Jan 03 01-01-2003 : xpectation
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! h Family Jamm @ LA (1:34) (A : The Family Jamm 2003 - ?/10 * V : Ist Annual Family Jamm - 7/10) Mia Bocca / Take Me With U / Thirteen / Ten / Six / Sixteen / River Run Dry / The Screams Of Passion / Nothing Compares 2 U High Fashion / Mutiny / Go-Go Dancer / I Feel For You / Sister Fate (Intro) / Oliver’s House / The Belle Of St Mark A Love Bizarre (Incl. Batdance / Transmississippi Rap) / One Nation Under A Groove (w/ Lynn Mabry) / Holly Rock / 17 Days
Raspberry Beret / Anotherloverholenyohead / Purple Rain (w/ Patti LaBelle) / Baby I’m A Star The first annual Family Jamm is held at the Forum in Los Angeles. A fundraiser for the Lil' Angel Buddy foundation, founded by Sheila E., the show featured a number of (former) Prince associates, including : Patti LaBelle, Chaka Khan, Jill Jones, and Apollonia as well as reunion performances by Madhouse, The Family, and The Revolution. Prince was in Los Angeles and had an open invitation to participate, but he did not show up at the Forum.  
Anyway, here's a review of what happened during the show : Carmen opened the show right about 8pm (a little later than it was supposed to start, but nothing like I've waited to see Prince at some of his shows) and introduced the first act, Jill Jones. Jill sounded and looked amazing in her performance of Mia Bocca. Though her performance was only one song, she showed that she could still sing and dance like it's nobody's business, and I heard that she's now an interior designer in New York... Carmen came back out and introduced Apollonia, who did a pretty wooden version of Take Me With U during which she forgot the lyrics to part of the end of the song, but looked good wearing a short-short red, and blue sequined outfit. I didn't realize that she was going to be singing, I thought she was just presenting, which was a surprise to me since I've seen Apples 8-9 times and never seen her sing. After her one song, Carmen came back out again and talked about the Lil' Angel Bunny Foundation (and their website at www.lilangelbunny.com), to which all of the proceeds for the night went to. Sheila E and her business partner, former Brides of Funkenstein singer Lynn Mabry talked about the emotional rollercoaster that the week had been, and the audience sang an impromptu Happy Birthday to Sheila, whose birthday was the day before. The next band, introduced by Lynn Mabry, was Madhouse, which was comprised of Sheila E, Dr. Fink (wearing a leather jacket instead of his typical surgical scrubs), Eric Leeds and Raymond McKinley, in place of Levi Seacer Jr. What could I say, the band sounded tight. Mabry said this was the first time the band, in this incarnation, had ever performed on stage together. They played 10, 13, 6 and 16. Before Eric went into the song "6", he held up six fingers to let the audience know that was what he was gonna play. I thought that was pretty funny. But since I had never seen Madhouse play live before, I was absolutely thrilled to see them. Carmen rapped a few lines from Go Go Dancer next, and said she was gonna perform that song, but had just come back from New York and didn't have time to practice it. Next, Carmen introduced the Family as a true "number one" band...one album, one video, one show together..it was pretty funny. But their performance was one of the tightest live performances I've ever seen...what a shame they never got to tour. The band was made up of St. Paul Peterson (who has the "rock star" look now), a blonde Susannah Melvoin (looking as good as she ever has), Jellybean Johnson, Eric Leeds and Miko Weaver (sporting a beret and a hoop nosering) and Jerome Benton. Their act began with an abbreviated version of River Run Dry, which ran into the funkiest version ever of Screams of Passion. Next was Nothing Compares 2 U, sung beautifully as an orchestrated version, rather than the near acapella version on the Family cd. Next, Sheila E. came out to play keyboards on High Fashion, and Eric Leeds switched over to keyboards too. Their final jam was on Mutiny, which ran light years around the version of the song that Prince performed on the Hit and Run tour a few years ago. And with that, a couple of the people sitting around me said, "ok, I'm ready to go home happy now." After the Family blew us all away, Carmen came out and showed off her wedding ring before announcing the next guest, the larger-than-life (literally) Chaka Khan, who was wearing a black dress that was, um, missing the front portion. She sounded great on a nearly 10-minute version of I Feel 4 U though, even scatting through part of it, which I'd never heard her do. She really has a powerful voice. Next was Nicole Parker, of the Showtime show "Soul Food." She's really beautiful in person...the photo of her on the website didn't nearly do her justice. Anyway, she read an essay from an abused child