There, just had to be upfront about that.

First and foremost, I'm a KISS fan (I'm not here to apologise for Simmons who has been a complete and utter bellend!), having discovered them in my teens in the early 80s.

Now, I was never a Prince fan in the 1980s. In fact, I remember when Kerrang! magazine had a Purple Rain era Prince cover, and I was duly offended. My other main point of reference to Prince was the hideous portrail of him on a UK TV show called Spitting Image.

Then, and I'd love to know the exact date when it was aired in the UK, I saw that 1988 Dortmund show on TV. The staging, the choreography, the sheer presence of HIM made me go I was astonished by the showmanship and the effort put into the show for the audience.

Then, sometime in lateish 1991, I'm strolling around (pun intended) HMV in Cardiff and my ears tune in to the music that's being played. It was 'Thunder' and Diamonds and Pearls was the new release from Prince.

I bought it there and then, and have never looked back.

I soon bought everything he'd released up to that point and devoured the lot. To this day, my favourite era is the prolific 1990s when one minute it was 1-800-NEWFUNK or Come or Gold Experience, Emancipation, Chaos and Disorder, Exodus and New Power Soul, it was a fabulous time to be a fan of his. Well, I think so anyway.

I saw Prince in Wembley Stadium in 1993 and again on the Gold Experience tour. I have to tell you, hand on heart, that even as a fan of a band that knows how to put on a show, the 2007 show I witnessed at the O2 in London was the greatest concert experience of my life. And that still stands to this day.

His death in April has hit me hard - and it's a struggle to really comprehend quite why it's hit so hard. I'm hardly a 'die-hard'. Sure, I know his music, have a ton of unreleased stuff, and have my favourite bootlegs (Sendai, LoveSexy Tour : I U), but I doubt I'm anywhere close to the fandom you lot extoll.

But I recognised his genius, and enjoyed his humour.

The One Night Alone - Live boxset that came out some years back has been an almost constant on my in-car playlist. The piano part just blows my mind.

After a couple of years away from Prince 'news', I was super excited to hear he was coming back over to Europe, but then equally as bummed when he pulled the tour over ticket touting or somesuch.

For a man to have such a zest for life, such wild creativity, such humour, such wit, such talent, with so much more to offer, to be taken - by whatever means - at such a young age just leaves me feeling so gutted. Someone else posted the other day, far better than I could ever word it, that it's the realisation that Prince is now in the past. There's nothing new to be had. It leaves me shellshocked and often pretty choked up.

When he was all over the news here, whether it be on TV or online, or the press, I stayed away from the news, the gossip and the anecdotes. I wanted to be alone with my own grief, not a shared grief - if you understand me.

I'm addicted to watching all these clips and performances on YouTube that I've never seen before, stuff I'm sure has been in Prince collector circles for years if not decades. Yet, I'm still gravitating more to the 1990s. The 'Face Down' video, for example. It never even made me sad, it made me smile. The clip I'm playing over and over again is the Arsenio Hall show from 1991 or 92 with the NPG and that version of Daddy Pop is just incredible.

The album I can't stop listening to right now is New Power Soul. Just great. Loved it then, but lost the CD in a housemove but having heard it again on YouTube recently it's every bit as great as I remember it.

Hey, thanks for listening. Had to get it off my chest.

Peace.

From one old school KISS fan to another, welcome!

My first post here, and it was an incoherent ramble. Sorry!

SPYZFAN1 said:

From one old school KISS fan to another, welcome!

Thanks man, nice!

Camille2016 said:

My first post here, and it was an incoherent ramble. Sorry!

No it wasn't! Welcome to the Org.

You're a bigger fan than I am if you like New Power Soul that much, so get comfortable, stretch your legs on the coffee table and express yourself. Us lot are not necessarily more positive about his out put than you are, that much is safe to say.

Excellent post, never too late to join a Prince forum. Welcome.

Aerogram said:

Camille2016 said:

My first post here, and it was an incoherent ramble. Sorry!

No it wasn't! Welcome to the Org.

You're a bigger fan than I am if you like New Power Soul that much, so get comfortable, stretch your legs on the coffee table and express yourself. Us lot are not necessarily more positive about his out put than you are, that much is safe to say.

Thanks, yeah, I totally get that. I'm coming here as an outsider, I recognise that. Prince had such a diverse output, so I tend to get into different eras at different times, but you can't help but be influenced by the era that you first got introduced to.

KISS sucks...but they are a guilty pleasure. I shamefully admit I have two CDs (Best Of KISS The Milleneum Collection Volume 2 and Best Of KISS The Milleneum Collection Volume 3)

Camille2016 said:

Aerogram said:

No it wasn't! Welcome to the Org.

You're a bigger fan than I am if you like New Power Soul that much, so get comfortable, stretch your legs on the coffee table and express yourself. Us lot are not necessarily more positive about his out put than you are, that much is safe to say.

Thanks, yeah, I totally get that. I'm coming here as an outsider, I recognise that. Prince had such a diverse output, so I tend to get into different eras at different times, but you can't help but be influenced by the era that you first got introduced to.

Well said. I think for most of his audience, following him has made them way more appreciative of the wide universe of musical styles he ventured into than they would have had they never followed him.

My first knowledge of pop fandom was first for Kiss in the 70's. Destroyer is a masterpiece to a child of the 70's. It still is!

Then came The Beatles and Prince. But Prince just kept putting out and putting on.

I think you summed it up well with this, so well I feel re-gutted... so I won't think about it...

"For a man to have such a zest for life, such wild creativity, such humour, such wit, such talent, with so much more to offer, to be taken - by whatever means - at such a young age just leaves me feeling so gutted. Someone else posted the other day, far better than I could ever word it, that it's the realisation that Prince is now in the past. There's nothing new to be had. "

But... maybe they will keep releasing stuff from his archives of material. I hope...hope...hope.

[Edited 5/15/16 16:47pm]

Gene Simmons and Vanity were in a movie together.

dalsh327 said:

Gene Simmons and Vanity were in a movie together.

Yes, ummmm... "Never Too Young To Die", I believe.

Actually, another connection is a shared security guy in "Big" John Harte. He was with KISS in the 70s and Prince - at least - on the LoveSexy Tour.