Just heard Prince's concert at the KOKO club for Autism from Feb 4th. Wow! What a set list. The sound is decent, heard better. But what's makes this show so great is that he is in a great mood. Full of humor and definitely funky. And it was cool to hear snippets of The gold standard and U know live in concert. First time for me. I just wanted to share that this recording finds our boy P to be doing just fine. I am so happy he sounds happy. Let the discussion begin. Anyone else heard it? We can discuss!

Wow, good for U 4 being there! I am sincerely jealous. And yes the show was recorded in it's entirety. From Purple Rain to the last song Cool. Again an audience recording but still decent sound and no interuptions. So yes. But still great to hear whats it was like to be there.

There are two recordings of the show, circulating together.

One is muffled and overly bassy, with little treble, the other is less muffled, but very distant.

Annoyingly, they're both not listenable, for me. Maybe a matrix of the two could yield something palatable, but it was painful to listen to, not something I wish to hear again.

The performance was decent, from what I could tell, but not so great that I was determined to pick it our through the poor audio mess.

A shame. That's my two cents' anyway.

I was at the show also. Had a great night! Musically I felt it wasn't the best Prince show I've seen, nor the worst - the second half of the show was noticeably better than the first, I suspect due to this being their first show in a few months. IMO, for a show where hits are being played, he needs an experienced keyboard player on top of the parts that Josh plays, like last year when he had Cassy O' Neal playing with 3EG and Josh at the stadium shows. Tracks like "1999" and "Kiss" fell a bit short at this show, to me, in comparison to last year's shows.

But yes - P was definitely in a great (and playful) mood.

When he dropped the "Darling Nikki" intro into the sampler set, he let the loop run for longer than I've ever heard him do that before.... and looking at his face, he had a huge grin, the crowd was going wild and it seemed like he REALLY wanted to sing it.

One day I hope he just thinks "fuck it" and sings it, or at least a few lines. It's a shame that he has this inner struggle with the history of some of the fantastic work he made. I mean, I hardly expect him to sing "Sister" and jack off his guitar, but I think in the scheme of things, the "Darling Nikki" lyrics aren't even that bad, really. I mean, he still sings "Bambi", and he screamed out the "Baby you need to bleed" lyric with great intensity last year at Shepherd's Bush, so really.... Nikki ain't that dirty.

Militant said:

I was at the show also. Had a great night! Musically I felt it wasn't the best Prince show I've seen, nor the worst - the second half of the show was noticeably better than the first, I suspect due to this being their first show in a few months. IMO, for a show where hits are being played, he needs an experienced keyboard player on top of the parts that Josh plays, like last year when he had Cassy O' Neal playing with 3EG and Josh at the stadium shows. Tracks like "1999" and "Kiss" fell a bit short at this show, to me, in comparison to last year's shows.

But yes - P was definitely in a great (and playful) mood.

When he dropped the "Darling Nikki" intro into the sampler set, he let the loop run for longer than I've ever heard him do that before.... and looking at his face, he had a huge grin, the crowd was going wild and it seemed like he REALLY wanted to sing it.

One day I hope he just thinks "fuck it" and sings it, or at least a few lines. It's a shame that he has this inner struggle with the history of some of the fantastic work he made. I mean, I hardly expect him to sing "Sister" and jack off his guitar, but I think in the scheme of things, the "Darling Nikki" lyrics aren't even that bad, really. I mean, he still sings "Bambi", and he screamed out the "Baby you need to bleed" lyric with great intensity last year at Shepherd's Bush, so really.... Nikki ain't that dirty.

I completely agree. I don't understand why DN is such an issue when he still sings other songs that are just as "bad" or worse (like the line you mentioned in Bambi) He sang Hot Thing and the line, "Hot thing, do you want to play with me" isn't exactly innocent.
.
I really liked the show. His voice sounded great and he seemed to be having a lot of fun. The duet with Liv, "Only Love Can Hurt Like This" was great!

Bambi82 said:

Militant said:

Militant said:

I was at the show also. Had a great night! Musically I felt it wasn't the best Prince show I've seen, nor the worst - the second half of the show was noticeably better than the first, I suspect due to this being their first show in a few months. IMO, for a show where hits are being played, he needs an experienced keyboard player on top of the parts that Josh plays, like last year when he had Cassy O' Neal playing with 3EG and Josh at the stadium shows. Tracks like "1999" and "Kiss" fell a bit short at this show, to me, in comparison to last year's shows.

But yes - P was definitely in a great (and playful) mood.

When he dropped the "Darling Nikki" intro into the sampler set, he let the loop run for longer than I've ever heard him do that before.... and looking at his face, he had a huge grin, the crowd was going wild and it seemed like he REALLY wanted to sing it.

One day I hope he just thinks "fuck it" and sings it, or at least a few lines. It's a shame that he has this inner struggle with the history of some of the fantastic work he made. I mean, I hardly expect him to sing "Sister" and jack off his guitar, but I think in the scheme of things, the "Darling Nikki" lyrics aren't even that bad, really. I mean, he still sings "Bambi", and he screamed out the "Baby you need to bleed" lyric with great intensity last year at Shepherd's Bush, so really.... Nikki ain't that dirty.

