Hey guys, just thought i'd put this out there....

I have recently booked my tickets to see Primal Scream perform

their seminal 1991 album Screamadelica in its' entirety at

Brixton Academy, London, UK this coming March.

I also hear that The Flaming Lips are also set to perform their Soft Bulletin album

live in its' entirety.

I therefore put forward the following proposition:

If Prince was to tour a classic album - which would you pick and why?

The obvious contender would be Purple Rain, complete with a Revolution reunion

and similar set design and costumes, white cloud guitar, etc...

I think Sign 'O' The Times would be simply magical, so many great songs

and the album sequence would play out incredibly well as a set list...

But my favourite of the 'classic' albums would have to be 1999:

Lot's of '80's synth sounds, Linn drum machine,

very electronica-driven gig in the vein of Daft Punk, Justice or Hot Chip.

Also, great costumes, set design and seductive, funky rude-boy Prince!

Any thoughts?

I actually thought about this. I would love to see him do it for an album like 1999 or SOTT.

He pretty much did Purple Rain during the Musicology tour.

The problem with the earlier albums is he'd probably only be willing to perform half the albums. Dirty Mind, Controversy, and 1999 would all have to be 1 tour, but then again that's kind of how it was back then anyway. I'd say ATWIAD as it's the only 80's album that he didn't do a tour for.

[Edited 1/7/11 10:38am]

Isn't that what DVDs in our days for

[Edited 1/7/11 10:44am]

Angelic1302 said:

Isn't that what DVDs in our days for :confused:

True, but Prince does revamp songs from time to time. Look how he's been playing Little Red Corvette for the past couple of years. Imagine what kind of new ways he'd play a lot of his older songs if wanted to.

MajesticOne89 said:

The problem with the earlier albums is he'd probably only be willing to perform half the albums. Dirty Mind, Controversy, and 1999 would all have to be 1 tour, but then again that's kind of how it was back then anyway. I'd say ATWIAD as it's the only 80's album that he didn't do a tour for.

[Edited 1/7/11 10:38am]

I agree ATWIAD would be the perfect choice and he can use a fuller set: the Revolution, Sheila E. Eric Leeds & Eddie M. Jill Jones Taj Sevelle along with many of the orchestra people that were on the album that would be a beautiful arrangement with a sorta Raspberry Beret(video) Sign o the Times stage set. White & Black cloud, lots of ruffled shirts and do the whole album set including Girl some kind of arrangement for Hello & She's Always In My Hair

This would be PATHETIC (any album)!!!

It's pathetic enough that he plays mostly 80's material!

BlackCandle said:

Personally, I'd like to see him do the Controversy album in it's entirety when he regains control of it this year. He's done the Purple Rain tracks to death. What other albums has he come close to doing the whole of? Lovesexy? The Undertaker? I remember watching Jay-Z do the whole of Reasonable Doubt (in reverse) for it's 10th annivesary. That was great (superb live arrangements by ?uestlove). But it was too short for a full concert so he had to follow it with other hits. Anyway, it worked for him and it could work for Prince.

Most of Parade was never performed much after that tour, neither was Lovesexy

I don't know with Purple Rain there are songs that are hardly or never performed after that such as Computer Blue Darling Nikki Erotic City God the Love them & God the Dance Electric 17 Days. But I see what your saying a lot of that albums music is on a regular rotation same with 1999

databank said:

This would be PATHETIC (any album)!!!

It's pathetic enough that he plays mostly 80's material!

I think if it's just like 3 or 4 shows it would be hot. And video tape it, maybe throw in a few outtakes from that album. A tour might be too much

Interesting topic. I saw Steely Dan late last year and they performed "Aja" in it's entirety. It was BRILLIANT!!!

What was your question?

It would be cool. Most of his albums are around an hour, he could do an hour of the album and an hour of the usual concert material.

It would be a treat for the fans, therefore he won't do it.

I really enjoy when people do this because you get to hear the deep cuts that they probably would not perform otherwise. I saw Roger Waters perform Dark Side Of The Moon a few years ago and The Wall last year and they were both amazing. I also saw A Perfect Circle 3 nights in a row last year where they performed an album each night. Since they only have 3 albums I got to year their entire catalog in three nights, very cool. There is something about hearing one of your favorite albums played live in its entirety.

If Prince were to do this I would like to hear 1999.

In October of last year (2010), a-ha performed their 1985 debut album, Hunting High and Low, with the Oslo Philharmonic Orchestra at the Royal Albert Hall in London, and included their entire second album, Scoundrel Days, as an encore. It was a one-night event. It was fantastic.

Prince would never do this.

But I agree: Purple Rain, as a Revolution reunion, would be absolutely brilliant.

now THAT is something I would definietely be there for if the Revolution reunited and he brought back all his old clothes back that would be AWESOMEEEEE!

I think anyone who has put out a classic album should revisit it and play it live, because some of those songs wind up dropping off of setlists for years.

I don't know if he should base a tour around it, but I liked how Springsteen would play different classic albums in different cities. I got to see Van Morrison do Astral Weeks at the Hollywood Bowl, and he did the first set of a mix of hits and recent songs, and the second set was Astral Weeks, but he didn't completely revamp, or stay completely true to the original.

1999 with The Time as opening act doing What Time Is It? album.

and

Sign "O" the Times with the same stage and done as a theatre tour. Maybe like a residency or like a broadway show even. Have Madhouse open up would be dope.

Wishful thinking, i'm guessing if it did happen it would be a Purple Rain. It would be a big pay check and it seems Prince thinks about that first and foremost whenever he does anything anymore. IMO
A Purple Rain reunion tour would not surprise me at all. Have The Time do some Ice Cream Castle tracks as opener.

Perform the album in hour one. Then do a couple long encores.

First encore would be just Prince doing a piano medley after a couple songs just Wendy joins him on stage with an acoustic guitar for a few more tracks. Various tracks like Sometimes it Snows in April, The Ladder, Cherry Moon, Power Fantastic, Old friends 4 Sale, God, Girl, 4 the Tears in Your Eyes, 17 Days, She's always in my hair, Paisley Park, Condition of the Heart and Mountains are played.

Encore 2 is a lovefest with houselights on halfway through it. Various tracks like, Raspberry Beret, Pop Life, Kiss, Anotherloverholenyohead, Girls & Boys and It's gonna be a Beautiful Night.

Anyways...

Lenny did this in 2009 with his Let Love Rule 20th anniversary tour which coincided with the release of his Let Love Rule: 20th Anniversary Edition album. It was a very successful tour, definitely well received.

I'd love to see Prince do something similar to commemorate the 25th anniversary of Parade. It's cool that he regularly does Kiss and Sometimes It Snows In April, but it would be great to see more performances of Girls & Boys, I Wonder U, Life Can Be So Nice, Mountains, etc.

I always think that's lame an uninspired.

I LOVE the feeling of "YEEY, MY FAVOURITE SONG WOW I THOUGHT HE NEVER PLAYED THIS".

Imagine my face in the openingseconds of Chelsea Rodgers:

Definitely ATWIAD.