..for the Prince experience?

How many of you'll have stories to tell about making the trip to Minneapolis for the Prince experience... perhaps to catch a sighting, to hang out, whatever? I'm not talking about for a specific concert, necessarily. More vibe, atmosphere, etc.

Especially for those folks who were into him in the early 80s, when things were more open... U were probably more likely to get access, to hang out, etc. He was younger and wilder then. I believe Mani got her job at PP after showing up in Minneapolis and shaking her tail (sorry, couldn't resist).

Anyway, for those of you brave and industrious enough to have made the voyage, do tell.

I've never been to the U.S.! And I will not...

I used 2 LIVE near Minneapolis!!!

Whenever we could we used 2 go 2 Paisley Park 2 see him perform at those Friday night/Saturday morning jams or parties!! They were awesome events!! Not bad for $7!!!

These parties are still very vivid in my mind and really in all honesty I left my heart in Minneapolis!! I live in the UK now and my heart aint here!!! Roll on July when we will b returning back 2 the USA again for good!!!

We also saw other Princely landmarks like First Avenue and the Glam Slam Club(Now The Quest Club)

Minneapolis is the greatest city on this planet!!!!!

I live in Minneapolis! And of course I've seen Prince many times at First Avenue, 7th Street Entry, Glam Slam, Paisley Park, Northrup Auditoreum, Met Center, St Paul Civic Center, Target Center, Xcel Energy Center, Outside in downtown Minneapolis (Mill City) etc. etc.
[Edited 12/28/04 7:13am]

I was there in 1990. I went dancing at 1st. Avenue. It was modern rock night. We got in for $1.00 or something like that. There was nobody there. I ventured out to look for Paisley Park. I got soooo lost. I ended up going into this bowling alley to get directions. I continued my search and right when I was about to give up, there it was. I thought I was going to have a heart attack. I went into the parking lot in my tired ass rental vehicle and I took pictures. I felt like an idiot but I didn't care. People were looking out of the windows like I was crazy. That's when I felt weird. I thought that maybe I was the only stupid ass to actually circle the parking lot over and over taking picturs. I was too afraid to get out.

I bought the 12" to The Future at a store right around the corner from 1st Avenue. I was soo excited because I thought I was the only one to have this gem.

Miguel

i live in mpls, but not for prince (sort of a nice bonus, nonetheless).

....don't think my stories would make u smile...

Handclapsfingasnapz said:

Are you from England originally? Sometimes your posts read very English.

MIGUELGOMEZ said:

That is great! I can't imagine what it's like to see him. On TV when he's standing next to people of average height he looks SOOOO small. (I've seen him in person but only sitting down.)

Where did you travel from?

altavista said:

I traveled from California to Minnesota. Not too far really. I just remember how cold and windy it was.

I wish I could've seen him live in a non-concert setting. I would freak.
Miguel

I ventured to Minneapolis once for a celebration. It was an unforgettable experience, and not always for a good reason!

What sticks in my mind was the construction. Apparently, because of the weather, construction takes place during the summer. So -- the airport was under construction, the freeways were under construction, and there was even construction going on at Paisley Park.

One night, after the concert at the Excel Center, we decided to venture downtown to see a friend who had moved to Minne. Guess what? Construction.


To make a looooong, frustrating evening short, we gave up and headed to Paisley Park. But freeways there don't all hook up like they do here in L.A. And once we realized we had gone to far, we also realized that the freeway going back in the other direction was closed down for --- CONSTRUCTION!!

We finally arrived at Paisley Park around 4AM (remember, we left the concert around 11:30 PM!) and now I am truly ready for a drink. But guess what? Not only is Paisley not selling liquor (I knew that), we are also in "dry county". (I didn't know that!) That means no alcohol sales on Sunday.....except for bars and restaurants. I swear, the next afternoon, I wandered into the closest restaurant and told the hostess if they were serving, I was staying!

The construction and the freeway system (I swear, who takes a freeway NORTH to go WEST???) made it a truly memorable trip. And yes, I would go again with very little incentive. Like Prince having a fan BBQ in his backyard.....

Ro

**LoveLife, LoveGod, LoveSexy**

I saw Prince at a club in Minneapolis My friend walked up to him.
[Edited 4/18/15 15:53pm]

rosanda said:

Wow, Ro.. that is quite a bummer. Kuddos to you for being a trooper after all of that. It's clear you've got much Prince love.. doing it again without an incentive... true funk soldier!

rosanda said:

I'm laughing as I'm reading your post because I live in Minnesota and I totally understand your frustration with the torn up roads around here.

There's the old saying around here "Minnesota has two seasons - winter, and road construction."

Sadly, it's true..

I hope if you come back to visit again one day you'll have an easier time.

I didn't mean to make it sound as though it was a miserable trip. I really had a great time.

It was the unveiling of The Rainbow Children, and my 3 fondest memories are #1 -- of lying on the floor in the upstairs game room, listening to the album for the first time. My 2nd favorite memory was of the debrief session, where Prince showed up, boldly sat down right in the middle of all of us, and actually had a conversation!

That day was actually my wedding anniversary, and my husband was back here in L.A., while I was in Minne. I called him that night and kept saying, over and over again, "I love you -- thank you!" for allowing me to spend our anniversary with my "other" man! I think I finally stopped kissing his behind over that gift this past summer.....

