I just saw him live last week and for the first time noticed teleprompters all over the place. Is this new or has he been doing this for a while?

Kinda sad.

He's had lyrics sheets in the past - but the prompters are new, I think.

If he's changing up the setlist every night, it's not surprising, really. That's a lot of material to keep on the tip of your tongue.

With hundreds and hundreds of songs to remember from a 30+ year catalog, I would want a teleprompter too, just in case.

Not like it's his second album he's performing

Excuse me.....but, changing the setlist every night? Hundreds and hundreds of songs?

Pardon me for going on like a broken record, but have you seen the setlist for the last year or so of gigs?

TheDigitalGardener said:

Excuse me.....but, changing the setlist every night? Hundreds and hundreds of songs?

Pardon me for going on like a broken record, but have you seen the setlist for the last year or so of gigs?

Have you ever performed onstage? Even small changes can cause one to "go up," as we say in the biz.

Who says they're for Prince? There are other people on the stage. The teleprompters are just keeping everyone on the same page.

No big.

And I'm kidding. Prince uses them to...to check his reflection.

I kid again.

Why wouldn't he use them? It really is no big and this time, I'm not kidding.

Even with them, I'm pretty sure he messed up the lyrics to "Jungle Love" at Friday night's show (it was a minor screwup, and I think he covered it fine).

From the pictures some people have posted of the shows, it looks like the words on the teleprompters aren't that big. I'm impressed by his eyesight if so!

Anywho, I don't care that he uses them. I think they're there mostly as backup and reassurance. He is most definitely NOT looking at them/reading off them all the time.

Genesia said:

TheDigitalGardener said:

Excuse me.....but, changing the setlist every night? Hundreds and hundreds of songs?

Pardon me for going on like a broken record, but have you seen the setlist for the last year or so of gigs?

Have you ever performed onstage? Even small changes can cause one to "go up," as we say in the biz.

We are talking about the same artist who can pull a song out of his back catalogue on a whim and play and sing it from start to finish all the way through, this action is on bootleg gigs for all to hear. I just find it hard to believe that songs or lines in songs that he has performed at nearly every single gig since the start of the decade (and beyond) would be forgotten just because the order of songs was altered.

Anyway, not here to argue, have i performed on stage? Does singing a solo of Roses Of Picardy in my year 7 school play count?

[Edited 12/22/10 9:01am]

[Edited 12/22/10 9:22am]

I suppose this could be fodder for another "Prince is getting old" thread.

What about "Has Prince got dementia and can't remember his songs?"

It was pretty funny when he repeated the same verse twice with "Face Down" a bunch of years back. He caught himself and tried to fix it without screwing everything up.

CallMeSir said:

It was pretty funny when he repeated the same verse twice with "Face Down" a bunch of years back. He caught himself and tried to fix it without screwing everything up.

Bless him.

Considering what a perfectionist he is... I'm sure he doesn't want to take the chance of making any mistakes....

TheDigitalGardener said:

Genesia said:

Have you ever performed onstage? Even small changes can cause one to "go up," as we say in the biz.

We are talking about the same artist who can pull a song out of his back catalogue on a whim and play and sing it from start to finish all the way through, this action is on dozens of bootleg gigs for all to hear. I just find it hard to believe that songs or lines in songs that he has performed at nearly every single gig since the start of the decade (and beyond) would be forgotten just because the order of songs was altered.

Anyway, not here to argue, have i performed on stage? Does singing a solo of Roses Of Picardy in my year 7 school play count?

All of which means nothing.

I can go back and recite lines from plays I did years ago. And yet, when we were rehearsing the show I'm currently in last night, my blocking changed slightly and, suddenly, all the lines I knew before were gone.

There is no rhyme or reason to memory - especially for a performer. Even a momentary distraction can screw you up horribly.

Genesia said:

TheDigitalGardener said:

We are talking about the same artist who can pull a song out of his back catalogue on a whim and play and sing it from start to finish all the way through, this action is on dozens of bootleg gigs for all to hear. I just find it hard to believe that songs or lines in songs that he has performed at nearly every single gig since the start of the decade (and beyond) would be forgotten just because the order of songs was altered.