I agree you could really see it on his face that he wanted to do it! One day I feel he will!

I dont mind the sampler set, but I think it gets to a point when its 'too long' and I lose a bit of interest.

Purple Rain to start with, for me I felt didnt really fit, If you was a DJ, that would be the equivelant of dropping a Peak Time track during Warm up.

But you have to take into account that some people paid alot to be there and he had to appeal to them from the start so it makes sense in them terms.

[Edited 2/11/15 7:55am]

Just listened to both versions, sound pretty good to me.

antonb said:

I think that review of the sound is a bit harsh. Sure it ain't soundboard, but its perfectly listenable! Gee I remember back in the day when some bootlegs sounded terrible but you were just grateful to have the opportunity to be able to listen to a show that you would have had no chance of going too

xenon said:

Just listened to both versions, sound pretty good to me.

I agree. I'm happy with both sources, and we're lucky to have two sources from a semi-private show.

vinaysfunk said:

Just heard Prince's concert at the KOKO club for Autism from Feb 4th. Wow! What a set list.

You must be ill, smoking stuff or in a parallel universe.

Perhaps sub 100 shows?

Whatever interesting/new/rare/fresh/unheard/etc was not noted too well at http://princevault.com/in...uary,_2015 ?

I think the Vault people do a worthy job.

So please explain what they missed.

.

No, I do not say the show wasn't good.

I am just pointing out it may not be so exceptional.

Any show with a sampler set, perhaps even two in this case, needs extra very special content to be near the epic category.

udo said:

Hey Udo I am not ill or smoking or in a parrallel universe. I am a little different than some of you on the org. What I enjoyed most about the KOKO show was that Prince seemed to be in a good mood. I have heard plenty of other boots with much better sound where he seems a little off. Prince seemed to be in great spirits and I find that infectious and very enjoyable. The Vault people do a great job no doubt but I am not a person who documents everything. I feel it. So as I said before the sound isn't as great as I would like and I have def heard better but like many others have posted on this thread it's great to hear a very private concert when I wasn't in attendance. A lot of you all here have a very hard time showing appreciation for just about anything. I liked the set list and I was very happy to hear this. Others here feel the same way. Not that hard to grasp. It's true what many people post here about this site. Positivity is in very short supply here. If you say something negative there are hoards of people who will chime in and agree. If you say something nice with any amount of happiness people are like whats wrong with you? No wonder P dislikes these site. Sorry I said I enjoyed the show.

vinaysfunk said:

Hey Udo I am not ill or smoking or in a parrallel universe. I am a little different than some of you on the org. What I enjoyed most about the KOKO show was that Prince seemed to be in a good mood.

Ah, OK, so it was a pleasant show.

I have heard plenty of other boots with much better sound where he seems a little off. Prince seemed to be in great spirits and I find that infectious and very enjoyable. The Vault people do a great job no doubt but I am not a person who documents everything. I feel it. So as I said before the sound isn't as great as I would like and I have def heard better but like many others have posted on this thread it's great to hear a very private concert when I wasn't in attendance.

Yes, the best thing next to being there.

A lot of you all here have a very hard time showing appreciation for just about anything.

Could be.

I was just trying to interpret the 'KOKO ROCKS' phrase.

Does it mean it was nice? Pleasant? Epic? Out of this world?

It all depends on the observer. (yes I still recall what happend after the Cannes aftershow...)

All I have is the setlist. I did not yet listen to the audio.

My taste tells me that I do not like sampler sets. (in 2007 they were 'nice', now they are dull)

So I need more info to understand the 'KOKO ROCKS' phrase.

That was why I asked.

Next time try could you explain what KOKO ROCKS means to you? That would make much more sense. And btw the was the name of the boot, that's why I named the thread that. No worries, it's all good.

Just for the record, I have never seen a sampler set live (and I hope to god I never do, I would have to heckle that buttstench until it stopped) - but then what's the difference? It's the very worst of Prince's characteristics as a performer... I can't imagine anyone else getting away with this cheesy, lazy shit - "oh by the way, sit there while I scroll through my karaoke sampler to show you how many hits I've had - you don't mind, right? I can't be arsed to play them for you or think of anything new to add to them... hey, at least I'm here doing it in person, right?"

It's embarrassing, lazy, shit, awful, lazy, pathetic, cheap, unimaginative, lazy, arrogant, callous, and did I mention lazy?

What's that? Prince doesn't have to prove himself to anyone/he's earned the right to do it/it's kinda fun? BULLshit.

He should be ashamed of that shit, and anyone who doesn't throw their shoes at him when they witness him do it in concert should be ashamed of their shit, too.

Now, how about listening to someone play samples of their hits through a karaoke machine, without them even being present, on a poorly-recorded, badly compressed recording that will damage your hearing (don't think it won't - you have to crank that shit to hear anything and you're basically torpedoeing white noise at your ears)?

