Saint Paul 6 May 1990

 

My own bias is showing. Anyone familiar with this blog can see that I am enamored with Prince’s mid-80s concerts, and his mid-90s rebirth as the Symbol. I was a gangly, awkward teenager through the ’80s, Prince was the brightest star in a constellation of pop stars. By the mid-90’s I was in my twenties and able to fully appreciate Prince’s metamorphosis at that time as he moved beyond the pop realm and claimed his own previously unexplored sonic territory. I was now a serious music fan, and Prince was a serious musician. Other eras hold their charms, but these two points of Prince’s career coincided with major landmarks in my own life and as such hold a special place in my heart. I have always appreciated other years in Prince’s career, but perhaps I have never given them the attention they fully deserved. I have made an effort recently to visit some of these concerts, A couple of weeks ago I took a listen to a greatest hits show from 2010, and this week I will be digging deep into a concert that serves as a warm-up for the Nude tour, a tour that I have previously glossed over. Looking at the setlists, I can see no real reason why I don’t enjoy these concerts more, perhaps it’s Prince's own antipathy, while he is fully invested in the shows they aren’t geared around a major album push at the time (these aren’t really Batman shows and Graffiti Bridge was released just a two weeks before the end of the tour), and as such for me they appear as a hotchpotch of material. However, in his defense, the material does sound good live, and as always Prince is at his very best live on stage.

6th May 1990 – Saint Paul, Minnesota

“I could tell you things to get you excited, things you never heard”
What I could tell you is that this audience recording is excellent, it is crystal clear, and if not for the audience cheering in between the songs there are moments where it is almost as good as any soundboard. I could also tell you that Prince only performed the Nude tour twice outside Europe, once at this concert and once at the Big Chick charity concert just a week previous. This recording is light years beyond that Big Chick bootleg, there is absolutely no comparison as this one shines and sparkles in a way that the Big Chick recording cannot come close to.

Forget the “DAT Intro,” there’s nothing there that hasn’t been heard before and at my age, I don’t have time to sit through a series of teases, the concert kick starts with a pounding “The Future.” It stands proud on this quality recording, Prince’s vocals flanked by towering synths and great slabs of pounding drum. It is minimalist, yet powerful, with its sense of purpose and direction building a path into the concert. It harks back to Prince’s 1999 electronic sound, all the while pointing to the future with its real drum sound that fits Prince’s “real music by real musicians” mantra.

 

There is a soft-focused warmth to “1999,” although it sounds pale in comparison to the previous song, and indeed to the album version itself. This band isn’t one to cause a revolution, and the song stays neatly tucked up in cotton wool, never threatening to break out into the party that Prince promises.

This iteration of the NPG continues to pull down the flag of the previous regime with their own version of “Housequake” that contains a lot more bounce but a little less greasy funk. It’s fun but has no hint of danger that Prince exudes in his best performances. The dip into “Sexy Dancer,” is a nice touch, but unnecessary in the face of what could be a funk monster under other circumstances.

The recording remains pristine and promises much as “Kiss” slides into view, slippery and groove-laden from the start. It’s not as busy as some arrangements that Prince has toyed with, yet Prince never strips it back as far as it is on record, there is the bass bobbing in the background on the sea swell of funk, and the extra vocals are just on the wrong side of intrusive. However it’s hard to fault on a recording as good as this, and the final coda takes me back to the 12-inch version, we are within a whisker of hearing “woman overboard,” before Rosie’s thunderous voice makes an appearance, stealing the song from the band and making the next few minutes all hers. The final minutes trickle away on the back of Prince’s cascading guitar, leaving us with a well-rounded and satisfying rendition.

As he did throughout the Nude tour, Prince gives us a heavily abridged version of “Purple Rain.” It still runs for seven minutes, but the excesses of the ’80s are trimmed from it, presenting a verse, chorus, and clipped guitar break that, although nods to all the right markers, doesn’t give the same sense of a thrilling ride that we hear elsewhere. It is bereft of the emotional core that so many cling to, and although it sounds right it leaves the arena in the same state as it found it in, as if it had never existed at all.

 

A great, jangling “Take Me With U,” rises from the arena, and immediately makes an impression with its youthful vitality. Light on record, I am constantly surprised by how much this lifts concerts when it is played, and here is no exception as the energy levels on the recording take a huge upswing. It is Prince who is mostly heard, a little disappointing as I would have loved to hear Rosie tear this up, but his final rhythmic guitar breakdown touches all my sweet spots and opens the door nicely for “Alphabet St.”