who had been helped in life by music, which is the message of what the Lil Angel Bunny Foundation is trying to do. The child, who was in attendance at the show, rose from the junk going on in his family to become a professional gospel singer with the gospel choir Soldiers on Soul Patrol. Pete Escovedo was next to introduce his daughter, along with her Purple Rain-era band for a funky set, similar to the one she played at Prince's Celebration in 2002. The band opened with the intro to Sister Fate, which went into Oliver's House, The Belle of St. Mark, and a funky version of A Love Bizarre, which also featured Lynn Mabry on vocals for a quick One Nation Under a Groove. Next was the funkiest version of Holly Rock ever, with Sheila coming into the audience a couple of times to get closer to the fans. The band launched into a full version of 17 Days, during which the audience was nearly singing louder than she was. At one point, she invited the audience to sing and told us that we "had the wrong lyrics" even though she was wrong. It was about the only mess-up she had the entire evening though. :) 17 Days became Alphabet St., where Sheila sang the last verse, and when the rap was gonna start, she said "psyche" and went into the rap from It's Gonna Be a Beautiful Night, which seemed to go over with this crowd as "I wanna hold your hand" would have gone over at a Beatles concert. Finally, she ended her set with funky, nearly 10-minute jam on The Glamorous Life. After Sheila blew the crowd away, as she usually does, Carmen came out and spoke a few lines from her rap from Prince's "The Continental" before introducing the next act, Patti LaBelle. Looking as classy as ever, Patti sang the rarely performed Yo Mister, written by Prince, and absolutely wailed through it. Through the end of the second verse, Patti seemed to have trouble remembering the lyrics and picked up the printout of the lyrics from the floor and still sounded great through it. After the song, she admitted that she doesn't perform it much, and that she didn't know the words when Prince gave it to her and didn't know them now either. :) The coolest thing about her performance though was that she was wailing through the end of the song and as her voice got louder, the curtain in the back of the stage seemed to go up on cue, as if she was the pied piper charming a snake. Another highlight of the evening was next, with Carmen announcing "members of the Time", which was St. Paul, Juan Escovedo, Jellybean and Jerome, with Sheila dressed with the do-rag, pimp coat and painted-on mustache of Morris Day, singing a song to the tune of Jungle Love that was about Morris Day not showing up because he wasn't getting paid. She even had Morris' moves down. It was pretty funny... Finally, Alan Leeds came out to introduce, for the first time on stage together in 17 years, the members of the Revolution, which were Fink, Bobby Z., Wendy and Lisa, Brownmark, Susannah Melvoin and Eric Leeds. Before the performance however, Alan acknowledged those around the band who have since passed away, including Big Chick Huntsberry and Boni Boyer. For this reunion though, Sheila came into the audience to watch, and was standing on one of the seats in the front row. It was so cute. :) Wendy sang lead vocals and was the voice of the Revolution, who said that it took a lot for the band to get back together, but that there was still love in the band and that this would not be the last time the band got together again (!!!!!!!). And with that, she launched them into the funkiest version ever of Mountains. Even better than the soundcheck. :) Next was America, which sounded equally as great. Pop Life was next, which I think sounded better than Prince on his last tour. Before launching into Raspberry Beret, Wendy acknowledged that there was a genious behind every one of the songs they were playing that night, and that Prince couldn't be there and despite that, they wanted to thank him for what he gave them. To me, it was amazing that, despite rumors that Prince was in Los Angeles he couldn't show up at this gig. Oh well.... The band played Anotherloverholenyohead, which showcased Eric Leeds' abilities, was probably his pick since he said at the Celebration in 2002 that his favorite song to play was that one. :) A somber Purple Rain, which sounded amazing was next, and towards the end of the song, Patti LaBelle came out to sing the chorus with the band. At that point, it was a free-for-all on the stage with all of the artists minus Chaka Khan on stage to sing the finale, a hellafunky Baby I'm a Star. I got some photos of the performance which I'll post at some point, but in a nutshell, this is why I was smiling so much on Sunday. :) Celebrities spotted at the show were Susannah's husband Doyle Bramhall II, Natalie Cole, Wanda Sykes and apparently Danny DeVito. :) I also heard that John Blackwell was there but I didn't see him.  
