Dearest fans,

I hope you're all well. I just took some time off after the Musicology Tour to get reacquainted with my friends and family, my house and of course my boyfriend! It's lovely to be home and sleep in my own bed for a change. All in all, me and my mom Inge stayed in the States for almost nine months, so you can imagine how glad I am to be home for a while. According to statistics, this month the site had the most visitors ever, that's great and hopefully my long overdue message reaches everybody in time.

Firstly, I should tell you about the tour with Prince: it was awesome! I can't begin to tell you what a special time we had! The US fans were just so sweet and enthusiastic. They really embraced the band instead of just coming to see Prince and that was a wonderful feeling. Of course there are always people who couldn't care less about whoever's in the band and just want to see Prince; who can blame them. But I was surprised at how many people really cared about us, just as I was a big fan of Prince's former band members. I used to go to see Prince's shows, and although he was the true star, I loved watching Wendy and Lisa, Eric Leeds and Atlanta Bliss, Levi, Sheila E. and all the other awesome players that Prince always gathers around him.

Of course to be a true leader you have to know when to let others shine and when not, and Prince is a genius at that. He gave us all so many opportunities to take the spotlight, we'd be stupid not to take them. In my case he pushed me to really be myself, but then better, and he even got me singing lead in some songs. With my own band I sing, but standing next to Prince and doing the same thing is a bit scarier. It's the greatest confidence booster when somebody as great as he is believes in you, and I can really say it helped me to get to a next musical level.

Also we just had a lot of fun! The band is so great: Rhonda, Mike, John, Renato, Chance, Greg, and of course Maceo! I wouldn't have known what to do without them. They cheered me up when I was down or homesick, and just listening to them jam and seeing them being so professional and up all the time made me really want to rise to their level.

Rhonda is just amazing. First of all her playing. There is a reason why Prince picked her for his band: she is so tight, so funky and so musical, I just needed her bass in my in-ear monitors and I'd be fine for the whole show. But also as a person. What a pro, even in the most difficult times she'd be an anchor for the whole band. I just get a kick out of seeing her play that bass! Mike Scott is a fantastic guitarist who I feel really complements Prince's awesome playing. Also his sense of humor got me through many things and I'm so glad he joined us on this tour!

Then there's Chance, the keyboardist and singer who is also an awesome bassist. He's just the sweetest teddybear and what a musician!!! I remember seeing him play with The Time years ago, but it really hit me what a great musician he is while seeing him play on this tour. I'll really miss seeing him do his little dance with Prince and hearing his soulful voice in my monitors! Then there is Renato, what a joy to hear him play everyday! He really is the 'mad professor' on the keyboards but in a good way! Wow, he plays so soulful and beautiful, it's just a treat to work with him and on top of all that he's the nicest person. (As you can see here I'm just a big fan of the band as well as Prince's!)

Then there is John Blackwell!!! What can I say... I always loved his fantastic playing and he is such a great guy, but when tragedy struck him in the middle of our tour he really proved himself beyond all that. Maybe Americans - who we Europeans see as really resilient people - can grasp that somebody would be able to finish a tour after such a tragedy (John's lovely daughter Jia died at his home while he was away on tour), but for me I'm just in awe that he was able to come back to us and dedicate the rest of the tour to her and play like he played!!!! I mean he didn't miss a beat!!!! I think for many of us it's hard to imagine continuing living and working when something like that hits you, but then to come back on a tour and finish it in such a great way... I can honestly say that I've never in my life been so proud of somebody as I am of John! I wish him, his lovely wife Joanne and their little boy all the strength and love they need for the rest of their journey.

On a lighter but just as important note there's Greg Boyer, our musical professor! There's nobody who could cheer me up and amaze me with his talents like Greg. If Prince would hit us (the horn section) with some inconceivable lick - and we were expected to copy it right away in three or four part harmony - I would just have to turn to Greg and he would mouth me the right note and it would all be fine! Greg has absolute hearing and it's just scary how he gets everything right all the time! His trombone-playing is incredible and his 30+ years of experience with P-Funk - he used to play with Parliament Funkadelic - just shows in his musical abilities. For the rest he acts like a 16-year-old, and I mean that in a good way! Fans who've seen him dance and act silly on the stage know what I mean.

Then there's of course Maceo Parker. What can I say? Also someone who only plays like his age but furthermore has the most energy, the biggest sense of humor, and plays the meanest alto! I would say that aside from my dad he must be the most energetic saxophone player there is. I mean it was hard if not impossible to keep up with him, not just during the show but also before and after! Maceo is really the person who keeps everybody happy and sane, and I couldn't have finished this tour without him! I've said it before, but can you imagine having your favorite saxplayer play right next to you all the time? It's like shooting hoops in your backyard with Michael Jordan, or having Jamie Oliver cook for you, or... Well you get the message.

Aside from the band there were so many great people: Mike Phillips, the incredible alto player who helped us out when Maceo was away, and after that. Natasha, Maceo's manager, who really was and is a true friend. The crew: Takumi, Vince, Odis, Gino, Scottie P., Jimmy, Gordon, the production manager Bugsy, our tourmanager Tony, Ruth, Trevor, our busdrivers Skip (slash personal chef) and Chuck, the ladies in charge of beauty and style: Rob, Kim, Debbie, Abby and Lindsay. It's impossible to name them all, but they were all fantastic and I'm in awe of their work ethic. This was not the easiest tour for them, I guess, but they did great!

