Saw Prince at Mill City tonight.



Larry Graham opened with what I thought was a rather boring set, but it was mainly due to the fact I was there to see Prince. A highlight of Larry's set was when he placed his bass for the crowd to touch and over the PA someone said "Touch it! Touch the bass!" Surreal.



I didn't take down a set-list, but I recall most of it. He didn't play a piano medley at all, and the slowest the evening got was Purple Rain.



He opened with Sign O The Times which I thought was amazing. Wonderful, crunchy guitar work. Then I Could Never ... straight up rock and roll, The Cross in which he gave a rather ignorant sermon before, but played the song with much emotion. I'm fuzzy on the order, but he played Let's Go Crazy and U Got The Look, but more in medley form, though he did add wonderful guitar work to them. The first 1/3 of the show he played some of the best guitar I've heard. He played Kiss, Let's Work/Delirious, Every Day Is A Winding Road, Sometimes I Feel Like A Motherless Child, and Gett Off. He also played a new song "Pretty Man" in which Maceo Parker guested so I assume that is the song Maceo plays on for Rave. The song seemed rather boring. Funky, I suppose, but basically throw away lyrics. Prince seemed quite proud of the lyrics, however, as he recited some to the crowd before he played the song. Sounded like filler to me. He also played a James Brown song, the one he always plays, but I don't recall the title.



He broke, played Purple Rain (the entire version), left, and closed with Come On, Baby I'm A Star, and 1999.



The Minneapolis paper said he had some surprises in store, as did Prince from stage, but there weren't any. Unless you count Maceo Parker and Mayte.



A great show, all and all. The area was packed, and very responsive. Prince seemed to be in good spirits and danced like he was 21, and as I've said, played some very powerful guitar.



The band is Larry on bass, Kirk on drums, Morris, 3 new male singers, a female percussion player, the horn section, and ... I forget his name, but the same ol' guitar player he's had for a spell now. Mike Scott?



Prince spoke a few times to us, mainly about loving people and The Christ, and something about his new record contract. Nobody gave a damn and just wanted him to play.