14-12-2003 : Hawaii Prince and Manuela travel to Hawaii, where they reside in Prince's house on Maui. + Candy Dulfer Candy Dulfer joins the World Tour 2003 mid December 2003 in Hawaii and remains in the line up for the Musicology Tour 16-12-2003 : Star Bulletin Elusive Prince talks music before show By Gary C.W. Chun A light blue laminated sign reading "lakshmi," leads back stage at the Blaisdell Arena, to Prince. It refers to the Hindu goddess of power, beauty and prosperity, in both the material and spiritual sense. The guarded but still congenial musician has taken a moment before yesterday's late afternoon rehearsal to talk briefly about his music - and nothing more. His rules : No notebooks, no pens, no tape recorders. While it's evident that he's taken "lakshmi" to heart - as a musician, bandleader and fiercely independent businessman who keeps in touch with fans through his NPG Music Club Web site - he deflects comment about his Jehovah's Witnesses studies, saying simply, "It's a personal matter." Other than that, he's willing to talk about the music that will be presented on Oahu tonight and Maui Friday. Judging by the elaborate stage setup that will take up nearly half the arena's floor space, and the sporadic bursts of music being rehearsed backstage, it should be one heck of a show. Prince has just finished touring Australia and Hong Kong, has a DVD out that documents his show at the Aladdin in Las Vegas, and his latest album on his own label, "N.E.W.S.," is among the Best Pop Instrumental Album Grammy nominees. He's shopping for a new label to help distribute his music to a wider audience, although he will retain all publishing rights. Once, as he says, "the record industry is put to death," he'll probably release more exploratory material that hasn't seen the "legal" light of day, including, hopefully, sessions with the late Miles Davis. In the meantime, he's surrounded again by a crack New Generation band that includes two formidable alto sax players in longtime James Brown sideman Maceo Parker and Dutch-born guest Candy Dulfer. When Prince is not performing, he and the band are jamming. "It's like what we did in Australia and Hong Kong - after a show, we'd set up again at a nearby club and keep jamming." He also likes to vary the concert set list nightly, allowing the rest of his "leaders" room to stretch and solo. But don't expect to hear the earlier, more sexually explicit songs he's made famous. He says he's grown, not only as a musician, but as a person, and that material doesn't reflect who he is now. When I say that I thought he was channeling Ray Charles during his "Strange Relationship" performance on the DVD, he laughs and says "somebody else mentioned that to me. It's not like I'm doing it on purpose. And while I think I may have met him briefly earlier in my career, drawing inspiration from him and others like him, I don't want to feel that my music has to be compared to theirs. When I work with guys like John and the rest of the band away from the stage, I want us to feel this is our music, and no one else's, that we're working on."