My 3rd favorite memory is of the picnic at the nearby park. It was a great afternoon, spent among fans, talking about Prince, or even *not* talking about Prince.

So those things, along with the construction and freeways created quite a wonderful memory. I would still venture back to the land of 10,000 lakes (apparently that is part of the problem with the freeways; you have to build around the lakes!) because I know how to get around and what to avoid.

Of course, I also understand now why Prince is choosing to spend the winter here in my hometown, rather than in his...

Ro

**LoveLife, LoveGod, LoveSexy**

I went to see the Glam Slam club once and all I can remember was how cold it was there. There was also 2 feet of snow on the ground.

Rosanda, I'm not from Minneapolis but I feel ya about the construction OMG!! I visited St. Olaf College (beautiful campus BTW) in the summer of 95. My mom and I drove from Northfield to Chanhassen so I could go see Paisley Park. When we got there, I was numb becuase I was sooooo excited. I rolled the window down so I could take some pictures and after I had snapped off a few, some guy came outside and said that I was not allowed to take any pictures. I was crushed!! So I explained to him that I only wanted to take a few more and that I was visiting the college and my aunt. He asked me where I was from so I told him. He agreed to let me take a few more pics. I got out of the car to take the last one and I noticed the pink marble-like rocks in the median of the parking lot, so I took a couple. LOL The next time I was there was for the Xenophobia celebration in 2002. That was a fun time. To save myself money, I drove my car from Maryland, so I wouldn't have to rent one, and I stayed with my aunt and uncle. Same deal with the construction though!! What I want to know is, who's bright idea it was to put a train system IN THE MIDDLE OF THE FRIGGIN' HIGHWAY!?!? But I will always love Minneapolis!

Who would go to Minni for a Prince sighting??

My husband and I drove to the Mall of America about ten years ago and of course since I'm a P freak we had to do some drive by's. We asked this guy who worked at our hotel for directions to Paisley Park and he gave them to us. We got there no problem and went right through the gates. I was kinda freaked out because I thought we would get in trouble, but my husband walked up to the doors and knocked until a girl came to the door. He asked if we could come in and take a look since we just drove eight hours. She was nice but told him no. We took pictures outside and left. We also went to First Avenue. Yes,I'm a stalker!!!!!

CalhounSq said:

the obsessed and the totally batshit.

howcomeudontcallme said:

no, i'm from the states.

Handclapsfingasnapz said:

Oh. You could pass as English very easily.

I went to MPLS in 1991 with the first Controversy Tour, run by Eileen Murton. I had a wonderful time, I toured round the city and went to lake Minnitonka (dont think I spelt that right). Although we did drive out to Paisley Park, Prince was not around. Than one night we went to the Fine Line Cafe, the Steels were on that night,half way through the evening, with many body guards around him, Prince came and sat on the next table to us. We didn't speak or make eye contact, he sat there for around 20 minutes than left. It was amazing to see him so close up.

pkidwell said:

This must have been during the Warner drift years when he was low on money and had to turn down the heating to save on the electricity bill.

I was born and raised here in Minneapolis. I still live here. Minneapolis is the shit! I never want to live anywhere eles. My first concert was at First Avenue hell I work right across the street from it. It is a great club and it gets great sound! Never been to Paisley Park, when Prince used to have parties there I was under eighteen. I remember the NPG store in uptown Minneapolis. It was a Prince fan's wet dream. Upstairs was great with candles, drapes and huge pillows and a giant TV where we would see Prince videos. I remeber seeing the video for "18 & Over" there with my sister when I was like fourteen. Never was able to go to the Glam Slam nightclub when it was open too young then. I have yet to see Prince but came close a few times. Sometimes when I am driving downtown and I see a limo drive by I wounder if it is my PRINCE! Haa Haa. Oh well I'll meet him someday! And when I do I'll let you all know what he smells like!

Goldstar said:

That is so cool! I would have stared him down so hard he would have changed seats.

Rosanda said:




Wow. How did you get invited to that Rainbow Children event? What was the discussion about? The JW faith?

altavista said:

It was the Celebration, and Paisley Park was open daily for just walk-thrus, visits, etc.....We found out when we got there that daily, groups were being let in to the park and allowed to listen to the album. We showed up around 9am and joined the queue outside. Around 11:30 we were invited in and split up into about 3 separate groups; we are in the game room upstairs, and to my understanding, others were in the studio, and others on the sound stage. Anyways, after we listened, we all came back together in a large group in another sound stage to discuss the music. As the talk drifted (or was steered) to other things, Prince came in and sat down right in the middle of the room. And I mean *right in the middle*. Asked someone to give up their chair for him!

The talk wasn't about the JW faith, but rather of politics, faith, and belief systems. What do you base your beliefs on? Your government or your God? It was a fascinating conversation, not necesssarily one to steer to the JW, but rather to examine the role of religion in your life.

As we sat around at the picnic on Sunday, the conversation continued among fans who had attended other days, and had had sessions with Prince or Larry Graham.....now THOSE were some fascinating conversations! But they were great conversations -- not just, "oh I love this song", or "oh, I live this look", or "LoveSexy sucks", but of those things that we aren't supposed to talk about in public -- politics and religion.

Some people left offended. Others left renewed. I'm happy to say I fall into the latter category. (And no, I am not of the JW faith.)

Ro

**LoveLife, LoveGod, LoveSexy**

Goldstar said:

U sat by me too then!