My Paisley Experience



(Rambling...feel free to skip if you've already been there, or don't care about my experience) ;^)



So I'm reading on npgonline about all of these great performances lately, and it gets me thinking. I've seen Prince perform one time (Jam of the Year tour) in the 10+ years I've really been a big fan. He doesn't play in Pittsburgh, PA much. I've been traveling lately for work, and have a free plane ticket, and some free hotel stays, so on Thursday I decide to plan a trip to Paisley Park for the weekly Friday night party. I realize that it's not a guarantee that he'll perform, but I thought there was a pretty good chance of it. I take the day off Friday, and fly on up there. Now, none of my friends are as insane as I am, so I'm making this trip solo.



I get to my hotel, and crash for a few hours, since I'm not used to staying up all night like when I was young. I find my way out to The Park after making a few wrong turns. It looks smaller than I thought it would. This is about 12:30 AM, and there are maybe a dozen cars in the parking lot, and maybe six people waiting by the door. I decide to wait it out in my car, where it's nice and warm. Around 1:30 or so there are more folks walking up to the door, so I got out and made my way up. Got in, paid my $7, and got frisked. I'm thinking my chances are good for a performance. As you walk in the door, you’re in a small lobby. Bathrooms to the right, and a small store on the left, which was open. They sell CD's, Videos, Clothes, Jewelry, etc. Beside that is a fenced off hallway that leads to the rest of the studios. The back wall has a door that leads into the rehearsal space where they have the parties. I walk in and look around. In the very back, there is soundboard for mixing the live shows. Beside that on the back wall are stairs that lead up to a landing where a DJ is set up. Various things hang on the walls, the front grille of the car from the SOTT movie, the neon heart cicia 1999, etc. A small table is set up on the right side where a guy is selling soda and water, and there is some pretzels and candy set up in bowels to munch on. On the back right wall is a small elevated area with a couch. Then, on the far, front side is the stage. And the instruments. Drum set on the right, electronic percussion to the left of that, and the keyboards beside that. On stands in front of all of those are the guitars and basses. The one-eyed bass is there, the symbol guitar, and I'm thinking, oh yeah....there will definitely be a performance tonight! Behind the stage is a huge white canvas, where video images are being projected. Typical club-stuff...tilted, a bit out of focus...nothing in particular. The DJ is playing mostly dance music, not a lot of Prince.



There are maybe 40 people in the room, some dancing, most of them just hanging out like me. I make my way toward the right side of the stage. I'm thinking I'm smart...I'm getting a good position for the show. After an hour or so, more people but still no sign of a show. I don’t mind though. I know he likes to start late. I don't dance, but I still got some good exercise. I must have had too many waters, 'cuz I made the trip to the bathrooms about six times! Anyway, I'm standing there and the music stops. Then on the video wall, they start to play the video advertising the 7 cd sampling set. I've heard it before, but it was cool to see the video too. Everyone is looking at the stage now, and I'm sure they are all anticipating the inevitable live show like me. After that, the video for Daisy Chain comes on. In the middle of that, the DJ starts playing music again over the video, and then the video stops and we're right back to where we started. No show. It's now after 3, and I'm starting to get worried for the first time.



A little while later, I notice a big bald white guy with earplugs walking around the stage, and I recognize him as the main security guy. I forget his name, but I don't forget his face. I also see a couple of other security looking folks, and I'm feeling relieved. Now the show will start. But after an hour, still nothing. I've now made my way back to stand my the soundboard instead of the stage, and I look over to the steps leading up to the DJ area, and I notice Prince sitting on the steps. He's just sort of looking around, and then he jumps off of the steps, walks over towards me, past me, and behind the soundboard. He's in there talking with, I assume Deseree (a fine looking woman, btw). I can't hear what they're talking about, but he's playing with some knobs (on the soundboard, not Deseree), and he's fiddling with a couple of CD's that I can't tell what they are. They he hops over the railing onto the steps, and goes behind the DJ setup.



Now he starts playing some new music for us. I was fairly tired at this point, so I unfortunately can't give a good description of the songs (perhaps someone else can?). I know one was an up tempo, falsetto with the chorus of "Prince gonna get you hot, yeah...gonna get you hot, yeah." I really liked this one. Different, but not too out there. He played a really gospel sounding song, and a ballad at the end of the night. All in all, I think he played four or five new songs. Then around 5am, the party was over. I walked to the store, bought a couple of CD's, and drove back to the hotel.



Overall I have mixed emotions of my first trip. Obviously I really wanted to see a live performance, and couldn't help feeling like the instruments there on the stage were wasted that night. But I realize that was the risk going into it. On the other hand, I did get to hear some new music, and at least now have a frame of reference for all the descriptions of the live shows from now on, so that I can at least enjoy the reports that much more. I think in time I'll be glad I went. I know I would have been much more bummed out if I had decided to not go, and there actually was a performance than I am now having gone and there not been one.