Mmm, yes please!

Just hook me up to the Kenny G intravenous drip while you're at it, so at least my brain will melt quickly.

Rimshottbob said:

Just for the record, I have never seen a sampler set live (and I hope to god I never do, I would have to heckle that buttstench until it stopped) - but then what's the difference? It's the very worst of Prince's characteristics as a performer... I can't imagine anyone else getting away with this cheesy, lazy shit - "oh by the way, sit there while I scroll through my karaoke sampler to show you how many hits I've had - you don't mind, right? I can't be arsed to play them for you or think of anything new to add to them... hey, at least I'm here doing it in person, right?"

It's embarrassing, lazy, shit, awful, lazy, pathetic, cheap, unimaginative, lazy, arrogant, callous, and did I mention lazy?

What's that? Prince doesn't have to prove himself to anyone/he's earned the right to do it/it's kinda fun? BULLshit.

He should be ashamed of that shit, and anyone who doesn't throw their shoes at him when they witness him do it in concert should be ashamed of their shit, too.

Now, how about listening to someone play samples of their hits through a karaoke machine, without them even being present, on a poorly-recorded, badly compressed recording that will damage your hearing (don't think it won't - you have to crank that shit to hear anything and you're basically torpedoeing white noise at your ears)?

Mmm, yes please!

Just hook me up to the Kenny G intravenous drip while you're at it, so at least my brain will melt quickly.

You probably don't go to clubs or watch DJ's perform, either. The sampler sets are fantastic and a great way of performing more electronic based songs that just don't sound as good with a live band.

Militant said:

Rimshottbob said:

Just for the record, I have never seen a sampler set live (and I hope to god I never do, I would have to heckle that buttstench until it stopped) - but then what's the difference? It's the very worst of Prince's characteristics as a performer... I can't imagine anyone else getting away with this cheesy, lazy shit - "oh by the way, sit there while I scroll through my karaoke sampler to show you how many hits I've had - you don't mind, right? I can't be arsed to play them for you or think of anything new to add to them... hey, at least I'm here doing it in person, right?"

It's embarrassing, lazy, shit, awful, lazy, pathetic, cheap, unimaginative, lazy, arrogant, callous, and did I mention lazy?

What's that? Prince doesn't have to prove himself to anyone/he's earned the right to do it/it's kinda fun? BULLshit.

He should be ashamed of that shit, and anyone who doesn't throw their shoes at him when they witness him do it in concert should be ashamed of their shit, too.

Now, how about listening to someone play samples of their hits through a karaoke machine, without them even being present, on a poorly-recorded, badly compressed recording that will damage your hearing (don't think it won't - you have to crank that shit to hear anything and you're basically torpedoeing white noise at your ears)?

Mmm, yes please!

Just hook me up to the Kenny G intravenous drip while you're at it, so at least my brain will melt quickly.

You probably don't go to clubs or watch DJ's perform, either. The sampler sets are fantastic and a great way of performing more electronic based songs that just don't sound as good with a live band.

Agreed!

paulludvig said:

Militant said:

You probably don't go to clubs or watch DJ's perform, either. The sampler sets are fantastic and a great way of performing more electronic based songs that just don't sound as good with a live band.

Agreed!

Also agree.
"It's embarrassing, lazy, shit, awful, lazy, pathetic, cheap, unimaginative, lazy, arrogant, callous, and did I mention lazy?"
It's his show. If he wants to play 20 seconds of every song he's ever written, he can. Don't like it, don't attend.

udo said:

KingSausage said:

I'm not going to come out 100% for or against the sampler sets. But I dont think it's accurate to say that they're full of songs that sound better electronically than with a live band. Prince has played many of those songs with bands before and they sound fantastic. In some ways, the sampler sets aren't that different than some of his extended medleys from past tours. At least conceptually.

I think it's completely accurate to say that.

I have zero interest in hearing a live band try and recreate Prince's genius Linn programming. The cold, sparse feel of that machine combined with his programming wizardry is what makes a lot of those songs magic to me, and those are the songs that are usually done in the sampler set. For example, the show I was at last week in London.... When Doves Cry, SOTT, Hot Thing, Housequake.......Other shows I've seen in the last few years, he's dropped 777-9311 and Nasty Girl in there too..... IMO all these are better in the sampler set than attempted with a live band.

And when he lets the groove loop, then picks up the bass and jams over the top of it..... pure genius.

Nothing has made me lose my shit harder than the first time I saw Prince do the sampler set in 2007 at the O2, and that genius SOTT drum pattern reverberated across the arena.... it was magical.

Militant said:

IMO, for a show where hits are being played, he needs an experienced keyboard player on top of the parts that Josh plays, like last year when he had Cassy O' Neal playing with 3EG and Josh at the stadium shows. T

Agree. Cassy is hugely underrated as a keyboardist and contributer to P's band in the past few years. She fills in amazingly on songs where there's most sonic depth than just guitar bass and drums.