Confusion reigns over the 'Rainbow'

March 4, 2002

BY JIM DEROGATIS POP MUSIC CRITIC

Always elusive and ever mysterious, Prince was considering doing a few interviews for his current tour behind last year's ambitious album, "The Rainbow Children"--but only by e-mail, and only after journalists saw the concert, because he wanted them to fully understand "the concept."

Well, I saw the concert Saturday night at the first of two sold-out shows at the Chicago Theatre. And though I lauded the album as one of the 10 best of 2001, I not only emerged from the show still clueless about the concept, but liking the new music a lot less.

Backed by an impressive six-piece band that included James Brown and Parliament-Funkadelic veteran Maceo Parker on sax and John Blackwell on drums (another astounding player in Prince's lengthy tradition of incredible time-keepers), Prince played most of "The Rainbow Children," merging its jazz-fusion grooves with dollops of old-school funk, psychedelic rock and some B.B. King-style blues.

On disc, the album seems to be another in Prince's series of Utopian visions of a futuristic society free of racial prejudice and dedicated to spiritual transcendence through prayer and/or passionate lovemaking. But the stage show added some disturbing and arguably racist overtones to this alluring ideal.

At one point, Prince flashed a quote on three video screens that posited Abraham Lincoln as a defender of segregation. And while introducing "Family Name," a musing about African Americans being deprived of their ancestral roots, Prince singled out a white fan and gave him the new surname of "Lynch." (He did the same thing at the preceding show in Saginaw, Mich.)

Make no mistake: My problem is not with Prince voicing African-American rage. It's with him doing it in such a muddled, unclear fashion that fans of every color turned to one another several times during the show and asked, " What is he going on about?"

As for liking the album less, when taken on its own terms, "The Rainbow Children" works as a free-flowing jam that tours myriad styles of black music to stand as a trippy if confusing concept album a la the best of P-Funk. But His Purple Majesty did it a disservice in concert by splitting it up, interrupting "1+1+1 is 3" with a snippet of "Rollercoaster of Love," and following his duet with bassist Rhonda Smith on an aimless cover of Erykah Badu's "Didn't You Know" with his own classic "Take Me With U."

Such juxtapositions only reminded longtime fans how thoroughly his Highness has lost the plot. As impressive as the band's musicianship was (and Prince's guitar playing and various vocal styles never sounded better), their nebulous jamming didn't come close to matching the adrenaline rush of the best hooks from his own catalog, or the covers of heroes such as Joni Mitchell, Santana and the Stylistics.

The question remains: With so many brilliant, timeless hits to his credit, why does Prince waste time doing covers at all? Fans have grown used to this, as well as to him truncating songs such as "Raspberry Beret" and "Take Me With U" as part of unsatisfying medleys, as if he's only grudgingly trotting them out. But just because we've gotten used to this modus operandi doesn't mean we have to applaud it.

Prince offered two models for what could have been a great concert on Saturday. One would have been devoted entirely to "The Rainbow Children"--though if he took this route, it would have been nice if he really did explain his concept and engage in a dialogue with the audience instead of doing what was clearly carefully scripted shtick. (Never one to reveal anything too personal, the Artist made no mention of the fact that his mother died at age 68 only two weeks ago.)

The other model would have been the real greatest hits set that many fans have long been yearning for--one where songs were performed in their entirety and with no annoying intrusions from the likes of soft-jazzbo Najee (who ruined the first half of Prince's last show at the Riviera Theatre) or even Parker (who tended toward the jazz fusion end of his repertoire at the expense of the hard funk).

{{{After nearly three hours at the Chicago Theatre, Prince had confirmed once again that he remains a galvanizing live performer. But sadly, he had also proved that he is a frustratingly confusing and inconsistent one as well.}}}


CONCERT REVIEW
PRINCE
AT THE CHICAGO THEATRE

http://www.suntimes.com/o...nce04.html

Though I haven't seen the show, I take the risk and call this reviewer a bit dumb. To show the quote of Abraham Lincoln was meant critical.

And fans were yearning for a greatest hits show???
What the +#'**## ????

to be honest, and without wanting to sound like an ass-kisser, I don't really understand what he's rambling about.

Greatest Hits show that his fans have been yearning for?

I've had quite enough of the Hits thank you--although I do agree that to the extent he performs them, they shouldn't be truncated.

As far as the Abraham Lincoln thing, lighten up! Abe Lincoln was not against slavery, he was against a divided union. I agree that Prince needs to better explain his ideas sometimes, but as a white person, I have no problem with him pointing at me in the audience and singling me out to make a point. If it happens when he comes to DC, I won't have a problem with it. Heck, I vollunteer!

OuCh !

this is possibly the first instance i have ever heard of some1 liking prince's music less after witnessing it live.

The Authors's Title Says It All...

"PoP" Music Critic....It Figures...

By the way, what happended to the promise of "no predetermined set-lists" that NPGMC put in their press release? I have no problems with the current set-list, but I do wish he'd be more spontaneous. I'm worried this is going to turn into a "TRC" version of the JOTY / HNR tours.

