I went to see Prince for the first time in March 92 at the G-Mex centre,a re-vamped rail station, in Manchester, England,
I'd been a fan since 79 so really looked forward to this-we had Purple Medley on a Widescreen, good, but not what we expected, then Prince and the NPG live for about 45mins-Nobody had heard anything that was being played-later we found it to be The Gold Experience, at the time 500 usd (equiv) wasted--now still disappointed !!!

I felt Prince did a stupid move and sorta "let me down", when he changed his name to the . I felt like man, Prince wasn't strong enough to over come what ever the situation was back then. Dispute with Warner Bros. or whatever. So when he changed his name It felt like he wasn't the same person we learned to love in the 70's and 80's.

I better not answer this question.

i wouldnt say he let me down cause i dont know him personally and dont have an emotional connection to him, the man.

artistically he has let me down many times...but thats to be expected of any artist i guess.

ive been annoyed by how he represents himselves a whole lots o time. the name change, fighting fan websites, his stupid business sense and his artistic stubborness come to mind.

a few times, but the last time was performing with Beyonce and the whole purple rain review at the grammies. I love the man though.

He hasn't yet!!

manclad said:

Music wise-Prince had been my life since 1979-He was my god-I honestly don't think that any of you can feel the way I felt that day--Total jubilation and extreme excitement-into a concert hall with HIM and then not ken what was being played

When W&L left the organization, I felt so isolated and alone.....

I would say over-promising during the 2001 incarnation of the NPGMC and under-delivering. To promote the club's benefits with specific names of discs to be released and then not deliver them -- and then consider a three-disc live set as a replacement for three different albums that would never surface -- was just underhanded in my mind. Made up for it to some degree with the surprise release of XPectation as a download to members at the very last second of the year, but even the reconfiguration of THAT album (Xenophobia ---> XPectation) disappointed me because it was a shot back at the disappointment felt by club members over the whole "four CD" promise. A textbook example of a rock star not understanding his fans.

Coming in at a close second is the handling of the Crystal Ball CD release -- taking pre-orders over the phone and then shipping albums to retail outlets before they shipped to individuals who pre-ordered. Just plain shitty. I remember calling 1-800-new-funk to cancel my order and having the operator ask me why I would do such a thing when "it would be shipping soon" -- I said, "Because I'm holding a copy in my hand right now that I just went to the store and bought, that's why." Not to mention that it was considerably less expensive at the retail store I visited than my "special pre-order price." I don't think the operator had it in his heart to even try to boast about how the Kamasutra CD would be included in the pre-ordered set. Give me a break.

Just business decisions -- not music -- that have disappointed me most over the last 27 years or so.

Wowugotit said:

Damn! The 20th year anniversary of your isolation is coming this September. Happy Anniversary

Thank Q!!!

(eat me then just turn and walk away)

releasing the spiritually-void NPS album and shutting down L4OA in all its forms

Day by day,

Day by day,

Oh dear lord,

3 things I pray.

To See thee more clearly.
To Love thee more dearly
To Follow thee more nearly,

day by day...

Emancipation with cover versions on it.
although some of the other tracks were not that bad.

it's pretty arrogant to think some artist you don't know personally has 'let you down'.

Cancelling the Bleinhem Palace gig in '91 (or was it '92? i forget), no SOTT tour in the UK either. They're the only major ones.

.
[Edited 1/8/06 3:15am]

When I first heard the "Batman" album and realised that he was no longer doing his own thing and was starting to follow fashion (moving in a dance / sampling direction) rather than just being himself.

manclad said:

I think you are getting your dates confused. The Purple Medley and the tour you are refering to was 1995.

1992 was The Diamonds & Pearls tour, and Prince played Main Road Stadium, not the GMEX.

if anything its the now that im not liking
the music,
and he performs differently- he doesnt lose himself in the music as much no more

and his recent fashion taste i dont like

i dunno
ive got a feeling i will enjoy 3121 though

heres hoping

I don't know Prince on a personal level obviously, but I'm asuming this is about a mundane "let down" such as Oliver Stone's "Alexander" must have been to OS fans.


I would say, between the years 1996 and 2003 were the big let down years.

