THis is SO FUN..

Love how Prince was able to command with such ease...

People jumped through hoops at a moments notice....

Plaza owner Shannon Wilkerson tells the legendary story of Prince's 1997 surprise show at the Lafayette Plaza night club following Prince's Cajundome concert.

https://www.youtube.com/w...jihGAsBl-A

I was there drunk as a skunk but I was there

Thanks for sharing. Great story. I was at a similiar show in '97 at the 930 Club in DC. Don't remember much except that he didn't play any "Prince" tunes- just covers of James Brown and some other 60s and 70s acts.

1. Somebody's Somebody
2. The Holy River
3. Girls & Boys
4. Mr. Happy
5. 18 & Over

I distinctly remember 18 and over.

I was gobsmacked and mezmerized.

CoolMF said:

Thanks for sharing. Great story. I was at a similiar show in '97 at the 930 Club in DC. Don't remember much except that he didn't play any "Prince" tunes- just covers of James Brown and some other 60s and 70s acts.

I was at that same 9:30 Club show. I recall he started out by rapping the lyrics to "18 & Over," though just about nobody in the audience had ever heard it. He also ended with "Johnny," but again, the audience wasn't familiar with it. Overall, it was easily the worst of dozens of Prince shows I've attended. He pretty much gave up after about 20-30 minutes of half-hearted interest.

Edit: My other memory of that show was waiting in line outside when Juwan Howard showed up, and everybody booing and heckling him, lol. This was shortly after he'd tried to leave to play for the Heat and the Wizards wound up matching that overpriced contract, beginning the destruction of the C-Webb era.

[Edited 2/9/17 10:14am]

BanishedBrian said:

--Are you sure this was the 9:30 club because in a interview Set Hurwitz gave a few years ago he said Prince just stuck his head in the club after The Lovesexy show. He said never played at the club. I do remember he played at some hole down by the Navy yard and heard the crowd was dead.

mothyham said:

I was there drunk as a skunk but I was there

Lol.....

At least you remember being there

laurarichardson said:

BanishedBrian said:

I was at that same 9:30 Club show. I recall he started out by rapping the lyrics to "18 & Over," though just about nobody in the audience had ever heard it. He also ended with "Johnny," but again, the audience wasn't familiar with it. Overall, it was easily the worst of dozens of Prince shows I've attended. He pretty much gave up after about 20-30 minutes of half-hearted interest.

Edit: My other memory of that show was waiting in line outside when Juwan Howard showed up, and everybody booing and heckling him, lol. This was shortly after he'd tried to leave to play for the Heat and the Wizards wound up matching that overpriced contract, beginning the destruction of the C-Webb era.

[Edited 2/9/17 10:14am]

--Are you sure this was the 9:30 club because in a interview Set Hurwitz gave a few years ago he said Prince just stuck his head in the club after The Lovesexy show. He said never played at the club. I do remember he played at some hole down by the Navy yard and heard the crowd was dead.

NOT TO DERAIL THE TOPIC BUT... yes, it was the 930 club although I think it was called "The WUST" or something like that back then. It was after the last Jam of the Year concert in Landover, MD. I remember it because I was in summer school at Howard U. (which was "across the street" from the club)- the word came onto campus around 11pm-ish that Prince was coming to play an afterparty there and it was like all of the dorms emptied as we all walked down to get in the line. It seemed like almost everyone in the joint was a Howard student.

CoolMF said:

laurarichardson said:

BanishedBrian said:

I was at that same 9:30 Club show. I recall he started out by rapping the lyrics to "18 & Over," though just about nobody in the audience had ever heard it. He also ended with "Johnny," but again, the audience wasn't familiar with it. Overall, it was easily the worst of dozens of Prince shows I've attended. He pretty much gave up after about 20-30 minutes of half-hearted interest.

Edit: My other memory of that show was waiting in line outside when Juwan Howard showed up, and everybody booing and heckling him, lol. This was shortly after he'd tried to leave to play for the Heat and the Wizards wound up matching that overpriced contract, beginning the destruction of the C-Webb era.

[Edited 2/9/17 10:14am]

--Are you sure this was the 9:30 club because in a interview Set Hurwitz gave a few years ago he said Prince just stuck his head in the club after The Lovesexy show. He said never played at the club. I do remember he played at some hole down by the Navy yard and heard the crowd was dead.

Yes, the 1997 aftershow was at the current 9:30 Club (with that same name). The 9:30 Club used to be located on F Street downtown and it moved to the current location in 1996. This was an aftershow from the Jam of the Year Tour - he played at the old US Air Arena earlier that night.

The show you're referring to by Navy Yard was the 1998 tour where he was with Larry Graham, in anticipation of the Triple Threat release. It was at the old "Nation" club, which got torn down in anticipation of the Nationals Stadium being built. The crowd was OK, but not great. I also attended the show at the Electric Factory in Philly that same week, and the Philly crowd and show were definitely better. The only thing memorable about the Nation show was that Doug E. Fresh performed, which at the time was sort of cool and novel, though it got old quickly in the months that followed.

CoolMF said:

laurarichardson said:

BanishedBrian said: --Are you sure this was the 9:30 club because in a interview Set Hurwitz gave a few years ago he said Prince just stuck his head in the club after The Lovesexy show. He said never played at the club. I do remember he played at some hole down by the Navy yard and heard the crowd was dead.

NOT TO DERAIL THE TOPIC BUT... yes, it was the 930 club although I think it was called "The WUST" or something like that back then. It was after the last Jam of the Year concert in Landover, MD. I remember it because I was in summer school at Howard U. (which was "across the street" from the club)- the word came onto campus around 11pm-ish that Prince was coming to play an afterparty there and it was like all of the dorms emptied as we all walked down to get in the line. It seemed like almost everyone in the joint was a Howard student.

For the JOTY tour, his aftershows were kind of spotty, but it was something I was watching at the time, and the morning of the show at US Air Arena, the 9:30 Club ad in the City Paper announced the show, so it was announced, but not a lot of people noticed and I don't think there were any radio ads on WPGC or WKYS about it that day. Few people at the US Air show seemed to know about it.

Edit: And your recollection about the current club previously being the WUST is correct - that was the venue until 9:30 took it over in 96.

[Edited 2/9/17 15:09pm]