(A : The Complete Hawaii Tapes Vol.1 – 6/10) All The Critics Love U In Honolulu (Incl. What Is Love) / Dance To The Music (Incl. M’Lady / Sax-A-Go-Go) / Jam ♫ Honolulu Neal S Blaisdell Center (2:19) * Adv. Start : 8:00PM / Attendance : 6.000 / ? / Tick. Price : $80 / $70 / $50 (A : The Complete Hawaii Tapes Vol.1 – 7/10)
Baby I’m A Star / Shhh / DMSR (Incl. (I Like) Funky Music) / A Love Bizarre The Glamorous Life / I Feel For You / Controversy / Renato Interlude The Beautiful Ones / Nothing Compares 2 U / Insatiable / Sign O’ The Times The Question Of U (Incl. The Ride / The One / Fallin’) / The Ride / Let’s Work U Got The Look / Life O’ The Party (Incl. Hot Pants / Uptown Up) Soul Man (Chance Howard) / Kiss / Take Me With U / The Everlasting Now How Come U Don’t Call Me Anymore / Alphabet St / Purple Rain Prince continues the 2003 tour with a concert at the Neal S Blaisdell Arena, Honolulu, Hawaii. Sabotage's release of the rescheduled Hawaiian shows in preparation for the US Musicology tour. For some reason these shows are looked down upon by people due to their unashamed "greatest hits" content (more so than the Musicology tour), however they shouldn't be overlooked so easily as there are some flashes of brilliance on here which make the shows rather special. I've rated the main show as an EX- recording, but it should be noted that it only slightly misses the grade of an EX recording due to the increased crowd noise from 'How Come U Don't Call Me Anymore' onwards - the remainder is surprisingly excellent, free of any interference and/or problems and of a very high standard. The show itself is similar to the October 2003 Australian tour and elements from the past 2002 One Nite Alone tour and the (at the time) upcoming 2004 Musicology tour are evident throughout. The show begins with an atmospheric keyboard into accredited to RAD which bears a passing resemblance to the One Nite Alone tour opener, before Prince recites the complete opening "Dearly beloved" lyric with the slight change of "There's something else....the truth" - it should also be noted the religious whoring is thankfully at a minimum throughout. The majority of the main section of the show is representative of the Musicology tour, however there are a small number of things which were evidently straightened out before the US tour launched - it's interesting to hear how the show changed from this into what the US audience got a matter of 3 months later. The only slight change worth picking up on during the main show is the stopping/starting of 'The Question Of U' to incorporate a stunning version of 'The Ride' with some ferocious guitar work. The encore section begins with Prince at the piano for a basic run-through of 'How Come U Don't Call Me Anymore' before launching into an enjoyable, loose jam on 'Alphabet St.' before the show closes out with the usual 'Purple Rain'. As mentioned previously the audience level increases slightly for the encore section, and a certain gentleman in the crowd's constant screaming for '7' is funny to begin with, but grates after 10 minutes - obviously for him too as he gives up after screaming "Prince, play fucking 7 man !" to no avail. One last thing regarding the main show is Prince saying "If you feel that Saddam Hussein is a hairdresser, talk to me" during 'Sign O' The Times' which has be puzzled. Overall an enjoyable, undemanding show which at times seems more like a rehearsal than a concert - which makes it (to me) more appealing.  
♫ Honolulu Volcanoes Aftershow (1:06) * Start : 1:20AM / Attendance : 600 / ? / Tick. Price : $25 (A : The Complete Hawaii Tapes Vol.1 – 7/10) Mama Feelgood (RAD) / Yes We Can Can (Incl. Ain’t It Funky Now / Stretchin’ Out (In A Rubber Band)) (RAD) 1+1+1=3 (Incl. Life O’ the Party / Stretchin’ Out) / Life O’ The Party (Incl. Hot Pants / Uptown Up) No Diggity (Chance Howard) / Ooh ! (RAD) / All The Critics Love U In Honolulu (Incl. Stretchin’ Out)
An aftershow is played at Volcanoes Night Club, Honolulu, Hawaii. The show was announced over the PA at the regular concert as an aftershow, rather than the afterparty as usual. Prince and the band entered the stage at around 1:20 am and started off the cover-oriented set with "Mama Feelgood," a song written by James Brown and performed by Lyn Collins (from the soundtrack Black Caesar, 1973). Next up was “Yes We Can Can," the lead track of The Pointer Sisters' self-titled debut album from 1973. RAD sang lead vocals on these first two songs. A part of "Ain't It Funky Now" (from James Brown’s Ain't It Funky Now, 1969) was included. Then followed "1+1+1 Is 3," which included a chant of "we like to party." Another James Brown composition, "I Know You Got Soul," was next, which was followed by an instrumental rendition of "Life O' The Party." Blackstreet's "No Diggity" sung by Chance Howard and Mary J. Blige's "Ooh," sung by RAD, were then performed, after which "All The Critics Love U In New York,” including a chant of "we like to party" closed the show around 2:25. The aftershow is equally enjoyable, although the recording is a little less impressive (still a solid EX- recording). The majority of the short set is made up of the opening 3 tracks which are basically lengthy instrumental tracks featuring various parts thrown in from different band members. The horn section are heavily featured, although RAD herself gets a fair amount of time on the mic. The accompanying artwork and booklet are as equally good as the content of the discs and capture the Hawaiian-style perfectly featuring various images lifted from the 2003 Australian tourbook. Overall this (along with the 3cd/4cd Maui release) are utterly fantastic documents of the short 2003 tour and the gap between the musicianship of One Nite Alone tour and the showmanship of the Musicology tour. It's worth checking out Sabotage's related release 'The Complete Hawaii Tapes Vol. 2 : Maui'. 
