Prince Wows New York, Upsets Sopranos Schedule

{{{Prince is happy. Stop the presses.

Tuesday night at Avery Fisher Hall, the artist once again known as Prince put on the most electrifying three hour show I’ve seen in years. It featured a newly talkative version of the diminutive musical genius. He seemed happy, chatted with the audience, and — after a 40 minute jazz jam — launched into a stunning recollection of some of his best known numbers. }}}

But next fall, if episode nine of The Sopranos seems a little off kilter, you can blame the born-again purple rocker. That’s because his after-hours show didn’t start at the World nightclub until 2 a.m. — and went on for two hours. Tough for us mortals, but worse for Edie Falco, who had a 5 a.m. makeup call for her role as Carmella Soprano.

“I just have one scene,” she conceded while Musiq Soulchild and funk legend Larry Graham serenaded us with Sly and the Family Stone’s “If You Want Me To Stay.” "I’ll go straight in to work, then go home and get some sleep,” she said. At least she had a good excuse: one of the show’s producers, Ilene Landress, was right there with us, boogeying along.

But no one in their right mind would have missed Prince on Tuesday night. The three-hour show at Lincoln Center was something of a tour de force, ranging in genres from jazz to funk to hard rock to falsetto R&B and psychedelia. He covered oldies like “La La Means I Love You” and Joni Mitchell’s “A Case of You.” He tantalized the racially mixed, highly energized crowd with lovely versions of “Raspberry Beret,” “No One Compares 2 U,” “When You Were Mine” and “Diamonds and Pearls.”

Possibly married for a second time (he’s wearing a ring on that finger, but who knows?), he seemed lighter and more accessible. He reconfirmed his status a born-again Christian, sang a song called “God Is Love,” and channeled everyone from James Brown to Jimi Hendrix to Miles Davis to Russell Thompkins Jr.

He also spoke. “My parents taught me change is good,” he said. “The bible talks about a new personality. I’m trying to be better.” On that note, I was told that the only comp ticket in the house — every single person, including celebs like Chris Rock, paid $150 — went to his half-sister Sharon Nelson.

“Anxiety is just fear of the future,” Prince told the crowd. “It’s written in the Holy Scriptures.” When rapper Q Tip came on stage, Prince told us, “I try to stop him from cussing.”

You only think you remember Apollonia, Vanity, Wendy and Lisa, “Sugar Walls,” Kim Basinger. But the statute of limitations has run out on all that.

As with the main show, the after hours rave up featured James Brown’s famous horn player Maceo Parker, along with appearances by the legendary George Clinton, the aforementioned Graham, rapper Doug E. Fresh, Musiq Soulchild and — at 3:20 a.m. — Alicia Keys, who joined him on stage for a sizzling version of “How Come U Don’t Call Me Anymore?”

Exhausting? Yes, but well worth it. Prince still batters the subject of slavery (there are video projections of The Underground Railroad, a quote from Abraham Lincoln) — he once wrote the word Slave on his face in a video when he tried to break from Warner Bros records — but he is only slave to himself now. He puts out his own records, owns his own masters, and goes into his 25th year of music-making his own way.

Prince and Elvis Costello are the last two iconoclasts of an era — literate and musically gifted. Their musical genius, background in composition in the language of jazz, pop and blues, is something no one can claim in today's generation. Maybe Alicia Keys can do it — time will tell, and her performance in the middle of the night was nothing short of spectacular. In the meantime, Prince should have no anxiety or fear of the future — he is assured of a permanent spot in the top echelons of rock history

who's this "Sugar Walls" who is listed along with all the other ladies?

i must have missed out on her. is her album any good?

also, i think Edie Falco should call CJ about how Prince disrupted her schedule for the Sopranos.

how rude of him.

He he, a little inaccurate at points, but a good review. I just wish Alicia would catch up on her Time lyrics

AmethystAngelMPLS said:

I believe they are referring 2 Shelia Easton, who recorded a song by Prince called "Surgar Walls"

Sugar Walls refers to the song he wrote for Shenna Easton.

ChiTownNPG said:

ahhh! thank you. i thought possibly they were referring to Cameron Electrical, the large-breasted Prince protege who later appeared in the movie "Singled Out Female".

guess my facts were a tad confused.

PURPLEFREAK said:

i was just goofin' around. i knew what the article was driving at...but a song title thrown into the middle of a listing of a bunch of proper names just seemed weirdly written to me, so i was playing around.

thank you, though.

scndlz said:

Elvis Costello is my all-time favorite songwriter. His lyrics are nothing short of BRILLIANT and he is a phenomenal musician.

Prince can be a great lyricist but Elvis Costello IS a brilliant lyricist!

Another absolutely great lyricist is Paul Westerberg. He is another hero of mine.

Never heard even ONE song by Costello.....
Hard to b better songwriter/lyricist than the BEST!!!
I'm sure he's good, but Prince has style, flava...and it all comes out in his lyrics!! Let me put it this way...could Elvis do "Housequake"?

AmethystAngelMPLS said:

Shenna, Sheila what the heck it is Sheena Easton..

“Anxiety is just fear of the future,” Prince told the crowd. “It’s written in the Holy Scriptures.”

Actually, I'm more afraid of the present than the future, but thanks for mentioning me anyway.

In the meantime, Prince should have no anxiety or fear of the future — he is assured of a permanent spot in the top echelons of rock history


We hope...it seems like people are forgetting how talented he is....C'mon Prince, release a DVD of one of these shows and have someone else do it...better yet..release a live show on DVD with the Kevin Smith documentary footage and then do some performances to support the album and tour!

Damn...are you ready for me to be your promoter, Prince?

Revolution said:

Elvis Costello is a MUCH better lyricist... trust me.

He never goes for the cheap, stupid lyric and he is absolutely brilliant. Don't get me wrong, I love Prince, but Elvis Costello is definitely a better lyricist.

Here's a short one that he wrote for Jazz legend Chet Baker:

ALMOST BLUE

Almost blue
Almost doing things we used to do
There's a girl here and she's almost you
Almost all the things that your eyes once promised
I see in hers too
Now your eyes are red from crying

Almost blue
Flirting with this disaster became me
It named me as the fool who only aimed to be

Almost blue
It's almost touching it will almost do
There's a part of me that's always true...always
Not all good things come to an end now it is only a chosen few
I've seen such an unhappy couple

Almost me
Almost you
Almost blue


Check the lyrics on this list of songs and you will see what I am talking about.

You should really check him out, as he is absolutely BRILLIANT!

Someone back me up here...
[This message was edited Fri Apr 12 6:55:06 PDT 2002 by IceNine]