While listening to a recording of the concert on Dez. 18th, the thought came to my mind: Prince kills himself creatively by playing the same old songs again and again!

You might say, listen to some aftershows. Of course he does play different stuff sometimes. But still the hit medleys or the old songs are such a dominant part of his stage appearance. It's like a cage, I think he needs to free himself of on a much more regular basis.

A musician needs far more different experiences on stage in order to develop fresh ideas and develop as an artist.

It's a high price you pay, if you are in it for the big dollars.

lol

so he does it only for the big bucks ?

and he's not creative live ?

lol-have you actually been listening ?

he changes the way songs are played most every tour-and to say he's not creative cuz he plays his hits is crazy

at least he appreciates its hits that allow him to continue

and aftershows are actually rehearsals thesedays i think-i'd still rather pay to see him rehearse than pay see anothers best stuff

it puzzles me why folk complain anbout hits so much-and when he does tours/shows, he aint doing em ' for us freaks-that listen or actually go to every single show-anybody that listens as much as some of us do would get bored

thats not P's fault

its called OCD lol

and most of us have a bit of funk OCD

including Prince

With crowds like that, Prince has to perform the hits in order to please the majority.

Most of them don't know 20Ten or even most of last 15-20 years . . . they're going to see the Prince of their childhood.

Prince explained it recently saying that most pple indeed come 2 c the hits and the 80's Prince and he added "i'm not going 2 b obstinate" about not playing a lot of recent material.

Well, i liked it better when he was obstinate (1994-96 and 2002), and anyway hasn't Prince always been obstinate on almost everything?

I mean i don't mind him playing a few hits, but i just can't stand hearing these same songs over and over again, despite the change in arrangements... I basically lost all interest in P's live per4mances these last years...

Prince has become for me a non-interesting musician -both studio and live- since 2004.

Hadn't I been hooked MUCH earlier, I could never get hooked with the current Prince.

He's just a joke and a pale reflection of what he was.

Live, he will always have to please the masses. As much as Orgers and die-hards may like the obscure hits/ the new material , it just wouldn't equal a big box office.

His approach is similar to what Paul McCartney, Elton John, the Rolliing Stones, Bowie, Stevie or even the late MJ have been doing. When you become an elder statesman, you give the fans what they want, even if you are just treading water.

Creatively speaking, same logic applies. in studio, where else can they go? They have a comfort zone and stick with it. They revisit their past sounds to some degree and may dabble a bit in some of the newer sound, but they still keep their signature sound.

I don't think Prince is a joke by any means, but he's at a point musically both in studio and on the stage where he may continue down this path. His problem is compounded by the fact that except for a few albums over the past few years, some of his material have been released in alternative means (newspapers/Target/Europe), so ticket buyers in America would be clueless to some songs.

Graycap23 said:

And for all the same reasons, I'm sure!

Se7en said:

With crowds like that, Prince has to perform the hits in order to please the majority.

Most of them don't know 20Ten or even most of last 15-20 years . . . they're going to see the Prince of their childhood.

This! Besides, he mixes up the hits a lot and plays them in different ways. For example, during the musicolgy tour the first line of when doves cry went "dig if you will the picture, of you and I engaged in a..." and then the guitar riff from "kiss". Very clever that kept the song fresh and suprising

vitriol said:

Prince has become for me a non-interesting musician -both studio and live- since 2004.

Hadn't I been hooked MUCH earlier, I could never get hooked with the current Prince.

He's just a joke and a pale reflection of what he was.

Damn, thats what wrong with me...thanks vitriol.

databank said:

Prince explained it recently saying that most pple indeed come 2 c the hits and the 80's Prince and he added "i'm not going 2 b obstinate" about not playing a lot of recent material.

Well, i liked it better when he was obstinate (1994-96 and 2002), and anyway hasn't Prince always been obstinate on almost everything?

I mean i don't mind him playing a few hits, but i just can't stand hearing these same songs over and over again, despite the change in arrangements... I basically lost all interest in P's live per4mances these last years...

COMPUTERBLUE1984 said:

Live, he will always have to please the masses. As much as Orgers and die-hards may like the obscure hits/ the new material , it just wouldn't equal a big box office.

His approach is similar to what Paul McCartney, Elton John, the Rolliing Stones, Bowie, Stevie or even the late MJ have been doing. When you become an elder statesman, you give the fans what they want, even if you are just treading water.