My excitement is tempered somewhat by the crowd noise, and sound of an audience recording. It’s not bad by such standards, it just takes my ears a minute or two to adjust to the sound of it. The first song in the set is Mama Feelgood, and it does indeed make me feel good, especially with the sounds of the horn section and a sharp sounding keyboard. The horn section is particularly strong, and I impress myself when I recognize the sound of Maceo Parker in the mix – I must have listened to too many of these shows now. Rose Ann Dimalanta is singing, and it’s a shame that the recording doesn’t really do her justice, she sounds secondary to the band, and her vocals aren’t picked up very well. As always, there is something positive to counter balance this, and in this case it definitely is the horns, which increase in intensity as the song progresses. The keyboards too get plenty of time to play, and the song stretches out as it gives us a good idea of how the rest of the gig will play out. It’s topped off by some funky guitar licks that whet my appetite. The funk continues as the next song begins, and it grooves right from the start. The band locks in nice and tight and my head really starts bobbing. They slide through Yes We Can, and then we hear Prince singing for the first time “Ain’t It Funky Now”. Rose Ann Dimalanta quickly pickups with singing Yes We Can, and the band stay on this groove for some time. I like how smooth and seamless it sounds and, if not for the quality of the recording, I could easily close my eyes and groove out to it. It feels light and summer like, and conjures up all sorts of imagines as I nod along to it. The song takes another up turn as Prince begins to sing Yes We Can, he sounds much stronger and louder on the microphone, and the show seems to pick up some momentum too. At the same time my ears prick up, and I listen for more of him. I am rewarded by a simmering guitar break that gains in intensity as it plays us through the last couple of minutes. On a soundboard recording this guitar break would be excellent, as it is, it’s just very good. Things don’t let up as next we get a great version of 1+1+1=3. It’s got a great funky intro, with plenty of guitar and groove. The scene is set as Prince has the crowd chanting “we like to party” early on, and they are very enthusiastic in doing so. There isn’t any lyrics sung, but at an after show like this, that is irrelevant, It’s all about the music and the groove. The energetic trombone solo from Greg Boyer sounds like a lot of fun. All the horn section is in on the party, and Maceo plays a brief solo too before there is a horn riff from all of them. It’s nicely counterbalanced by Prince and a laid back guitar solo which I didn’t expect to hear at this point. It’s refined and only takes on a heavier tone when the band pause and we catch a breath. The band pick up right where they left off and now the party gets serious, I can hear it oozing out of my head phones. This song has a little bit of everything, there is Life O The Party in the mix, as well as Stretching Out (In A Rubber Band) as well as instrumental Hot Pants. Although he played parts of Stretching Out in the last two songs, it wasn’t quite the full on version I had hoped for. Still, what I have heard so far from these first three songs has been very good, so I have no complaints at all. No Diggity is bass heavy, with a fat squelching bass at the start. It’s not until a minute in does it become apparent what the song is, with the introduction of the keyboards and Chance Howard singing. It’s missing some of the sharpness that I like in the song, but I put this down to the recording rather than the performance. What I really like about the song is the solo from Candy on sax. It’s bold when it needs to be, and adds a brighter sound to the recording. The song doesn’t do much else later, but that chorus is so catchy that I sing heartily along to the finish. I love the next moment as someone in the crowd yells “play some old school !” I can’t help but laugh as he calls it out. Prince then does the opposite and plays something current from the time. Ooh ! is a another chance for Rose Ann Dimalanta to sing, and this time she sounds better, especially in those moments when she is backed by Prince. I do like the song, but compared to everything else in the show it seems to fall through the cracks. There’s not much of a chance for the band to really play, and Prince is minimal throughout. There is a guitar break late in the song, and this is about the only moment when I feel any interest in it. It’s not a scorching solo, instead it’s a sweet little sharp sound that is very enjoyable. All The Critics Love U initially sounds shallow. It’s got a hollow electric sound to it, however this improves immeasurable when the bass gets stronger. The beat is hypnotic rather than insistent, and its sounds soft to my ears. Maceo’s solo sharpens things up, there is no denying that he is a master at what he does. For all that though, it doesn’t reach the heights of some of the earlier songs, and it’s