Now is the time for Rosie to shine, and although it’s Prince that leads us into the song, soon enough it is Rosie’s voice that arrives from the depths with her warm, all-encompassing timbre. It is a quick diversion as we stray further from the core of the song, but a pleasant distraction and one that I fully approve of. The to and fro with Prince and his rap only heightens the sense of power in her vocals, her voice seemingly towering over Prince’s more measured delivery.

Prince introduces “The Question Of U” and it emerges slowly from the darkness, revealing itself with its unmistakable beat and Prince’s off-kilter lyrics. It is a wispy solo that snakes from Prince’s guitar, almost scared of the light it stays low in the mix, not the least bit bold and strident as I expect. The recording has been good throughout and I can only attribute this anemic sound to the mix in the building rather than the taper. With a nod to the past, Prince gives us a gravelly rendition of Muddy Water’s “Electric Man,” turning the air electric with his own sexually charged version that while drawing from the past updates it to his own vision of the future.

 

Rather oddly “Controversy” fades in, leaving me wondering if the start of it was missed by the taper, but soon enough it is comfortably part of the concert. It is short but played as a passionate, grimy full version in comparison with some of the light and shiny renditions we hear later in Prince’s career. Rosie Gaines touches it, making it all the more interesting with her “do me baby” lines giving the song soulful ornamentation to hang off its raw-boned funk.

Rosie Gaines remains the center of the concert universe with her take on Aretha Franklin’s “Ain’t No Way.” It’s a brave cover to take on, but Rosie is worthy of the challenge and delivers a powerful rendition that fills every crack of the recording with her warmth. For a moment the concert becomes entirely Rosie’s as she temporarily has us forgetting all that has come before.

Prince covers a similar territory with his very own “Nothing Compares 2 U,” a soulful song that drips emotion from the first moment we hear Prince’s voice. Prince draws all he can from it, the song pumped up with a crying hurt at every opportunity, and Prince’s final hoarse cry seals the deal and sells the song. Not yet ready to share with others, it is only Prince on the vocals, Rosie is sidelined for now, although she will be unleashed at full power in later years.

“Batdance” is an oddball. It was unique upon its release, and live in concert it remains so. One can enjoy it well enough, but it lacks any sort of organic rawness, even the Gameboyz hype and flow fail to lift the song beyond its recorded state, although it does seem to go over with the crowd very well judging from the cheers on the recording. The funk guitar remains a highlight, the crowd singing less so.

Next on the recording is a rare surprise, the only live performance of “Scandalous” from the Nude tour. Miko’s guitar sings out, immediately marking it as a sensual performance, his playing just as emotive as Prince’s vocals, each note glistening like dew in the early morning sun. The rest of the song comes with a soft reach, Prince’s vocals rising and falling in front of a steady swell of synth. It could be too much, but the band keeps it on a finely balanced edge, the song never dipping into the synth-laden schmaltz that it could have. It’s sexy, but never once sweaty or overly romantic.

 

There is a fierce drumbeat that batters the eardrums for the opening of “Baby I’m A Star,” the recording for the first time not quite as perfect as it has been. However, the urgency of the music carries the day and buries this first beat in a collision of sound. The moment revolves around Prince, the man at the eye of the storm controlling the band with a multitude of calls and cues. There is a moment where Prince mentions the fourth-coming European tour – “We gotta get outta here, Europe is waiting,” which is greeted with howls from the crowd, adding to the easy nature Prince has between himself and his home audience. The swing and sass of the longer jam maintain this easy vibe, the groove providing a platform for Tony M’s gentle hyping of the crowd, a smooth vibe that attracts me throughout. Rosie adds some sense of gravity with her quickfire shot of “Respect,” the song giving a blistering finish as we head pall-mall to the last song.

There is no more appropriate song to finish this concert with than the eternally effervescent “Partyman.” The song dissolves rapidly into a typical Prince final jam, the beat merely a jumping-off point into a multitude of different directions, Prince offering up several different paths but never venturing down any as he keeps the song moving forward. The song ends abruptly, never building to the epic conclusion I had hoped for and the material promised, the final minute letting down what otherwise has been a superb concert, and an excellent recording.

I have regrets. I regret I didn’t listen to this recording earlier. I regret I didn’t give enough time to this era. I regret I didn’t appreciate any of this until later in life. Make no mistake, this is a sublime audience recording, and Prince playing to his home crowd only makes his performance all the more energized and heartfelt. I will not be overlooking this era again, and I guarantee that this concert will be playing more at our house in the next few weeks. I may have skipped over it in the past, but I will certainly make up for it now -you can take that as a high recommendation indeed.