IF that is true then it is pretty damn sad and would hope that John wouldn't have put up with that.

IMO John was a damn good drummer.

thebanishedone said:

Of course its true man.im working on funk music festival.sheila e is here,Sos Band,Teddy Rilley,Mike Philips Greg Boyer Liv Warfield Npg Horns and many others

Deleted - off topic - l'ange beu, moderator

PennyPurple said:

thebanishedone said:

Of course its true man.im working on funk music festival.sheila e is here,Sos Band,Teddy Rilley,Mike Philips Greg Boyer Liv Warfield Npg Horns and many others

Deleted - off topic - l'ange beu, moderator

Didn't Prince also cancel shows when John's daughter died? I sure find it hard to believe that Prince would excessively fine JB.

John Blackwell played on and off with Prince for 12 years



https://en.wikipedia.org/...(musician)

When I saw the Musicology Tour in Seattle (2004), Prince yelled in the Mic @ the SOLD OUT Key Arena "Come on, John! Stay on the Groove!!" Miss BOTH of Them!!

I was at both shows in Seattle. I loved it all! I don't remember Prince yelling this but I do remember one of the horn players starting to play too soon while Prince was singing and the sax player motioned to him to knock it off. Went the first night with my best friend. We had 8th row seats because I was a member of the music club. When we were leaving I bought tix for the next night and took my sister. She still thanks me to this day for taking her and giving her the gift of seeing Prince live. "Real music by real musicians!"

woogiebear said:

When I saw the Musicology Tour in Seattle (2004), Prince yelled in the Mic @ the SOLD OUT Key Arena "Come on, John! Stay on the Groove!!" Miss BOTH of Them!!

John was one of my favorite drummers and I really enjoyed his playing at the show that I attended. He was quite showy and was a lot of fun to watch. I recall John saying in his interview with, I believe Modern Drummer that Prince would sit down at the drumkit and instruct him on how he wanted him to play.

iZsaZsa said:

I forgot where, Prince said John played like an octopus on crack. I thought that was meant as a compliment. Damn.

What? I hadn't heard that one. Prince did always say that he didn't like showy drummers and preferred one that stayed in the pocket. I remember him saying about Bobby that he wasn't the greatest drummer technically but he watched him and listened and played in the pocket so that was what he considered most important I guess.

pinkcashmere23 said:

I didn't know about John Blackwell's pocket-timing deficiencies. Regarding the bass, though, I've always enjoyed Rhonda's playing, but I think I remember reading from somewhere that Prince once made an inference that Rhonda couldn't always remember Prince's songs. I couldn't feel too bad about her if that was true. He's got so many songs to have to remember.

rogifan said:

I remember reading an interview with John where he said there were times he’d need a break but then after being home for a while would get bored and want to go back. In another interview he was asked about pay and indicated that he was paid well. Was it Morris Hayes or someone else who said Prince was hardest on his drummers and bass players? I’ve never really heard stories about Rhonda or Ida but then he was probably tougher on male band members.

thebanishedone said:

Prince sought out John Blackwell. Period. Full stop. In fact, he lured him away from Patti LaBelle after (drummer) Morris Day spotted him and told P about the dynamic talent. I enjoyed Blackwell's telling of the story in an interview. That's not to say that he wasn't hard on the drummer, but, if true, I would bet it was because he was genuinely fond of him. Big John even said that he considered him a father figure. Sometimes, we are hardest on the ones we love or in whom we see the greatest potential.

John Blackwell is the one musician that I can definitively say always made Prince's music better. You can always tell the difference when Blackwell is on a track. Prince has a tight pocket and was elegant when he played the drums. Michael B has a distinctive and powerful sound, but is probably more "in the pocket" than Blackwell. Blackwell had a way to make those drums distinctive to the point where it almost overshadowed Prince's music. We were all luckty to see Prince and Blackwell together

[Edited 1/22/19 13:16pm]

donnyenglish said:

John Blackwell is the one musician that I can definitively say always made Prince's music better. You can always tell the difference when Blackwell is on a track. Prince has a tight pocket and was elegant when he played the drums. Michael B has a distinctive and powerful sound, but is probably more "in the pocket" than Blackwell. Blackwell had a way to make those drums distinctive to the point where it almost overshadowed Prince's music. We were all luckty to see Prince and Blackwell together

[Edited 1/22/19 13:16pm]

rogifan said:

Here’s an interview with Elisa where she talks about a gig they did in Abu Dhabi right after John found out his father passed away. She gets emotional talking about how they all stayed up till dawn with a John praying. She said they were a family. https://www.msnbc.com/wee...2401475987

Very moving to picture that. Thank you for sharing.

pinkcashmere23 said:

rogifan said:

pinkcashmere23 said:

Very moving to picture that. Thank you for sharing.

Reminded me of a Facebook post from Shelby talking about when she found out her father was on his last days. I think it was late 2010 and NPG was doing shows at MSG. When she found out about her father she was so upset she got on a plane to North Carolina without even telling Prince. Shortly after she got home she got in touch with Prince. He told her not to worry, that she should be with her family and if she needed anything just call him. You hear all these stories about how Prince was tough to work for and a hard band leader. But then you hear stories like this which warm your heart.

Very true. I remember Prince mentioning during his interview with DJ Egypt that Shelby had lost her father while they were in New York and he said that it was a gain for the Resurrection. He sounded very sweet

This is all partly what I said that got snipped.

Are these people all together and talking stuff on Prince? We all know the stories of how he was hard to work with, but he honestly helped out his band mates no matter if it was years since he seen them. He paid for funerals, medical bills, etc. I don't like the narrative here of how P didn't think that John Blackwell was a good drummer, and fined him all the time and paid him less.

PennyPurple said:

This is all partly what I said that got snipped.

Are these people all together and talking stuff on Prince? We all know the stories of how he was hard to work with, but he honestly helped out his band mates no matter if it was years since he seen them. He paid for funerals, medical bills, etc. I don't like the narrative here of how P didn't think that John Blackwell was a good drummer, and fined him all the time and paid him less.

thats the stuff people overlook elisa said she was basically broke when prince called her to work with her and paid her like 6 grand up front for one gig. i think prince was hard on them sucially because that was his right his name people came 2 see prince and he was known for perfection . when it came 2 helping he was always willing and did help

Best pocket drummer (well, best drummer per se) Prince ever had was Michael Bland.

PennyPurple said:

rogifan said:

PennyPurple said:

This is all partly what I said that got snipped.

Are these people all together and talking stuff on Prince? We all know the stories of how he was hard to work with, but he honestly helped out his band mates no matter if it was years since he seen them. He paid for funerals, medical bills, etc. I don't like the narrative here of how P didn't think that John Blackwell was a good drummer, and fined him all the time and paid him less.

Without being there and hearing the conversation who knows exactly what was said and how it was said. But when you hear from associates directly it’s a different story. Like this interview with Elisa. https://www.reviewjournal...or-prince/ Or this one with Tamar where she breaks down in tears. https://people.com/celebr...-memories/ No doubt Prince wasn’t the easiest person to work for but in the nearly 3 years since he passed its almost impossible to find interviews/stories from associates that are negative on their time with him. The picture that most of them paint is of someone who deep down had a big heart and was full of love. 💜

i didnt ever say John is not a good drummer.like other people hear i was surprised that John was fined many times.i love Johns playing.he is my second best favorite P drummer .