a disappointing ending to the show. The shallow sound of it reminds me of some of the Diamond and Pearls era mixes, and for a show in 2003 it definitely has a 1990’s sound for this last song. There is some chanting with the crowd, which I guess is a fun way for them to finish, but I can’t get past that dated sound. Greg Boyer makes amends with a spirited trombone solo to finish, and the show closes on a high, I’m smiling here at home. This was an odd little show, I can see how I easily over looked it. Although it didn’t feature Stretched Out (In A Rubber Band) as much as I had hoped, there was still plenty there to recommend it. I enjoyed hearing the horn section and Prince himself sounded very at easy. It may be sometime before I play this one again, there are too many classics out there to listen to, but next time I won’t wait so long before I give it another spin.  
17-12-2003 : NPGMC These r the kinda shows that make being on the road with The NPG F-U-N !! Prince was straight clownin' (somebody else can fill u'all in.) Not sure if it was the break that they had but his VOCALS were off coat rack ! He was hittin' notes higher than we EVER heard him hit b4. Can somebody say - "The Beautiful Ones"... Highlites include "The Ride" (oldie but a goodie) as well as a new and improved D.M.S.R. (complete with horn lines from The Time's "Tricky". "CONTROVERSY" was just 4 words : RE-DIC - AH – LOUS ! Maceo Parker did what sounded like the solo from "Mother Popcorn" & Prince just shook all the Royal Crown loose from his scalp ! People listen, if this is a warm-up gig 4 the Amercian leg of the tour : 4get 1984-5 This may very well b his crowning moment...u heard it here first. What ? Honolulu Advertiser 
Prince sizzles for lucky few who attended By Chad Pata The most under-promoted rock show in years proved to be the best show this millennium as Prince set the night on fire at the Blaisdell Arena yesterday. Despite sparse attention in the media and thousands of empty seats, Prince showed why he truly ruled the '80s. Opening with the keyboard tones of "Let's Go Crazy," he floated out on stage in an all-white ensemble resembling the robes of Vietnamese monks. The resemblance stopped there as the band kicked in and washed over the crowd like a surprise set at Sandy Beach from which the fans never recovered. The rest of the show they spent screaming and looking around at one another, not believing their eyes. His horn section could break out as their own jazz trio and the drummer, well, he was something to behold. Encased in glass as if he were a lion at the zoo, he attacked his kit with an accuracy and ferocity not seen since Dave Grohl was last in town. Prince never introduced him but he wore a Frosty the Snowman hat. When he put it on his head, the kids began to dance around. Not to overlook the man himself : Even if you don't like his music, you would have to love his show. He flits about the stage with such ease, he appears to be attached to wires a la "The Matrix." His guitar solos rivaled anything seen since Eddie Van Halen was here, but they appeared effortless. Instead of a sweat-stained grimace, hair in the eyes, he'd just smile seductively at the girls in the front row, dry as a bone and exhibiting no more effort than he would turning out the light. During "Shhh" he commanded everyone to clap, common practice at rock shows. But instead of obliging him, we all realized our hands were clapping of their own accord. Such is his power to take over an auditorium. He hasn't had a hit song in 15 years, but all these old favorites felt as fresh as rain. At one point the band began with the opening chords of "When Doves Cry," then morphed into "Kiss" as if it had always been that way. Midway through the set, he told them that he was renaming Honolulu to the more funk-appropriate "Honolula" and to pronounce it "like you have a piece of chicken in your mouth." He followed this with a funk jam session with each member being highlighted and showing just how far funk has come. Starting with George Clinton and Sly and the Family Stone, it was a greasy, underground, ultimately danceable music. Prince has since distilled it to a pure jazz sound with rock 'n' roll energy. Listening to it, you have to smile. He slowed it down toward the end, playing the love ballad "Beautiful Ones," singing his heart out as he writhed on top of the monitors, sending the females into a tizzy. Also his version of "Nothing Compares to U" made you wonder why he ever let Sinead O'Connor have it in the first place. He finished the show on a high note with classics like "Sign O' the Times," a song about problems in the inner city. His microphone was shaped like a gun and he would point it at the crowd between verses. Not in a threatening gangsta way, but as a way of bringing the crowd into the show, letting them know he knew they were there. That may be the biggest difference between Prince and the young R&B acts we see today. The music is about the people, and the lucky group that attended last night got a glimpse of how great rock 'n' roll can be. 
