During one of the Parade rehearsals, singing Girls & Boys, he says, "So glad somebody else didn't put out this record. I'd be scared to death. The new single by Culture Club..."

-

Official release: The screams and du-wo-wo in When Doves Cry (4:10-4:50).

Just My Imagination. Prince and his guitar solo. Paard van Troje, the Hague, The Netherlands. 1988.

There were just so freaking many during the first 20 years of his career, this is really a tough ass question for me. I guess I would go with the 85 AMA's because I watched it live with some ol' school, if it ain't Motown it ain't shit type members of my family that didn't get my fascination with Prince at all. They actually couldn't stand him. So his winning and winning and winning of the major awards and the looks on theirs and Lionel Richie's faces were just priceless but the absolute best part for me was the stellar Purple Rain performance when Prince and the Revolution left NO DOUBT, they were a formidable force that I just knew would stand the test of time with my love, respect, admiration and of course, overcoming Prince's narcissistic, egomanical, control freak issues.

Boy was I wrong about that last part.

When he still played his new albums live.

motherfunka said:

Just My Imagination. Prince and his guitar solo. Paard van Troje, the Hague, The Netherlands. 1988.

For me too

If I Was Your Girlfriend, the whole thing.

Also, on a smaller scale, I love the 'plethora of euphoria' line in Good Love. The chords and the harmonies really make it sound euphoric.

Anna Stesia hands down. The atmosphere of that song gives me goosebumps every time I listen to it.

I love listening to live versions of it too. How the whole audience would go deathly quiet when they heard the first opening chords to that song was just brilliant.

I'm not in any way religious either but at the end of the song when everyone starts chanting too, wow.

Playing Empty Room during the ONA tour at the Hammersmith Odeon, London. Awsome...

More recently, getting to the end of AOA and sitting there in silence thinking to myself "at fucking last! Finally back from the wastelands!" before going back to the start and playing it again.

Other noteable moments:

THAT guitar solo at the RnR hall of fame induction

Hearing Space (Universal Love Remix) for the first time

Hearing Annie Christian for the first time (and thinking WTF was that? Before playing it agian, and again, and again. Each time followed by WTF was that?)

Bob George on an old cassette, 1000th generation copy, muffled and full of hiss.
Just My Imagination, Small Club guitar solo

Darth Vader on TRC.... Oh, wait, you said FAVOURITE.... Oops, sorry.

Too many - but THAT scream at the end of Electric Intercourse at his 3/8/1983 at First Avenue. Phew!

The legendary 1984 rehearsal concert at First Avenue. It's on a bootleg cd called "Neon Rendezvous". OMG, Prince was on a whole new level that night. every song was flawless. In fact, the rehearsal sounded a thousand times better than the actual birthday concert. the extended rehearsal versions of Something in the Water, Erotic City, and Neon Rendezvous are still to this day, are some of Prince's best musical moments (in my humble opinion).

The legendary 1984 rehearsal concert at First Avenue. It's on a bootleg cd called "Neon Rendezvous". OMG, Prince was on a whole new level that night. every song was flawless. In fact, the rehearsal sounded a thousand times better than the actual birthday concert. the extended rehearsal versions of Something in the Water, Erotic City, and Neon Rendezvous are still to this day, are some of Prince's best musical moments (in my humble opinion).

The legendary 1984 rehearsal concert at First Avenue. It's on a bootleg cd called "Neon Rendezvous". OMG, Prince was on a whole new level that night. every song was flawless. In fact, the rehearsal sounded a thousand times better than the actual birthday concert. the extended rehearsal versions of Something in the Water, Erotic City, and Neon Rendezvous are still to this day, are some of Prince's best musical moments (in my humble opinion).

One more:

.

Prince's guitar solo and vocal scatting over the solo during All This Love at Montreaux 2009.

