I really did not enjoy this at all. Only part I liked was the blues medley and the Time. It looks like a decent concert but the energy is missing somehow. There was more energy at the Super Bowl IMO.

I did like his Piano - Hated the song. I liked the Choir, but hated "the Christ". Though the part where the audience carries Prince to the piano was a bit scary!

I looked on Amazon.com and all of the reviews give it 5 stars just about. I've seen better bootlegs!

I like 'Nothing Compares 2 U' and that's about it unfortunately.

Hell, he even fluffs the words to 'She's Always In My Hair' and just about rescues it which gave me a giggle.

I like it...

I just got done watching it about 3 hours ago, I can hardly get thru the whole thing anymore though.

She's Always In My Hair

Alec said:

ok that was a highlight.

It's awful...from the poor editing to the lackluster performance. I can't bear to watch it.

I love Rave!

I was there..two feet in front of him...The reason it sucks is because its not a real performance..It was..OK lets take this song...oops i messed up..or there is some water on the floor...Take 15 mins off...ok..now he;s back..take the song again..stop...tape that part..ect ect ect..It was NOT a real performance it was pieced together..and Very boring for me personally.

Well, I love it.

prettymansson said:

I've always wondered, how much of what was performed got cut out? There are also those truncated bonus clips with George Clinton etc. Were they filmed after the 1999 finale or during the show?

It sounds like the filming wasn't the most fulfilling experience. It's a shame that a peformance that wasn't among his most outstanding was one that was filmed with so many quality cameras and presented on such an impressive DVD (as opposed to the Aladdin, which fails badly in every technical department compared to Rave).

I like parts of it, but I can't watch the whole thing.

I think it misses a raw edge. The performance is much to "clean" and emotionless. The guitar-sound also sucks most of the time and Prince doesn´t seem to enjoy the concert very much. One main problem is that we all know he can do much better and we wonder why on earth this is the concert that had to be released on DVD (I know it was new years eve 1999 and all, but still...)

leecaldon said:

it was done on the soundstage at paisley...the evening i was there..lenny did his part..*that was a live in one take segment..and prince did his part..there was also some jamming with johnny lang which never made it to the dvd..i believe other parts like the time ect were filmed at different times but all within the same 1-2 day period.

superspaceboy said:

Two words = Larry Grahm

VenusBlingBling said:

co-sign.

The editing IS too fast though.

Truthfully, when I watched the DVD at home, I was bored and turned it off, so I'd never seen the whole thing.
On New Year's Eve I saw Robert Randolph and they played "Rave" on the big screen prior to the concert. Seeing it large and loud made a big difference. It may have also been the excitement of the evening, too, because I was jammin'!!

really disappointing stuff. i only have a copy of it because i found a super weird looking chinese bootleg of it for five bucks, and i thought it would be a quirky little collectible.

not as bad as the Alladin concert dvd..it was the most bored i've ever been with any Prince project
[Edited 2/8/07 7:33am]

Mazerati said:

i really liked that one...though the sound quality and editing sucked eggs.

prettymansson said:

Which would explain why at one moment everyone seems excited and at other times not.

prettymansson said:

I wondered where it had been filmed.

Anx said:

WHat's interesting is how Prince hates the bootlegs of his live performances, yet when he tries to have it professionally done, it comes off as fake and forced. I saw him looking at the camera hamming it up.

BananaCologne said:

That was one of my favorite parts! I also loved his instrumental intro to Purple House. I'll pop it in every once in a while to see him with his gorgeous long hair. Money well spent, I tell ya...

Oh, but I do find the slow-mo segues to be a little cheesy.
[Edited 2/8/07 10:43am]

When you go back and watch the Purle Rain VHS and Sign O' The Times concert movie, then Rave isn't in the same league whatsoever.

Lately, he's been regaining his form. Hopefully he'll stay on the course he's on.

By the way, I was in Germany for one of the Sign gigs. They were with assigned seating and just the most amazing experience. I've also seen the Parade tour, an open air concert around the Symbol period and a not so great live concert in '97 in North Carolina. Having watched his career closely since '81, the quality of nearly everything started dropping off after The Gold Experience and didn't take a turn for the better until The Rainbow Children. The last two albums were spotty, but showing signs of promise. I really loved most of 3121. I keep thinking he's just 1 or 2 albums away from putting out some top rate "Prince" quality material.
[Edited 2/8/07 10:50am]

SOTT the movie was also "fake" and pieced together... but it turned out well. Even if the sounds don't even match what you see at some parts (Forever in My Life)

ufoclub said:

Yes, but it was true to the concert in many respects. I loved both the concert and the movie! There was the corny "acted" scenes, but they worked as a band just messing around. Had it been the follow up to Purple Rain, it would have done even better. The critics loved it at the time, as well.

Alec said:

me too, I'm just not so fond of the middle part

superspaceboy said:

How cool would it be to have a 3 dvd set - one from the 80's, one from the 90's/Symbol era, and one of the 00's so far...Maybe even throw in a bonus disc of aftershow and TV appearance stuff.

Hey, I can dream.

It probably sucked because it wasn't a real concert. Wasn't it filmed over the course of a whole day? That must have sucked the energy from everyone. Vegas has a much worse song selection but much better energy.

I think it starts to pick up a bit of steam around Gett Off, though, and by the time 1999 comes around it's decent.

The selection of live Prince cd's and dvd's is pretty effing pathetic, though.