1) sueing fans--WTF?
2) Cyrstal Ball distribution debacle.
3) The whole Symbol thing, and his myth building behind that.
4) Substandard albums
The list goes on and on.

Despite all this, he's still pulled through as a whole, even if I'm really not looking forward to his upcoming album.

he wore that polka dot shirt when the black jacket would have been much better it bothers me to this day

dawntreader said:

No it's not, not in my case. I truly believe in the idea that "the show must go on," so when Prince cancelled his concert at the Staples Center back in 1998, mere hours before it was to start, I felt he let me down...um...and everyone else that had come out that night to see him. And there was no rescheduled date either, like back in 1993 at the Universal Amphitheatre when they pushed the 4/14 date back to 4/17.

TheBigBang said:

do you know why it was cancelled?

The only time being let down was not releasing a Musicology dvd after the dissapointing Live at the Alladin 2003 dvd.Prince always gets better everytime I see him in concert,so it looks like I have to find a Musicology tour bootleg video.Looking forward to see him again as always when he comes to my area.Peace!

manclad said:

Funny, I saw that reaction too when I saw the Gold Tour (1995 btw) - I knew the material from bootlegs, so I well happy, but a lot of the people I was with were really pissed that they were listening to a show largely made of tracks they'd never heard before.

NouveauDance said:

- It´s interesting, because lots of fans would love to go to a concert that didn´t have Purple Rain or Take me with U. I would expect this reaction from non-fans/casual fans. But I have to agree that, 500 dollars for a 45-minute show is indeed a let down

Answering the question: the only time I considered quitting being a fan was around 2000, when he was releasing songs that had outdated production and were very boring for me ("U make my sunshine" and most of the ´High´ album were perfect examples). I felt he lost his passion for music.
I am glad that he returned to form, with a great band and a kick ass album (TRC). Now I am happy with him again.

GustavoRibas said:

I was at the same show and it wasn't 45 minutes - more like 90. Mind you, he did do two nights at Gmex and I was at the first one, so I've no idea what happened at the second night.

I sent Manclad an email earlier and in it I said this, amongst other things...

I'd seen Prince four times before (twice in 1990, once in 1992 and once in 1993) and I'd booked tickets for myself for two dates on the 1995 tour - one for Gmex and one for the NEC a week later. I went to Gmex and really didn't know what to expect as I'd heard he wasn't doing the old stuff. On the 1993 tour though, just after he changed his name, the show at the National Indoor Arena in Birmingham ended with an encore about 40 minutes long during which he'd played all-new songs, none of which had appeared on record at the time (and some which still haven't today) and it was electrifying - like listening to a CD for the first time but with the dynamics of a live show. Would the Gmex show be like this?

In some ways, yes it was. I really enjoyed the show as it was all so new, so exciting because Prince was (he isn't any more) my favourite artist and I was hearing all these new songs, and in my home town too! The problem though was that the concert was *all* new songs, with no diversity and no favourites for the audience to enjoy, and so many people actually walked out as the show went on. Personally I stayed to the end, danced and cheered like crazy, hands sore from clapping, and I went home having had a great night. One week later I drove down the M6 and saw it all over again at the NEC. More people walked out, more people were muttering "I don't know this one" to each other, more people were sitting down in protest that they weren't hearing their favourites. From my perspective though I liked it more than the Gmex show because I knew some of the songs by now having heard them a week before.

Was the tour a mistake? Yes, I think it was. It would have been better if he'd played a few old songs, then a few new ones, then some old ones... and so on, or done what other people do and alternate between old and new, song by song. He lost a lot of fans with that tour, and for many people it was the beginning of the end for him.

i don't get people
you can still enjoy music you don't know, right?
doesn't anyone go see local bands?
here we often complain about Prince doing the same-old stuff
whether it's the same old song he plays over and over again
or a new tune that sounds like something he's written before
and then these same people walk out when he tries something new?
we need to support the new directions and new sounds
get out and about
there is A LOT of great music out there
seek and ye shall know
[Edited 1/8/06 14:10pm]

dawntreader said:

Yeah. I found out later that he supposedly tweaked his ankle. Shit happens, right? But then I found out later that instead of recuperating, he went to see someone else in concert (I don't remember who). And thinking back, I don't think it was the Staples Center; it may have been Great Western Forum.