The cover of rolling stone with prince on the cover
is now online
http://www.rollingstone.com/

Burning Down the House

Prince has still got that red-hot magic

By Anthony DeCurtis
Hammering! That's the word. That's it!" Prince folds over in laughter and stamps his high-heel boots on the floor. Those heels, as it happens, are clear plastic, and lights twinkle within them. It's a perfect metaphor for the electricity that seems to be coursing through the singer at the moment.

Prince is responding to a description of the torrid version of "D.M.S.R." -- a jam from 1999 touting the virtues of "dance, music, sex, romance" -- that he and his backing band, the New Power Generation, unleashed earlier that evening at the sold-out Gund Arena in Cleveland. It was a full-on funk stomp that got the house up and shaking. Hammering only begins to convey the performance's pulverizing rhythmic assault. "Pulverizing! That's good, too," Prince says, laughing again. "What you see is people responding to what this band is -- and what we're doing."

It's just twenty minutes after the show, and, at a time when most performers would be just beginning to cool down, Prince is utterly composed. He's crisply dressed in a purple tunic and black pants and looks as if he has spent the evening relaxing in his living room rather than burning down a 20,000-seat house. But that's how effortless things seem to be of late for the forty-five-year-old musician. Everybody in the Prince camp -- most definitely beginning with Prince himself -- bristles when anyone suggests that the current wave of Princemania constitutes a "comeback." The official line is that he never went away. From a strictly literal standpoint, of course, that's true. He's been as busy as ever, using his own label and his Web site, the New Power Generation Music Club, to release CDs such as The Rainbow Children (2001) and N.E.W.S (2003), as well as the DVD Prince: Live at the Aladdin Las Vegas.

But whether or not you buy the message that Prince never left, it's clear that many of his millions of fans had gone somewhere in recent years, and now many of them are staging a comeback of their own. Suddenly, liking Prince doesn't feel like such a chore; in fact, it's fun. His stripped-down, pleasingly straightforward new album, Musicology, delivers on the promise of his spellbinding performances earlier this year on the Grammy Awards broadcast and at his induction into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame. His live shows have become ecstatic parties, sweaty, two-hour romps through the likes of "Controversy," "U Got the Look," "Take Me With U" and a sizzling version of Sam and Dave's classic "Soul Man." Nearly a recluse before, Prince is now all over the media, chatting on talk shows, posing for photographers, being interviewed by reporters.
It's like an old friend has returned. Indeed, the spring of 2004 is beginning to feel like the summer of 1984, when Purple Rain made Prince one of the biggest rock stars in the world. When he sings, "Don't you miss the feeling that music gave you back in the day?" in Musicology," he might as well be speaking about his own music. After abandoning his name for an unpronounceable symbol, after painting the word "slave" on his face as part of a battle with his record label, after disowning decades of his own work, Prince is enjoying himself again. And, as always, his enthusiasm is irresistible.

I had an epiphany last night," Prince says about his appearance in Columbus, Ohio. He's sitting on a couch in his dressing room, shortly before taking the stage in Cleveland. The room is warm and humid, to keep his throat and nasal passages clear and his vocal cords supple. Candles burn on every available surface.

"I was offstage, listening to Michael Phillips take his solo," he continues, alluding to the instrumental portion of the show in which the saxophonist takes a long, atmospheric excursion during "God" while Prince changes clothes and takes a break. "I was thinking, 'Wow, listen to those people responding, and all he's doing is playing a saxophone.' They can feel that what he's doing is real. So many shows now, they have pyrotechnics, pre-taped vocals and musical parts, and it's so dead. But here's one man breathing into an instrument, and the whole room feels alive. It made me want to rise up to that level when I came back onstage."

Part of the goal of the Musicology album and tour is to connect audiences once again to the power of live music. "Take your pick -- turntable or a band?" Prince challenges on the album, and his concerts are like a clinic in inciting the sort of pandemonium that only a band can create. That's true even for the players themselves. "This is school for me," says Phillips, 27. "Every night I watch how he connects his gift to the crowd. I've spoken to him about it. He told me that playing a solo is like making love. You have to pay attention to the things that make your partner respond -- and space them out so they come at exactly the right time. It's one big, long orgasm."
(Excerpted from RS 949, May 27, 2004)

Nice cover, boring excerpt. But eh....the RS cover seemed so unlikely two months ago.
[This message was edited Wed May 5 19:25:59 2004 by Aerogram]

one big long orgasm.


boy i can't wait for that show.

Aerogram said:

WHen does this hit the stands!!??

PurpleJedi said:

I have been a quiet observer of the "ORG" for a couple years. I am one of those Prince freaks from the early eighties, anyway, MUSICOLOGY has finally got me motivated to say something...It's fun to be a Prince fan!

It's great to see all the "positive" comments. Prince rocks. And he should release, "Man in ur life".

Oh, and the cover of R.S is great, too.

