Okay Okay Okay, I get it. We are hardcore Prince "fans" around here. Purple Rain isn't our favorite album. Kiss isn't our favorite Prince song, and we DO NOT want to hear "the hits" at the concerts. We only want to hear obscure and rarely played gems because we are so the die hard about Prince. If anyone tells you that When Doves Cry is their favorite Prince song you might as well smack them for being so obvious.

That being said-why isn't Purple Rain on ONA:LIVE? I understand that Prince is past Purple Rain by a long shot, but let's all step back from being hardcore Prince fans and be somewhat objective.Purple Rain is (maybe) Prince's most famous song. I know WE don't always want to hear it live (because WE are hardcore Prince fans), but don't you think that on, (what is being hailed as the live Prince album you have always wished for) that Purple Rain should be on it? Hell, we don't need all of "the hits" we don't need "Cream" or "The Most Beautiful Girl in the World", but having the only live Prince album without Purple Rain is like having only one live James Brown album without "I feel Good" or "Sex Machine". It would be like having only one live Zepplin album without "Stairway to Heaven".

Honestly, it isn't a huge deal to me, but I think when the casual fan picks up this album seeing , or not seeing, "Purple Rain" as one of the songs could be a decisive factor on whether or not the album is to be bought.

Of course like Morris says: "Money isn't everything."
Damn, that's a good line. What movie is it from again? Oh yeah that's right it's from the movie/album/song that are the two words that are gonna be in Prince's obituary right below this- .
And it's not even on his ultimate live album...

i think thou doth protest too much.You're dyin' for Purple Rain.I've heard it on every tour he's done in Britain and i'm bored to tears with it.(infact i'd head for a beer if i heard those opening chords!)

An old classic i'd like to see again would be ICNTTPOYM.Last time i saw him do that in '98 it blew my mind.

Purple Rain WAS a live recording. Also a live performance of it was released on video in both 1985 AND 1999. How many more times do we need a live version of Purple Rain? None. Been there done that.

I am not talking about a live "video" I am talking about his only live album. I understand you are bored with it bust you guys are most likely hard core Prince fans.

Agreed it would have been nice to have some of his classic tunes on live CD format, officially released. These didn't necessarliy have to be the hits, but tracks that have provided excellent performances in the past e.g. Just My Imagination, She's Always In My Hair etc. I thought it would have been a brilliant idea to have a mix set of his best performances of a variety of songs spanning all his eras but sadly not. No, this is ONA live not any of the other concerts live, so that has dictated the tracklist.

Was never one of my favorites.

Why did Prince keep saying on the ONA tour "If u came 2 hear Purple Rain u're in the wrong place" (or something like that!) then proceed to play it at the end of the night anyway?
Anyone got a theory on this (besides the fact that P is nuts).

Well... for one reason, I believe Prince desperately wants to be successful without relying too heavily on any of his classic Warner Bros hits. Yes there are other "hits" that were played on the tour, but mostly in the piano medley and including Purple Rain as played on the piano would probably be considered a rip-off to the casual fan/admirerer as far as buying a cd is concerned. I think that Prince was waiting until he had the "perfect" band to put out something new that he would be proud of having as his first live album. Maybe he will eventually release the Hit n' Run tour, but from Prince's point of view, I think it was probably much more important for him to go forward first rather than reaching back for the standard. Purple Rain is just too much of a standard classic and it could easily be deleted from the setlist and still capture the spirit of the ONA live concert without upseting the flow.

Secondly, as I mentioned before the version of Purple Rain that was played on the ONA tour certainly wasn't the best version of the song to release in a "live" format. Clearly, in my opinion, Purple Rain was only added to the setlist to appease the casual fans who decided to come to the concert and felt cheated that he didn't sing it.

Finally, the ONA concert and the Rainbow Children album both have been critically acclaimed, and I think Prince thought that it was just too good of an opportunity to pass up considering that he finally created something that people outside of his innermost circle of fans could appreciate. On top of all that, of course, is the overall message that the concert conveys. All things considered, Purple Rain is just too passe and can wait until some other time - if ever again.

I seem to remember reading somewhere that ONA didn't have a setlist... altho all the reports basically detailed the same set of songs being played.

That said, I think it is incredible that Prince has had the balls to tour and promote "three" new albums (two unreleased), which is what he's managed to do with the One Nite Alone tour:

One Nite Alone
Rainbow Children
Xenophobia

This is what FREEDOM sounds like folks. And they said that our boy was old! Please!

skywalker said:

couldn't agree more..

if ya aint happy..juz play the blues

skywalker said:

=== Forget Purple Rain. i'm wondering where "the RIDE" is? my personal fave. oh well, i have quite a few versions.

well,

maybe Purple Rain would help to sell more Box Set...but is it so important?

I mean...where are "I could never take the place of your man?", "Something in the Water", "Dolphin", "Calhoun Square", "Sign O The Times" (another hit !!!), "All the Critics Love you in NY", "The Ride", ", as they were played at the Celebration?

As a fan, these are the songs that i want to listen on cd, and these are the songs i want to play to convine somebody who dont know Prince that he is a GREAT MUSICIAN !!!

skywalker said:

Eh?

"Purple Rain" does not sound that great with only one guitar. That's how the band was configured for this tour.
I personally would not want any of the tracks listed by Rolling Stone to make way for "Purple Rain", any more than I want to hear "1999" again.

A piano version of "Purple Rain" was played a few times on the ONA tour, but I am sure that the casual Prince fan would not dig this version. Live albums do not traditionally sell to the casual fan anyway. Nirvana has a huge following, but they put out a live album with all of the "Hits", and it tanked.

I am way pumped though that "2 Nigs United" is going to be on the ONA Live set. This is the band that could tear that song up.

Also, don't be too sure that the Xeno Celebration set won't happen...

i love pruple rain as much as th enext fan,want it played at my funeral yadd ayadda,its awesome,& sure when i read thta track list & saw that it wanst there i was a bit shocked,but come on,we have heard it so many times,& tho i never tire of it,or hearing new reditions like th epiano version on some bootlegs of the ONA tour,i will be buying this b'cos i love Prince & his musicianship,& hearing live versions os other tracks i dont listen 2 as much makes me like those songs more,the studio cuts.

& the TakeMeWIthU / Raspberry Beret medley,i dont know why Prince plays it,but i like it,& Take me With You sounds great with this band

Prince likes his hidden tracks and what would you bet on PR turning up after all???
Springsteen slipped in 'Born to Run' as a hidden track on the recent Live in NYC 2000, so you never know...

XtrueX said:

He didn't always play it. My thought is that he could say that at the beginning and have people accept that they might not hear the hits tonight. Then if he didn't play it, they would not have spent the whole concert waiting for it and be disappointed, and if he does play it, he's suddenly the best thing since Slice.

He did play Purple Rain on the Rave2000 DVD, so if you wanted to, you could burn a new cd with that version added on at the end-which would be cool as an 'encore'.

Personally, I would've liked PR on there too, but i've heard it live enough times to want something different on the new CD's instead.

"Last time I checked, this was the year 2002. If you come to get your Purple Rain on you better hit the door now." Prince - One Nite Alone concert 3/02

Of course he sometimes played it at the end of the ONA concert, but there is your answer.

UUHHH! Cannot stamd Purple Rain! Im glad he didnt put that on there. Of course I have the NY Xenophobia set and he did sing that on there, but Im glad he didnt put that on there...tired...played out...whack