blackguitaristz said:

Dig, I was just going into Jr. High when this went down in L.A. By the time I found out that P was even opening up for The Stones, the seats had long since been sold out. I went to school with a girl whose stepdad went to the show. He said that P pretty much got a good reception, except for a few assholes in the front. He said that although he wasn't at all familiar with who the hell P was, he dug P's sound nevertheless. With the shows being in L.A., this was HUGE news. I remember hearing about it on KLOS. They were actually TELLING folks to bring more shit to throw at P the following day. Like it was a big joke. Shit like "Hey! Wouldn't it be funny if you threw this on stage?!" Shit like that. It turned in to a big joke. I was really surprised that it was seen that way. I realized how heavy racism was at that time. Of course, because it was soooo hyped up, the next show was even worse. Everybody by then, who could have cared less about P, was throwing shit at them. What a lot of folks don't know is that P was slated to open even MORE shows for the Stones on that tour, not just the two in L.A. But yeah, I remember that shit like it was yesterday. They actually played the boos and shit on KLOS the next day after the second show.

blackguitaristz said:

Thanks for your perspective. It is always nice to hear first hand knowledge. I can't imagine what that must of felt like for Prince to have so much hatred on that level thrown at him and having it so public. Considering how sensitive he is and how young he was at the time it must have been very frustrating and the strenght he demonstrated during it is amazing to me.

blackguitaristz said:

wow...that's dogged. a few people ruining it all for others. that's some childish-assed shit right there.

Krystal666 said:

U know Kyrs, it was fucked up for P AND his band. Living in L.A., it was all over the news stations as well as rock radio. It wasn't so much that P got booed off one night, but a second night as well. It didn't help matters that Bill Graham, the legedary rock concert promoter, came out on stage and chewed out the crowd. Anyways, it was well over 100,000 folks at each show. Easily the largest crowd P has ever seen. BUT, P was a tough street kid. When I saw him later on the Controversy tour, I was kinda looking for signs of him being shell shocked from the Stones show. Nah, it wasn't none of that. P came on stage like he OWNED that shit! Very confident and as Lisa called him, "fearless". And this was Feb, 82. Long before 1999. But I remember hering the boos on that radio station from the Stones second show; it was SUPER loud. Like a airplane taking off and shit.

blackguitaristz said:

Thank you! That is amazing! He is so confident. I love that about him!

During that time, Prince had not had a crossover hit yet except for "I Wanna Be Your Lover" during the disco era and a lot of pop audiences didn't remember it. Even if they did remember it, this was also in the time of the "disco sucks" era. Prince was well known and loved in the R&B world but he had not fully conquered the pop world yet.



A lot of the time, once a black artist's music becomes loved by white people, even some of the most racist ones will "overlook" the artist's race and give them a "pass". A white person can still be racist and love a black artist.

But this was 1981. That "free love" era was long over by then. The Rolling Stones had not only their old fans but a whole new generation of fans by then also. Just look at all the different variations of Prince fans these days as opposed to in the old days.

vainandy said:

Yeah I agree with you. It's very hypocritical.

vainandy said:

Yes I agree with you.

This incident reminds me of the mindless violence that goes on at football matches (specifically England)

People go to the game with no intention of watching the sport but they are spoiling over for a fight.

Also it's a sort of hysteria that people get "caught up" in. It becomes a way of venting off anger and agression because they are frustrated with their own lives.

Prince and his band were used as a human punch bags.

Thanks. It's always great to hear firsthand stories from someone that actually lived in that area at the time. I don't think Prince was worried at all about performing on the Controversy tour after experiencing the Rolling Stones incident because he knew he would be performing for an audience that came to see "him". Prince knew he had a following and since he had recently outdone Rick James on a tour a few years earlier, he knew he was somebody and had what it takes.

If I remember correctly, this Rolling Stone's video:



actually consists of footage of one of the two Stones shows that Prince and co performed at.
(The concert film was recorded at three different major outdoor shows on the Stone's 81 tour)

Thanks BananaCologne. I'll be looking for that one.

vainandy said:

No problem, but just to make myself absolutely clear - no Prince footage, only footage of that night's Stones gig.

That's cool. I like The Rolling Stones music also. I'd also like to see the type of atmosphere that was going on in the audience during that time.

vainandy said:

It's a great show - Honky Tonk Women I remember being very cool (that song I'm 99% sure is from the LA shows)

BananaCologne said:

I saw that theatrical release in the theaters when it came out. Keith clocks a fella runninonstage with his geetar.

After hearing of this incident back then after becoming a Prince fan I was ready and watchin fo r some backstage Prince comments at the very least but nothing lol.

They also simulcast that show on KLOS and ON TV did as well. The first . Jovan also sponserd it lol..the first time a rock concert took sponsorship by such a commercial entity

I think that was around the time of "Emotional Rescue" and "Start Me Up". Did they do any of their more recent stuff of the era?

BananaCologne said:

If I remember correctly that film was directed by Hal Ashby (Harold and Maud), and was mainly a concert in Australia? (I got my doubts regarding this point or I am remembering bad). Pretty good concert, anyhow, with classic material and the by then recent. I cant remember if they do Emotional Rescue, maybe not.. I think the documentary Gimme Shelter is better.

dammme said:

You got the director correct, but it was compiled from footage of three diffent American shows on their '81 tour.

pepper7 said:

Maybe back in the 80's it did but there's hardly any trouble in English grounds now. I've seen people get ejected for shouting a racist comment.

My good friend, The Audience was there, and he explained the whole incident to me. Yeah, it was a pretty sad affair for Prince. But what I never got was, these same fans that booed him were cheering for him by the time Purple Rain hit the shelves. Probably because he was becoming a force in Pop music.

You know, I think the only way to se this right after all these years, is for the Stones to open up for Prince.

We can throw purple flowers and bibles.

Thanks for posting that interview. I used to be a huge Stones fan, and I had bought tickets for the Bay Area show that tour (Oakland? SF? Whatever.) -- I had heard that this little guy in a speedo who plays like Hendrix was opening for them, and was dismayed to hear he had left the tour. Soooo

I went out and bought Dirty Mind, and then saw the Controversy tour. Never looked back -- I still see the Stones from time to time, but they never ever do or did for me what Prince does (and will do TONIGHT!!!!)

Stones will always play the usual old stuff like "satisfaction" and "brown sugar" every concert. Probably because their new stuff stinks. At least prince tries something different every concert!

I remember hearing sometime in the late 80s or early 90s that Terence Trent D'Arby opened for Bruce Springsteen. I am not sure where it took place, but the audience did not get TTD and booed him and his band off the stage. I think Bruce came out and thrashed his own fans for being such a-holes and told them just how great TTD was and that they should appreciate him being opening act. I don't remember the rest of the story, but this topic reminded me of that incident.

parade86 said:

I had a bizzare dream about TTD last night!