The RRHOF ceremony is a LONG, BORING affair with too little performing and way too much ceremony and good taste for its own good. The audience was not offended, but THRILLED to have a good excuse to get off their butts.[/quote]


Exactly. People act like he just cut everyone off in mid-song and drowned everybody out. He just waited his turn and ripped it, plain and simple.

So what if he got a little carried away. If you're worried about technical proficiency and etiquette when you're watching a performance and listening to a song you need to take a step or two back. It's there for you to enjoy it and feel it, not study it.
[This message was edited Mon Mar 22 10:43:29 2004 by whodknee]

I just saw the performance last night and all I got to say is 3 words:
FAB-U-LOUS. He just showed everybody how it's done. Prince has been in obscurity for a while except to his die-hard fans and this is his moment for shine again. He was finally getting his props with the RRHOF and he was feeling like he was on Cloud 20 (he was feeling good and confident that night, not conceited) and I ain't mad at him. That's how you do it. Show him how to play that guitar. As far as what serveitupfrankie said, whether Prince is a Jehovah's Witness or not and this goes for anyone who has gets into religion: There are going to be some things about you that will never change, religion or not. I don't think he was thinking it was his show. I just think he was caught up in the moment and he had respect for George Harrison and his son since P can relate since he lost his own father. Excellent performance.

How many times do I have to say, "it was good," for you to see that I'm not downplaying the solo? I've been playing guitar for 19 years. I'm blessed to be able to get paid to do it. So, if you will, I know a thing or two about playing solos.

When I say Prince played a good, solid solo, that's how I feel. Was it an exciting performance at a huge event? Yes. But, some of us are able to distinguish between a great performance and a mindblowing guitar solo.

I never said Prince isn't capable of mindblowing solos -- he is. While I particularly liked his open-string trickery near the start of the "...Gently Weeps" solo, the rest I found to be conventional playing. Very emotional, yes -- which is even more important than technique -- but rather conventional.

As far as being a fan but posting comments that fail to live up to your litmus test for enthusiasm, get a grip, pal. It's called diversity of thought on a fan site.[/quote]



OK OK... I won't argue with you about the guitar technique part... you're the expert but I suppose what I'm trying to say is that a supermely emotional performance seems to deserve an emotional response. I mean, the guy proved he is in fact one of the best performers out there! I can just see Prince reading these critiques of his work laughing.

The bottom line is that Prince did exactly what people expected of him. When they asked him to play on the tribute song, they were asking because they knew he was the best guitar player there. They were not asking him to be up on stage and play rhythm guitar the whole time. He did exactly what was expected of him, a great guitar solo that nobody else that was there that night could have pulled off. You would not ask Pavarotti up on stage to sing back up would you? Of course not. That song was a tribute to Harrison and to guitar playing. Prince did not show up any of the other musicians. The musicians up on stage all knew that Prince was the best guitar player among them, so naturally he should have the main solo. I would hate to think that on a tribute song, people would be so petty as to not want to get upstaged by a better musician. A tribute song is not about the musicians on stage, rather it is about getting the best people you can to give a proper performance. On a side note, the solo was excellent, but not a "new standard" as some might suggest. It was not the best solo ever by Prince, but the best one he has done on television in quite some time.

I'm a guitarist and I thought it was a great solo, both in terms of what Prince is capable of on the instrument and what is apprpriate for the music being played. Conventional? Yeah, I suppose -- but minor pentatonics are the bread and butter of rock-and-roll, so I don't really get the criticism. Mike Stern wasn't invited to the gig, so there. No one is claiming it to be the greatest solo of all time (that distinction belongs to Jimi's "Machine Gun"!), but it was emotional and deeper than what Clapton played on the record and live.

Theatrics? DUDE, IT'S ROCK-AND-ROLL! I was actually glad to see some color up there, a real rock star in a sea of "Aw shucks," regular-guy-type rock stars. They asked him to play and this is what you get when you invite Prince to the party. Petty clearly green-lit him going off, and he obliged. I could've done without the falling off the stage moment, but hey, that's Prince. The tune requires an epic solo -- perhaps the first "guitar hero" tune in rock music -- and he only serviced Harrison's memory by playing what he did. Dhani loved it, so there.
[This message was edited Mon Mar 22 13:37:19 2004 by TedW]

diamond99 said:

I agree with the last sentence, but I do think it was a new standard for that tune.

Prince is so fucking rude! Surely out of respect for George he should have dressed all in black with a black veil over his face, sat with his back to the audience, and played a solemn rythym part.