I never saw Elton John take a huge hit, and omit the lyrics, and just repeat the same crap over and over again. Prince takes a song like Let's Go Crazy and just shouts "Go Go Go" a few billion times after only singing the first verse. He also gets all these female singers singing cover songs. Those other legends you mentioned might do a cover or two for fun, but Prince has had shows with more covers than his own originals. That is downright stupid considering the immenese catalog he has. Now when Prince is on, he's better than all those legends combined, but it hasn't happened enough for me. U2 seems to have the best balance between the hits and the new songs, though on the latest leg of their 360 tour, they seem to be playing a bit too many hits.

no he doesn't...mainstream songs 4 mainstream shows

check out an aftershow if possible or enjoy 1 of his many releases

If a fan chooses to attend every show Prince does in his city on a tour don't be surprised if you hear the same songs repeated. I don't have any problem with what Prince plays because I don't chase his every burp and hiccup around the globe. If you take a break from chasing him all over the country or the world then maybe you wouldn't have heard 'Kiss' 500 times live already! The songs from the December 18th show were fresh and still rocked after all this time. Maybe I enjoyed them so much because I haven't heard him do a full concert in 6 years. Some fans can't go 6 months without a concert.

It's not about what the audience wants, it's a question of giving Prince himself a chance to develop as an artist.

Prince can rearrange "Let’s go crazy" a 100 times. It's still based on an idea or structure created over 25 years ago!

databank said:

Prince explained it recently saying that most pple indeed come 2 c the hits and the 80's Prince and he added "i'm not going 2 b obstinate" about not playing a lot of recent material.

Well, i liked it better when he was obstinate (1994-96 and 2002), and anyway hasn't Prince always been obstinate on almost everything?

I mean i don't mind him playing a few hits, but i just can't stand hearing these same songs over and over again, despite the change in arrangements... I basically lost all interest in P's live per4mances these last years...

I remember people leaving the shows waaaaay before they ended ....this was during the Gold/Ultimate Live Experience shows in 1995. Personally, I enjoyed the shows very much but most casual fans didn´t really dig the concept of playing just new songs at that time ( sprinkled with a couple of obscure songs like Pink Cashmere). I think Prince is right when he says that he just HAS to play what the majority wants, and honestly, I really enjoyed last summer´s shows a lot because the arrangements were not the same, and the songs were not overloaded with too many horns.

However, I think it would be nice if he could let go of all the cover songs he keeps playing these days, and as much as like the background singers, he should keep their contributions to a minimum because they , especially Shelby, are becoming a tad too dominant on stage for me.

I´d like to see a couple of obscure songs added to the current songlist and maybe some of his more recent stuff.....I can´t stand the new songs that he DOES play ( Guitar leaves me really cold) but in my opinion there were tons of really strong songs on 3121, Musicology, Lotusflower and 2010.....those releases were just a bit marred by some really weak songs on those albums but that doesn´t mean that the really strong material he´s released in the last decade should be neglected.

Why do people tend to say Prince has to play the hits? Prince doesn't have to play anything, if he just doesn't want to!

He plays the hits because he wants to fill the arenas, get the big money and save his pop status.

It made my day just to be in the same room. I'm a month short of 21, and for me and my friends (as salty as it might be to say) he is like one of the few traces of iconic music left. Something pure with talent that wasn't contrived by a team over at a record label. I still think that his shittiest song is better than the top 100 (IMO). It was outragous to see the hits live; something I honestly thought I'd never to get to see (being younger, on the east coast, and a broke college student). Little Red Corvette has a new meaning for me now, and it was great to see him preform so many hits in their entirety (as opposed to the medleys). A lot of you are lucky enough to be considerably older than me, and I guess with that you were lucky enough to see maybe a more conceptual and energized tour. I was just stoked to see him dance and play a few instruments, becuase in my few years of attending live shows, this was by far the most energized, talented, and real treat. I guess what I mean is that even though this by some standards was creatively dry, I'm happy I got to see him as opposed to missing out completely. This fan was satisfied.

[Edited 12/26/10 12:08pm]

My theory is: The fact that Prince doesn't have a focus on his latest creations has an effect on his future creations or, let's say, his creative mindset and development.

^Creatively top-notch! Thanks!

funkomatic said:

My theory is: The fact that Prince doesn't have a focus on his latest creations has an effect on his future creations or, let's say, his creative mindset and development.

I agree, it's just that the reality of my situation is that I'm not sure I can wait long enough for him to find that creative outlet again and I'd rather see him play some hits for me in person cos that's better than nothing

[Edited 12/26/10 12:21pm]

No problem! I'm happy for you that you had a good time.