18-12-2003 : Honolulu Advertiser Prince opens door to unarmed chat By Derek Paiva The artist formerly known as The Artist Formerly Known As Prince opened up - sort of - to select members of the Honolulu media yesterday afternoon at Blaisdell Arena. The artist once again known as Prince said in a quick interview that he most enjoys his yearly visits to his Maui home because he likes the people and 'nobody's frontin' in Hawaii'. The occasion for the one-on-one interviews, scheduled only hours earlier ? Boosting apparently sluggish ticket sales to the musician's concerts tonight at the Blaisdell Arena and Friday at the Maui Arts & Cultural Center. But while Prince may have wanted some fast press, he wasn't about to avoid calling the shots. And so, denied permission to document our meeting with video, tape recorder, or even a paper and pen, The Advertiser arrived empty-handed for a 15-minute sit-down with Prince in his dressing room before an early evening rehearsal. "Who's the first patient ?" the musician asked, switching glances between two invited journalists. I motioned the competition to sit for his one-on-one first. Prince had casually strolled into a backstage crew room seconds earlier. Diminutive and wispy thin, the artist still managed to look comfortably stylish in a tan silk shirt with thin colored stripes and tan slacks. His open shirt, unbuttoned past his chest, revealed some serious chest hair and a thick gold medallion the size of a drink coaster. Prince shook our hands and seemed eager to start chatting. Though sporting only a touch of makeup, he looked in person at least a decade younger than his 45 years. Fifteen minutes later, in Prince's dressing room, a photographer moved around the artist, his New Power Generation drummer and me like a hawk circling prey. As the photographer snapped away, Prince settled comfortably on a couch across from me and talked about his Maui home. He said he had visited the residence once a year for the last four years, "always around the same time." He confessed that he most enjoyed his annual visits because he liked the people and "because nobody's frontin'" in Hawaii. Fond of occasionally dropping unannounced into Maui nightclubs to catch and sometimes sit in with local musicians, Prince even remembered being moved enough to surprise O'ahu reggae band Natural Vibrations with an on-stage guitar instrumental at Kihei's Bada Bing ! in December 2001. On the subject of his recent selection for induction into the Rock And Roll Hall of Fame, Prince commented that while the nomination was something of an honor, such awards were "not important to me" in the overall scheme of things. The honor, he said, was being in the company of musicians already inducted. Prince said he would perform at the March 15 induction ceremonies in New York, if invited, but felt sorry "for whoever they choose to go on after me." Longish tendrils of dark hair framing his forehead danced as he chuckled at his comment. The testiest moment of our chat came when I quizzed him about his recent decision to do "hit-loaded" live shows after years of virtually ignoring audience favorites on stage. This was also when I found out that Prince does indeed read his own press. "I'm not doing it because I need the cash," Prince said sternly, after commenting on news stories (including one I'd written for The Advertiser's TGIF section last Friday) that suggested the artist was looking to feather his retirement nest egg with the guaranteed cash of a "greatest hits" tour. He pointed out that he already had more money in his bank account than he needed, thanks to ownership of the publishing rights for his vast hits catalog and new music created outside of his famously strained relationship with former record label Warner Bros. Recent hit-heavy shows, he said, were practice runs designed to prepare his New Power Generation band for larger American and international tours planned for the near future. The shows were purposely scheduled in Hong Kong, Australia and Hawaii to keep them "far away from the