J

That's Why I Scream So Much and That's why I have Experienced Quakes. I Always Told Everyone whether they Laughed or Not. It was Just the Way he Played the Guitar. I was So Overcome the First time I saw the Alladian at Paisley and I just Worked Myself into a Complete Frenzy.Tizzy because it was just HIM... He works ya Up so Good. And being such an Emotional Person it was just like well with Orgasm ya Gasp. They say it is like Little Death. Ya just ya Breath Heavy and Ya Gasp. He Made me like That. Sometimes in the past I would Actually Tremble. I would ask Friends to hold my hand. But now well I still Scream but I Don't feel like I'm gonna die around him. I just well Adore him. He can make me his Feeling Person ya know with his Music. I can Relay Feelings. Maybe that is Channeling? Is it? All I know is it's a Great Feeling and I am No Longer Afraid of the Intensity. It's O.K. to Feel such Feelings. I was like Afraid cause well Nobody Ever Did THAT like That to Me. It was TREMENDOUS how I was MOVED. It is PRINCE., he just well He Just Makes me Feel so Much.In such a Good Way. He just is Very Special. This is Why to me I Go Out of My Way to See him as Much as I can. He is Worth My Time and My Effort Always. I will Always feel in Such a Way. He is a Joy and a Pleasure to Watch. What Can I say? Everyone Knows how Googly a girl I am around him. I just well I Truly Love Prince. He is So Cool!

Zelaira said:

Googly indeed.

Aerogram said:

Finally they got on the Prince bandwagon!! About time!!! Now, the race is on for Prince as ARTIST OF THE YEAR!!!!!

and I have to wait until the end of August/the Beginning of September to see him!
'Could make one cry, ya' know?
Or not.
So, thanks to the Org, I'm not making my friends want to beat me over the head() since I talk about him too much.
It's hard being in a small town with no one to *squee!* with him over. I'll just convert some one!

Am I the Only One that has Erotic Torrid Thoughts of Unrelentless Lust for this Sexy Creature? I swear this Man Turns me On like a Firebomb! He is Soo Intoxicating with his Eyes. And his Sexy Pose. I just have a Serious Prince Sex Addiction. It's Soo Bad. It's GREAT! A grown Ass Woman who Cannot Act her Age around him and loses all Control of her Sensibilities. But I Don't EVEN CARE!It's Sooo WORTH IT!

Zelaira said:

I gotta say Zelaira, you have articulated exactly the way I might feel if I were a woman or a gay man. Prince does it for me, too as a decidedly straight man....not sexually of course, but I certainly was very excited last time I saw him live....I only get that feeling from two other things: playing music live myself and, well, you can guess what else.

i just noticed sumfin about that pose p's in on the cover...







































it just screams "maybelline ad".

Handclapsfingasnapz said:

well, it does! just look at the cover...then use your imagination to take away all the words & print...then replace 'em with text that would correspond with a new line of makeup from maybelline that makes one's skin look flawless or whatever.

maybe he's born with it...maybe it's maybelline....no seriously, he was born with it.

and holy flaming hohners--his beauty mark is so...so enhanced with makeup, it looks as if it could jump off the cover and smack you across your face.

Listen even without Makeup he's Gorgeous Cause I saw him. He's just a Stunner. Prince is Number One Hottie...This is the Best Cover Yet. The man is Photogenic beyond Compare.Oh God! There I Go Again...Oh Man...Gushing..I gotta Stop...No! I Can'T!!!!!

"ONE LONG BIG ORGASM"?

Yes..Delicious Ice Cream....Prince is SCRUMPTUOUS. I wish I Could Eat him Every Day or Smother Myself all over my Body with his Cream... I gotta stop it!

Zelaira said:

i sense that your computer screen is startin to fog over...

Handclapsfingasnapz said:

You're right, Dansa. I was waiting for someone to say something like this first. This isn't quite the pic that makes me proud to be a Prince fan who's a man... the polka-dot blousy shirt (I didn't like this shirt when I first saw him wear it on tour this year), and the way his "pinkies" are sticking out, and the way his lips are slightly spread apart (excuse the innuendo). Instead, I would've loved a cool picture with his guitar (ala Rock N Roll Hall of Fame performance) -- are you a rock star or a mouse? Anyway, it was kinda cool the way they designed the cover (red & white -- with the words "red-hot") to match the red polka-dots, but the red suit and a mean look woulda been sweeter.

Handclapsfingasnapz said:

He does kinda sorta resemble Halle Berry in that photo...

I was there at that Cleveland Show!! I am telling you it was amazing! It was LOUD & just insane

I emailed John Blackwell a few days later & he told me that Cleveland Show was AWESOME!!!

I hope that Prince is recording each show & he puts that cleveland show out as the official Concert DVD

I find it quite amusing though that the cover also has the text "ORIGINAL JACKASS" printed on it too.

I thout Rolling Stone was irrelevant these days

But seriously, it's sad that people still look to this magazine and think it's important in the music world. All because it was good in the past.

Jasziah said:

Agreed, bro....I think the choice of photo suggests P is going for an image circa Diamonds & Pearls-again.Well, at least the finger waves and doo rag is gone.. Ugh, androgynous is so 80's...Still love da funk, tho. He may just get a ghetto pass...lol lol lol

He looks Great. Ghetto Pass? Never!

I was at the Cleveland show also. The crowd was insane there. Especially where I was sitting at. There was this coulpe that was picking up confetti off the floor and throwing it back in the air. I would love for the Cleve show to be on DVD just so I can relive it and tell everyone "yeah, I was at that one".

WildStyle said:

Can't wait to get this!!!

GREAT photo of P on the cover, too. Does the man age???

Handclapsfingasnapz said:

Yes, it does!