[Edited 12/26/10 12:25pm]

If you don't like it, go see Bruce Springsteen.

Go see Duran Duran.

I'm sick of reading people bitch about Prince's setlist when he's hardly the only classic artist that performs mostly classic material.

You think Rolling Stones fans give a shit that they've heard Satisfaction for the 100,000th time?

Springsteen fans would riot if he didn't play Born in the U.S.A. or Glory Days!

Paris9748430 said:

If you don't like it, go see Bruce Springsteen.

Go see Duran Duran.

I'm sick of reading people bitch about Prince's setlist when he's hardly the only classic artist that performs mostly classic material.

You think Rolling Stones fans give a shit that they've heard Satisfaction for the 100,000th time?

Springsteen fans would riot if he didn't play Born in the U.S.A. or Glory Days!

Some fans want to believe that Prince is as invested in every single song he's done as they are. If they love an unreleased bootleg track from 82 then Prince is obligated to play it for them live. The fantasy setlist in your imagination will always be just that a fantasy!

HonestMan13 said:

Paris9748430 said:

If you don't like it, go see Bruce Springsteen.

Go see Duran Duran.

I'm sick of reading people bitch about Prince's setlist when he's hardly the only classic artist that performs mostly classic material.

You think Rolling Stones fans give a shit that they've heard Satisfaction for the 100,000th time?

Springsteen fans would riot if he didn't play Born in the U.S.A. or Glory Days!

Some fans want to believe that Prince is as invested in every single song he's done as they are. If they love an unreleased bootleg track from 82 then Prince is obligated to play it for them live. The fantasy setlist in your imagination will always be just that a fantasy!

They've listened to too many bootlegs.

When you listen to EVERY show from EVERY tour, you're gonna get bored.

When an artist plays a song, they don't care how many times they've played it.

The same people whining about Prince's music not being as good anymore are the same ones whining when he doesn't play it.

If it's not good to you, why do you care if he plays it or not?

Paris9748430 said:

If you don't like it, go see Bruce Springsteen.

Go see Duran Duran.

I'm sick of reading people bitch about Prince's setlist when he's hardly the only classic artist that performs mostly classic material.

You think Rolling Stones fans give a shit that they've heard Satisfaction for the 100,000th time?

Springsteen fans would riot if he didn't play Born in the U.S.A. or Glory Days!

Have you ever been to a Bruce Springsteen concert? I have, and I have never heard him play those songs. Springsteen is pretty far from an oldies-only setlist.

I dont think thats a fair comment to make. Other old skool artists such as the Beatles, the Rolling Stones, Bruce Springteen even Micheal Jackson when he was still alive, all these artirts have played their old hits while performing and not one fan has made a complaint about it. So why is that the case with Prince? I dont think its killing his creavitiy, some fans love to hear him play his old hits like myself. I have no issue with it.

Paris9748430 said:

HonestMan13 said:

Some fans want to believe that Prince is as invested in every single song he's done as they are. If they love an unreleased bootleg track from 82 then Prince is obligated to play it for them live. The fantasy setlist in your imagination will always be just that a fantasy!

They've listened to too many bootlegs.

When you listen to EVERY show from EVERY tour, you're gonna get bored.

When an artist plays a song, they don't care how many times they've played it.

The same people whining about Prince's music not being as good anymore are the same ones whining when he doesn't play it.

If it's not good to you, why do you care if he plays it or not?

This is the first time I've attended more than one show for a tour. I decided to go to 3 originally (the 14th got cancelled) based on the artists he's got with him. If he did perform a song each time I went then so what! For all of those who feel the setlist isn't changing or you're tired of hearing (insert song) then stop buying tickets to every single show and tracking down every single bootleg of the shows. give yourself time to enjoy the most recent show and then let some time pass.

Efan said:

Paris9748430 said:

If you don't like it, go see Bruce Springsteen.

Go see Duran Duran.

I'm sick of reading people bitch about Prince's setlist when he's hardly the only classic artist that performs mostly classic material.

You think Rolling Stones fans give a shit that they've heard Satisfaction for the 100,000th time?

Springsteen fans would riot if he didn't play Born in the U.S.A. or Glory Days!

Have you ever been to a Bruce Springsteen concert? I have, and I have never heard him play those songs. Springsteen is pretty far from an oldies-only setlist.

Here's a list of sets he played on his 2009 tour.

Don't see a whole lot of new stuff here.

http://www.brucespringste...lists.html

[Edited 12/26/10 17:46pm]