Review of the ONA London concert on October the 3rd published in UK’s The Daily Telegraph on Saturday, October 5th, 2002

‘A Prince among funksters’

Pop
Prince
Carling Apollo, Hammersmith

"LADIES, we are here tonight to talk about the theocratic order." Oh dear. It wasn’t quit the sort of thing we’d been hoping to hear. Prince, the most lascivious, suggestive performer ever to come out of unsexy Minneapolis, was being deadly serious. "If you came here to get your Purple rain on, you’re in the wrong building!" As he said this, 2.000 or so crestfallen fans began to file out of the Apollo in search of other ways to fulfil their craving for Eighties nostalgia.
They didn’t really of course, and it’s a good job they stayed. Having warned us of his Al Green tendencies, and kicked off three nights in Hammersmith with a virtuoso half-hour jazz jam with his band, the New Power Generation, Prince lightened up, big style.
Keen followers of the purple legend have feared that their hero has become preoccupied with apocalyptic visions of the world, as suggested on his most recent album, the religious-flavoured The Rainbow Children. But he showed that he’s still on the ball.
Sitting down at his see-through keyboard, he pointed to a list of British tabloids that were reeling up like film credits on a screen behind his head. "Be afraid, be very afraid," he said solemnly, before diving headlong into a fabulous, absurdly funky Strange relationship. From there on in, the Prince revue was a joyful combination of James Brown funkateering, gospel-level spiritual fervour and the screeching, Hendrix-style guitar licks for which eh first became famous.
In the NPG, Prince has a band so punishingly tight that their sheer musicianship was enough to leave the Apollo enraptured. And when he did finally get round to playing half a dozen classics, best of all Raspberry Beret, they were done so well that it was worth the wait.
Prince has always had a soft spot for London, and he showed his appreciation in a second encore by composing a little rap about the city and inviting the entire front row on stage to dance with him. For a minute, they were in his circle. But then he blew us a kiss and was gone. The mystique, it was good to see, has not left him.

Lynsey Hanley

Sitting down at his see-through keyboard, he pointed to a list of British tabloids that were reeling up like film credits on a screen behind his head. "Be afraid, be very afraid," he said solemnly, before diving headlong into a fabulous, absurdly funky Strange relationship.

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This warms my heart.

I like this one very much.

What is it w/ people and that song??? They just LOVE it! I don't get it. It's cool but I wouldn't mark it as a highlight of the setlist. Glad the review is positive, as it should be.

i want to see this "see-through keyboard" of his...forget see, i want one!...

very nice review

Nice review.

Erendira said:

Yeah, this keyboard must be new!

Isn't this keyboard more than a keyboard? It's like a little platform with walls around him with his keyboard and him in it, isn't it?

jillis said:

Prince might indeed have a "soft spot for London", but to say that he composed a little rap about this city was inaccurate.
Rather, it was actually a slightly modified version of 'All The Critics Love U in New York' that served as the encore for the Thursday night show, substituting NY for "London".

Which is a shame, since so very few of these so-called "critics" have been kind to Prince and his musicianship this time around. More like catty, incoherently bitchy and, on most occasions, just downright cruel.

Stay away from these shores...

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