Can't remember what show it's from, but it's mid-80s and I believe in Holland or somewhere, and The Revolution plays a long bass and drum intro to "17 Days," and then the guitar kicks in, and then the crowd roars as the full instrumentation begins (and I assume Prince either comes out on stage or the lights come up to reveal he's there) and the audience screams, and Prince sings/screams: "Good God, I didn't know there were that many people in here!"

It's fucking GREAT. I don't know why precisely, but it makes me smile like a fool every time.

Anyone know which show/boot this is on? I need to listen to it when I get home tonight.

Great thread!

theblueangel said:

Can't remember what show it's from, but it's mid-80s and I believe in Holland or somewhere, and The Revolution plays a long bass and drum intro to "17 Days," and then the guitar kicks in, and then the crowd roars as the full instrumentation begins (and I assume Prince either comes out on stage or the lights come up to reveal he's there) and the audience screams, and Prince sings/screams: "Good God, I didn't know there were that many people in here!"

It's fucking GREAT. I don't know why precisely, but it makes me smile like a fool every time.

Anyone know which show/boot this is on? I need to listen to it when I get home tonight.

Great thread

[Edited 10/23/14 13:20pm]

theblueangel said:

Can't remember what show it's from, but it's mid-80s and I believe in Holland or somewhere, and The Revolution plays a long bass and drum intro to "17 Days," and then the guitar kicks in, and then the crowd roars as the full instrumentation begins (and I assume Prince either comes out on stage or the lights come up to reveal he's there) and the audience screams, and Prince sings/screams: "Good God, I didn't know there were that many people in here!"

It's fucking GREAT. I don't know why precisely, but it makes me smile like a fool every time.

Anyone know which show/boot this is on? I need to listen to it when I get home tonight.

Great thread!

Paris Parade show.

KingSausage said:

This is also on the Stockholm Parade show, if I recall.

The song 17 Days is, but I don't think he makes that same statement. I'm pretty sure the Paris show is the one where he makes the comment that they are recording for an album.

motherfunka said:

KingSausage said:

This is also on the Stockholm Parade show, if I recall.

The song 17 Days is, but I don't think he makes that same statement. I'm pretty sure the Paris show is the one where he makes the comment that they are recording for an album.

...which makes me think...damn he's been fucking with us for a long time!!!

Shoot, I got a bunch of them...I may have mentioned a couple before.

Being there on the field with him at the Superbowl and rehearsal. People don't know it but the whole rehearsal was filmed and I wish y'all could have seen it because without the rain you could see the flames shooting skyward instead of just smoke. Not to mention that he killed it in rehearsal just like he did in the broadcast. We were on standby and Prince made the decision to perform live in the rain that night. It was his call and I was so proud to be out there with him even though I fractured my knee. I will never forget it.

The 777 Aftershow in Mpls when he sang Gotta Broken Heart. His voice was positively angelic that night and he hit a note that made the hairs on my arms tingle.

At Club Mansion Tamar show when he played Beautiful Strange right in front of my face. I could have died.

RRHOF performance.



Some memorable moments on record that I love are.....

The guitar solo on Shhh.

The breakdown on The War....siiick!

The scream on The Dance, (3121)

Solo on Joy In Repetition

Solo on Q of U

Affirmation III

GOTB when he says "cant stand it",

International Lover

From video....

Thieves in the Temple, extended.

In Purple Rain when he says "do you want him", etc. and hits the floor. Lawd!

Prince and Lenny on the Rave DVD.

TRGRES video

I'll be here all night if I keep going,

Since 17 Days is my fave Prince song and the birthday show is my favorite boot, then I would have to say that whole song is my favorite Prince musical moment.

Syracuse - "Every Friday night I call your ass up on the phone"

The woof woof woof in the last chorus of "Now"

The last third of the track Musicology where the bass kicks up

"For any reasssson there is a loss is cabin pressure"

The guitar solo in Time Waits For No One.

"I wish you could be in my shoes, but the're probably so high you fall off and die"

"If I'm under water will U find me"

The intro...."Welcome Home People"

"Come back Nikki, come back!"