I know there's more to talk about than the tour, but of course I have to finish my fanmail to the Musicology Tour with paying tribute to Prince himself. He really took us on a journey and he did so great himself. I really think he deserved all the recognition he got this year and then some, because we must realize he is one of the few true musical geniuses we have left. It was wonderful to hear him sing all these great songs every day without ever making them sound tired. As a bandleader I know how hard it is sometimes to play the same song over and over again and still making it sound like it's the first time you've played them, but Prince has mastered that art completely! I thank him for giving me this opportunity of spending this year with him and his wonderful band and crew.

Alright, that was my little tribute to the Musicology camp, and what a great time we had. Now it's time to move on to my European tour and the guys who I've missed so much this year: my band and crew!

From the 11th of November we'll be touring in Europe and Curaçao (!), visiting some of our old stomping grounds like the Bierhuebeli in Bern, Kaufleuten in Zürich, Paradiso in Amsterdam and the Treibhaus in Innsbruck. However much I enjoyed playing in big stadiums this past year, I really look forward to play more intimate settings like these again and to be my own boss again for a while haha. I really wanted to do a tour with this band again, because I really enjoyed our tour together last year and felt it would be lovely to end the year this way.

Just this week we had a reunion of sorts when our former bassplayer Dimitri Veltkamp married Babette Labij, and a lot of people I hadn't seen for a while jammed there and we had a great time. America might have a lot of talented musicians but Holland has some too!

Of course on the 30th of November Maceo is coming to the Paradiso in Amsterdam and I will be in the front row cheering him on. There's a short break in the tour, and if he asks me I might even jump on stage with him and Greg. I'll probably see a lot of you guys there.

As for next year I have so many plans but it's hard to say what will come first at this point in time. I want to make a new album, tour Japan and the States and Europe some more, we're finishing up Thomas' homestudio, and of course I have to tend to my ever-growing livestock, as a brand new farmer girl. Also there are some plans for a TV show / documentary and some other stuff I'm working on at the moment.

I really hope to see you guys at the November/December tour and I hope you all continue to be happy and healthy. Thanks for being such true fans. Reading your messages every day was the perfect remedy for home sickness and any self doubts I might have had this year.

Lots of love, Candy xxx

Visit: http://www.candydulfer.nl/

cool

No Prince European/Japanese/Australian tour, it seems. At least, not with Candy.

Candy_Dulfer said:

Well said.

Number23 said:

he doesn't need us now. USA is his Bitch now.

Candy is So WONDERFUL a PERFORMER....Seeing her with Prince was GReat...

TheBatman said:

co-sign

DorothyParkerWasCool said:

Sounds like I'm not the only one who's blocked out all memory of the nineties NPG line-up!

i LOVE me some Candy.

she is just GREAT !

Get reacquanted with her BOYFRIEND?

Just when I thought I had a shot!

I coulda sworn that when she was singin the hook of "Falling" that she was talkin to me

Other than that it's a very good read

That was a very nice letter. Thank you Candy for being a part of a wonderful experience.

Candy rocks, I love her
from where does she hail?

DorothyParkerWasCool said:

Curacao???? OK, I'll be in Curacao Nov 21-27... so when, where?

howcomeudontcallme said:

u r wrong 4 that 1

ABeautifulOne said:

so ....who are u .....beautiful one?

Anyone have nude photos of Candy? Just wonderin'.

dat was so puuuuurdy!

i just wish she hadn't been on the tour. she was annoying as fuck on stage

GrayKing said:

Well, she wasn't my favorite part of the tour but Prince must have wanted her up there or she wouldn't be. I remember seeing her play on the Lovesexy Tour and that was nice. Anyway, she sounds like a fellow fan and that's what is cool about her.

i really like candy, she plays so well. and shes beautful!!!!!


~*~ britney ~*~

squirrelgrease said:

Now I would like to see that!!!

andykeen said:

Her website is half in flemish so I assume she's from the Netherlands or Belgium. Probably the Netherlands.

I thought she was from Holland. Anyway, I think she can blow the daylights out of that sax and enjoyed her on the tour. She seems to be very down-to-earth in this article and I'm glad the band members felt the love we gave them, too.

i candy

"Then there is John Blackwell!!! What can I say... I always loved his fantastic playing and he is such a great guy, but when tragedy struck him in the middle of our tour he really proved himself beyond all that. Maybe Americans - who we Europeans see as really resilient people - can grasp that somebody would be able to finish a tour after such a tragedy (John's lovely daughter Jia died at his home while he was away on tour), but for me I'm just in awe that he was able to come back to us and dedicate the rest of the tour to her and play like he played!!!! I mean he didn't miss a beat!!!! I think for many of us it's hard to imagine continuing living and working when something like that hits you, but then to come back on a tour and finish it in such a great way... I can honestly say that I've never in my life been so proud of somebody as I am of John! I wish him, his lovely wife Joanne and their little boy all the strength and love they need for the rest of their journey."
*****

All the more reason why each of us should go directly to www.berklee.edu/giving/default.html and find out how to contribute online to the Jia Blackwell Memorial Scholarship Fund.
[Edited 10/4/04 21:41pm]

She's from Holland. She's a well-crafted musician who develops herself all the time. She deserved her place with the man. And ofcourse he picked her and was NOT dissapointed. Trust me for that.

Art, Amsterdam, Holland.

Beautiful person, what a wonderful, intimate gesture.

Except the Jamie Oliver reference If he so much as steps his scrawny ass into my kitchen I will beat him senseless with one of his garbage "cookery" books!

squirrelgrease said:

man if i did i dont think i would be able to type right now