Prince

CSU Convocation Center

Sunday, November 12



It was a sea of humanity, of all different ages, shapes and sizes, all with
eager eyes, waiting to get through the black curtains to see the man. It was
a night of big hair and torn stockings, black studded patent leather and
revealing lace. In short, it was a night of major fashion faux pas: It was
1984 all over again. The subtle nod to Jimi's "Voodoo Chile" warmed up the
chilly Cleveland crowd and foreshadowed an evening of an artist getting back
to his roots. The stage was stripped naked of the usual pretentious stage
sets and elaborate special effects. Prince was simply here to work out.
Sure, he made us wait for an hour before hitting the stage, like a virgin on
her wedding night. Yet the crowd was still ready to "Go Crazy," losing it
for a Prince lookalike who strolled nonchalantly through the hungry crowd.
When Prince finally hit the stage, he glided in cruise control through his
major hits of the past 20 years in a little over two hours. The addition of
saxman Najee provided an interesting cool jazz twist, and surprise guest
George Clinton added his usual funky weirdness to the mix (guess he stayed
over from his concert Thursday). Stage set or no, Prince's swagger and
pelvic gyrations were as effective as ever as he stalked the stage like a
lion marking his territory. His mane may have aged, but his roar is every
bit as fierce.