Anyway, not here to argue, have i performed on stage? Does singing a solo of Roses Of Picardy in my year 7 school play count?

All of which means nothing.

I can go back and recite lines from plays I did years ago. And yet, when we were rehearsing the show I'm currently in last night, my blocking changed slightly and, suddenly, all the lines I knew before were gone.

There is no rhyme or reason to memory - especially for a performer. Even a momentary distraction can screw you up horribly.

Understood, but i have now decided that dementia is creeping up on our Purple wonder.

I can't wait to hear the next round of shows.....Those all time classics, Purple Park, Lets Go Beret, U Got The Cream etc etc.

Yeah he kinda performs the most popular songs. He def shouldn't need them but maybe he gets confused now and again.

amberella said:

Yeah he kinda performs the most popular songs. He def shouldn't need them but maybe he gets confused now and again.

It's dementia, i'm telling you.

So he doesn't curse.

I find it acceptable due to his large catalog. Prince has a lot to do onstage. Manage the band, make the audience happy. I would not feel cheated by him using them. I guess we would feel cheated if he forgot the lyrices. LOL

Probably more efficient than that notebook of lyrics he used to keep at his feet at the front of the stage.

2020 said:

Who cares? Hell our current president uses them all the time and he's the chief officer of the USA!!! Next...

Yeah, but our president is a joke, so I wouldn't compare the two unless you're trying to insult Prince.

Nothinbutjoy said:

Who says they're for Prince? There are other people on the stage. The teleprompters are just keeping everyone on the same page.

No big.

And I'm kidding. Prince uses them to...to check his reflection.

I kid again.

Why wouldn't he use them? It really is no big and this time, I'm not kidding.

mr prettyman

CallMeSir said:

2020 said:

Who cares? Hell our current president uses them all the time and he's the chief officer of the USA!!! Next...

Yeah, but our president is a joke, so I wouldn't compare the two unless you're trying to insult Prince.

Shut the fuck up and leave the politics for P&R.

Efan said:

CallMeSir said:

Yeah, but our president is a joke, so I wouldn't compare the two unless you're trying to insult Prince.

Shut the fuck up and leave the politics for P&R.

Make me.

It's a waste of time. He won't say the words to most of his songs now anyway.

I know you can't compare the two but I saw Axl Rose using teleprompters back in 1991 when GNR only had 4 albums out.

lucky. axl didn't show up to the show i went to. gave the finger 2 the road every time they came out for yrs after that!

ppl were ripping the seats from uppers levels and throwing em to the floor

TheDigitalGardener said:

Excuse me.....but, changing the setlist every night? Hundreds and hundreds of songs?

Pardon me for going on like a broken record, but have you seen the setlist for the last year or so of gigs?

This argument keeps popping up again and again. Sure there are some songs which are performed every show but compared to for instance the SOTT/LS/Nude/D&P shows the variation is just HUGE. These tours had completely standardized setlists and people would rave if 1 (!) new song would be performed (anyone remember the excitement over ''Bambi'' on the Nude tour??). If you list all the songs performed over the 20 something shows performed in 2010 you'd actually get a HUGE list (and half of the SOTT album performed). I just saw the performance of ''Adore'' at MSG, I don't care to look up exactly WHEN he performed that the last time but must haven been ages ago....

Like someone else said, this is keeping everyone on stage on track. A moment's notice can make your memory totally blank, regardless of how routine the act is. There are days where, out of nowhere, in the midst of reciting steps to something I know backwards and forwards, I completely blank and just stammer. Now, Prince is a pretty alert guy and has to be aware of a lot of things all the time, much more than I do, so it doesn't surprise me that he has that stuff there just to remind him where he is.

Didnt the 21 nights in London tour contain 156 songs played (so someone said i could'nt be arsed counting)

anyway thats pretty damn varied!

in other news

i saw him at the indigo with the prompt sheets (boxes and boxes of them), soon as the tune started some woman frantically routed round for the song sheet

not once did he look at them, also they're all in tiny letters and even had the eyes etc on them, worse prompters i've seen! but coolest! He must have them purely as a back up, his back catalogue kinda justifies the paranoia to have them