press and the cameras," Prince explained. But he still hadn't explained why he wanted to dive deeply into his hits catalog in a live setting after so many years. So I asked him ... again. "You've asked me that in three different ways," Prince said testily. "Why do you think I'm playing the songs ?" I answered that I didn't know. "You know why," he insisted. I assured him I didn't, and asked him to explain. He was visibly uncomfortable, searching for an answer; it was best to move on. I chose a query about music he was currently grooving to. His brown eyes widening with very real pride, he mentioned musical projects that members of New Power Generation were working on. After copping to a fondness for the track "Powerless" from Nelly Furtado's recently released CD "Folklore," Prince shook my hand and I exited the room. Later, as I was being denied permission to watch his rehearsal and to commit my mental notes to paper within Blaisdell Arena, I noticed Prince alone by the freight entrance, dancing to blasts of live funk drifting from NPG's dressing room. His lithe frame swayed gently to the beat. His designer shoes tapped loudly on the Blaisdell's concrete floor. As I exited, a Blaisdell security guard informed me, "You're lucky, man. I haven't seen anybody talk with him alone like that yet. Was he cool ?" Well, he wasn't frontin'. 19-12-2003 : ♫ Maui Soundcheck (0:45) (A : The Complete Hawaii Tapes Vol.2 – 7/10)
Mama Feelgood / Musicology / Give It Up Or Turn It A Loose / I Feel For You Controversy / Guitar Solo / Controversy / Slow Jam / The Ride Head (Incl. Uptown Up) / Rainbow Children (Incl. Jean-Pierre) ♫ Maui Arts & Cultural Center (2:15) * Adv. Start : 7:00PM / Tick. Price : $75 / $65 / $50 (A : The Complete Hawaii Tapes Vol.2 – 7/10)
Baby I’m A Star / Shhh / DMSR (Incl. (I Like) Funky Music / Give Up The Funk Tricky) / A Love Bizarre / The Glamorous Life / I Feel For You / Controversy Renato Interlude / The Beautiful Ones / Nothing Compares 2 U / Insatiable Sign O’ The Times / The Question Of U (Incl. The One / Fallin’) / Let’s Work U Got The Look / Life O’ The Party (Incl. Hot Pants / Uptown Up) Soul Man (Chance Howard) / Kiss / Take Me With U / The Everlasting Now How Come U Don’t Call Me Anymore / On The Couch / Adore Alphabet St / Purple Rain
* Start : 12:30AM / Attendance 400 / ? / Tick. Price : $25 (A : The Complete Hawaii Tapes Vol.2 – 7/10) Mama Feelgood / Yes, We Can Can / Maceo Groove / The Everlasting Now / Funk Groove (Incl. No Diggity) (Chance Howard / Willie K.) / All The Critics Love U In Maui (w/ Willie K.) / Guitar Solo Prince plays an aftershow at Hapa's Night Club, Kihei, Hawaii. There were some 400 people in attendance. The NPG showed around 12:30 am and went into a jam led by RAD. Prince arrived with Manuela some 10 minutes later and strapped on a guitar to join in. The first two songs were the same as at Volcanoes : "Mama Feelgood" and "Yes We Can Can." Then followed a long instrumental jam with solos from Maceo Parker, going into an instrumental rendition of what sounded like "Soul Sacrifice." Renato Neto and Rhonda Smith both took solos during this and after the groove turned into a more funky direction Chance Howard also got his turn to solo a bit. The next song was the new aftershow favourite cover of Blackstreet's "No Diggity," with a solo spot for Candy Dulfer. Local musician William Awihilima Kahaialii, known as (Uncle) Willy K came on stage after this to do some free style rapping over a raga-flavoured groove. At one point he also borrowed a guitar from Prince to do a solo. "All The Critics Love U In New York" (with the lyrics changed to Maui) was played next, after which Prince took the lead on a hard rock guitar riff that ended the show on a high note just before 2:00 am, the club's curfew. 29-12-2003 : Los Angeles Prince flies home from Los Angeles to Minneapolis. At the airport, his bodyguard snatched a digital camera of a kid who took pictures of Prince. Download 1.3 Mb. Share with your friends:
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