Last 30 seconds of "We gets Ups"

SquirrelMeat said:

First time listening to Purple Rain, side A, on a solid state 1970 Pioneer amplifier and a pair of vintage JBL. Optimal conditions, even for a kid who's got no scale of comparison.
Ears don't lie.

I'm twelve.
First record I buy myself.
With my money.

1984 France could not care less about Prince. Friends think I must be crazy to be drawn to a guy with make-up and stilettos. Even Boy George's look and attitude comes out pretty acceptable next to Thin-Moustache-Over-Glossy-Lips.

Can't explain, but the Dude looks like a superhero to me. Motorcycle Boy with Mascara. Dark alley, sexual danger, there's a girl standing in the shadow. She is above him.
She's dressed like the last pages of the Cosmopolitan magazine that my mother receives from the states. Lingerie. I give it a look when she's not around. I discover silk over thighs.

That guy on the bike, he has a serious, hot, dressed-in-porn chick.
To a 12-year-old male kid, say no more.
Suddenly it becomes obvious that Brooke Shields is no real girlfriend.
This one, she bears the name of a greek goddess.

Square metal nails on his right shoulder, and more buttons than a pant needs.
He's not black, but he's no white. He looks like Michael Jackson's bad cousin, that's been hidden all this time, because he's the shame of the family.

I see the poster ad for the movie for weeks now, and still no movie.
But the album is out today. Or at least, today I have it in my hands.
It has cut flowers, a poem, a different typo for every title.
There's a face inside, half black, half white. Not a man, not a woman.

I am running back home.

For weeks I have nothing but When Doves Cry on the radio.
A small radio in my room, with a tiny speaker. But it's an aural miracle every damn time.
Twenty, thirty listenings and I'm still not tired of it.

Whenever I hear that intro, I just stop whatever I'm doing, jump on the volume knob, and listen to every whiny whispered moaning that doubles the lead vocal. I wait for the voices to multiply. One, two, four, now it's a choir of Princes singing and screaming, high and low.
He's a superhero for sure.

I'm finally home. I put the needle on the record. Church organ, and his voice.
Jackso's Thriller, which I adore, turns into music for children in an instant.
But I owe him and Quikncy for ever, because they trained my ears, soul and mind for what's about to happen.

The sound is lound and crystal clear, I'm twelve, my young ears get the full spectrum, I still hit 20kHz. The first time I buy something for myself, and it's beyond any expectation.
This is not When Doves Cry at all. Is this the same guy?

I'm kinda terrified by Let's Go Crazy, I'm amazed on Take Me With U,
and then The Beautiful Ones starts.

Time stops.

Until the world collapses into a storm : Do you want me? he starts to scream.

The shaker shakes one last time, the machine dies. Or does it?
—Wendy?
— Yes, Lisa?

In under half an hour, my life changes for ever: I discover that an LP is not necessarily "Thriller". I discover Hendrix, The Beatles, Soul Music, sensuality, despair, Zappa, genius, but I don't know that yet, I'm just hypnotized.

and I'm twelve.

5 months later, I'm almost thirteen, and I experience my very first, real crying. Something unstoppable. I'm in this very big, empty theater with a friend (PR the movie would turn out a massive flop in Europe).
I know Purple Rain the song by heart, so nothing should come as a surprise.

My parents are in the midst of their divorce.
Prince knocks his mike.

"Such a shame, but love does come to an end."
Suddenly he's this young adult being like a big brother to me.

The guitar solo bursts from the speakers, and it's like I hear it for the first time.

Billy sparks bites his lips and shakes his head.
He's got the ugliest glasses I've ever seen.

I cry, for eight entire minutes.

motherfunka said:

Just My Imagination. Prince and his guitar solo. Paard van Troje, the Hague, The Netherlands. 1988.

This is not Prince.

God was simply taking his usual summer joint break in Holland.
There was this Small Club, you see, He heard some music, so He went in.

The Ganja hitting pretty hard, he decided to enjoy himself.

"Now here's a pretty decent guitar player", he thought.
"Let's play a trick on the audience."