are in MUSICIANSHIP can offer. Prince is the ultimate showman. He can dance and give us spectacle as good as anyone. But the fact that his music and shows lay on a foundation of PURE MUSICIANSHIP -- that is why his concerts are more electrifying than anyone elses.

Ooh, I wish this had come up before the concert: NEVER drive on Sunset on Friday or Saturday night. Sometimes it takes an hour just to go two or three blocks, what with the cruisers and all. It's better to make your way up to House of Blues by sneaking up on Sunset. Hit Fountain, take that to La Cienega, go up a block to Sunset -- and you're right there at HOB.

theyounglion said:

You know actually it did come up in a thread. Someone asked if there was an alternate route but there were no responses.

Yeah, I was bummed I couldn't be closer to him at HOB than at Staples but he was still amazing.

You know that is exactly why I got the tix for the aftershow. It's never enough. Prince can give all he gave at Staples and still leave you wanting more. I knew I would want more (I always do after seeing him.)

The person I went with to the Staples concert with wasn't an NPGMC member and she didn't want to go to the aftershow so she didn't get a ticket and she was regretting that decision at midnight on Saturday!

I'm right here in Cali and the only show I'll have seen this year was in Columbus, Ohio. Go figure


Thanks to these reports, though, it kinda feels like I've been there.
[This message was edited Tue Jun 8 23:03:04 2004 by whodknee]