Fancy coming out and playing rock n roll with spirit and emotion! What a fool he is!

George would be rolling in his grave with all that going on.

Good lawd.


.
[This message was edited Mon Mar 22 14:22:29 2004 by bkw]

Supernova said:

whodknee said:

Exactly. People act like he just cut everyone off in mid-song and drowned everybody out. He just waited his turn and ripped it, plain and simple.

So what if he got a little carried away. If you're worried about technical proficiency and etiquette when you're watching a performance and listening to a song you need to take a step or two back. It's there for you to enjoy it and feel it, not study it.
[This message was edited Mon Mar 22 10:43:29 2004 by whodknee]
[/quote]

Did you guys happen to see Prince in the background when Tom Petty was singing his solo, was Tom Petty upstaging Prince~ Damned if he does, damned if he doesn't.

Supernova said:

Supernova

bkw said:

Kirby

bkw said:

I hope your being sarcastic... George Harrison was the most spiritual of the group and if he is rolling in his grave, its cos he cant get out to dance and applaud the CELEBRATION of his music!

otan said:

Co-sign

all i'm saying is this: when my mother calls me about a prince solo during a george harrison tribute (...the beatles have been her favorite group since she was 14, in 1964...) and tells me he stole the show, i know it's some bad-ass shit!

thebanishedone said:

Man, everything. The ideas kept changing and each were fantastic. he put SOO much soul into that guitar solo, you just didn't want it to end. He hit very difficult notes with EASE. The way he smiled at Tom Petty and George Harrison's son throughout the performance. Man, it its up there with Just My Imagination, Joy In Repetition, Santana Medley from Glam Slam East 4CD, Funk Stuff from The Live Experience, 2NigsUnited4WestCompton ONA box set...yeah!!

This has been interesting reading the responses to the solo, so i will try to be brief. First of all this is a Prince fan site so of course our opinion may be a little dare I say Fanatical. But we are talking about music and the first thing you go with is your gut reaction, that is what makes you tap your toes, makes you want to get up and dance , make a fool of yourself singing in your car while you are driving. So to me talking about the technical aspects of a perfomance would be mopre appropriate in a scholastic setting. If the internet was around in the 60's would we discuss the tec hnical aspects of Hendrix version of the Star Spangled Banner? As for the "histrionics" of the performance it is simple, its rock'n roll. Whether it is James Brown's assistant bringing out the cape, Jimi lighting his guitar on fire, the Who destoying their instruments, or the chili pepers coming out in just socks, it is showmanship.Sorry about being long winded, but it nice to see people be passionate about music, and not following the mindless droves. Peace

thebanishedone said:

I'll tell you what was good about it. IT KICKED ASS!!!!! PRINCE ROCKS!!!!!




[This message was edited Mon Mar 22 17:33:00 2004 by NWF]

Thank U Goodnite!!

They were fine solos and he was in fine form - but not mind altering....grab the Bataclan 2cd from 2002 and listen to the intro jam - that's way cooler (IMO). The HOF performace was especially great coz he was on stage with others that he does not usually play with. It was cool but it's not like hasn't done nay blasting solos before (he held back during regular ONA shows and did a few nice one's at the aftershows). The Santana medley during the main '02 gigs got real tiring quick.
[This message was edited Mon Mar 22 18:12:13 2004 by nunatak]

SassierBritches said:

I KNOW that's right. . .

You can tell how much George Harrison's son was lovin' that performance from Prince by the big Kool-Aide smile on his face
Did you notice how the backround matched Prince ?? He obviously was asked to perform in tribute just the way he did.It was an awesome finale.Don't get it twisted.

How can u ask a question like that before you even see it?

ThreadBare said:

yeah really... a study of what's fonky and what isn't

Novabreaker said:

uh .. excuse me but... according to whose taste? personally I thought everyone else on the stage needed to go to style court...

JumpUpOnThe1 said:

I think anyone who has at least some taste. But Prince has always been like that: taking a campy approach to his image, underlining it and fusing it with his musical expression. It usually works for him in the end.

That is, to us, his fans. I can't be so sure about other people.

jagshrapnel said:

Ahem. I think bkw's post could actually be used as a definition of sarcasm.

bkw said:

TedW said:

Exactly.

Count me in as thinking it was a little tacky.

Tributes shoudn't involve showing off, but rather, paying respect ALONG with the other folks (who actually worked with Harrison). The key word is "gently," folks.