I'm a 27 year old Chicagoan-P fan. I can honestly say that I hate Jim Derogotis (Critic!!). I actually confronted him at a Black Crowes concert, (another of my favs), asking him why he always gives the Crowes bad reviews. The next day he gave his first good review of them. The funny thing is.. He has a band I believe it's called Vortis. Go online and take a listen and you will see why he doesn't have the right to review P. All he likes is Punk-Angst rock like the Strokes. He is a big Stroke!!

Well I was at the concert and I was totally fulfulled,(except for the crappy seat on the aisle -- w-a-a-a-y, w-a-a-y up in the upper balcony - I guess NPG membership has it priveleges...? but that's another story). Anyhow, what Mr. Derrogatory hasn't gathered yet about Prince is that he's a musician spanning the entire musical spectrum. Sometimes he feels funky, sometimes rocky, sometimes jazzy, sometimes poppy, sometimes he makes up his own musicial category. So to Mr. Derrogatory, I say he should open up his mind and shut up is mouth. Who the duck care what he has to say anyway. Prince is FLAMIN!

What's with the Lynch stuff?

i guess this would put to rest any doubts folks might harbor as to whether or not prince is playing that race card with TRC.

unbelieveably tacky, prince. i am stunned that my musical hero would do anything so fucking tacky at a concert


>>>At one point, Prince flashed a quote on three video screens that posited Abraham Lincoln as a defender of segregation. And while introducing "Family Name," a musing about African Americans being deprived of their ancestral roots, Prince singled out a white fan and gave him the new surname of "Lynch." (He did the same thing at the preceding show in Saginaw, Mich.)<<<

for those of you who don't know the meaning of the word *lynch*

it means to hang someone by the neck until dead, (and has connotations of injustice as opposed to the word *hang*)

Maybe, i shouldn't go to the show in Buffalo. I don't want my skin color to bother Prince...I just place a cardboard cutout in my seat that says Mr. Lynch...

i am flat out amazed at this "singling out a white audience member and calling him lynch" crap

I DON'T THINK I CAN OVERLOOK THIS. THIS MIGHT TRULY FINALLY BE THE END OF MY FANDOM. FUCK YOU PRINCE!!!!! THOSE WHITE AUDIENCE MEMBERS DIDN'T HANG YOUR FUCKING ANCESTORS!! THEY PAID YOUR FUCKING INLFATED TICKET PRICES AND YOU INSULT THEM??!!!!! WHO THE FUCK DO YOU THINK YOU ARE PRINCE???
[This message was edited Mon Mar 4 11:09:20 PST 2002 by XxAxX]
[This message was edited Mon Mar 4 11:09:54 PST 2002 by XxAxX]

If it were a white singer and a audience member of African ancestory, the ACLU would be all over it. Not when the tables are turned, though...

Why is it that no matter how hard we try not see color, someone always has to slap us in the face with it...the last time I checked, the P fan base was quite diverse, wasn't it?????

not for long, welcum, not for long

you know we're going to get flamed for this...
{changing into asbestos underwear}

welcum2thedawn said:

Why on earth should we try not to see color? We live in a world in which race matters. That's a fact.

yes it matters and so does approcahing the issue appropriately. singling out a white audience member who paid to attend your concert and insulting that person because of their race IS NOT THE WAY TO HELP THINGS

welcum2thedawn said:

Ah, "duck" that. Come on, help me show Prince that Buffalo is a place to rock. I can't wait! I'm not worried about Prince pointing me out. I doubt he'll be able to see me in the back row. I doubt I'll be able to see him either. He's so tiny.

IMHO, race does not matter, to me at least. But, I find hypocracy in raising race issues in a "God, Love, Peace" environment such as one of Prince's concerts. If I were the audience member who was called Mr. Lynch, I would be quite inflamed. My skin color is only that. Once again, IMHO

Peace

GotAttitudeWithoutDynasty said:

Are you of European ancestry?

I happen to be in row five, I'm really not looking forward to being harassed at a function for which I paid for...

XxAxX said:

I agree that it may have been somewhat disrespectful, but it's clear that we was simply making a point. Prince is stating that the ways in which names were given to African-Americans (by white slaveowners) was just as arbitrary and offensive as what he was doing to the audience member.

The fact that it inflames you is the whole point. Why aren't you inflamed about Prince's last name being given to him by a slaveowner? Prince wants you to feel the anger that he feels.

I personally prefer that people are open and honest about race instead of going around pretending that it doesn't exist and that everything in our country is perfect. Face it, it's not. I still wouldn't want to live anywhere else in the world, but that doesn't mean we can't critique our culture and work to make it better.

Perhaps Prince's approach may not jive with the approach that you think we should take, but at least he's opening a dialogue. Heck, Malcolm and MLK didn't agree either did they? We're still better off for the fact that they had the argument though.

just shout the word "HYPOCRITE" right back at him if he DOES single you out, welcum

i see brian, so you're saying that inflammatory words are okay as long as they make a point? fine. if prince ever calls me *lynch* i'll feel free to shout back *nigger* at him

XxAxX said:[quote]just shout the word "HYPOCRITE" right back at him if he DOES single you out, welcum[/quote

Splendid Idea!!!

Brian, why is it "clear" that he was simply making a point? Maybe he really hates white people for what my ancestors did to his ancestors...

Then he calls me a name, then I call him a name, then he strikes at me, then I strike at him, then we really hate each other...